Education during the Dutch rule<\/p>\n
It goes without saying that social conditions in a colony are
\nfar from perfect, but education was of a very high standard when
\nIndonesia was still a Dutch colony.<\/p>\n
Before World War II I lived in Madiun, Central Java, the
\ncapital of a residentie (regency). At that time the highest
\navailable education in the city was the meer uitgebreid lager
\nonderwijs (MULO) or more extensive lower education), i.e. three
\nyears after the primary school.<\/p>\n
Many Madiun children attended the Dutch middle school, the
\nHogere Burger School (HBS) or the Higher Citizen School, while
\nthe children of government officials went to the Algemene
\nMiddelbare School (AMS) or General Middle School.<\/p>\n
In the HBS the students had to master four European languages
\nnamely Dutch, German, English and French, besides the usual
\nsubjects such as algebra, geometry, physics, geography etc. It
\nwas not easy to graduate from such a rigorous education, and the
\ncurriculum lasted five years.<\/p>\n
At present, before entering university, a student has to study
\nfor 12 years altogether -- 6 years of elementary school, 3 years
\nof junior high school, and 3 years of senior high school.<\/p>\n
In prewar time, a doctor, lawyer or engineer -- who had to
\nfinish a secondary education before entering university -- spoke
\nfluently at least four European languages. The level of
\nevaluation in Dutch schools was very strict. At that time
\nuniversities could only be found in Jakarta (the Batavia) and
\nBandung, and the HBS schools existed only in the capitals of
\nprovinces, such as Semarang, Surabaya, Surakarta, Medan etc.<\/p>\n
A relative of mine, who graduated only from a MULO school, has
\nbeen able to become the founder of one of the prestigious private
\nbanks in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
A. DJUANA<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/education-during-the-dutch-rule-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }