Expert welcomes plan to upgrade teachers<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): An education expert welcomed the government's
\nplan to upgrade teachers who are not university graduates, but
\nexpressed reservations over the call for them to pay their own
\nway through the program.<\/p>\n
Marsetio Donoseputro, a legislator of the House Commission IX,
\nwhich oversees education, told The Jakarta Post that most
\nteachers will find it difficult to continue their education
\nwithout some financial assistance.<\/p>\n
"It'll be difficult for the teachers, especially those working
\nat state-owned junior and senior high schools, to pay for their
\neducation at universities," he said. "Most of them are not well-
\noff financially."<\/p>\n
Director General of Higher Education Bambang Soehendro last
\nweek announced the plan to send senior and junior high school
\nteachers to universities in an effort to improve their
\nqualifications. The government, however, doesn't expect the
\nteachers to wait until there's money for the program. It is
\nrequiring them to continue their studies through the long-
\ndistance Open University or the state-run teachers training
\ninstitutes.<\/p>\n
Bambang did not specify when the program will commence, only
\nsaying it would be "soon". He also did not comment on the number
\nof teachers to be included in it.<\/p>\n
Marsetio suggested that the government begin with teachers at
\nstate-owned junior and senior high schools. Even this, however,
\nwould constitute a massive operation, as there are currently
\n305,886 senior high teachers and 375,313 junior high teachers.<\/p>\n
Bambang said that only half of the senior high teachers and a
\nquarter of the junior high teachers are university graduates.<\/p>\n
Marsetio said that most private schools had begun upgrading
\ntheir own teachers even before the government announced the plan.<\/p>\n
Marsetio praised the plan because, he said, it is the quality
\nof teachers that will influence the whole learning process.<\/p>\n
"Many teachers in remote areas are forced to teach subjects
\nabout which they know very little," said Marsetio, who is also a
\nformer rector of the state-owned Airlangga University in
\nSurabaya, East Java.<\/p>\n
He pointed out that teachers with backgrounds in social
\nsciences are often forced to teach natural sciences because
\nthere's no one else to teach it.<\/p>\n
"How can we expect the students to learn well if the teachers
\ndon't know of anything about the subject?" he said.<\/p>\n
A shortage of teachers remains a chronic problem in most
\nareas, especially in the least-developed regions of eastern
\nIndonesia, as the result of uneven distribution. Experts
\nparticipating in a national convention on education last month
\nadmitted that there's actually a glut of teachers. However, few
\nteachers are willing to serve in remote areas, even as the
\nproblem of unemployment in teacher-saturated urban centers
\nworsens.<\/p>\n
Indonesia currently has about 1.5 million teachers. Every
\nyear, some 17,000 new teaching graduates compete for positions in
\npublic schools.<\/p>\n
By the year 2020, the country will require only 1.1 million
\nelementary school teachers and 1.195 million junior and senior
\nhigh school teachers.<\/p>\n
The Open University, whose mode of teaching consists of long-
\ndistance sessions through television or mail, has been appointed
\nas the institute through which the teachers are expected to
\ncontinue their studies.<\/p>\n
Marsetio has suggested that the university reduce its tuition
\nfee. Currently, the fee is Rp 15,000 (US$6.3) per semester with
\nan additional Rp 6,000 per credit point in a subject.<\/p>\n
In addition, prospective students are asked to first pay a
\nregistration fee of Rp 10,000, a second-stage registration fee of
\nRp 7.500, fees for every repeat test they have to take, and an
\nadditional fee if they are to take a final test. (31)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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