Keeping light of learning amid rot, ruin<\/p>\n
The wall surrounding the school grounds appeared to be sturdy
\ntwo weeks ago, when a group of local councillors visited state
\nelementary school SDN I Kemasan of Polokarto subdistrict in
\nSukoharjo, Central Java.<\/p>\n
The same could not be said of the school itself, which has a
\nstudent body of 197 and is located a mere 10 kilometers from the
\nprovincial government offices.<\/p>\n
The ceiling of at least one classroom has almost collapsed due
\nto a termite infestation and four bamboo poles prop it up
\ntemporarily, while the class has moved to a storage room to study
\namong gamelan instruments.<\/p>\n
Eight rooms in the school show alarming states of disrepair,
\nincluding the principal's office and the teachers' lounge.<\/p>\n
"I am really terrified to study in our classroom," said
\nMuniroh, a fourth grader at the school, adding that she could
\nhear the building creaking throughout class.<\/p>\n
"We've already made several requests to the central government
\nfor funds to renovate the school. Their latest response was that
\nall funds were being channeled to deal with impacts of the
\ntsunami in Aceh," said principal Sutarno.<\/p>\n
The school was constructed in 1973, with additional buildings
\nerected in 1985. During this period, no formal assessments were
\nmade on the school's condition, and minor repairs were made by
\nlocal contractors upon support from the students' parents.<\/p>\n
Despite the school's condition, its students take the Scouts
\nchampionship almost every year. In the arts, they rank among the
\ntop in Central Java, with its gamelan troupe placing first in
\n2003.<\/p>\n
Sukoharjo vice regent Muhammad Toha expressed concern about
\nthe school to the Post, but said renovations could only be
\nplanned for the coming year. "We'll take an assessment in 2006,"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
-- Text and photos by Blontank Poer, The Jakarta Post<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/keeping-light-of-learning-amid-rot-ruin-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }