Legislator calls for termination of national exam<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Following reports of manipulation of elementary
\nschool pupils' final scores, a legislator has suggested that the
\ngovernment scrap the national examinations altogether.<\/p>\n
Wuryanto of House of Representatives' Commission IX expressed
\nserious concern yesterday about reports of the selling of
\nimproved scores for certain prices and the lowering of the scores
\nof pupils whose parents were unable or unwilling to pay the
\nbribes.<\/p>\n
\"These reports have reached a saddening level,\" Wuryanto, who
\nis a former rector of the State Teachers' College in Semarang,
\nwas quoted as saying by Antara.<\/p>\n
Wuryanto made the remarks during a hearing of the commission,
\nwhich oversees education and religious affairs, with Director
\nGeneral of Elementary and Secondary Education Zainal Arifin
\nAchmady.<\/p>\n
About 30 parents in West Java recently complained to the
\nBandung Legal Aid Office that they suspected manipulation of
\ntheir children's final examination scores. They said children who
\nusually got low marks could receive high exam scores by paying
\nbribes of up to Rp 400,000 (US$178.25).<\/p>\n
Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro said
\nearlier that the reports referred only to a few incidents.<\/p>\n
\"If clever students get lower scores than less clever students
\ndue to manipulation by teachers and parents, this could be
\ndestructive of students' mentality,\" Wuryanto warned, without
\nelaborating.<\/p>\n
During the hearing yesterday, Achmady reiterated the
\ngovernment's stance that the national examination system, as well
\nas the procedures for the calculation of students' final scores,
\nare to be maintained.<\/p>\n
\"We still need a national standard by which to evaluate
\nstudents,\" said Achmady.<\/p>\n
The final scores, known locally as NEM (Nilai Evaluasi Murni),
\nare calculated on the basis of both teachers' routine evaluations
\nof students through semester reports and students' scores in
\nnationally-held examinations.<\/p>\n
The nation-wide standard is needed to establish rough
\nestimates of the respective abilities of students from different
\nareas, Achmady said.<\/p>\n
As the NEM is a prerequisite for entrance to junior high
\nschool, manipulation has frequently occurred.<\/p>\n
Achmady acknowledged that his office had been receiving
\nsuggestions about various other ways of calculating the scores
\nand about ways of dealing with the alleged manipulation.<\/p>\n
\"This dilemma (of combining the need for a national standard
\nwith evaluation by teachers which are accessible to bribes)
\ndemands our deeper comprehension,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Achmady also told the hearing, chaired by legislator Muhammad
\nAffandi, about difficulties being faced by the compulsory nine-
\nyears education program.<\/p>\n
Launched last year, the program aims at ensuring that all
\nchildren have a minimum of nine years of schooling. The project
\nis an extension of the previous compulsory six years of schooling
\nprogram.<\/p>\n
A total of 6.27 million children aged between 13 and 15 are
\nnot yet receiving the secondary schooling required under the
\n\"nine-years\" program. The government says it expects that by the
\nyear 2009, the target of enrolling all school-age children in
\nschool will be reached.<\/p>\n
\"Our survey revealed that one of the difficulties is the
\nunwillingness of children in industrial areas to go to school,\"
\nsaid Achmady. He did not give details of the places he was
\nreferring to, nor did he elaborate about the survey.<\/p>\n
\"Many elementary school graduates working in industry don't
\nsee any reason to continue going to school,\" he said. \"There is
\nno incentive to do so because companies pay junior high graduates
\nthe same wages that they pay to elementary school graduates.\"<\/p>\n
Achmady said that more \"open junior high schools\", with
\nschedules that are more flexible and geared to the time
\nconstraints faced by working children, are needed to solve the
\nproblem. (anr)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/legislator-calls-for-termination-of-national-exam-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}