National exam failure rate doubles this year<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
In contrast to a reported rise in the average pass grade, the
\nnumber of students who failed the national final examinations
\nthis year rose by almost 100 percent, highlighting a widening gap
\nbetween provinces in the quality of secondary education.<\/p>\n
"Compared to last year, the number of students who failed the
\nnational exams has doubled, especially in conflict-prone and
\ngeographically isolated areas," the director of the Ministry of
\nNational Education's research and development agency, Mansyur
\nRamly, told a media conference on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
However, there was a significant improvement in the average
\npass grade from 5.32 last year to 6.25. The higher failure rate
\nwas mostly contributed to by senior high school students.<\/p>\n
This year, the government increased the grade required for a
\npass by senior high school students to 4.26, up from last year's
\n4.01. The exams were held earlier this month.<\/p>\n
Students who do not pass the national examinations will not
\nbe awarded the certificates that they require to continue their
\nstudies. Schools, however, are allowed to accept students who
\nfailed the exams under certain conditions, such as good marks in
\nmath and English.<\/p>\n
Those who failed the national exams will be given extra
\nlessons before sitting repeat tests from Aug. 23 through Aug. 25.<\/p>\n
"The mechanisms and funding for these will depend on
\ncoordination between the regencies and provinces," said the
\nministry's director general of primary and secondary education,
\nIndra Djati Sidi.<\/p>\n
The ministry reported that students in 233 out of 433
\nregencies in the country scored below the average benchmark for
\njunior high school level (53.8 percent). There were 189 regencies
\n(43.65 percent) where junior high school students were rated
\nbelow the standard and 183 regencies (42.56 percent) where
\nvocational school students fared below par.<\/p>\n
West Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, East Nusa Tenggara, West
\nNusa Tenggara, Bengkulu and Papua all had more than 26 percent of
\nstudents failing. Aceh reported a more than 30 percent failure
\nrate, mostly because of the tsunami, which also badly disrupted
\neducation there.<\/p>\n
The highest failure rates were reported in Pegunungan Bintang
\nand Sarmi regencies in Papua (for the junior and senior high
\nschool levels) and Riau Islands regency (for the vocational
\nlevel).<\/p>\n
In order to improve the country's standard of education, this
\nyear the education ministry does not propose to apply a grade
\nequalizer, which in the past was used to close the gap in pass
\nrates between more developed and disadvantaged regions. Last
\nyear, an equalizer was used as more than half of the students who
\nsat the exams did not pass.<\/p>\n
"The decision (to drop the equalizer) is needed to improve the
\nquality of the country's national education," Vice President
\nJusuf Kalla said after a meeting with education minister Bambang
\nSudibyo.<\/p>\n
The increase in the failure rate was partly blamed on the
\nquality of the country's teachers. The ministry's director
\ngeneral of teaching staff development, Fasli Djalal, said that
\nonly between 10 percent and 20 percent of teachers scored above
\naverage in competency tests conducted to assess their
\ncapabilities.<\/p>\n
"All regions have started evaluating their teachers'
\nabilities," he said, adding, however, that so far only 10 percent
\nof teachers nationwide had been assessed.<\/p>\n
Fasli added that with the new national education legislation,
\nteachers' competency standards would improve.<\/p>\n
"The minimum requirement for teachers is a D4 or S1 education,
\nwith an additional 38 to 40 credits in the professional
\ncompetence subject."<\/p>\n
D4 programs offer four years of study but no academic title,
\nwhile an S1 refers to a bachelor's degree awarded by a
\nuniversity.<\/p>\n
Fasli explained that currently there were no primary or
\nsecondary teachers in the country who satisfied these criteria,
\nand that it would take 15 years to gradually upgrade their
\nabilities through training. (003)<\/p>",
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