Reforming the RI educational system<\/p>\n
Werner Kiby, Entrepreneur, Bali<\/p>\n
In an increasingly globalized world, Indonesian students and
\nworkers must meet international levels of education and labor
\nskills. Even international schools around Indonesia seem to lack
\nconsideration that students must improve their knowledge in a
\nworld which is more and more dominated by information
\ntechnologies, multilingual communication and international
\ncooperation. Yet the situation is far worse for Indonesians.<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post recently cited a comment by Dyah
\nParamawartiningsih, head of the research center at the Ministry
\nof Manpower and Transmigration, that many university graduates,
\neven with PhDs, are not yet ready to meet simple standards
\nbecause they are neither able to communicate fluently at least in
\nEnglish nor to use computers efficiently.<\/p>\n
Reforming education would first have to take into account how
\nIndonesians are educated. Even if someone appreciates the often
\ncited discipline of Indonesian students and their respect for
\nteachers and parents, this obedience may hinder in the long run
\nthe creation of self-motivated and self-confident students who
\nare able to become decision-makers and leaders of new opinions.<\/p>\n
Further, most Indonesian students (and teachers) lack a
\nrealistic approach to the demands of working life, and the needs
\nand consequences, for their ongoing education and skills.
\nThe main requirements are: Teamwork, no work without a plan,
\nability to cope with stress, punctuality, responsibility,
\nflexibility, honesty, diligence, a clean environment in and
\noutside the place of work or study, knowledge of foreign
\nmentalities, and openness for self-criticism, and even strong
\ncriticism, by others.<\/p>\n
Teachers lack solid education in their subjects, working
\nexperience and communication competence at least in English and
\ncomputer skills.<\/p>\n
It also seems that in all subjects taught in the schools,
\ntheory overwhelms practice, which may be one reason why students
\nand teachers often are unmotivated to fulfill their duties.<\/p>\n
The public schools and universities in Indonesia are not
\nsufficiently equipped with the facilities to meet national and
\ninternational challenges. Beside qualified and fairly paid
\nteachers they need at least language training and computer
\ncenters. If the school system here does not begin to provide this
\nminimum on conditions things will keep going on as usual, which
\nmeans worse.<\/p>\n
And when the more lucky students apply, after graduating, for
\nfurther training in one of the professional centers to achieve
\ninternational certifications, they are not well prepared to
\nsucceed. This compounds the financial problems and the enormous
\nrestrictions caused by the Indonesian bureaucracy.<\/p>\n
Things are already much worse now with the economic crisis and
\nsharply rising figures of unemployed people in Indonesia --
\nincluding citizens or residents from foreign countries.<\/p>\n
Unemployment was last esimated at 40 million, which will
\nlikely soon increase. Meanwhile the number of the growing number
\nof jobless foreign residents all around the country, and the
\nnumber of their children who need qualified skills, is still
\nunclear.<\/p>\n
Most of them are children from bi-national marriages, half
\nIndonesians, half Westerners, from all countries of Europe and
\nthe United States, either with a foreign or a Indonesian
\npassport.<\/p>\n
Their parents once had their own business or had been hired
\nmostly by foreign companies which closed their doors due to the
\ncrisis. Yet they have decided to live for a long period, if not
\nforever in Indonesia, despite the growing difficulties.<\/p>\n
Indonesia may face a similar problem like Germany -- if it is
\nnot willing to deal with the fact of immigrants, legal or
\nillegal. And of course Indonesia will not be able to provide any
\nhelp to integrate or give financial support to this growing
\nforeign community. They are forced to help themselves find
\nadequate schools and jobs.<\/p>\n
These foreign residents are going to compete for the remaining
\njobs in Indonesia with the lower educated Indonesians.<\/p>\n
Indonesia faces another challenge: It signed in 2001 an
\ninternational agreement to liberalize the labor market and to
\nopen it to highly educated foreign applicants.<\/p>\n
According to The Jakarta Post, in Indonesia only some 4
\npercent of the total labor force (over 97 million people) are
\nworking as professionals and managers. But even these highly
\neducated workers are not ready to compete with foreign
\nprofessionals and managers.<\/p>\n
Hence the response cannot be more protectionism against
\nforeign workers, as suggested by some analysts who propose to
\ndelay the liberalization of the labor market.<\/p>\n
Indonesia should instead open the country for more foreigners
\nwith high education and working skills. If Indonesians want to
\ncompete with foreigners in all fields of skills and work like
\nlanguage and communication competence, information technology,
\nindustrial production and professional management, then they must
\ncooperate with foreigners and utilize them until Indonesians are
\nequal to or even better than their teachers.<\/p>\n
A crisis always generates new opportunities -- and now there
\nis a big opportunity for Indonesians and parts of the residents,
\nto create a new model of school education, closer to the real
\nworld and to international levels. They could be run by
\nIndonesians and foreigners together for mutual benefit.<\/p>\n
To convince the authorities one would firstly need to tell
\nthem how to finance these schools and secondly to secure the jobs
\nof legions of employees in the education field.<\/p>\n
But as there are thousands of schools and universities not
\nused during 12 hours to 16 hours every day, facilities could
\nfairly easily be provided for new schools. Officials have said
\nthat every second school in some islands should be used for other
\npurposes or else they should be demolished due to the lack of
\nteachers and money!<\/p>\n
There are also thousands (or more) jobless or miserably paid
\nteachers and maybe the same number of demotivated employees
\nacross the whole education field. There should be enough
\nresources to recruit the best of them as staff for appropriate
\nschools.<\/p>\n
Quite a lot of teachers could also be recruited from the
\nforeign communities on each island as there are probably many who
\nwould really wish to contribute to their culture, knowledge and
\nexperiences to Indonesian hosts and their own families -- paid or
\nunpaid.<\/p>\n
And there could be many volunteers and trainee teachers in
\nwork experience programs from abroad to support and enrich
\nschool projects by giving them the possibility to join an
\ninternational team, face new challenges -- and live a while in an
\nexotic country.<\/p>\n
The writer earlier taught literature and philosophy at a
\nGerman College.<\/p>",
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