School fees to be standardized<\/p>\n
Leony Aurora, Jakarta<\/p>\n
A draft of a bylaw on education, which will standardize parents'
\ncontribution to schools and set a maximum permissible amount, is
\nbeing prepared by community and education leaders.<\/p>\n
Councillor Syamsidar Siregar of Commission E overseeing social
\nwelfare said on Tuesday in a panel discussion on the role of
\nschool committees that the bylaw would also stipulate teachers'
\nrights, student classification (based on their economic
\nsituations) and punishment for violations.<\/p>\n
\"This (bylaw) is urgent, so we don't have to go through this
\nexperience year after year,\" she added.<\/p>\n
The preliminary draft bylaw would be deliberated upon by the
\nnext council, said Syamsidar, who has been reelected for the
\nperiod of 2004\/2009.<\/p>\n
The council proposed last year that the administration set a
\nceiling for parents' contribution.<\/p>\n
Each year, the months of July and August are marked by many
\nparents lodging complaints over the high fees of education.<\/p>\n
At each school the process is similar. The administrators draw
\nup their financial reports with school committees -- most members
\nare parents -- at the start of the academic year and later
\nfinalize it in a meeting with all parents to determine the fee.
\nIdeally, no fees are to be paid until the meetings are completed,
\nby Aug. 21 latest.<\/p>\n
Several committee heads, who attended the discussion, denied
\nallegations of exorbitant fees imposed on parents, calling it a
\npolemic and saying it had been blown out of proportion by the
\nmedia without accurate cross-checks.<\/p>\n
Syamsidar said there was a lack of communication between
\nparties involved and that the budgets were not transparent.<\/p>\n
The agency has stipulated that schools cannot charge fees for
\nmaintenance and development, including building new classrooms or
\nrepairing old ones. It also made clear that no students should
\nhave to drop out because they cannot afford tuition.<\/p>\n
School committees said they had implemented the policy. \"The
\nneedy do not have to pay at our school,\" claimed Azhar Muchlis of
\nSMA 8 public high school committee.<\/p>\n
Syamsidar emphasized that the tuition fees should not be equal
\nfor all schools. \"There should be categories (determined) for
\nrich, middle and poor people,\" she added.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/school-fees-to-be-standardized-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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