Schools leave a lot to be desired<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The teaching of reading, writing and arithmetic,
\nknown as the \"three R's\", at primary schools still leaves a lot
\nto be desired.<\/p>\n
This frank admission came from Djauzak Ahmad, the director of
\nelementary education at the Ministry of Education and Culture,
\nyesterday during a seminar to review the way the three basic
\nskills are being taught in the nation's schools.<\/p>\n
While blaming teachers for their rigid teaching methods,
\nDjauzak said parents are equally responsible for making sure that
\ntheir children master the three basic skills properly.<\/p>\n
He told the seminar participants yesterday that the majority
\nof elementary school pupils now lack good reading, writing and
\narithmetic skills because of rigid teaching methods and incapable
\nteachers.<\/p>\n
Teachers, he pointed out, lack creativity and tend to adopt
\nthe teaching methods \"passed down\" by a higher authority.<\/p>\n
They merely teach for the sake of achieving a predesignated
\ntarget, with no regard for the process of education itself, he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"I believe teachers should find their own ways of teaching the
\n3R's -- the basic skills of reading, writing and arithmetic --
\nand should not try teaching the children something they don't
\neven understand themselves,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Djauzak pointed out that the structural-analysis-synthesis
\n(SAS) teaching system which is regulated by the ministry is
\nmerely a guideline. \"Whether they want to apply it or not is
\nentirely up to them.\"<\/p>\n
The first step in the SAS learning-to-read system is the
\nteaching of sentence structures.<\/p>\n
Djauzak admitted that he witnessed many cases where teachers
\nwere incapable of solving the problems designed for resolution by
\ntheir pupils.<\/p>\n
He deplored the declining quality of teachers nowadays, saying
\nthat the once popular and prestigious Institute for Teachers'
\nTraining and Education (IKIP) is now regarded as a \"third class\"
\nuniversity.<\/p>\n
Djauzak, who recalled many nostalgic memories of his younger
\ndays when he struggled his way to become a teacher, admitted that
\nalthough the country no longer has \"the highest regard\" for
\nteachers, \"the situation was worse several years ago\".<\/p>\n
He said higher salaries are among the incentives needed to get
\nteachers motivated and dedicated enough to do their job well.<\/p>\n
The burden of ensuring that children master the \"three R's\"
\nshould fall on the shoulders of parents as well, Djauzak
\ninsisted.<\/p>\n
Elementary students should be well on their way to mastering
\nthe these basic skills by the time they complete the first grade
\nand for this, parents or families should be the first to
\nencourage children to enjoy reading, writing and arithmetic, he
\npointed out.<\/p>\n
\"Instead of watching TV the whole day, parents should try to
\nset an example by reading more,\" he insisted.<\/p>\n
Karlina Leksono, who was also a speaker at the seminar, said
\nthe most effective way of teaching her two primary school
\nchildren the basic concepts of the 3R's is by playing simple
\ngames and solving problems together at home.<\/p>\n
She admitted, however, she found difficulty in teaching her
\nchildren the concepts of modern mathematics taught by their
\nteachers at school.<\/p>\n
\"I use a totally different method -- arithmetic -- which was
\ntaught to me when I was small, but after I taught my child the
\n`old' method, which is actually far more understandable to him, I
\nwas scolded by his teacher.\"<\/p>\n
The government decided to revert to arithmetic this year to
\nreplace modern mathematics as a subject in the curriculum for
\nprimary schools. The return to arithmetic, which was phased out
\nin the 1970s, was decided upon after it was found that the
\nteaching of modern mathematics or \"new math\" had been
\nineffective.<\/p>\n
Arithmetics is a part of the more general field of mathematics
\nand consists of the most basic concepts of numbers. Mathematics
\ncomprises not only the more complicated concepts of numbers, but
\nalso includes geometry, algebra, trigonometry and other sub-
\ndisciplines. (pwn)<\/p>",
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