130 damaged schools reopen across Aceh's disaster zones
130 damaged schools reopen across Aceh's disaster zones
Tony Hotland and Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh
Seven-year-old Safrizal slipped two books and pencils inside a
box and then sprang outside a room he and his mother use as a
shelter inside Lampeuneurut elementary school building in Aceh
Besar.
"I'm going back to school tomorrow! My old school in Pungee
was ruined and there were these people coming in and giving me
books, telling me that I could go to school here," he smiled.
Outside, a number of workers were seen still struggling to
clear up mud and debris on the school's compound.
Safrizal, whose favorite subject is math, is one of around
177,000 displaced students across Aceh where around 765 school
buildings were severely damaged or completely washed away.
On Wednesday, approximately 130 schools, mostly elementary,
will reopen, with thousands of students expected to turn up.
"I'm glad that I can still go to school," said 15-year-old
Siti Mardiah Hanum, a second-year student at SMU XI senior high
school in Lampriet, Banda Aceh.
At the school, around 70 military personnel worked for five
days to clear up the mud and rubble, in addition to repainting
the building.
According to SMU XI principal, Makmun Daud, only 70 percent of
his students had reported to him after the disaster. The fate of
the remaining students was still unknown. "Twelve of the teachers
died in the tsunami," he told the Post.
Head of Aceh's education office, Anas M. Adam, said that some
130 buildings and 141 emergency schools at refugee camps had been
prepared with assistance from many organizations.
"Children whose schools were destroyed by the tsunami are
encouraged to go to schools nearest to their camp. No uniform,
not even shoes or sandals are required. Just come," Anas said on
Tuesday.
He said many school buildings still could not be used, because
they were either heavily damaged, overwhelmed by mud and debris
or being used as shelters by refugees. The government is
currently moving the refugees out of the schools to new
locations.
Around 15,000 displaced students are expected to turn up at
the re-opened schools this week, while over two thousand teachers
and trained volunteers will be on hand to teach them.
Anas admitted that many school children might not aware of
Wednesday's program but hoped they would gradually come back to
school.
He explained that the schools would be divided into two shifts
-- from 8 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. and from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. The first
is to facilitate students who were able to study at the school
while the second will be for those who lost their school in the
disaster.
The curriculum will be focus more on assignments to help
students catch up. "We'll also evaluate and rearrange examination
schedules because many missed the last one on Dec. 27," Anas
said.
The disaster is estimated to cost the province's education
sector some Rp 1 trillion (US$107.52 million), mostly in lost
laboratory equipment. All missing documents and school records
would be replaced with new ones, while school certificates would
be replaced with letters of confirmation.
Supporting the restoration of educational activities, the
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is distributing 5,000
boxes of complete school and recreational kits for all elementary
schools in 13 tsunami-hit districts.
"Getting back to school is very crucial after such a
distressing experience. It will give a sense of normalcy and
hope, as well as establishing a routine. It is the key of
recovery and should help the kids reengage with their future,"
UNICEF representative in Indonesia Gianfranco Rotigliano said.