Assessing private schools

Muhammad Iqbal, Jakarta

It is now an established and observable fact that in Jakarta, and one or two other cities around Indonesia, there is a small but growing sector of private schools that are offering packages of education that are somewhat different to what is and can be offered by state-run schools.

In general, we have to recognize that this sector is small; in comparison to the thousands upon thousands of schools that we have nationally with millions of schoolchildren, these private schools are but a tiny minority; but this "tiny minority" can be significant and we therefore should, even must, consider it.

In this newspaper there has been much consideration and even consternation about certain aspects of these "minority, privately run schools". Significant among these concerns have been the manner in which expatriates are so easily employed in such schools and how the concept of bilingual education is sometimes being used for the wrong reasons.

Aspects of private schools such as these are understandably a concern and it is right that we consider and debate them. Some will argue that a carte-blanche employment of expatriates to teach in such schools is wrong and others will highlight that the aim of bilingual education is wrongly applied for marketing purposes that does not really reach out to educational development and growth.

These aspects of private schools are really problematic and consistently negative and must concern us but it is only fair and right to balance our considerations of private schools with awareness and appreciation of what is good, and this can very directly assist us in the difficult task of developing our education nationally.

A reality that we may currently encounter, as a benefit of privately owned and run schools, is that they are bringing to our nation better practices and new ways for our teachers to learn and apply. Take, for example, the fact that a number of these schools consistently run training programs for their teachers. This very directly creates the opportunity for Indonesian educators to learn and pass on their learning.

Other private schools set up the possibility for local teachers to work alongside expatriate teachers. Provided that these expatriate teachers are experienced and have something to contribute to their local partners, this too can be a great and beneficial learning experience.

Other schools offer scholarship programs that allow teachers to teach and gain qualifications at the same time. Finally, those schools that aim to offer international qualifications such as those offered by the International Baccalaureate Organization create the opportunity for teachers to gain internationally recognized qualifications and accreditation.

All of this creates very beneficial potential outcomes for Indonesian educators and for Indonesia itself. These are very definite plus factors that will positively assist us to develop education in this country. But perhaps there is an even greater factor that we should consider that underlies all of this "development", and this is the philosophy and approach to education.

Private schools will quite often be found to be applying a philosophy towards education that is somewhat different to that which we are perhaps most familiar. Perhaps for us education has for too long existed as a way of indoctrinating and imposing conformity on our children. Perhaps for too long we have literally applied a model of education that forces our children to conform to what we require and nothing more or less.

The great American thinker and writer Noam Chomsky stated that "Education must provide the opportunities for self-fulfillment; it can at best provide a rich and challenging environment for the individual to explore, in his own way." This needs to be at the top of our agenda for educational development in our schools.

Nobody doubts that we as a nation desperately need to improve the "infrastructure" of our schools in terms of simply building new schools and rebuilding old schools, but we also need massive building and rebuilding of our thinking on education and educational outcomes. If this is possible, and spurred on by the small, minority private sector of schools, then this must be a good thing.

The negatives that may be associated with private schools are significant and we must be aware of and respond to them, but likewise we must be aware of and respond to the positives that may be derived from such schools. There is a genuine and grave concern that too many schools are being opened up by private individuals with little more in mind than starting up a lucrative business.

Schools should not be allowed to be used for short-term gain and profit-making by private individuals. There really should be a requirement, legitimately imposed, that new, privately owned schools be active in building and rebuilding educational growth in our nation. This could include requirements that schools show and deliver programs that both provide education for their students and training and development for their teaching staff.

The writer is an educational counselor in Jakarta. He can be reached at muhambal@yahoo.com.