Education during the Dutch rule

Education during the Dutch rule

It goes without saying that social conditions in a colony are
far from perfect, but education was of a very high standard when
Indonesia was still a Dutch colony.

Before World War II I lived in Madiun, Central Java, the
capital of a residentie (regency). At that time the highest
available education in the city was the meer uitgebreid lager
onderwijs (MULO) or more extensive lower education), i.e. three
years after the primary school.

Many Madiun children attended the Dutch middle school, the
Hogere Burger School (HBS) or the Higher Citizen School, while
the children of government officials went to the Algemene
Middelbare School (AMS) or General Middle School.

In the HBS the students had to master four European languages
namely Dutch, German, English and French, besides the usual
subjects such as algebra, geometry, physics, geography etc. It
was not easy to graduate from such a rigorous education, and the
curriculum lasted five years.

At present, before entering university, a student has to study
for 12 years altogether -- 6 years of elementary school, 3 years
of junior high school, and 3 years of senior high school.

In prewar time, a doctor, lawyer or engineer -- who had to
finish a secondary education before entering university -- spoke
fluently at least four European languages. The level of
evaluation in Dutch schools was very strict. At that time
universities could only be found in Jakarta (the Batavia) and
Bandung, and the HBS schools existed only in the capitals of
provinces, such as Semarang, Surabaya, Surakarta, Medan etc.

A relative of mine, who graduated only from a MULO school, has
been able to become the founder of one of the prestigious private
banks in Jakarta.

A. DJUANA

Jakarta