Elementary schools facing closure

PURBALINGGA, Central Java: At least 43 state elementary schools here may be shut due to a lack of students, a local official of the education ministry said on Tuesday.

"Each of the schools has less than 70 students, leaving most seats in the classrooms vacant," head of the education office Soedino was quoted by an aide, Ahsan, as saying.

Soedino said some 2,000 students and 200 teachers from the schools would be transferred to other schools.

He said the province was in need of more teachers because the number of new recruits was far below the number of retirees.

There are only from 30 to 35 graduates of teacher training schools annually to replace the 60 and 70 teachers who retire each year in the regency, Soedino said. (45/04)