Four teaching institutes become universities

UJUNGPANDANG, South Sulawesi (JP): The Ministry of Education and Culture has issued a decree which has upgraded four of the existing state-run Teachers Training Institutes into full-fledged universities.

The four institutes are in the East Java mountainous town of Malang of East Java, in Padang of West Sumatra, Ujungpandang in South Sulawesi, and in Yogyakarta.

Sjahruddin, the rector of the institute in Ujungpandang, hailed the decree, saying that his school has long been equipped for the change because it already has plenty of lecturers majoring in pure sciences such as math and natural sciences.

The rector of Malang's institute, Nuril Huda, expressed the same readiness.

Experts have often criticized the institutes for the poor quality of their graduates and learning process. A national convention on education held in Ujungpandang earlier this year agreed that the institutes should be turned into universities with more disciplines.

Both rectors agreed that the process of turning institutes into universities will be gradual, and that they would maintain their main task, namely producing quality teachers.

Under the plan, each institute will establish schools according to subjects, such as mathematics and engineering. The first six semesters will be used primarily to teach students their chosen subjects and the last two semesters will be dedicated to pedagogy subjects.

Because the six semesters of course work is equal to a three- year diploma from a regular university, the broadened curriculum is also intended to help prepare graduates in finding jobs outside of the teaching profession.

Malang's institute now has 885 lecturers and Ujungpandang's has 808 lecturers. (20/31)