Govt to recruit 190,000 teachers

JAKARTA: The government said on Wednesday it would recruit 190,000 contract teachers next year and 47,000 in the following year to overcome the shortage of teachers.

Secretary-general of the Ministry of Education Makmuri Muchlas said the contract teachers would be hired on a three-year basis although their contract could be extended if they performed well.

"We will take candidates from their own regions," he told a press conference.

He also said the government would not promise to take on the teachers as civil servants.

For this year, the government has said that it would recruit some 190,714 contract teachers to teach students from kindergarten to high school.

Of the total, 13,367 teachers would be assigned to kindergartens, 96,866 to elementary schools, 78,408 to junior and senior high schools and 2,133 to special schools.

All contract teachers would receive Rp 460,000 (US$57.5) as a monthly salary . -JP