JP/7/SAMSIR
JP/7/SAMSIR
Syamsir Alam
Academic Coordinator
Al Azhar International
Education Center (ARIEC)
Jakarta
A draft of the revised version of the education law, which
was submitted to the legislature last month, indicates the
pivotal role of government as both the regulating and
implementing agency in education -- despite the policy of
decentralization to the regions.
One of the goals of education on the part of the government
is education for all, for both rich and poor. Another is
appropriate quality standards in relation to teaching, the school
environment, child safety, the curriculum, and educational
outcomes.
A third goal regards "agency concerns", that is, to ensure
that sound educational decisions are made and that parents act in
the best interests of their children.
A fourth goal is that public resources are carefully used so
that the broad social and economic benefits of having a well-
educated community are realized -- social and economic concerns.
The issue of accessibility was a major concern during the New
Order period. In the early 1970s, the government gave particular
attention to the development of the education sector. A lot of
new schools and teaching-learning facilities were built. New
teachers were appointed. Curricula and new teaching techniques
were introduced at all levels of education.
Within less than a decade, school buildings and the teaching-
learning process of primary and secondary education became
commonplace all around the country. Primary and secondary
education came to be no longer considered as something for the
elite alone.
Yet the level of participation was still low, especially among
poor families. The government launched a program of mandatory
education to get all children from 7 to 12 into the schools. The
result was a much higher percentage of children attending school.
Yet graduates were not able to meet the standards required by
the job market and/or higher learning institutes.
The outcomes of the expansive educational program, however,
failed to satisfy the needs of the stakeholders, like parents,
users and society at large.
So despite 15 years of the compulsory education program,
public schools remain the subject of much criticism. The
Indonesian educational system has failed to provide children of
different social and economic backgrounds with the same standard
of education. So far the education system is still biased toward
well-to-do families.
Public schools of high quality at any level under the current
recruitment system will be more likely to admit children from
rich families who have a much better learning environment.
Ironically, the children and families of the poor who are less
likely to be admitted to public schools have higher expectations
of the schools. They rely so much on the school system to make
them become well-informed and knowledgeable citizens. They expect
the school system will be able to change their socio-economic
status by providing them with adequate knowledge, information and
skills.
To the government and school administrators, the selection
system used thus far is considered fair and just. But we have yet
to see the children of both rich and poor families studying
together, particularly in public schools.
Thereby, the expectations of upward mobility among the poor
will not materialize any time soon. A supposedly "fair"
examination system has unwittingly created a social gap where the
poor mostly get poorer grades, given the lower quality of
education they are exposed to.
Quality improvement has now become the primary focus of the
Ministry of Education, the importance of which was highlighted
more than a decade ago in a ministry policy paper.
With the support of millions of dollars from the World Bank,
the quality of teachers and educational facilities has been
improved, likewise the examination system.
Thousands of teachers have been trained locally, nationally,
and internationally through the strengthening and improvement of
teacher quality program, familiarly known as the PKG (Pemantapan
Kerja Guru). In fact, some teachers are now given the opportunity
to pursue their studies to master's degree level both at home and
abroad.
However, teachers are still not succeeding in improving
education. The average grades in the five main subjects:
mathematics, languages (Indonesian and English), and the sciences
(physics and biology), as tested by the national examinations is
still considered unsatisfactory.
Educational management is also considered important. The
government through this program has trained hundreds of school
and provincial office administrators. They are expected to serve
the needs of change in the education sector. However, this
program has failed to produce administrators capable of creating
an atmosphere where educational change can prevail.
The school administrators have not been able to accommodate
the needs of change within the school community system.
Therefore, it is not surprising to see that the way they manage
schools and classes is more or less the same as it was years ago.
The examination system is also considered crucial in
improving educational quality. Between 1989 and 1993, more than
US$12 million was allocated for this program alone.
The government focused its work in this program on
strengthening and improving the quality of examination officers
at the provincial level and building up the item banking system
at the Examination Development Center (EDC) in Jakarta.
This program had been running for decades; however, we have
been unable to strengthen the provincial offices and find the
right examination system for the country. The last attempt
resulted in only three subjects being tested.
In all, the attempts at improvement undertaken so far have
been frustrating for educators. For more than 50 years now, the
final examinations have been administered by an ad hoc committee.
A permanent body that functions as an external examination
institute is still only wishful thinking.