National exam draws more opposition
National exam draws more opposition
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Teachers and academics doubt the government's planned national
final exam will be able to narrow the gap in education between
schools across the country.
Rostymaline Munthe, executive director of the Committee of
Alternative Children's Education, which runs mobile schools for
child workers, said the government could not set a national exam
standard for students because schools across the country were not
equal in terms of facilities and teachers.
"If the exam is forced in less-developed regions with
inadequate teachers, it will do nothing but require children to
achieve something that is impossible. Don't force children to
achieve the impossible for the government's sake," she said.
She said measurements of educational quality would be more
accurate if the measurements were adjusted for different regions.
The Ministry of National Education has said the final exam is
intended to map and raise the country's educational standards. A
ministerial decree says the exam will be given in May/June and
October of this year.
A survey by the ministry to support its national exam policy
found the majority of respondents in Jakarta, Yogyakarta,
Pasuruan and West Sumatra believed standardized exams were
necessary for students in junior high school, high school,
vocational school and schools for the disabled.
The study used a focus group discussion method involving
teachers, principals, directors and staff members of local
education agencies, House of Representatives members and
education campaigners from related non-governmental
organizations.
The House last year demanded the government scrap its national
final exam and said it would withhold funds for the exam. It said
the state-organized exam violated the national education law,
which stipulates that teachers have the authority to measure
students' performance.
National Commission for Child Protection secretary-general,
Arist Merdeka Sirait, however, said the national final exam would
prevent children who did not pass the exam from moving up to the
next grade.
"Therefore, systematically and structurally speaking, the exam
widens the gap in education," he said.
Eko Purwono, a lecturer at the Bandung Institute of Technology
and a member of Bandung's education council, said the national
exam could lead to collusion between schools, teachers and
students.
"Schools could mark up their students' scores in order not to
tarnish their reputation," he said.
He added that the exam should only be used to chart students'
performance to see how they did in different subjects. He
referred to the National Assessment of Educational Progress
(NAEP) in the U.S. as an example.
The NAEP cover civics, geography, U.S. history, mathematics,
reading, science and writing. Members of the public in the U.S.
are also encouraged to send comments and suggestions to improve
test questions. (005)