Next government's task to strengthen education

Simon Marcus Gower, Jakarta

In these last few remaining days before the final round of elections for the presidential office, many voices have been heard advising on what the next government of Indonesia should do under the next presidential term. A veritable cacophony of advice has rung out as commentators express their hopes and even fears for what lies ahead.

The presidential candidates too have added to the discussion and debate with their own proposals and even promises. Amongst these it has been possible to occasionally hear of thoughts regarding the development of education here. It is understandable that both candidates have sought to highlight their commitment to education but politicians will often present ideas ahead of elections. The greater and greatest concerns for the electorate is -- "are such ideas workable?"

Education is obviously a very important area for presidential and governmental planning. All over the world politicians see education as a key policy concern and even a key vote winner. Quite often candidates around the world have been heard to state that for them what matters is "education, education and education."

But how can planning for education be truly effective in the Indonesian context? The figures alone can be hugely troublesome and even overwhelming. Estimates suggest that there are approaching two million school teachers in Indonesia and regrettably many of these teachers could be described as being disaffected and dissatisfied with their positions.

However, Indonesia cannot be considered as isolated and alone in this regard. It is a quite common occurrence for teachers to experience and express feelings of being undervalued and so in a real way left in a condition of being under motivated. But in the Indonesian context this condition is perhaps exacerbated by the working environments that teachers have to work in.

Consistently school rooms can be seen that are under equipped and are lacking in resources that would embellish the teachers' abilities to be effective and most useful in their guidance of students towards an education. Alongside of this is the often quite dilapidated state of many a school room. Even the most rudimentary of classroom provisions such as a table or desk for the students to work on can be absent because the school simply does not have the funds to replace broken items.

Recent news items concerning the condition of schools also highlight how greatly in need of investment schools really are. Within the past month there have been reports -- for example -- that in the West Java regency some twenty-five percent of all school buildings are in need of urgent repairs either because of their age or because of "natural disasters" that have caused damage to them. The extent of the concern here is so great that fears are expressed for the safety of attending children.

Likewise in Yogyakarta it has been reported that upwards of two-hundred schools are in need of repairs; again either due to their old age or the weather conditions that they have been exposed to. Many schools in Jakarta too have fallen victim to flooding that has caused extensive damage.

This litany of damage and woe for school buildings and their facilities amounts to nothing short of a funding crisis. Any reasonable estimate of what it would take to restore these masses of school buildings to a more respectable, and quite simply safe, condition would surely amount to billions upon billions of rupiah.

These, then, are short term and quite immediate needs that the next government for Indonesia must most surely seek to address through the allocation of a greater portion of its budget for education; but budgeting for education needs also to address more long term needs and concerns. The aspirations of any organization and likewise any nation are hugely dependent upon its people -- effectively its human resources.

Naturally enough, in the context of Indonesia's schools, this means that the human resource, the teachers, for schools needs to be carefully considered and, so it would seem, be better supported. Recent developments in education have shown signs that government is trying to redress some of the inadequacies of the education system here but for these to be effective it becomes essential that teachers are better prepared and supported.

The most significant and immediate example of this would be the relatively recent development of a new curriculum for schools here. Known as the competency-based curriculum, the goals of this approach are commendable and appropriate for the modernization of Indonesian schooling. The competency-based curriculum, with its direction towards more inclusive models of teaching rather than a very one-way, directive approach and the aim of knowledge and skills development and use rather than simple rote-type knowledge retention, is a more relevant and useful model for education now.

But the major concern has to be how well prepared and ready to implement such a new model and curriculum are teachers? Teachers would clearly need to receive assistance and training in achieving an appreciation and ability to deliver a quite different format of education and learning.

A number of commentators have highlighted that in many respects, and areas of Indonesia, the competency-based curriculum is going to be difficult to achieve on the basis of culture alone. Many teachers would not be ready to accept a more student- centered and controlled model of education. For them the role of the teacher is one of a high degree of respect and even distance from students; coercion and compulsion are rather more the order of the school day for them than cooperation and collaboration.

Creating such a culture change would be, and effectively for many is, to create a near total sea-change. It constitutes a change in the tide and change of direction that is inevitably going to be difficult for many teachers to achieve for a long, long time, if at all. So, it is in this context that the competency-based curriculum, whilst commendable, is very difficult to apply and truly implement.

Clearly a large effort would have to be made to assist teachers in their ability to truly include competency-based learning and stimulate greater autonomy of thought from teachers. Another recent feature is the aim to have teachers become more responsible for and active in lesson planning rather than just "following the book".

Education is, then, a vitally important policy area for the next presidential administration and government and it will have to work on two levels; an immediate and short-term level to address the crisis in built facilities and a more long-term level to address the need to cultivate greater human resources -- i.e. the teachers to utilize the school buildings and facilities. The next government will need to have quick responses accompanied by longer term visions for the future. The journey is long, but each step is vital.

The writer is Executive Principal of High/Scope Indonesia School, Jakarta. The views expressed above are personal.