'No quality school for the poor'

'No quality school for the poor'

Many observers and parents have complained about the cost of
quality, yet affordable education, citing the central
government's lack of resolve to fully subsidize education for the
poor. The Jakarta Post asked Jakartans their thoughts on the
issue.

Saras Dewi, 21, is a student activist. She lives with her
family in Pangeran Antasari area, South Jakarta:

Quality schools for the poor? It sounds impossible. A quality
school may provide scholarships or create a cross subsidy derived
from parents' donations, but few poor people enjoy access to
that.

Yes, there are schools for the poor. I know of one school in
Muara Angke, North Jakarta, that does not require school fees.
But don't talk about quality, it is far below standard.

For me, the gap between schools for the rich and for the poor
is significant. We may never witness a genius coming from remote
villages or from families that live on the riverbanks. The case
of George from Papua is rare and is not related to the quality of
our national education.

I know of a state elementary school that asked Rp 7 million as
an entrance fee, even though there is a law that prohibits state
schools from asking money from parents. This is another form of
corruption. And the perpetrators, who are mostly school
principals, should be sent to prison or fired.

Such a situation is disheartening because people actually do
not have to pay to send their children to state schools. They
also don't have to pay for exams. There are laws that regulate
this. The law states that all regular school programs will be
financed by the Ministry of National Education. So, there should
be no more fees asked by the schools.

Parents should realize this and be critical about every fee
that is asked by the school. The public must report this to NGOs
if they receive any information about state schools that are
asking money from students.

Bobby Bharata, 32, is an entrepreneur. He lives with his
family in Cimanggis, Depok:

Quality, affordable education is unrealistic. I want it so
badly, but it doesn't exist. When I wanted to send my daughter to
kindergarten, most well-known kindergartens asked around Rp 5
million to Rp 20 million for the entrance fee.

The reason for the fee, they said, was because they were
famous and could develop my child's intelligence. I chose to save
the money and send my daughter to a not so expensive school, even
though it did not promise to make my child the next B.J. Habibie.

Schools for the poor are those organized by NGOs or student
activists in slums. Based on the facilities and the quality of
the teacher volunteers there, I doubt that any physicists or
biology experts would come from the schools.

The problem is we are too dependent on schools. Parents could
teach their children to read books or learn history, but why do
they avoid this? If you want to avoid sending your children to an
expensive school but you want them to be as smart as Einstein,
teach them yourself!

--The Jakarta Post