NTT needs more 3,200 teachers: Governor

Yemris Fointuna, The Jakarta Post, Kupang

Resolutions for major educational problems in East Nusa Tenggara are likely years away. A persistent shortage of teachers in the province remains far from being fulfilled, while the welfare of those hanging on is nowhere near improvement.

Many teachers have given up teaching in the province altogether, as the government has failed to provide for them in accordance with their rights -- which include long-overdue, adequate salaries.

In a recent visit to the Alor, Kupang and East Flores regencies, The Jakarta Post found that just about every school was facing a severe shortage of teachers.

"I had to quit the school, I had received nothing for my services for months," said Abraham Laot, a former teacher at a state elementary school in the island of Raijua in East Flores. "I couldn't stand it any longer."

Annual records on the number of teachers quitting their schools are not available.

An elderly resident of the Ternate village in Southeast Alor district in the regency of Alor, confirmed the teachers' plight.

"The first elementary school was built in the 1980s -- there were three teachers initially, but their salaries had always been paid weeks, or months, after payday. Their rights, including their allowances, had been ignored. They quit months later, and the pupils have been abandoned since then," said Muhamad Tehing.

According to the province's Bureau of Statistics (BPS), there are 3,958 elementary schools with a total of 615,469 students in the province. The number of teachers is 25,695, meaning that for each elementary school, which has an average of 156 students, there are only six teachers.

BPS data also reveals that the province has 541 junior high schools with a total number of students at 122,846 and 8,142 teachers. This means that for every 15 teachers, there is an average of 227 students.

In general, the number of senior high schools is 152, with a total student roster of 47,685. The senior high schools, meanwhile, have a total of 3,453 teachers. These figures show that, for every 314 students, each school has 23 teachers.

The province, according to BPS, has 53 technical senior high schools with 1,578 teachers and 20,125 students. This means that each technical high school has 30 teachers per 380 students.

Based on these figures, the administration needs 3,200 more teachers -- 1,700 for elementary schools and 1,500 for high schools.

East Nusa Tenggara Governor Piet A. Tallo does not turn a deaf ear to the problems. But he seems unable to do anything to remedy the situation and help the teachers.

"The government has been working hard to pay attention to the welfare of teachers posted in remote areas in the province ... Yes, we have been facing educational problems, including the need for least 3,200 more teachers," Piet A. Tallo told the teachers at the anniversary of the Indonesian Teachers' Association (PGRI) on Monday.