Parents hunt for cheaper textbooks in Senen

Parents hunt for cheaper textbooks in Senen

Leo Wahyudi S, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Last month parents were worried about making sure their
children were accepted into the school of their choice. Now their
concerns have to do with textbooks, or more precisely the cost of
textbooks, which many parents find prohibitive.

It is for this reason that many parents buy their children's
textbooks from street vendors, who sell new books at lower prices
than those found at bookstores. Other parents simply purchase
used books, which are even less expensive.

"Books are the most important thing for a child's education.
But new books are expensive. I can barely afford the textbooks
offered by my children's schools," said O'oy, a father
of three from Bekasi.

He said he just paid Rp 2.7 million in school entrance fees
for his three children, who attend state elementary, junior and
senior high schools. This has left him with little money left to
pay for their books.

O'oy said that was why so many parents went to the book market
in Senen, where they could find new and used books at discounted
prices.

O'oy said he went to the market to buy used textbooks for his
three children.

"Regardless their physical condition, they will still serve
the same function," he said.

He said he was able to purchase used elementary school
textbooks at the market for Rp 6,000 each, compared to the Rp
18,000 he would have had to pay if he bought them direct from the
school.

Besides textbooks, customers can also find new and used
novels, magazines, comic books and other kinds of reading
materials at the Senen book market.

A number of book sellers at the market told The Jakarta Post
that book sales had increased recently, with many parents and
students having to purchase textbooks for the start of the new
academic year.

"People can buy both new and used books here at much cheaper
prices," said Rudi, who has been selling books in the Senen
market for about 14 years.

However, he said, most people who came to the market preferred
to buy new textbooks rather than used ones.

Guntur, a father of two children, one of whom goes to
elementary school and the other to junior high school, said he
preferred new textbooks.

"I'm afraid that if I buy the used books my children would be
embarrassed about studying at school. That's why I want to buy
new books, which are also cheaper here," he said.

But for parents who still cannot afford new books, despite the
lower prices at the market, used textbooks are the only option.

Adi, another book seller, said: "The prices of used books are
negotiable. Sometimes it depends on the appearance of the
buyers."

But many parents said they did not care whether the books were
new or used. They said that what mattered to them was what was
between the two covers.

"It is the contents of the books that matter, not whether they
are new or second-hand," said Chris, a mother of three from
Matraman, Central Jakarta.

"I could have bought new books but if there are used ones that
are still in good condition, why not? That's why I came here
(Senen market)," she said.