People urged to join fight against illiteracy

People urged to join fight against illiteracy

JAKARTA (JP): A noted sociologist called on Thursday for the
people's active participation in helping the government deal with
the illiteracy problem.

Paulus Wirutomo, a sociologist from the University of
Indonesia, said the government could not solve the problem of
illiteracy alone as there were other prime factors outside the
education system that led to such a large number of illiterate
Indonesians.

"We cannot merely blame the education officials for failing to
reduce the number of illiterate people.

"The government must be assisted by non-governmental
organizations (NGOs) in setting up flexible systems for the
teaching of reading and writing for those children who face
problems with regular schooling," Paulus told The Jakarta Post by
telephone.

"Illiteracy is a symbol of ignorance and poverty. And poverty,
in turn, makes it difficult for the people, especially the
children, to get a proper education," he said.

He cited protracted social unrest in certain regions as
another factor contributing to the illiteracy problem.

"A large number of street children are busy earning a living
and have abandoned their education," he said.

He explained that NGOs are perceived as being keener and more
patient in dealing with children.

"Coercive action, such as forcing children to attend school,
will not work because most street children are happy earning
money and they no longer feel at home in school or are willing to
go there," Paulus said.

Data from the Ministry of National Education shows that there
are some 6.9 million illiterate Indonesians, with around 55,000
more children of school age having the potential to be classified
as illiterate this year.

"Over the longer-term, if those 55,000 children -- school
dropouts or children who lack access to proper education -- stop
learning to read and write, they will end up classified as being
illiterate," Director General of Informal Education, Youth and
Sport Makmuri Muchlas said.

Muchlas was speaking in connection with the commemoration of
Literacy Day which officially fell on Sept. 8.

"Most of the parents of these children are facing economic
problems. The ministry, however, continues to persevere with
programs such as education for child laborers, and intensive
language courses for children as well as older people," he said.

Despite an earlier target to eradicate illiteracy in the
country by 2003, the illiteracy figures are expected to increase
because of the crisis.

The ministry's data also shows that about 6 percent of school-
age children are currently unable to attend school while 18
percent have dropped out.

The crisis has led to a higher percentage of both six and
seven-year-old children who have dropped out of primary school,
from around 4 percent to 12 percent.

"Illiteracy is not merely a technical problem in one's life,
it also touches the deepest aspects of life, as it is a symbol of
ignorance, poverty and backwardness. We cannot lie about it or
try to conceal the figures because they are listed in the
country's human development index," Paulus added. (edt)