Plenty of homework on education front

Plenty of homework on education front

By Prapti Widinugraheni

JAKARTA (JP): When it comes to managing the education sector,
Indonesia still has plenty of homework to do.

The year 1994, if anything, exposed some of the challenges the
nation needs to overcome in this field. Figuring out the best way
to manage elementary education and sorting out the seemingly
endless problems in higher education are two of the top challenges.

The burden of formulating and executing education policy falls on
Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro, now is his
second year on the job. His plate is full to the rim.

His biggest task is implementing newly expanded compulsory
education, from six years to nine years, which covers children
between the ages of six and 15 years old.

Officials acknowledged that the launching of Nine-Year Compulsory
Schooling by President Soeharto last May is rather ambitious. There
aren't enough schools or teachers in Indonesia to serve the
students.

But the government is banking on the success of the Six-Year
Compulsory Schooling scheme launched 10 years ago, and is setting
a 15-year time frame to bring about success in the newly launched
program.

As many as six million children between 13 and 15 years old do
not attend school.

Wardiman is confident that the plan can be completed earlier. He
has already drawn up his own five-year program that includes
recruiting 150,000 new teachers for elementary and junior high
schools as well as building 3,000 new schools, mostly junior highs.
They would have a combined 29,000 classrooms.

New curriculum

Wardiman also inaugurated the new school curriculum at the start
of the academic year in July. He ignored critics who couldn't
resist reminding the minister that every new education minister has
introduced his own curriculum.

The minister was quick to point out that the new curriculum was
drafted and approved before he came into office, by his predecessor
Fuad Hassan.

The government may, once again, have been too hasty in insisting
on the new curriculum because most schools were not prepared to
implement it.

The new curriculum, which integrates elementary and junior high
school into nine years, reduces the number of compulsory subjects
and allows schools to teach "local subjects" for several hours a
week. These subjects can be local dialect or local handicrafts.
Tourism is taught in some schools in Bali. While this appears to be
a good idea, many schools have neither the books nor the teachers
to implement it.

The compulsory subjects at elementary schools concentrate more on
the three basics of reading, writing and arithmetic.

Djauzak Ahmad, from the ministry's Directorate of Elementary
Education, said elementary student's knowledge of the "three R's"
is deplorable.

The government and teachers have heaps to do to ensure that every
student that completes elementary education can actually read,
write and do arithmetic properly.

According to statistics, 1.2 million children drop out of primary
schools each year before they can even read and write. An estimated
76 percent of the Indonesian workforce have only elementary-level
education. University graduates account for less than two percent.

Another obstacle for the nine year compulsory education program,
according to Wardiman, is a lack of books.

Books aren't affordable for most Indonesians. The book to people
ratio is currently one book to about eight people in most areas in
the country.

Working

Wardiman has also avidly promoted his "link and match" concept of
bridging education with work.

His objective is simple -- the education world must produce
already trained graduates. In the past, industry has been
complaining about the poor quality of workers the education system
has been churning out.

To promote this concept, Wardiman launched the "dual system" at
many schools. It incorporates apprenticeships in the curriculum of
vocational schools.

He is also pushing the country's universities and colleges to
expand their technical schools, especially in the engineering
field, and to put less emphasis on social sciences.

It's simple mathematics for a nation that is developing its
industrialization program. Indonesia needs 170,000 engineering
graduates each year but the country's universities and colleges can
only supply 25,000 a year.

President Soeharto has lent credence to Wardiman's "link and
match" campaign. The head of state urged the business community to
provide scholarships and support for the apprenticeship program.
Instead of simply complaining about the poor education system,
industry must share in the effort to improve the system.

Although no company has publicly objected, they are slow to
respond to the challenge.

They argue that the apprenticeship program isn't compelling
because of the absence of financial or fiscal incentives.

Wardiman promised to look into the matter, but continues to push
the program. He is starting with more than 200 state technical
schools and has enlisted 2,400 companies to provide students with
industrial apprentiships.

Controversy

No minister can escape controversy every now and then. Wardiman
fell out of favor with the powerful ulemas this year.

What appeared to be an innocent and practical gesture turned out
to be the biggest controversy in the education world this year.

In August, Wardiman launched a try out period for a five-day
school week. His objective was noble -- to give children more time
to spend with their parents. Besides, teachers, who are civil
servants, are entitled to the same working conditions other
government workers enjoy.

As the try out began, it became apparent that the plan was not
working out well. For starters, it meant that children spent longer
at school on the weekdays because the curriculum was developed to
be taught over six days.

This caused a bigger problem. Many children, because of the
longer hours at school, couldn't attend afternoon religious
schools.

Ulemas from the country's powerful Moslem organizations,
including Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah, called for a
termination of the try out.

The government back down and agreed to limit the trial to high
schools. And criticisms ebbed.

Window: The government may have been too hasty in insisting on the new
curriculum because most schools were not prepared to implement it.