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.