Primary school exam fee dropped

JAKARTA (JP): Students at state-owned elementary schools will not have to pay fees for quarterly evaluation tests from Oct. 7.

The head of the city's education agency, Soeparmo, said yesterday that the administration has approved to set aside a sum of money from its annual budget for the evaluation test fees.

Based on student numbers at city state-owned elementary schools, the total cost to the administration is expected to be at least Rp 4.2 billion.

"From now on students will not have to pay anything to sit the periodic evaluation tests. The policy is in line with the government's effort to help parents afford education for their children," he said.

Soeparmo stressed that the new regulation is only for state- owned elementary schools. In Jakarta there are 3,437 elementary schools, of which 2,600 are state-owned.

The city administration has allocated Rp 45 billion (US$19.56 million) for education in its 1996/1997 fiscal year budget and it has also allocated Rp 35 billion to each mayoralty for education.

For years each student was required to pay Rp 1,500 to sit the quarterly tests. This has apparently caused many parents to complain as the requirement was not based on law and was considered against the government's policy on compulsory education.

"I need information from parents if any school principals ask them for money for the evaluation tests for their children," he said, adding that unscrupulous principals would deserve punishment. (yns)