School accreditation not final, Wardiman says
School accreditation not final, Wardiman says
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman
Djojonegoro assured upset administrators and students of
universities yesterday that even if their courses failed a recent
accreditation program, they could still appeal.
Wardiman said that the results of an evaluation by the
independent National Accreditation Board was not final, and did
not sound a death toll for the schools.
The accreditation program's description of a course was only
temporary and a different picture could emerge if the evaluation
was conducted at another time.
Speaking at an open dialog with students of Yogyakarta's Art
Institute of Indonesia (ISI Yogyakarta), Wardiman said failing
the accreditation did not automatically mean the courses had to
stop.
"Instead, they will be supervised so they can improve
themselves and meet the standard."
The accreditation board recently announced through a
ministerial decree that of about 1,400 courses it evaluated at
more than 100 universities across the country, 36 could not be
accredited due to poor quality. The 36 courses were operated by
31 universities, six of them state-run.
Seven of the 12 courses at ISI Yogyakarta failed the
accreditation program. The courses include theatrical art, visual
communication design, sculpture, puppet art, photography, musical
art and television.
The ministerial decree provoked violent protest from the
students. Benches and other campus facilities were burned,
leaving a strew of debris.
Wardiman, who was on campus to inaugurate ISI's new rector I
Made Bandem, was forced to hold an open dialog with the students
in front of the institute's Gallery Building where the
inauguration ceremony was earlier held.
Seeking to calm the students, Wardiman said the accreditation
program would help improve the quality of education.
The accreditation board had set a certain standard to
determine whether a particular course deserved accreditation, he
added.
Director General of Higher Education Bambang Suhendro, who
also attended yesterday's inauguration, told The Jakarta Post
that the board had set Dec. 11 as the deadline for universities
to send additional information about the courses that failed
accreditation.
"If they meet the required score, they will be accredited. If
they don't, they will not be accredited," he said.
The board consists of 17 permanent members and more than 50
panelists. Twelve regional working groups consisting of three to
five members were also formed to help the board evaluate the
schools in each of the 12 regions.
"There are about 10,000 courses across the country to be
accredited. The job is supposed to be accomplished within five
years," Bambang said, adding that each accreditation given by BAN
is valid for five years. (swa/23)