Social Affairs Minister: Sekolah Rakyat Graduates to be Directed to University or Skilled Work
Social Affairs Minister Saifullah Yusuf has stated that graduates of Sekolah Rakyat (People’s Schools) will be directed along two pathways, namely continuing their education to higher education or becoming skilled workers according to their interests and talents, as part of the government’s effort to prepare superior human resources.
During a visit to Bandung, West Java, on Thursday, Saifullah said the policy is a directive from President Prabowo Subianto so that every Sekolah Rakyat graduate has the opportunity to develop their potential according to their respective abilities.
“In accordance with the President’s directive, Sekolah Rakyat graduates are directed to two pathways. One, they can go to higher education if they meet the requirements. The second, to become skilled workers, both skilled workers domestically and skilled workers abroad,” he said.
He stated that the determination of students’ educational or professional direction is not based on academic tests, but rather through talent and potential mapping conducted from the beginning of their education.
“So there is no such thing as an academic test. What exists is a DNA Talent test. So every child here, as mentioned earlier, every child is valuable, and we search for their talent, we search for their intelligence which is part of multiple intelligences. We use an AI-based DNA Talent test,” he explained.
“So we already know what the talents of the children in Sekolah Rakyat are, what their aptitudes are, and they will be directed. Later, when they are grown up, when they have graduated, the best profession might be in the field of law, or in health, in engineering, or in other fields,” he added.
Furthermore, he mentioned that Sekolah Rakyat also equips students with foreign language skills according to their interests as a provision for continuing education or working domestically and abroad.
“Therefore, at Sekolah Rakyat we will guide anyone who has an interest in languages, whether Arabic, English, or also Mandarin and other languages, Japanese, Korean, as long as they indeed have the interest,” he said.
On that occasion, Saifullah said Sekolah Rakyat is intended for children from vulnerable families registered in the National Socio-Economic Single Data (DTSEN), especially those who have dropped out of school, are at risk of dropping out, are not in school, or have not yet attended school at the appropriate age.