Students demand moral and civics lessons abolished

JAKARTA (JP): Some 300 students from Greater Jakarta's Indonesian Muslim Student Action Front protested at the Ministry of National Education on Friday to demand civics be removed from the national education curriculum.

"Including civics in the national curriculum will not improve the morals of students because it is the failure of the education system that has led to a lack of morals," the students said in a statement.

The students said moral and civics lessons in the schools were dogmatic and focused solely on textbook dictums.

"It is boring and so uneducative," one of the protesters said.

The secretary-general of the ministry, Hidayat Syarief, met with the students and told them the ministry was implementing a new methodology for the teaching of civics and morals.

"If civics is removed from the curriculum, students will be left with no guidance on civics and morals," Hidayat said over the shouts of the students.

The protesters, junior and high school students, also demanded the government increase the education budget to 20 percent and that local administrations focus on the welfare of teachers.

The students also called on the political elite "to stop bickering and start thinking of the nation's education and the fate of the millions of school dropouts".

Data from the ministry show more than eight million students have dropped out of school, the result of such factors as the economic crisis, unrest and natural disasters.

"We also want the government to take care of our fellow students in refugee camps," they said.

"And we want adequate transportation for students because we all have to try and get on public buses, not to mention the possibility of being targeted in brutal student brawls.

"Therefore, we also ask for suitable security," the students said as they read their demands to officials at the ministry.

The protesters dispersed peacefully after the officials promised to look into the demands.

The ministry has introduced a new civics course that contains 11 basic subjects -- human rights, state principles, the Constitution, the state system, law enforcement, multiculturalism, religious diversity, interdependence and patriotism, democracy, demography, and history and national defense.

The new standards for civics education will be implemented at each level from elementary school to secondary school. Tests also will require more written answers instead of simply being multiple choice.

Lessons in morals, known as Budi Pekerti, will be integrated into existing lessons in such topics as religion, sports and basic science. (edt)