Wardiman says his extensive overseas trip was instructive
Wardiman says his extensive overseas trip was instructive
JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman
Djojonegoro said his recent extensive overseas trip was chiefly
for educational purposes to learn about how other countries
manage their education system.
Wardiman in the last two months traveled to several European
countries, the United States and Asian countries, so extensive
that it raised questions from members of the House of
Representatives when he held a hearing with them on Thursday.
His most recent trip which ended earlier this week included a
two-week visit to the United States and to the research centers
belonging to member countries of the Southeast Asian Ministers of
Education Organization (SEAMEO).
While in the U.S., Wardiman said, he was interested in
Washington's plan to involve parents -- especially of single-
parent families -- in the education of their children.
In the Netherlands, he said he was mesmerized by the country's
successful "link and match" program between the education system
and the agricultural industry.
"The dual system we're implementing here will not be an exact
duplicate of theirs, because we have different working ethos," he
said.
SEAMEO, established in 1965, has 12 research centers in nine
countries -- Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Indonesia
currently presides over the organization.
Three research centers in Thailand are studying higher
education teaching systems, archeology and tropical medicine. The
two in Malaysia are researching tropical medicine and science and
mathematics. The sole center in Singapore is observing teaching
of the English language. Two SEAMEO centers in Indonesia are
observing tropical medicine and tropical biology, the one in
Brunei is studying vocational technology and three in the
Philippines are studying school curriculum development, tropical
medicine and agriculture.
Although most of the centers are functioning well, Wardiman
said the organization still relies heavily on donor countries,
including Germany, the Netherlands and Japan, whose aid has been
declining over the years.
He suggested SEAMEO members use their respective skills to
establish a market and generate their own incomes.
Trips to Germany and Japan earlier this year, he said, were
aimed at exploring possibilities of obtaining aid for educational
programs while a meeting with the World Bank several months ago
resulted in a number of agreements, including those on more
effective funding methods through integrated programs.(pwn)