National News - April 09, 2008
Erwida Maulia, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government is recruiting university lecturers to proctor national exams for elementary, junior and senior high school students.
The lecturers will join so-called "independent watchdog teams" at the provincial and regency/municipal levels. They will be responsible for preventing the kind of large-scale cheating that has dogged the exams for years.
To finance the establishment and activities of the teams, the government has allocated Rp 57.9 billion (US$6.3 million) out of a total Rp 572.85 billion set aside for the national exam program.
"We're now calculating the number of teams and staff members needed for the entire nation; and we've started recruiting some lecturers," chairman of the National Education Standards Agency, Djemari Mardapi, said here Tuesday.
Djemari said the independent watchdog teams only existed at the provincial level last year, while this year teams would be available at the regency/municipal level.
Team members will oversee the exams, including supervising the photocopying of exam papers, storing the papers and distributing them to schools. They will also be responsible for managing the answer sheets.
The National Education Ministry hopes to have rectors of state universities coordinate each team at the provincial level, with lecturers from state and private universities as members of the teams at all three levels.
"If we're lacking lecturers to join the teams, we'll recruit college students who have completed six or more semesters," the ministry said in a press statement.
This year, elementary school students will take the national exam in mid-May. They will be tested on Indonesian, mathematics and natural sciences.
Final year junior and senior high school students will see additional subjects on their exams this year, in addition to the Indonesian, English and math they were tested on last year.
Junior high school students, who will take the exam in early May, will also be tested on natural sciences this year, while high school students will be tested on three additional subjects later this month, depending on the focus of their studies.
High school students in the natural sciences program will have additional chemistry, physics and biology tests; those in the social sciences program will have additional geography, economics and sociology tests.
Students in the languages program will be tested in Indonesian literature, foreign languages and anthropology; and students in the Islamic program will have additional tests on Koran exegesis, science of hadith and Sufism.
National exams are used to determine the eligibility of final year students to pass on to the next level of education. They have over the years been fiercely criticized by the public.
Former Jakarta State University rector Winarno Surachman told The Jakarta Post last week that students' exam scores could not represent their actual competency.
Education expert Soedijarto said the exam was an "unfair system" as it was applied to all students in the country regardless of the disparities in the quality of education they had enjoyed.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Lawmakers, activists criticize national examination system
The Jakarta Post
Monday, June 26, 2006
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government's move to standardize education in Indonesia through the
national exams has been challenged by activists and legislators.
Masduki Baidlowi, a lawmaker with the House of Representatives' Commission X
for education and culture, said the government needed to consider the uneven
quality of schools nationwide, including the poorly skilled teachers and
improper facilities in a number of regions, if it wanted to press ahead with a
standardized examination system.
"Other countries applying national exams have upgraded the quality of their
education evenly, making the exams an appropriate standard," he told a radio
talk show here Saturday.
Several activists and educators agreed with Masduki, saying the national
exams could not be used to measure the country's improving standards in education.
Arist Merdeka Sirait from the National Commission on Child Protection said
the increase in the number of high school students who passed their exams this
year from last year did not mean the tests were successfully filtering the
merit-worthy students.
The number of high school students who graduated rose from 79.81 percent in
2005 to 91.44 percent this year, the Education Ministry announced last week.
Almost two million students sat the tests this year.
"The government is easily relieved by the growing number of graduating
students. But it does not consider what kind of students are passing the exams and
what kind are failing," Arist said, also speaking on the radio show.
He said that by Saturday morning, 3,309 students had come to his office to
complain about their unsuccessful exams and around 80 percent were students with
outstanding academic records, some of whom had already been accepted by
universities or offered scholarships.
"We can see from their documents that they have good marks at school," Arist
said. "Those students came from Jakarta and satellite cities Depok, Bekasi and
Tangerang. Besides that, we also received phone calls from regions outside
Greater Jakarta."
Suparman, from the Forum of Indonesian Independent Teachers, said the
country's education system was not ready for a uniform standard and teachers should
be included in determining whether students should graduate.
Responding to increasing calls for the government to hold remedial tests for
the failed students, Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Friday there would be no
rerun of the exams as it could spoil the purpose of national testing -- to
encourage students to study hard and improve their international competitiveness.
On Sunday, Coordinating Minister for the People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie
said there was no reason for the government to revise the examination system
since only 10 percent of students failed the tests. "The problem is not with the
system, it's the fault of teachers and students," he said.
He blamed the failed students for concentrating on only one subject instead
of studying all the tested areas.
Teguh Juwarno, a spokesperson for Education Minister Bambang Sudibyo, said
cases of top-ranked students failing the exams were a one-in-a-million
occurrence and that teachers should help them overcome their problems.
"We should seek the shortcomings of those students, not blame the national
exams, which have been proven to screen passing students, whose number increased
this year," he told the Saturday talk show. "We must appreciate the students
who have worked hard and passed the exams."
He said failing was a part of the learning process and students should not be
discouraged from discovering their limits and should learn from their
mistakes to make future improvements.
"The system is aimed at improving the national education systems's quality,
and we have to see it as a long term progress," he said. "The failing students
and schools with low graduation rates should be supervised closely."
He said the government would help improve the quality of schools in regions
with the lowest percentage of graduates.
Among the provinces with the lowest proportion of students passing the exams
were North Maluku (72.57 percent), East Nusa Tenggara (75.37 percent) and
South Kalimantan (77.37).
Other provinces reported some schools failed to deliver any passing students.
They included Jakarta, with seven failing schools, Bali with three schools
and Riau with four schools.
Monday, June 26, 2006
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government's move to standardize education in Indonesia through the
national exams has been challenged by activists and legislators.
Masduki Baidlowi, a lawmaker with the House of Representatives' Commission X
for education and culture, said the government needed to consider the uneven
quality of schools nationwide, including the poorly skilled teachers and
improper facilities in a number of regions, if it wanted to press ahead with a
standardized examination system.
"Other countries applying national exams have upgraded the quality of their
education evenly, making the exams an appropriate standard," he told a radio
talk show here Saturday.
Several activists and educators agreed with Masduki, saying the national
exams could not be used to measure the country's improving standards in education.
Arist Merdeka Sirait from the National Commission on Child Protection said
the increase in the number of high school students who passed their exams this
year from last year did not mean the tests were successfully filtering the
merit-worthy students.
The number of high school students who graduated rose from 79.81 percent in
2005 to 91.44 percent this year, the Education Ministry announced last week.
Almost two million students sat the tests this year.
"The government is easily relieved by the growing number of graduating
students. But it does not consider what kind of students are passing the exams and
what kind are failing," Arist said, also speaking on the radio show.
He said that by Saturday morning, 3,309 students had come to his office to
complain about their unsuccessful exams and around 80 percent were students with
outstanding academic records, some of whom had already been accepted by
universities or offered scholarships.
"We can see from their documents that they have good marks at school," Arist
said. "Those students came from Jakarta and satellite cities Depok, Bekasi and
Tangerang. Besides that, we also received phone calls from regions outside
Greater Jakarta."
Suparman, from the Forum of Indonesian Independent Teachers, said the
country's education system was not ready for a uniform standard and teachers should
be included in determining whether students should graduate.
Responding to increasing calls for the government to hold remedial tests for
the failed students, Vice President Jusuf Kalla said Friday there would be no
rerun of the exams as it could spoil the purpose of national testing -- to
encourage students to study hard and improve their international competitiveness.
On Sunday, Coordinating Minister for the People's Welfare Aburizal Bakrie
said there was no reason for the government to revise the examination system
since only 10 percent of students failed the tests. "The problem is not with the
system, it's the fault of teachers and students," he said.
He blamed the failed students for concentrating on only one subject instead
of studying all the tested areas.
Teguh Juwarno, a spokesperson for Education Minister Bambang Sudibyo, said
cases of top-ranked students failing the exams were a one-in-a-million
occurrence and that teachers should help them overcome their problems.
"We should seek the shortcomings of those students, not blame the national
exams, which have been proven to screen passing students, whose number increased
this year," he told the Saturday talk show. "We must appreciate the students
who have worked hard and passed the exams."
He said failing was a part of the learning process and students should not be
discouraged from discovering their limits and should learn from their
mistakes to make future improvements.
"The system is aimed at improving the national education systems's quality,
and we have to see it as a long term progress," he said. "The failing students
and schools with low graduation rates should be supervised closely."
He said the government would help improve the quality of schools in regions
with the lowest percentage of graduates.
Among the provinces with the lowest proportion of students passing the exams
were North Maluku (72.57 percent), East Nusa Tenggara (75.37 percent) and
South Kalimantan (77.37).
Other provinces reported some schools failed to deliver any passing students.
They included Jakarta, with seven failing schools, Bali with three schools
and Riau with four schools.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
span style="font-weight:bold;">INDONESIA'S NATIONAL DAY
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May 2, is Indonesia’s National Education Day. Why is this day special? May 2, 1889 was the birth of Ki Hajar Dewantara, a pioneer in Education for Indonesians. Back then Indonesia was occupied by the Dutch, and school (education) was a luxury limited to children and relatives of colonial officers. If a few Indonesians were able to study in these schools, they must have come from a very rich or influential family. Ki Hajar Dewantara was one of them, he was born with the name Raden Mas Soerjadi Soerjaningrat, from the Yogyakarta Palace. Later on in his life, he removed his royal title (Raden Mas) and changed his name to Ki Hajar Dewantara to be able to mingle more freely with local people.
Ki Hajar Dewantara was very well known for his critics to the Ducth colonial government. Exploitations of natural resources, human resources, inequalities, discrimination was mostly what his works was about. His writing “Als Ik Eens Nederlander Was” (If I were a Nederlander/ Dutch) was famous for his strong critics when the colonial government imposed tax and retribution fee on Indonesians, for the purpose of celebrating the Dutch Independence Day. His writing was published in a newspaper “De Express” by Douwes Dekker. Colonial responded by sending Ki Hajar Dewantoro to exile, without trial.
Douwes Dekker and Cipto Mangunkusumo, both Indonesian scholars and good friends of Ki Hajar Dewantoro, tried to fight the Colonial government with their writings, but were also sent to exile on the basis of provoking and manipulating Indonesians to fight against the Dutch Colony.
In 1913, still in exile, the colonial government granted their request to finish off their “punishment” in Holland (still in exile). In Holland they studied a lot about education and teachings. And in 1918, they all came back to Indonesia and established Indonesia’s first education institute, called “Nationaal Onderwijs Instituut Tamansiswa” (Tamansiswa National Institute). The institute focuses primarily on nationalism and struggle to fight for Indonesia’s independence. While teaching and “managing” the institute, Ki Hajar Dewantara continues to produce writings, but has slightly changed from political to educational issues.
When the Japanese came to take over Indonesia, Tamansiswa still continues to operate, because the Japanese allows education and nationalism to be given to Indonesians. And when Indonesia finally gained its Independence in 1945, Ki Hajar Dewantoro was appointed Minister of Education and Culture.
Ki Hajar Dewantoro passed away on April 28, 1959, and is attributed “National Hero” from the Indonesian government. Since then May 2nd has been marked as the National Education Day.
Hopefully, today, even though the Indonesian government (as well as the Indonesian people) are concerned with other issues, such as the huge May Day Labor Demonstration that occured yesterday, or the economy of the country, I do hope that education is still an issue that is close to the heart for many of us. Better schools, good books, cheaper (if not free) education remains an ongoing hope for many parents and students in Indonesia.
May 2, is Indonesia’s National Education Day. Why is this day special? May 2, 1889 was the birth of Ki Hajar Dewantara, a pioneer in Education for Indonesians. Back then Indonesia was occupied by the Dutch, and school (education) was a luxury limited to children and relatives of colonial officers. If a few Indonesians were able to study in these schools, they must have come from a very rich or influential family. Ki Hajar Dewantara was one of them, he was born with the name Raden Mas Soerjadi Soerjaningrat, from the Yogyakarta Palace. Later on in his life, he removed his royal title (Raden Mas) and changed his name to Ki Hajar Dewantara to be able to mingle more freely with local people.
Ki Hajar Dewantara was very well known for his critics to the Ducth colonial government. Exploitations of natural resources, human resources, inequalities, discrimination was mostly what his works was about. His writing “Als Ik Eens Nederlander Was” (If I were a Nederlander/ Dutch) was famous for his strong critics when the colonial government imposed tax and retribution fee on Indonesians, for the purpose of celebrating the Dutch Independence Day. His writing was published in a newspaper “De Express” by Douwes Dekker. Colonial responded by sending Ki Hajar Dewantoro to exile, without trial.
Douwes Dekker and Cipto Mangunkusumo, both Indonesian scholars and good friends of Ki Hajar Dewantoro, tried to fight the Colonial government with their writings, but were also sent to exile on the basis of provoking and manipulating Indonesians to fight against the Dutch Colony.
In 1913, still in exile, the colonial government granted their request to finish off their “punishment” in Holland (still in exile). In Holland they studied a lot about education and teachings. And in 1918, they all came back to Indonesia and established Indonesia’s first education institute, called “Nationaal Onderwijs Instituut Tamansiswa” (Tamansiswa National Institute). The institute focuses primarily on nationalism and struggle to fight for Indonesia’s independence. While teaching and “managing” the institute, Ki Hajar Dewantara continues to produce writings, but has slightly changed from political to educational issues.
When the Japanese came to take over Indonesia, Tamansiswa still continues to operate, because the Japanese allows education and nationalism to be given to Indonesians. And when Indonesia finally gained its Independence in 1945, Ki Hajar Dewantoro was appointed Minister of Education and Culture.
Ki Hajar Dewantoro passed away on April 28, 1959, and is attributed “National Hero” from the Indonesian government. Since then May 2nd has been marked as the National Education Day.
Hopefully, today, even though the Indonesian government (as well as the Indonesian people) are concerned with other issues, such as the huge May Day Labor Demonstration that occured yesterday, or the economy of the country, I do hope that education is still an issue that is close to the heart for many of us. Better schools, good books, cheaper (if not free) education remains an ongoing hope for many parents and students in Indonesia.
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