Making Indonesian schools
happy places
Muhadjir Effendy is ambivalent about his time at a tiny
wooden desk. It happened half a century
ago in a Madiun (East Java) madrasah Islamic school. “The war against illiteracy was being waged,”
he recalled. “The concentration was on reading and writing - so not such a
happy place.”
Whatever the faults of the system in that era it set one boy
on a compass heading to the peak of the education mountain. He took that
journey through Java and beyond, garnering prestigious qualifications along the
way.
Now the Minister for Education and Culture’s task is to help
the present generation find an easier and more fulfilling way to the summit.
“I want schools to be more human,” he said during a
one-on-one interview in Malang where he used to be Rector of Muhammadiyah
University, now the biggest tertiary institution in East Java. “The school
should be every child’s second home, a place where they enjoy learning and want
to be there.
“Let’s build a new paradigm. Some class ways have to change;
teacher talking and students copying is not right. We need to develop a nation
of critical thinkers. My objective is to revitalise basic education in
Indonesia.”
Indonesia ranks below Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam on most
international education scorecards.
Effendy, 60, said he had never met Joko Widodo before he got
the President’s shoulder tap last July following the sudden sacking of Dr Anies
Baswedan.
The professor wasn’t given a portfolio pick. Had choices been offered he would have
selected Defence as he studied ‘military sociology’ for his PhD in Indonesia,
and regional security and defence policy in the US.
“Another preference would have been the Ministry of Research,
Technology and Higher Education,” he said.
Why not the Ministry of Communication as he was once a student
journalist? “Not so interesting.”
“The President wanted me in the Education Ministry because,
he said, ‘you believe in our values and you know our vision – we share the same
background’. In particular he wanted an improvement in the take-up of the Kartu Indonesia Pintar (KIP - Indonesia
Smart Card).
“When I took on this
job about 22 per cent of the cards had been distributed. Now it’s 70 per cent because I’ve been
working with provincial governors. I
hope to reach 90 per cent this year but there are many obstacles and with some
my hands are tied.”
(The KIP is a cash-transfer card to ensure poor students
continue their schooling. Introduced in 2015 it’s also intended to help bright
kids enter university. Almost 20 million are eligible but millions are
reportedly missing out. The rate is Rp 225,000 (US $17) to Rp 500,000 (US $37)
per semester.
Effendy said the bureaucratic snafus involved a mismatch in data
gathering and ways of interpreting poverty and need by different departments. The
education future of 900,000 orphans, many without birth certificates, also has
to be addressed.
The Minister said the problem was extra bad in Ambon where a
prolonged sectarian civil conflict earlier this century had shattered thousands
of families.
Effendy flicked aside the suggestion that he was a new broom
in the Ministry although he initiated one change. Last December he held a Christmas function in
the office and asked a pastor to address all staff, whatever their faith.
He said his predecessor, now a candidate for the Jakarta governorship
had “done the job well” and his policy directions had not been overturned. Effendy declined to speculate on why Baswedan
had been dismissed other than saying the President “needed a new style”.
The Minister said he wants to scrap the national exam system
which uses multiple-choice questionnaires: “The President is keen but the Vice
President (Jusuf Kalla) is not so enthusiastic.”
Some universities are starting to organize ‘international’ conferences
where all have to use English. This
hasn’t bothered confident participants but the shy are often reluctant to
display their abilities for fear of ridicule.
“I agree this is an issue,” Effendy said. “Some students
can’t express themselves. We need to improve but we have only one official
language and all others are labelled ‘foreign’.
This has created a barrier.”
Another contentious point has been Effendy’s enthusiasm for
a longer school day though he claims critics have misunderstood the proposal.
“I understand some people’s concerns but eight hours a day
five days a week doesn’t have to be spent at a desk,” he said. “Nor does it
mean more mathematics and grammar. It’s
already being piloted in 1,500 schools.
“I encourage teachers
to take their students out of school to community sports fields and museums. As
I’m also Minister of Culture I can ensure that happens. The idea is to increase
involvement with, and understanding of, ethics, aesthetics and kinetics.
“Overseas education systems I admire are those in Australia
and Japan where there is a balance between learning and doing.
“Lack of tolerance is a big problem in Indonesia. We have to live together whatever our
ethnicity or religion. This has to be appreciated so it must be taught. This is the President’s idea and it is also
mine.
“Being Minister is a big job. Everyone talks about education
and they claim to know what’s wrong - so that means I should understand
everything. I do know that we have to do
much more to lift the quality of teaching and facilities.
“For example in Sekolah
Menengah Kejuruan (SMK – vocational high schools) we have to upgrade facilities
so our graduates get familiar with the latest equipment and can find work. We have already sent 12,000 teachers to visit
factories so they know what’s happening in modern industries.
“Teaching needs to be much wider - about universal values of
morality and integrity that are supported by all the world’s major religions.
“Let’s get away from teacher-centered education to a
position where everyone is working as partners, not bosses. We have to build
equality. I am going to get rid of our
weaknesses in education.”
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