Access to Good Quality Education Still Limited, Academic Says

Jurnal Nasional, Page 10

Anies Baswedan, one of Indonesia most prominent academics, stated that currently, access to good quality education is very limited, and as a result, many Indonesian citizens lack proper education. He further explained that limited access to good quality education is mainly caused by economic and geographical factors.

In an effort to address the issue, Anies suggested that the government should establish more schools. However, he stated that establishing more schools does not necessarily mean building more schools. For example, he said that one school building can be utilized to accommodate elementary school students in the morning, and later in the afternoon, it can be used to accommodate junior high school students.

Access to Good Quality Education Still Limited, Academic Says

Akses Pendidikan Berkualitas Masih Terbatas

Jurnal Nasional, p 10

Tokoh pendidikan Anies Baswedan mengatakan, akses pendidikan berkualitas di Indonesia masih sangat terbatas, sehingga banyak yang belum mendapatkan pendidikan yang berkualitas tersebut.

“Masalah pendidikan bukan hanya subsisdi, tapi akses pada pendidikan berkualitas, yang hingga hari ini masih terbatas. Akses itu terhenti karena kendala ekonomis dan masalah geografis,” kata Anies ketika menyampaikan sambutannya dalam acara simposium yang bertajuk Pendidikan Berkeadilan di Aula Terapung Perpustakaan Universitas Indonesia (UI) Depok, Rabu.

Anies mengatakan, tentunya kita ingin membuat hidup masyarakat menjadi sejahtera, untuk itu manusia harus cerdas. Jumlah sekolah perlu ditambah, tapi bukan berarti menambah proyek baru.

Menurut Anies, hal tersebut bisa dikerjakan dalam waktu pendek yaitu lima tahun ke depan.

All Teachers Responsible for Language Skills

Media Indonesia, Page 2

The Indonesian language plays a huge role as a medium for the 2013 Curriculum. Therefore, learning the proper way to use the Indonesian language is not only the responsibility of Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian Language) teachers, yet also teachers teaching all subjects in school. This issue was raised by the Head of the Curriculum Implementation Unit (UIK) 2013 within the Ministry of Education and Culture, Tjipto Sumadi, during a panel discussion on the third day of the 10th Indonesian Language Congress in Jakarta yesterday.

Tjipto recommended an intensive language training course for Bahasa Indonesia to be held for all teachers, not just Bahasa Indonesia teachers, in order to be able to realize the use of the Indonesian language as a tool for education.

Head of the Language Board within the Ministry of Education and Culture, Mahsun, said his Board will also help by participating in these language training courses for teachers. Aside from that, the Language Board will also hold an oral and written Indonesian Language Proficiency Test (UKBI) for teachers.

All Teachers Responsible for Language Skills

Bahasa Tanggung Jawab Semua Guru

Media Indonesia, p 2

Peran dan kedudukan bahasa Indonesia sebagai pembawa atau penghela ilmu pada Kurikulum 2013 sangat besar. Oleh karena itu, pembelajaran bahasa Indonesia bukan hanya menjadi tanggung jawab guru bahasa, melainkan juga bagi semua guru mata pelajaran.

Hal itu dikemukakan Ketua Unit Implementasi Kurikulum (UIK) 2013 Kemendikbud, Tjipto Sumadi, pada diskusi panel hari ketiga Kongres Bahasa Indonesia X di Jakarta, kemarin.

Berkaitan  dengan  hal itu, ia merekomendasikan adanya pelatihan intensif bahasa Indonesia untuk semua guru bahasa Indonesia, sehingga gagasan bahasa Indonesia  sebagai pembawa ilmu pada Kurikulum 2013 dapat diwujudkan.

Selain itu, badan bahasa akan melakukan uji kemahiran berbahasa Indonesia (UKBI) baik lisan maupun  tulisan.

Lawmakers Demand Cianjur to Pay More Attention to Madrasah Diniyah Schools

Republika, Page 22

The Cianjur Legislative Council (DPRD) in West Java has asked the Cianjur District Administration to be more concerned over the facilities and infrastructure of non-formal schools, such as Islamic madrasah diniyah (MD) schools. The local Administration must also think about the welfare of MD teachers and their certification.

Head of Commission IV at the Cianjur DPRD, Jimmi Perkasa Has, said madrasah schools still need serious attention as many of their buildings are not suitable to be used as a learning facility. Aside from that, many MD schools also lack adequate supporting facilities and infrastructure.

Lawmakers Demand Cianjur to Pay More Attention to Madrasah Diniyah Schools

DPRD Minta Pemkab Cianjur Perhatikan Madrasah Diniyah

Republika, p 22

Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Daerah (DPRD) Cianjur, Jawa Barat, meminta Pemerintah Kabupaten Cianjur memperhatikan sarana dan prasarana sekolah nonformal, seperti madrasah diniyah (MD). Pemerintah daerah (pemda) perlu memikirkan kesejahteraan tenaga pengajar dan isu sertifikasi MD.

Ketua Komisi IV DPRD Cianjur Jimmi Perkasa Has mengatakan, sekolah madrasah diniyah perlu perhatian serius karena masih banyak bangunan MD yang tidak layak dan minim sarana dan prasarana penunjang.

Menurutnya, pemda tetap perlu memikirkan kelangsungan lembaga tersebut meskipun di satu sisi MD menjadi tanggung jawab Kementerian Agama (Kemenag).

Ia menambahkan, keberadaan MD sangat penting karena lembaga ini mencetak generasi muda bangsa, mengajari warga tentang ilmu agama, memperbaiki moral, serta akhlak dan etika generasi bangsa. Selain itu, perhatian terhadap guru  MD yang berperan penting dalam hal tersebut, perlu diperhatikan dengan melakukan klasifikasi dari lembaga-lembaga MD yang ada di Cianjur.

Bali Holds Education Census

Republika, Page 5 (2)

The Bali Provincial Administration plans to hold an education census in 2014 in order to uncover how education is mapped out in its society. Head of the Bali Province Education, Youth and Sports Office, Tia Kusuma Wardani, said through education mapping, her province will be able to see where the most school dropouts occur. Tia said this census will be able to give her a better understanding on education in the Province as existing data does not have any details on how the reality is out on the field.

“So far, the census only mentions numbers, but we do not know where and who. This makes it difficult for us to directly handle (these issues),” she said.

Tia added that this education census will make it easier for the Administration to create policies on education as they will have the exact data needed to do so.

Bali Holds Education Census

Bali Gelar Sensus Pendidikan

Republika, p 5 (2)

Pemerintah Provinsi Bali akan menggelar sensus pendidikan yang rencananya dilaksanakan pada 2014 guna mengetahui pemetaan tingkat pendidikan masyarakat. “Kami ingin memiliki pemetaan pendidikan, sehingga tahu di mana ada kantong-kantong anak putus sekolah, misalnya,” kata Kepala Dinas Pendidikan, Pemuda dan Olah Raga (Disdikpora) Provinsi Bali, Tia Kusuma Wardani, di Denpasar, Rabu (30/10).

Menurutnya, sensus tersebut akan memberikan gambaran yang lebih jelas terkait kondisi pendidikan masyarakat di Pulau Dewata. Karena, data selama ini belum secara jelas menyebutkan lokasi nyata di lapangan.

Dia menjelaskan bahwa sasaran dalam sensus tersebut diantaranya untuk program pengentasan buta aksara dan pendidikan anak usia dini. Selain itu, pemberian beasiswa bagi pelajar tak mampu, hingga pemetaan sekolah dari sisi kemampuan ekonomi masyarakat. Sensus itu memudahkan pemerintah untuk melakukan kebijakan dalam hal pendidikan karena sudah mengantongi data yang jelas. Pemerintah menyerahkan sepenuhnya kepada Badan Pusat Statistik (BPS) Provinsi Bali.

Menurut Kepala Bidang Pendidikan Nonformal Disdikpora Bali, Wayan Sudarsana, hingga tahun 2010 jumlah buta aksara menurut BPS untuk usia 15-44 tahun sebanyak 56.460 orang dan usia di atas 45 tahun sebanyak 335.163 orang.

Children Lack Access to Education

Republika, Page 5 (1)

Education observer Anies Baswedan revealed the reason behind the deterioration of education in Indonesia because children have difficulty in accessing education. He stated access to education in the Nation is hampered by two things, which are economic and geographic conditions. Anas said in order to help children gain easier access to education, aside from providing them with a subsidy, more schools should be made available. Schools should not only be abundant in cities, he added, yet must also be spread throughout the nation and reach the most remote areas.  Therefore, he suggested the nation needs to have more available schools, which does not necessarily mean undergoing a whole new project.

Aside from that, he stated teachers must also be distributed equally across the nation as the current condition sees teachers spread unevenly. The quality of teachers must also be improved.

Out of the 5.6 million students who enrolled in elementary school, only 2.3 million children made it all the way to their high school graduation as many students dropped out of school as they had difficulties accessing education.

Children Lack Access to Education

Anak Bangsa Sulit Akses Pendidikan

Republika, p 5 (1)

Pemerhati pendidikan Anies Baswedan mengungkapkan penyebab keterpurukan pendidikan di Indonesia. Hal itu disebabkan, sulitnya anak bangsa mengakses pendidikan.

Menurutnya, agar  anak bangsa dapat mengakses  pendidikan dengan mudah, tidak hanya memberikan subsidi tiap bulan, namun juga perlu dengan menambah jumlah sekolah.

Selanjutnya adalah pemerataan keberadaan guru. Sebab, saat ini jumlah guru tidak merata. Lebih lanjut, Anies mengatakan, pendidikan berkeadilan perlu didorong. Mempermudah akses pendidikan, merupakan  salah satu bentuk perwujudan pendidikan berkeadilan.

Jika kendala askes pendidikan sudah ditangani dan jumlah masyarakat yang berpendidikan tinggi meningkat maka kesejahteraan ikut meningkat. Sebab, level pendidikan mempengaruhi level kesejahteraan.