Education in Indonesia | Bear's Blab

Every May 2nd is known as National Education Day (Hari Pendidikan Nasional) in Indonesia. The date was set to celebrate the birth of Ki Hajar Dewantara, a national education hero. But unfortunately I wont be talking about him, eventhough he is one of the coolest historical figures in the education field in Indonesia. Instead, I'll be blogging about the stages of education we have here.

Going bluntly I'd say, education is important. Either getting the formal education, going to cram school/ private lesson or learning from informal ways. 

The government has had the mandatory educational plan for every citizen for 9 years, consisted of 6 years in Elementary and 3 years in Middle School which known as Wajib Belajar 9 Tahun. The basis of this national educational plan is from the Constitution of Indonesia 1945, Chapter XIII, section 31, article (1), which asserts that every citizen is entitled to education.

From my personal experience and loose-observation, an everyday-normal-regular kid in Indonesia mostly go through 5 stages of formal education, which are :

1. 1 year in Kindergarten/ Taman Kanak-kanak (TK) usually started at age 5

2. 6 years in Elementary School/ Sekolah Dasar (SD)

3. 3 years in Middle School / Sekolah Menegah Pertama (SMP) 

4. 3 years High School/ Sekolah Menengah Atas (SMA)

5. roughly 4 years in University for a Bachelor Degree (Strata-1/S-1), could be faster could be longer :d

There are some things to be highlighted on this formal education subject, such as :

1. Uniform

Students from Elementary to High School of all public or private or vocational school must wear the designated uniform from the government at least once a week (usually on Mondays). The designated uniform were differentiate by color for each stages. White shirt and red skirt/shorts for Elementary students; white shirt and dark blue skirt/shorts for Middle School students; white shirt and gray skirt/pants for High School students. The white shirt must have the specific badge printed on the front pocket. Some school would also have the student's name on the opposite site of the pocket, the flag badge sewn on the right upper sleeve and the school's name/badge on the left upper sleeve.

There are also some other sets of uniforms to wear depending on the day/school such as Scout uniform, Batik uniform and/or designated white shirt with white skirt/pants. We also have uniform for PE class. Private schools usually have their own designated uniform.

2. School Time

Public school students usually spent 5 to 7 hours (starts at around 7 AM to 2 PM)  a day with roughly 15 minutes recess in between 1,5 hours to 2 hours in-class lesson from Monday to Saturday.

3. Fixed Schedule

From kindergarten up to high school, students usually given by the school a fixed schedule on subjects/ class they'll have for a week.

4. Classroom

Since the students already given a fixed schedule, they stayed in their classroom. The teacher goes to the class, unlike in western country where each teacher has their own classroom and the students go to their classroom if they take that class. 

5. Homeroom Teacher

Every classroom has a homeroom teacher which will compile the grades provided by other teachers then give out the final report. The homeroom teacher will also write down the subjective review on each student of their social communication, activeness in class etc.

6. Evaluation Reports and Rankings  

Instead of letters, we get numbers as points in evaluation reports which back in the day, I got 3 reports a year. 6 is average, 5 and below is bad and it comes in red ink, 9 is usually the highest point a student could get. And after all the points added and summed with the subjective review of the homeroom teacher, students will be given their rank in the classroom. I heard the 1st ranking students usually get some prize from the homeroom teacher/ school's principal ...but I wouldn't know, I barely managed to stay afloat in the top 5 ranking :(

7. Extended Classes

For students of grade 6, grade 9 and grade 12, most school will give extended classes for subjects that will be tested on the National Examination.

8. University

After completing the 9 years mandatory education + 3 years in High School, it is expected to continuing the education to university level, most notably states university. If the kid could get into either University of Indonesia (UI), Gadjahmada University (UGM), The Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) or Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) any parents would be very proud, even more if they got it through The National Examination for States University Entrance/ Seleksi Nasional Masuk Perguruan Tinggi Negeri (SNMPTN). Even even more proud if the kid got into Medical, Law, Engineering or Economy faculty!

***

Public School, Private School, Vocational School

Those 3 types of schools each has their own perks and downs. For most people, entering a private school (especially ones with religion affiliation) still considered prestigious, but there are public schools titled as the pioneering international school and students from all over Indonesia compete vigorously to get accepted in that public schools.

As for vocational schools, most people usually looks down on them.. But I think those who goes/went to vocational school has had their goals set. Props for those who goes/went to vocational school for mechanical engineering, pharmacy, culinary, accounting, arts, tourism etc!

Informal education, Cram School, Private Lesson

Sad to say that most Indonesian still consider Diploma degree as a "informal" education, an educational "stage" one's take because they cant get into Bachelor Degree's program. 

The cram school I'm talking here is for the extended studying time on specific school subjects such as math, physic and English where parents send their children to a learning center. Most parents send their children to cram school for university entrance exam's preparation. Personally, my parents sent me to cram school since I was in 3rd grade to high school, but in this "modern" time, parents already sending their children to cram school from a very young age to learn on how to read, write, arithmetic etc.

Private lesson is given by a personal tutor which usually come to the student's house to teach school subjects. Parents with children in elementary grades mostly prefers this method for safety reason.

***

Coming from a strict upbringing where education is important; completing formal education in prestigious schools, going to cram schools and entering a well know state university doesn't really ensure one's future. Plus, education is hella expensive. Still, it is worthy the sacrifice. As my father always say to me, "The best legacy any parents could give to their children are good moral compass and education."

So, keep learning, stay educated and be kind!
rawr :3