Jakarta – The government continues to demonstrate its commitment to expanding access to education for the poor and extreme poor. One concrete step that is currently being pushed is increasing the capacity of Sekolah Rakyat, an inclusive education initiative initiated to reach students from the lowest economic groups.
Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf, who is familiarly called Gus Ipul, said that President Prabowo Subianto has directly instructed that the People’s Schools can accommodate as many students from poor families as possible. According to him, the directive is a strong foundation for accelerating the expansion and strengthening of the People’s School system in various regions.
“We have to go all out, we can’t do it halfway. Many of our brothers and sisters from decile 1 hope to be able to attend the People’s School. If it can be maximized (student capacity), then maximize it,” said Gus Ipul.
He emphasized the importance of special strategies and breakthroughs so that the target of student reach can be achieved optimally. One of them is through optimizing the location points and the number of study groups (rombel) that can be accommodated in each educational unit.
“The acceleration strategy is very important. We need not only numbers, but also speed in expansion. The government is here to answer the community’s need for decent basic education,” added Gus Ipul.
To date, the Ministry of Social Affairs has verified 65 locations of People’s Schools in various regions. However, this number is projected to continue to increase.
Head of the General Bureau of the Ministry of Social Affairs, Salahudin Yahya, said that the number of locations is estimated to reach 100 locations by the end of the second quarter of this year. With this achievement, the People’s School is targeted to be able to accommodate up to 10,000 students. He also said that local government support is one of the keys to accelerating the realization of this target.
“Through the intensification approach, one point can be increased from two classes to four, depending on the building capacity,” said Salahudin.
In the midst of efforts to increase quantity, the quality of education in Elementary Schools has not escaped attention. Acting Head of the Education Assessment Curriculum Standards Agency (BSKAP) of the Ministry of Education and Culture, Toni Toharudin, said that currently the Ministry of Elementary and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen) is preparing a special curriculum for Elementary Schools.
“Later, students will be able to attend free and quality school at the People’s School. So we will support developing the curriculum,” said Toni.
The curriculum, he said, is an adaptation of the National Curriculum which was then further developed into the National Curriculum Plus. The People’s School Formator Team said this approach would adopt the best practices of superior education models such as the Garuda Superior School.
“The plus side is that it will be like Garuda’s Excellent School. This means that even though it is aimed at the poor, the quality will not be compromised,” Toni emphasized.
These strategic steps by the government have received appreciation from various groups, especially education observers and social activists. Sekolah Rakyat is considered as an answer to the challenge of inequality in access to education, especially in remote areas and marginalized communities.
This initiative is also in line with the agenda of developing superior human resources which is a national priority. With cross-ministerial synergy and support from all stakeholders, Sekolah Rakyat is expected to be a symbol of the state’s presence in providing equal education rights for all children of the nation.
“This is not just a social program, but a major investment for the future of Indonesia. When children from poor families receive quality education, then we are building the foundation of a more just and competitive nation,” concluded Gus Ipul. ****
