It’s not what we teach ...

... but how we teach it.

This article by Andrew Vivian, an educational consultant and former principal of two national plus schools, was first published in the Jakarta Post

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Too often, I meet teachers who say that they want to be more innovative in their classrooms but are restricted by their curriculum. If asked why they feel restricted, the answer is invariably along the lines of “This is the way it has always been done” or “My principal makes me do it the way it has always been done”.

In an old Teachers TV video, Tony Buzan, the inventor of mind maps, asked his British audience which option would they choose first: teaching young people how to learn or teaching them the “basics” of all subjects. He, along with almost every other educational researcher, proposed that if we first teach children how to learn, they will not only learn the “basics” but more, in much greater depth.

Buzan, Sir Ken Robinson and others are telling us that traditional approaches to schooling are unnatural in terms of how our brains work and are teaching most young people to be not creative. To educators such as Buzan and Robinson, thinking and learning are easy.

If they are correct, why do so many teachers not teach their students how to actually learn and think? What are the restrictions?

First, there is not unanimous agreement about the purpose of schools. Some sections of society want schools to prepare students for work, others want them to be “successful” in the 21st century, without detailing what this means, and still others want them to make a “difference”, again, without a lot of detail.

Many schools have a vision and mission, but, too many of them often have no clear understanding of the educational needs of their young people and how to turn their vision into programs that meet these needs effectively.

 In excellent schools, everyone in the school community is clear about the school’s purpose, and the strategies that will lead to the successful fulfillment of it.

Second, most teachers teach the ways they were taught. This means that unless a teacher was influenced by someone who was innovative, students will receive exactly the same pedagogy that has existed in most school systems since public schooling was invented. In times of rapid change, this approach is very unlikely to be helpful to students.

Finally, particularly in schools in which student face external exams, teachers and principals lack courage. They know there is a better way, but they will not risk doing something different to other teachers and schools in case their students’ exam scores suffer.

However, there are enough schools out there that both educate their students and get good external exam results by planning student-centered classes.

 It is actually quite simple. The teacher or school needs to look at the material being taught and ask “What are the big ideas that underpin this?” They need to identify the concepts, the knowledge that students should have for life.

For example, rather than being able to simply memorize the presidents of the US from a unit of work, students should walk away from it with a strong concept of leadership. They can Google the presidents or the teacher can teach them quickly using games or flashcards. Teachers can develop questions that facilitate high-level thinking and lead to an understanding of the concepts. The material from the curriculum can be used as a vehicle for this.

There are a number of excellent thinking strategies around. For example, we could use Bloom’s taxonomy of thinking: A big idea is about national leadership, could be examined through questions such as “Which presidents made the most impact on their society at the time?” (analysis), “What things would the perfect president do?” (synthesis) and “Can you think of ways to improve the political system to ensure that every president is highly effective?” (evaluation/creative).

Once good questions are developed, they can be used to plan engaging activities for students do, so that as well as remembering the basic facts, they understand the underlying concepts and principles of the topic. Students can critically analyze the topic and come up a much better understanding of the topic than an external exam requires. Activities could include Internet research, surveys, practical work, library research, etc.

Students can even work from textbooks as long as they are answering the high-level questions and not wading through the textbook questions, all students at the same time.

An advantage of this type of approach is that students can work at their own pace, and the teacher, instead of standing at the front of the classroom, can move around and work with individual students or small groups of students.

When schools and teachers step outside the box a little, and demonstrate energy and imagination, regardless of the curriculum, students can be educated about the course material and write correct exam answers about it.

U.M. Time - Again

Yep, it's that time of year when elementary, junior and senior high school students face the dreaded Ujian Monyet, the multi-choice exams set by regional and national education authorities.

The tests set by the national Department of Education, which in its (lack of) wisdom or vision has emasculated the English language teaching sector, are sat by students throughout the country. Local governments set 'tryout' practice tests, and students in grades 6, 9 and 10 spend an eternity, which several months can seem to be, learning little new, or of practical use for their futures.

This is what Iqbal Widastomo said three years ago.

We need to change the mindset of many of our educators to first become critical thinkers themselves before they can develop and encourage critical thinking in the schoolchildren.

Our continuing obsession with discipline and strict order in schools creates a problem for our students and this problem leaves them and us at a disadvantage in the international community. Too often they are being left behind because they have not been taught to think.

They have not been given a chance to think and explore as they naturally should have as children growing up and learning. But they need to be able to think and question and challenge ideas for themselves. Our schools, however, still do not encourage this but instead continue to emphasize memorization rather than actual thinking.

I don't believe we should over-blame the schools. It's only been fourteen years since the abdication of Suharto and changing the mindsets of the powers-that-be takes a generation or two. That the élites in the legislatures and their bureaucracies are the self-perpetuating hangovers is a matter for the electorate to determine - and hopefully as soon as possible. However, teachers and parents of current school students are 'victims' of the Suharto era and, with a few notable exceptions, have yet to change their mindsets.

What gets my goat more than anything is that the tests themselves, both locally and nationally derived are flawed. Or, to put it more bluntly, are riddled with errors.

Last year, Our Kid graduated from grade 9 and is now settled in the senior high school regime. He goes to a school which bills itself as a 'National Plus', a private fee-paying school. These schools need a continued intake in order to survive as a commercial enterprise, and recruits qualified, experienced and caring teachers in order to ensure a 100% pass rate.

Image is everything. (That this year's annual wall calendar highlights various teachers including those who are awarded for their "Pucntuality" (sic) is somewhat unfortunate.) However, I do still feel a sense of resentment fostered at his graduation ceremony last year.

Our Kid came home after sitting the English exam and told me that he'd answered two answers (out of fifty) incorrectly. He'd made a note of the questions and the four possible answer.choices, and yes, he had got them wrong. But hey, 96% is an excellent result in my book.

At the graduation ceremony a lass was praised and awarded a month's free tuition for getting 100%. A couple of months later, the official certificate came through and it turned out that Our Kid had been awarded 98%.

Now, given that certificates are computer-generated, I can only surmise that one of the questions Our Kid had got 'wrong', had been a 'bad' question, i.e. had the wrong answer in the marking key. Therefore, the lass had given the 'right' answer according to the government, but was in fact 'wrong' and therefore did not actually achieve 100%.

If you've followed my convoluted thinking so far, consider this question set by Jakarta's (lack of) Education Dept. for this past week's tryout exams for this year's batch of grade 9s.

Q. When will the wedding anniversary be held?

.....A. In the afternoon. ......C. In the evening.

.....B. In the morning. .......-D. At night.

There's nothing wrong with the English, but the question ...?

How can you 'hold' an anniversary? The occasion is on a particular day or date, and is therefore of 24 hours duration, so none of the answers are correct. Surely it's a party, a get-together, or soiree that will be held at 8pm.

Then there is the matter of interpretation. 8pm in Indonesian is 'malam', i.e. night, yet to an Englishman such as myself, it's the evening, the gap between work obligations and bedtime.

Finally, the text preceding the one above is below. Your task is to work out how many mistakes you can find in the fourteen words.

We are not alone in Indonesia. Ruth Ann Dandrea has written A Teacher's Open Letter to Her 8th Grade Students: 'A Test You Need to Fail'


"…it doesn’t matter how well you write, or what you think. I’d been feeling [for] the past few years of my tenure in public education, that there was something or somebody out there, a power of a sort, that doesn’t really want you kids to be educated. I felt a force that wants you ignorant and pliable, and that needs you able to fill in the boxes and follow instructions."

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Remember
Isaac Newton did poorly in grade school.
Winston Churchill struggled in school and failed the sixth grade.
Einstein was four years old before he could speak and seven before he could read.

International-Standard Pilot Project Schools

The following are short articles taken from the Jakarta Post in the past couple of weeks. The notion of a strata of schools for the children of rich parents has caused concern for some time, especially as the schools' management bodies are able to charge high fees - and national schools are not supposed to charge any. That the quality of education provided is in no way comparable to that provided by genuine international schools, originally established for the children of expatriate parents.

An editorial in the Jakarta Post in March last year (2010) closed with these remarks.

It is the task of all elements in this country to improve the quality of our education, which ranks low even among Asian countries. Therefore, we appreciate the number of corporations that run schools, including those with international standards.

However, it is also unwise for the government to push certain schools, including state ones, to open the international standards of services in the absence of proper educational infrastructure and teaching staff who meet the requirements set for such schools. Besides, we need all categories of schools to serve society’s various demands.

Obviously, judging by the following news articles, no-one in the Department of Education reads the Post.

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Teachers to request review of RSBI schools

Retno Listyarti, the secretary-general of the Indonesian Federated Teachers Union (FSGI) says the FSGI will request a judicial review of the National Educational System Law that administers international-standard pilot project schools (RSBI).

Several NGOs would join the union in backing the review, Retno said, including the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), the Legal Aid Foundation (LBH), the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (Elsam), and the Education Coalition.

The review request would challenge article 50 of the law, which obliges every regency or city to have an RSBI school, Retno said as reported by tempointeraktif.com.

The presence of the RBSI schools has irked critics, who claim that the schools segregate students from different economic backgrounds.

There have been huge disparities between the facilities for traditional and international students. While international program classrooms are typically equipped with posh tables and chairs, only second-rate facilities are available for regular track students, even within the same school.

Retno, a teacher at SMAN 13 Jakarta said an international-class student at the state high school could pay up to Rp 31 million (US$3,500) a year in fees and tuition.

“Education should be based on our values and culture. It should not be like airline flights, where there are economy and executive classes,” Retno said on Tuesday.

RSBI schools prone to corruption: Activists

The establishment of international standard pilot-project schools (RSBI) not only widens the gap between the affluent and the poor, but opens new corruption opportunities, activists say.

“There are many findings that point to potential corruption,” said Febri Hendri from Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), regarding documents consisting of SMPN 1 state junior high school’s budget and its cash book for the 2010/2011 academic year at the Jakarta Education Agency on Thursday.

ICW and the Alliance of Parents Concerned with Indonesian Education (APPI) visited the agency to submit a proof of corruption indication report on SMPN 1 in Cikini, Central Jakarta.

RSBI is a category of state schools in the process of achieving international standard school (SBI) status. Unlike regular state schools, RSBIs can charge parents monthly fees.

Febri said on Oct. 18 2010, for example, the school spent Rp 1 million (US$117) of unallocated funds on Central Jakarta RSBI supervisors as incentives, which the ICW viewed as gratuity fees. The school also provided Rp 9 million in transportation funds to a certain monitoring, evaluation and supervision team.

“What is this for? If the priority is supervision of SMPN 1, why is the money going this way?” he said.

Febri read out a total of 16 oddities and potential corruption cases in the school’s treasury accounts.

SMPN 1 is one of four RSBI schools in the region that refused to disclose their accountability report and planned expenditure budget, which the Central Information Commission (KIP) has officially categorized as public information.

SMAN 70 Jakarta senior high school in South Jakarta, another of the four schools under scrutiny, has also raised suspicions on matters of discretion.

Musni Umar, a parent and SMAN 70 school committee member, said the same situation was occurring at his child’s school. “We will take it to the Corruption Eradication Commission [KPK].”

Education agency deputy chief Agus Suradika promised to look into the case. “We will study the documents and announce our response in 14-days time at the latest,” he said.

There are 10 RSBI senior high schools in Jakarta of a total 117 senior high schools. There are 11 RSBI junior high schools of 287 and 7 RSBI elementary schools of more than 2,000.

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo has recently ordered an evaluation of RSBI schools following complaints regarding the schools’ failure to achieve superior academic achievement.

RSBI schools ‘worsen’ social divide

The Indonesian Forum for Budget Transparency (FITRA) has urged the government to change its international standard school funding policy, which it says widens the gap between rich and poor students.

Only children from affluent families can afford international-standard schools (SBI) and international-standard pilot project schools (RSBI). Ironically, these schools receive more government funding, instead of the poorer schools that definitely need more attention, said FITRA investigation and advocacy coordinator Uchok Sky Khadafi in a press statement sent to The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

“This very unjust and discriminating policy will prompt regional administrations to compete in opening SBIs and RSBIs so they can earn block grants from the central government,” Uchok said.

“And this will cause those regional administrations to spend more on those international standard schools and at the same time abandon schools in outlying areas that actually need more money from the regional budgets.”

Uchok added that the government had allocated Rp 242 billion (US$27.35 million) to SBI and RSBI schools next year and only Rp 108 billion for regular schools, even though the latter constituted the majority.

Penabur - Contemptible and Criminal Christians

I can't change the past, but I have a chance to create my future. I can't go back and turn back the time. I can't change what I've done ..."

fr. Susiana Gunawan Friendster profile 

 

That is not 100% true.

 

For a start, you can do what the Supreme Court has mandated you to do (Putusan No. 576 K/PDT.SUS/2008). Your failure to do so leaves you liable to a term of imprisonment for contempt of court.

 

You may think that you can hide behind the Penabur Board of Governors, but they will hang you out to dry because you are the person who signed letters which admit to illegal acts, such as the non-payment of tax and the refusal to issue exit permits. the employment of expatriates on tourist and business visas, and much else.

 

You are also named as the 'registrant' of upi-edu.com, albeit a defunct website, and you remain as 'business manager' of UPI, although no one seems quite sure what that entails. Presumably you are responsible for the recent recruitment advertisements in the Jakarta Post. These are de facto evidence that UPI continues to contravene prevailing regulations regarding the employment of "Qualified Native English Teachers".

 

I should not have to spell out to you what those regulations are, but for those reading this email via the Bcc facility I refer you to Act No.66 of 2009 About Granting Permission for Foreign National Teachers in formal and non-formal education units in Indonesia. It's online in Indonesian here.

 

I'm not seeking vengeance but merely what is owed according to the contract I signed in good faith with Ukrida Penabur International. Article 7 refers to Terms and Conditions, including termination of employment. Article 10 states that "the laws of Indonesia govern this Contract of employment and the determination of any disputes or claims arising in relation thereto." The Supreme Court has ruled against UPI so in not settling matters with me (and Jac Poelemans) you are acting in contempt of court.

 

I am writing to you in good faith, expecting you to settle forthwith. As well as the sum stated in the Supreme Court ruling, plus the interest on that sum accrued in the two or so years since that ruling, there is the unpaid salary for work done prior to my arbitrary and unlawful dismissal, my legal entitlements under the law pending the settlement of this case (including medical), and the sorting out of my residence permit with the Department of Immigration.

 

When dealing with the latter issue, you may wish to refer them to the letter from my lawyers, SH & R, dated 23rd November 2009, ref no:158/SHR/PV/11/2009, which informed them of your liability in law for my current situation until you have settled up according to the Supreme Court ruling referred to above. Your lawyers, Petrus Selestinus, will have a copy of that letter, and I separately informed the British Consulate of the situation. They are the Cc'd recipients of this email.

 

This has gone on long enough, so, Suzi, it's up to you, lah.

 

You would do well to read and inwardly digest your Bible, particularly Ezekiel 18 and Romans 12:19. However, in case you decide to ignore this, then let me assure you that if I do not hear from you or any of the board members before August 17th - the second anniversary of the publication of the Supreme Court's decision - then some of the contents of my book, Penabur - Contemptible and Criminal Christians has already been pre-scheduled for posting online on that date. Although my blog Performing Monkeys carries my opinions about your contemptible and morally corrupt management, I have yet to post any of the documents which demonstrate beyond any doubt Penabur's contempt for Indonesia's laws.

When I do, rest assured that the link will be sent to not only include the good folk Bcc'd to this email but also to the media and the mailing lists of Penabur congregations throughout Indonesia.

Terry Collins
B.Ed. CTEFL

Granting Permission for Foreign National Teachers

"It's ironic that Suharto is sometimes called 'the father of development.' It is much easier to be corrupt than be creative. No free thinkers allowed. Too dangerous. Creativity is all to easily snuffed out by corruption. Better just to be a consumer."
Thomas Belfield

Thomas and I are corresponding about "post-modern Jakarta", but as I freely adapt quotes to fit my own theories (theses?), it serves as an indication that, as I frequently comment, the administrators of Indonesia - at all levels - rarely think about consequences when they do attempt free thinking.

A word they often use is 'socialisation', which they and we take to be the familiarisation of proposed laws and/or regulations intended to change societal behaviour.

My last post reviewed the business - although I prefer the word 'profession' - of TEFLing, the teaching of English to Indonesians.

A year ago, on October 2nd 2009, the then Minister of Education promulgated a new law, Act No.66 of 2009 About Granting Permission for Foreign National Teachers in formal and non-formal education units in Indonesia. It's online in Indonesian here and the Google translation into English is here.

In essence, the law sets out the procedures for the recruitment of native speaker teachers from abroad, procedures which have been in force for as long as I can recall.

Given the turmoil among TEFLers already here, it would appear that the bureaucrats in the Ministry (Depnikas) were not sufficiently 'socialised' regarding the changes in the law, even though they've had a full year to understand its intentions, but that could be because there are grey areas.

For example, (in the Google translation): Educators are required to have academic qualifications, competence, certificates and education personnel (are expected to be?) physically and mentally healthy, and have ability to support the realization of national education goals.

That sounds eminently sensible, until you read on.

Academic qualifications referred to [are] determined as follows:

a. educated at least masters degree from college accredited for education personnel on formal education units in elementary and secondary education, including nursery (kindergarten), and higher education in the form of polytechnics and colleges;

b. educated at least doctorates from universities accredited for education personnel in higher education units the form high schools, universities and institutes.

A masters degree to teach in a kindergarten? A doctorate in education to teach in universities?
Who on earth would want to come to Indonesia with its paltry salaries if they're so well qualified 'back home'?

Or is this a reference to the academically low level of degrees awarded in Indonesian universities? Only 140 rank in this list of the world's top 20,000 universities, with the highest ranked university, the Institute of Technology Bandung at 589. The figure isn't good even for south-east Asia with ITB at 8th.

Then there are the health requirements, both physical and mental: New recruits are required to produce a certificate of good health and spirit, free of HIV / AIDS and free drugs from the hospital in the country concerned and to the check back / reset by the state hospital Indonesia.

I must admit that being of good spirit is a good thing. Unfortunately, Indonesia has a knack of making folk unhappy with its levels of corruption, pollution, and bureaucratic bloody-mindedness. Besides, how can you measure 'good spirit'? Is every new recruit supposed to produce a psychotherapist's report?

Regarding the requirement of a certificate from the home country showing that one is free from HIV/AIDS, this Wiki page states: Legal guidelines regarding HIV/AIDS do not exist although AIDS is a major problem in most countries in the region. Those infected with HIV traveling to Indonesia can possibly be refused entry or threatened with quarantine.

It's that word "possibly" which throws Article 5.3a of the Act into legal doubt, especially as a new recruits are expected to undergo a further test at an Indonesian hospital.

For more on AIDS prevalence and preventation, see this page which in part reads as follows: One aim of the National AIDS Commission 2007-2010 HIV and AIDS Response Strategy is to provide an enabling environment where civil society can play a significant role, and stigma and discrimination are eliminated or at least minimized.

Until ALL visitors to Indonesia, whether dignatories, businessfolk, tourists or drug traffickers, are subject to the same rigorous rigmarole, Article 5.3a is clearly discriminatory and against government policy.

One final thought: Article 5.3b requires a personal statement [that foreign educators] will not engage in propaganda activities religious, or klandesten intelligence, not doing collection of funds in Indonesia, and other activities outside the permit granted.

Where can I get a permit to engage in "klandesten intelligence"?

TEFL on the rocks?

The Teaching of English of as a Foreign Language ¹ (TEFL) is a massive worldwide industry. Not only is it a foreign currency earner in a number of countries such as Australia and the UK, but it has been used as a cover for human trafficking.

I entered the profession because I wanted to return to south-east Asia and as a qualified and experienced school teacher I felt that this was a route which would provide me with a level of income sufficient for my needs. And so it has generally proved.

When I first arrived, at the tail end of 1987, I had been recruited by EEP, a language institute in South Jakarta, equipped with an internationally recognised Certificate in TEFL (CTEFL), gained after a grueling six week course in London at a cost of £1,000, an 18 month contract, somewhere to live and a return air ticket. I then learned the intricacies of syntax, grammar, collocation, phonetics and other confusing stuff, as well as how to pass on the knowledge to bright non-native speakers of all ages (6 - 83 years), at all levels, from elementary (SD) to university, and the full range of courses, from general to specific purposes (e.g. business), and academic, including international exams (the UCLES suite, ToEFL, IELTS).

When I arrived, there were as many as 50 similarly qualified colleagues, although I understand that this particular establishment has since shrunk to just a small branch in Bandung. The head office of another company I worked for, ILP, had 2,000 students passing through the doors of its main centre every week and employed 60 native speakers, all university graduates with a CETFL, and 40 Indonesian teachers of English who had 'graduated' from in-house training courses whose instructors were native speakers such as myself.

Then in 96/7 the Asian Economic Crisis (krismon) hit, swiftly followed by the civil unrest which unseated Suharto and ushered in reformasi. This lead to a massive exodus of expatriates, not only teachers. I surmise that most of the native speaker teachers who remained did so out of a contentment with family life here (e.g. me), out of a perceived lack of opportunity 'back home', or their sheer indolence.

Apart from a few plum positions with universities, or foreign government sponsored organisations such as the British Council and the Indonesia-Australia Language Foundation (IALF), all language institutes then had a simple credo - bums on seats. In other words, they were profit-driven.

New business models were set in motion. ILP, for example, followed the franchise route. Their best local (Indonesian) teachers were recruited to be the principals, known as Academic Co-ordinators in the international chain EF which provided the franchise model. ILP's in-house training programme for new teachers was shortened to three weeks from the previous four or five. Native speakers with an in-depth knowledge of the cultural norms of English and the reasoning behind the long-established methodology being in very short supply, inevitably and unfortunately the level of English and the quality of teaching has suffered.

New avenues of employment were opened in the formal school sector with the establishment of privately owned 'national plus' schools which were supposed to offer foreign curricula and, more recently, 'international' schools, which in the main have been classes within established schools which, although supposedly offering English native speakers teaching other subjects, have mainly been distinguished by the provision of air conditioning.

And this sector is where problems have arisen and the proposed 'solutions' offered by the Department of Education (Depdiknas) have thrown the TEFLing industry into turmoil, and its teachers into a state of insecurity, if not paranoia.

Not unexpectedly, one particular organisation, Yayasan Badan Pendidikan Kristen - Penabur, may have been the catalyst. I don't intend to go into my successful case (but yet to be finally resolved) legal case against them; if you want the gory details, my diatribes plus details of complaints from  parents, students and other teachers, then either search 'Penabur' in the box provided on the right or click this link on my 'schooling' blog.

In the early stages of the Penabur project that employed me, a member of the Board of Management told me in all seriousness, "Parents want to see a white face in the classroom." (He also referred to local teachers as 'monkeys'.)

Apart from the sheer offensiveness (and inaccuracy) of that statement, it was an indication that all was not well within Penabur, that they had lost sight of the core values of schools.

A year or so ago, parents of students enrolled in the 'international class' in a Penabur senior high school were horrified to discover that the supposedly qualified native speaker English teacher was, to put it bluntly, illiterate. They organised a protest, a delegation I understand, to Depdiknas.

As a result, revised employment criteria are now being enforced - apparently. I add that caveat because Depdiknas has not unexpectedly misfired in its aims.

I was first alerted to the issue by a couple of emails from a correspondent who works for the Australian company TBI (which stands for The British Institute, even though the shares of the original British owners, Bell, have been bought out by an Australian company). He wrote: The Ed Dept now has a checklist (at least in our case) - one of the things to be checked is whether we have HIV or drugs in our urine. Oh, and we have to have a sworn translation of our CV. I am now illegal here pending the outcome of all this hullabaloo. Bit scarey really.

The gossip has it that ILP, Wall Street, a recent American entrant, and a local start up company, AIM, have had to reassess their employment of  native speakers.

I have been unable to track down the checklist or a copy of the regulations issued by Depdiknas but if the above is true, then one must query the notion that an HIV test involves urine; surely it is blood that needs to be tested! As for a sworn translation of a CV, this is no guarantee of the truth therein. Besides, as a CV is a set of data - names, dates, addresses and the like - most of the content is untranslateable. It is as it is!

A bit of googling has produced a TBI online ad for overseas recruits dated 2010-10-05. I take this to mean 5th October, although it could well be 10th May, thus preceding the current paranoia disarray in the industry.

Qualifications
CELTA, Trinity or equivalent certification (120-hour face-to-face (not online) course with assessed teaching practice) and a university degree. We prefer teachers with experience, but are prepared to consider newly qualified applicants.
N.B. Please note, due to Indonesian employment regulations, we are only able to employ native speaker teachers holding passports from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom or the United States.

The benefits offered by TBI are as good as they get and the good news is that Irish applicants are now welcome. The original list, issued by Depdiknas some 15 years ago, of those countries which have English as the first language and which are eligible as recruitment sources did not include Ireland.

The bad news, is that there is no new news about the employment of fluent (and literate) English speakers in schools and universities. Whereas the success of language schools is largely determined by their popularity, best engendered through word of mouth, the same cannot be said of grade schools which are obliged to teach subjects determined by Depdiknas.

Native speakers of English are also recruited by the private school sector, dominated by 'national plus' schools and, more recently, by schools which label themselves as 'international' because they are expected to teach the curricula of other countries. Originally, international schools were exclusively for the children of foreign nationals, but since 2003 (Act No. 20, year 2003 on National Education System)², Indonesian nationals have been permitted to enrol their children.

These schools are not totally exempt from the dictates of Depdiknas as Indonesian children are required to sit the flawed national exams.

As the Warden of the fictional St.John's University in The Rebel Angels by Robertson Davies (pub. Penguin 1982) says, "Education for immediate popular consumption is more popular than ever, and nobody wants to think of the intellectual tone of the nation."

What needs to be understood is that the upgrading of English in schools requires a recognition that students have different needs based on cultural and emotional needs, as well as their individual skills, talents and 'intelligences', as well as 'content knowledge'.

Act No.20 states: English is to be used as the medium of instruction for science, mathematics and core vocational subjects from Year 4 of primary school and throughout junior secondary school, senior secondary school and vocational secondary school.

Teachers must possess the competence required to teach their subjects through English.

An analysis² of the 'international' schools points out that in 2007 and 2008 the Ministry of National Education, using TOEIC (the Test of English for International Communication) as its instrument, carried out a study of the English language competence of 27,000 teachers in 549 international standard junior secondary, senior secondary and senior vocational schools. 

The findings of this study (Depdiknas 2009) showed that more than half of all teachers fell into the lowest competency band (‘novice’, scoring between 10 and 250 points).  Meanwhile, fewer than 1% of teachers fell into the top two bands (‘advanced working proficiency’ scoring between 785 and 900 points and ‘general professional proficiency’ scoring 905-990 points). 

A little more online investigation produces the following recent quote from Education Minister Mohammad Nuh who said that there are 2.6 million teachers in Indonesia, and around 57.4 percent or some 1.5 million of whom have Strata-1 degree while the rests (sic) are still vying to gain teaching certificate.

Further research indicates that barely 40% of subject teachers are actually qualified to teach that subject. Christine Hakim, the noted Indonesian actress and a Goodwill Ambassador for UNESCO, suggests that at least 2 million volunteer or part-time teachers are employed in Indonesia.

The TBI recruitment ad quoted above has been the norm for recruited native speaker teachers as long as I can remember; they (we) have brought untold benefits to Indonesians seeking advancement in their careers without the need to go overseas.
  
That Depdiknas is requiring that only native speaker teachers of English who have obtained a degree in education, rather than in other subjects, to seek employment in Indonesian schools is nonsensical when the criteria for its own 'local' teachers are nowhere near being met, and is yet another example of the bureaucracies' ability to mistake a tree for a forest.

This is not to say that the TEFL industry's standards cannot be improved, but a more considered approach is sorely needed. Teaching anything is not an easy option and, as in other countries, teachers do not enter the profession to financially enrich themselves. Teaching can be extremely stressful and the rewards are generally intangible.

Rather than implementing piecemeal 'solutions' which create further problems, the education sector - both private and public - needs a thorough review to ensure that national (and regional) social, rather than political, objectives are met.

As it is, the pluralism so often promulgated is showing signs of increased fragmentation.
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¹ aka TESOL - Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages and TESL - Teaching of English as a Second Language.
²An interesting analysis of the problems faced by 'International' schools can be found here.
My title is taken from a post on Ross McKay's blog. The current problems faced by the majority of non-Indonesian English teachers here in Indonesia was, however, forecast back in February on the Living in Indonesia forum.

Give Kids A Break

Four students have been expelled from a senior high school in Riau, South Sumatra, for 'defaming' their teacher on Facebook. The comments were reportedly of a personal nature and offensive to women.

The school's deputy principal, Yose Rizal, said the students' failure to complete and submit homework assignments to the teacher contributed to the decision to dismiss them. Yose said he hoped the decision would send a strong message to other students that such behavior was not acceptable.

That says a lot about what is wrong with the Indonesia's schooling system, especially as the subject that the teacher was supposedly charged with teaching is 'Life Skills'.

Come to think of it, that is what all teachers (and parents) are responsible for inculcating. As a teacher and parent I do know that adults make 'mistakes', but then there is little guidance for us either.

Competition is praised above co-operation so that societal prerogatives are determined by online social networks rather than leadership for the common good.

Public transport is privately owned, as is the water supply, and garbage isn't properly managed so residents, of all classes, dispose of it willy-nilly.

The current national census cannot be completed as scheduled because rich folks in their enclaves deny access to officials because they have something, their ill-gotten wealth, to hide.

And kids get blamed for not following the rules!

The results of the remedial tests following the senior high school ujian monyet have been announced. Teachers in Yogya are angry because of the "premature announcement", but they are missing the point.

Out of 150,410 students who had to sit the repeat national exams, how come only 11,814 'failed'? How is it possible to master the 'facts' tested in such a short while since the original exams were sat in March? Are these remedial tests easier? If so, why weren't the set of March exams?

One contributing factor is that the educators and bureaucrats responsible for the whole debacle are lacking in any semblance of awareness of how teenagers think. I'm not suggesting that they should be neuro-scientists, but applying the academic skill of research - a skill which their positions of power indicate they should have - would give them a modicum of insight into how teenagers think.

For a start, Dr. Paul Kelley, headteacher of a high school in northern England and author of Making Minds: What's Wrong With Education?, says that creating long-term memories is at the core of education.

In 2005, a key discovery was published in Scientific American explaining how long-term memories are formed in the brain. Douglas Fields, of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and his team in the US not only revealed exactly how long-term memories are formed but also, more significantly for teachers, how they can be created. The biological basis of a memory is a pathway of cells linked within the brain. His team looked at how these pathways were formed and how each cell was "switched on" and became linked to other cells.

Surprisingly, constant stimulation of the cell did not make it switch on. Stimulation had to be separated by gaps when the cell was not stimulated. The breakthrough came when the team began to realise the length of stimulation was not vital, but the gap between stimulations

So Dr. Kelly and his teaching staff established 'spaced learning' which works no matter what subject you are teaching. In spaced learning, you have 10-minute breaks between three intensive sessions of 15-20 minutes teaching. In each of the sessions, you repeat material but present it differently, deepening and extending it.

In the breaks students might juggle, play basketball or model animals out of Play-Doh. These distracter activities leave the cells to carry out chemical processes.

Or access their Facebook accounts?

An English expression has it that 'procrastination is the thief of time', but I prefer to think of an Indonesian cup of coffee in which the grounds take time to settle at the bottom of the cup. That is an apt description of the process of leaning; one must allow time for the absorption of new information, and breaks are certainly one key to successful learning.

A different approach to the 'chalk and talk' methodology is also required. Rather than 'preaching' or lecturing ('hectoring' may be a better word) with theoretical 'knowledge' to be copied from the classroom white/blackboard, teachers need to offer students more opportunities for experiment and for inductive learning.

Allowing socialised discussions between students in the lessons would be a good start!

Further reinforcement for Dr. Kelley's pedagogical approach is offered by more recent research.

According to Dr. Iroise Dumontheil of University College London's Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, one of the authors of the research to be published today in the Journal of Neuroscience, "It's not the fault of teenagers that they can't concentrate and are easily distracted. It's to do with the structure of their brains. Adolescents simply don't have the same mental capacities as an adult because teenagers are still children."

I think that's similar to my problem too; although I think like an adult, I remain a kid at heart.