No more playtime for sixth-graders ahead of national exams

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Thu, 05/07/2009 2:29 PM  |  City

"I no longer spend time playing as I have to study. I go home straight after school. I spend at least three hours studying at home," said Dona Winona, a sixth-grader at state elementary school SDN 04 in Klender, East Jakarta.

Anggun Ayu Wardani, a sixth-grader at state elementary school SDN 03 in Palmerah, West Jakarta, has also been preparing hard for his exam.

"I used to play between 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. but I can no longer play as I have to take a nap and study in the evening," said Anggun.

Islamic elementary schools (Madrasah Ibtidaiyah) provide stu-dents with more intensive tutorials on exam subjects consisting of Indonesian, mathematics and natural sciences.

Madrasah Ibtidaiyah apply a different curriculum compared with ordinary schools, as Islamic teaching accounts for 60 percent of subjects.

"We eliminated all classes related to Islamic teaching last week, to let students focus on the national exams," said Kafi Mubarok, deputy head of Islamic school Hasanatuddarain in East Jakarta.

Some students however will not cut down on playtime, despite exams approaching.

"Instead of studying, some students prefer playing video games and PlayStation," said Esti Murniati, a teacher from state primary school SDN 01 Paseban, Central Jakarta.

Unlike high schools, which have the same passing grade across the nation, elementary schools can determine their own passing grades based on consultation between schools and parents.

"We have been careful in determining the grade as some students are not academically strong," said headmaster of state elementary school SDN 04 Klender Iah Djuniah.

Headmasters and teachers try to help the students with each exam subject.

According to Esti, Indonesian required attention as the subject involved grammar and syntax most students did not understand. (nia)

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