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ol. Inf. Andika Perkasa, an official at the Jayakarta Military District Command, admitted that students would never expect to be taught math by soldiers.

It is possible, he said, that a soldier’s demeanor would only discourage students from learning in a fun and simple way, a subject already notorious for its difficulty. But he said he was convinced that the soldiers were more than able to help students prepare for exams.

“We seek to ensure that soldiers will teach them nicely,” he said.

About 800 soldiers from the military command had been participating in a program called “Jakarta Loves Math” where they were prepared to go to the battle against low scholastic performance, especially in math.

The program is promoted by Surya Institute, which was founded by renowned physicist Yohanes Surya, who believes that “math is not that hard”, especially if it is taught using the right method.

The soldiers took the first course on Tuesday and will take another one on Jan. 11. “After the first training, the soldiers receive the materials to be mastered. We will check their knowledge in the second training,” Yohanes said.

Andika said that each Koramil, the lowest unit of the military district command, sent five to 10 soldiers to be tutors. “They will be assigned in their home base units,” he said.

Since the soldiers would be dispatched in their own social circle, each soldier was expected to identify the needs for mathematics tutorials. “The soldiers will go to schools. They will be responsible for children who need additional tutorials,” he said.

Andika said that the tutors would also welcome parents who want to learn mathematics.

“If parents want to learn it too, we will share the methods. We hope that parents can later teach their own children,” he said.

According to Andika, each tutor is expected to teach at least 10 students who will take final examinations. “If one soldier can educate 10 children, there will be 8,000 children who receive the new method at the same time,” Yohanes said.

“It is good that we start the program here, in the capital. Even in the capital, we can easily find children with a very low understanding of mathematics,” he said.

The soldiers will start teaching the children soon after the second training is completed.

“Soldiers will meet with the students regularly once or twice a week. Tutors will keep teaching the students until they reach our standard,” Andika said.

The team from Surya Institute has prepared a set of questions to test the students’ understanding about mathematics methods.

Andika said that he was optimistic about the program’s success. “If this program works well, we plan to continue it on a larger scope, not only in greater Jakarta,” he said.

Yohanes said that the program portrayed another image of soldiers. “They can be more than battlefield warriors. They can help us preparing a smarter generation,” he said. (lfr)