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Yearender 2021: Push to modernize Indonesia’s education continues to falter
The policy dilemma over in-person vs. online learning was not the only challenge that Education, Culture, Research and Technology Minister Nadiem Makarin faced this year, as his flagship policy, the Merdeka Belajar program, was met with criticism from teachers and education observers, while a regulation on tackling sexual violence on campuses received pushback from Islamic groups.
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A student and teacher use a laptop for online learning in SMP 12 state junior high school in Satarmese, East Nusa Tenggara. (Courtesy of Google Indonesia/-)
T
he ambition of the education, culture, research and technology minister to enact comprehensive reforms in Indonesia’s education sector, including modernizing the national education system, has been well-documented, particularly after COVID-19 last year forced teachers and students to adapt to online learning.
But while the COVID-19 pandemic presented Nadiem Makarim with an opportunity to put online learning at the forefront of his educational reform agenda, the former CEO of tech giant Gojek instead opted to push for a return to in-class learning as soon as the COVID-19 situation was under control, citing fears of learning loss.
The policy dilemma over in-person vs. online learning was not the only challenge that Nadiem faced this year, as his flagship policy, the Merdeka Belajar (Freedom to Learn) program, was met with criticism from teachers and education observers.
Merdeka Belajar was one of Nadiem’s key educational reform policy initiatives after he assumed the Cabinet position in 2019, and was primarily aimed at reducing the administrative burden on teachers while giving them more freedom and responsibility in assessing students.
More recently, a ministerial regulation issued by the Education, Culture, Research and Technology Ministry that was designed to tackle sexual violence at higher education institutions also received pushback from Islamic groups.
Recurring online learning problems
As schools were forced to shut down after Indonesia detected its first COVID-19 case in March 2020, the government has been largely struggling to address longstanding obstacles to online learning, such as lack of access to the internet and devices as well as teachers’ digital illiteracy.
