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Nadiem’s push for classroom learning meets resistance as health concerns remain
As community activity curbs are eased in more areas around the country, schools are finding themselves caught in the crossfire between the government's desperate push for in-class learning, which has met resistance from critics, and the health risks that it entails.
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A school janitor lines up chairs and tables as he cleans an empty classroom at Bendungan Hilir 05 Pagi state elementary school in Central Jakarta, on June 22, 2020. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
W
hen Education, Research and Technology Minister Nadiem Makarim spoke to lawmakers on Monday about the urgent need to reopen schools, he was adamant that students did not need to be vaccinated for COVID-19 to resume classroom learning.
This decision was met with resistance from teachers and health experts alike, who insisted it was a premature move that puts the health of the students at risk, even though more parts of the country were easing the strict community activity restrictions (PPKM) starting Tuesday.
With curbs relaxed in more regencies, including in the Greater Jakarta, Greater Bandung and Greater Surabaya agglomeration areas, more schools are finding themselves caught between the push to resume in-class learning and the health concerns that it entails.
Earlier this month, the government altered provisions in the multi-tiered PPKM to allow for schools in areas imposing level 3 curbs to resume in-class learning, previously reserved for schools in level 1 and 2 regions.
“Currently, limited in-class learning is allowed for all the schools situated in administrative regions enforcing PPKM levels 1 through 3,” Nadiem said at a hearing convened by House of Representatives Commission X in Jakarta on Wednesday.
The minister reiterated his point that vaccinations are not a prerequisite for resuming in-class learning, but added that eligible schools must provide the option if their teachers are fully vaccinated, “particularly in big cities” like Jakarta and Surabaya, East Java where they are widely available.
Read also: School reopening plan in doubt amid COVID-19 surge
