Evaluación de programas curriculares

The policies of the provincial governments in all three provinces involved in this research - West Java, Banten and Bangka Belitung - focus mostly on improving and developing primary and secondary education268. It could be argued that, during this transitional stage of regional autonomy, while the provinces are becoming accustomed to their new functions, it is logical that they focus on education at primary and lower secondary levels, rather than the more complicated vocational secondary education sector.

4.3.1.1 Education Policy in West Java Province

In West Java, as explained by the Head of the EOP West Java, his office has been giving priority to following the policies of the governor, in trying to improve primary and secondary education. The governor’s principal ambition with regard to education is to implement the

264

Head of EOP West Java, interviewed 12 July 2005

265 _{Head of EOPs, West Java Province, Banten Province and Bangka Belitung Province, interviewed} 12, 20 and 27 July 2005

266 _{Head of EOP West Java, interviewed 12 July 2005} 267 _{Head of EOP West Java, interviewed 12 July 2005} 268

Heads of EOPs, West Java Province, Banten Province and Bangka Belitung Province, interviewed 12 , 20 and 27 July 2005

‘WAJAR’269

- nine-years of compulsory education - that was expected to be achieved by 2008270. In order to ensure the success of the policies, the provincial government, through the EOP, has provided a special program, called ‘KBBS’271 (Fee-Free School Card). This policy is being followed by the Bekasi District and Bekasi City local governments in West Java Province. Local policies in these two local governments are in line with those of the provincial government, in that they, similarly, prioritise educational development at the primary and secondary levels. “Local government finances are limited…and this year will be used to renovate and rehabilitate the primary and secondary school buildings…”272, reported the Head of BAPPEDA, Bekasi District. A member of the Local Peoples’ Representative Assembly (DPRD), Bekasi City also stated that: “…the senior high schools (SMA) and the vocational secondary schools (SMK) are still in relatively very good condition; therefore programs need to concentrate on improvements to the primary schools”273.

To some extent, this supports the opinion of some DVSE interviewees, who assert that the VSE has not been a priority of the regions. The Head of the Curriculum Subdivision stated that, since regional autonomy, the regions have not been concerned with VSE development274. It might also fair to justify that, regardless of its centralist nature, the strategies of the DVSE to continuously provide centrally-originating programs and grants has been an important stimulant for the regional governments and for the vocational secondary schools themselves275.

The ‘KBBS’ or the fee-free school card system for children of poorer families resembles a grant. The holder of the card is eligible to enter any primary school, with no exceptions, and rejection by any school should be reported to the government276. These cards are distributed to the local government administrations, via the Local Education Offices (EOD), and the EOD delivers to them to the sub-districts, to be given to the students277. The Governor of West Java Province also expects the local governments in districts and cities to provide similar grants to enable access to primary schools. However, local governments have not fully responded to

269 _{‘WAJAR’ stands for ‘wajib belajar’ or nine years of compulsory education, which was targeted for} six years primary education and three years junior education

270

Head of EOP West Java, interviewed 12 July 2005

271 _{KBBS stands for the Indonesian term for ‘Fee-Free School Card’. This was introduced by West} Java Province, and distributed to the ‘poor’, to encourage access to education. All schools in West Java are ‘obligated’, to receive the card ‘holder’, ‘without conditions. The provincial government pays the school fees for the received student (33333, July, 2005)

272 _{Head of BAPPEDA Bekasi District, interviewed 5 May 2005} 273 _{Head of BAPPEDA Bekasi District, interviewed 5 May 2005}

274 _{Head of DVSE Accreditation Subdivision, interviewed 14 January 2005} 275 _{Head of DVSE Curriculum Subdivision, interviewed 18 January 2005} 276

Head of EOP West Java, interviewed 12 July 2005 277 _{Head of EOP Banten Province, interviewed 20 July 2005}

this expectation as, most likely, they have their own agenda with regards to developing their regions. This issue is discussed in more detail in section 4.4.

4.3.1.2 Education Policy in Banten Province

In the Province of Banten, although the governor’s policies have not been specifically formulated to include special programs, like the fee-free school card, as in West Java, according to the Head of the EOP, programs and policies in Banten are, similarly, influenced by the governor’s policies. He mentioned that the provincial programs in Banten focus on the infrastructure and human resources of primary and secondary schools278 and that the tendency of local government policy in Banten’s districts and cities is to support whatever is the provincial policy. In both Tangerang District and Tangerang City, the educational priority areas are the same, namely primary and secondary education. The Head of BAPPEDA in Tangerang City claims: “…after city infrastructure, the second priority is the education sector – but renovating and rehabilitating the 221 primary schools…”279

. Similarly, the Head of BAPPEDA in Tangerang District states: “…in education, the first priority is to improve the primary schools which have been categorized as badly damaged or totally run-down; other targets come after that in priority …”280. In other words, none of the provinces examined in this study are making VSE development a priority – and with some understandable reason - given that VSE school facilities are still in - relatively - good condition. In addition, according to the Head of BAPPEDA Tangerang City, “the vocational school sector is quite complicated, requiring a huge budget to develop and so, therefore, planning for future development needs longer and deeper consideration”281.

4.3.1.3 Education Policy in Bangka Belitung Province

The Head of the EOP in Babel explained that his governor is really concerned at present with the condition of school buildings of the primary and secondary schools. Therefore, he has been providing these schools support in the form of rehabilitation funds282. This provincial policy is also being followed at district level. As the Head of the Education Commission of the DPRD283 of Bangka District told the Commission members284, local government policy

Head of EOP Banten Province, interviewed 20 July 2005

279 _{Head of BAPPEDA Tangerang City, interviewed 7 February 2005} 280 _{Head of BAPPEDA Tangerang District, interviewed 5 March 2005} 281 _{Head of BAPPEDA Tangerang City, interviewed 7 February 2005} 282 _{Head of EOP Bangka Belitung Province, interviewed 27 July 2005} 283

DPRD is the Local People’s Representative Assembly, located in districts or cities, which has discretionary rights with regards to local government budget (UU 22/1999 and Rasyid, p.67, 2003)

basically echoes the provincial policy, which is to focus on the ‘WAJAR’285 (nine-years of compulsory education)286. The Head of BAPPEDA agrees that “local government is indeed prioritizing the education sector, however, in particular, the primary and secondary levels, in accordance with national objectives of the ‘WAJAR’ program”287.

Thus, the governors have started to significantly influence the direction of educational policy, however their policies have focused, to date, on the primary and secondary levels. There are also strong indications that the provincial policies are being followed and supported by the local governments in districts and cities. One of the implications has been that the VSE sector has not been a priority for the three provincial governments studied.