February 23, 2008

Is it true, EDUCATION for ALL ?

Yesterday, I had two interesting experience, but they're so contrary to each other although both of them is about education in the same city, same country.

The first...

In the morning I went to a prescholl in a remote area in Ngaliyan-Semarang with all of my 50 preschoolers and their parents ( I run a private preschool next to my house). It's one of our program in this month, we called it "berbagi kasih" or "sharing love". The scholl we visited, was really need so much help. Maybe I could describe how its condition. No electricity (it's still in central Java province!), for all the 18 students they only have 5 wood puzzles (15 cm x 15 cm, that's the only one educational toys they have, beside one blackboard, chairs and tables and one teacher that sometimes had salary, sometime not). No books at all...Can you imagine, school without books? On the beginning of the school academic year, the teacher often should to pick the children up for school, because sometimes their mothers affraid they couldn't afford the school fee every month (Rp 20.000/month or about 2 U$). The teacher was so happy when we gave them story books (each of my students collected 2 ), stationaries, magazines, etc. We're all happy because we're friend now, our students know other children that has not have the same opportunity like them and will learn something good from this. I hope we could always get in touch.

The second one....
In the afternoon I attended the gathering and presentation of the new Catholic private school (with national plus curricullum and international standart they said) in Semarang. The venue was in Novotel, a really nice and cozy place to meet. The school itself will be start running on the next academic year, this July. The program of the school, facilities, teachers,etc, as long as the same with the yesterday presentation, of course has the best quality in town. Don't ask me the tuition...I don't feel good to tell you, especially after I went to the first school in the morning. You could guess or imagine by yourself....

Deep inside me, I feel terribly sorry for those 2 experiences I went through.

Is it true, EDUCATION for ALL?

1 comment:

Evi (read: e-phi) said...

Every where in this world always has that kinda situation, even in the the biggest country like USA. And the worst is sometimes we've been bussy to chase the money (that will never ending) and forget about the sensivity to look arround (needy-environment).

That two extreme comparison of school are really hit me alot because I can't help it. I wish I have enough "space" to do something for the needy...I wish I could!

Maybe one day, God knows!

Keep diging the sensitivity of everybody's feeling Hen, who knows there is somebody want to help needy people in Indonesia!