English and the Remote Primary Schools

As a good citizen, we have to open our mind to the reality in our country. A motto   “Education for all” that has been stated by the constitution must be applied including to the remote area students. Concerning to that motto, let us have a look at a fact that is happening in our country. It is about the controversial issue of International Standardized School (RSBI) which has brought English to be the compulsory subject in Indonesia. Since then, the government tries hard to carry out several policies to improve the students’ ability in English. One of those policies is providing English for the elementary school students since the first grade. Furthermore, this policy absolutely forces every single elementary school in Indonesia including the remote primary schools to provide English as one of the subjects. According to Longman Dictionary, a remote area is an area which far from towns or other places where people lived. Thus, there are several things that make English become the problem especially for the elementary students who live in the remote area, three of which are: the unqualified English teacher, the limited time allocation in teaching English, and the inappropriate teaching method.

The first place of this crucial problem comes from the qualification of the teacher. The English teacher is one of the important elements in English teaching. Concerning the remote primary schools, let us take an example from one of the state primary schools in a remote area in Ponorogo Regency. This primary school is located about 25 kilometers from the town square of Ponorogo. In this school, the English teacher is a vocational school graduation and does not have certificate to teach. In my opinion, those remote area teachers basically could not distinguish the appropriate way to teach. As we know that teaching the elementary school students is not as the same as teaching Junior High School Students. Elementary school students especially those from remote area need more attention and different treatment in teaching, especially English as the foreign language for them. If we want to have the good outcomes, the qualification of the English teachers is a must to consider.

The second problem is about the limited time allocation in teaching English. Commonly, the primary English teachers in Indonesia only teach 1 to 2 hours a week. An example comes from the same English teacher and remote primary school as stated in the second paragraph. This English teacher teaches twelve teaching hours in a week from the first grade to the twelve grades. He taught two teaching hours for each grade and every a teaching hour takes thirty five minutes. Related to the psychology of the students, one of the remote primary school teachers said that her students need attention and motivation a lot from her because they are burdened by their family for escaping them from the poverty line. In addition, the most important task for the teachers will be to motivate and create interest in the new language so children are willing to try and use the new language (Accessed on September 20^th, 2010;www.britishcouncil.com ).

The last problem is the inappropriate English method that be used by the English teacher. We know that the primary students still developing, they still learn how to regulate and manage their feelings. When they get bored, they tend to show their restlessness or distract their friends. By contrast, the students from the remote area could not express their feelings freely because the harmonic and warm interactions are limited between them and their parents. This is where the English teachers play the important roles. The English teachers are expected to present the interesting materials to make the students eager to study English. A surprising fact comes from a Primary English Teacher who teaches her students by using the lecture method (Interviewed on Friday, September 20^th, 2010). Meanwhile, we all know that the students’ intelligences from the remote areas are mostly under average. Moreover, their access to English as the Second Language is limited. In this case, they need interesting and more physical method in learning English.

After looking at those reasons above, now we know that actually there are several problems in teaching English especially for the elementary students who live in the remote areas, which are: the unqualified English teacher, the limited time allocation in teaching English, and the inappropriate teaching method. Subsequently, let me propose some suggestions to the Minister of Education as the decision-maker. Firstly, the Minister of Education should make the clear regulation and qualification of the English teachers especially in primary schools. In this case, the government could make the regulation like the English teacher should have the certificate to teach. Secondly, he/she should make the clear rule on how much time will be allocated in teaching English. If the government expects to have the great outcomes, the time allocation must be added. Thirdly, the government should give the training to the English Teachers related to the most appropriate teaching method in teaching the Primary School Students. Lastly, the government should allocate more funds to increase the supporting media in the remote area schools. In conclusion, the remote area students need more attention from many sides because they also have the same opportunities to study and they are expected to be able to think globally and act locally through English.

Written by

Nurrahma Sutisna P