"Early Childhood Education (PAUD) for students should not only prioritize cognitive abilities but must also hone students' holistic abilities," he stressed in Jakarta on Wednesday.
One of the efforts to hone children's holistic abilities is the transition of the educational process from PAUD to elementary schools through the 24th Independent Learning Episode program policy, he said.
According to him, through a quality and comfortable learning environment for PAUD students, a foundation of superior character will be formed to help them enter the next phase of their education.
He said that the transition from PAUD to elementary school requires three target changes in students from the beginning of the school year, namely erasing reading, writing, and counting (calistung) in elementary school enrollment tests and implementing an introductory period for new students, such as designing learning activities to provide information about children's needs according to the initial assessment in the first two weeks.
Meanwhile, the third is designing fun learning activities, building foundational skills, and doing away with tests, he added.
A teacher at Inpres Purwodadi Elementary School in Mamuju district, West Sulawesi province, Muhammad Yasin Daman, said that so far, the calistung test has been implemented by educational units as part of new student admissions (PPDB).
However, after the directive for the transition from PAUD to elementary school, he said he realized that the concept of literacy was much broader than just reading and writing and aspects of numeracy are even broader than just counting.
"This whole process should be appreciated, not just looking at the final results of the child's achievements through the calistung test," he added.
Daman said he has also designed fun games or activities for the School Environment Introduction Period (MPLS) to bridge students' transitional preparation according to their age and developmental stage.
He further said he hopes that with the launch of the policy, PAUD and elementary schools teachers will understand each other regarding the development of students and coordinate to ensure the learning rights of children.
The benefits from this policy have also been felt by Sitti N. Sitania, a representative from the Buru District Education Service in Maluku province.
Sitania informed that the policy has helped children who have never attended PAUD to still receive a holistic education.
She also expressed the hope that more regions will form communication forums at the sub-district level to facilitate access to education to make it more affordable.
"It is very important that our children go through the learning period with happiness and have a pleasant experience," she said.
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Translator: Astrid Faidlatul H, Resinta S
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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