"This incident must be a concern for all parties to continue to create safer and comfortable learning,"Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Ministry asked schools to prioritize safety and comfort in every implementation of learning and teaching activities.
"The Ministry encourages local governments and education units to prioritize student safety in all forms of learning activities," the ministry's acting Head of the Bureau of Cooperation and Public Relations, Anang Ristanto, told ANTARA here on Sunday.
He said the accident of the bus carrying a group of Depok vocational school students that happened in Ciater, Subang District, West Java, that caused 11 deaths, should be a lesson for all parties.
According to him, this incident urged education units and local governments to be able to create a safer and comfortable learning atmosphere and conditions for students.
"This incident must be a concern for all parties to continue to create safer and comfortable learning," he said.
He emphasized that his side together with the West Java Provincial Education Office are following up on the bus accident and will continue to monitor its investigation progress.
"We offer our deepest condolences to the families, friends, and the entire school community who have been affected by this heartbreaking incident," he said.
Meanwhile, education observer Ubaid Matraji asked the government to immediately issue a regulation to tighten the implementation of study tours.
Matraji said the government must intervene considering that in addition to charging an expensive fee to students, many schools also apply sanctions if students do not want to participate in study tours.
"Obviously there must be a strict rule. Don't be like now where the study tour is a mandatory agenda before graduation," he said.
Meanwhile, Head of the Bogor-Depok Regional Branch Office of the West Java Education Office, Asep Sudarsono, said his side will issue a strict regulation so that a similar incident will not happen again.
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Translator: Astrid H, Kenzu
Editor: Arie Novarina
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