Deputy Social Affairs Minister Agus Jabo Priyono said quality education in Sekolah Rakyat — a boarding school model targeting children from impoverished families — relies on educators' ability to adapt to the students' backgrounds and create a supportive learning environment.
"Most students are new to boarding school life, so their comfort is key to an effective learning process," Priyono said during the closing session of a teacher and principal training in Jakarta on Thursday.
He added that teachers and principals must also maintain consistent communication with dormitory supervisors to help them become accustomed to dealing with various student conditions, for example, sickness and sleep difficulties in students.
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He explained that education at Sekolah Rakyat (People's School) not only focuses on academic knowledge but also on character development and skill-building to prepare children for the workforce later.
The Social Ministry has ensured that the first phase of the Sekolah Rakyat program this year targets 165 locations.
As of August, 100 schools are already operational, and the remaining 65 are scheduled to open in September. The program so far has involved 16 thousand students, 165 principals, more than 1,400 teachers, and two thousand education personnel.
The number of students is expected to continue to grow as part of efforts to break the cycle of poverty, following data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS), which shows that 64.36 percent of children from poor families are at risk of inheriting poverty if there is no state intervention.
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Translator: Prasetyo, Kenzu
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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