Amid the pandemic, International Literacy Day, which fell on September 8, 2020, did not go by in silence in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Province. On that day, a webinar entitled “NTB Literacy during Pandemic,” or “Literasi NTB di Masa Pandemi” was held under the cooperation of the Association of Lecturers of Educational Institution of Educational Personnel or Lembaga Pendidikan Tenaga Kependidikan (LPTK) of NTB, Education and Culture Office of NTB Province, Regional Office of Ministry of Religious Affairs of NTB, and supported by INOVASI. No less than 4200 people watched via livestream on YouTube and Facebook. This webinar not only commemorated International Literacy Day but was also a reminder of the literacy condition at the province which is known as a province of a thousand mosques. Many things were conveyed by the speakers, and they were united in saying that collaboration and synergy between various elements are important to strengthen literacy in NTB.
The former governor of NTB and the Head of the Main Committee of Nadhatul Wathan (Ketua Umum Pengurus Besar Nadhatul Wathan), TGB Dr. KH. Muhammad Zainul Majdi, was a speaker at the webinar along with another speaker Prof. Dr. A. Wahab Jufri, the Dean of Faculty of Teacher Training and Education (FKIP) University of Mataram (UNRAM) and also the Head of the Association of Lecturers of LPTK NTB. Additional speakers were Dr. H. Atun Wardatun, a lecturer at State Islamic University UIN Mataram and one of the coordinators for the NTB Reading Consortium or Konsorsium NTB Membaca; and also Dr. H. Aidy Furqan, the Head of Education and Culture Office of NTB Province.
As the first speaker, TGB presented about “Literacy in Islam’s Perspective”. Islam, according to TGB Zainul Majdi, places literacy as a top priority, as it highly influences the establishment of human civilization. The rise and fall of a civilization are determined by how far a society appreciates literacy ability.
“However, this is not a matter of abundance or lack of reading materials but also the quality thereof. The higher the quality of available reading material, the higher is the quality of civilization being produced,” said the former governor of NTB Province, who led for two terms.
TGB Zainul Majdi also highlighted the lack of attention of families towards education, especially literacy. There are not many parents who allocate some of their household budget for providing reading materials for children, but they buy secondary items, such as cigarettes. This type of household, according to TGB Zainul Majdi, needs to be changed through intensive campaigns about literacy.
He hopes that a good collaboration can be developed among parties related to this literacy issue. If all parties work together, there will be great things than can be achieved, particularly in policies.
“Build collaboration with all existing elements. Do not box things. Look for rooms that can be fought for in terms of policies. Comb through policies at various levels, ones that need to be improved and places that need to be filled,” urged TGB Zainul Majdi at the end of his presentation.
[Photo caption] TGB Dr. KH. Muhammad Zainul Majdi told us that Islamic civilization that contributed in the past was birthed because it was pushed by high literacy. Therefore, he hopes that mobilizing institutions and the government can work together to improve the quality of literacy in NTB Province.
After TGB, it was Dr. H. Atun Wardatun’s turn to speak. The academician from State Islamic University UIN Mataram presented about various good practices in developing literacy that are in existence in NTB.
Agreeing with TGB Zainul Majdi, Dr. Atun sees the strategic role of families in laying a solid literacy foundation for children. In her opinion, there are many things that have been considered mediocre at home, yet actually make a big impact in nurturing literacy skills in children.
“Some simple things a parent can do for their children early on is reading storybooks to their children as a routine activity whenever there’s free time at home, giving certain knowledge to children by saying where it came from. Moreover, parents should be able to instill curiosity in children by giving them the chance to find out,” said Dr. Atun. According to Dr. Atun, she has personally practiced all of these at home and has seen good changes taking place in her children.
Next, Prof. Wahab Jufri, the Head of the Association of Lecturers at LPTK of NTB, presented the role of LPTK in developing literacy. He emphasized the strategic role of LPTK as a producer of education personnel and teachers at all levels, as such play a key role in developing literacy in this area. The Association of Lecturers at LPTK of NTB currently has 17 member institutions, where almost 20.000 students are learning to become future teachers.
On a similar note, like the previous speaker, Prof. Wahab Jufri sees the importance of collaboration in terms of this literacy issue.
“There should be a collective cooperation between the regional government and all education stakeholders to solve literacy issue in NTB province.”
The final speaker in the webinar was the Head of the Education and Culture Office of NTB, Dr. H. Aidy Furqan. In his presentation, he said that the NTB government, through the Education Office, has continually developed inclusive literacy policy by providing various media and learning resources, such as audio, video, multimedia, and movies. These materials are also provided at several places in schools and in society, thus maximizing access for the general students, special need students, and the public to read and learn.
At the end of the webinar, the Head of the Education Office of NTB was asked to lead the reading of the declaration of literacy movement in NTB Province. There were three points of commitment in the declaration: (1) Cultivate a passion for reading beginning with one’s self, one’s family, and the scope of one’s respective roles and duties, (2) Create and Support programs and activities that build literacy skills of children, adolescents, parents, teachers, and other elements of society, (3) Start with one’s self and the work environment, and then invite various levels of society to participate in providing reading materials that are educational, cultured, and have character.
This webinar, which was fully supported by the INOVASI program, was one of a series of activities to celebrate International Literacy Day in NTB Province. Other current activities include holding children’s story writing competitions and making literacy campaign materials. Additionally, there will be workshops for the winners of these competitions. According to the head of the Webinar Organizing Committee, H. Iwan Jazadi, Ph.D., these activities aim to create a joint movement to build literacy for the people of NTB. The movement is driven by a sense of concern, because the province’s literacy still ranks the lowest in the nation.
The INOVASI program, as conveyed by its provincial manager, Sri Widuri, appreciates the breakthrough made by the Association of Lectures of LPTK of NTB to raise awareness among teachers, teacher candidates, and the wider community about the literacy crisis taking place in NTB. She also hopes that the existing network of various stakeholders can be strengthened and expanded.
“The government and key partners such as the Association of Lectures of LPTK of NTB, the NTB Reading Consortium or Konsorsium NTB Membaca, and figures such as TGB Zainul Majdi, can be catalysts for actual change for a much better future for children in NTB,” hoped Sri Widuri.