Stakeholders in the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Province met virtually on September 16, 2020 to discuss the educational conditions in this area, particularly as they relate to basic literacy and numeracy skills before and during the pandemic. The discussion, titled “Rembuk NTB” or “NTB Consultation” was attended by several parties, including the regional government of NTB, Bima Regency, Central Lombok Regency, representatives from provincial and regency of Regional House of People’s Representatives (DRPD), three of the largest Islamic civil society organizations in NTB, NGOs advocating for literacy, and academicians from a number of renowned campuses in NTB. This activity was facilitated by INOVASI and fully supported by the NTB Reading Consortium or Konsorsium NTB Membaca and Association of Lecturers from Educational Institution of Educational Personnel (LPTK) of NTB Province.
The discussion titled “Rembuk NTB” or “NTB Consultation” was opened by Dr. H. Aidy Furqan, M.Pd., the Head of Education and Culture Office of NTB. The discussion was held virtually and started by presenting data and information on the literacy and numeracy profiles in NTB. Based on a number of studies and surveys, NTB still ranks at a concerning level from a national standpoint. For instance, according to the AKSI (Asesmen Kompetensi Siswa Indonesia) or Assessment of Indonesian Student Competency review carried out by the Center for Educational Assessment (Puspendik) of the Ministry of Education and Culture (MoEC) in 2019, NTB nationally ranked 33rd for student literacy skills and 30th for numeracy skills.
The low literacy and numeracy skills in NTB are partly due to the existence of vulnerable groups who to date have been facing serious learning challenges. These groups include students whose parents are struggling financially, students with special needs who have difficulty with functional learning, students whose parents are migrant workers, students living in remote areas and who do not have digital access, and students affected by disasters such as earthquakes and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Results from the latest review on learning in NTB during the pandemic were also presented during the discussion. There were a number of challenges faced by the education sector, such as parents’ level of readiness and support for children to study at home and the lack of adequate regulatory and policy tools that fit learning needs during the pandemic, especially for those coming from vulnerable groups.
Existing potential and opportunities that can be used to improve literacy skills in NTB were also explored during “Rembuk NTB” discussion. For instance, a number of regencies are known to have policy tools that promote literacy, numeracy, and inclusive education. Furthermore, NTB continues to train educational personnel whose talent can be used by the regional government. Additionally, various organizations outside of the government have stated their commitment to support the effort to improve literacy and numeracy skills in this province which known as a province of a thousand mosques. This would be the right time to think quickly of how to consolidate these strengths.
During the last part of the discussion, the participants agreed that the educational conditions in NTB that were presented are the responsibility of all parties who were present at “Rembuk NTB”. As such, the next step is for all parties to work together in formulating a plan. A solid resolution that came out of the discussion was to establish groups at the provincial and regencial levels that would identify the root of the problem in each region and then form relevant local solutions.
