VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

House Speaker Puan Maharani said the commemoration of National Education Day which falls on May 2 offers a momentum to map school dropouts during the COVID-19 pandemic and find solution to the issue.

"The Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology must find the cause of school dropouts during the pandemic. The commemoration of the National Education Day 2021 themed "Move Simultaneously, Create Freedom of Study" offers a right momentum to map problems and find solutions to the problems." she said in a statement released here on Sunday.

She asked whether the school dropouts resulted from long distance learning or economic difficulties faced by families due to the pandemic.

Since the pandemic is still not over, schools may apply long distance leaning, she said.

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology needs to improve learning infrastructures, she said adding equitable distribution of infrastructures for long distance learning must absolutely be met by the government.

To make preparations for long distance learning and ensure equitable distribution of long-distance learning facilities, the ministry needs to test the effectiveness and quality of teachers, students and learning materials.

The step must be taken to prevent educational disparities from widening, particularly during long distance learning that need digital infrastructures, internet access and other supporting facilities.

"It is necessary to assess the effectiveness of online learning. Unless step is taken, education disparities will be widen," she said. (Antaranews)