Gov’t Improves School Zoning System

Minister of Education and Culture Muhadjir Effendy on his press conference at Jakarta, Tuesday (15/1) (Photo by: Ministry of Education and Culture PR).

Ministry of Education and Culture has issued Regulation of Minister of Education and Culture Number 51 of 2018 on New Student Admission (PPDB) on school year of 2019 – 2020.

Under this regulation, the Government seeks to improve the school zoning system that has been developed.

“The school zoning system will be a blueprint used by Ministry of Education and Culture to identify problems in education, especially in formal and non-formal education as well as to find its solution,” Minister of Education and Culture Muhadjir Effendy said in a press conference at Jakarta, Tuesday (15/1).

In general, according to the Minister, there is no significant difference between the Ministry’s Regulation Number 51 of 2019 and Regulation Number 14 of 2018 that regulates PPDB in the previous school year.

In the upcoming new school year, he said, the PPDB is carried out through three channels, namely zoning channel (minimum quota of 90 percent), achievement channel (maximum quota of 5 percent), and transfer student due to moving parents (maximum quota of 5 percent). “The main consideration of new student admission is not academic qualifications, but the domicile of the students,” he said.

For the record, one of the points amended in the Ministry’s Regulation Number 51 Year 2018 is the use of Relief Letter (SKTM) for students from disadvantaged families proven by the intended family participation in a social security program provided by the Government/local governments. The 12-year compulsory education program also is implemented by zoning system, he said.

The Minister also stated that education zoning system is one of the Government’s attempts to improve education quality. Other than the zoning system, he added, the Government will also carry out the distribution of teachers, teacher quality, as well as facilities and infrastructure improvement.

With the education zoning system, Muhadjir expressed hopes that schools and educational institutions will actively register school-age children in their respective zones. “Therefore, the Ministry seeks to enhance cooperation with Ministry of Home Affairs, especially with Directorate General of Population and Civil Registry,” he said.

The Minister also urges local governments to immediately make PPDB guidelines stipulated by local government regulation based on Minister of Education and Culture Regulation Number 51 of 2018 and to establish zoning in their respective regions, no later than one month before the implementation of PPDB scheduled to begin in May this year. (Humas Kemendikbud/ES)

Translated by: Galuh Wicaksono
Edited by: Muhammad Ersan Pamungkas