Pursuing Education Quality in Sumba

School is an educational unit where the process of teaching and learning and teaching occur. Indeed,  a school becomes one bridge for anyone to acquire science, knowledge and life experiences. Many things can be learned at school, not just science revealed by scientists, but also knowledge that continues to evolve time by time.

Institution of educational units with their specific working systems expect everyone has equal rights and freedom in learning. Humanizing human is one of the main goals that make people free are no longer shackled by ignorance. It is often that poverty is caused by ignorance and lack of knowledge.

East Sumba, one of the districts in East Nusa Tenggara province has so complex educational that is much different with education in Java with its easy and affordable access that increase students’ learning spirit. However, the spirit of students in East Sumba is good. Unluckily not all students are able to access information easily as they are in such away distance to get updated information.

SMP N 1 Waingapu (state junior high school) was chosen as a pioneer of education that is designed as a reference school in 2016. The label made the teachers did their best to reach 8 standards as junior secondary education unit. Actually, it was not easy to achieve these 8 educational standards, but they can fulfill them step by step.

Exemplary and discipline

Students learn from what they see, hear and do. These are called exemplary. If the teacher is indisciplined, then never expect that the students will be discipline, because they follow whom they should emulate. The low awareness to be an example of discipline is a scourge in character development. There is a vast gap of learning motivation between students in Sumba and Java. Formerly the writer has experience in teaching practice at a school in Yogyakarta with its high discipline standard, but now when she teaches at one school in Sumba, she felt a striking difference.

Comfortable for learning

When students are taken right to school gate by their parents, they enter the school area but after that they think that it is enough to learn outside only from the fence. Children's learning motivation is not at school area, but outside. This is the biggest homework for SMP N 1 Waingapu as referral school to provide comfortable learning atmosphere for students.

The education development in Indonesia is collective responsibility, covering government, regulator, managers of educational institutions, students and society. All stakeholders should reform themselves and rebuild education in Indonesia. Keep going ahead all education stake holders for a better one both in Sumba and Indonesia. (Septi Dadi).