Tomorrow, Education Agency will Start Implementing Limited School Opening Trial with Blended Learning

Jakarta Government through Education Agency ensures that students' health and safety are the top priority in designing policies for face-to-face learning which will be carried out in July 2021. Thus starting tomorrow (4/7), Jakarta Education Agency will implement limited school opening trial with blended learning system.

Our top priority is students' health and safety

Jakarta Education Agency Head, Nahdiana mentioned, her side collaborates with various parties in preparing the face-to-face learning plan. Her side has received various recommendations to ensure students' health and safety in policies that will be taken.

"Jakarta Government is very careful and does not rush in making policies related to its implementation in education units in the even semester of 2020/2021. Our top priority is students' health and safety. Of course, all preparations have been discussed and finalized before the implementation," she conveyed, as quoted from Jakarta PPID Press Release.

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Jakarta Education Agency, she added, has prepared Siap Belajar channel (siap.jakarta.go.id) which is a program used for independent assessments for all education units in Jakarta. Siap Belajar is an assessment that measures two important aspects of face-to-face learning, namely readiness aspect of supporting education units in implementing blended learning system and readiness aspect of education units in implementing blended learning, both at home and limited face-to-face learning at school. This assessment aims to measure education units' readiness in carrying out face-to-face learning activities in July 2021.

Each assessment point at Siap Belajar has criteria which adjusted to Education and Culture Ministry (Kemdikbud)'s standard policies and guidelines issued by UNESCO and OECD. "We have been doing this process for a long time. We always coordinate with many parties from Indonesian Pediatric Association (IDAI), Health Agency, Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI), Clinical Psychologist Association, education experts, and parents to ensure that our assessment's standards are accurate, even above national standards," she said.

The assessment's results will be used as a basis for Jakarta Education Agency to determine education units as limited trial candidates. Limited trial is intended to find patterns in implementing blended learning and measuring education units' readiness. After determining education units as trial candidates, all heads, educators, and education personnel of related education units, as well as parents and students must attend PTK Merdeka Belajar and Siap Belajar Intervention training.

In early stage, there were 100 education units from primary and secondary levels (SD/MI, SMP/MTs, SMA/SMK/MA, and PKBM/LKP) that met the criteria for further training. After attending training for 2 weeks, based on the results of training, 85 education units were declared to have met the criteria to take a part in limited trial.

Next stage, educators and education personnel from education units participating in limited trial were vaccinated to ensure learning activities could be carried out in conducive and safe manner.

During blended learning implementation, parents still have full rights to allow their children whether take a part in blended learning or learn from home. Therefore, education units still carry out learning from home, especially for education units that haven't passed the assessment and haven't implemented limited trial.

According to her, Jakarta Education Agency will educate students and parents about blended learning. During limited trial implementation on April 7-29, monitoring and evaluation will be carried out regularly by related parties, such as school supervisors, Health Agency, COVID-19 Task Forces at urban village and sub-district levels, Education Sub-agencies, and Education Agency. Education units have also coordinated with local health centers or nearest hospitals. Monitoring is carried out in accordance with aspects of implementing health protocols and learning which established during COVID-19 pandemic.

There are several important points in implementing limited school opening trial as follows:

• Limited face-to-face learning is carried out 1 day in 1 week for 1 class level.

• Number of students is limited with maximum 50% capacity of each class and distance of 1.5 meters between students.

• Study duration is limited to 3-4 hours a day.

• Limited learning materials, where only essential materials provided in face-to-face learning.

• Education units have attended blended learning training.

• Educators and education personnel have been vaccinated.

In case there are symptoms of COVID-19 exposure in students and educators, school will immediately coordinate with the nearest health center for further examination. If there is positive case of COVID-19, education unit will be closed for 3x24 hours for disinfection and further tracing by Health Agency. Education units will be opened after authorities declared the schools are safe from COVID-19.

Community can be involved in monitoring and reporting related to limited school opening trial through Jakarta Education Agency's complaint channel at call center service 081287671339 or 081287671340 and Education Agency Post on Jl. Gatot Soebroto No. Kav. 40-41, Kuningan, South Jakarta.