Lumajang school spreads the spirit

Wednesday, May 02, 2007

ID Nugroho, The Jakarta Post, Lumajang

The sound of children can be heard coming from inside Busthanul Athfal, a small mosque in Tegal Randu village on Madura Island in East Java province. But as soon as Matruki enters the wooden structure, the dozens of children fall instantly silent, their gaze focused on the 59-year-old man.

Matruki sits cross-legged on the floor, with his grandchild on his lap, as the children sit around him in a semi-circle. "Have you all contemplated what you have done today?" he asks in Madurese.

The students, aged between 7 and 12, remain shyly quiet.

"We have to be able to reflect on what we have done. By doing so, we can know what we'll do next," said Matruki, who has been teaching since 1982.

His words break the ice. One by one, the students, mostly children of migrant workers in the village, located in Klakah district in Lumajang regency, East Java, speak up.

"We have to work together to become smarter," said one of the students, Kiki.

The lesson was organized by Rakyat Merdeka, an alternative school in the village. At the school, everyone is a teacher, every place is a school. This phrase sums up the spirit of the school, which is to keep learning and to provide knowledge to everyone, everywhere.

Tegal Randu's school is part of a network of similar schools established by the Rakyat Merdeka Institution, which was set up in 2005.

The mosque used to host only Koran recital lessons, led by Matruki. Then about two years ago, the institute enriched and upgraded the teaching process, providing alternative learning methods. Matruki supported the move.

The school's presence has been like rain in the middle of the desert. Most of the children in the village were forced to end their formal education after elementary school, because their parents could not afford the fees.

Most of those in the village who can afford it prefer to continue their studies at Islamic boarding schools across Lumajang regency. Others give up on formal education and pursue religious knowledge, such as taking Koran recital lessons in mosques.

"We try to introduce general knowledge in ways that are easily understood," a mentor, A. Santoso, told The Jakarta Post.

Social studies subjects are introduced through discussions on the surrounding community and its problems. Natural sciences are taught by going out into the fields and actually planting and looking after seeds, while Indonesian art and literature are introduced through dance, poetry readings and making masks and musical instruments.

The school also offers students the chance to learn about subjects they may be naturally curious about, such as computers or English.

"We want to teach them whatever they need. They can learn what they need to know here," said Santoso.

There is one compulsory "subject", self-reflection, which takes place before the students start their classes.

"We teach children to evaluate what they have done during the day," said Matruki, who owns the mosque which hosts the school. "Self-evaluation will prevent students from making the same mistakes again."

Lessons are concentrated in the mosque, a modest building where students attend classes from 2 to 5 p.m.

Unlike most mosques, the walls of Busthanul Athfal are decorated with educational posters, some offering the English names of fruits and human body parts, others giving the Javanese words for different objects.

Textbook-filled shelves sit in one corner, while a number is a pile of musical instruments. All of these items are available for free.

"It's already a blessing if they come to the mosque regularly," said Santoso.

With its location on the banks of Lake Klakah and near the slopes of Mount Lamongan, the mosque also is ideally placed to teach students about nature.

Students begin their activities by reflecting on themselves and their day, then they recite the Koran and enjoy art lessons. They stop for afternoon prayers and then are free to choose from a range of available activities and lessons, from computers to gardening.

There are around 40 students at the school, most children but also a few adults.

Student Sholeh thinks the lessons offered by Rakyat Merdeka are more "fulfilling" than those at regular schools.

"I know now that there is so much knowledge out there, not just what is taught at schools. Now I know the types of plants that grow in my village," said Sholeh, 17, whose mother left home to work in Malaysia six years ago.

Sholeh is now honing his computer skills and dreams of getting a job where he can utilize these skills.

He also has another dream.

"I want to travel the world. Who knows, I can gain more knowledge along the way," said Sholeh, in the same spirit as his school, where everyone is a teacher and every place is a school.