Jakarta (ANTARA) – People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) Deputy Speaker Jazilul Fawaid supports the government’s move to evaluate face-to-face learning (PTM) across all grades that had been underway for several months to prevent and stop the spread of COVID-19.
“The currently spreading Omicron variant has caused the emergence of the COVID-19 third wave. For everyone’s sake and to protect school children, officials agreed that PTM should be evaluated,” he noted through his statement on Monday.
In evaluating the PTM, each region applies differing standards depending on the Public Activity Restriction (PPKM) level, he remarked.
Consequently, schools have to completely shut down and those that continued face-to-face learning had to do so at 50-percent capacity.
However, despite this, face-to-face learning is being evaluated, and the education process should still be continued, he noted.
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Hence, schools that still implement 50-percent capacity face-to-face learning should be grateful while those that had to completely shut down have to implement distance learning.
To this end, he encouraged that education should continue through a reduction in capacity or distance learning, as education is crucial for children as the future generation.
“Halted education could result in learning loss and a lost generation. This is what we worry about when the pandemic struck,” Fawaid remarked.
During the pandemic, the government had implemented remote learning. While there were shortcomings, this method worked when the public had to restrict mobilization.
A strategy to work around restrictions during the pandemic has to be sought for which remote learning is the correct move amid the restriction period to continue education, he affirmed.
“Parents and children have experience in remote learning. With this existing experience, parents and children will be ready when remote learning is re-implemented. Let us maintain our spirit in continuing education,” he remarked.
In addition, he encouraged the government to intensify vaccination for children to protect them from COVID-19 or to reduce the disease’s severity when contracted.
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