The Prospect of ELT in Indonesia

 The Opportunity for Higher Education

Lack of preparation is not the fault of institutions of higher education. Most colleges, especially the less selective schools at the community college level, have poured time and money into providing remedial courses to help underprepared students succeed, but the effort has done little to overcome the dropout problem. There have also been experiments with providing community college students with various supports such as counseling, the creation of “learning communities” that keep students together for mutual support, or providing extra financial resources to help meet living costs. However, these programs are costly and have had only modest success (Bettinger, Boatman, & Long, 2013).  Building on success  makes sense to focus on higher learning to build on the successes achieved in expanding primary and secondary education. As Islamic Development Bank (2013) mentioned that, “A 'tried and tested' approach of investing in buildings and equipment, backed up by a programme of staff training and curriculum development,has been highly effective”.

 In the near term, more could be done to better inform students and their families about available options, including the availability of financial aid for well-prepared students from low-income families; the importance of matching one’s interests and skills with what different institutions have to offer; and the availability of more work-focused career and technical training for those most likely to drop out of college saddled with too much debt. Islamic Development Bank (IsDB)(2013) told that they support to Islamic higher education in Indonesia has shown that offering Islamic education alongside a science and technology curriculum will prepare students for the challenges of the knowledge economy and the requirements of a competitive labour market. IsDB channels 59% of its education funding in Indonesia through the Islamic system to help raise standards and equip students with excellent qualifications. Islamic education is managed by the Ministry of Religious Affairs while the conventional system is overseen by the Ministry of Education (IsDB, 2013).