In Remote Areas, Free Internet Is Hard to Maximize

JariEdu - The central government welcomed the provision of free internet packages for students to students. However, the free internet assistance will be difficult for students in remote areas to use.

Head of the NTB Education and Culture Education Branch Office (KCD), North Lombok Regency (KLU), Dr. Then Basuki Rahman on Friday, September 25, 2020, said that the provision of free internet for students and teachers in the North Lombok Regency area can be maximally utilized only in certain areas such as cities. However, in mountainous and valley areas that do not have internet access, according to him, the use of this assistance will not be optimal.

“Not to mention that there are students who don't have Android-based cellphones and laptops. Like at SMAN 2 Bayan, 40 percent of students do not have an Android-based cellphone, ”he said.

He admitted that some areas of KLU do not have internet access or blank spots. This makes online-based distance learning difficult to implement. As reported, the central government has started distributing free internet assistance. Students will get a free internet quota of 35 GB every month. Meanwhile, teachers, lecturers and students get a quota of 50 GB.

Therefore, Lalu Basuki Rahman said that the solution chosen for learning in remote areas included using offline learning through a visiting teacher mechanism, or students coming to the house. The maximum number of students visiting the teacher's house is 10 people while still applying health protocols.

He has also asked the school to lend students books from the library, with each student receiving one book per subject. "We ask schools to vacate libraries with all the books lent to students," he said.

In addition, the involvement of parents is very important in the current Learning from Home (BDR) process. This is important because, education is first and foremost in the family. "In North Lombok Regency I asked schools to identify students who can take BDR online and offline. Only learning is planned, both online and offline, ”he said.

In addition, according to him, the school must identify essential basic competencies. During this Covid-19 pandemic, not all basic competencies must be conveyed.

Previously, the Head of the Mataram City Education Office, Drs. H. Then Fatwir Uzali, S.Pd., MM., Hopes that the free internet package assistance will be provided soon. His party has instructed the school to submit student cell phone numbers. "We hope that internet packages will be available on students' cellphones soon," he said.