PARINGIN (TABIRkota) – Balangan District’s preschool teacher Sri Wahyuni has recently received an “Outstanding Teacher” Award for dedication to Character-Based Holistic Education.
Sri Wahyuni, founder and teacher of kindergarten called PAUD/TK “Harapan Bangsa”, is considered to have made a positive contribution, not only on her pupils but on the communities around her, too.
Ms Wahyuni has been educating her pupils at the pre-primary school for approximately 15 years.
PAUD/TK Harapan Bangsa, which is situated in Hauwei Village of Halong Subdistrict in Balangan District, has currently 52 preschoolers.
“I only carry out my duties as an educator to the best of my ability”, she said, in commenting on the remarkable achievement she’s just received.
The woman who was born on June 20, 1981, later told the story of how she established the kindergarten.
Until the early 2000s, there were still many children age between four and five years old in Halong Subdistrict who had not yet received their right to pre-primary education.
“Whereas, in fact, early childhood is a crucial stage of life, in terms of a child’s physical, intellectual, emotional and social development”, she continued.
Due to the lack of pre-primary education programs in Halong Subdistrict, the children were, therefore, get used to accompany their parents to work in the fields almost every morning.
“They were not enrolled in pre-primary education. Children from poor families are the least likely to attend early childhood education programs”, Ms Wahyuni said.
She was concerned about the condition, and it drove her to take action by establishing PAUD and TK Harapan Bangsa.
“There were only six pupils”, Ms Wahyuni said, telling the number of students when the preschool was founded.
She put more emphasis on character-based education for her pupils from the very beginning, on the grounds that to form the next generation of good character should be started from an early age.
“Seeing the fact that there are many people who are good at academics but bad in behavior often makes me sad”, she said.
This is what drives her to consistently implement the so-called Character-Based Holistic Education to her pupils.
She feels increasingly optimistic that she can realize her hope to create the next generation with good character.
Knowing Sri Wahyuni’s solemnity in educating preschoolers, Adaro Foundation subsequently assisted her to deepen knowledge on Character-Based Holistic Education at Indonesia Heritage Foundation in Depok, West Java.
Adaro Foundation is a nonprofit established by coal mining company PT Adaro Indonesia that operates its mining business in several districts of Kalimantan, including Balangan.
The foundation, along with Indonesia Heritage Foundation, also provided assistance to PAUD/TK Harapan Bangsa, in the forms of various educational games, as well as modules and reading books.
Adaro Foundation, since 2018, has assisted up to 63 kindergartens in the provinces of South and Central Kalimantan, in implementing Character-Based Holistic Education. (ant/sahrudin)
