Flood Demak Soak 330 Schools, Dozens Of Thousands Of Students Can't Actively Learn

Photos of the air flood conditions that submerged the Demak Square area in front of the Great Mosque of Demak, Demak Regency, Central Java, Tuesday 19 March 2024. (ANTARA PHOTO-Aji Styawan)

A total of 330 schools from kindergarten to junior high school levels in Demak Regency, Central Java, were affected by flooding. As a result, tens of thousands of students were unable to participate in the teaching and learning process. "The results of the temporary data collection total 330 schools. Covering Kindergarten and PAUD as many as 185 schools and elementary and junior high schools as many as 145 schools," said Head of the Demak Regency Education and Culture Office, Harris Wahyudi Ridwan, in Demak, Thursday, March 21, as reported by Antara. For the number of students, he said, it has not been recorded, but each class for the elementary school level is between 28-30 students. Meanwhile, junior high schools are almost the same for each class. With that number of students estimated, students affected can reach tens of thousands of students. Regarding the impact of the flood, the Demak Regency Education and Culture Office also made a circular to schools. For educational units in areas affected by flooding and / or access routes to schools cannot be passed, teaching and learning activities can be diverted from homes or refugee camps by providing additional tasks or online mode learning from each classroom teacher and subject teacher. "For school principals, teachers, or educators in carrying out their duties at schools where they are assigned to be affected by flooding and or access to schools cannot be passed, they can print and serve at the Regional Office for the Dikbud Sector," he said. If it is not possible, he said, it can apply for dispensation through the Regional Office of Education and Culture of the Demak Regency Education and Culture Office so that it can serve at home or in refugee camps. In order to anticipate casualties, all parents or guardians of students are asked not to play outside which can endanger themselves from the dangers of flooding. "We also ask educational units to carry out preventive measures, maintain facilities and infrastructure, textbooks, and school-owned assets," he said.

For the sake of humanity, schools in areas around areas affected by flooding can allocate some classrooms to be used as temporary shelters. Meanwhile, teaching and learning activities for some students can be carried out through additional tasks or learning using online modes. To restart teaching and learning activities in schools, he said, waiting for the flood conditions to recede and be safe. Sinta, one of the students of SD 01 Wonorejo, Karanganyar District, admitted that since the flood he had not been to school, because schools were also affected by flooding. "In refugee camps, you also can't study because the place is limited and crowded. It's better to take a vacation first while waiting for the flood to recede," he said.