BOGOR - The Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen) together with SEAMEO BIOTROP is preparing a program to strengthen agricultural skills for students of Special Schools (SLB) in various regions. This program is expected to be a means to build the independence of special needs learners through the agromarine sector.
The initial steps of the program were carried out through intensive technical training for SLB teachers from various provinces which took place at the SEAMEO BIOTROP Office, Bogor, Wednesday, June 3.
Director of Secondary and Special Education Teachers at the Ministry of Education, Arif Jamal, said this training was designed to improve teacher competence and strengthen the implementation of agricultural skills learning in schools.
According to him, so far the material for farming skills has been included in the SLB curriculum. However, many teachers who teach this subject do not have a background in agricultural education so they have to learn independently.
"The main goal is two: besides improving the ability of teachers, we want children with special needs to have independence through this agricultural sector. The target is not necessarily to make them farmers, but to make agriculture a means so that they can grow into independent students," said Arif Jamal.
The training program is the second stage of the national briefing series. Previously, more than 670 SLB teachers from various regions had participated in online training. From this number, 30 best teachers from 21 provinces were selected to attend face-to-face training in Bogor.
The participants come from various educational backgrounds, ranging from mathematics teachers, extraordinary education (PLB), psychology, to sports.
"I asked the participants directly, it turns out that there are people with backgrounds as mathematics teachers, PLB teachers, psychologists, even sports teachers. Because of the limitations of their scientific backgrounds, they have taught agriculture independently or autodidactically," said Arif.
During the training, teachers received various practical agricultural materials that can be applied in school environments with limited land. The materials include cultivating fruit plants in pots (tabulampot), aquaponic systems, cultivating freshwater fish with biofloc methods, to horticulture.
In addition to cultivation skills, participants also received additional materials related to digital marketing and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to support the learning process and the development of agricultural-based businesses.
Director of SEAMEO BIOTROP, Prof. Edi Santosa, said the main focus of current activities is to strengthen the capacity of teachers to be able to translate technical material into learning methods that are in accordance with the needs of students with special needs.
"Our current focus is to train the teachers first. Hopefully, after getting the material here, the teachers will be able to formulate and simplify the knowledge they get into a learning method that is appropriate for the conditions of their students at school," said Edi.
After the training is completed, the Ministry of Education will provide implementation assistance at each school. Meanwhile, SEAMEO BIOTROP plans to conduct a direct visit to a number of participants' SLBs to monitor the implementation of the material and evaluate the development of the program.
Edi assessed that the participants' response to the program was very positive and opened up opportunities to expand the scope of training in the future.
"BIOTROP has many activities that are very relevant to what the Director said. God willing, seeing the very good response and positive impact from the participants, we plan to organize this agenda so that it can become a regular program in the future," he said.
Through this program, the government hopes that agricultural skills will not only be part of learning at SLB, but also become practical supplies that can help students with special needs build economic and social independence after completing their education.
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