Understanding the Role of Technology to Help Solve Educational Problems in Indonesia

There are still many problems that must be faced by Indonesia in the education sector. The presence of technology is considered not yet fully able to alleviate problems that have occurred for decades. Two things that are often questioned are the quality and effectiveness of learning. Slowly, many solutions have been offered by Indonesian education startups.

In the past, differences in the quality of education were always associated with uneven development. The distribution of information such as textbooks and materials is always disrupted due to the uneven infrastructure in all regions. Now, when the internet has started to appear in areas, access to information has become easy. Although it is still not complete, the distribution of materials has made progress.

Startups like Ruangguru, Zenius, HarukaEdu, and the like should receive special attention from regulators. Their presence plays an active role in changing the culture of Indonesian society in learning. Similar to what was done Gojek, Bukalapak, or Tokopedia which have changed or even created a new culture in Indonesian society in transactions.

Tech prowess

It is undeniable that technology contributes many solutions in various fields. The internet with all the ease of access to information can be the most complete library in the world, or it can even be the most pleasant classroom that is so flexible. But it will only happen if, all of us, all involved in the learning ecosystem are literate and understand how to take advantage of technology.

The rapid spread of hoaxes and bullying that are still rife on social media and similar platforms is proof that Indonesia's technological prowess is still being questioned. Not to mention that technology and the internet, which should be a source of learning, are actually used as a source of learning leaked exam questions. At this point technology has succeeded in changing education in Indonesia, unfortunately in a negative context.

Celebration of the ease of technology like this deserves attention. The culture of independent learning is still lacking. The formation of a group or community of various leaked exam questions is also very worrying. While many are struggling to make technology a vehicle for the educational revolution, on the other hand technology is an obstacle to an honest and quality education process.

Under these conditions, no matter how good the solution presented, it will not mean anything. Technology has been interpreted and embellished as a tool to achieve a short goal in an inappropriate way, not as a learning support solution and a solution to improve learning abilities.

Solutions presented by educational startups

Ruangguru and Zenius are two startups that provide digital-based learning solutions that are not only quality but also fun. The key word is that it can be accessed from anywhere and is tiered with various approaches, such as the presence of multimedia material to gamification.

In addition to formal learning, educational startups have also sprung up for non-formal education or it can be said as skill development. Starting from technical aspects such as programming, data processing, marketing, public speaking, presentations, and more.

HarukaEdu is a service that provides online learning solutions with a fairly complete selection. Supported by various educational institutions they can also issue certificates as proof of competence.

Names like SkillAcademy, Kode.id, MauBelajarApa, Dicoding, and the like also have the same passion to improve the capabilities of the Indonesian people. At least to be able to equip yourself with skills with tailored interests.

Technology for all elements of education

In the world of education, many elements of technology have started to replace the old system. Starting from the management of basic education data, national exams, and several other processes. Unfortunately technology has not touched the whole teaching and learning process, which should be the most important thing to change the learning culture.

Technology should not be limited to a projector screen that displays presentation material, but also a process of discussion and learning. To be able to create a new learning culture that is better by utilizing technology, the people involved in it must first be proficient in using technology. In this case students, teachers, even parents. Technology offers convenience and transparency in many fields, it should be in the world of technology too.

All study plans, the progress of each student, and communication with parents should be in the same container. Maybe it will take a long time to be able to immediately apply it in Indonesia. But it's not impossible.

The gap between the educational curriculum and the needs of the industry is always said to be a key problem that must be faced. But the adoption of material from industry sometimes stumbles on administrative problems or even the competence of existing teachers. Teachers and students must be technology literate. Technology must be interpreted as more than just a tool, but also a culture for self-development and competence. Not a shortcut to find out the answer, what else is leaked about.