WE HAVE SEEN
A DECLINE IN
LEARNING
ACHIEVEMENT;
MANY CHILDREN
DROP OUT
OF SCHOOL.”
—Nadiem Makarim,
Indonesia’s minister of
education and culture
In South Jakarta’s
Manggarai village,
teacher Erdah Desiana
at Elementary School
No. 1 leads a small
group of students.
This school was one
of hundreds around
Jakarta that restarted
in-person classes with
stringent health
protocols. Schools
were open three days
a week with half the
students present one
day and the other
half there the next.
Students at home
attended via video-
conference. Outbreaks
of COVID-19 were still
plaguing Indonesia,
but the government
pushed ahead with
in-person school,
arguing that the
educational benefits
outweighed the risks.SEPT. 0 6 BACK TO CLASS
40