TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Mohammad Nuh, the head of the Sekolah Rakyat or People's School development team, said that People's Schools will use a specially designed curriculum, which will also include the existing national curriculum.

"Of course we will include a national curriculum. So it will be national 'plus plus' curriculum," he said in a press conference after a meeting to discuss the development of People's Schools at the Ministry of Social Affairs office in Central Jakarta on Wednesday, March 5, 2025.

However, the former minister of education and culture did not provide detailed specifics regarding the curriculum to be used in People's Schools. His team is still developing the optimal educational framework for students attending these schools, which are the initiative of the Ministry of Social Affairs."

Nuh explained that People's Schools are designed with a dormitory or boarding school concept. These schools are specifically intended for students from poor and extremely poor economic backgrounds. This demographic is a key factor in the curriculum finalization process, ensuring it aligns with their specific needs.

"We will develop a special curriculum because they will be boarding schools," he said.

Furthermore, he noted that discussions regarding the comprehensive facilities and infrastructure of People's Schools are ongoing. These discussions encompass licensing, educator availability, governance, and quality control. His team, in collaboration with the Ministry of Social Affairs, is working with various other ministries and institutions to realize their shared vision of establishing People's Schools.

"The initial facilities have already existed, belonging to the Ministry of Social Affairs. But infrastructure alone is certainly not enough to implement formal education. This is where the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (Dikdasmen) and the Ministry of Higher Education (Diktisaintek) are particularly involved," he said.

He assured that students receiving education at People's Schools will not incur any tuition fees, meaning it will be free of charge. Nuh indicated that these schools will commence operations in the 2025/2026 academic year, catering to students from elementary, junior high, and high school/vocational school levels.

On the same occasion, Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf explained that People's Schools represent a tangible effort by the President to support and empower the poor. He stressed that the primary qualification for prospective students is that they must come from poor or extremely poor families.

"[We aim to] encourage the poor to rise, to be more advanced, more empowered and later play a significant role in Golden Indonesia in 2045," he added.

The core objective of establishing People's Schools, Saifullah went on, is to break the cycle of poverty through access to quality education.

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