Pasuruan, 4 August 2010 – In conjunction with affirming its commitment to upgrade the quality of teachers in Pasuruan via Classroom Action Research programme, together with Pasuruan City and Regency Municipal Offices and PT HM Sampoerna Tbk, Sampoerna School of Education today is organizing a seminar with the theme, “Innovative and Creative Learning”. This is the 2nd batch organized for the Social Science teachers. This event was attended by Drs H Edie Sasmito, Head of Pasuruan District Education Office and Kenneth J. Cock, Director of Sampoerna School of Education Outreach.
Last March, a similar programme was held in Pasuruan for Mathematics and Natural Sciences teachers, but in this event, HM Sampoerna, which has given its full support on this programme, is focusing in giving training to 17 Social Sciences teachers from 17 Junior High Schools in Pasuruan.
From the data released by the Ministry of Education in 2009, 33% of Senior High School student taking Social Sciences Programme in Pasuruan City and 11% Pasuruan Regency failed in the National Final Examination This fact indicates that there is a need to improve the quality of education of Social Sciences students. To do this we need to improve the quality of Social Sciences teachers so that the quality of their student could be upgraded too.
Kenneth J. Cock, Director of Sampoerna School of Education Outreach, disclosed, “Classroom Action Research is one of the ways to upgrade the quality of teachers and teaching staffs by giving them an opportunity to resolve learning and non-learning problems professionally through controlled action research. With the improvement of the teachers’ quality we hope that the quality of the students could be improved as well.”
During the Innovative and Creative Seminar, out of 17 Social Science teachers, three teachers with the outstanding research topics have been selected to share the product of their researches.
The 3 teachers are Drs. Oetomo, from SMAN 2 Pasuruan with a research on “Effort to Enhance Learning Motivation of Students in Understanding History Materials through Giving Independent Tasks in Grade XI IPS 3 in SMAN 2 Pasuruan”, Nurul Indahyati, from SMA Darut Taqwa Purwosari, who raised a topic on “Application of Class Display Kelas so as to upgrade Active Learning on Multi Cultural Material in Sociology Subject in Grade XI IS 2 SMA Darut Taqwa Purwosari for the School Year 2009-2010”, and Titit Ari Palupi, from SMAN 1 Gondangwetan, had also made a research on “Application of Cooperative Learning Model in Number Head Together Type to Enhance the Motivation to Learn English and the Reading Skill of Grade XI IPA 4 students of SMAN 1 Gondong Wetan”.
This Innovative and Creative Learning Seminar is a part of Classroom Action Research Programme aimed at enhancing the quality of the teachers and principals. This 2nd Program is held in 3 districts namely Karawang Regency, Surabaya and its outskirt areas and Pasuruan Regency for 3 years. On the whole, 90 principals and 2,270 teachers in these districts will take part in this programme financed by PT HM Sampoerna Tbk.
Kenneth J. Cock added that in the 3rd batch, the Classroom Action Research programme will be allocated for teachers who teach subjects other than Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences. The programme to improve the quality of teachers and principals will cover leadership training, innovation in teaching method, master teacher, research in classroom action, become participants in Indonesian Teachers Conference as well as developing resource center facilities for those who have been selected in the training.
Through this collaboration, Sampoerna School of Education, Pasuruan City and Regency Municipal Offices as well as PT. HM Sampoerna Tbk hoped that this effort could create a generation of qualified, professional, innovative Indonesian teachers who have international standard.
