Indonesia is one of the largest and most populous countries in the world and is also the fastest-growing country in terms of internet use. However, many factors and obstacles are hindering the growth & advancement of digital education and literacy in Indonesia.
The stubborn digital gender gap has made the use and benefit of the web have not yet been a privilege for everyone. For example, the World Wide Web Foundation’s Women’s Rights Online report has shown that only 20% of women have access to the internet across Indonesia, which is far below other advanced and developing countries across the world. In local communities as well, only some youth education centers provide access to the internet due to the lack of widespread and supported ICT education in the country.
The worst thing is that the IT subjects in schools across Indonesia are not yet up to date and advanced enough to support the students’ skills. Compared with other Southeast Asian countries, Indonesia is left quite behind. In 2014, Thailand launched the Technology Master Plan for Education, which is the nation’s plan to increase student access to digital learning. While in Malaysia, since 2001, the government has invested heavily in computerization and training teachers to use ICT in classrooms.
The schools here in Indonesia have not put digital literacy and learning as their priority. There is still a long way for the schools to finally achieve the milestone just like their neighboring countries (electricity and internet are far from adequate enough). If Indonesia is able to improve its infrastructure, digital literacy and hopefully a digital world could be more easily achievable (although yes, it takes time and hand-to-hand efforts must be placed).
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