Papua's Master Teacher

"I was overwhelmed teaching elementary school students. I had to ask the principal to move me to teach a different class. I felt guilty that I couldn't teach these children to read," says Angelia Maniani (28). This young woman, who has wanted to be a teacher since she was a child, actually loves her profession. However, teaching experiences that were different from her expertise had made Ms. Angel want to give up.

Today, the alumni of Pelita Harapan University's Biology Education program continues to teach grade 1 and 2 students. "Being a teacher is a tough job. Because we determine the quality of the next generation. But I believe that all challenges can be overcome as long as we continue to learn," she said. 

The challenges of teaching reading that had overwhelmed Ms. Angel were overcome after she attended the Wahana Literasi training. This training is a project model implemented by Wahana Visi Indonesia to target the issue of literacy skills for children in grades 1 to 3. The education program carried out by WVI in Papua is a collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Culture and Research through the Program Organisasi Penggerak (POP).

During the training, teachers were trained on how to develop their teaching capacity, how to make educational teaching aids (APE) and reading corners in the classroom, and other materials that are effective in improving students' reading skills. With the determination to keep learning, Ms. Angel has become a teacher who is not only able to teach students to read, but also "teach" other teachers to become more proficient in teaching reading. Ms. Angel is one of the leading Master Teachers in Biak District, Papua.

"There was a student who couldn't read at all when he entered my class. Children are used to memorizing letters and syllables, not reading. But after I learned the teaching method from Wahana Literasi, namely, reading with letter sounds, the children became more able to read. Including this student of mine," said Ms. Angel. She continued, "When I did the student evaluation, I was surprised when my student was able to read more fluently. From not being able to read at all to being able to read".

When Ms. Angel asked her student what made her able to read, the student replied that she understood the concept of reading better after being taught to sound out letters. In addition, the reading corner and APE available in the classroom also made him love reading even more. So when the student is at home, he also asks his parents to provide books for him to learn to read. 

"This is one of the most memorable things for me. Students are much more eager to go to school to learn, not just to play with friends. Now, after every class assignment, my students often ask permission to wait for their friends to finish their assignments while reading in the reading corner," said Ms. Angel.

This woman who has a passion for developing her hometown has a desire to integrate literacy with all subjects. She feels that reading skills are very important for students in younger grades. She also hopes that her learning and experience can benefit other teachers. Likewise, Ms. Angel herself will continue to learn and innovate in order to provide the best literacy education for children in Papua.

Writer: Mariana Kurniawati (Communication Executive) 

Contributors: Program Organisasi Penggerak team in Biak, Papua