Antara News·Indonesia·Tuesday, November 10, 2026 at 08:37 AM UTC

Indonesia balances digital learning with conventional school tools

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Hana Dewi, Tegar Nurfitra

Jakarta (ANTARA) - President Prabowo Subianto emphasized the need to balance digital technology with conventional learning tools in schools to help develop children's fine motor skills, Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Sugiono said.

"The challenge facing today's generation is that fine motor skills such as writing and drawing are increasingly being replaced by media and tools accessed through gadgets," he said after launching the government's writing-tool assistance program on Tuesday.

Speaking in Tangerang District, Banten, Sugiono stressed that the trend must not be left unaddressed, warning that it could adversely affect children's development and skill acquisition.

In this regard, he expressed hope that the government assistance would help young Indonesians strengthen both their cognitive and motor skills.

Beyond improving motor skills, he added, the use of books and other conventional writing tools is expected to encourage children to develop their imagination and think more broadly.

The minister further noted that reading and writing are interconnected skills that need to be nurtured from an early age.

He also said the government expects the assistance program to help broaden students' knowledge and perspectives as they grow and develop their reading, writing, and cognitive skills.

Tasked with implementing the program, the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education aims to provide reading and writing tools to 147,743 elementary schools across Indonesia, benefiting more than eight million first- and second-grade students.

To date, the assistance has reached 7,866,346 students at 143,774 elementary schools, representing 97.3 percent of the target.

With a budget allocation of Rp781.7 billion (around US$43.3 million), the program provides funds directly to schools, enabling them to procure packages containing eight types of books and writing tools through the School Procurement Information System (SIPLah).

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