Literation Buddy

Indonesia is a developing country and literacy is one of the most important challenges facing our society. As literacy rates increase, people are able to get more out of education. In the words of Lynn Butler, “reading is a window to the world”. As of 2021, Indonesia ranks 62 out of 70 for literacy rate by PISA, the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment[1]. Some individuals in Indonesia are determined to make a difference.

Sahabat Literasi, which translates into English as Literation Buddy, is a volunteer organization created by a 21 year-old student called Nidia and her teacher. Their idea was to establish Sahabat Literasi as a place for young children to develop an interest in literacy from a young age. The target age is children aged 2 – 10 who are unable to get proper education due to poor literacy, which is often connected to the economic challenges faced by the parents. Examples are children of street vendors, families that work in the cleaning services, and many more.

Literation Buddy also helps young children with numeracy and assists with school subjects such as science or social studies as well as English. Literation Buddy aims to become a safe space for children to go to when they need help in their studies or to spend leisure time with books.

Literation Buddy was born in a village in East Java called Dolanan Village, inspired by traditional games in the area. The children are motivated to study by the chance to play after learning, which is also a way to introduce the children to traditional modes of play. A small city garden acts as the studying corner for the children, where they gather between 3pm to 5pm every Saturday. The Literation Buddy team provides different topics, and one person would teach math, one would teach biology or how to count and so forth. Children can come or leave anytime they want and learn any subject that interests them. Some children ask for help with their homework. Literation Buddy also provides books to interested parents or any adult who drops by.

Due to the pandemic, the teaching garden was closed and Literation Buddy had to stop offline teaching. The organization transitioned to podcasts on trending topics with experts on the particular field. During this time, Literation Buddy was even able to author a book that channeled the content of online discussions called Belajar Millennial Bergerak or Learning Millennials on the Move. Book donations also helped orphanages and small communities dedicated to literacy. Literation Buddy was able to implement these programs through the support of the regional government and through donations from the public. Outside of education, the organization is engaged in social programs, such as distributing food and snacks during fasting season.

Literation Buddy is made up of university students that cover key roles on the committee as well as serving as volunteers. In the future, the plan is to open up the volunteer program to high school students. They believe that this way their programs could run more smoothly because high school students tend to have more free time compared to their varsity counterparts. The goal is to have a Literation Buddy in every city in Indonesia, which will result in improving literacy rates across the country.

Interview

Interviewees
Ms. Nidia – Founder, Literation Buddy

Q: How long have you been involved with the Literation Buddy?

Nidia: It’s been 5 years since we founded the program in 2018.

Q: What motivated you to establish Literation Buddy?

Nidia: The literacy rate in Indonesia is very low – in fact we have some of the lowest literacy rates in the developing world. We also believe that children are more focused on the digital world and that they forget about physical books and the learning potential there. Lastly, there are children out there unable to have proper education, therefore we want to be there to help them learn and educate them all. So our main goal is to improve child literacy from a young age.

Q: What do you do on a daily basis at Literation Buddy?

Nidia: Basically I teach the children English, help them to do their homework, and try to build interest in education, especially literacy. Besides helping children offline, since the pandemic my team and I also have a podcast on our instagram account for students in high school and university. The podcast focuses on education and literacy.

Q: Literation Buddy focuses on teaching reading skills using physical books. Is this a challenge with the increasing popularity of digital books?

Nidia: At Literation Buddy we aim to strike a balance between physical and digital literacy, therefore we focus on both physical and digital sources. We cannot ignore the era we are living in.

Q: What is the most important thing a person should know or understand when volunteering at Literation Buddy?

Nidia: We welcome students from any school and university to join as a volunteer, regardless of their economic background, age, etc. The most important thing is to have a strong desire to improve the lives of children and never give up until you see some progress.

Q: What has been the most difficult thing you have had to deal with?

Nidia: Different family cultures and challenging moods. I must try to make the environment happy and conducive to study, to reading and learning in English, etc.

Q: What do you find most rewarding about your work?

Nidia: When we succeed in teaching children and being of service to them. When the children ask us to help with their homework and the next day they come back to tell us that they got a perfect score. It is a proud moment for us as educators. It means that what we are doing is helping them, which makes them keep coming back for more. This shows they are comfortable with us too.

Q: Dealing with children especially when it comes to literacy is a big challenge. How do you and your team deal with this?

Nidia: We try different strategies. At first we tried to approach them like a salesman would, which was a big mistake because they did not know or trust us yet. Then we tried snacks as an incentive, but we didn’t continue because we were afraid that they would just do it for the snacks. So in the end our strategy was a collaboration with Dolanan Village and the traditional games that they could play after they study. We try to be approachable and give answers to their questions so that they feel comfortable, because as we all know children have creative minds that have lots of questions. That has also been one of our challenges as educators.

Q: How many children attend?

Nidia: Up to 15 children. We cannot state a definitive number, because on some days only a small number of children come. There was this one time during the fasting season when only 1 – 3 children were present. But we understand that it was fasting season so most of them are at rest while waiting to break their fast.

Q: What projects has Literation Buddy been involved in?

Nidia : Our projects are the reading garden, social work, online discussions with experts about juvenile delinquency which we used to produce our book, and a podcast about Literation Buddy itself.

Q: Is Literation Buddy open for volunteers to join?

Nidia : Yes! Literacy Buddy is recruiting volunteers from high schools and universities around Surabaya, East Java.

Q: Where do you get the funds to run Literation Buddy?

Nidia: We are supported by the regional government, and also by public donations like sponsors and donors who support us by funding us and sending in books. We also sell the books we publish to fund our next projects.

Q: Does Literation Buddy plan to go back offline?

Nidia: We have no certain plans yet. We are still adjusting to the new normal of the pandemic. We know that it is quite impossible to tell children to keep their distance, so we may have to wait until the pandemic is over.

Sahabat Literasi (Literation Buddy) Instagram Profile: sahabat_literasi Instagram

Reflections

Literation Buddy supports young children to help them build their interest in literacy from a young age. Being able to converse with Nidia about this issue was an eye-opening experience because it reminds us how important literacy is for a country. It is also heartwarming to know that there are people out there that care for not just the children unable to receive proper education but also for the future of the country.

Nidia and her team also teach English, numeracy, biology, and more. These children are free to come and learn whichever subject they are interested in. They also publish a podcast which everyone can access for free. Literation Buddy aims to expand to every city in Indonesia. They also plan to include middle school and high school students as volunteers to not just contribute to the organization’s goals, but also to improve the interest in child literacy in teenagers.

References

[1] Utami, L. (2021). Tingkat Literasi Indonesia di Dunia Rendah, Ranking 62 Dari 70 Negara. Perpustakaan Kemendagri.

Researchers

Hello everyone! My name is Jessica Angelina Ahad and I am 19 years old. I am an undergraduate student at the University of Surabaya, Indonesia. I study Law in the Department of Law and I enjoy doing research and analyzing how people interact. I have also had an interest in volunteering since high school. I was also an exchange student at Northern Illinois University, Chicago. In my leisure time I enjoy reading, singing, watching Korean dramas, and hanging out with my friends.

 

Hi everyone, I’m Nicole Tiffany Gloria Setiono Thenoch but you can call me Nicole for short. I am currently a pharmacy student at the University of Surabaya in Indonesia. I have always been passionate about anything connected to the medical field because I find it very cool to be able to help others in need. When in need of entertainment I mostly read, watch shows or spend time with friends or family. I have also enjoyed participating in debate competitions since high school as they challenge me to think critically and express myself clearly.