Basic Education Program Policy in Remote Area in Cambodia

 
Cambodia’s education system has been illuminated during the Pol Pot regime in the 1970s so-called the Khmer Rouge. During this period, most of the infrastructures in the country including schools, hospitals, buildings, roads, etc have been destroyed. Professionals, intellectuals, teachers, students, and innocent people were killed which is leading to the country’s development impact leaving the poverty in the society until present. Since this regime has been deliberated from 1979, the government of Cambodia has prioritized its education policy and development by putting resources and fund in recovering the education system especially, in the primary education in rural and remote areas across the country. Although the education policy system has been put into place, the policy issues are still facing and needed to be addressed and reviewed. The current major education policy problems are within the government management system such as lacking of the government authorities to manage quality of education, raising the awareness of primary education in the communities, and fund location disbursement.
The purpose of this paper is to identify the current basic education policy issues in rural and remote areas in Cambodia and rectify the policy problems by requesting a new education policy strategies and identification as an adviser to the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports (MOEYS) to improve the awareness of education in the communities, enhance quality of education, increase the number of enrollment of Cambodian students as well as the capacity building of the school system. It will also identify the difficulties it might face in persuading the key players within the Ministry lines and local authorities of the proposal’s merits and how these obstacles might overcome. Therefore, it will lead to the major increase in academic achievements within the communities and improved education system especially, in the primary education in the rural and remote areas in Cambodia.
The government of Cambodia has prioritized its education policies system since the 1980s, however the education policy issues have still remained especially, within the primary education in rural and remote areas due to inefficient management of logistic, lacking of education awareness in the communities, education quality control and lacking of authorities to persuade the communities to get enrolled in the primary school. Although new teachers have been trained and schools have been limitedly rebuilt in various areas, it continues to be the main obstacles that made the children inaccessible to the primary school in the rural areas. According to Colebatch, H. (2002) defines that ‘Policy is a central concept in both the analysis and the practice of the way we are governed. It gives both observers and participants a handle on the process, a way of making sense of the complexity of governing’. It has shown that the policy is the complex issues of governing thus it needs to be monitored and evaluated within a period of time to define the policy problems. As the above policy issues defined, we are raising the two real examples of the policy problems which are currently facing in the remote area as below with requested proposal.
First, the local authorities in the rural areas have met difficulties for convincing the Cambodian communities, and students to attend the primary school and lacking of bringing the awareness of education in the communities. Tol Lah, (1997) states that ‘the Cambodian government has been taking steps to alleviate widespread poverty and has striven to eradicate illiteracy and improve access to quality basic education’. For instance, in one of the remote areas in Svay Rieng province which is nearby the border between Vietnam and Cambodia, the education local authorities are facing these problems. Most of the families have put their efforts in finding their daily living income rather than coming to school, otherwise they would not be able to support their families. By resolving these issues, MOEYS and the local authorities should establish an education awareness communities group including the local communities, parents and students in the area to attend which is managed and provided by the local authority at the beginning of each calendar year to improve the awareness of the families’ perceptions of the education system, leading to increase in enrollment and encouraging the students and parents to take an active part in education in the community. When they can see the value and understanding of education, which is introduced in the education community group, they will attend the school. However, it is needed to collaborate with MOEYS to identify the current issues and introduce this new strategy to the senior education officials of MOEYS and local authorities to overcome these obstacles.
Second, lacking of the government authorities to manage education quality and fund disbursements, has become the obstacles to have equitable access and expanded access through encouraging expansion of the community within the areas such as shortage of schools, classrooms and study materials, etc. particularly in rural areas. For example, in Svay Rieng province, there are not many primary schools in the rural areas which made it difficult for the communities and parents who wish to send their children to school because of a distance between their home and school. In the communities and parents are meeting difficulties with supporting their daily living which forces their children not to join the school by taking this time to support their families’ living needs.
Moreover, MOEYS is also facing with disbursement and locating fund within the region related to the primary school teachers’ government salaries. Usually, the primary school teachers’ government salaries range between USD 20 and USD 50 per month putting them below the poverty line. There are very limited qualified primary schools teachers wish to teach in the remote areas. Nevertheless, they need to collect extra informal school fees from the students in everyday class. As a result, the issues of lacking of government authorities, school resources, and little government funding result in insufficient teaching, school materials and education quality. MOEYS (1999) states that ‘the Cambodian government pledges USD1.50 to USD1.75 per student per year to each primary school for teaching materials and school operating costs’. Generally, the expense for the primary teachers is insufficient for even supporting their daily basic needs in the real situation.
By solving these problems, we are suggesting that MOEYS and the education local authorities to establish a focused basic education coverage system including school construction plan, deployment of trained teachers, and removing of access costs barriers by increasing operational budgets and teachers’ salaries leading to the increase of enrolment and the Cambodian communities and the students have more chance to attend primary school without any barriers. According to Jenkins Smith (1990) explains that ‘Policy analysis in the American style, which is concerned with the development of a methodology for determining the outcome of a specific policy and for making comparisons between alternative policies in terms of their likely outcomes’. However, in order to achieve this policy strategy which the policy problems are pointed out above following a request, we are working with the government of Cambodia, MOEYS and the local authorities to facilitate meetings with school administrators, and teachers to identify a community’s education needs and together, implement appropriate solutions, and also work with relevant projects, donors, nongovernmental organization within the areas to help MOEYS implements this policy. By achieving this, MOEYS must also be responsible for developing and evaluating these policies, strategies and programs that enable the continued growth of equitable access of quality education at all levels and share responsibilities to manage and monitor the delivery of education, and conducted by provincial and district education offices.
So as to have these new strategies to be considered, rectified and put into practice, we clearly defined and studied the above current policy issues in the real situation problems in this particular area which they are now facing these difficulties and needing helps, solutions and intervention from the relevant authorities specially, from MOEYS. By introducing these new strategies which clearly addressed the effectiveness of policy rectification to overcome the above issues such as to strive for success in primary education which enhance accessibility and education quality, raise the awareness of education in the communities, parents, students, capacity building for primary teachers and efficient way of using fund in the specific areas. As a strength and result of these new strategies, we are confident that the new policy strategies will be taken into consideration and put into practice by MOEYS and relevant education authorities to efficiently resolve the current policy problems as well as the real difficulties for the Cambodian communities and people within this region.
In summary, the basic education is a core foundation for the development of the country. Thus, strengthening, managing the education quality and enhancing the access to primary school across the country are a priority development sector for the government of Cambodia. By clearly defining the above current policy problems and seen the real difficulties for the Cambodian communities within this region. Therefore, we are confident that the new policy strategies will be taken into account and put into practice by the MOEYS and relevant authorities. As a result, the illiteracy in the rural and remote areas will be declined; more people are able to go to school and enhance the education quality of the primary education and have equitable access to the education across the country which will be leading to the development of the country as a whole.

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