Stanplat Worker Life Reviver Letters
Literacy, for the majority of people today, does not mean something as simple as reading and writing. However, with the most basic literacy, street workers at Tegal City Terminal are able to improve their prestige.
Literacy, for the majority of people today, does not mean something as simple as reading and writing. However, with the most basic literacy, street workers at Tegal City Terminal are able to improve their prestige.
The pen in Erna\'s (42) right hand keeps moving, arranging letter by letter on a white paper. The noise of horns and the roar of the bus engine did not distract the woman who is a street vendor.
"Before, I was illiterate. I can read and write only after studying at the Sakila Kerti Community Reading Park,” said Erna at the Tegal City Terminal, Central Java, Tuesday (9/8/2020). In the last few years, reading and writing has become a fun new activity for the mother of five.
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Erna dropped out of school in her third year of elementary school (SD) because of financial reasons. She decided to go back to study in 2011. “At that time, I was selling stuff, suddenly someone offered me to join a school for free. Of course, I immediately wanted to," she recalls.
In the middle of her busy selling activities, Erna took the time to participate in literacy training at the Sakila Kerti Community Reading Center (TBM Sakila Kerti) or commonly known as Terminal School. After studying for a year, the resident of Dukuhturi, Tegal Regency, can read and write.
Not satisfied with that, Erna was encouraged to join Kejar Paket A, a program to earn an elementary school equivalency certificate, at the Terminal School in 2012. After completing the Kejar Paket A program, she continued to pursue Kejar Paket B, the equivalent of a junior high school diploma. Now, she is trying to finish the Kejar Paket B program.
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For many people, the ability to read and write may be trivial. However, for Erna, it is an asset to realize her simple long-time dream, which is to read fairy tales for her youngest child. “Finally, I had the opportunity to read a fairy tale, for at least one of my children. Maybe it\'s trivial to others, but I\'m really happy to be able to make my dream come true,” she said.
Erna has long been fond of fairy tales. Through fairy tales, the messages of life can be conveyed in a simple way. For her, storytelling is not just reading a story. She must really understand the storyline, grasp the message, and be ready to answer questions from her son, Muhammad Rafiqi Zaim (4), who always asks them at the end of the story. For this reason, she always prepares herself to read fairy tales alone over and over again before reading them in front of her child.
Basic literacy in the form of writing has also proven to be a valuable asset for Muhammad Suheri (46) to answer his child\'s questions regarding school subject matter. For years, the man who works as a bus driver was embarrassed because he always were not able to answer his child\'s questions regarding subject matter.
Finally, I had the opportunity to read a fairy tale, for at least one of my children. Maybe it\'s trivial to others, but I\'m really happy to be able to make my dream come true
Until one day, Suheri was determined to learn to read and write at the Terminal School to expand his knowledge. This resident of Pesurungan Lor Subdistrict, Margadana District, Tegal City, is now pursuing the Kejar Paket B program at the Terminal School.
"Alhamdulillah [praise to Allah], now I can help when my child is having difficulty doing homework. I feel more confident," he said.
Suheri also shares his knowledge with other drivers at the terminal. He has become the go-to person when fellow drivers have questions.
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"If I know, I will answer immediately. If I don\'t know, I go to TBM Sakila Kerti, read and read until I find the answer, then give the answer to friends who asked the questions,” he said.
During the pandemic, with his literacy skills, Suheri became a reference for fellow bus drivers who are curious about COVID-19. From newspapers or the books he reads, he can at least help explain COVID-19 and prevention efforts to his friends. Indirectly, Suheri has contributed to preventing the spread of COVID-19.
Poetry collection
The street workers\' small dreams were then compiled into a book of poetry entitled Balada Wong Stamplat or translated as terminal worker ballads. Stam-plat refers to stanplat, a loanword adapted from the Dutch language into the Indonesian language, which means a transport terminal.
With the help of TBM Sakila Kerti, the book was published on Sept. 8, to coincide with the World Literacy Day. The book contains a compilation of poems from 15 street workers. One of them was created by Anisah (50), a fried food seller at Tegal Terminal. For her, reading and writing allows her to express her feelings.
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“I never thought my poem would be published in book. For a fried food seller like me, this feels like a dream,” said Anisah, her eyes sparkling.
In the book, Anisah wrote a poem entitled "Minggat" or runaway. The poem describes Anisah\'s life struggles, how she has to get on and off from one bus to another to peddle fried foods.
I never thought my poem would be published in book. For a fried food seller like me, this feels like a dream
There is also a poem entitled "Mbah Simpen" or Grandma Simpen, which was written by Simpen, a street vendor of around 60 years old. Simpen wrote about her struggles being a single parent for her two children.
In another part of the book, a scavenger wrote a poem entitled "Manungsa" or human. The poem, written on Dec. 20, 2019, uses the Tegalan dialect of Javanese language, and tells about the variety of human nature.
TBM Sakila Kerti founder Yusqon said that the publishing of poetry written by street workers and students of the Terminal School is an effort to boost public enthusiasm for self-literacy. This is because literacy knows no age and social class.
The Education and Culture Ministry noted that in 2018, the number of illiterate people was still at 3.4 million or 2.07 percent of the total population. Central Java remains one of the 11 provinces with a higher illiteracy rate than the national average figure of 2.26 percent.
In addition to improving the standard of living, according to Yusqon, in the era of information disruption, the role of literature is increasingly important so that citizens, including the marginalized, are not dragged by false information.
Tegal cultural observer, Atmo Tan Sidik, said that in life, knowing characters is an important asset to escape from the shackles of suffering. When there is written warning of danger, people who can read will try to stay away and save themselves. Meanwhile, those who cannot read do not know that they are in danger.
If book is a window to the world, characters are the key to unlocking knowledge. That is how the people of Tegal\'s stanplat feel. Knowledge expands the horizons of life and make it more meaningful.