Education Center for Aceh Children

Name: Education Center for Aceh Children
Uploaded: 2020-11-09T04:09:36Z
Duration: 20 min 32 s
Description: The 2004 earthquake and tsunami was a hard period to get through for Azwir Nazar, 37. The bodies of is parents and three siblings were not recovered.

The 2004 earthquake and tsunami was a hard period to get through for Azwir Nazar, 37. The bodies of is parents and three siblings were not recovered.

ZULKARNAINI

· 5 minutes read

The 2004 earthquake and tsunami was a hard period to get through for Azwir Nazar, 37. The bodies of is parents and three siblings were not recovered. He realized that anything can disappear in an instant. What is eternal is goodness.

The voices of children chanting the holy Quran verses from a hall in Lambada Lhok village, Baitussalam district, Aceh Besar regency, could be heard up to the village road. They enthusiastically followed every reading taught by the recitation teacher, Azwir Nazar.

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"Remember, the qa reading is in the throat, while the sound of ka is flat," said Azwir, Wednesday (16/9/2020).

That day, about 30 children participated in the recitation. They learned to recognize hijaiah letters, read the Quran, read books, to local arts. The recitation was only finished when the sun started to set. Lambada Lhok village is located near the beach, on the side of the Banda Aceh-Krueng Raya national road. Every afternoon the children in the village and its surroundings study together at the hall.

The recitation hall is named the Education Center and Reading Park of Cahaya Aceh. Its founder is Azwir Nazar, the president of the Indonesian Turkish Student Association for the 2016-2017 period. Even though his feet had stepped on Turkey, Azwir always has a longing for his hometown, his land of birth.

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In 2017, while studying in Turkey, he occasionally returned to Aceh. Azwir saw that the children in his village lacked motivation to learn. Most of the residents in Lambada Lhok village are fishermen with middle to lower economic class. Only a few people can afford the children to join private lessons.

I want them to have the courage to dream and have a strong desire to learn. This is because education is the gateway out of poverty

From there, Azwir thought that the knowledge he had acquired since the Darul Ulum Islamic Boarding School in Banda Aceh, S-1 at Ar Raniry State Islamic University, S-2 at the University of Indonesia, and S-3 which is still being undertaken in Turkey should be distributed to the children in his village. "I want them to have the courage to dream and have a strong desire to learn. This is because education is the gateway out of poverty," said Azwir.

Building the center

Azwir thought about building an education center and reading park. Activities at the hall should not only deal with religion, but also have specialization classes, such as Arabic, English and Turkish. There should also be classes in painting, dancing, archery, and literacy. Azwir and young volunteers teach the children there for free. As a student who has an international network, it is not difficult for Azwir to get support. Many of his friends at home and abroad donate reading books, the Koran, and mukena (ladies\' prayer dress) or become teachers voluntarily.

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A 10 meter by 6 meter wooden construction hall was built on a plot of land inherited from his parents in Lambada Lhok. At the hall Azwir teaches the children. The number of children who recite the Koran in Cahaya Aceh reaches 100 students and Azwir is assisted by 40 volunteers who come in turns. The activities have been going on for three years.

Under the hall there is a library containing books given by donors. On the weekends the children are taught cultural arts. At the end of the year there is an appreciation night. Students compete to show their skills in speech, poetry reading, to regional dances.

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"I am happy, they now have the courage to appear. Their parents are very supportive to this hall,” said Azwir. Once a week he also holds recitation for adults.

He explained why he had to build the hall. In the Acehnese culture, the hall is a place to do everything, such as reciting the Koran, worshiping, being involved in deliberation, holding kenduri (a ritual to request blessing), to becoming a place for children to play. The hall is a multi-functional building without a divider. "In the past, ulama in Aceh had a hall, where they spread their knowledge," said Azwir.

The land on which the hall stands is the former home of his parents. During the 2004 tsunami, his house was swept away by the sea waves. His parents and three younger siblings died in the tsunami disaster. Only Azwir and his youngest brother survived.