Literacy Advocate for Papuan Children

For the past 10 years, Solis Hanny Felle has voluntarily organized classes for children in her hometown in than initiative that has since expanded to other areas.

KOMPAS/FABIO MARIA LOPES COSTA

Solis Hanny Felle

Solis Hanny Felle is not an ordinary housewife in Kampung Yoboi village, Sentani Kota district, Jayapura regency. For the past 10 years, Hanny has voluntarily organized classes for children in her hometown in than initiative that has since expanded to other areas.

Solis Hanny Felle, usually called Kak Hanny, lives in Kampung Yobo, Sentani Kota district. The trip to Yoboi from the Yahim dock by motorboat takes about 10 minutes.

When Kompas visited her on Wednesday at around midday (3/2/2021), Hanny was busy teaching the children on the terrace of her house. She was teaching math and spelling. The weather in Sentani that noon was cloudy.

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Hanny used props to make it easier for children to understand the reading material. In a place measuring 8 x 6 square meters, there was the Yoboi Reading House that she built in 2018.

A total of 21 children from grades 1 to 3 of elementary school (SD) were diligently following the material presented by Hanny. Usually, the learning activities at the Yoboi Reading House take place from Wednesday to Friday for 90 minutes.

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They clearly enjoyed studying literature during a special module at Hanny\'s place. It has been more than 11 months that they have not attended school classes. Until now, they only go to their schools to pick up homework assignments from their teachers.

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Solis Hanny Felle

In addition to the one in Yoboi, Hanny also opened a reading house in the Kehiran area, which is another Sentani district. But classes there take place only once a month due to Hanny\'s limitations regarding transportation costs.

A total of 205 children have attended the learning activities held by Hanny at the reading houses in Yoboi and Kehiran. In Yoboi, students take turns attending classes, because Hanny\'s house can only accommodate 35 people.

I am very grateful that the children were very enthusiastic about participating in the activity.

Children in Yoboi have trouble participating in online learning activities that are meant to replace in-class teaching during the Covid-19 pandemic. According to data from the Papua provincial administration from May 2020, 54 percent of the 608,000 students in the province cannot participate in online learning at home, due to the lack of internet infrastructure, television, radio and devices.

"I am very grateful that the children were very enthusiastic about participating in the activity. They do not have cell phones or the funds to buy internet data packages and are therefore constrained in online learning activities. The majority of the population work as traditional fishermen,” said Hanny.

Before the learning activities begin, children wash their hands and are sprayed off with disinfectant. The washing facility is next to Hanny\'s house. The goal is for the activities at the Yoboi Reading House to comply with health protocol, even though there have been no Covid-19 cases in the village.

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She also taught the children how to make handicraft items, such as necklaces, using sago fruit and wood carvings with typical Sentani motifs. For example, the Yoniki motif is round and symbolizes kinship or togetherness.

KOMPAS/FABIO MARIA LOPES COSTA

Solis Hanny Felle teaches children at the Yoboy Reading House in Jayapura Regency, Papua, Wednesday (3/2/2021).

There is also a collection of around 9,000 books on various themes. The majority of books are special for children in order to foster reading habits among them. She received assistance from the Jayapura regency administration, Bank Indonesia and a number of institutions.

“This place is not only for children to learn to read, write and count. This place is also a library that is open every day to impart knowledge to the Yoboi children," said the mother of two.

Hanny was only a high school graduate from the Fransiskus Asisi Catholic Education and School Foundation in Sentani who fell in love with the world of teaching after seeing the activities of her father, Aser Felle.

This place is also a library that is open every day to impart knowledge to the Yoboi children.

Aser is a church official at GKI Betel, Kampung Yobeh. Every weekend, he taught children during Sunday school. Hanny saw the father voluntarily teach children who were unable to read.

“Father always taught us children to live independently and share with others. For 30 years, my father has dedicated his life as a church officer and passed away in 1994,” said Hanny.

KOMPAS/FABIO MARIA LOPES COSTA

Solis Hanny Felle

After getting married, she moved from Yobeh to the hometown of her husband, Albert Tokoro in Yoboi, 1994. A year later, Hanny followed her father\'s footsteps as a Sunday school teacher in Yoboi.

Hanny\'s opportunity to become a teacher came in 2011. At that time, Wahana Visi Indonesia (WVI), which focuses on fulfilling access to education in Papua, recruited Hanny as a teacher in the Yoboi Children\'s Learning Group.

Local people were the ones who recommended Hanny for WVI. They see the role of Hanny, who has actively been teaching children voluntarily in the village.

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Hanny has a big mission in life to become a teacher. She wants to help eradicate illiteracy in Papua. Thanks to the literacy class at the Yoboi Reading House, Hanny\'s students are able to read, count and write from an early age. In fact, some of Hanny\'s students have enrolled in university.

“I am very sad to see that our children are malnourished and experience many obstacles in accessing education. I want them to have a better future than their parents. You do this by making children smarter through literacy,” said Hanny while shedding tears.

Solis Hanny Felle

Born: Sentani, 7 April 1972 Education: Senior High School, Fransiskus Asisi Catholic Education and School Foundation, Sentani

Husband: Albert Tokoro Children: 2 Awards:

- Winner of Papua Village Library 2020

- Papua Police Chief Awards 2020 as Literacy Advocate

This article was translated by Kurniawan H. Siswoko.