Seputarkarawang.com - Karawang, The classic problem of education will once again haunt Karawang Regency in 2026. As many as 10,000 elementary school (SD) graduates in this region are at risk of not being able to continue their education to junior high school (SMP) level. This is caused by the imbalance in school capacity and the number of elementary school graduates which reached fantastic numbers this year.The Head of the Karawang Education and Culture Service (Disdikbud), Wawan Setiawan, confirmed the existence of this gap. Based on the latest data, the total number of public and private elementary school graduates in Karawang reached 39,420 people, while the total capacity of all public and private middle schools is only available for 29,600 students. "This means that there is a difference of 10,000 elementary school graduates who could potentially not be accommodated in the new student admission system (SPMB) this year," said Wawan, Thursday (25/6/2026). Wawan explained that limited classroom space was the main obstacle. To accommodate these 10,000 students, at least 300 new classrooms are needed, a target that is admittedly very difficult to realize in a short time. Even though the local government routinely builds New School Units (USB) every year, this effort has not been able to keep up with the growth rate of the number of students which continues to increase in Karawang Regency.
Another dilemma that is no less crucial is the limited teaching staff. Even though the construction of new school buildings has been programmed, problems arose when the school was established because of strict regulations that prohibited local governments from adding honorary teachers. This means that new school operations are often hampered by the availability of adequate teachers to serve the teaching and learning process.As a short-term solution, the Karawang Education and Culture Office is currently mapping the distribution of areas most affected by the shortage of seats. One of the strategic steps being prepared is to direct students who are not accommodated in formal schools to attend education through the Community Learning Activity Center (PKBM). Currently, there are 59 PKBM available in Karawang which offer schedule flexibility and a learning system with the legality of a diploma equivalent to formal education.The Education and Culture Department emphasized that up to now the 2026 SPMB process is still running smoothly. However, it is predicted that the biggest potential problems will only emerge when the admission of junior high school students begins. The government hopes that with accurate mapping and cross-stakeholder collaboration, the risk of children dropping out of school in Karawang can be mitigated as much as possible so that the right to education for all young people is maintained.
