Indonesia's Teachers Begin National Competency Tests

 Indonesia is testing its teachers.

One million teachers will complete competency tests at sites across the nation on Monday, Syawal Gultom, the head of the Ministry of Education and Culture’s human resource development and education quality division, said. The tests, which will be administered in some 3,500 locations in 33 provinces, aim to assess the performance of educators who already hold teaching certificates.

The results will establish a baseline of teacher competency and will inform policy changes from the Ministry of Culture and Education, Syawal said.

“This test is line a general checkup. If we do not understand the disease, then we would not know what cure is needed,” he said.

There are currently 1,016,211 registered teachers in Indonesia. The tests are voluntary but all teachers have been urged to participate, Syawal said.

“The teachers association should call on all to take part in the competency test so that if it turns out that a teacher has a low score there should be an effort to work harder since they have to deal with students on a daily basis,” he said.

Education and Culture Minister Muhammad Nuh, who on monitored Monday’s testing at the SMPN 19 state junior high school in South Jakarta, said that teachers’ scores will not effect their jobs.

Teachers with low scores will not face sanctions or be transferred to other districts, Nuh added.

“There is nothing like that at all, this merely allows us to determine where improvements can be made. This has nothing to do with the allowances already received by the teachers,” he said.

But members of the Indonesian Teachers Union Forum have agreed to boycott the exams, Secretary General Retno Listyarti said.

Rento took exception with the test’s focus on pedagogy and professional expertise and its lack of sections on teacher’s social and interpersonal skills. If the government really wanted to test the competency of its teachers, it should test all four skillsets.

Those not participating in Monday’s exams will have a chance to take a make up test on October 2.


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