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Raising teacher competency and welfare crucial pillar for Merdeka Belajar
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eachers play a crucial role in enhancing the quality of education in Indonesia. As one of the education pillars, they not only have a task to teach but also guide and inspire their students to achieve their best potentials.
Without the support and enhancement of teacher welfare and competency, a big vision of education quality in Indonesia will be difficult to achieve. As such, the government is making a range of strategic steps to ensure that teachers receive recognition, welfare and capacity enhancing programs that they need to cope with the education challenges in today’s era.
As part of the significant achievement is the appointment of more than 700,000 honorary teachers to become state civil servants (ASN) under the state employees with employment agreements (PPPK) scheme. The step has not only given a certainty regarding their career as teacher, following years of waiting for appointment since 2018, but has also significantly raised their welfare. With the status as ASN PPPK, the teachers have an access to a range of facilities and allowance which were, previously, difficult to get, making their lives and families more certain.
Data at the Directorate General of Teachers and Educational Personnel (GTK) per August 2024, in 2000 when ASN PPPK was first launched, more than 1.2 million non-ASN teachers. Within 2021 up to 2023 period, 774,999 ASN PPPK teachers were promoted, which led to the number of ASN teachers increasing to 61 percent over the past three years.
The GTK also records that currently, 496,174 non-ASN teachers of state schools under the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology assistance program.
On top of that, the government is also committed to providing profession allowance and incentive assistance for the non-ASN teachers in order to raise the teachers’ welfare as a priority step. Unlike in previous years when the incentive for the non-ASN teachers was given simultaneously in one year, the incentive is given every semester in 2024. Non-formal teachers will receive Rp 300,000 worth of incentive and Rp 200,000 for non-formal teachers per month.
Competency Development
Apart from improving the welfare, the government also focuses on developing teacher competency as part of the effort to create quality education, with Teacher Education Driver (PGP) becoming one of the excellent incentives in this regard. PGP is a sustainable profession development program through training and assistance with focus given to learning leadership. Under the program, the teachers are expected to serve as a driver of learning community in their region in order to create student need-oriented learning
According to data, for four years since 2020, more than 90,000 highly motivated teacher candidates (CGP) have joined the program, with 61,256 teachers graduated. Currently PGP has entered its 11th generation, with 32,279 teachers participating in the six-month-long program, kicked off in June 13 and will run through Dec. 23, 2024.
“Through the PGP, we strive to give birth to new generation of education leadership in Indonesia, namely teachers who view students with high respect; teachers that will prioritize students in every decision that they will make, either as a school headmaster, a school supervisor, or other education leaders,” said Nunuk.
Nunuk further noted that the program provided a leapfrog regarding the efforts to scale up the teacher competency in a massive manner, making them agents of change in their respective schools. She added that more than 12,000 highly motivated teachers that have been appointed as a school headmaster. “As many as 12.400 highly motivated teachers have been appointed as school headmasters and moving head, the number will, hopefully, continue to increase.”
Apart from that, Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Kemndikbudristek) also provides Merdeka Mengajar (PMM) Platform as a solution to enhancing teacher competency. PMM provides an access to a range of sources of learning, trainings, and teaching materials that can be accessed anytime and anywhere. PMM also serves a medium for teachers to mutually share best practices and feedbacks and this way, collaborative and dynamical learning community can be created.
Kemendikbudristek Minister Nadie Makarim said that through PMM, teachers will only able to scale up their individual competency but also contribute to developing competency of their fellow colleagues across Indonesia. “This is the application that applies Merdeka Curriculum and learn to be better instructors,” he remarked.
With the range of endeavors, the government is determined to evolve teachers as the main pillar to strengthen quality of education in Indonesia. The continuous increase in teacher competency and welfare and is a key to the success of Merdeka Belajar, which will at the end of the day, produce a next generation that is smart, creative, and ready to cope with the global challenges.
