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Proposal to revive the national exam draws mixed reactions
The newly established Elementary and Secondary Education Ministry is mulling over a plan to revive the national examination in a bid to boost students’ motivation to learn after various reports indicating a decline in the country’s academic performance following the abolition of the exam in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Effective measurement?: Students take the computer-based national exam (UNBK) at the 8th Vocational High School in Makassar, South Sulawesi, on March 16, 2020. A total of 40,056 vocational students spread across 418 schools in South Sulawesi took part in the UNBK. (Antara/Arnas Padda )
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he newly established Elementary and Secondary Education Ministry is mulling over a plan to revive the national examination in a bid to boost students’ motivation to learn, after various reports indicating a decline in the country’s academic performance in the years following the abolition of the exam in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Minister Abdul Mu’ti, who was officiated on Oct. 21 by President Prabowo Subianto, said earlier this week that his ministry was conducting research to determine whether it should bring back the national exam.
It is also reviewing other policies by former education minister Nadiem Makarim, including his flagship Merdeka Belajar (freedom to learn) program aimed at developing more flexible and effective methods for the national education system.
Following his appointment as education, culture, research and technology minister in 2019, Nadiem, the cofounder of tech giant Gojek and a Harvard Business School graduate, rolled out numerous policies that have taken many by surprise, including replacing the national exam with the national assessment.
The national exam requires students nationwide to take standardized tests in math, English, Indonesian and other subjects, despite tangible learning disparities across the vast archipelago.
Meanwhile, under the national assessment, only a handful of students from each school are required to take standardized tests, which now focus on students’ literacy and numerical competence.
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