Innovative In-Service Training for Basic Education in Indonesia

The Second Long Term Development Plan as decreed by the Peoples’ Consultative Assembly ascertain that manpower development is to be given the highest priority in alignment with economic development. While the Ministry of Education and Culture (MOEC) has the responsibility for formal and non-formal education, both public and private, other ministries also supervise or operate the development of vocational schools and training institutes for the preparing skilled manpower in their respective sectors. The Ministry of Religious Affairs (MORA) is responsible for religious schools called madrasahs and for traditional Islamic boarding school called pesantren. The Ministry of Home Affairs is responsible for the administrative aspects of public primary schools. During the early First Long Term Development Plan (PJP I : 1969 - 1994) the Government of Indonesia (GOI) adopted the policy of universal primary education by providing access to elementary education to all Indonesian citizens. A non-formal education equivalence to elementary schools were organized for adults, called Kejar Paket A (Package A Learning Group). Primary schools (Sekolah dasar or SD) were being built in every village, and the requirement for teachers were being met by establishing pre-service teacher education institutions called SPG (School for Teacher Education). The SPGs delivered six-years post elementary education programs. Graduates would be qualified to be SD teachers. While waiting for the SPGs graduates, the Government was forced to recruit teachers below the SPG qualifications to teach at the newly built SDs. In remote areas, even graduates of Junior Highschool (three years beyond elementary school) were appointed as SDs teachers. Religious schools within the responsibility of MORA are facing more serious problems, those are problems of under-qualification and mismatched. Most teachers at primary and junior secondary level religious school - Madrasah Ibtidaiyah or MI and Madrasah Tsanawiyah or MTs are graduates or college of religious teacher (PGA). These teachers have to teach the same academic subjects as in the general public schools, for which they did not have any training.

Full article can be downloaded here: cases-of-innovative-tt.pdf