Reminding (the Promise of) Jokowi

I still remember President Jokowi\'s campaign promise five years ago to evaluate the national exam. In reality, until now there has been no evaluation of the national exam.

If we want our schools to produce superior people, an evaluation of the national exam is a must! The exam discourages the spirit of learning, demoralizes teachers, narrows the meaning of teaching and learning, and the exam does not objectively measure students\' abilities. Despite the exam having been implemented for more than 10 years now, we have not seen any significant improvement in the achievements of Indonesian children. In various international scale tests, the achievements of Indonesian children are still poor.

The implementation of the exam has only strengthened the drill system in teaching. Teachers only aim to get their students to pass the test. There is discrimination and treatment in looking at subjects. From the implementation side there is structured, systematic and massive fraud. The impact on teachers and school principals is demoralization and demotivation. The politicization of education through the exam policy forces teachers and school principals to fulfill the desires of regional heads, who consider the exam a criterion for educational success. As a result, a lot of dishonorable behavior occurs just to increase exam scores. In short, the exam does more harm than it does good.

KOMPAS/YOLA SASTRA

The situation  of the second day of the implementation of a computer-based national exam at SMP 1 Telukdalam, South Nias, North Sumatra, Tuesday (23/4/2019).

Losing prestige

The computer-based national exam has brought a wind of change. Results have become increasingly objective. Nevertheless, the results cannot be used as a condition for acceptance at state universities (PTN). Exam scores are less prestigious than the school report card grades that are used as the basis for selection for university entrance through the invitation channel, without testing. Report card grades as a requirement for selection through the invitation channel without testing opens various cheating and manipulative practices to manage the grades.

The reduction of the quota for performance-based state university entrance selection (SNMPTN) from year to year through the invitation channel -- which is based on report card grades, which was initially set at least 50 percent, has dropped to at least of 20 percent. This shows there are irregularities in assessment at schools. Report grade distortion has occurred.

The manipulation of grades is rooted in the high quota policy. In fact, the normal curve distribution of intelligent children is actually about 10 percent (above standard deviation 2) of the total population. Invitation path quotas that exceed the normal portion of the intelligence distribution give birth to the impulse of grade manipulation.

The KKM policy, which was originally used to help students who have not yet completed their studies, all of a sudden systematically mistakenly translates as a minimum grade in the report card.

The lure to be accepted at state universities with tests becomes a source of manipulation and collusion at schools (and also parents). This is worsened by the image that popular schools are marked by the large number of graduates accepted at state universities. As a result, many schools are competing to raise the grades of the minimum completeness criteria (KKM). The KKM policy, which was originally used to help students who have not yet completed their studies, all of a sudden systematically mistakenly translates as a minimum grade in the report card.

The current concept of KKM needs to be criticized. In practice, the KKM policy is very destructive, both for students and teachers. For students, individuals are forced to obtain a minimum grade in a report card that might be above their competency. For teachers, the KKM policy traps them in manipulation because one of the conditions for students to take the national examination is getting a minimum KKM score. If they fail to attain the minimum KKM score, the student data is rejected by the Basic Education Data (Dapodik). As a consequence, students are reluctant to study seriously because they are sure that their report card grades on all subjects will be at the minimum KKM score.

At present, the benefits of the national examination are at the lowest nadir, are less motivating for students to learn and still cannot be used as a means of selection for entrance to state universities. In fact, the computer-based national exam results can actually be integrated as part of the state university entrance selection process. The UN exam results of senior high school and vocational schools (SMA/SMK) since the Education and Culture Minister Anies Baswedan’s era are no longer considered as a tool to select new student candidates to universities. Universities use a separate selection tool to select the new student candidates, namely through the computer-based written test (UTBK), which is held by the university entrance test institution (LTMPT).

KOMPAS/DEFRI WERDIONO

Minister of Education and Culture Muhadjir Effendy conducted a sudden inspection of the implementation of the national exam at SMK PGRI Singosari, Malang, East Java, Tuesday (26/3/2019).

UN integration

The policy of state universities that design their own entrance selection tests by forming the LTMPT with the obligation to pay is very detrimental to the community, especially children from poor families, because they have to pay Rp 200,000 to join the computer-based written test. The implementation of the computer-based written test by LTMPT is economically only beneficial for the organizer. Meanwhile, maintaining the UN policy without being able to be used as an entry selection condition is a policy of wasting state budget. The 2019 UNBK budget, which amounts to around Rp 210 billion, cannot be used as an entry selection tool for state universities.

When the UN is still based on paper and pencil, the UN results cannot be used to assess students\' academic abilities because of structured and systematic manipulation and fraud. However, now, with technological advances, UNBK grades have become increasingly objective and have corrected the degree of integrity of the implementation of the UN. This means that the results of the National Examination are more objective, trustworthy, and really captures the ability of students.

In the past, the main reason the rectors rejected the UN results was because the UN results were considered not objective. There was a lot of cheating and leakage so the UN results are considered not to represent the ability of students. However, through UNBK policy, this view should have changed.

If the UNBK results are getting better and objective, why do PTN rectors still reject the UNBK results as part of the university entrance selection process, by even creating a new LTMPT institution to implement the UTBK.

During the three years of UNBK implementation, it has been increasingly proven that grades are increasingly corrected, systems are more tested, are less likely to leak, the integrity of implementation is getting higher, and UNBK results really portray students\' academic abilities objectively. If the UNBK results are getting better and objective, why do PTN rectors still reject the UNBK results as part of the university entrance selection process, by even creating a new LTMPT institution to implement the UTBK?

In terms of psychometric science, what is actually needed by state universities in selecting new student candidates and the interests of the Education and Culture Ministry to test the mastery of students\' learning materials after participating in learning within a certain time, can be integrated. In other words, the national examination can actually be used objectively for university entrance test selection and can discriminate to select the best student candidates if the construct of question items created intentionally is designed for these two interests.

The progress of information and communication technology through UTBK has enabled these two things to be integrated. Even, if the state universities require an assessment for a scholastic potential test to assess the prospects of study success of the student candidates, through the UN question items, this is still possible.

The implementation will also be more practical and economical because the national examination is funded by the state budget. If in terms of technology, psychometric theory, construct of test items, the implementation of UNBK can actually be used to measure normatively to assess learning and measurement results based on criteria for selection of state university entrance, there should be no more reason for the state universities to reject the UN results.

President Jokowi\'s promise can be executed by integrating UN policy as a tool to select new student candidates. For this purpose, the LTMPT which is organizing the UTBK and the Education National Standard Agency (BSNP) organizing the UNBK need to sit together, design a UN policy that can fulfill two interests, namely summative measurement and to select new student candidates.

KOMPAS/FERGANATA INDRA RIATMOKO

A children with special needs who served as bearers of the Pancasila text saluted when the Red and White flag was hoisted in a flag ceremony at the MI Muhammadiyah Special Program (PK) Kartasura, Sukoharjo, Central Java, Monday (09/16/2019).

The UN policy that is integrated with the university entrance selection test will be a mirror of justice for the community, especially students from disadvantaged families. They do not need to pay in order to participate in the state university selection because the implementation of the UN is funded by the state. President Jokowi needs to immediately ask (force) the Research and Technology and Higher Education Ministry to dialogue with BSNP to work together to develop a system of evaluation and assessment of education that is fair, budget-friendly, and can open access for children from poor families to study in the state universities through the UN policy that is integrated with selection to enter the state universities.

Doni Koesoema A, Education Observer