Teachers and Self Development

As the ones who spearhead the efforts to advance the nation’s intelligence in the face of Industry 4.0, teachers have immense responsibility.

KOMPAS/ZULKARNAINI

Maria Ulfa, who is working on a contract basis at the SD 72 state elementary school in Banda Aceh, Aceh, is teaching her students. Maria has been employed as a contract teacher since 2018. The salary she gets is Rp 230,000 per month.

Thus far, teachers have also been burdened with wieldy administrative work and a curriculum that works against achieving the goal of advancing the nation’s intelligence. Education and Culture Minister Nadiem Makarim has exposed several concrete problems faced by teachers that must be resolved together.

According to Nadiem, the wieldy administrative work and curriculum has closed the doors of “adventure” and led to the lack of teachers’ confidence to innovate. “Teachers’ capacity determines the fulfilling of targets of human resources development. Improving teachers’ qualifications through pre-service and in-service professional training is the government’s priority,” Nadiem said in his National Teachers’ Day commemoration ceremony speech (Kompas, Tuesday, 26/11/2019).

However, regulations obstruct teachers ability to act as Nadiem wishes. How many hours teachers must spend for teaching, for instance, has been a major point of unending debate. Furthermore, there are administration issues, including promotions and certifications, that teachers spend much time on.

On the other hand, teachers’ capacity is at an imbalance across all levels of education. We cannot equalize the capacity to understand teaching materials between teachers in cities and villages, or between those in Java and outside Java. Elementary school teachers in Jakarta and Mentawai will have vastly different capabilities. In terms of spread, teachers are far more concentrated in cities than in villages. Despite the lack of complaints on teacher salary nowadays, teachers with civil servant status are mostly concentrated in cities.

ANTARA FOTO/NOVA WAHYUDI

Education and Culture Minister Nadiem Makarim (second right) accompanied by his wife Franka Franklin (second left) are dancing together with participants of the 2019 National Teacher\'s Day commemoration ceremony at the Education and Culture Ministry, Senayan, Jakarta, Monday (25/11/2019).

Nadiem will surely face obstacles in carrying out his plan, considering that regional bureaucrats are under the authority of regents and mayors. Plans by the ministry, no matter how good, will be difficult to implement without full support from regents and mayors.

Innovation in learning systems will emerge from teachers if the government can create an ambience for them to self-develop. Thus far, the government has intervened in teacher affairs too much, instead of facilitating them so that they can develop themselves optimally.

Amid fast-paced development of information technology, there is demand for teachers to change their mindset. Teachers should no longer just stand in front of the class and serve as the main source of knowledge. They must be able to adapt to the latest scientific developments in the subjects that they teach.

In the era of Industry 4.0, there is an abundance of information and knowledge. Here lies the important position of teachers. As facilitators, teachers must be able to guide students in choosing and sorting information. Therefore, teachers must be well-informed of the latest developments in the society.