Education in Indonesia: World Bank Report on Teacher Reform in Indonesia
A recent World Bank report focuses on the impact of the Teacher Law and its reforms, on teacher knowledge, skills, and motivations in Indonesia. The report also looks at student learning outcomes. In 2005, the Indonesian government had passed the Teacher Law in an effort to improve education in Southeast Asia’s largest economy, specifically by raising the quality of Indonesian teachers. Under the new law, teachers must complete a four-year college degree to obtain certification, and continue to improve their skills.
The World Bank notes that “teachers who obtain certification then receive a professional allowance that effectively doubles their salary. By 2015, Indonesia’s 2.7 million teachers expect to be certified.”
This World Bank report, entitled "Teacher Reform in Indonesia: The Role of Politics and Evidence in Policy Making", also explores the impact of the Teacher Law on the financing of education, and on the distribution of teachers throughout Indonesia.
Key findings in the report:
-
The promise of higher salaries has increased the number of students training to be teachers, from 200,000 students in 2005 to over 1 million teacher aspirants in 2010
-
The promise of higher salaries has also prompted teachers to complete the required four-year degree, so that in 2012, the number of certified teachers increased to 63 percent, compared to 23 percent in 2005
-
The quality of students applying for teacher training has improved. For example, based on a sample from 15 universities, the average scores of candidates for primary school teachers were higher than the average scores of graduating high school students nation-wide
-
The increased salary has prompted teachers to drop their second jobs, and many teachers claim to no longer face income difficulties
-
Certification has not increased teachers’ competencies, nor has it improved student learning outcomes
-
The costs of salary-doubling has put pressure on the education budget and potentially crowded out other interventions to improve quality. In 2013, nearly USD 4 billion dollars - or 13 percent of the education budget - went to the professional allowance alone