Questioning the Legal Certainty of the National Exams

The Education and Culture Minister recently issued Circular Letter Number 1 of 2021 concerning the Abolition of National Exams of School Exams in the Emergency Period for the Spread of Coronavirus Disease or Covid-19.

CECEPDARMAWAN.COM

Cecep Darmawan

The Education and Culture Minister recently issued Circular Letter Number 1 of 2021 concerning the Abolition of National Exams (UN) and Equality Exams and Implementation of School Exams in the Emergency Period for the Spread of Coronavirus Disease or Covid-19.

This circular should be appreciated as well as criticized, especially regarding the abolition of National Exams. The national exams are often controversial. Education is actually measured by a comprehensive approach, both in the aspects of cognition, affection and psychomotor skills. Even so, education evaluation is not just a variant of the quantitative figures of students\' cognition, but must describe students as the whole human beings from various dimensions of intelligence and character. Therefore, the elimination of the national exams is the right step.

However, to enforce legal order, it is not appropriate to abolish the national exams through a circular. The national exams are regulated by Government Regulation (PP) No. 13 of 2015 concerning the Second Amendment to Government Regulation No. 19 of 2005 concerning National Education Standard. Thus, formally, until now, the national exams regulations have not been revoked. The circular is not a legal product (regeling), but merely a notice or notification.

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Previously, the Education and Culture Minister had also issued a national assessment (AN) policy. Originally the national assessment was to be implemented in March, but was postponed to around September or October 2021.

The reason, apart from still being in the Covid-19 pandemic, is also to ensure that various logistical preparations, infrastructure and health protocols are more optimal. Many people misinterpret the national assessment where it is widely perceived as a substitute for the national exams. In fact, the national assessment and national exams are two different things. The national assessment is not a replacement for the national exams.

The Education and Culture Ministry previously gave three main reasons behind the issuance of the national exams abolition policy by taking into account the current condition. First, the national exams material is too much so that students and teachers tend to test content mastery, not reasoning competencies.

Second, the national exams were a burden for students, teachers, and parents because it was an indicator of student success as individuals. In fact, the national exams should function for mapping the quality of the national education system, not student assessment. Third, the national exams only assess the cognitive aspects of learning outcomes, not yet touching the character of students.

Apart from these three things, the national exams also do not measure what should be measured, do not pay enough attention to educational disparities among the regions, and do not pay attention to the principle of justice in terms of the uneven national education standard.

National exams distortion

Academics agreed with the abolition of the national exams because of policy distortion, which began when the government interpreted the evaluation of student learning outcomes in the National Education System Law through PP No. 19 of 2005 concerning National Education Standard, which was later amended by PP No. 32 of 2013 concerning Amendments to Government Regulation No. 19 of 2005 concerning National Education Standard; and amended again by PP No. 13 of 2015 concerning the Second Amendment of Government Regulation No. 19 of 2005 concerning National Education Standard.

In fact, Article 58 Paragraph (1) of the National Education System Law states that the evaluation of student learning outcomes is carried out by educators to monitor the process, progress and improvement of student learning outcomes on a sustainable basis.

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Next, Article 58 Paragraph (2) of the National Education System Law states that the evaluation of students, education units, and education programs is carried out by independent institutions on a regular, comprehensive, transparent, and systemic basis to assess the achievement of the national education standard. Referring to these provisions, evaluation of learning outcomes can be distinguished from the evaluation of students. Evaluation of learning outcomes is the authority of teachers, while the evaluation of students is the authority of independent institutions to assess the achievement of the national education standard.

KOMPAS/FERGANATA INDRA RIATMOKO

Students wear headphones while taking part in the rehearsal for the computer-based national exam (UNBK) at SMK Negeri 2 Salatiga, Sidomukti District, Salatiga City, Central Java, Monday (17/2/2020).

Inconsistency

Next, there has been inconsistency in terminology. The National Education System Law uses the word "evaluation", then narrows its meaning to the term of assessment by PP No. 13 of 2015. The National Education System Law uses the word "evaluation" of students, while Government Regulation No. 13 of 2015 uses the term of assessment of student learning outcomes. Theoretically, the assessment is part of the evaluation.

The National Education System Law defines education evaluation as an activity to control, guarantee, and determine the quality of education for various components of education at each track, level, and type of education as a form of accountability for the administration of education. Regarding the evaluation of student learning outcomes and evaluation of students, it is not the authority of the central government or local governments to do so.

Special for the evaluation of students, it can only be done by independent institutions. With regard to independent institutions, Article 59 Paragraph (2) of Law No. 20 of 2003 concerning the National Education System states that the public and/or professional organizations can form independent institutions to carry out evaluations.

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Based on these provisions, the community and/or professional organizations have the authority to form independent institutions. The question is, is the National Education Standard Agency (BSNP), which has been running the national exams, included in independent institutions formed by the community and/or professional organizations?

If BSNP is not an institution as intended by the National Education System Law, then what is the legal status of BSNP so far, and what is the national exams policy that has been issued so far? What are the legal consequences for the implementation of the national exams for a dozen years?

KOMPAS/YOLA SASTRA

The second day of the computer-based national exam at SMP 1 Telukdalam, South Nias, North Sumatra, Tuesday (23/4/2019). The national exam will be held for four days from April 22, 2019 to April 25, 2019.

Uniquely, even though the Education and Culture Minister has stopped the implementation of the national exams through the circular, in reality, until now, the national exams still have a legal basis through PP No. 13 of 2015 concerning National Education Standard. If so, the abolition of the 2020 National Exams by the Education and Culture Ministry violates the PP? If it violates the PP, it means that the policy of abolishing the national exams by the Education and Culture Ministry does not have binding legal force, aka null and void.

This means that the national exams still have to be implemented as instructed by PP No. 13 of 2015 concerning National Education Standard. In Article 68 of the government regulation it is stated that the results of the National Exams are used as the basis for mapping the quality of programs and/or education units, consideration of selection for the next level of education, and guidance and assistance to education units in their efforts to improve the quality of education.

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Without revising the government regulations, the national exams become imperative to continue to be implemented, even though it has been canceled by the circular, because the circular is not a formal product in the form of regulations that can invalidate the government regulations. Therefore, the Education and Culture Ministry needs to immediately propose a revision to the President to eliminate the national exams.

Cecep Darmawan, Professor of the Indonesian University of Education and Researcher of Educational Law.

This article was translated by Hyginus Hardoyo.