EXCELLENT ACCREDITATION HIGHER EDUCATION
HAVE REACHED THE SIZE
ENRICH THE LIFE OF A NATION???
Development can only be realized if the character and knowledge of the community are developed through education, so that the goals of the Indonesian state can be approached. The opening of the fourth paragraph of the 1945 Constitution affirms the goals of the Indonesian state in: “…protecting the entire Indonesian nation and the entire homeland of Indonesia, advancing public welfare, educating the nation’s life, implementing world order based on independence, eternal peace and social justice.”
The purpose of educating the nation’s life is strengthened in the article which explains that every Indonesian citizen has the right to education and the state has an obligation to fulfill the education of every citizen in order to realize the national goal, namely the intellectual life of the nation.
Fulfilling these obligations requires an education system that is comprehensive, synchronized, and regulates the education system in which the state is obliged to provide a legal system that regulates and integrates existing laws. An intellectual education system certainly includes all components of education, both the school family and the community which together develop the intelligence of students, the intelligence of the nation, and the intellectual life of the nation.
The national education system must of course be able to answer the need to improve the quality of Indonesian education which has become an urgent need. The facts on the ground today prove that the quality of education is a common problem. A number of international survey institutions still place the quality of Indonesian education at the bottom. Reports from The Learning Curve, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), TIMS and PIRLS, UN World Education Forum, World Literacy show that our quality is low. Likewise, the assessment by UNESCO through the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) and UNDP through The Global Knowledge Index.
Transformation and Achievements
In the midst of these facts the transformation continues. The Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology – Nadiem Makarim has launched the Learning Campus Independent Program (MBKM) program and the 2035 Indonesian Education Roadmap. The initial test of this transformation is faced with the Covid-19 pandemic, which has now been running for 2 years. The Independent Learning Campus Independent Program (MBKM) seems to answer the thesis that we are in an era where degrees do not guarantee competence, graduates do not guarantee readiness to work and work, accreditation does not guarantee quality, and going to class does not guarantee learning. This concept certainly requires an ecosystem, atmosphere, infrastructure, as well as cultural values and indicators of community success that support it.
In the midst of these facts the transformation continues. The Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology – Nadiem Makarim has launched the Merdeka Learning Campus Merdeka (MBKM) program and the 2035 Indonesian Education Roadmap. The initial test of this transformation is faced with the Covid-19 pandemic, which has now been running for 2 years. The Independent Learning Campus Independent Program (MBKM) seems to answer the thesis that we are in an era where degrees do not guarantee competence, graduates do not guarantee readiness to work and work, accreditation does not guarantee quality, and going to class does not guarantee learning. This concept certainly requires an ecosystem, atmosphere, infrastructure, as well as cultural values and indicators of community success that support it.
Meanwhile, in terms of legislation, the National Education System Bill is currently being drafted which of course requires transparency in its discussion with the community. This bill is based on three urgencies: first, the mandate of the 1945 Constitution to design the implementation of a national education system. Currently, there are at least three laws governing the education system that create inconsistencies in the derived regulations. Second, the existing National Education System Law sometimes regulates specific and technical matters. The National Education System Law should regulate fundamental matters and principles, while the technical regulations are at the PP or Permen level. Third, there are many decisions of the Constitutional Court that require changing the material of the existing National Education System Law. This was stated by the Head of the Curriculum Standards and Educational Assessment Agency – Kemendikbudristek, Anindito Aditomo.
Meanwhile, the achievements of the higher education system as explained in the 2020 Higher Education Statistics Data refer to three target programs, namely: 1) increasing access, quality of learning and relevance of higher education; 2) improving the quality of lecturers and education staff; 3) the realization of quality governance of the directorate general of higher education.
The statistical data shows that universities in Indonesia are still fat, namely 4,593 universities consisting of: PTS 3,044 (66.27 %), PTA 1,240 (27 %), PTK 187 (4.07 %), and PTN 122 (2.66%). Successively the largest number of PTs in Java is 2,220 PT, Sumatra 1,695 PT, Sulawesi 509 PT, Kalimantan 278 PT, Nusa Tenggara & Bali 243 PT, Papua 115 PT, and Maluku 68 PT. Indeed, there was a decrease of 0.01% from last year due to the process of updating data and improving the quality of higher education, among others through the merger program of PT. The question is whether the distribution of the number of 4,593 PTs is balanced with a population of 270,200,000 people, and the population density is different in each province and island as described above.
Of these, 2,713 (59%) accredited universities were accredited, the remaining 1,880 (41%) had not yet been accredited. Of those accredited, there are accreditations: A totaling 95 PT, B totaling 809 PT, C totaling 1,291 PT; Excellent 4 PT, Very Good 50 PT, and Good 464 PT. The description describes the largest number is the lowest accreditation.
While the study programs are 29,413 study programs, consisting of the fields of science: Education 6,032 (21 %), Engineering 5,390 (18 %), Social 4,302 (15 %), Health 4,034 (14 %), Economics 3599 (12 %), Agriculture 1,988 (7 %), Religion 1,692 (6 %), Mathematics and Natural Sciences 1,219 (4 %), Humanities 731 (2 %), and Arts 426 (1 %). Of these 23,691 (81%) study programs are accredited, the remaining 5,722 (19%) have not been accredited. This means that in terms of quality through the accreditation system, both universities and study programs still need more efforts to achieve quality targets according to the accreditation standards.
In terms of students registered at PT, there are 8,483,213 people, consisting of levels: Diploma-1 totaling 2,778 (0.033 %), Diploma-2 totaling 6,934 (0.082 %), Diploma-3 totaling 668,922 (7,885 %), Diploma-4 totaling 206,685 (2,436 %), Bachelors are the largest 7,113,663 (83, 856 %), Masters are 318,789 (3,758%); Doctoral numbers are 44,099 (0.520 %), Specialists are 12,989 (0.153 %), and Professionals are 108,354 (1,277%). The highest number of undergraduate levels is even though the needs of the business world and industry are more at the vocational level. The number of students is guided by 312,890 lecturers. If you look at the rough average, the ratio of lecturers: students is 1:27. This means that the ratio of 1 lecturer is compared to 27 students.
Meanwhile, there are 1,535,074 graduates (18%) of the 8,483,213 registered students. The graduate data is relatively small compared to the number of new students who are registered as many as 2,163,681 people (26%) in terms of higher education participation or student supply. This means that the higher education participation rate related to the number of PT and the population of the population of education age is actually still possible to increase.
Meanwhile, students’ study options are still divided into conventional fields of science, namely: Education at 1,831,768 (21.59 %), Economics by 1,771,864 (20.89 %), Social by 1,648,219 (19.43 %), Engineering 1,374,528 (16.20%), Health by 658,633 (7.76 %), Agriculture by 414,890 (4.89 %), Mathematics and Natural Sciences by 274,693 (3.24 %), Religion by 256,044 (3.02 %), Humanities by 170,221 (2.01 %), and Arts by 82,373 (0.97%). New fields of science or new branches of science related to the dynamics of the development of information and communication technology or others have not been seen.
From the description it appears that the goal of developing quality human resources, able to adapt to technological developments and ready to face challenges in the industrial world still requires more efforts. Indeed, the Ministry of Education and Culture continues to encourage these efforts by transforming higher education through the Independent Learning Campus (MBKM) policy which has 8 forms of learning activities. Policy implementation is tied to performance contracts and higher education budget distribution arrangements, which are regulated in the Decree of the Minister of Education and Culture Number 754/P/2020 concerning Higher Higher Education Main Performance Indicators (IKU PTN).
There are three main focuses of the PTN IKU including the quality of graduates, the quality of lecturers and lecturers, and the quality of the curriculum. The measurement of the three focuses is broken down into eight indicators.
College Excellence Accreditation
Accreditation which includes the level of accreditation (Excellent, Excellent, Good.) is a new standard in empowering the quality of the school system, including for universities. Regarding the measurement of the quality of education through accreditation, it is encouraged to provide quality substance, not formality. Let’s look at the journey of measuring the quality of higher education in higher education.
Currently, there has been a change in the accreditation assessment system from the 7 standard study program/college accreditation instrument (IAPS/IAPT) accreditation instrument, to the Study Program Accreditation Instrument (IAPS) 4.0 and the Higher Education Accreditation Instrument (IAPT) 3.0. IAPS 4.0 has been in effect since April 1, 2019 while IAPT 3.0 has been in effect since October 1, 2015.
At first glance, it seems as if the change from the old rating system to the new one only lies in the way the ranking is stated. Commonly understood as C=Good, B=Excellent, and A=Excellent. In fact, the substance of the change in the assessment system is not that simple. For PT (college) or PS (study program) that has been accredited A, you just need to change it to accredited Excellent, change B to Very Good, and C just change to Good. It’s really not, and it’s not that easy or that simple either.
The conversion process can be carried out in only two ways. First, using the Conversion Supplement Instrument (ISK) as stated in the BAN PT Regulation Number 2/2020. This UTI was proposed by the Executive Board (DE) and determined by the Accreditation Council (MA) which was specifically used for rating conversion from the A, B, and C rating system to the Excellent, Excellent, and Good rating system. Second, apply for reaccreditation using APS 4.0 or APT 3.0.
The extension of the accreditation rating for PS or PT is only valid once, and in the next extension it will be added to the UTI, so that the accreditation rating for APS (Study Program Accreditation) or APT (University Accreditation) will use the accreditation rating of Excellent, Very Good, or Good .
This new accreditation assessment system is indeed claimed by BAN-PT to be simpler and more specific with assessment instruments that are more responsive and in accordance with the times (T. Basaruddin, 2018). However, it remains a burden for a number of universities. How come. Not necessarily those who have been accredited A can easily achieve Superior, and so on. There are additional criteria that must be met in order for a PT or PS to achieve accreditation with the latest ranking above. The Minister of Education, Culture and Research and Technology (Mendikbudristek) said that higher education accreditation set by the National Accreditation Board for Higher Education (BAN-PT) would be renewed automatically every five years.
The different classifications of accreditation A, B, and C use 7 standard accreditation instruments. Meanwhile, for the classification of Excellent, Excellent, and Good accreditation, IAPS 4.0 and IAPT 3.0 are used. So there are at least 2 main differentiators between IAPT 7 Standard and IAPT 3.0. First, lies in the emphasis of the assessment. In IAPT 7 the standard emphasizes the input and process aspects, while in IAPT 3.0 it gives great weight to the output and outcome aspects. Second, the fulfillment and exceeding the national standards of higher education (SN-Dikti). So the most important thing in IAPT 3.0 (New) is the measurement of compliance and exceeding the SN-Dikti, and this cannot be measured with the standard IAPT 7 because the instrument was only developed in 2011. While the SN-Dikti was only established in 2014. These two differences are what causing inequality in accreditation ratings between ratings of A with Excellent, B with Very Good, and C with Good.
In simple terms, as the purpose of BAN-PT accreditation is to determine the feasibility of a PT or PS based on the SN-Dikti, the government wants universities to be able to achieve or exceed these quality standards in both academic and non-academic fields (Muhammad Yasar, 31 May 2021).
Enrich the life of a nation
M, Jumarin in writing in the Scientific Journal of Education, AKADEMIKA: Vol. 16, No. 1, April 2017 illustrates that the concept of intelligent, intelligent life has diverse and evolving meanings. Initially, intelligence was more defined as a cognitive ability used to explain the nature of the mind which includes a number of abilities, such as: the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, understand ideas, use language, and learn. This intelligence is closely related to the cognitive abilities possessed by individuals which are commonly called intelligence (IQ).
Further development, intelligence has a very broad meaning, namely the ability in various aspects of life that is not limited to mere cognitive abilities. Intelligence is a general term to describe a trait that includes a number of individual abilities in solving a problem at hand. The word smart means having the ability that can be used to solve or face real problems, so smart means creative, innovative and solutive. The intellectual life of the nation is a cultural conception, not just a biological-genetic conception. This means not only to produce an intelligent brain, but also to achieve civilized progress, self-esteem, welfare and so on.
Early psychologists better understood the concept of intelligence as a basic ability that is general (general capacity factor), then developed the concept of a group of abilities (common factor), the ability to develop special abilities (specific factor) (Sumadi, 1993). Contemporary psychologists generally have a multi-factor concept, namely humans have general abilities, group abilities and special abilities. Thus the direction and quality of intelligence of each individual will be different. There is one person who is intelligent in the aspect of language, another is smarter in the aspect of calculation (numerical), another is more prominent in spatial intelligence (spatial), and so on.
Intelligence is influenced by innate and environmental factors. Everyone has the basic potential of intelligence that is brought from birth (innate factors) or can be called talent. Potential can be developed through the provision of stimuli or stimuli from the outside, so that these innate abilities develop. The stimulation can be in the form of nutrition, physical, psychological, pedagogical treatment, social, cultural and so on. One can also optimize these basic abilities into a functional ability through various efforts, such as training, creating certain conditions and so on.
In psychology, various intelligences are known, the popular initial concept is Intelligence Quotient (IQ), then it develops with various types of intelligence. Zohar and Marshal (2000), for example, put forward the concept of spiritual intelligence (Spiritual Quotient/SQ), Goleman (1995) put forward the concept of emotional intelligence (Emotional Quotient/EQ), Ary Ginanjar (2001) put forward the concept of Emotional-Spiritual Quotient (Emotional-Spiritual Quotient). /ESQ). Covey (1990) suggests physical intelligence, intellectual intelligence, emotional intelligence, spiritual intelligence. Howard Gardner calls multiple intelligences, which initially had eight factors, then developed into 9, namely: language intelligence, visual-spatial intelligence, logical-mathematical intelligence, musical intelligence, kinesthetic intelligence, intra-personal intelligence, interpersonal intelligence, existential intelligence and naturalist intelligence. Shumanjaya (2014) suggests behavioral intelligence. Several other intelligence concepts were also put forward, such as problem-solving intelligence (advisory quotient), financial intelligence, artificial intelligence, cultural intelligence, and even intelligence in other areas will develop in the future.
It is not easy to say or judge that someone is intelligent or not, because the label of intelligence is highly dependent on culture. People in one place/culture are said to be intelligent, but are not necessarily called intelligent in other socio-cultural environments, or people who are intelligent in one aspect are not necessarily intelligent in another. A person’s level of intelligence can be known through measurement, using measuring tools that have been developed. Nowadays, various intelligence measuring tools have been developed, according to the intelligence aspect and measurement objectives. Intelligence measuring tools or intelligence tests that have been made scientifically have various limitations, including they will never be free from cultural influences (free culture test). Psychological measurements, especially intelligence, are very important for educational purposes, but must be used wisely.
Associated with an intelligent life is a life that has the ability to deal with life’s problems quickly, precisely and meaningfully. Smart life means involving all aspects of life, not only cognitive aspects, but also other aspects. Educating life is a cultural conception, not just a biological-genetic conception, meaning that it does not only produce an intelligent brain, but also to achieve civilized progress, self-esteem, welfare and so on. The life of a new nation can be said to be intelligent if each of its citizens can rise from the lowest birthplace to the highest level of achievement thanks to education. After all, a successful nation in the future is one that not only opens the door for some of the talents of some of the nation’s children, but develops all the talents of all of the nation’s children.
Intelligent Education
Education is a conscious and planned effort to create a learning atmosphere and learning process, so that students actively develop their potential to have religious strength, identify themselves, personality, intelligence, noble character and skills needed by themselves, society, nation and state (Constitution No. 20 of 2003). Regarding the function and purpose of education (Law No. 20 of 2003, article 3) conceptually and normatively, our educational goals are ideal, and that is the figure or picture of an intelligent Indonesian man. Realizing these goals requires an education system. The government has sought an intellectual education system through various laws and regulations, but in its implementation it is felt that it is not optimal. Finally, the function of the purpose of education to educate the nation’s life has not been realized.
It is true that the intellectual life of the nation must be done through education, because intelligence is not genetically fixed, but can and must be taught or developed. An intellectual education is not only sufficient to educate students, but also educates the entire educational ecosystem which includes parents, students, teachers, and the community (families, schools, and communities). If the three ecosystems are intelligent, then students will be smarter, or education will be able to educate. The education ecosystem is a very important part in realizing an intellectual education, because students are only about 6 or 7 hours in school, and the rest are in the family and community. The three ecosystems are interrelated, all of which make important contributions in realizing intellectual education.
The government has formulated national education standards (the latest being Government Regulation No. 57 of 2021 and its derivatives) as an effort to improve the nation’s intelligence, which consists of 8 (eight) standard components, namely: graduate competency standards, content standards, process standards, education standards , education personnel standards, facilities and infrastructure standards, management standards, and financing standards. These eight standards are indeed related to the school education ecosystem and are very important to improve the quality of intellectual education, but other ecosystems must be optimized. Therefore, it is necessary to build an education system that involves the entire educational ecosystem, namely students, family and community ecosystems.
This component is very important, where the national education system has focused on school education. The eight educational standards must be met at a minimum, but in order to realize an education that educates the practice of education, it must exceed the eight standards, including:
a. Aspects of educators: educators should have competence, both personal, social, pedagogical and professional. Also educators who are dedicated, committed, have a vision, are able to inspire and so on.
b. Aspects of content or educational material: must be adapted to the development of students and contextual to life, the material must be structured, simple, easy to understand, providing a curriculum of choice for students.
c. The process aspect: becomes very important in intellectual education, because through the process students get stimulation for the development of their intelligence. Therefore, in the educational process, a learner-centered approach is needed, students are active, fun to face challenges, far from threats. The individual approach should be emphasized.
d. Aspects of facilities and infrastructure: the environment in schools (social, natural) must be conducive to providing a sense of security, and must be adequate.
e. Management aspect: is the minimum criteria regarding the planning, implementation, and supervision of educational activities carried out by the education unit/school so that the education administration is efficient and effective.
Education has a central role in efforts to educate the nation’s life. The main function of education in Indonesia is to educate the nation’s life, which is not only educating intellectual aspects, but also educating other aspects, not only educating Indonesian people, but also educating the nation’s life. Educating education is education that is able to develop all the potential of the nation’s children for the benefit of life and life. An intelligent education system is an educational component, both family, school and community that is functional and jointly able to develop the intelligence of students, the intelligence of the nation, and the intellectual life of the nation.
(From various sources, Rewriter: lili irahali – 15 Maret 2022): Kemendikbudristek – Data Statistik Pendididkan Tinggi 2020; M. Hadi Subhan – Universitas Airlangga, Kompas March 4, 2022; M, Jumarin – Jurnal Ilmiah Kependidikan, AKADEMIKA: Vol. 16, No. 1, April 2017; Dr Muhammad Yasar STP M Sc., – Memahami Grade Akreditasi BAN PT Terbaru, 31 Mei 2021 – https://aceh.tribunnews.com.
