Revitalizing the Role of Teachers in Facing Global Era

By Abdul Muthim, Drs., M.Pd.

Lambung Mangkurat University Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan

Background

There is one interesting phenomenon that happens in the event of graduation day in many teacher
training education institutes (LPTK) lately, including in my institution. In this important occasion a
special hymn, himne guru, in addition to the national anthem, Indonesia Raya, is always sung by
the choir and also by the graduates. Through the song praises and admiration on how honorable are
the profession of teacher is expressed. In the song, teacher profession is similarized like a candle that
gives light to people when they are in the darkness. Teacher is also similarized like drops of morning
dew that can make thirsty people have a hope of living. Even, a teacher is considered as a hero or
heroine who never calculates what he/she does on the basis of individual profits and interests.

However, when unexpected results of education happen such as many students in one school
cannot be promoted to higher class, or when there is a great number of students who fail to reach the
minimum score of national examination (UN), or the masive fight between or among students, or if
the quality of education in general decrease, it is the teachers, not the students, not the parents, not the
community, let alone the government, who are first to be blamed.

Comments such as teachers are not creative, teachers do not master the teaching materials,
teachers are too busy to moonlight, and many other negative comments are often heard. However, is
it fair to claim that students failure to be promoted to higher classes, or the students are not able to
reach the passing score in UN, or the quality of education in general drops significantly, are merely
the teachers fault and mistake?

It should be acknowledged, though, that there are teachers who are not creative at all in doing
their jobs. Day after day, week after week, month after month, and even after they have been teachers
for years, they do their job in the same way and use the same instructional materials. As the result, the
students will get bored and are not interested in the lesson. Further result can be predicted - the
students will be lazy to study and since they are lazy to study the result wil be dissappointing.

It cannot be denied too that there are teachers who do their job without love. Yet, loving ones
profession is the main prequisite to make someone to do his or her job enthusiastically. An
enthusiastic teacher will do anything that he or she believes to be able to make students learn and get
the best result of learning. An unenthusiastic teacher, on the other hand, will do his or her job
reluctantly. For instance, there are teachers who like to dictate the lesson though it is not a dictation
class. Or, there are also teachers who like to apply CBSA ( Catat Bahan Sampai Akhir) appproach, a
cynical term used to mock the abuse of Cara Belajar Siswa Aktif or in English it is called Student
Active Learning.

It can not be denied also that economic needs make the teachers try to earn additional income
outside their main job. It is not suprising to find teachers become ojek driver (one kind of work that
gives riding service using motor cycle), a work that has no relation at all with teaching profession.
Sometimes, they do the job before school hours and sometimes they do it after them. The job not only
make the teachers tired, but also they will have less time to prepare themselves. Consequently, they
will not be able to concentrate on their job maximally. If they cannot concentrate on their teaching,
the students learning can be influenced too.

Of course, the students, the parents, the community and the Government do not need such kinds
of teachers. What they need are the teachers who are creative, enthusiastic, love their job, and
pforessional. It is these kinds of teachers that can be model or idol for their students (Nasution,
1995:124). To meet the need, revitalization of the role of teachers must be made so that they will be
able to cope not only the problems of education in this country but also in facing the globalized word.
The question is, How can and in what areas are the revitalization be made?

There are at least four crucial things that should be done by the government. The four important
actions are: (1) the improvement in the system of teachers recruitment, (2) the continuous and
sustained development of teachers professionalism, (3) the improvement of the system of
accreditation of teachers professionalisn, and (4) the improvement of the teachers welfare. This
paper tries to discuss these four measures in a more comprehensive perspective and in wider view
points of education.

Reference

Darmaningtyas. 1999. Pendidikan pada dan setelah Krisis. Yogyakarta: Pustaka Pelajar.

Nasution. 1995. Berbagai Pendekatan dalam Proses Belajar Mengajar. Bandung: Bumi Aksara.