Klojen (malangkota.go.id) – Commemorating National Education Day (Hardiknas) which falls today, Monday (2/5/2023), the Mayor of Malang Drs. H. Sutiaji reminded that one of the goals of the Indonesian state is to educate the nation's life as stated in the Preamble to the 1945 Constitution.
The Mayor of Malang emphasized that the Merdeka Belajar policy initiated by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology can be implemented. Sutiaji interpreted Merdeka Belajar as actually empowering people, and seeing that every child has potential that must be developed. According to him, education must also balance the right and left brains, no longer only assessed cognitively. And students are also invited to see society as a school.
"Learning resources are not only from teachers and in the school environment. The surrounding community can also be a source and teaching material. In the future, it is hoped that there will be no more shortage of educators in Malang City. In Merdeka Belajar, children will be more motivated to develop themselves with teachers as facilitators," he explained after the National Education Day Flag Ceremony in the front yard of Malang City Hall, Monday (2/5/2023).
Meanwhile, the Head of the Malang City Education and Culture Office (Disdikbud), Suwarjana, SE., MM added that all schools in Malang City are required to use the Independent Learning Curriculum.
This is because Malang City is a City of Education and there is encouragement from the Principal Working Group (K3S), the Principal Working Conference (MKKS), and supervisors to be able to implement the Independent Learning Curriculum for all schools.
"Malang City benefits because it has a lot of potential, the resource persons for the driving schools, driving teachers, including for the Merdeka Belajar Curriculum are mostly in Malang City. How come our resource persons are used outside, we don't develop it. Alhamdulillah the response was positive, without exception everyone must and must do it (Merdeka Belajar). After all, this is the right curriculum for this beloved republic," explained Suwarjana.
Suwarjana said that in this curriculum, teachers are more like guides and supervisors. "Now sometimes children who have more experience than their teachers, they are allowed to express themselves in class and the teacher listens," he explained further.
Regarding the Malang City Government's policy on the welfare of educators and education personnel, Suwarjana said that his party refers to the mayor's regulations.
"If state teachers (ASN) have been standardized throughout Indonesia, but for Non-Permanent Teachers (GTT) and Non-Permanent Employees (PTT) we issue a regulation containing various regulations related to GTT and PTT. It is written there that if the institution appoints them, they must be willing to pay a minimum salary of Rp2.050.000, - and will increase periodically with the highest figure being the same as the UMR in Malang City," he said.
Suwarjana said that the school would not dare to pay GTT and PTT salaries that are not in accordance with the applicable mayoral regulation. "What I am talking about is for public schools, kindergartens, elementary schools, and junior high schools. For private teachers, it is not our area, but they also receive BOSDA and BOSNAS. So they manage from BOSDA and BOSNAS, the authority lies with their respective institutions if they are private, but if they are state schools, they must follow us," he said. (ari/yon)
