This is my plenary speech at the 61st TEFLIN International Conference on 9 October 2014 in Solo, Central Java, Indonesia. The conference was organised by the English Department of the Faculty of Teacher Training and Educational Science of Universitas Sebelas Maret, Solo, from 7 to 9 October 2014.

1. Chairil Anwar Korompot
English Department, Faculty of Languages and Literature
State University of Makassar (UNM)
The 61st TEFLIN Conference
UNS Solo, 9 October 2014

2. OUTLINE
1. Professional Teaching Standards
2. Educational Reforms in Indonesia
3. Teacher Reforms
4. Teacher Qualification & Competency
(TQ&C) Standards
5. Implications
6. TQ&C Standards Reformulation

3. Professional Teaching
Standards

4. … competencies that teachers have or need to
acquire or develop (Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013:
2).
… statements of teacher professionalism
articulated in terms of teacher knowledge,
teacher skills, and teacher dispositions
(Korompot, 2012).

5. …. most commonly describe the skills, knowledge
and values for effective teaching….
… capture key elements of teachers’ work,
reflecting their growing expertise and
professional aspirations and achievements
… make explicit the intuitive
understandings that characterise good teaching
practice and enable this to be widely shared
within the profession.
(Department of Education, Employment and
Workplace Relations, 2008: 7)

7.  to communicate the roles and responsibilities of teachers at various stages of
their career and to improve the professional standing and status of teachers
as the expectations of the school system change;
 to guide pre-service teacher education and professional development
systems;
• to guide teacher certification;
 to assess the effectiveness of the different elements of the teacher
development system;
 to guide teacher performance management and progression to higher levels
of pay; and
 to manage unacceptable conduct.
(DEEWR, 2008: 7-8)

8. EDUCATIONAL REFORMS
IN INDONESIA
2003–Present

9. The Background
Education under Soeharto’sNew Order Regime (1967-1998)
National Education System Law 1989 stipulated:
 Centralization, e.g. National curricula; Education under MOEC
and MORA
 Teachers = Teaching Staff
 Teaching = Occupation

10. The Inspiration
Reformasi Movement (1998) resulted in:
 Amendments to the 1945 State Constitution – amended
constitutional provisions for education
 National Education System Law 2003
 Decentralisation (eg. KTSP; education with MOEC, MORA &
local governments)
 Teachers = Professional Educators
 Teaching = Profession
 Professionalisation of Educators: Teacher Reforms

11. TEACHER REFORMS

12. Teacher and Lecturer Law
2005
 In-service Teacher Certification Programs (since 2007):
- Portfolio assessment
- In-Service Professional Teacher Training Program
- Certification through Direct Conferral
- In-Service Professional Teacher Education Program
 Pre-service Professional Teacher Education Program (since
2013)
Successful participants obtain the Gr. professional title
 Professional Educators’ Monthly Allowance

13. Ministerial Regulations
National Education Minister’s Regulation No. 16 Year 2007 on
Academic Qualification and Competency Standards for Teachers—
(TQ&C Standards)
 The Q: Undergraduate (S1) or 4-Year Diploma (D-4) in teaching
obtained from nationally-accredited teacher education
institutions (LPTK), incl. UNM, UPI, UM, UNS
 The C:
- Pedagogic, Personal, Social, Professional
- Core & Subject-specific Competencies

15. TQ&C Standards: General Core
Competencies No. Core Pedagogic Competencies: A teacher…
1 Is familiar with the physical, moral, social, cultural, emotional, and intellectual aspects of students’ characteristics;
2 Is knowledgeable of the theory of learning and the principles of educational teaching;
3 Develops the curriculum related to his/her subject or field of development;
4 Conducts pedagogical teaching;
5 Uses the information and communication technology for teaching;
6 Facilitates the development of students ’ potentials in actualising their potentials;
7 Communicates with students in an effective, empathetic, and courteous manner.
8 Conducts assessments and evaluation of learning processes and outcomes;
9 Uses assessment and evaluation for teaching purposes;
10 Conducts reflective actions to improve the quality of teaching.
No. Core Personal Competencies: A teacher…
11 Behaves according to the religious, legal, social, and cultural norms of Indonesia;
12 Conducts himself/herself as an honest personality, a person of integrity, and a role model to students;
13 Conducts himself/herself as a firm, stable, mature, wise, and dignified person;
14 Demonstrates work ethics, high sense of responsibility, pride as a teacher, and self-confidence;
15 Uplifts the code of conducts of the teaching profession.
No. Core Social Competencies: A teacher…
16 Acts in an inclusive and objective way, and refrains himself/herself from discriminative actions on the basis of gender, religion, race, physical condition,
family background, and socio-economic status;
17 Communicates effectively, empathetically, and courteously with fellow teachers, school staff, parents, and community;
18 Is able to adapt to his/her post of duty in any part of the Republic of Indonesia which is socially and culturally diverse;
19 Communicates with his/her own or other professional communities orally, in writing, or other means.
No. Core Professional Competencies: A teacher…
20 Knows the material, structure, concepts, and scientific paradigm supporting his/her subject;
21 Possesses the standard competencies and basic competencies of teaching his/her subject;
22 Develops the materials for his/her subject;
23 Maintains continual professional development by conducting reflective activities;
24 Uses information and communication technology for communication and self-development.

16. TQ&C Standards: Subject-specific
Competencies
Core Subject Teachers
1. Religious Education (12 standards) (P, J, S, V schools)
2. Civics Education (3) (P, J, S, V)
3. Arts and Culture (2) (P, J, S, V)
4. Physical, Sport and Health Education (9) (P, J, S, V)
5. Mathematics (13) (P, J, S, V)
6. ICT (16) (J, S, V)
7. Natural Science (14) (P, J, V)
8. Biology (14) (S, V)
9. Physics (14) (S, V)
10. Chemistry (14) (S, V)

17. TQ&C Standards: Subject-specific
Competencies
Core Subject Teachers (Cont.)
11. Social Science (4) (P, J, V)
12. Economics (4) (S, V)
13. Sociology (3) (S, V)
14. Anthropology (3) (S, V)
15. Geography (4) (S, V)
16. History (4) (S, V)
17. Indonesian Language (6) (P, J, S, V)
18. Foreign Languages (2 standards for each):
 English (P, J, S, V)*
 Arabic, German, French, Japanese, Mandarin (S, V)

18. TQ&C Standards: Subject-specific
Competencies
To focus on language teachers…
1. Indonesian Language Teachers must:
 Have an understanding of the concepts, theories, and materials of
the various linguistic schools of thoughts that are relevant to
language teaching materials;
 Have an understanding of the philosophy of language and
language acquisition;
 Have an understanding of the status, function, and variety of
Indonesian language(s);
 Master the grammar of Bahasa Indonesia as reference for using
Bahasa Indonesia properly and correctly;
 Have an understanding of the theories and genres of Indonesian
literature;
 Appreciate literary works receptively and productively.

19. TQ&C Standards: Subject-specific
Competencies
(Cont.)
2. English Language Teachers must:
 Possess the knowledge of the various linguistic aspects of the
English language (linguistics, discourse, sociolinguistics, and
strategy);
 Have a good command of spoken, written, receptive, and
productive English in all its communicative aspects (linguistics,
discourse, sociolinguistics, and strategic).
_____________________________
*Essentially the same principles apply to Arabic, French, German,
Japanese, and Mandarin language teachers.

20. One Good Step in the Right
Direction
 Indonesia’s answer to the notion of standards and assessments
being “a conceptual pair” (Louden, 2000: 127). TQ&C Standards +
Teacher Certification Programs.
 Indonesia’s response to the “international standards movement in
education” (Keenan & Wheelock, 1997; Negroni, 1997)
 One of the legal bases for the professionalization of
teaching/teachers in Indonesia
 Contain an unprecedented set of competency statements of
Indonesian English language teachers.
 Complementary to the national standards of competency and
certification of the vocations (National Agency for Professional
Certification/BNSP)
 Provide rooms for improvement through research, discussions,
reformulation, reintroduction.

21.  Were developed using a top-down approach;
 Were conceptualized without a literature review;
 Were formulated by experts with no or insignificant input from
teachers;
 Are generic rather than subject-specific;
 Lack detailed standards statements reflecting the principles (eg
culture, planning, instruction, assessment, interaction), trends (eg
EIL, NST-NNST),
 Overlook the affective factors in L2 learning (eg motivation,
inhibition, anxiety).
 Seem to suggest that the 6 foreign languages should be taught
(and learned) in the same way.

22. 1. Unknown to many, incl. teachers, teacher educators, teacher
trainers, teacher certification assessors, educational researchers
professional organisations;
2. Treated just as a policy document justifying TCP despite
potential for further professional discussions, development, &
implementation;
3. Seriously under-researched, except for Korompot (2007, 2008,
2012)

23. IMPLICATIONS

24. 1. TQ&C
Standards=Professionalisation
 EFL Teaching = Profession
 EFL Teachers = Professional EFL Teachers
 Professional EFL teachers and the profession need
properly developed Q & C standards

25. 2. Debate
(Based on Korompot, 2012)
 Do the ‘subject-specific’ standards statements reflect
the profession’s expectations of “ideal” EFL teachers’
competencies?
No
 Are the two standards statements acceptable? Are
they adequate?
No.
 Do they need to be reformulated?
Yes.

26. 3. So what?
STANDARDS REFORMULATION
Fleshing out or independent of TQ&C Standards
Main References to consider:
 TESOL Guidelines for Developing EFL Standards (Kuhlman &
Knezevic, 2013)
http://www.tesol.org/advance-the-field/standards/guidelines-developing-
efl-professional-teaching-standards
 A Principles-Based Approach for English Language Teaching
Policies and Practices: A TESOL White Paper (Mahboob &
Tilakaratna, 2012)

27. TQ&C STANDARDS
REFORMULATION

28. (Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013)
1. The Theoretical Framework – Literature Review
A theoretical framework, goal, or mission statement;
based on research that the program, MOE, or government
supports as basis for teacher education programs.
2. Organizational Formats for Standards
The domains or principles for organizing standards, the
larger umbrella; include a supporting justification for the
domain and/or principle.
Principles-based or Domains-based?

29. Organizational Formats For Standards
Mahboob & Tilakaratna, 2012
PRINCIPLES-BASED DOMAINS-BASED
Collaboration Language (foundation domain)
Relevance Culture (foundation domain)
Evidence (based on sound
research)
Instruction (application domain)
Alignment (with policies &
practices of country, ministry)
Assessment (application domain)
Transparency (easily understood) Professionalism (at the
intersection of the domains).
(Empowerment)

30. (Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013)
3. Standards
The standard itself, specific or general, outlining an
aspect of what the teacher needs to know or be able
to do within that domain or principle.
4. Performance Indicators (PIs)
The standard broken down into PIs; sometimes PIs
broken down into even smaller elements.

31. (Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013)
5. Standards Use
Identifying the difference between a program based
on standards and one based on a collection of courses,
and deciding which to use.
6. Assessment and Evaluation
Determining how to decide that standards have been
met, often through use of PIs to create rubrics, and
via portfolios.

32. (Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013)
7. References and Glossary
A list of references supporting the standards, and a
glossary so that all who will use the package will
have a common understanding of key concepts.

33. (Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013)
1. Decisions
a. Goal and Theoretical Framework
Goal: What makes a quality teacher and what research supports
this.
Theoretical Framework supports the goal and identifies the quality
teacher.
b. Domains or Principles Approach
c. Use Existing Standards or Create New Ones

34. (Cont.)
(Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013)
2. Guidelines for Evaluating Existing Standards
 Open: capable of further extension and refinement
 Dynamic: in continuous evolution in response to experience
in its use
 User-friendly: presented in a form readily understandable
and usable
 Non-dogmatic: not irrevocably and exclusively attached to
any one of a number of linguistic theories or practices

35. (Cont.)
(Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013)
3. Guidelines for Adapting Standards
Many of the questions posed in the decision to use existing
standards will guide adapting existing standards to another
context.
a. ESL to EFL
b. Culture
c. Other Suggestions
 Go through existing standards, word-by-word, to be sure
they fit with the new context.
 Make sure the adapted standards will be accepted by
those who will use them.

36. (Cont. (Kuhlman &
Knezevic, 2013)
4. Guidelines for Creating New Standards
Decisions to be made:
a. desired teacher knowledge and ability
b. format or approach
c. which English will be used

37. 4. Guidelines for Creating New Standards (Cont.)
Decisions to be made:
d. language proficiency standard and evidence
e. timeline
f. who will be involved (expertise, compatibility, size)
g. team functionality

38. (Cont.)
(Kuhlman & Knezevic, 2013)
5. Creating or Adapting Standards: The Step-By-Step
Process
 Team Discussion
 Team Practice: Write and Critique
 Break Into Subgroups

39. 5. Creating or Adapting Standards: The Step-by-
Step Process (Cont.)
 Work Within Subgroups
 Critique Drafts
 Stakeholder Critique

40. 5. Creating or Adapting Standards: The Step-By-
Step Process (Cont.)
 Subgroups Create the Assessment System
 Create or Modify the Teacher Curriculum Coursework
 Pilot the Standards

41. 5. Creating or Adapting Standards: The Step-by-Step
Process (Cont.)
 Additional Revisions
 Professional Development
 Full Implementation.

43. TQ&C Standards
Reformulation
 What? A new professional teaching standards document for
Indonesian EFL teachers to elaborate the existing ones.
 Why? Credentialing (licensure, certification accreditation),
curriculum design and materials development for pre-/in-service
training, CPD (assessment & evaluation), ‘structural’ &
‘fungsional’ career promotion.
 By who? TEFL stakeholders (esp. TEFLIN & other professional
ELT organisations)

44.  For whom? TEFLIN—the community and the profession
(Madya, 2003:1), ELT.
 When? ASAP
 How? Organize meetings to discuss standards formulation,
design action plans (literature review, research studies, policy
statements, program designs, implementations)
 Where? Conferences, board/committee meetings, online
surveys, FGDs, papers, TEFLIN Board, Ministry

46. esp. Prof. Joko Nurkamto.
Mr. Handoyo Puji Widodo, Dr. Willy
Renandya, and Mrs. Flora Debora.
Colleagues and leaders of the English
Dept. FBS UNM
Prof. Jasruddin M., Director of
Postgraduate School, UNM.
Administrators and members of
Facebook group Teacher Voices –
Language Teacher Professional
Development.