Does Teaching Licensure Boost Student Learning? Indonesia’s Answer

The presented study examined Indonesia’s licensure program commenced in 2006 and its effect on teacher competence and student learning. This cross-sectional survey selected schools randomly from a West Java sampling frame, in which all six-grade students were chosen from a randomly selected schools. Based on the data from student, teacher and had teacher questionnaires this production function analysis used an average student academic test score as a criterion, while the selected student, teacher and school variables as predictors defined in models. This found that teaching licensure insignificantly affected student achievement; the teaching license has become a symbol of credentials rather than the real competences of teachers. Students’ academic achievement, too, was determined by their socio-economic background more strongly than that by competences of certified teachers. This urges the Ministry to review the nationwide certification program and redevelop it so that it creates sustained improvement in teacher quality and student learning.