Should National Examination be Eradicated?

             It becomes widespread today that students in the last grade of high schools get into panic every year by national examination. They are very anxious and nervous by the coming exam. Students tend to spend most of their time by studying specific subjects and following any courses. National examination became a hot topic after it had to be the students’ graduation standard. Students who cannot reach higher score than the standard should take a high risk as failed. Furthermore, the graduation standard has increased year by year. Therefore, the government should eradicate national examination because it cannot be the school graduation standard and burdens the students a lot.

            National examination does not always bring bad effect towards students and schools. The objective of the implementation is to raise the quality of national education. By this program, government expects students to study harder and compete in the right way. It will raise the achievement of Indonesia in the perspective of education. On the other hand, the implementation of national examination opened the chance of cheating at that day. Both students and teachers do everything they can no matter it is right or not. From the result of national examination at 2010, Central Java was the province which got the higher number of failed students at examination. Responding that case, National Education Department said that it happened because Central Java did the examination in a fair way. That reality opened public’s assumption about the unfairness way and it affects university to recruit students not only based on national examination’s score.

            Another positive case from national examination is to make the average measurement in national education. Target of this program is all students from various schools even in isolated area. It brings good point towards those high quality schools to develop its quality, on education and technology. However, it will ruin the system of conventional schools because they do not have the same quality as the modern one. The quality of teachers is quite different and lower than the modern. The facilities also do not support the educational activity well. For instance, there are schools in isolated area which do not have better technology in listening. They do not have language laboratory and then they cannot catch the speaker speech during the examination. Most of their students failed in passing the examination in English subject. So that, the government should gives the same treatment and facilities before applied that national examination.

            The most urgent thing in implementing national examination is that students are expected to be an expert in basic skills such as math, English, Indonesian and some specific related subjects. In minimal, those subjects are required to learn and comprehend for students’ future. All jobs have those indicators as filter them when applying job. In fact, it is not fair for students who are able to the psychomotor skills than cognitive. Most athletes failed in examination and had difficulties to reach the higher educational level. It also makes students focus only on those specific subjects and disobey others. It makes the learning and teaching activities not effective. Students tend to spend more time to study Math than Sports. Schools also offer extra time for students to study the National Examination’s subjects.

            The concept of national examination is very good to improve Indonesia’s education in the same level and standard as foreign country. Yet, the implementation of it in real should be fair for there will be no cheat tricks happened. Overall, it is better for not using national examination as school graduation standard.