Herpratiwi
Lecturer of FKIP Unila
THE School Operational Assistance program (BOS) funds has been an educational fund given to schools and madrasas for non-personnel purposes since 2005. As time passes and based on the results of evaluations and studies, the policy of this program has changed.
This year, the school received a prize from the Indonesian Minister of Education and Culture, Nadiem Makarim, through the Minister of Education and Culture Regulation (Permendikbud) No. 8 of 2020 concerning Technical Guidelines for Regular School Operational Assistance (BOS).
In this regulation, the allocation of BOS may be allocated to honorary teacher salaries up to 50%, which previously was only 15%. Then, distribution carried out from four stages to three stages year. Phase I 30% disbursed in January, phase II 40% in April, and phase III 30% in September.
Then, in 2020, the fund rises 6.03% from Rp51.22 trillion to Rp54.32 trillion. The amount for students also increases, the levels of elementary, junior high, and high school increased by Rp. 100.000, only vocational schools remained. In addition, the target for BOS funds now has reached 45.4 million students.
This policy will make schools increasingly play a role in freeing students, educators, and education personnel. School leaders will become independent as well in appreciating developing various school activities. The new BOS policy will trigger, stimulate, and accelerate the improvement of the quality of education improvement. The concept of quality can be studied from several angles.
According to Immanuel Kant and John Dewey, when education can make humans exist to be humane, that’s when education is said to be of good quality. The quality of education, according to Paulo Freire, is when it able to make humans exist, free, exists, and manifest in their world. The increase in the amount of BOS for educators and students and easy to manage will make a significant contribution to the quality of education.
Educators and education staff who get increased incentives/honorariums will feel valued and recognized by their performance. Because of the number of incentive is one of the important factors to boost performance.
It’s normal for educators to get their incentives increased. It’s proportional to the sacrifice they made such as educating, guiding, and a facilitator. Performance-based incentives will motivate them to be more productive, loyal, and comfortable in carrying out the task. All this is because their needs are fulfilled, so it will impact on their learning and work targets.
When students are given the freedom to not contribute to school funds or free from fees, they will be in a comfortable position to develop their potential, think critically, and be creative. Students become subject of study for the institution, no longer an object that extorted for additional funds, for example for tutoring, swimming, buying a package book, and other fees.
According to Paulo Freire, humans will become themselves if they are liberated/free from all forms of emphasis psychologically, financially, and independent thinking. The process of liberating students has values that they are valued and recognized for their self-recognition
Obligations and Sanctions
Based on information from Lampung Post, Wednesday (12/2/2020), Acting Official (Plt) Directorate General of Early Childhood Education and Community Education (PAUD Dikdasmen) Kemendikbud Harris Iskandar said the new policy in channeling BOS also contains obligations and sanction.
School obligations such as budget report use through the BOS and for schools not making reports will be given sanctions. The Ministry of Education and Culture admit the ability of school principals in managing BOS funds. Even so, they will continue to work to improve the competency of principals in management.
Governor of Lampung Arinal Djunaidi also appreciated this program. According to him, proposing 50% of BOS funds for honorary teachers is to support the welfare of honorary staff. Because, it is one way to realize the quality of human resources and this is the focus of Central Government’s program for Lampung.
Based on data from the Lampung Education and Culture Office, there are 7,010 schools in the estimate that will receive BOS. This number is seen from the verified data. This number consists of various levels of education, including elementary, junior, high school, and special school(SLB).
The estimated number of primary schools with BOS funds is 4,684, while the estimated number of primary schools with BOS is 4,684, while there are 1,339 junior high schools, 487 high schools, and 474 vocational high schools and then added to Special totaling 26 schools. However, the number is still estimated because there has been no decision from the minister.
School-Based Management
Management of BOS with school-based management will provide freedom in planning, managing, and supervision. Everything will be adjusted to the conditions and needs of the school without intervention from anything
Isn’t this what is called the independence of schools in managing funds? The commitment demanded to manage funds professionally following technical guidelines by applying the principles of efficient, effective, accountable, and transparent planning as well as evaluation.
Thus, this program will be an accommodative solution to realize cheap, affordable, quality, and equal opportunity education instead of using the program as an alternative solution for personal interests.
There are still several parties who intervened BOS that the principal cannot refuse. The intervention has been minimized by the system through direct transfer. This will cause a reduction in funds of allocation for certain activities that ultimately far from the aims of this program. For this reason, awareness and support from related parties are needed to run the program following the technical guidelines and target.
The author hopes that the new policy of the BOS will free the school. Principals have the opportunity and freedom to make various activities and programs based on the needs of educators and education staff. This program will make them independent. Free from time and energy pressure because they have to share their work elsewhere to cover their primary needs. Hopefully BOS which will lead to the completion of compulsory education, access expansion, and equal distribution of education will free educators, education staff, the community and children of the nation. []
