JAKARTA \u2014 The practice of TOEFL or Test of English as a Foreign\nLanguage proxy-taking is no longer merely an act of individual cheating.\nThis phenomenon reflects broader structural issues, where the education\nsystem and job market increasingly rely on certificates as tickets to\nsocial mobility, while access to achieving them remains uneven. At\nvarious campuses, TOEFL prediction has become a mandatory requirement\nfor graduation assessments, thesis defences, and even collecting\ndiplomas. In the job market, English language certificates are often\ndemanded as proof of basic competence, even if not directly tested.<\/p>\n
When certificates become administrative gateways, a shadow market\nemerges offering shortcuts. Sociologist from Universitas Negeri Jakarta\n(UNJ), Rakhmat Hidayat, views this phenomenon as a structural symptom\nborn from unequal access, systemic pressures, and a culture of\ncredentialism. He explains that proxy practices arise when certification\ndemands escalate, while learning opportunities are uneven. Students with\naccess to expensive courses or English-speaking environments more easily\nmeet standards, while those lacking such resources often fall\nbehind.<\/p>\n
\u201cSystemic pressures such as global standards, academic competition,\nand administrative demands create situations where individuals feel\ncompelled to adapt pragmatically or transactionally,\u201d said Rakhmat.\nAccording to him, using a proxy cannot be read solely as an individual\nmoral failure. There is a rational calculation at work. \u201cThis is not\njust a moral failure, but a cost-benefit calculation. High learning\ncosts versus instant success through a proxy,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Rakhmat assesses that modern education increasingly emphasises\ntechnical administrative aspects based on numbers and certifications.\nThis pattern gives rise to credentialism, a condition where a person\u2019s\nvalue is more determined by formal documents and symbols than by actual\ncompetence. \u201cThis creates what is called credentialism,\u201d he said. In\nsuch a system, certificates become commodities. They are no longer\nmerely measuring tools but entry tickets to opportunities.<\/p>\n
Sociologically, this system, according to Rakhmat, reinforces\ninequality because only those with cultural capital, access to expensive\ncourses, and English-language environments can more easily achieve high\nscores. When this inequality occurs, the proxy market becomes one\nresponse. Rakhmat notes an imbalance between institutional demands and\nsocietal access. \u201cThere is global standardisation without considering\nlocal contexts, followed by excessive emphasis on scores rather than the\nlearning process,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He emphasises that TOEFL ultimately is not just a language instrument\nbut also a mechanism of social selection. According to him, this\nmechanism has positive aspects as an objective standard, but on the\nother hand, certification can become an exclusionary tool. \u201cIts\nexclusionary function is that certification becomes a tool of social\nclosure, limiting access only to certain groups who are economically and\nculturally capable,\u201d said Rakhmat.<\/p>\n
If left unchecked, he predicts serious social impacts. One of them is\nthe erosion of trust in educational institutions and recruitment\nprocesses. \u201cThose who can buy scores will continue to excel symbolically\nand worsen social injustice,\u201d he said. At a certain point, society could\nenter a state of anomie, a disruption of norms when formal rules are no\nlonger trusted. In this framework, TOEFL proxy-taking is no longer just\na cheating issue but a reflection of a system that overly judges people\nby numbers. \u201cThe TOEFL proxy phenomenon cannot be seen only as an\nindividual violation but as a structural symptom,\u201d said Rakhmat.<\/p>\n
Kevin (not his real name), 26 years old, from North Jakarta, admits\nto having been a TOEFL prediction proxy since 2020. He is an English\nLiterature graduate and has been accustomed to TOEFL question patterns\nsince his university days. \u201cIn terms of English proficiency, I am indeed\naccustomed to it. Back in university studying English Literature, TOEFL\nmaterial was like daily food,\u201d said Kevin when contacted.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/unj-sociologist-toefl-cheating-not-just-fraud-reflection-of-systemic-inequality-1776423091", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }