Integrated National Schools: From Equity to Excellence

Education is the primary foundation of national progress. Various studies show that countries which succeed in building a quality education system will have human resources that are more productive, innovative and competitive. Conversely, inequality in education quality widens opportunity gaps, slows social mobility and ultimately hampers economic growth.

For this reason, Indonesia’s education challenge today is no longer merely ensuring that all children can attend school, but ensuring that every child receives a quality education, regardless of where they were born, their socioeconomic circumstances, or the region in which they live.

Indonesia can be grateful that over the past two decades it has recorded major progress in expanding access to education. School participation rates continue to rise, various affirmative programmes have reached disadvantaged, frontier and outermost regions, and the development of educational facilities has continued to be strengthened. However, this success has not been fully accompanied by an equalisation of quality. Differences in teacher quality, school leadership, learning facilities and education governance capacity still result in varying quality of education services across regions.

It is this situation that gave rise to the Sekolah Nasional Terintegrasi (Integrated National Schools) as a new strategy in national education transformation. SNT is not merely about building new schools or combining several levels of education in one area, but about building an integrated education ecosystem capable of delivering quality evenly while producing excellence. Indonesia is thus moving from the paradigm of equitable access towards equitable quality, and from equitable quality towards national educational excellence.

FROM ACCESS TO QUALITY

Equitable access is an important prerequisite, but it is not sufficient to produce superior human resources. The challenges of the 21st century demand more than simply ensuring children are in a classroom. Far more important is what they learn, how the learning process takes place, and the extent to which that learning builds critical, creative, collaborative and principled thinking abilities.

The OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) results show that the literacy, numeracy and science abilities of Indonesian students still need continuous improvement. In addition, the gap in learning outcomes between regions and between socioeconomic groups remains considerable. These facts show that Indonesia’s main education problem has shifted from quantity to quality.

Eric Hanushek and Ludger Woessmann, in The Knowledge Capital of Nations, affirm that the quality of learning has a far greater influence on economic growth compared with the length of time a person spends in school. This means that the most decisive investment in education is not only broadening access, but ensuring that every school is capable of delivering quality learning.

This urgency becomes even stronger as Indonesia enters its demographic bonus era. The demographic bonus will only become a foundation for development if the younger generation possesses competence, character and global competitiveness. Without improvements in education quality, the demographic bonus could instead turn into a development burden. Therefore, the quality improvement agenda must become a national priority.

INTEGRATED NATIONAL SCHOOLS AS A NEW PARADIGM

Addressing these challenges requires a change in how schools are viewed. Schools are no longer understood merely as places where teaching and learning take place, but as ecosystems that integrate all components of education holistically.

It is from this perspective that the Sekolah Nasional Terintegrasi has been developed. Integration concerns not only continuity of educational services between classes and levels, but also encompasses strengthening the professionalism of teachers and school principals, the application of Deep Learning, the use of assessment as an instrument for improving learning, digital transformation, strengthening a culture of quality, and partnerships with parents, communities, the business world and higher education institutions.

SNT also does not mean standardising all schools in Indonesia. On the contrary, SNT continues to give schools room to develop excellence in line with the characteristics of their regions, while still adhering to the National Education Standards. This approach aligns with UNESCO’s recommendation that a strong education system is one able to maintain a balance between national standards and local flexibility.

The success of this transformation depends greatly on the quality of teachers and school leadership. John Hattie, in Visible Learning, shows that teacher quality, effective feedback, high expectations of students and instructional leadership are the factors with the greatest influence on improving learning outcomes. For this reason, the largest investment in SNT is not only in physical school construction, but in strengthening teacher capacity and a culture of continuous learning.

Technology is also an important part of this transformation. However, digitalisation is not merely about placing devices in classrooms. Technology must become a lever for quality through more personalised learning, the development of teacher competencies, and data-based governance. As the World Bank has emphasised, digital transformation will only have an impact if accompanied by improvements in teacher capacity and effective education governance.

BUILDING INDONESIA’S SUPERIOR HUMAN RESOURCES

At its core, education is a long-term investment in the nation’s future. It is this awareness that underpinned the issuance of Presidential Instruction Number 10 of 2026 on the Acceleration of Education Quality Improvement through the Integrated National Schools Programme. Through this policy, President Prabowo Subianto affirmed that improving education quality must become a national strategic agenda implemented in a coordinated, integrated and cross-sectoral manner, with a focus on strengthening governance, optimising resources, and improving the quality of graduates.

This policy direction has been translated by the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Abdul Mu’ti, through the Quality Education for All agenda. Within this framework, SNT is one of the primary instruments of education transformation. These schools not only build quality educational institutions, but also build learning ecosystems that guarantee every Indonesian child an equal opportunity to develop to their fullest potential.

SNT is therefore not merely a school construction programme, but a strategy for developing Indonesia’s human resources. Its success will certainly require the commitment of all stakeholders. The central government sets policy direction and national standards, regional governments ensure implementation suited to regional characteristics, universities support innovation and research, the business world strengthens the links between education and future needs, while communities and parents build a culture of learning in the family environment. It is this collaboration that will ensure SNT develops as a national movement, not merely a programme.

CLOSING

If equitable access was the great achievement of Indonesian education in the past, then equitable quality is the great agenda of the future. The Sekolah Nasional Terintegrasi offers a new direction by uniting quality without eliminating diversity. This is the strategic step to carry Indonesia from equity to excellence, and to realise superior human resources as the foundation of Golden Indonesia 2045.