Understanding the Importance of Academic Ability Testing
Beginning from the 2025/2026 academic year, the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen) plans to introduce two new student learning evaluation programmes: academic ability testing (TKA) and basic literacy-numeracy diagnostic testing. These programmes complement and improve existing evaluation policies (PSKP Kemendikdasmen, 2025). This article examines the significance of TKA, which was first conducted by Kemendikdasmen in 2025 and will be utilised in admissions selection for new students in the 2026/2027 academic year.
Five years ago, the author raised concerns in media regarding the use of report cards as the basis for new student admissions (PPDB), questioning whether report card grades could be held accountable as selection criteria. The concern stemmed from the fact that whilst PPDB should employ standardised and equivalent measurement instruments, report card grades obtained through evaluation using non-standardised methods by individual teachers lack consistency and may not be equivalent. Additional information sources and specific mechanisms are needed to make report cards a reliable basis for selection.
Similar concerns have persistently arisen in university admissions through the report card pathway. Empirical data shows that report card averages from some lower-quality schools are frequently higher compared to report cards from more prestigious schools. Consequently, each university develops its own formula, considering school indices, specific subject grades, alumni achievement records, and other factors predicted to influence prospective students’ success. Through longitudinal research, universities eventually discover the optimal formula that produces the best composite scores for selecting new students through report card pathways.
The presence of TKA appears designed to address these concerns. The Centre for Educational Standards and Policy (PSKP) of Kemendikdasmen (2025) states that TKA is a student learning evaluation designed to support admission selection for new students in state educational institutions, from junior secondary schools through to universities. This need arises from the lack of standardisation in student report card grades, which are based on assessments and examinations conducted by individual schools. However, several questions and concerns have emerged: Will TKA become a high-stakes test like the former National Examination (UN)? Will TKA function as an entrance examination for higher education?
Indonesia has experienced a long history of positioning examinations within educational evaluation systems at basic and secondary levels. From the Final Examinations of the 1950s, through State Examinations, School Examinations, Final Learning Evaluations (EBTA) and National Final Learning Evaluations (Ebtanas), National Final Examinations (UAN), National Examinations (UN), to National Assessments, this lengthy history demonstrates the dynamic shifts in government, school, and teacher authority, whilst providing varied psychological experiences for students, parents, and society. Disagreement and differing perspectives have characterised this history, with both support and opposition accompanying each examination change, particularly regarding high-stakes testing with significant consequences such as examination results determining graduation.
Contemporary educational consensus recognises that developing higher-order thinking skills—including critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving—must be the focus of learning outcomes across all educational types and levels. Additionally, communication, collaboration, and literacy skills represent emphasised paradigms of 21st-century education. According to Constructive Alignment theory (Biggs, 2003), every learning process must be designed constructively, providing extensive opportunities for students to construct their own competencies through direct learning experiences, with assessments designed in alignment with learning activities and expected outcomes. Consequently, student graduation as a measure of achieving expected competencies cannot be assessed through a single uniform examination, as each student possesses distinct characteristics and each institution has different support capacities.
However, when no standardised and equivalent learning outcome measurement process exists, concerns arise when comparing one student’s learning results with another’s, such as in new student admissions selection. Therefore, TKA’s presence, with standardised instruments and fair implementation and result processing, becomes critically important. TKA results should be credible and accountable. Nevertheless, TKA need not become a high-stakes test that determines everything. TKA is not a graduation determinant. TKA is also not the sole basis for new student admissions selection. TKA can function as a control, comparison, or valid supporting information source, ensuring educational evaluation, including admission processes, remains comprehensive and fair.