Jakarta, IO – As many as 15 universities from Indonesia and Australia have established cooperation under the Indonesia-Australia Teacher Education (PGIA) program which aims to improve the quality of teacher education in both countries.
The Education, Culture, Research and Technology Ministry’s (Kemdikbudristek) teachers and education personnel director general Nunuk Suryani emphasized the ministry’s commitment to dignify the teaching profession and as the agent of educational transformation.
“As two friendly countries, Indonesia and Australia both place importance on education and teacher competency development,” said Nunuk, as per Kemdikbud.go.id, Thu (26/9). “This cooperation will be a forum for sharing knowledge and best practices in teacher education.”
Nunuk added that the initiative is a follow-up to a comparative study conducted in Australia in 2022. Recognizing the superiority of the education system in Australia, Nunuk stressed the importance of collaboration in providing scholarships for Indonesian teachers as one of the strategic policies.
“With this collaboration, hopefully we can build strong and mutually beneficial cooperation for teacher education in both countries to provide quality learning for our students,” she said.
Meanwhile, Australian Business Champion for Indonesia Prof. Jennifer Westacott AO said that preparing teachers to step into the classroom with confidence and success depends on quality teacher education.
Read: Earthquake Mitigation Simulation in Jakarta
Therefore, she noted the important role of universities in developing high-quality educators who will play a key role in educating the younger generation to be smart and skilled.
According to her, Indonesia needs more high-quality teachers and Australia is willing to help Indonesia develop strategies to overcome the shortage of teachers and teacher competencies to improve learning outcomes.
“This is not just an investment in individuals or institutions, but for the future of Indonesia,” explained Jennifer. (un)