HSPG Mengimplementasikan Merdeka Curriculum

One of the initiatives announced by the Minister of Education and Culture, Nadiem Makarim, is the "Merdeka Belajar" (Freedom to Learn) program, with the aim of creating a joyful learning atmosphere for teachers, students, and parents. Merdeka Belajar means that educational units, including schools, teachers, and students, have the freedom to innovate and learn independently and creatively.

Merdeka Belajar was born out of many complaints about the national education system. One of them is the complaint about the focus on specific grades for students, and the excessive content in national exams (UN) which leads students and teachers to test content mastery rather than reasoning competence.

Based on this, Nadiem Makarim has established four main policies within the Merdeka Belajar initiative. These include the 2020 National School Examination (USBN) to be conducted by schools, changing the UN in 2021 to an assessment, simplifying the preparation of Lesson Implementation Plans (RPP), and making zoning more flexible in the New Student Admission (PPDB) process.

What has been proposed by the Minister has been implemented at HSPG. Since its establishment, HSPG has implemented the concept of "Merdeka Belajar." Essentially, both formal and non-formal education use the same curriculum. The difference lies only in the "process standards," said the Director of HSPG, Ir. Kusnanto, M.M. Process standards in non-formal education are not regulated, allowing for flexibility in curriculum development. This is what enables HSPG to provide services tailored to the needs, uniqueness, talents, and interests of students.

Students at HSPG have the freedom to choose their study time (morning, afternoon, evening, or night). Including the selection of classes or groups, students are given the freedom to choose learning programs, such as individual learning programs, community programs, self-paced (non-guided) programs, or online learning programs (distance learning).

In the learning activities, HSPG emphasizes discussions based on the themes being studied so that students can be more active and creative. Teachers, acting as facilitators and mediators, ask students to read or study materials at home before discussing themes to be studied.

"One of the concepts being developed at HSPG in the flipped classroom is to give students the freedom to express their opinions, be more creative, and dynamic," said Ir. Kusnanto, M.M.

At HSPG, educators are not just teachers but also friends, siblings, and can even act as parents. This fosters closeness between students and teachers, effective communication patterns, and openness to expressing opinions.

In addition to classroom learning, to enable students to implement learning in their daily lives, HSPG also develops activities such as outing classes, field trips, live-ins, and outbound activities.