Competency-Based Selection: An Effort to Produce Professional Educators and Education Personnel

Competency-Based Selection: An Effort to Produce Professional Educators and Education Personnel

Deli Purnawan / Postgraduate Student, Reg. IE Class, UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung

In the context of educational human resource management, improving the quality of educators and education personnel (EEP) is an urgent need to meet the challenges of 21st-century education. The low level of professionalism among educators is often caused by selection systems that are not based on competencies. The assumption is that selection processes that fail to consider the alignment between individual abilities and job demands will result in suboptimal human resources. This issue creates a gap between the expected quality of education and the available human resource capacity. Therefore, this article aims to examine the importance of competency-based selection in producing professional educators and education personnel from conceptual, principled, regulatory, and practical perspectives.

First, the selection of educators and education personnel is conceptually a decision-making process to choose the best individuals based on the assessment of personal characteristics aligned with job requirements. According to Hasibuan, selection is the activity of choosing and determining applicants based on specific institutional criteria. Cascio adds that selection programs are designed to identify applicants who score high on aspects essential for effective job performance. Selection also serves as an initial filter to avoid wasting time, energy, and costs in developing employees who are not suited to the institution's needs.

Second, the selection process must be guided by principles of honesty, accuracy, and objectivity. From an Islamic perspective, these values are reflected in the character of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as a leader who was honest and meticulous. Honesty prevents data distortion, accuracy ensures precise decision-making, and objectivity avoids bias in candidate assessment. These principles are essential to maintain the integrity of the selection process so institutions can obtain human resources with competence, work ethics, and professional commitment.

Third, competency-based selection must refer to national policies such as Law No. 14 of 2005 on Teachers and Lecturers and the Minister of National Education Regulation No. 16 of 2007 on Standards of Qualifications and Competencies for Teachers. Additionally, selection methods such as interviews, academic tests, psychological tests, and personality assessments must be valid, reliable, economical, and socially ethical. The techniques used in selection should also consider the alignment with institutional values and culture, as well as long-term human resource development plans.

Fourth, the selection process includes administrative screening, written tests, psychological assessments, interviews, reference checks, and medical check-ups. Selection is carried out in several stages: initial screening based on documents, trial work periods to evaluate behavior and ability, and final selection in the form of pre-service training. The evaluation of selection outcomes is crucial to assess the effectiveness of methods and decisions taken, as well as to serve as a basis for future strategic human resource planning.
Summary:

Competency-based selection is the foundational step toward producing professional, ethical, and capable educators and education personnel who can meet the evolving demands of the educational world.

This article is summarized from the teaching module of the Internship Course, supervised by Prof. Dr. A. Rusdiana, M.M.