Promoting the Strategic Education Policy: How to Resolve the Teacher Shortage in Indonesia?

This study aims to formulate strategic policy recommendations to address the teacher shortage issue in Indonesia. A scoping review method was employed to explore how other countries tackle similar challenges. Articles were sourced from the Scopus database using the Harzing Publish or Perish (PoP) tool. From an initial total of 79 articles, a three-stage selection process based on inclusion criteria narrowed the sample down to 15 articles for in-depth analysis. The findings reveal that various countries implement nine short-term strategies and six long-term preventive strategies to manage teacher shortages. Based on this review, the study proposes seven strategic policy recommendations: 1) evaluating the effectiveness of the teacher recruitment system, 2) resolving ambiguities regarding teacher academic qualifications, 3) improving teacher compensation, 4) developing diverse recruitment schemes, 5) providing specialized training for prospective teachers tailored to specific regional contexts, 6) offering scholarships for prospective teachers, and 7) creating a teacher management application. These strategies are highly relevant and valuable for consideration by education policymakers. Rather than merely replicating other models, this study emphasizes the importance of contextual alignment between international insights and the unique challenges faced in Indonesia.