The prototype curriculum is a simplified curriculum which is another option from the two pre-existing curricula, namely: 2013 Curriculum and Emergency Curriculum.
The prototype curriculum will also be put into use starting the 2022/2023 school year along with two curriculum Until 2024, the government will review all existing curricula to formulate a new curriculum that will be used in all education units.
The initiation of the creation of this latest curriculum itself appeared after the existence of research results who mentioned the loss of potential for literacy and numeracy learning due to the very high impact of the pandemic, so it was necessary to formulate a new curriculum which was then known as the prototype curriculum.
This curriculum is considered effective for improving the quality of student learning and has greater opportunities for basic competence and character development.
This new curriculum has special characteristics, including: the process of learning activities based on projects to develop the potential of students’ special skills while still prioritizing students’ personal characters such as: faith, piety, mutual cooperation, global, creative and critical.
Another character of this curriculum is that it focuses more on the essence of each learning material so that the competency values in the literacy and numeracy fields are fulfilled. And, teachers as educators are more flexible in terms of adjusting local content according to the capacity of their students.
Differences in the Prototype Curriculum and the 2013 Curriculum at Each Level of Education
This new curriculum has specific differences at each level of education, from elementary school to high school level, as follows:
Elementary School (SD)
In the 2013 curriculum for elementary schools, there is a separation between science and social studies subjects. Meanwhile, in the prototype curriculum, these two subjects are combined into one subject to become Natural and Social Sciences (IPAS) as a preparation for when students continue their education at the junior high school (SMP) level.
Junior High School (SMP)
The striking difference between the 2013 curriculum and the new curriculum at this level, is in the subject of informatics, if previously it was more optional, then in this new curriculum this subject is considered mandatory.
High School (SMA)
If in the 2013 curriculum, new students have to choose a temporary major, then in this latest curriculum the selection of majors or specializations begins when students enter grade 11 which is carried out by first conducting consultations between the homeroom teacher, BK teacher and parents of students.
The prototype curriculum has two special structures, namely: intracurricular activities and project activities, both individually and in groups, whose implementation process is left entirely to schools and educators for each subject.
This type of curriculum also has differences in terms of time or lesson hours. If the 2013 curriculum calculates the number of hours of lessons based on a matter of weeks, then the prototype curriculum calculates the number of hours of lessons based on years.
With lesson hours based on this year, it will make it easier for schools to organize learning activities, for example: subjects that have not been taught in even semesters can be taught in odd semesters and vice versa or adjust lesson hours every year.
Furthermore, in the prototype curriculum, the terms core competencies and basic competencies are no longer known but are replaced with learning outcomes which are marked by the results achieved in the form of student attitudes and skills in a single unit that are closely related and have a direct impact on the competence of each student.