An Evaluation of the Partnership Program Between Business & Industrial Sectors and Vocational High Schools Concentrating on Agribusiness in Fish Processing in Yogyakarta Special Territory

An Evaluation of the Partnership Program Between Business & Industrial Sectors and Vocational High Schools Concentrating on Agribusiness in Fish Processing in Yogyakarta Special Territory

*Dhita Pramestya, Herminarto Sofyan

Technology and Vocational Education, Graduate School, Yogyakarta State University, Indonesia

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2025.9010128

Received: 04 January 2025; Accepted: 08 January 2025; Published: 06 February 2025

ABSTRACT

The implementation of the Business & Industrial partnership program with vocational schools is very important to be carried out in order to be able to meet the expectations and goals of vocational schools in preparing quality, ready and competitive graduates at vocational schools. This study evaluates partnership programs in the aspects of Field Work Practices, Special Job Fair, and In-house Training to reveal (1) the achievement of Field Work Practices, Special Job Fair, and In-house Training programs in the concentration of Agribusiness in Fish Processing in Yogyakarta Special Territory with Business & Industrial from the aspects of context, input, process and product; and (2) the obstacles faced by the Business & Industrial partnership program with Vocational High Schools concentrating on Agribusiness in fish processing in Yogyakarta Special Territory. This study is an evaluation research using the CIPP model (Contex, Input, Process and Product). The instruments used were questionnaires and interview guidelines that are validated through expert judgement and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA). The results of the study are as follows. (1) The achievement rate of street vendors from the aspect of context is 90%, input is 82%, process is 83% and product is 91% with a total achievement rate of 86.50% (very good category). (2) Special Job Exchanges achievement rate from the context aspect is 92%, input is 76%, process is 74% and product is 79%, with a total achievement rate of 80.25% (good category). (3) In-house Training Achievement Level from the context aspect 91%, input 92%, process 89% and product 94%, with a total achievement rate of 91.50% (very good category). (4) Obstacles related to the implementation of the partnership program between Business & Industrial Sectors and Vocational High Schools Concrentating on Agribusiness in Fish Processing are the lack of clear indicators to measure the success of the partnership program, joint evaluation has not been carried out optimally, special job fair has not carried out its function optimally in connecting graduates with the world of work.

Keywords: Business & Industrial sector, CIPP, evaluation, partnership, vocational school.

INTRODUCTION

Vocational High School is a level of secondary education in Indonesia that focuses on vocational education. Vocational schools aim to prepare students to go directly into the world of work or continue to higher levels of education. However, based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (2023), the Open Unemployment Rate in Indonesia in August 2023 was 5.86%, or equivalent to 8.42 million people. The Open Unemployment Rate for vocational school graduates is 9.42%, higher than the national. Meanwhile, male vocational school graduates were 8.78%, and female vocational school graduates is 10.14%. So that vocational schools are required to be able to follow the rhythm that is developing in the business and industrial world (BIS) in order to produce graduates who are competent in their fields.

The concept of link and match is the concept of “supply-demand” in a broad sense, namely the world of education as a human resource provider, and individuals, communities, and the world of work as parties in need. There are four aspects of needs that need to be anticipated by education, namely: 1) Personal or individual needs, 2) Family needs, 3) Community or state needs, 4) Needs of the world of work or the business world (Suwandi and Alex, 2016). Among the various needs that exist, the demands from the world of work or industry feel the most urgent. Therefore, the priority of “link and match” is directed to meeting the needs of the world of work. It is important to ensure that graduates of education have the relevant skills and are in demand by the industry, so that they can more easily get a job and increase their chances of success in the workforce.

One of the main strategies to achieve effective link and match is the existence of a partnership program. The partnership program between vocational schools and Business and Industrial plays an important role in improving the quality of education at vocational schools. The program allows students to gain a more realistic and relevant learning experience to industry needs, improve competence and competitiveness, build professional networks, and increase learning motivation. This is in accordance with the opinion of Rojaki et al. (2021), with the cooperation of vocational high schools with the business and industrial world, it is hoped that competent graduates in their fields will be created to enter the world of work, both working in companies and creating job vacancies by entrepreneurship.

The relationship between industry and vocational education has a good relationship so that the purpose of implementing cooperation between schools and industry can be institutionalized into partnership institutions. The form of implementation activities in the partnership program carried out is the development of curriculum at vocational schools, facilitating the provision of industrial work facilities and infrastructure, facilitating industrial work practices or apprenticeships for students and teachers, conducting competency tests and certification of students in accordance with industry standards (Ratna and Sudarwan, 2023). From this statement, it can be concluded that vocational schools must be able to collaborate with all actors in working life, such as the business world and the industrial world.

Currently, innovation is needed for Vocational High Schools Cooperation with the Business and Industrial Sectors to overcome challenges in preparing quality, ready and competitive graduates. The author is interested in researching related to the evaluation of the partnership program of Field Work Practice, Special Job Exchange, and In House Training that has been carried out by the Fishery Product Processing Agribusiness concentration Vocational School in Yogyakarta Special Territory.

The Field Work Practice Program aims to bridge the gap between the theory learned in school and the real-world work practice. To ensure that these goals are achieved, it is necessary to evaluate the Field Work Practice program.

The Special Job Fair Program is an integral part of efforts to improve the quality of vocational education. The evaluation of the Special Job Fair program measures the extent to program has succeeded in increasing the competitiveness of graduates in the job market. The results of this evaluation will be the basis for taking improvement steps, so that the special job fair program can continue to improve its quality and make a greater contribution to human resource development (Afif and Kir, 2017).

Evaluation of the In House Training Program  is also important to find out the extent to which the competence of vocational teachers has improved. Through evaluation, we can measure the effectiveness of the program in improving the knowledge and skills of 8 teachers in accordance with the development of the world of work. In addition, evaluation can also identify obstacles faced during training and provide input for future program improvements so that the in-house training program is an important instrument to ensure that vocational teachers have up-to-date competencies and are able to provide quality learning to students.

To ensure whether or not a program is achieved, it is necessary to carry out an activity in the form of program evaluation. Malik and Hasanah (2015), Program evaluation is a unit or unit of activity that aims to collect information about the realization or implementation of a policy, takes place in a continuous process, and occurs in an organization that involves a group of people for decision-making.

The results of this research are expected to be considered in the implementation and development of partnership programs to improve the quality of the process and program results as well as the success of program goals for education in Indonesia.

RESEARCH METHODS

The type of evaluation research used is program evaluation with a quantitative descriptive method approach with the CIPP model. The research was conducted to evaluate the partnership program between Business and  Industrial Sectors and Vocational High Schools Concrentating on Agribusiness in Fish Processing in Yogyakarta Special Territory. The location of this research is in 3 vocational schools in the Yogyakarta Special Territory, namely Vocational High Schools 1 Tanjungsari, Vocational High Schools 1 Sanden and Vocational High Schools 1 Temon which will be held in January-August 2024. The instruments used are questionnaires and interview guidelines that are validated through expert judgement and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA).

RESEARCH RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Vocational High Schools Partnership Model with Business and Industrial Sectors

The partnership model between and Business and industrial sectors is a synergistic effort between the world of education and the world of work. This partnership aims to align the vocational curriculum with the needs of the industry, so that vocational school graduates are better prepared to enter the world of work. The partnership model used at Vocational High Schools 1 Tanjungsari, Vocational High Schools 1 Temon and Vocational High Schools 1 Sanden is  the Mutualism Partnership model. Mutualism Partnership is an alliance of two or more parties, both aware of an important aspect in the implementation of the partnership, namely mutual benefit to achieve the goal optimally. Contrary to the understanding of the importance of partnership, two or more organizations or groups with the same or different positions collaborate.

Evaluation of Field Work Practices

Based on table 1. The achievement rate of the evaluation of Field Work Practice was boxed from the aspects of context, input, process and product by 86.50% with the category of very good. However, there are several indicators that are not optimal overall in the input and process aspects, namely indicators of the absorption of debriefing materials from schools and business and industrial, the implementation process of street vendors, the role of street vendor coordinators, the role of supervisors and the role of industry supervisors

Table 1. Achievement Level of Evaluation of Field Work Practices

In the Field Work Practice partnership program, both schools and business & industrial must foster mutual trust. With mutual trust, both parties will feel that they have the same responsibility for the success of the street vendor program so as to encourage optimal contributions from each party. According to Wafi (2019), said that in partnering must foster mutual trust and complement each other and to have  a good partnership, mutual trust capital is needed first.

The facilities available at Vocational High Schools are not fully adequate to support effective learning, such as equipment that is already in use, practical facilities that have not been updated and lack of adequate space. However, with the partnership program with , schools can take advantage of business and industrial sectors facilities. In internship activities and fieldwork practices, students can do internships or direct work practices at partner companies. This allows students to use more modern and complete equipment and facilities. In addition, vocational schools can collaborate with bussines and industrial to use their facilities regularly, such as laboratories, workshops, or training rooms.

Evaluation of Special Job Exchanges

Based on table 2. the achievement level of the evaluation of the Special Job Exchange was punched from the aspects of context, input, process and product by 80.25% with the good category. However, there are several indicators that are not optimal overall in terms of input, process and product, namely budget achievement, BKK management and BKK achievement.

Table 2. Achievement Level of Evaluation of Field Work Practices

Based on tracer study, currently many graduates of the Agribusiness Expertise Concentration in Fishery Product Processing are not working according to their field of expertise. This is influenced by several factors, such as the selection of majors that are not appropriate based on interests and talents, lack of relevant work experience, mismatch between the skills possessed by graduates and the demands of the current world of work and the number of fishery product processing industries that are still minimal in Yogyakarta. Despite having great potential in the fisheries sector, Yogyakarta still faces challenges in processing its marine catch. The lack of modern fishery processing industry in this region causes most of the catch to be sold only in fresh form or traditionally processed.

Based on an interview with the Public Relations Officer, another obstacle faced in the Special Job Fair program is that many graduate students change their phone numbers regularly. This habit makes it difficult for the Special Job Fair team to contact them when there is appropriate job vacancy information. As a result, many job opportunities are missed by these job seekers. Currently, there is also no website, especially the alumni information system, so information is still minimal. This is in line with the opinion of Pambayun and Wagiran (2014), that the use of social networks and others, if used properly, can support Special Job Fair activities, especially to help provide information to graduates about existing job vacancies, conduct graduate searches, collect information on job vacancies and other activities.

Evaluation In House Training

Based on table 3. the achievement rate of  In House Training  evaluation is boxed from the aspects of context, input, process and product by 91.50% with the category of very good. However, there are obstacles that are not optimal overall in the input aspect, namely indicators of infrastructure and funding for In House Training activities so that activities are not routinely carried out.

Table 3. Evaluation Achievement Rate In House Training

The In-house training program is a very important Business & Industrial partnership program with Vocational High Schools. The program allows productive teachers to learn directly from industry practitioners and improve their competencies. However, this program is still rarely implemented optimally at vocational schools. According to Suhartini (2021), among the efforts that can be made to improve teacher competence are in house training (IHT) activities.

Partnership Program Obstacles

The results of the interview with the Head of the Agribusiness Expertise Concentration for Fishery Product Processing and stakeholders explained that there are several obstacles related to the implementation of the partnership including: (1) Lack of clear indicators to measure the success of the partnership program; (2) Joint evaluation between schools, students, and partner companies has not been carried out optimally; (3) Special job fair has not carried out its function optimally in connecting graduates with the world of work.

Partnership Program Solutions

Solutions that can be provided in the partnership program between Business & Industrial partnership program with Vocational High Schools with a concentration of expertise in Agribusiness Fisheries Product Processing in Yogyakarta are: a) The lack of clear indicators in measuring the success of the partnership program can be overcome by setting SMART KPIs, involving various parties in the preparation of indicators, using various evaluation methods, conducting periodic evaluations, and comparing results with similar programs. Thus, the success of the partnership program can be measured objectively, accountably, and sustainably; (b) In order for the evaluation to be effective, all parties involved need to be actively involved. Schools need to provide the necessary facilities and resources to conduct evaluations, such as questionnaires, assessment forms, and sufficient time. Students need to be invited to provide their input and opinions honestly. Business & Industrial also needs to play an active role in providing feedback on student performance and the partnership program as a whole; (c) The problem of special job fair that is not optimal in connecting graduates with the world of work can be overcome in various ways. Strengthening the role of Special Job Fair, increasing partnerships with the business world and industry, student empowerment, program evaluation, and community participation are some of the solutions that can be considered. By implementing these solutions comprehensively, it is hoped that vocational school graduates can more easily get jobs that are in accordance with their competencies, besides that special job fair needs to create a special website for alumni as information on job vacancies for tracer study vocational school graduates.

CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS

Conclusion

Based on the results of the research and the results of the data analysis that has been carried out, the conclusions are as follows:

1. The achievement rate of Field Work Practice is punched from the aspect of context 90%, input 82%, process 83% and product 91% with a total achievement rate of 86.50% in the very good category. However, there are several indicators that are not optimal overall in the input and process aspects, namely indicators of the absorption of debriefing materials from schools and business and industrial sector, the implementation process of street vendors, the role of street vendor coordinators, the role of supervisors and the role of industry supervisors.
2. The achievement rate of the Special Job Fair is boxed from the aspect of context 92%, input 76%, process 74% and product 79%, with a total achievement rate of 80.25% with the good category. However, there are several indicators that are not optimal overall in terms of input, process and product, namely budget achievement, management and achievement.
3. The level of achievement level of In House Training is boxed from the aspect of context 91%, input 92%, process 89% and product 94%, with a total achievement level of 91.50% with the category of very good. However, there are obstacles that are not optimal overall in the input aspect, namely indicators of infrastructure and funding for IHT activities so that IHT activities are not routinely carried out.
4. Obstacles related to the implementation of partnerships include (1) the lack of clear indicators to measure the success of the partnership programs, (2) joint evaluation between schools, students, and partner companies has not been carried out optimally, (3) Special job fair has not carried out its function optimally in connecting graduates with the world of work.

Suggestion

Suggestions that can be given in this study are (1) Business and industrial sectors needs to conduct periodic evaluation and monitoring to vocational schools; (2) The school budget is allocated effectively to support various partnership programs aimed at improving the quality of education; (3) The evaluation of the partnership program is expected to have special regulations that are used to evaluate partnership activities so that each institution can learn from each other and share experiences in implementing the partnership program in schools.

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