International Journal of Environmental, Sustainability, and Social Sciences ISSN 2720-9644 (print); ISSN 2721-0871 (online) https://journalkeberlanjutan.com/index.php/ijesss 166 STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE TEACHER PROFESSIONALISM THROUGH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT Volume: 2 Number: 2 Page: 166 - 171 1Abdurokhim, ABDUROKHIM 2Syamsu YUSUF LN 1Indonesia University of Education 2 Indonesia University of Education Corresponding author: Abdurokhim, ABDUROKHIM E-mail: abdu.ocim@gmail.com Article History: Received: 2021-06-30 Revised: 2021-07-10 Accepted: 2021-07-25 Abstract: Teacher professionalism is closely related to those who have special skills and abilities in the field of education to optimize their duties and functions as teachers to meet the needs of the profession. This research method uses a qualitative description. The subject of this study is a certified teacher, and improves the skills of teachers by implementing knowledge management. This study focuses on teacher certification in private high schools in Cirebon Regency from 91 private high schools in Cirebon whose teachers are certified with a sample of 33 schools randomly but proportionally by region. The application of knowledge management to improve the professionalism of private teachers with madrasa certification in Cirebon Regency can be done by managing certified teacher staff through education and training. In addition, it is necessary to form a separate community to bring together certification teachers at certain times to discuss or share information and knowledge related to becoming professional teachers. The ability to use information technology is also needed to improve the pedagogic skills of certified teachers, especially in private madrasah in Cirebon Regency. The knowledge management skills of every certified teacher in private madrasas in Cirebon Regency must also be utilized in the form of sharing applications with other certified teachers. The aim is to provide insight for teachers of private Madrasah Law certification in Cirebon Regency. Keywords: Professionalism of Teacher, Knowledge Management, Strategic Implementation Cite this as: ABDUROKHIM, A., LN YUSUF, S. (2021) “Strategies to Improve Teacher Professionalism Through The Implementation of Knowledge Management”. International Journal of Environmental, Sustainability, and Social Sciences, 2 (2), 166 – 171. INTRODUCTION Teachers who have a high position in preserving the life of the nation are people who must be examined in life, which has always been a lesson observed by students, namely words and deeds. A teacher is a person who is devoted to educating the nation and has a role in making humans more intellectually competent and attitudes that must be taken into account by every human being (Rukhayati, 2019). The quality of students, as mentioned above, largely depends on how a teacher or educator teaches and trains their students. Both intellectually and morally, every student. The main task of a teacher is to educate to achieve good educational goals. Achieving all that is not easy, it takes more hard work and perseverance for every educator to accomplish these goals (Felta, 2021). Much hard work also produces high quality. If you work hard, the quality will improve. In addition, teachers need to be patient with the subjects they are responsible for. This attitude of hard work reflects the level of professionalism of good educators. Patience means working hard, doing your best, and working earnestly. In this context, the seriousness of teachers in teaching and teaching the life of the nation is called professionalism (Ramdani, 2018). The professionalism of teachers is closely related to those who have special skills and abilities in the field of education to optimize their duties and functions as teachers. Professionals carry out their duties by the needs of the profession. In other words, they have the skills and talents to meet International Journal of Environmental, Sustainability, and Social Sciences ISSN 2720-9644 (print); ISSN 2721-0871 (online) https://journalkeberlanjutan.com/index.php/ijesss 167 the profession's needs. Professionals work professionally, not amateurishly. Professionalism is the opposite of amateurism. Professionals continuously improve the quality of their work through education and training (Helmi, 2015). Based on the above understanding, continuous training is required to achieve a high-level specialization, and we will strive to improve formal education as much as possible. Indonesia has nominated millions of honorary teachers trained through professional teacher training programs, especially as one of all levels and educational organizers (Amik & Saefurohman, 2016). After undergoing professional teacher training, he was officially referred to as a professional educator. The state legally recognizes it through a certificate of educator issued. This certificate allows him to be a sincere teacher and get a monthly stipend without becoming a civil servant (Ahmad & Hodsay, 2020). However, the educator certificate obtained does not necessarily make a teacher who has completed an extraordinary education of teachers into a professional teacher. The first research conducted by researchers is very much about Cirebon teacher certification, especially about how to do the teacher certification studied. Some cases of uncontrollable certification teachers who do not arrive on time, do not make a study plan before entering class, do not make a ranking list, and do not take absences, these things are counterproductive for students of the teaching profession. They made learning tools only when there was an examination by the supervisor and no students. Of course, this attitude is not only caused by the leadership process of the principal alone, but one of the main factors affecting the attitude is the personal attitude of accredited teachers. The researcher also needs to continuously share his knowledge to further improve his expertise in teacher education, especially by providing guidance and sharing knowledge in teaching the teaching of the teaching profession. Therefore, there needs to be knowledge management to improve the skills of certified teachers, especially Cirebon. Based on the description above, it is interesting to explore other strategies to improve teacher professionalism through implementing knowledge management in Cirebon Regency. METHODS This research method uses qualitative description. The subject of this research is a certified teacher, and this research was conducted in the private madrasah in Cirebon Regency. The object of this research is a strategy to improve teacher leadership by implementing knowledge management. This research focuses on certification teachers at private High Schools (SMAS) in Cirebon Regency. Of the 91 private high schools in Cirebon whose teachers are certified, only 33 schools are sampled and randomly determined, and they are proportional by region. The selection of madrassah was deliberately carried out with several considerations, such as the relatively high number of certified teachers, school-age and proximity to the researcher's residence. Methods of data collection are using interviews, observation, and documentation. The interview method uses a semi-structured interview. The observation method uses direct observation. Researchers directly search and investigate data related to their research topic. Documentation is used to find data that cannot be obtained using the two methods above, such as teacher and student data. The main data sources in this study are certification teachers, headteachers, and foundation representatives. The data obtained from the primary source is related to strategies to improve teacher expertise through knowledge management. Secondary sources of this research data are the absence of certified teachers in each school, the results of the principal's supervision of teachers who are certified in Cirebon private madrassah, the completeness of learning administration, and certificates of certification that have been pursued by all teachers who have gone through the professional teacher training process. RESULT AND DISCUSSION Teacher Professionalism. Profession comes from English, or profession, which means recognizing or often referred to as an expert in carrying out an activity. While in this case, the word International Journal of Environmental, Sustainability, and Social Sciences ISSN 2720-9644 (print); ISSN 2721-0871 (online) https://journalkeberlanjutan.com/index.php/ijesss 168 profession can be interpreted as a type of work. While in terms of the profession can be interpreted as a job with high training requirements aimed at implementing the profession. A profession is a type of position that requires specific skills, meaning that a professional position cannot be held by someone who is not an expert. With other people, only trained and understanding people can do it. The profession can also be defined as one of the positions held by a person who requires knowledge of the position held and obtained from the educational process. According to Martinis Yamin, the profession has an understanding as someone who seeks a job based on intelligence based on expertise, abilities, skills, and procedures. According to Jasin Muhammad, explained by Yunus Namsa, the profession is a field of work that requires scientific skills and procedures, dedication, and how to respond to professional service-oriented work (Habibullah, 2019). It is impossible to obtain highly specialized professional services from competent authorities, supported by acquiring special knowledge, skills and abilities obtained through specialized education and training in higher education institutions. Practice permits or rejection of practices and practices are supported by laws and regulations that apply directly to the government or related professional associations (Hidayat & Machali, 2012). From some of the above professional understandings, it can be concluded that the profession is a particular type of work or special position entrusted by others to be carried out properly by the person who organizes the profession. The job requires high qualifications and skills to achieve its goals. A professional teacher is a teacher who has special skills and abilities in the field in which he is engaged and takes full responsibility as a condition for achieving common goals. A person who has obtained a professional position must carry out the work by the work or work rules and Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). Professionalism is an individual's view of the skills needed for a particular job, which also comes from the processes and consequences of special education. Professionalism is directed at a commitment to improving professional actors' ability to continue developing the strategies they use in carrying out their work (Pianda, 2018). Professional teachers have undergone special education programs and have obtained a state bachelor's degree with school teaching experience. Concept of Knowledge Management. The concept of knowledge management is new in business science that is practiced in companies and public companies. Furthermore, the concept developed along with the development of large-scale information technology (Tanjung et al., 2021). The presence of knowledge management in a company has a significant influence on its success in carrying out its functions. Indeed, knowledge management practices can encourage organizations to be more productive, effective, and successful. In theory, the definition of knowledge management still depends on the expert. It is mainly due to differences of opinion about the difference between information and knowledge. Information experts claim that information is knowledge presented to a person understandably. Alternatively, it can be data that is processed or organized to present essential facts (Sutabri, 2012). Knowledge comes from relevant information that is absorbed and integrated into the mind. Knowledge is related to what is known and understood. Information constructed in this way tends to be original, but knowledge is interpreted, and information is integrated. Therefore, before we come to the concept of knowledge management, which means knowledge management, it is necessary to clearly define the essence of "knowledge" or "knowledge". It is essential that what constitutes knowledge and what belongs to the category of information or data is not confused and duplicated. The word "knowledge" can have many non-univocal meanings, even in everyday conversation, in a particular field, and even within the familiar field itself. According to Frost, data is a concrete fact or number, but it has not been organized. Data must be contextualized, categorized, calculated and summarized to provide information. Therefore, information provides the big picture, meaning data that is relevant and has a purpose. On the other hand, knowledge is closely related to human behavior and means a correct understanding of the information available (Yuniarsih & Amartiwi, n.d.). International Journal of Environmental, Sustainability, and Social Sciences ISSN 2720-9644 (print); ISSN 2721-0871 (online) https://journalkeberlanjutan.com/index.php/ijesss 169 Each individual’s knowledge results from experience and includes norms that cause the individual to find some new input from the environment. Experts integrate it with the values of life, making it contextual information. The combination is summarized in the form of documents that then form new experiences and information, as well as the norms of the organization itself (Wibowo, 2019). Knowledge management is where intellectual capital is considered a well-managed and valuable asset. Knowledge management turns to experience and information into results. Knowledge management is a system for creating, documenting, categorizing, and ultimately disseminating knowledge and is easy to use, depending on the level of authority and its competition. Strategies to Improve Teacher Professionalism Through the Implementation of Knowledge Management. In the study titled knowledge management in Indonesian education, Salo showed some interesting facts. According to him, Indonesia has many institutions, but not many have implemented knowledge management as a strategic vision through its mission to achieve global goals (Yunus, 2016). At this point, the application of knowledge management is very urgent. The application of human-tightening management in schools can provide optimal benefits for institutions to find the power of resources in reusing existing knowledge and accelerate the creation of new knowledge from existing knowledge, as is expected. Therefore, knowledge management plays a vital role in the continuity and competitiveness of schools (Rizkita & Supriyanto, 2020). The application of knowledge management is essential for corporate institutions and school institutions/ institutions. The most important thing that needs to be done by school institutions is to implement knowledge management (Prasojo, Mukminin, & Mahmudah, 2017). The application of knowledge management in school institutions has a direct positive impact on the educational process in school institutions. Significantly advance and change the mindset and thinking achieved by certified teachers and principals for the school to achieve its goals: higher quality and a more proactive and effective learning process to give them a chance to think. Some of the benefits of applying knowledge management in a school institution are: 1. Efficient Funding and Time: Save money and time. If you have a systematic and structured source of knowledge, your school can use that knowledge with you. Principals and teachers can quickly improve their talent skills; 2. Enriching Knowledge Assets: The source of knowledge will be easier to use by all teachers so that the use of knowledge in the school environment will increase. Eventually, the process of creativity and innovation will be more comprehensive, and all teachers will improve their quality of ability. 3. Adaptability: Schools can quickly adapt to changes in the educational environment that occur both in the internal environment and especially in the external environment. 4. Improving Productivity: Existing knowledge for process development and graduation, increasing school productivity. On the other hand, after completing formal legal and formal teacher training activities, a teacher who is accredited and has a certificate of education can be considered a professional expert who consciously learns and uses intellectually based techniques and procedures applied in the form of the learning process (Danim, 2012). However, in this case, the accreditation obtained by lecturers who have passed the accreditation stage does not guarantee that the lecturer is truly professional. It occurs in fields related to the word "specificity" and is often not fully implemented. Many certified teachers do not implement and meet the categories and requirements of becoming a professional teacher as needed. Cirebon Regency, especially in this research, said that all certified teachers in Cirebon Regency do not listen to expert terms. It is based on researchers' findings at the Cirebon Regency Private Madrasah, many teachers arrive late, and many of them do not make learning tools. It is because certified teachers want to do all the so-called professionalism tasks, not only because of the leadership style used by the principal but, most importantly, because of knowledge management. Implementation of knowledge management is a group of tools, strategies, and techniques for maintaining, organizing, improving, and sharing experiences a school institution needs. In applying International Journal of Environmental, Sustainability, and Social Sciences ISSN 2720-9644 (print); ISSN 2721-0871 (online) https://journalkeberlanjutan.com/index.php/ijesss 170 knowledge management in private madrasahs in Cirebon Regency, there needs to be a personal awareness in the masing-mas in the principal in the private madrasah in Cirebon Regency. The principal can familiarize and apply the importance of knowledge management to his institution. The implementation of knowledge management is a set of tools, strategies, and techniques for maintaining, managing, improving, and sharing experiences completed by school institutions. In implementing knowledge management in private madrasahs in Cirebon, every director needs to have personal awareness in private madrasahs in Cirebon. The goal is for the principal to understand and apply the importance of knowledge management in his institution. Implementing knowledge management for Private Madrasah certification teachers in the Cirebon Regency area requires human resource management (HR) and information technology (IT). Information technology that plays an essential role in people's lives must also be applied in school. It helps certification teachers in Cirebon regency private schools easily access knowledge information and share knowledge with other certification teachers. Certification teachers can easily dig up information on becoming a true certified teacher. It is evidenced not only by a piece of paper but also by the process of applying for services to educational institutions, especially those in Cirebon Regency. As mentioned earlier, mentioning the importance of information technology requires recognition from any certified educator or professional to enhance our ability to develop information technology. It is essential to improve skills in this online era (Jihad, 2013). In addition, information technology can make it easier for certified teachers to find information about professional teachers who are as successful and for certified teachers to share natural information with other certification teachers. In addition, the management of talents is also important related to scholastic institutions, especially private madrasahs of Cirebon Regency. Human resource management is part of the knowledge management that will be applied to increase the capacity of U.S. education certification teachers in private schools Cirebon regency. The management of certification teacher talents can be done by providing workshops, training, and association activities to trigger further knowledge sharing on becoming a truly professional teacher (Salirawati, 2018). Training activities can enhance and encourage certification teachers to be willing to undertake all sorts of activities that can improve the pedagogical skills of accredited teachers. In this case, of course, the school is one of the means to provide a platform to implement the program (Wahira, 2015). Teacher certification aims to help students manage their learning well to understand all kinds of learning offered by their teachers quickly. Teachers of private certification in Cirebon Regency certainly have different skills and abilities. However, certification teachers often fail to teach or apply skills. Due to the lack of awareness to improve the quality of certified teaching staff, they cannot maximize their attention. Knowledge management includes what is known as implicit knowledge and explicit knowledge. Tacit knowledge is a subconscious thought and application that is difficult to pronounce and develops from direct events (I Ketut, n.d.). Explicit knowledge is an individual's thinking ability or outcome that can be directly applied in everyday life in the form of speech. This form of knowledge management requires teachers to be aware of the available knowledge as clearly as possible. It is seen in sharing with other certified teachers (Andre, Ratna, & Haris, 2018). CONCLUSION The application of knowledge management to improve the professionalism of private teachers of madrasah certification in Cirebon Regency can be made by managing the staff of teachers with ikatif through education and training. In addition, it is also necessary to form a separate community to find certified teachers at certain times to discuss or share information and knowledge related to becoming professional teachers. 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