A free education policy in Indonesia for equitable access and improvement of the quality of learning

In relation to fee-free education policy, previous research was dominated by the implementation and evaluation of these policies, and no research has examined the effect of free education policies on equitable access and improving the quality of learning in Indonesia. The study aimed to examine the effect of free education policies on equitable access to education services and the quality of learning in Indonesia. The method used is quantitative with Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) data analysis. The results showed that: 1) the implementation of the free education policy had a direct and significant effect of 68.5% on equal access to education services, 2) the implementation of the free education policy had a direct and significant effect of 29.6% on improving the quality of learning, 3) the implementation of the free education policy also indirectly has an effect of 49.8% on improving the quality of learning, 4) the implementation of equitable access to educational services has a direct and significant effect of 72.7% on improving the quality of learning. This research contributes to providing an overview of the effectiveness of free education policies through school operational assistance funds to implementers and policy recipients and assists the government in formulating policies that will be able to help accelerate the achievement of national education goals.