Managing Discipline as Professional Readiness in a SMK Kesehatan: A Qualitative Case Study of Character-Based Management
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59944/postaxial.v4i2.1633Keywords:
Student discipline, Character-based management, Vocational education, Professional readiness, Health vocational schoolAbstract
This study examined how a health vocational school managed discipline as part of students’ character formation and professional readiness. A qualitative case study was conducted at SMK Kesehatan Tunas Madani in Sukabumi, West Java, Indonesia, from December 2025 to March 2026. Participants were purposively selected from the principal, vice principal for student affairs, character-development teacher, homeroom teachers, students, and parents. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, direct observations, and document review. Interactive analysis involved data condensation, data display, and conclusion drawing and verification. Source and method triangulation and checks with key participants supported credibility. The findings showed that the school translated discipline, responsibility, and integrity into written rules, daily routines, classroom learning, and laboratory and teaching-factory practice. The alignment of written expectations, teacher monitoring, and vocational standard operating procedures produced a consistent behavioural message. Recognition and educational consequences were used to reinforce accountability. However, the evidence was stronger for observed compliance than for value internalisation or autonomous self-regulation. Implementation was also constrained by the absence of a counsellor with specialist training and discontinuity between routines at school and at home. Discipline in a health vocational school should therefore be managed as a context-specific professional practice, supported by fair response procedures, tiered counselling support, student reflection, and longitudinal behavioural evaluation. The study offers a bounded explanation of management mechanisms and does not establish causal improvement.
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