Transformation of Indonesian education: 1945-1995<\/p>\n
By Mochtar Buchori<\/p>\n
This is the first of two articles examining the transformation
\nof the education system from 1945 to 1995.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Looking back at our educational system in 1945,
\nit is hard to believe that that system was the embryo of our
\ncurrent, very complex system of formal education.<\/p>\n
We now have a system comprising three large sub-systems: the
\nsekolah umum or general education, the pondok pesantren
\n(traditional Koranic school), and the madrasah, or "modernized
\nKoranic" school system.<\/p>\n
What did we have back in 1945?<\/p>\n
Just one very small sub-system of general education. There
\nwere only five senior high schools throughout Indonesia (Jakarta,
\nBandung, Semarang, Yogyakarta, and Surabaya), one junior high
\nschool in each karesidenan (the now defunct administrative area,
\ndirectly below the provincial administration and above the
\nkabupaten, or district administration), and one elementary school
\nin each kecamatan sub-district area.<\/p>\n
In addition, there were five teacher training schools for
\nelementary school teachers (Jatinegara, Bandung, Yogyakarta,
\nSurakarta, and Blitar), and one teacher training school for high
\nschool (in Jakarta).<\/p>\n
The traditional pondok pesantren was already there for quite a
\nlong time, but it was never recognized officially as part of the
\neducation system in the country. And the madrasah system, as we
\nunderstand it now, was not yet in existence. This particular
\nsystem began to develop only after 1950.<\/p>\n
This tiny system had to undergo a grueling experience during
\nthe physical revolution of 1945-49. The educational system was
\npart and parcel of the political struggle to defend the new
\nrepublic. When the central government had to evacuate to
\nYogyakarta in 1946, all the colleges at that time, and some high
\nschools, had to do the same.<\/p>\n
The Jakarta College of Medicine and the Bandung college of
\nTechnology had to evacuate to Yogyakarta. The senior high school
\nin Surabaya had to evacuate to Malang, and the one in Semarang
\nhad to evacuate to Salatiga. Those schools which opted to stay
\nwithin the Dutch occupied territory had to operate without the
\nassistance of the Indonesian government.<\/p>\n
They had to proclaim themselves as Republican schools, and had
\nto survive by whatever support they could get from sympathizers
\nof the Republic. The main thing for these schools was that the
\nyoung generation receive Indonesian education with Indonesian as
\nthe medium of instruction, and republican curriculum as the
\neducational program.<\/p>\n
The schools in the Republican territory had to carry out a
\nstruggle which was at least as hard as the one shouldered by
\nrepublican schools within the Dutch-occupied territory. The
\neconomy of the country was in shambles at the time, and no one
\ncould live from his or her salary alone.<\/p>\n
Teachers had to dig into their savings and sell their jewelry
\nand other valuables to support their daily lives. And when the
\nDutch military launched its first and second offensives (1947 and
\n1949) the schools in the cities had to live as republican schools
\nwithout support from the any government, and the ones in the
\nvillages outside the cities had to lead a mobile existence.<\/p>\n
When the Dutch patrols were too close to a village, everyone
\nin the village, including the schools, had to evacuate to safer
\nsites. When the Dutch patrols retreated to the cities, they came
\nback to their village. It was in such a situation that teachers
\nwithin the Republican territory had to operate.<\/p>\n
In spite of all these emergency conditions the daily
\noperations in the schools went on basically undisturbed. School
\nbuildings had to be operated in three shifts -- morning,
\nafternoon and evenings -- to accommodate school students who were
\nevacuated from the Dutch-occupied territories. Teachers performed
\ntheir duties regularly and pupils tried to learn as much as
\npossible in spite of their irregular attendance.<\/p>\n
It should be noted that many high school and college students
\nat that time were also active in the Student Army (TRIP, TP, TGP,
\nand others). In critical times they all had to go to the front
\nlines and fight. When the situation became a bit calmer, they
\nwent back to their classrooms to resume their studies.<\/p>\n
In spite of all the hardships, there was an atmosphere of
\nprofessionalism within the system. Many teachers at the senior
\nhigh school were college students at that time and did not have
\nthe proper qualifications. Yet students studied attentively and
\ndutifully under these non-qualified teachers. The will to learn
\nwas unbelievably high among students. One of the biggest
\nachievements in the field of education during this turbulent
\nperiod was the establishment of Gadjah Mada University in
\nYogyakarta.<\/p>\n
It was "assembled" by academic elements which used to operate
\nthe Medical College in Jakarta and the Technological College in
\nBandung who evacuated to Yogyakarta. These two groups of
\nacademicians were reinforced by academicians formerly associated
\nwith the College for Law in Jakarta, the College for Agriculture
\nin Bogor, and the College for Letters in Jakarta. These three
\ncolleges were closed during the Japanese occupation.<\/p>\n
The establishment of Gadjah Mada University was followed by
\nthe establishment of Universitas Islam Indonesia (Indonesian
\nIslamic University), sponsored by intellectuals with a strong
\nleaning toward Islamic political and cultural orientation.<\/p>\n
It was believed that the founding of this Islamic university
\nwas another reflection of the political situation during the
\npolitical movement for independence, which had always rested on
\ntwo political movements: the nationalism-oriented wing, and the
\nIslam-oriented wing.<\/p>\n
This kind of situation lasted until December, 1949, when
\nfinally the sovereignty of the Indonesian government was
\nofficially recognized by the Dutch with the exception of West
\nIrian.<\/p>\n
From the early 1950s steps were taken to rehabilitate the
\neducational system. School buildings were rebuilt or renovated,
\ntextbooks were either revised or republished and distributed, and
\nschool equipment was refurbished. The educational bureaucracy was
\nrevived and teacher welfare was significantly improved. This did
\nnot last long, however, due to the deteriorating condition of the
\ncountry's economy.<\/p>\n
The continuous fragmentation of political parties that marked
\nthe era of "liberal democracy" (1950 to 1958) made it impossible
\nfor any cabinet to last long enough and restore the foundations
\nof the country's economy. It was due to the professional spirit
\nwithin the educational system that this severe political rivalry
\nwithin the society did not affect the daily operations within the
\neducational system.<\/p>\n
The Ministers of Education and Culture did come and go during
\nthis period, but life within the educational system went on
\nsmoothly, undisturbed by the political turmoil that went on
\nwithin political circles. Below the ministerial level no
\nappointment was made on the basis of political consideration.<\/p>\n
The positions of secretary-generals, director generals,
\ninspector generals down to lower echelons functions were occupied
\nby persons who were appointed on the basis of their professional
\nmerit, not on the basis of their political affiliations. This
\nsituation made it possible for the entire educational system to
\nfunction and behave in a professional way.<\/p>\n
During this period efforts to elevate the academic quality of
\nthe system were pursued tirelessly. A special agency was founded
\nin Bandung to act as a center for distant learning operations to
\nincrease the academic quality of elementary school teachers
\nthroughout the country. High school teachers and college
\nlecturers were sent abroad for advanced study.<\/p>\n
Foreign agencies like UNESCO, the Ford Foundation, and the
\nRockefeller Foundation were invited to help modernize colleges
\nand other academic bodies. The result was a steady improvement of
\ncertain academic institutions which later on would become centers
\nof academic vitality.<\/p>\n
It was also during this period that private schools began to
\nflourish. Government schools were not able to accommodate the
\ndemand for both elementary and secondary education. In every city
\nprivate schools sprung up, sponsored by various types of
\norganizations, ranging from religious organizations to loose
\norganizations of groups of teachers who saw the opportunity of
\nestablishing their own schools.<\/p>\n
Madrasah began to take root within society. Two reasons were
\nresponsible for the growth of madrasah during this period: the
\nshortage of educational facilities and a desire for modern
\neducation based on Islamic orientation.<\/p>\n
The madrasah that came into existence during this period were
\neither founded by the Ministry of Religious Affairs, or privately
\nowned, but operating under the auspices of the Ministry. This
\nsituation changed abruptly in 1959, when the late President
\nSukarno decided to change the political system of the country
\nfrom "liberal democracy" to "guided democracy".<\/p>\n
This political system lasted until 1965, when its end was
\nmarked by the abortive coup carried out by elements within the
\nArmed Forces sympathizing with the Indonesian Communist Party.<\/p>\n
During this period political forces succeeded in penetrating
\nthe educational system. Student organizations and teacher unions
\nwere split into two camps: those sympathizing with, and those
\nagainst, the left-wing movements.<\/p>\n
Provincial governments demanded the establishment of their own
\nuniversities. The policy of sending university students and
\nuniversity lecturers to western countries was replaced by a new
\npolicy of sending students and lecturers to the East-bloc
\ncountries of Russia, Hungary, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, etc.<\/p>\n
The overall result of this political shift was the drastic
\ndecline in the academic quality of the educational system.
\nAcademic standards were lowered to meet political demands,
\ncurricula were altered to accommodate political needs of the
\nruling groups, and political indoctrination was required for all
\nuniversity lecturers.<\/p>\n
This indoctrination was conducted through the notorious
\nMANIPOL-USDEK courses, in which participants were indoctrinated
\nto accept ideas contained in the speeches of the late President
\nSoekarno, starting from his Manifesto Politik, a speech he
\ndelivered on Aug. 17, 1959, to his other speeches about the
\nreturn to the 1945 Constitution (Undang-Undang Dasar 1945, the U
\nwithin the USDEK acronym), Sosialisme Indonesia (the S element),
\nand the Demokrasi Ekonomi (the DEK element).<\/p>",
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