Local education no guarantee of nationalism

Local education no guarantee of nationalism

President B.J. Habibies's recent proposal that young
Indonesians should be barred from studying abroad has invited
pros and cons. Mochtar Buchori, an observer of social and
cultural affairs, discusses the relevance of such a proposal.

JAKARTA (JP): Is it true that sending children abroad to study
at an early age will make them less nationalistic or even
anationalistic?

That is what the government fears. But is this fear realistic?
Or is it merely a policy to discourage parents from sending their
children abroad at an early age? What is meant by early age? Is
the practice of sending children abroad for secondary education,
for instance, educationally faulty, and thus to be disapproved?

Let us examine the issue by using a hypothetical example. If
you have a very bright son or daughter who passes his or her
final high school exam at the age of 16, and you have the means
to send him or her abroad for a college education, by this new
regulation you cannot do that. You have to wait for another two
years. If you persist, and send him or her abroad anyway, he or
she will become an Indonesian without a sufficient sense of
nationalism. He or she will become an estranged Indonesian. That
is the argument according to this regulation. Does it make sense?

There is no simple answer to this question, I am afraid. But
there are at least three remarks that can be made about this
regulation.

First, what is the percentage of Indonesian parents who can
afford to send their children abroad to study before the age of
18? Very small, I think. Does it make sense to issue a government
regulation for such a tiny minority? I think not.

Secondly, what is the precise meaning of the stipulation
before the age of 18? It can be anywhere between birth and 17
years and 11 months. At what age before 18 do most parents want
to send their children to study abroad?

I think 13. The age period between 13 and 18 is usually
considered a critical time to prepare for the rigorous academic
life at the university level.

Parents who have high academic ambitions for their children
usually have prep schools in mind when they decide to send their
children abroad at an early age.

What this government regulation amounts to is that no
Indonesian boy or girl will ever have the opportunity to benefit
from the rich educational programs offered by schools with very
rich histories and very good reputations. I think this will
eventually create a lamentable situation.

Thirdly, is it true that starting to study abroad before the
age of 18 will reduce one's sense of nationalism? Conversely, is
it true that a secondary education at home will make children
acquire a solid basis for nationalism?

I think this is a very delicate question that requires careful
analysis to answer. As I understand it, nationalism has two
aspects -- a moral and an intellectual one.

From the moral aspect, having a sense of nationalism means
that one has a moral commitment to do something for the
preservation of the existence of one's nation and for the
continuous improvement of its quality of life. Expressed in
popular terms, having a sense of nationalism means that one loves
one's nation.

On the intellectual side, having a sense of nationalism means
that one has an adequate understanding of the problems faced by
one's nation and the potentials that exist within that nation.
One cannot have a sound sense of nationalism if one is
intellectually blind or if one has a distorted perception
concerning the condition of the nation.

It is only when one is sufficiently mature in these two
aspects that one will be able to develop a healthy nationalism;
i.e. a nationalism that is free from chauvinism or any other kind
of cultural defect. One such culturally defective nationalism is
the one that is described by Erich Fromm as a form of incest,
idolatry and insanity. This kind of nationalism changes
patriotism from a sense of responsibility into a cult.

What does this mean in terms of education? Any system of
education which purports to cultivate a healthy sense of
nationalism among its students will have to ensure that three
types of growth will indeed take place in the students. These
three types of growth are growth in their knowledge about the
condition of the country (cognitive growth), growth in their love
and affection toward the country (affective growth) and growth in
their commitment toward the nation (volitional growth).

If these three educational tasks are performed satisfactorily,
then we can say that there is indeed an educational process
taking place that leads toward the cultivation of a healthy
nationalism.

But if students show only one or two of these three required
growths, then there is no sufficient basis for claiming that the
school system is providing an education that cultivates
nationalism.

How is the condition of Indonesia's schools in this respect?
It is impossible to give an accurate generalization, however, I
suspect that the situation varies widely from one school to
another.

One thing that is sure, however, is that in almost all of our
schools insufficient attention has been given to the development
of the moral aspect of nationalism. For this reason, there is, in
my opinion, insufficient ground for claiming that formal
education at domestic secondary schools guarantees the growth of
a healthy nationalism among students.

I think that for the purpose of cultivating nationalism,
pursuing a secondary education at home is indeed better than
studying abroad. But the argument I would use is not because our
schools are better equipped for this purpose, but because within
our society, there are cultural forces outside the school which
shape this sense of nationalism among our youth.

Social experiences at the local level and emotive perceptions
of important events at the national level are just such forces.

If the purpose of the present government regulation is to
discourage parents from sending their children abroad for
secondary education, then the right measure is not to restrict
parents' freedom in their search for quality education for their
children, but to improve the quality of education at home.