Transformation of Indonesian education: 1945-1995

Transformation of Indonesian education: 1945-1995

By Mochtar Buchori

This is the first of two articles examining the transformation
of the education system from 1945 to 1995.

JAKARTA (JP): Looking back at our educational system in 1945,
it is hard to believe that that system was the embryo of our
current, very complex system of formal education.

We now have a system comprising three large sub-systems: the
sekolah umum or general education, the pondok pesantren
(traditional Koranic school), and the madrasah, or "modernized
Koranic" school system.

What did we have back in 1945?

Just one very small sub-system of general education. There
were only five senior high schools throughout Indonesia (Jakarta,
Bandung, Semarang, Yogyakarta, and Surabaya), one junior high
school in each karesidenan (the now defunct administrative area,
directly below the provincial administration and above the
kabupaten, or district administration), and one elementary school
in each kecamatan sub-district area.

In addition, there were five teacher training schools for
elementary school teachers (Jatinegara, Bandung, Yogyakarta,
Surakarta, and Blitar), and one teacher training school for high
school (in Jakarta).

The traditional pondok pesantren was already there for quite a
long time, but it was never recognized officially as part of the
education system in the country. And the madrasah system, as we
understand it now, was not yet in existence. This particular
system began to develop only after 1950.

This tiny system had to undergo a grueling experience during
the physical revolution of 1945-49. The educational system was
part and parcel of the political struggle to defend the new
republic. When the central government had to evacuate to
Yogyakarta in 1946, all the colleges at that time, and some high
schools, had to do the same.

The Jakarta College of Medicine and the Bandung college of
Technology had to evacuate to Yogyakarta. The senior high school
in Surabaya had to evacuate to Malang, and the one in Semarang
had to evacuate to Salatiga. Those schools which opted to stay
within the Dutch occupied territory had to operate without the
assistance of the Indonesian government.

They had to proclaim themselves as Republican schools, and had
to survive by whatever support they could get from sympathizers
of the Republic. The main thing for these schools was that the
young generation receive Indonesian education with Indonesian as
the medium of instruction, and republican curriculum as the
educational program.

The schools in the Republican territory had to carry out a
struggle which was at least as hard as the one shouldered by
republican schools within the Dutch-occupied territory. The
economy of the country was in shambles at the time, and no one
could live from his or her salary alone.

Teachers had to dig into their savings and sell their jewelry
and other valuables to support their daily lives. And when the
Dutch military launched its first and second offensives (1947 and
1949) the schools in the cities had to live as republican schools
without support from the any government, and the ones in the
villages outside the cities had to lead a mobile existence.

When the Dutch patrols were too close to a village, everyone
in the village, including the schools, had to evacuate to safer
sites. When the Dutch patrols retreated to the cities, they came
back to their village. It was in such a situation that teachers
within the Republican territory had to operate.

In spite of all these emergency conditions the daily
operations in the schools went on basically undisturbed. School
buildings had to be operated in three shifts -- morning,
afternoon and evenings -- to accommodate school students who were
evacuated from the Dutch-occupied territories. Teachers performed
their duties regularly and pupils tried to learn as much as
possible in spite of their irregular attendance.

It should be noted that many high school and college students
at that time were also active in the Student Army (TRIP, TP, TGP,
and others). In critical times they all had to go to the front
lines and fight. When the situation became a bit calmer, they
went back to their classrooms to resume their studies.

In spite of all the hardships, there was an atmosphere of
professionalism within the system. Many teachers at the senior
high school were college students at that time and did not have
the proper qualifications. Yet students studied attentively and
dutifully under these non-qualified teachers. The will to learn
was unbelievably high among students. One of the biggest
achievements in the field of education during this turbulent
period was the establishment of Gadjah Mada University in
Yogyakarta.

It was "assembled" by academic elements which used to operate
the Medical College in Jakarta and the Technological College in
Bandung who evacuated to Yogyakarta. These two groups of
academicians were reinforced by academicians formerly associated
with the College for Law in Jakarta, the College for Agriculture
in Bogor, and the College for Letters in Jakarta. These three
colleges were closed during the Japanese occupation.

The establishment of Gadjah Mada University was followed by
the establishment of Universitas Islam Indonesia (Indonesian
Islamic University), sponsored by intellectuals with a strong
leaning toward Islamic political and cultural orientation.

It was believed that the founding of this Islamic university
was another reflection of the political situation during the
political movement for independence, which had always rested on
two political movements: the nationalism-oriented wing, and the
Islam-oriented wing.

This kind of situation lasted until December, 1949, when
finally the sovereignty of the Indonesian government was
officially recognized by the Dutch with the exception of West
Irian.

From the early 1950s steps were taken to rehabilitate the
educational system. School buildings were rebuilt or renovated,
textbooks were either revised or republished and distributed, and
school equipment was refurbished. The educational bureaucracy was
revived and teacher welfare was significantly improved. This did
not last long, however, due to the deteriorating condition of the
country's economy.

The continuous fragmentation of political parties that marked
the era of "liberal democracy" (1950 to 1958) made it impossible
for any cabinet to last long enough and restore the foundations
of the country's economy. It was due to the professional spirit
within the educational system that this severe political rivalry
within the society did not affect the daily operations within the
educational system.

The Ministers of Education and Culture did come and go during
this period, but life within the educational system went on
smoothly, undisturbed by the political turmoil that went on
within political circles. Below the ministerial level no
appointment was made on the basis of political consideration.

The positions of secretary-generals, director generals,
inspector generals down to lower echelons functions were occupied
by persons who were appointed on the basis of their professional
merit, not on the basis of their political affiliations. This
situation made it possible for the entire educational system to
function and behave in a professional way.

During this period efforts to elevate the academic quality of
the system were pursued tirelessly. A special agency was founded
in Bandung to act as a center for distant learning operations to
increase the academic quality of elementary school teachers
throughout the country. High school teachers and college
lecturers were sent abroad for advanced study.

Foreign agencies like UNESCO, the Ford Foundation, and the
Rockefeller Foundation were invited to help modernize colleges
and other academic bodies. The result was a steady improvement of
certain academic institutions which later on would become centers
of academic vitality.

It was also during this period that private schools began to
flourish. Government schools were not able to accommodate the
demand for both elementary and secondary education. In every city
private schools sprung up, sponsored by various types of
organizations, ranging from religious organizations to loose
organizations of groups of teachers who saw the opportunity of
establishing their own schools.

Madrasah began to take root within society. Two reasons were
responsible for the growth of madrasah during this period: the
shortage of educational facilities and a desire for modern
education based on Islamic orientation.

The madrasah that came into existence during this period were
either founded by the Ministry of Religious Affairs, or privately
owned, but operating under the auspices of the Ministry. This
situation changed abruptly in 1959, when the late President
Sukarno decided to change the political system of the country
from "liberal democracy" to "guided democracy".

This political system lasted until 1965, when its end was
marked by the abortive coup carried out by elements within the
Armed Forces sympathizing with the Indonesian Communist Party.

During this period political forces succeeded in penetrating
the educational system. Student organizations and teacher unions
were split into two camps: those sympathizing with, and those
against, the left-wing movements.

Provincial governments demanded the establishment of their own
universities. The policy of sending university students and
university lecturers to western countries was replaced by a new
policy of sending students and lecturers to the East-bloc
countries of Russia, Hungary, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, etc.

The overall result of this political shift was the drastic
decline in the academic quality of the educational system.
Academic standards were lowered to meet political demands,
curricula were altered to accommodate political needs of the
ruling groups, and political indoctrination was required for all
university lecturers.

This indoctrination was conducted through the notorious
MANIPOL-USDEK courses, in which participants were indoctrinated
to accept ideas contained in the speeches of the late President
Soekarno, starting from his Manifesto Politik, a speech he
delivered on Aug. 17, 1959, to his other speeches about the
return to the 1945 Constitution (Undang-Undang Dasar 1945, the U
within the USDEK acronym), Sosialisme Indonesia (the S element),
and the Demokrasi Ekonomi (the DEK element).