The commemoration of Independence Day should be a spiritual magnet that can unite the cracks in Indonesia-ness into a nationhood image.
By
YUDI LATIF
·5 minutes read
The commemoration of Independence Day should be a spiritual magnet that can unite the cracks in Indonesia-ness into a nationhood image. That in navigating our life together, we do not always have to be uniformed and agree on all issues.
However, the survival of a nation cannot be sustained without the love for our motherland (patriotism). And we cannot love the motherland without loving all human beings with all the diversity that exists in them. For that, we must always try to find a "common ground"; we must be able to build bridges between differences in order to pursue the goodness and happiness of living together.
In finding the common ground for the good and happiness of living together, we have a lot to learn from history. In the history of the growth of a nation, British historian, HG Wells, described it as a "race between education and catastrophe". That the failure of education will be punished by a catastrophe.
In nations that are less educated, there are more calamities. Education is a passport to achieve the goodness and happiness of living together. In order to foster progressive-positive patriotism, education plays an important role as a vehicle for cultivating basic capabilities and civic intelligence.
Regarding the significance of education in strengthening civic culture, Marcel Coenders and Peter Scheepers (2003) document various research results in relation to education and ethno-centric sentiment (negative attitudes toward differences). One of the most consistent findings is the negative association between educational achievement and ethnic prejudice. That people with higher education levels tend to develop less prejudice against differences in identity than those with less education.
This can be explained by the theory of socialization in relation to the central processes in the education system: the transfer of knowledge and information; cognitive capacity development; and the transfer of norms, values and behavior models. However, that does not mean that all highly educated people will always be like that. It really depends on the level of intensity and effectiveness of the socialization of norms, values and models of civic behavior in education.
In this connection, it is also necessary to look at what factors influence the character of education. One of them is the political culture factor.
Moreover, if the world of education tends to ignore education about values and prioritizes instrumental education, these exclusive and intolerant attitudes may afflict higher educated circles. In this connection, it is also necessary to look at what factors influence the character of education. One of them is the political culture factor.
Frederick D. Weil (1985) proposes a thesis that the values transmitted by a country\'s education system reflect the country\'s (official) political culture, which in turn is determined by the form of the developing regime.
In this connection, the negative relationship between the level of education and the prejudice of ethno-nationalism is caused by the dissemination of democratic citizenship values in educational institutions.
Furthermore, it is said that the values transmitted in the world of education reflect the dominant political culture. Therefore, the effect of education in undermining intolerance and ethno-centrism will be smaller in countries with less democratic political cultures or that have had less long to develop their democratic traditions.
Using cross-country survey data (covering 22 countries), collected through The International Social Survey Program, Coenders and Scheepers found that the effect of education on the dissolution of ethno-centric attitudes was weaker in countries with newly developing democratic cultures than in countries with an established democratic tradition.
Neither of them found evidence that a plural society would automatically develop educational institutions that were stronger in teaching tolerant values and attitudes.
In the final analysis, the effect of religious heterogeneity on strengthening a tolerant culture must be supported by the political culture that is grown in schools. With these various theoretical frameworks and empirical realities, educational efforts in fostering an inclusive nationality in Indonesia can take a number of steps.
First, we must seek wider access for the community to pursue higher education levels. Second, high levels of education alone are not sufficient, but education commitment must be followed to cultivate civic norms, values and behavior, as well as a democratic political culture.
At the same time, democracy which has just developed again in this country is only procedural democracy.
So far, education puts too much emphasis on teaching pragmatic-instrumental aspects, paying less attention to the education of values. At the same time, democracy which has just developed again in this country is only procedural democracy. Culturally, it is still feudalistic-authoritarian.
There have been no serious efforts to develop a democratic culture at the heart of education. For this reason, "independence" education that we need is not only explicit knowledge related to strengthening cognitive capacities and skills for physical development, but also tacit knowledge related to strengthening the soul and personality of the nation.
Indonesia is racing against time to overcome the degeneration of ethical-ideological values and national identity. No matter how great the achievements of physical development are, if the soul of the nation is fragile, our national resilience is shaken.
As Alexis de Tocqueville stated: "If the habits of the heart that are cultivated by civic associations and government evaporate, citizens will fall back towards pure egoism. They will stop thinking about anything bigger than their own circle. Public life will disappear. And that will only hasten their helplessness." It complies with the national anthem: "wake up the soul, wake up the body, for Greater Indonesia!"