Academic Insularity
Its easy language, academic insularity is like "frogs under the coconut shell."
Ahmad Najib Burhani
Various issues and problems in our academic world become recurring discussions in 2023. Among them are related to the sale of titles, jockey services on campus for promotion or becoming professors, cases of plagiarism, professionalism of scientists, commercialization and industrialization of educational institutions, academic insularity, as well as related to functional position rules that make the time period to become a professor quite long.
In a discussion at the National Research Innovation Agency (BRIN) Region Research Center (PRW) on 7 March 2023, Vedi R Hadiz, an Indonesian scientist who became the vice rector at Melbourne University, discussed various forms of academic insularity in Indonesia and problems that shake academics.
The meaning of insularity here is the closure, ignorance, or less concerned with ideas, thoughts, culture, and also problems outside of themselves. Its easy language, academic insularity is like "frogs under the coconut shell." Forms of academic insulations include the lack of Indonesian scientists, even included in the scope of Indonesian studies, which are recognized as a global reputation.
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Many social science theories are born from the studies about Indonesia, but not carried out by Indonesian scientists. The theory of economic dualism (dual economy), which sees a dichotomy between the economy of large sectors and modern abilities next to the economy of small sectors with traditional capabilities, supermall vs. traditional markets, skyscrapers vs slums that surround them, was born by JH Booke.
The theory of nationalism as imagined by the community was born by Ben Anderson, the theory of a plural society was written by JS Furnivall, the theory of religion as a system of symbols was written Clifford Geertz, and the study of SD Inpres (Presidential Instruction on Elementary Schools), which later received a Nobel prize, was carried out by Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer.
Of course Indonesia has a number of scientists who are serious, dedicated, and whose reputation is recognized in the global academic community, such as Taufik Abdullah, Azyumardi Azra and the young people. However, the number is not much.
Thailand has scientists like Thongchai Winichakul, who has a very influential concept in the academic world about Thai Nationalism as written in his book Siam Mapped: A History of the Geo-Body of a Nation. The Philippines has scientists like Reynaldo Iloto, who wrote about the revolution, Pasyon and Revolution: Popular Movements in the Philippines, which has become a reference for the study of revolutionary movements in the world. Singapore, of course, has more international caliber scientists and one of them is Syed Hussein Alatas with his book The Myth of the Lazy Native.
Various writings have tried to analyze why there are various complexions and problems in our academic world,and why academic insularity occurs. Some see academic governance, such as the issue of education and research bureaucracy, as the main problem. Rakhmat Hidayat, in his writings Rise of Knowledge (Kompas, May 8, 2023), for example, mentioned the existence of "conservative bureaucratization" where "the state intervenes in procedural administration compared with the process of knowledge production itself."
Taufiqurrahman in The Toxic Culture of the Academic World (Kompas, 8 May 2023) mentioned feudalism, which still becomes our academic framework and system. This is shown among others in the many ceremonial events in academic institutions.
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This has not included low salary issues as written by Ahmad Arif in Polemic of Low Salary Lecturers (Kompas, 10 May 2023) and technocracy reviewed by Andrew Gloss in his book The Floracrats (2011).
Inayah Rakhmani, a lecturer at the University of Indonesia and a member of the Indonesian Young Scientist Academy, has conducted a variety of research on this academic issue since 2013. She, among others, saw several campuses that are transformed into state-owned legal entities (BHMN), which focus on collecting money and are caught into industry or commercialization of education services and whose instructors become "lecturer workers."
Beyond these things, there are interesting things put forward by Vedi R Hadiz related to the mentality of several lecturers and researchers who do not focus on their duties. They like to find a side job besides research work or nyambi. "Many of our researchers have the mentality of street vendors, not researchers [...] I am surprised by people who are already full-time lecturers or full-time researchers, but still have time to go everywhere," said Hadiz.
The academic world is part of a scientific culture; science is culture. It includes systems, governance, mentality and human habitus. When there is an encouragement of international publications while the peer review tradition is not strong, English is still weak, and writing according to global academic standards has not become a habit, not infrequently there is a trap of predatory journals or fake journal and vanity press (publishers who do not maintain quality and publish writing or books only because the authors pay).
Another form of fulfilling the demand is to publish in the form of proceedings. As written in Ranking Researcher: Evidence from Indonesia (2023), 62 percent of the total increase in publication from Indonesia is in the form of conference proceedings.
When lecturers on campus complain about the workload or Tri Dharma of Higher Education, researchers who are given the task with Eka Dharma only to examine and produce knowledge, with salary and performance allowances as major researchers of around Rp 27 million per month, apparently, many are looking for additional business by becoming lecturers. They are happy with the additional burden of teaching in addition to their main task as a researcher. There are more hours for teaching than researching and writing. There are even researchers who proudly upload their side work decree on social media.
Step by step, various activities have been carried out to realize the dream so that we get an honorable place in the global academic arena.
Various complaints and academic problems in Indonesia are actually about to be answered with the establishment of the BRIN, which on 28 April 2023 commemorated its second birthday. The mandate of the presence of the BRIN, among others, is to strengthen the national research and innovation ecosystem, a conducive ecosystem for the development of the nation's academic talents.
Various schemes have been running and are open to the public, including inviting fellows from home and abroad to become the enablers (the lever) of the research ecosystem. In addition, there are also a number of research funding schemes, such as basic research, research and innovation for advanced Indonesia (RIIM), funding of expedition and exploration, beginner research-based companies, testing of agricultural innovation products, testing health innovation products, screen day and research collaboration center.
Aside from being an executing agency or research implementing institution grouped in 12 research organizations, the BRIN also carries out the function of building and managing research and innovation infrastructure, handling the use of research and innovation such as connecting to industry, development of research and innovation in various regions in Indonesia, providing policy support based on research, as well as regulating policies or regulations related to research and innovation itself.
Of course efforts to strengthen the research and innovation ecosystem carried out by the BRIN are currently not as full as ideal. However, step by step, various activities have been carried out to realize the dream so that we get an honorable place in the global academic arena.
AHMAD NAJIB BURHANI, Research Professor at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN)
This article was translated by Hyginus Hardoyo.
