Amin Abdullah
Islamic Education in Indonesia has had a long history in
the archipelago. Although unsytematic, it has in its various iterations, served
Muslims communities since the early coming of Islam to the area. According to
Saefuddin, Islamic education in Indonesia started from a forum of Islamic
instructions (pengajian) held by the carrier and preacher of Islam in citizens’
houses mosques. The forum was then consolidated into pesantren and madrasah
(Saefuddin, 1995: 237). The Pillars of Islamic Education Seen from its
stakeholders, at least five pillars of Islamic education in Indonesia can be
listed: Pesantren, Madrasah, Islamic schools under Muslim organizations,
Islamic Integrated Schools, and Majelis Taklim . Before the twentieth century,
pesantren were the only formal institutions of Islamic education in the
archipelago, mainly on Java Island (Lukens-Bull, 2004: 299). Pesantren were
identified as an Islamic education system whose sole focus was on Islamic
curricula. In pesantren santri (students) from various backgrounds studied
Islamic values and teachings from the Kyai (teacher). Like the pesantren,
madrasah were also know for their core focus on center for the instruction of
Islamic teaching and Arabic language. But unlike the pesantren, where the Kyai
is the one who has the authority to teach students and determine the curricula,
madrasah were usually managed by a group of Muslims, and one who delivered
Islamic teaching, called guru or Ustadz. “Secular sciences” such as natural
sciences, math, and other social and humanistic sciences were not taught in
Indonesia until the Dutch government introduced school on the basis of the
“Western educational system.” Responding to the fact that only a few native
Indonesians were able to study in Dutch schools, a number of nationalist and
Muslim organizations endeavoured to transfer and combine the Dutch educational
system with an Islamic and cultural-based one. From a Javanese-nationalist
front, Ki Hajar Dewantara established Taman Siswa, and from Islamic groups,
K.H. Ahmad Dahlan founded Muhammadiyah, by which the classical system was
introduced to the Muslim community. After the independence of Indonesia, the
Dutch system was adopted by the Ministry of Education and Culture (MOEC),
currently Ministry of National Education (MONE), under a system called public
schools, and the madrasah was developed by the Ministry of Religious Affairs
(MORA). MONE administers public education from the six years of primary
education called SD, the three years of junior secondary called SMP, the three
years of senior secondary known as SMU, to the higher education such as
Universities and Polytechnical schools MORA administers Madrasah from primary
to higher MI (six years elementary), MTs (three years junior secondary), MA
(three years senior secondary), and STAIN/IAIN/UIN (four to five year
universities). The difference between the public schools and the madrasah in
terms of Islamic education is that the former provide no less more? than 2
hours of religious (Islamic) education per week, whereas the latter trying to
combine both religious and secular sciences, provide their students almost 30%
Islamic teaching and 70% “secular” sciences. Some programs even provide 70%
Islamic teaching and 30% secular sciences. Unlike the pesantren, public schools,
and the madrasah, Islamic schools run by Muslim organizations, such as
Muhammadiyah, Al Ma’arif of Nahdhatul Ulama, PIRI of Ahmadiyah, and many
others, are private schools based on the “secular system” of the public schools
only with more elements of Islamic teachings. The quantity and quality of their
Islamic educations is however still less than in pesantren and madrasah. Such
schools also refer to MONE policy and administration. In addition, the schools
do not try to integrate Islamic values in their secular sciences as in the
madrasah. As noted by Azra (1999), MORA tried to gather Muslim experts in order
to develop curricula that integrated Islamic values in all secular sciences.
The policy was implemented as part of a strategy to internalize Islamic values
in madrasah, so Islamic teaching would function not only as a symbol as in many
Islamic Schools. The coming of reformation in 1998 unlocked the public
aspiration of Muslim groups that previously walked under ground in the New
Order era. A number of young Muslims who were dissatisfied with both the
schools under MONE and MORA as well as the pesantren, most of them Tarbiyah
activists, introduced Islamic integrated schools, called TKIT, SDIT, SMPIT, and
SMAIT. These schools combine Islamic and secular systems in a more systematic
way. For example, the schools reject Darwin’s theory of evolution and prefer
creationism in their Biology classrooms. Unlike previous schools that are
private and public, all Islamic integrated schools are private and introduce a
full-day school system that meets the needs of new urban Muslim societies who
are overwhelmed by their daily business and work. Although the tuition fee of
the these schools is more expensive than the others, for the new urban Muslims,
sending their children to a full-day Islamic Integrated school makes them feel
safe from the huge mass of information and rumors of juvenile delinquencies
found in many regular schools. In addition to the formal Islamic education run
by the pesantren, the madrasah, and other Islamic schools, there is another
pillar of Islamic education which is community-based and more informal than the
other. This kind of Islamic educations called Majelis Ta’lim. Majelis Ta’lim
differs from previous Islamic education systems that focus on student cohorts;
the audience and participants of the Majlis Ta’lim are mostly women from mother
cohorts. Religious Diversity in Indonesia Indonesia is an archipelago known for
its cultural and social diversity. With more than 200,000 islands, fewer than 30%
of which are inhabited, and more than 300 different ethnicities all with their
own cultural practices and traditions, Indonesia is the world’s largest
archipelago and the fourth most populated nation. Politically, although
Indonesia is neither a secular nor a theocratic state, the government of the
state has a significant power to control religious life through its apparatus.
The latest Indonesian census shows that among its 220 million people, 88
percent are Muslim. Other religious groups include Protestants 5%, Roman
Catholics 3%, Hindus 2%, Buddhists 1%, and others 1% (Boyle and Sheen, 2001:
200-208). Although Muslims are the majority, their distribution is not evenly
spread. Some regions, mainly in eastern Indonesia, have almost equal numbers of
Christians and Muslims, such as in Maluku, Manado, and many others. Some parts
even have Christian majorities, such as in Nusa Tenggara Timur and Papua, and,
of course, the island of Bali which is over 90% Hindu. Responses of Islamic
Education to the Religious Diversity in Indonesia Theologically, non Muslims
were seen as the “other” by Muslims, based on the classical construction of
Islamic teaching. The construction of fiqh and ilmu kalam on non-Muslims, for
example, denotes them as musyrik or kafir. The problem is how Muslim, should
deal with the “other” in their every day lives. Should Muslims regard
non-Muslims as their enemy to be defeated or as those who should be converted
to Islam? The Qur’an actually appreciates religious diversity on earth. Some
Qur’anic verses clearly describe that Allah SWT does not intend to create
people in a single identity, as stated in QS 10: 99 and 2: 256 below: And if
thy Lord had pleased, all those who are in earth would have believed, all of
them. Wilt thou then force men till they are believers? There is no compulsion
in religion–the right way is indeed clearly distinc from error. So whoever
disbelieves in the devil and believes in Allah, he indeed lays hold on the
firmest handle which shall never break. And Allah is hearing knowing. The
Qur’an even recognizes religious pluralism, as stated in QS 2: 62 Surely those
who believe, and those who are Jews, and the Christians, and the Sabians,
whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day and does good, they have their
reward with their Lord, and there is no fear for them, nor shall they grieve.
Although the Qur’an definitely describes the availability of religious
pluralism, different interpretations of the verses appear among various Muslim
groups, including Islamic education stake holders. A number of Muslim groups
appreciates the verses and develops an inclusive, even pluralist, point of
view; but some other groups interpret the verses differently and develop
exclusive perspectives. Different interpretations would then lead them to have
distinct points view and attitudes toward non- Muslims and the reality of
religious diversity. Briefly speaking, considering the fact that Indonesia is
full of diversity, religious and otherwise, each pillar of Islamic education
has come up with different responses. Some of them definitely understand that
diversity is part of sunnatullah, so they develop educational systems curricula
and content to teach their students in order to be ready to live together in a
plural society. Such an opinion mostly holds true for madrasah under the
auspices of MORA and the pesantrens. For example, one of the subject being
studied in the religious program of Madrasah Aliyah is Comparative Religion. In
the State Institutes of Islamic Studies as well as State Islamic University,
Comparative Religion is even a Department under the faculty of Ushuluddin. Some
pesantren have also developed programs in interreligious dialogue and their
Kyai actively engage in interfaith institutions as in Pesantren Nurul Ummahat
Kota Gede Yogyakarta. In addition, a number of pesantren alumni are not
hesitant to become involved in Non-Governmental Organizations working on
interfaith activities and promoting toleration among religions. It should be
noted, however, that not all pesantren have developed an inclusive point of
view toward non-Muslims. Some of them, mainly the pesantren under the
influences of the Wahhabis of Saudi Arabia and connected to ideological
Salafis, have tended to develop exclusive perspectives. How about Islamic
education in private and public schools under MONE? Due to their limited hours
for Islamic education in public schools, only 2 hours a week, it is difficult
to classify which perspective developed in the schools. Nevertheless, because
the curricula developed in the school is “controlled” by the state, it is easy
to assume that Islamic education in public schools promotes national unity and
appreciates differences. In addition, the mixed gender and religious background
of student in every class is a good media to teach students how to behave with
each other regardless of their religious background. The schools, then, can be
plural landscapes providing students good opportunities to deal with people
from various religious backgrounds. The climate of religious diversity is difficult
to find in Islamic Schools administrated by certain Muslim organizations,
especially those that admit and educate only Muslim students, such as Islamic
Integrated Schools. Facing the Future: What should Islamic Education do in the
era of religious diversity? Faced with the era of multiculturalism and the
problem of religious diversity, Islamic education should: first, introduce
contemporary issues that the Muslim community deals with every day in addition
to the explanation of classical Islamic teaching. The students of Islamic
education, therefore, should also be introduced to a social and humanistic
approach, such as psychology, sociology, and anthropology. Psychological
knowledge would make students empathetic to other people’s problems. Sociological
perspectives could lead students to be sympathetic toward minority groups. And
anthropological approaches could introduce students to the issue of interaction
between culture and religion. Second, the goal of Islamic teaching should be
directed to problem solving on the basis of human-to-human relations. In this
light, the historical dimension of Islamic teaching should be emphasized to
students instead of merely the doctrinal one. Emphasizing the historical
dimension of Islamic teaching would lead Muslim students to appreciate the
differences, noting that Islam lives among various religions and beliefs. In
this regard, it is imperative to emphasize the importance of religious
sensibility to the students. Amidst the high tension of discourse on the prophet
caricature as well as the Pope’s controversial speech as, the students of
Islamic education should able to respond to the issues wisely and
strategically. Instead of angery judging western society as barbaric, telling
the publishers or the editor of the news/paper that they have humiliated
Muslims would have been an effective strategy. In the case of the Pope’s
speech, in my opinion, giving him forgiveness would strengthen the impression
that Islam is religion of peace. After massive Muslim protests around the world
to the publication of the Prophet caricatures by the Jlllands Posten of Denmark
and the Pope’s refusal to ask for forgiveness for his blunder, it’s clear that
the lack of “feeling of other people” or religious sensibility is not only the
problem of Islamic education and community but also the problem of people
around the world. Third, Islamic teaching that was previously dominated by
deductive narration, which is more textual, should be contextualized with what
Muslim communities face in the contemporary world in terms of society, politic,
economy, culture, and so forth. Islamic education, therefore, should develop
the possibility of integration and interconnection among the tradition of text
(Nash), science, and philosophy. Fourth, Islamic education that is currently
criticized for its emphasis on the cognitive dimension should also focus on
other aspects of students affective and psychomotor dimensions. This means that
Islamic education should not only strive to increase students intelligence but
should drive them to be spiritually and morally healthy. In the context of
religious diversity and other multicultural aspects, Islamic education should
not only dedicate its vision and mission to spread “individual morality” but
also “public morality”. The latter type of morality seems to be more important
considering that it is connected to the structural reality of social, economic,
cultural, and political life. In sum, Islamic education should actively engage
in contemporary issues, should deal with social and humanistic sciences, should
be able to contextualize its normative teaching, should be directed to
problem-solving on the basis of mutual human relationships, and should broaden
its vision to spread public morality.
References
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2002.
Azra, Azumardi. “The Rise of Muslim Elite Schools: A New
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Studies, No: 64/XII/1999.
Boyle, Kevin, and Juliet Sheen, (eds.). Freedom of
Religious Belief: A Word Report. London & New York: Routledge, 2001.
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A paper presented in the Open Forum held by
USINDO, Washington, November, 21, 2006.
Professor of Islamic Studies in The State
Islamic University of Sunan Kalijaga, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
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