The purpose of this article is to respond to the survey findings of the Center for Islamic and Society Studies (PPIM) at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University in Jakarta, in particular its examination of the phenomenon of increasing conservatism and radicalism because of religious education in schools.

Similar research has, indeed, been conducted by the Center for Religious and Cross-Cultural Studies (CRCS) at Gadjah Mada University in relation to the construction of tolerance among students at the high school level in Yogyakarta.

From 2006 until 2008, the CRCS conducted qualitative research as well as survey research which was distributed to students at 11 high schools (SMA) in Yogyakarta. We divided the schools into four types: State schools, Islamic schools, Christian schools and nationalist schools.

The research revealed that the schools do not teach religion so that students can learn critically about their own and other religious traditions. Religion is taught by transmission using the one-way learning method.

In many schools, the freedom of asking critical questions in religious class was limited. Religion is taught as being totally divine and as "hygienic" from critical thinking. In addition to this, teaching the truth claims of its own religion are the most common phenomenon in class.

Almost 80 percent of the surveyed students said that religious instruction focuses more on the theological aspects rather than looking at religion from a perspective of social needs. On the other hand, 96.2 percent of the students agreed that a religion class should be required for all students in Indonesia from pre-primary to tertiary level of education with a big note that religion should fit and become an alternative solution to societal problems.

Meanwhile, 87.7 percent of the students believed that the religious material was not delivered well in class and the students wanted better methods for teaching religion.

As one of the important elements of the school's teaching process, teachers were included in this measuring process. Most students perceived that their teachers did not introduce them to other religious teachings and traditions. In some schools, however, students did receive an introduction to other religious traditions.

Those who did receive teaching about other religious traditions, however, said they accepted it in an unsympathetic way; 78.8 percent of the students said their teacher taught about other religions from their own perspective.

The instruction was designed to justify the superiority of the teacher's religion, rather than to find similarities and to create a better understanding of other religious traditions.

The reason why the instructor teaches other religious traditions in a negative way is that, according to the students, the teacher has very limited information about other religions. Approximately 78.8 percent of the students believed that the information about other religions was taken from their teacher's understanding of their own tradition.

It is very interesting that most of the teachers have religious affiliation with either the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) or Muhammadiyah. The question then is how does such a phenomenon happen? Is there problems in transmitting the idea of pluralism from the elite to the grassroots level?

This study found a significant correlation between the religious exclusivity as taught in class and students with an exclusive theological perspective. This survey shows that most students perceive that their own religions are better than others.

The survey findings show that 48.6 percent of students have relatives from a different religious tradition. Approximately 8.7 percent have a brother or sister with different religious beliefs.

As they have lived and interacted with people from other religious traditions, 55.7 percent of them have visited other religious places of worship with their friends; some of them have only visited other religious places of worship once, while others twice or more. They believed that visiting places of religious worship has nothing to do with the religious arena.

More than 78 percent of students welcomed other believers to conduct religious rituals around their homes. Students perceived that conducting religious rituals is a human right, which should be respected.

What can we learn from this?

This study showed that students have experience of religious pluralism from within their families. They have been living with different religious backgrounds in harmony. However, this study has found that the religious education students receive in schools does not provide enough space to create inter-religious dialogue among the students.

Moreover, teachers, teaching materials and methodology are three barriers to teaching pluralism that should be taken into account. A teacher instructs according to the National Curriculum and this should be re-examined, especially as there is a need for more topics related to teaching other religions. We would, furthermore like to recommend:

First, empower social resources to create pluralism. Yogyakarta is probably a sample of how social and cultural conditions shape individuals to be pluralistic, rather than the schools' education systems.

Second, involve local wisdom in the schools' religious curriculum. This study found that local wisdom binds people together and creates social solidarity. This common ground is an important source of creating tolerance among people.

Third, empower the role of the family in creating religious tolerance, as this study found that 92.3 percent of the respondents receive religious teaching from their parents at home.

The writer is a researcher of the Center for Religious and Cross-cultural Studies (CRCS) Gadjah Mada University and of the Department of Empirical Religious Studies, the Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen, the Netherlands.

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