E

ighty-three years ago, on Oct. 28, 1928, a group of young men and women from far-flung islands assembled in Jakarta to pledge that they would be united under one motherland called Indonesia, one nation called Indonesia and one language — Bahasa Indonesia.

Since then, we have commemorated Youth Pledge on Oct. 28 every year, because this was the first time in our political history that representatives of the Indonesian youth from different ethnic and religious backgrounds had made a public declaration on the unity of our nation.

It is now important to raise the question of whether the spirit of Youth Pledge is weakening. Student brawls in various regions, the recent civil war in Ambon, or youngsters’ preference to use English over
Indonesian are telling evidence. Regarding the use of Indonesian, for instance, there seems to be evidence that students are no longer proud of Indonesian and that too much emphasis is placed on learning foreign languages, say English and Mandarin.

A myriad causal factors contribute to these matters. The poor teaching of Indonesian and poor self-reliance-based education, at least, deserve to be blamed. Granted, the national language is necessary but insufficient for keeping the country intact. Yet it is a medium of educating and modernizing this country.

The national language should be viewed as the best way to protect and restore a national legacy, due to its index of authenticity. It becomes an inspiring means to boost patriotism through the national language development.

Last year, 80,000 of the 154,000 senior high school students failed the national examinations, and had to repeat their Indonesian exams. I was really surprised to see how many students flunked their Indonesian paper. Indonesian lessons are apparently not interesting for children.

I trust that this has happened since the curriculum has become focused more on basic theories of Indonesian language rather than how it could be practiced every day. Not to mention the lack of suitable reading material printed in Indonesian.

To a certain extent, this is also a consequence of parents’ preference for using English when teaching children at home. While it is beneficial for children to be able to speak English, parents must know when to start teaching them this language. As Indonesians, they should teach them how to speak their own language first.

One may argue that teaching either English or Indonesian is not the issue. However, it matters when
Indonesians apparently feel more sophisticated and accepted in society when they speak English, suggesting a serious case of inferiority. Children read books written in English, watch movies from English speaking countries and even update their Facebook status in English, even though it is all grammatically incorrect. They seem to think it is better to write in broken English than perfect Indonesian.

For these reasons, the government must quickly attempt to revive students’ interest in the Indonesian language even though the era of globalization is forcing them to learn English. The government must review the curriculum and check if the Indonesian language taught at schools meets students’ needs.

The spirit of patriotism, particularly for young people, cannot be separated from and rests upon the country’s visionary education system. The government needs to provide youths with better ways to respect this country while recognizing their rights.

Compared to Japan and the US, Indonesian youths are not that bad in terms of scientific competition as long as they enjoy equal treatment and opportunity. The problem lies in their poor self-discipline. There must be a better approach in our attempts to create disciplined youths in this country.

For that purpose, I view a self-reliance-based approach as a promising means to developing students with strong ambition and self-confidence.

Although there are bright and talented students at campuses and a fairly high literacy rate among youths, there are not many who really think about their future or even attempt to enable themselves to reach high goals.

Many peers who can afford to go to university see university as a time of fun and partying. So, the point in our universities is not only about transforming learning and knowledge but also ensuring there is an outlet for the energetic youth. Exposing teenagers and the young to take an interest in cultural and artistic pursuits, like theater and contemporary arts, may wean them away from just hanging out at malls or playing video games at home.

Providing creative and energetic outlets for preparing students’ self-actualization is a fixed price to make students more self-reliant in times to come.

We see many differences between the youth in Europe or the US and those in Indonesia. While teenagers across the ocean are encouraged to get part-time jobs and work experience from an early age, our teenagers and even individuals in their early-to-late twenties are coddled, having no work experience and often still rely on their parents for income.

The self-reliance-based approach makes young people more dynamic and respectful toward others and other people’s perspectives. It is through self-reliance we can reach the dream of our founding fathers for a better Indonesia.

Have a great Youth Pledge Day!

The writer, a graduate of the University of Canberra, is a lecturer at Andalas University, Padang.