Ki Hajar Dewantara, Santri Nusantara Breaker Education

May 2 for the Indonesian people is very meaningful. Because on that day the National Education Day (Hardiknas) is always celebrated. What is very special is the determination of May 2 as National Education Day taken from the birthday of a national figure named Raden Mas Suwardi Suryaningrat who changed his name in 1922 to Ki Hajar Dewantara (KHD) who was born in Pakualaman May 2, 1888.

Why is KHD immortalized as an educational figure? He was the one who dared to break the indigenous education system. KHD fought for the educational rights of indigenous people with extraordinary struggle.

His critical spirit towards the Dutch colonialism led him to be expelled from Java and exiled to Bangka to the Netherlands (1913). Together with the triad of KHD, Ernest Doewes and Cipto Mangunkusumo these educational ideas for you native came up.

After returning from the Netherlands in September 1919, KHD began concentrating in education. KHD then joined his brother's target school. This teaching experience was then used to develop teaching concepts for schools that he founded the National Onderwijs Instituut Tamansiswa or Tamansiswa National College on July 3, 1922.

Because of his success in fostering the world of education, KHD had served as Minister of Education in the Soekarno era on September 2, 1945 to November 14, 19458. That was what made him the title as the second National Hero.

The motto in the education system that he uses is now very well known in Indonesian education circles. The Javanese motto reads ng ngarso sung tulodo, ing madyo mangun karso, tut wuri handayani (in front of giving examples, in the middle of encouraging, behind giving encouragement).

The principles in this motto are still used in the world of education of the Indonesian people until now. Where with that pattern, we all will get the wisdom of the pattern of education based on the morality of mercy.

Who should KHD be? KHD is an Indonesian santri who is very striving to fight for Indonesian education. Zainul Milal Bizawie in "Islamic Nusantara Masterpiece: Sanad and Ulama-Santri Network 1830-1945)" emphasized that KHD is a santri.

Even when asked by the writer via WA, Milal answered with an explanation like this: "One of the teachers is a Kyai whose name is Kyai Sulaiman Zainuddin, located in the Prambanan Region. There are many students, one of whom he has a student named Suwardi Suryaningrat (Ki Hajar Dewantara). KHD used to study Al-Qur'an, he was a santri. But unfortunately the history of Ki Hajar Dewantara used to study Al-Qur'an has never been explained by teachers at school ".

It is in this context that we need to uncover more depth of KHD. Milal also stressed that those who said Kyai Sulaiman Zainuddin had a student of Suwardi Suryaningrat studying there, was in the History of Taman Siswa. In addition, Ki Hajar is also a descendant of Ki Ageng Giring.

So, as a reflection of the 2016 National Education Day, it is appropriate for the Indonesian people to emulate the ideology of KHD and make education the basis for noble morals and the development of a religious vision.

It is not true that Hardiknas only contains marches, ceremonies and contests whose contents are not educative. Awaken Indonesian education with a vision of progress and peace.

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