Forewords from Editor
Vol 4 No 2 April 2013
Dear, TAWARIKH reader.
As we know that history as a subject matter learned at school in Indonesia, and I think also in other countries, is considered boring and, to some extent, has become the subject of derision. One of the reasons is because teacher, as a transmitter of knowledge, has lack of extensive insight so that the management of the teaching and learning process in the classroom is not varied. The materials provided focus only on "What, Who, When, and Where"; and less emphasis is put on elaborating such information as "How and Why" of historical events occurred.
There's a common joke amongst history teachers in Indonesia that situates a classroom interaction. Here it goes: a history teacher asked, "When was the war of Diponegoro in Java?" The students responded spontaneously but gave ridiculous answer, "Just five minutes, sir. It was after sunset and before the Isya prayer, 18:25 to 18:30". The time mentioned actually indicated the years of the war, but they way the students memorized the information is by referring to reading the hours, not the years which were supposed to be 1825 - 1830 AD (Anno Domini). This way aimed at making the students easier to memorize, at the same time, demeans the essences of studying history itself. The teacher did not further elicit from the students such information as the circumstances of the war, why it happened, and how impact did it cause on the society and the colonial government of the time.
Going deeper into "how and why" requires more analysis and broad historical insights; memorizing and knowing by heart are just not enough. To be able to provide analytical and synthetical answers requires extensive knowledge of the process and intensive reading results. In Indonesian society where oral tradition is more dominant than the written tradition, including reading, expecting a figure of history teachers who has rich knowledge and extensive insight seems rather difficult to find. I remember an advice of the late Professor Dr. Sartono Kartodirdjo, the famous historian from Gadjah Mada University (UGM) in Yogyakarta. He said, "If a history lecturer wants to have high intellectual asceticism attitudes, he/she should read a lot, at least 8 hours a day". Then, I often ask my students in class about how much time they have invested in reading a book in a day? The answer is surprising me, that in the first 10 to 15 minutes they have already been sleepy and unfocused to the reading material.
One of the objectives of publishing TAWARIKH journal is, therefore, to increase the interest and power of reading, especially for students, history teachers and lecturers, as well as other academics who are interested in History and History Education in Indonesia. This, I think, is the essence and is relevant to the Indonesian first President, Soekarno's message about JAS MERAH, abbreviation of "Jangan Sekali-kali Meninggalkan Sejarah" (do not ever leave the history); and criticism of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad from Malaysia about MML, abbreviation of "Melayu Mudah Lupa" (Malays easily forgot). Accordingly, reading the history will help us remember forever. (Dr. Haji Syamsu A. Kamaruddin, Rector of UVRI)
Contents
TAWARIKH:
International Journal for Historical Studies
Volume 4, Number 2, April 2013
NAWIYANTO,
Coping
with the Crises: Historical Comparison on Responses to the Crises in the
Extreme Salient of Java.
RIZAL ZAMANI IDRIS,
BILCHER BALA & AZIZAN H. MORSHIDI,
Sabah (Malaysia) - Australia Relations: An
Historical Observation.
MAGDALIA ALFIAN,
Keroncong Music Reflects
the Identity of Indonesia.
SYAMSU A. KAMARUDDIN,
The Existence of Tonasa Cement Factory and its
Impact to Surrounding People in South Sulawesi, Indonesia.
RUBY ANN L. AYO,
Integrating Gender Fair Education
in the Teaching of Philippine History in Bicol University.
ZEFFRY ALKATIRI & MATHAR MOEHAMMAD KAMAL,
Modern Malay Rhythm Music Trend as Popular Culture in Indonesia, 1950-1960's: A Sociological Analysis.
IRFANSYAH,
Influence of Visual Framing Code in
Sundanese Golek Performance on
Television.
Signing the MoA (Memorandum of Agreement) between Chairperson of ASPENSI and Rector of UVRI Makassar for joining publication of the TAWARIKH journal in Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, on December 22, 2011.