Populism in Indonesian Education Narratives: A Case Study and Its Implications

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-321-4_24How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Populist narratives; Indonesian Education policies; Actantial model

Abstract

This study examines populist narratives embedded within President Joko Widodo's education policies in Indonesia, specifically focusing on the “Merdeka Belajar” (Freedom to Learn) curriculum and reforms in basic education. Employing A.J. Greimas's actantial model, the research analyzes how these policies construct narratives of empowerment for the “ordinary people” (students, lecturers) against perceived “elites” (bureaucracy, traditional systems). In basic education, policies like the zoning system and Kartu Indonesia Pintar (KIP) aim to democratize access and reduce inequality, but face resistance from established elites. In higher education, “Kampus Merdeka” seeks to align education with economic goals and empower academics, but grapples with limitations on academic freedom and anti-intellectualism. The study concludes that while Jokowi's policies hold potential for positive change, their success hinges on addressing challenges like systemic resistance, regional disparities, and the balance between populist aspirations and critical thinking. Recommendations include safeguarding academic freedom, addressing regional inequities, engaging stakeholders, and fostering a culture of innovation within the education systemThe abstract should summarize the contents of the paper in short terms, i.e. 15–250 words.

Copyright

© 2024 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

Download article (PDF)

TY  - CONF
AU  - Susanto Susanto
AU  - Bani Sudardi
AU  - Mahendra Wijaya
AU  - Sri Kusumo Habsari
PY  - 2024
DA  - 2024/12/24
TI  - Populism in Indonesian Education Narratives: A Case Study and Its Implications
BT  - Proceedings of the Third International Conference on Communication, Language, Literature, and Culture (ICCoLliC 2024)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 333
EP  - 341
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-321-4_24
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-321-4_24
ID  - Susanto2024
ER  -