Children are an asset for their parents and this notion so that education is a means of a guaranteeing the children’s life. One of the educational aspects is character building which will become a daily life principle. Noticing the significance of character building, Indonesian government seeks to conduct a character building reinforcement program.
A doctoral student of Psychology of Islamic Education of Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY) Eniwati Kaidir conducted research on the character building at SMA Islam As-Shofa, Pekanbaru.
At his dissertation defense at Amphitheater of Kasman Singodimedjo on Tuesday (13/11), Eniwati stated that some parties argued that many educational institutions failed to build characters and morals of this nation. Thus, innovation is necessary. “Some people think that many educational institutions could not generate noble students. To cope with the issue, educational methods, strategies, and approaches should be improved because all of the aspects determine effectiveness and efficiency of character building. Schools are formal educational institutions are demanded to instill morals and characters in accordance with this nation’s characteristics,” she presented.
Eniwati added that character building is the first process for children. “As a building, character building is a foundation for coining excellent characters. Therefore, Yayasan Pendidikan As-Shofa tried to apply the character building based on psychology of Islamic Education in various learning activities, called Aplikasi Kegiatan Spiritual Islam (AKSI-Islamic Activity Application). For instance, the institution carried out worship activities and implemented faith values and good deeds. Through the activities, students are expected to have al-mahmudah morals and avoid despicable characters so that they can run their life as Islamic teaching and keep themselves in social interaction,” she maintained.
“The character building is for not only students but also teachers and staffs. It is expected that the teachers and staffs can be role models for the students. Hence, all character building systems can be integrated comprehensively,” said Eniwati.
Besides, Enwati wished that her dissertation could contribute to the betterment of character buildings of Indonesian educational institutions.
