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From Mohankumar P K
INNOVATION IN EDUCATION
INGGY YULIANI PRIBADY 0805980(15
th
OCTOBER 2008)
I.INTRODUCTION
The word innovation, according to the Oxford Dictionary, means theintroduction of novelties, the alteration of what is established, a novel practice anda change in established methods. Generally, in the field of education to innovate isto create something new which markedly deviates from traditional practices whichhave been followed since a long time to impart education at different levels.(Chauhan 1979: v)Innovation is necessary in education because we are now in the middle of abig change of a new era. The changes involve all of the life aspects towards a newera which called globalization era. Indonesia as a big nation should has a positiverole in the globalization. We have to prepare ourselves to face it to be able tocompete with the other countries and not left behind.Preparing human resources through the mending of our educational system isone of the solutions to face the globalization. We are aware that our educationquality is far behind the other countries. Now, let’s see our closest neighbor,Malaysia and Singapore, our closest neighbor, in 70s and 80s we used to send ourteachers to Malaysia to assist their education. How about now? Malaysia andSingapore are running at top speed and left us far behind, their universities are onthe world’s Top 200 universities list. National University of Singapore ( 18
th
) ,Nanyang University ( 50
th
), Malaya University ( 89
th
),and Sains Malaya University( 111
th
)( Alwasilah 2008:38 ). The big question is: Can we catch them up?I think innovation in our educational system is the answer. In this essay, Iwould like to explain about the importance of educational innovation towards theglobalization era and the challenges, innovation in English language teaching inIndonesia, the curriculums and the role of vocational school to reduceunemployment.II.
EDUCATIONAL INNOVATION , GLOBALIZATION AND 21
ST
CENTURY CHALLENGES
1
In 21
st
century we face the new era called globalization. Globalization refersto the trend toward countries joining together economically, through education,society and politics, and viewing themselves not only through their national identitybut also as part of the world as a whole. Globalization is said to bring people of allnations closer together, especially through a common medium like the economy orthe Internet. (http://en.wikipedia.org.wiki/globalization, accessed August 2008).Globalization is expected to generate intensified competition among nations,particularly in the fields of economics, science and technology. In addition, themassive and extensive globalization process affects the changes of economic,political and social conditions. The structural shift of the economy generates newtrends and challenges which in turn affect the education system. Therefore, thereare needs to adapt education to the industrial needs of the community, as well asimprove science and technology to reach competitive excellence.Many countries are engaged in education reform in order to develop thehuman resources necessary to remain competitive in the international marketplace.One keyword in many of these reforms is
innovation
. However, innovation ineducation appears to have multiple meanings. Sometimes, it refers to the need foreducation to develop innovative people. Sometimes, it refers to new products,processes and business concepts within education itself.The issues of innovation in education involve complex and multi-facetedchallenges such as education policies, curriculum reforms, new diversity-orientedlearning technologies and methods. Moreover, the challenges faced may differ fromschool to school in each country, and from country to country. Therefore, thechallenges will have to take into account the specific nature of the educationinnovation in question, the context it is located, the teacher and student profile, thehistorical background of the country or region, local habits, needs and practices,ethics and even religious beliefs. (http://www.inderscience.com, accessedSeptember 2008 )In Indonesia the aim of education is to keep and maintain Indonesia’s culturalbackground and, on the other, to generate the knowledge, skills and scientificprogress that will keep the nation abreast in the twenty-first century. Nationaleducation should improve the life of the nation and develop the Indonesian peoplefully––i.e. intellectually, morally, spiritually, physically and socially.(http://www.englishunesco.htm, accessed September 2008)Indonesian government has conducted a lot of efforts in increasing the qualityof education. Despite enormous progress, particularly in the areas of primary schoolenrolment and illiteracy eradication, much remains to be done. Major challenges areidentified as the expansion of compulsory basic education from six to nine years,the improvement of the quality of primary and secondary education, and enhancinglearning achievements for all levels. Indonesia’s commitment to the further2
development of education is based on the recognition that development goes handin hand with advancement in science and technology. The government is alsomaking efforts in expanding educational opportunities at the basic, vocational, andprofessional levels through school and out-of-school channels.(http://www.englishunesco.htm, accessed September 2008)Indonesian government commitment in reforming the educational qualityshould be emphasized. Our educational quality is still far behind the other countries. The government is busy with the other complicated problems, such as: politicaldispute, corruption, bribery, ethnic riot and economical problems. We have to beaware that education is the main factor in building a nation. By increasingeducational quality in a country, the states economy of developed by it self becauseit has high quality of human resource. Additionally, education can increase growthby increasing the likelihood of innovation and technological change in an economy. Therefore the education innovation is a crucial agenda which has to be done to facethe globalization and 21
st
century rising demand for educated labour.III.
INNOVATION IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING IN INDONESIA
Teachers as a consumer of innovation have a power in educationalinnovation. Teachers make decisions whether they will implement the innovation ornot and the degree to which they will use it. (House 1974:67) Therefore teachersplay an important role in conducting innovations in education to improve its quality.The quality of education is most affected by the teachers’ instruction in theclassroom. Thus, teachers should think creatively to change the strategy of instruction and make the efforts to introduce new methods and evolve newtechniques of instruction suiting to our national needs.(Chauhan 1979: vii)To meet the demands of innovations in language teaching, Indonesiangovernment keeps trying to find the most suitable approach in teaching andlearning in English as foreign language. Some references of the teaching andlearning approach in English as foreign language are Grammar Translation Methodor GTM created by, Direct Method or DM created by, Audio-Lingual Method createdby, Humanistic Approach or Suggestopedia created by, Silent Way created by,Community Language Learning or CLL created by, Natural Approach created by, Total Physical Response or TPR created by, Communicative Language Learning orCLT created by, etc.Being referenced by some teaching approaches above, most of IndonesianEnglish teacher can be assumed only use Grammar Translation Method in theirteaching process in English as foreign language. It can be recognized from the3
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Innovation in Education
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