3 Factors Associated with Teacher Intolerance and Radicalism in Indonesia
PPIM Says Kindergarten / RA Teachers Tend to Be More Intolerant and Radical
October 18, 2018
‘Private teachers tend to be more intolerant than public teachers’
October 18, 2018
NU.OR.ID – Director of the Center for Islamic and Community Studies (PPIM) UIN Jakarta, Saiful Umam, said that there are three things that are closely related to intolerance and radicalism among teachers in Indonesia. First, Islamism. For Umam, Islamism is different from Islam itself.
“The Islamism factor is an important variable related to teacher intolerance and radicalism,” he said at the 2018 PPIM Survey Launching: National Survey on the Religious Attitudes of School / Madrasah Teachers in Indonesia in Jakarta, Tuesday (16/10).
Islamism, he explained, is a view that emphasizes how Islamic law should be used as the main reference source in all aspects of life, including in the political realm.
As many as 62.22 percent of teachers agree that the best government system is based on Islamic law. Meanwhile, as many as 82.77 percent of teachers admitted that they agreed that Islam was the solution to all society’s problems.
Second, demographics. Gender, private and public schools, teacher income, and education level are also linked to teacher intolerance and radicalism. For example, female teachers (mean = 46.53) had a higher opinion of intolerance to followers of other religions than male teachers (mean = 48.05). Likewise in the radical action intentions: female teachers (mean = 48.08; mean = 50.08), while male teachers (mean = 55.1; mean = 56.3).
“Kindergarten or RA teachers also have a higher intolerance opinion than SD, MI, SMP, MTs, SMA, or MA teachers,” he said.
Third, mass organizations and sources of Islamic knowledge. According to Umam, the involvement of teachers with Islamic organizations either now or when they were students was also a factor related to intolerance and radicalism among teachers.
The teachers claim to be close to five Islamic organizations, namely Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Muhammadiyah, Nahdlatul Wathan (NW), the Al-Qur’an Tafsir Council (MTA), and the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI). However, only 33.65 percent of teachers admitted to being very active/active in these Islamic organizations. Meanwhile, the rest (66.35 percent) admitted that they were not or very active.
This survey was conducted between 6 August and 6 September 2018. The total sample of teachers surveyed was 2,237 people in 34 provinces in Indonesia. The survey’s confidence level is 95 percent, while the margin of error is 2.07 percent.
