Character Education Crisis in Indonesia

Lately there has been a lot of news about deviations committed by students. With easy
internet access, we can now see the problems that occur to students in Indonesia. The
progress of science and technology at this time is in fact inversely proportional to the morale
of the generation which is increasingly degraded with the times. Not only for the millennial
generation, the current moral breakdown has reached a very concerning stage. Through the
internet, in recent years and even months, we have seen many cases such as bullying by
elementary, junior high, and even high school students, cases of rape by students, pregnancy
outside of marriage, drugs, brawls, disrespect, disrespect and so on. -other. Not only students,
deviant behaviors are also carried out by political elites who are reportedly caught in cases of
corruption, adultery, and so on.

Before discussing further, let us clarify about character education. Education

according to the Basic Law Number 20 Years 2003 Article 1 Paragraph 1 says that education
is a conscious effort planned to create an atmosphere of learning and the learning process so
that students actively develop their potential for have religious spiritual strength, self-control,
personality, intelligence, noble character, and skills needed by him, society, nation and state.
Character education is an educational system that aims to instill certain character values in
students in which there is a component of knowledge, awareness or willingness, as well as
actions to carry out these values. Character education is closely related to moral education
where the goal is to shape and train individual abilities continuously for self-improvement
towards a better life. There are five main character values that become the priority for the
development of Strengthening Character Education, such as: Religious Character Values, this
value reflects devotion to God Almighty. This can be realized by always being active and
sincere in worship. Nationalist Character Value, this value is a way of thinking, behaving and
giving good deeds to the nation, such as by placing the interests of the nation above personal
and group interests. Value of Character Integrity, a value that shows the behavior of an
individual who can be trusted in any case. This can be shown by always behaving honestly in
everything we do. Independent Character Value, the value shown from attitudes and
behaviors that are not dependent on others, for example by doing their own work without
always having to get help from others. Mutual Cooperation Character Value, this value
reflects the action of working together and working hand in hand in solving common
problems, such as by following community service and being active in the organization. In
fact, Indonesian character education is embedded in Pancasila. The five basic principles of
this country have a deep meaning to create the character of the nation.

In this case, the role of the family, the role of schools, the role of teachers, the role of
government, mass media and the environment are very important in shaping character. The
main socialization of a child is his family. With a family that implements or instills good
character, it will form a good child's character. Parental supervision of children in this
modern era is also very important and must be intense because of the presence of gadgets.
With this gadget, many things can be accessed by a child, if there is no filter in the
supervision and provision of good moral values, this gadget will form a negative character to
an individual. When entering school, the environment also plays a role in shaping this
character, especially teachers. Teachers are also parents in school and have a very influential
role in shaping individual character. However, often, teachers slowly turn off the good
character that exists in individuals. Often teachers turn off a child's self-confidence, prefer to
see the final result or value in exams or homework as an indicator of intelligence without
appreciating the process carried out by individuals and also the lack of inculcating the
character values that exist in Pancasila. Pancasila is only taught as memorization and is not
properly interpreted and implemented. As a result of this small thing, it gives rise to seeds of
corruption, easy to lie, and so on. Television shows also have an effect on character building.
Here also the government must play a role in holding good and educational television shows
or shows for children. The government must also be an example and figure with good
character and morals for its people. All aspects are interrelated and play an important role, as
said by Talcott Parsons about the theory of Functionalism, that all have a role and influence
each other.

Unfortunately, the swift currents of globalization, which have not been able to be
fortified with good character education, tend to be ignored or even slowly die. Therefore,
there needs to be awareness from all parties that character education is very important for a
good future of the nation. Education is indeed important for the creation of intelligence.
However, intelligence without good character or character, intelligence will be useless.

Daftar Pustaka
1. http://bem.rema.upi.edu/fakta-dibalik-anak-indonesia-indonesia-gawat-darurat-
pendidikan-karakter/
2. https://smkwidyanusantara.sch.id/read/5/pendidikan-karakter-pengertian-fungsi-tujuan-
dan-urgensinya