Dialogue with Dr. Budi Setiamarga
Haryadi Gunawi & Anna Saputera

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Dr. Budi Setiamarga is currently a lecturer at Institute of Technology-Bandung (ITB). He obtained his Ph.D. in Metallurgical Engineering from University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is also the chairman of the foundation board of Yahya Christian School in Bandung, Indonesia. He is married to Alice Setiamarga and has a daughter.

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Note: The opinions reflected in this interview are solely the interviewee’s and do not necessarily represent FICA Cross Point’s

HG: Thank you for your time Mas Budi. Let's start up with a warm-up question. Please tell us your experience in teaching at high profiled university; the good time and the hard time.

BS: Thank you for the opportunity for sharing with you all. I now teach in Materials Engineering Department and Mechanical Engineering Department, Institute of Technology, Bandung (ITB). Concerning my teaching experiences in ITB, I think I have more good times than hard times. I enjoy teaching very much. I enjoy the relationship with students and other faculty members. I also enjoy working with students in research. In general, working in ITB is enjoyable for me. The most enjoyable thing for me is to meet with students and to be able to talk with them, not only in the course related or academic related stuff, but also in 'non technical' stuff. I enjoy helping students and making impact in their lives. The hard part of teaching of course in lecture preparation, in making good evaluations or exams and deciding what grade should each student get. In research, the hard time is to find a suitable and useful research topic which can be done with all the limitations that we have such as equipments and funding.

AS: Indonesian's education has been the object of criticism until today. What do you think is the underlying problem?

BS: Looking at the Indonesian's education is not an easy matter. The underlying problems are quite complex just as the complexity and the diversity of the Indonesian people. If we make a distribution curve where the axis is the education quality in Indonesia, I think the distribution curve will be a skewed distribution which is skewed to the left where the majority is indeed in the lower quality. There are of course many very good schools, especially in bigger cities like Jakarta, Bogor, Bandung, Surabaya, but comparing to the majority of schools in Indonesia, the percentage of good schools is not a lot.

In dissecting the problem, we must understand that Indonesia has more than 200 million people where the majority of the people are poor people. On the other hand, apparently the Indonesian government has not been giving priorities for advancing the education sector. It can be seen from the budget for education which according to the Education Bill should be at least 20% from the total government budget (APBN). In reality, the budget is far less than that. I understand that the Indonesian government has a desire to increase the education budget, but the needs in other sectors for the time being have quenched that desire. I believe that if the Indonesian government can manage all the money that we have and reduce the rampant corruption, we will have more money, not only for education sector but also other sectors.

Besides funding for education sector, there are other underlying problems. One of them is the physical problems. A lot of poor people, which is the majority of the Indonesian people, live with low nutrition, bad living environment, bad sanitary and housing. This will affect the physical development, i.e. the brain and the body. These in turn will affect the ability of the Indonesian children to reach the maximal potential that they have. Often times, these children must help their parents to get more money for their living ,consequently they will have less time for studying or even to be able to go to school. The bottom line is that the poor economical condition will also play a significant part in the quality of the education in Indonesia.

The quality of the teachers is another education problem. Teaching profession is not the most desirable profession in Indonesia because most teachers are not well paid. If we make a survey to high school graduates, I believe that there will be a very few percentage of these graduates who want to be teachers. The majority of the students will choose to study engineering, science, business, medical, law, etc. If they cannot be admitted to those schools, they will consider going to education department. Because teaching profession cannot produce a lot of money and Indonesia right now has become more materialistic, it is very difficult to have good teachers. In my role as chairman of the foundation board of YAHYA Christian School in Bandung, sometimes I involve in teachers recruitment process. It is difficult to get teachers who are not only good in subjects such as mathematics or economy, but also good in attitude. For a Christian school, we want also a spiritually mature person. It is very difficult to get teachers with such a high quality, i.e.: those with good brains and good hearts. The quality of teachers I believe will have a very significant effect in the education quality.

Because teachers are not well paid, they often must have other jobs to sustain their income. In bigger cities, this can be in the form of giving extra hour private courses. In villages, it can be in the form of working in the farm. The efforts to sustaining their income for daily living will affect their teaching focus. This may affect the education quality because they will have less time to prepare for their teaching.

In terms of teaching methodology, Indonesia education system deploys more topdown approach. Students are not encouraged to ask critical questions. Some teachers may even get angry if students ask, especially for those questions they are not prepared to answer. Indonesian students are not trained to ask questions. Indonesian teachers are not used to answer critical questions.

Indonesia is one of the few countries in the world that have a religion subject that must be taught formally. There is also PPKN subject that also talks about tolerance, honesty, responsibility, etc. From early childhood, students have been exposed with very good things from religion course and PPKN, but in real lives, they see a lot of contradiction. We are supposed to be tolerant with each other; we are supposed to be honest, but how come that we have gold medal in corruption. If Indonesians are religious people, how come that corruption is so rampant? I believe this contradiction will also play a significant part in Indonesian education. We are getting used to live in a contradicted life. In their pragmatic way, some people think that there is no need to have a good quality of education because they say that they can just pay some amount of money to bypass the system to get what they want without the help of educational background. I believe that the educational environment in Indonesia will be affected by the contradiction of what is commonly practice and what is taught.

HG: It seems that it is common knowledge and agreement that education is central for a nation to develop. Why then Indonesia only invest a small amount of resources in educating its citizens?

BS: I am not sure. Perhaps, this is due to putting the right priorities for this period of time. Giving priority to education is a long term commitment. The result cannot be seen right away. The government officials were elected by people. They may want to show to the people something which can be seen right away such as building roads, and bridges, reducing the unemployment rate, raising up the laborer’s minimum wage, overcoming avian flu, and many other things. Not that these things are not important. Those are important and urgent issues. There must be lots of things that should be managed by the government. After some optimization process, there is a big possibility that a long term important goal will get a lower priority to the shorter urgent goal.

AS: In your opinion, what is the vision of Indonesian Universities? What should be their vision in this era of reformation?

BS: There are many Indonesian universities. In general, there are two groups of vision's focus, i.e. teaching oriented and research oriented. The top universities, like Indonesian University, Jakarta (UI), Gajah Mada University, Yogyakarta (UGM), and Institute of Technology, Bandung (ITB), are more to be research oriented. The smaller universities tend to have focus on teaching. With the Indonesian situation, the more common and the more realistic vision will be to be the best teaching university in Indonesia, Asia or even in the world. For top universities, the vision will be to be one of the best universities in Indonesia, in Asia, and in the world supported by good researches. The research focus should be to utilize the Indonesian natural and other resources for the benefit of the Indonesian people and the world. In my opinion, the focus of the research does not have to be advanced research such as in the US, but it should be some researches that have added value for the development of the Indonesian people, in particular and for the world, in general. The presence of Indonesian universities should answer the needs of the Indonesian people. It does not mean that we should not do advanced research, but more emphasize should be put into the adding value to the Indonesian future development where we can be more independent to utilize our resources for the benefit of the Indonesian people.

HG: In your opinion, what are the central biblical principles in education [or educating others to be specific]?

BS: The central biblical principles for education should be to love God and to love others as yourselves. Education should help people to develop all the potential that God has given them. Education must not make people to believe only to themselves. Education should bring an awareness of God and all the things that He has done. In Deuteronomy 6:4-9, God ordered Israel to love God with all their hearts and strength. This thing should be taught to all Israel’s children in all circumstances and at all times. Education should also help people to love others. Education must not dehumanize people. It should make human being more as God's creation. God loves human being. Therefore, education should not make people to look down on others. There should be a balance between the HEAD and the HEART. It is not good only to develop the head without the heart. For Christians, the development of intellects should be along side with the development of godly characters and inner being.

AS: You are dealing with university students day in day out, what do you think about their learning attitudes?

BS: What I can say is only about my students, especially in Materials Engineering Department of ITB. I do not want to make a generalization to this matter because my point of view is very limited. Students in ITB come from the best students in Indonesia, because to be able to be admitted in ITB, the passing grade for their national test is quite high. Therefore, I do not find a lot of difficulties in teaching them. Although most of them are quite smart, I still find a few cases of cheating. I was told that in many universities, cheating has been a very serious problem. Some students want to have a shorter and easier way. The principle is not “NO PAIN NO GAIN” but it is “GAIN WITHOUT PAIN”. This must be gotten rid of. I think this attitude is the root of the corruption in Indonesia. Therefore, fighting corruption should not only through Justice Department but also through Education Department.

HG: What are their attitudes toward nation building?

BS: Indonesian people nowadays have become more and more materialistic and self centered. Therefore, people will tend to see some things from the point of view of whether it gives benefit in term of materials or in term of money for them or not. I am not sure whether Pancasila course or PPKN course or Religion course has been able to bring people to respect and to love their country. From the newspapers and TVs, we can see how those in government offices, including in our people representatives (DPR) work not only for the people's interest, but also for their group interests and their own personal interests. Companies in Indonesia, try to get money faster by doing things which is not in the interests of this nation. Students may become pessimists of nation building. When they graduate, they may not think about how they can help to solve this country's problem. I may sound pessimistic, but the tendency is there. If we are aware of this, hopefully we can develop the desire to build this nation by not giving up only to our own interests. Christians should be leaders in nation building by not thinking about our own interests.

AS: Indonesia is still behind in terms of science and technological growth compared to neighboring countries or other developing countries like Malaysia, Thailand etc. What do you think the problem behind this?

BS: Countries like Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, put a special interest in education by giving the necessary funding and supporting policies which enhance the quality of education as a whole. Indonesia has not been able to do that. Besides that, it is seemingly that the education authorities in Indonesia are not sure with what they do. Often times, the changing of the education policy has not been well thought. Corruption in education department may escalate the problem. The problem is quite complicated. It is not only a matter of technical problem but also a non technical problem. I think, to overcome this, the changing should be from inside and out, from the changing of heart to the changing of mind, attitude and deeds.

HG: In the same context, what should be the steps (short term goals) that universities and also the government take on this matter?

BS: For the development of science and technology, the government should support the universities and research centers by giving the necessary funding and supporting policies. Our government should have a certain focus in the area of science and technology as the priority. I know that the Ministry of Research and Technology has developed some focus, but that focus has not been affecting a lot because of the lack of funding. Research funding, I believe, plays a significant role in this matter. Because there is not enough funding, the focus should be made smaller but sharper, especially for the areas which utilize domestic resources with high-added value. It does not have to be high tech, but some technology which can be beneficial, especially for Indonesian people, and then the rest of the world. Indonesian government should protect this development by developing policies and legal protection to encourage the application of that technology.

AS: Recent survey among ICF and ICFalumni in US shows that more than 50% of them have Science and Technology related majors. In what way they could help building our nation, particularly in the Science and Technology area?

BS: For those of you who have Science and Technology related majors, please do your best to study and to gain experiences. Develop your characters. Develop an attitude of not seeking your own interest but for the interest of others. I encourage you to get job experience in the US. Try to become experts in your particular area. If God calls you to go back to Indonesia, you can help to apply the things that you have learned by setting up your own company or by working as an employee. Keep your international network. Use them for your benefit and the benefit of Indonesia. Be faithful to God and show it to your friends, your boss, or your employees. If you are able to get funding for research cooperation from your company, make that cooperation with Indonesian universities or research centers. You may help in developing research in Indonesia. If you have resources in the form of text books or other kind of information, you can share or donate. Indonesian universities need the more updated text books.

HG: Frankly speaking, when we say that we want to become a teacher or professor in Indonesia, usually people reply: “Huh? How can you live with that”? What is your comment on this matter?

BS: It is a very common and reasonable response. Becoming teachers and professors is considered “pengabdian” (commitment). You cannot gain a lot of financial benefit through teaching, although teachers and professors are still admired socially, but not financially speaking. Therefore, some teachers and professors often have other projects or jobs that can sustain their financial side. Concerning whether you can live as teachers and professors, of course you can live with that, but what kind of lifestyle do you choose? Your lifestyle will determine whether you can live with what you have or not. For top school teachers and professors, it should be enough financially, but there may be problems in other than top schools. But again, if you can adjust your lifestyle to your income, it should be no problem. But adjusting our lifestyle is a big problem. Therefore, it is difficult. My suggestion is that if you want to be teachers and professors in Indonesia, it is better that you have other incomes. Your teaching profession does not have to be a full time job.

AS: In the education world, we often heard “students need good education”. Yet, good education requires good teachers, which obviously requires high cost. But then, not many people can afford expensive education. It seems we are living in vicious circle. Where should the problem be tackled first?

BS: Education is indeed expensive. Government should be responsible for giving a good education. Government should be supported by taxpayers. Therefore, government revenues through tax paying should be supported. Manipulation in tax should not be done. There should be a cross subsidy from the rich to the poor. For those who can pay should not be subsidized. The tuition fee should be higher for the richer and less for the poorer. Industries in Indonesia should be forced to support education in Indonesia by giving scholarships. This can be done by making a suitable policy through some kind of bill. No industry is allowed to run in Indonesia without giving some percentage of the income for scholarships. Education department must be responsible and honest to give the scholarships to the needy. This may sound ideal, but I think this will help to solve some part of the vicious circle.

HG: How do you manage your time and priorities in the midst of your activities as a professor in ITB, a head of the family, a church member, a part of school committees?

BS: Being a professor in ITB is a responsibleoriented job and not timely-oriented job. The important thing is that I must do my responsibility in teaching, research, administration and other things. When I will do it depends on me. There is some degree of flexibility in this matter. Therefore, I can manage my time such that all of my activities can be done. This flexibility is not for every job. That's why I like my job in ITB.

AS: What is your advice for those who have callings in becoming teachers or professors? In what way they should equip themselves while in the US?

BS: You should equip yourselves not only in the knowledge but also you must build your characters. Indonesian people are as smart as people in the other parts of the world. The most challenging thing is in the inner being. With the rampant corruption and manipulation, your role as teachers and professors is very important, not only educating brain or head but also educating hearts. The challenge concerning the head is simpler, I think, compared to the challenge of the heart. But, this is the challenge of the Indonesian education. We do not want to produce CORRUPTORS; we want to produce GIVERS who will build Indonesia and the world. This may sound idealistic but we must have this kind of idealistic point of view. So, build your inner selves also, and not only your head. Build your skills in organization and leadership. Your impact can be more if you can be a good and faithful leader. Your leadership role can be used not only in campus but also in your family, your church and your other walk of lives. Do not just study. Get involve in other activities that can help you to build your skill and your inner being.

HG: Finally, what is your advice for Indonesian Christians who are still studying in the Unites States right now?

BS: I think I have given a lot of suggestions in my previous comments. But I just want to give you the last thing that I believe is very important. Whether your calling is to go back to Indonesia or your calling is to go to other parts of the world, it is not as important as your faithfulness in following Christ day in and day out. Wherever you are, be a faithful follower of Christ. Remember that you and I are servants and not bosses. Keep the attitude of a servant who serves faithfully. You will not be able to do that if you do not have a daily walk with God. Keep growing in His Word. Know your Bible. May the grace of God be with us all!

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