Clifford R. Keizer N e w Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology Socorro
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Chemical Education in Indonesia Problems a n d progress in a contract t e a m & x o a c h
Recogniaing and solving problems are important parts of science education in any situation. The ability to recognize and to solve problems takes on special significance in chemical education in an Institute of Technology in a rapidly developing country such as Indonesia. Between 1956 and 1962 several chemists participated in a science and engineering contract administered by the University of Kentucky under the International Cooperation Administration (ICA), which in 1961 became the Agency for International Development (AID). This contract involved work at the Institute of Technology in Bandung as arranged in an agreement with the Ministry of Education in Djakarta. The Bandung Institute of Technology became somewhat independent in 1960 as the successor to the Science Faculty and the Technical Faculty of the University of Indonesia. These faculties (or colleges, in American terminology) were established after Indonesian independence a t the site of the Technische Hoogeschool, the center for technological education under the colonial regime from 1920 until the time of the Japanese occupation. In these two decades approximately 200 students earned degrees in science and engineering there. The most famous of these graduates is President Sukarno, who has earned an international reputation in politics rather than in engineering. Of the graduates only about one-third were native Indonesians. With so few Indonesians having had advanced training, it is not surprising that the academic program in the early post-independence period was almost completely conducted by professors from other countries. In the mid-19.50's many Indonesian leaders became quite concerned about this dependence upon foreigners. Under the pressures of nationalism it was decided to limit the number of visiting professors. This resulted in a kind of academic vacuum, leaving some capable students stranded midway in their academic programs. When the contract between the Ministry of Education and ICA was set up in 1956, it was clearly understood that the primary purpose of the contract team was to help prepare a competent indigenous faculty. The American professors were expected to teach courses, to direct research, and to counsel faculty members on curriculum and educational philosophy. Capable young Indonesian assistants and lecturers were to be sent to Presented as part of the Symposium on International Chemical Educational Activities before the Division of Chemical Education at the 146th Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Phils, delphia, Pa., April, 1964.
the USA for advanced study and training. When these participants returned to Indonesia, the American professors were supposed to work with them for about a year to help them become well established academically. After the Indonesian faculty member had assumed full responsibility, the team member could leave with a sense of mission accomplished. Initiation of the Program
When the members of the first Kentucky Contract Team arrived in Bandung in 1956, they received something less than an enthusiastic welcome. Apparently, there had not been adequate communication between the officials in Djakarta and the faculty members in Bandung. Some of the non-Indonesian professors, who were not anxious to leave, regarded these Americans as usurpers. Other faculty members were rather neutral in their attitude, waiting to see what these Americans had to offer and how they would conduct themselves. During orientation before leaving for Indonesia, some of the Kentucky team members had understood that they were supposed to set up a typical American four-year program for undergraduate science and engineering education in Bandung. However, the Indonesians in Bandung did not understand it this way. They were much more familiar with the continental educational system (under which they had been educated) and they were not ready to discard it. This situation has some of the characteristics of typical encounters between cultures. Although the fouryear program worked out by the team members could - have served Indonesian students, it was not adequately comprehended by the Bandung faculty members. Even so, it was fo~mallyaccepted-but was never really put into practice. According to long-standing tradition, it would have been impolite to show obvious disapeement with the American "guru besar" (literally, big teachers), who were guests in Indonesia. However, it was not improper to ignore the program after it was formally accepted. The net effect was a great waste of time and effort. The wait-to-see attitude of other members of the Indonesian staff underlines another aspect of intercultural relations. In almost every case in which the American professor came highly charged with zeal for making big changes quickly, he met with passive resistance. The Indonesians were not unfriendly or antagonistic-they just were unwilling to be pushed around academically by someone in whom they had not developed confidence. Other team members, who waited to offer recommendations until after the Indonesians had learned to respect them, found their Volume 41, Number 1 I, November 1964
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counterparts quite cooperative and receptive to suggestions. All of the prospective team members were warned about the language problem, but few of us realized just how complicated i t could become. Since the standard two-year contract made intensive language study seem rather extravagant, it was agreed that our lectures should be in English. This proved to be less than completely satisfactory since the average Indonesian student had a rather lirnjted English vocabulary. Furthermore, he was accustomed to hearing English spoken with a British (or Dutch-British) accent rather than with an American accent. The team members had to be periodically reminded to speak slowly and distinctly. Several of us made a practice of having important terms and phrases translated into Indonesian by our assistants: these terms and phrases were written on the blackboard so as to be in view during the lectures as focal points for contact and emphasis. A workable plan for examinations involved giving the questions in Indonesian and in English, in parallel columns. Students were given the option of answering in one language or the other; occasionauy they would try both languages, more or less successfully. Since the Indonesian language is not particularly precise, new words are constantly being introduced to take care of modern terms and concepts. In most cases, these words are direct transliterations, according to certain standard rules. On the basis of four years experience as a member of a committee responsihle for correlating Indonesian words with English, Dutch, and German, it is no overstatement to say that the liuguistic ability of these Indonesian graduate students is remarkable. Several of them are fluent in Indonesian, Dutch, and English, as well as in a local dialect. such as Javanese or Sudanese. Some could converse in German and/or French, and a few remembered some of the Japanese words and characters which they learned during the years of occupation. Poly-lingual ronversations were not unusual. For example, in a conversation involving the President of the Institute, the chairman of the student council, and the chief of party of the Kentucky Contract Team, each spoke in the language most convenient for him and understood the languages used by the others.
influence of their own highly specialized training. Our work was complicated to some extent by the fact that this concept of specialization was tied in with the idea that the Institute of Technology should produce hundreds of scientists and engineers as quickly as possible. Whereas the traditional program had required a t least six years of study, the Ministry of Education now decreed that the standard program should be four and one-half years. Since 1962 (when three of the Kentucky Team chemists left Bandung), an extra o n e half year has been added to the program to allow for military training and political indoctrination. During our stay in Bandung, there was a gradual acceptance of the plan of guided study in contrast to the traditional free study. When we arrived there, students were theoretically eligible for any course being offered. Registration was not so much for the course as for the final examination at the end of the series of lectures. Attendance a t lectures was optional. There were no quizzes or mid-term examinations. With little communication between student and professor, the student had no idea how he was progressing in the course. He passed or failed on the basis of an oral examination, which might take from five to fifteen minutes. It was not considered irregular to have a large majority of the students fail the examination on their first attempt. Only the most brilliant individuals could take advantage of the accelerated program which was theoretically possible under this system. Average students simply expected to repeat examinations: hoping that the second or third attempt would be the lucky one. Partly because of the influence of the team members, the first two years of the revised curriculum involved a reasonably uniform pattern of courses. As the instructors and graduate assistants became acquainted with our teaching methods and techniques, they modified their own approach. In some cases the American professor gave the lectures in English and helped prepare the mid-term examinations, and the assistants conducted sessions in Indonesian for working problems and answering student questions. The team members usually taught courses a t the graduate or upper undergraduate level, so their influence on lower level courses was somewhat indirect. The Chemistry Curriculum
Philosophy of Education
The problem of deepest concern to those responsible for the contract was the difference in philosophy of education. Under the colonial regime, a limited number of Indonesians had received a somewhat advanced hut very specialized trainmg, reflecting the attitude in universities of a small but higNy developed couutry. This tendency toward specializationwas deeply ingrained in the thought patterns of our hosts. Many of the team members, taking a somewhat objective approach to the problems of Indonesian education, felt that the greatest need was for scientists and engineers with broad training, who were capable of identifying and solving a wide variety of problems which might arise in a large and rapidly developing country. While our Indonesian colleagues claimed to he developing a distinctly Indonesian approach to scientific education, it seemed to us that they were still greatly under the 584
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Certain problems were quite specifically related to the chemist~ydepartment. I n 1958, four members of the Kentucky Contract Team were invited to work with four Indonesian chemists to review the chemistry program and to recommend modiications. The invitation came from the Dean of the Science Faculty, who appreciated how the team members could be most helpful to the Institute of Technology. The committee recognized a broad spectrum of problems, as indicated in a summary made four years later: lack of fullytrained Indonesian staff, inadequate laboratory facilities, disorganized and inadequate library holdings, unrealistic curricular requirements, lack of centralized administration, poor teaching practices, inadequate financial support, and practically no research. Obviously some of these problems were not and are not unique for the Institute of Technology in Bandung. Perhaps many members of the Division of Chemical
Education would welcome more adequate financial support, better libraries, and more time and resources for research. As visiting professors in Indonesia, we were not in a position to solve strictly local problems. Nevertheless, we did try by our teaching, by the exchange of ideas, and by friendly persuasion, to improve the department and to make it worthy of recognition. The participant program mentioned earlier was the major approach to providing fully-trained Indonesian staff members. By 1962, three Indonesian chemists had earned the PhD degree from the University of Kentucky and were teaching in Bandung. The man who is now an aassistant dean and who earlier was head of the chemistry department, earned his doctor's degree in analytical chemistly with the help of one of the team chemists as his promoter. The current head of the department is one of the returned participants. A few participants are still in this country working on adGanced degrees. Not lona after the committee did the maior . oart of its work, a second laboratory building was made available to the department. This made it possible to concentrate the chemistry program on the main campus. Part of the laboratory equipment was purchased with funds provided by the ICA-AID contract. Although some of the laboratories are still crowded, the laboratory work can now be correlated with the lectures in a c o u r s e i n contrast to the situation in 1957 when over six hundred students were waiting for the chance to get into the quantitative analysis laboratory, having com~letedtheir lecture work some weeks or months previously. The library problem is closely related to the lack of centralized administration. In 1957 there were effectivelv -" four so-called chemistrv de~artments.rather widely separated in space as well as in philosophy. Each was jealous of its autonomy, reflecting the attitudes of some strong personalities among the foreign professors. Thanks to the influence of the dean, these subdepartments were brought together physically. But some of the staff members were unwilling to give complete cooperation and there were still three separate libraries in 1962. In discussions about curriculum, we had a lively exchange of ideas. The program which was adopted represented a compromise between what the Indone sians considered most necessary and what the Americans considered more effective. The Kentucky Team members felt that there was a deficiency in the humanities, but our Indonesian colleagues felt that the preparatory program had given adequate coverage. So for the first two years, the students were exposed to many courses in chemistry, a few in physics and mathematics, and only an occasional course in biology, mineralogy, or related sciences. For the remainder of the program there were some electives either from related branches of chemistry or from chemical engineering, geology, microbiology, botany, zoology, mathematics, or physics. In practice only a few students succeeded in passing all of the prescribed courses in the allotted time. To the team members this seemed to defeat the purpose of consolidating the curriculum, hut to our Indonesian colleagues this apparently caused no concern. Respecting the academic freedom of our Indonesian counterparts, we did not pressure them to modify their ~~
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teaching practices. However, we did influence them by example. Whereas they had been accustomed to a minimum of communication between student and professor, we tried to emphasize the importance of such communication. I n our own courses, we used a variety of teaching and testing techniques, some of which were quite new to Indonesian students. I n the long range program, we depend on the returned particiuants to ~ u into t uractice the more useful methods to which they have been exposed. Over the years, their influence on all aspects of the educational program will be far greater than that of a few foreign professors teaching in the Institute for only a few years. As far as the departmental budget was concerned, t,heteam members could do little to help. Although we were quite concerned about the welfare of our Indonesian counterparts, we could not speak for them. We did urge our American associates in the U. S. Operations Mission in Djakarta to relay our concern to their Indonesian counterparts in positions of authority. But as prices continued to rise, with the i n h t e d rnpiah, our colleagues in Bandnng had to make more and more sacrifices or take on more and more jobs in order to keep themselves and their families fed and clothed. With facilities so limited and responsibilities so divided, it is not surprising that very little research was or is being done. Some equipment to enconrage research was purchased with contract funds. Some important back issues of journals were ordered to make literature study possible. But only a man with strong motivation can find time and energy for research when his major concern has to be that of keeping hi family alive and well. We hope that some day soon the economy of the nation will become established so that qualified men can concentrate on teachimg and research, as their most significant contribution to the national effort. For the t i e being the principal barrier to progress in scientific education and practice is economic. Conclusions
We feel that the chemical education program in Indonesia, conducted by the Kentucky Contract Team,' was and is successful-within limits. We found that our help was welcomed when it was offered in a spirit of sharing. The number of graduates from the Institute of Technology increased from 8 in 1952-53 to 132 in 1956-57 and to 400 in 1961-62. Among these graduates were several chemists for whose twining we were largely responsible. We are depending on
'Grateful acknowledgment is due these former colleagues for their suggestions and criticisms of an early draft of this paper: Dr. E. M. Hammaker (University of Kentucky) who taught analytical chemistry in Bandung for three y e m ; Dr. C. J. Hull (Indiana. State College, Terre Haute), biochemistry, two years; Dr. B. S. Meeks, Jr. (Moorhead State College, Moorhead, Minn.), organic ehemistry, four years; and Dr. F. E. Young (California. Polytechnic College, Sau Luis Ohispo), inorganic chemistry, two years. Other members of the Kentucky Contract T e r n who taught chemistry are Dr. J. Meadow (U. of Kentucky), organic chemistry, one year; and Dr. R. C. Barnett, who is completing four years of teaching biochemistry in Bandung. Special thanks are due Dr. William Hugh Jansen, who as Associate Chief of Party in Bandung was responsible for the Participant Program; he is now Campus Coordinator for Indonesian contracts in the Kentucky Research Foundation.
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our Indonesian colleaeues and ~ a r t i c i ~ a u to t s build an even stronger chemistry department. In a paper presented to the United 'Onference on the Application of Sciences and Technology for the Benefit of Less Developed Areas, held in Geneva in February, 1963, one of the administrators of the Baudung Institute of Technology, commenting on the contract team approach, said, ". . .time and the strong will to understand each other. . created. . . an atmosphere of mutual appreciation. . and laid down a basic pattern of cooperation." Regarding the difference in the philosophy of higher education, he wrote,
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" . . . t h e conceptions of both sides will he quite different, although aiming at the same goal and for the same purpose. But a
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positive thing must he mentioned here, namely, that this clash of opinions (in many if not all eases) has resulted in frequent diseussions, deep thinking and reappraisals, and finally formulated a sptem most suitable (although maybe temporarily) for the Indonesian situation. needs and demands."
These comments by a former colleague have special significance for those chemists, scientists, and engineers who lived and worked in Indonesia as members of the Kentucky Contract Team. We feel that they may be fruitful for raising more questions, stimulating more discussions and reappraisals, and suggesting attitudes and conditions prerequisite to any kind of success in efforts to surmount cultural barriers, penetrate political curtains, and eliminate economic walls.
