SDGs 4: “Quality Education”

Vina Aulia, a Cultural Anthropology student from the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada had the opportunity to participate in a student exchange program at the University of Naples “L’Orientale” for one semester through the Erasmus+ program. This program, initiated by the European Union, provides funding for students, educators, and higher education institutions to develop international cooperation, enhance educational quality, and promote intercultural understanding.

Living far away from Indonesia was a new experience for her, especially as it was her first time traveling to a country with a culture vastly different from Indonesia. Through this article, she aims to share her amazing student exchange experience in a country often referred to as the Land of Pizza and Gelato.

In the first few weeks, she experienced culture shock due to various customs and different cultures. In Indonesia, rice is easily found, unlike in Italy, where bread, pasta, and pizza are the staple food. Rice is hardly found, and its prices are expensive. One of Napoli’s famous dishes is Pizza Margherita. Interestingly, the three main components of this pizza, namely tomato sauce, mozzarella, and basil leaves, symbolize the Italian flag’s colors of red, white, and green. Additionally, this food is associated with the symbolic identity of the unity of Italy.

Talking about seasons, she had to adapt to the temperature differences compared to her life in Indonesia. When she arrived in February, Italy was still in winter. Although not as cold as in other northern Italian cities, she found it quite freezing. In the morning, the temperature could drop to 5 degrees Celsius, requiring Vina to layer her clothing every day.

For many, Napoli is often associated with being a dirty, poor city with high crime rates. However, living there for an extended period made her realize that Napoli also serves unique aspects rarely found in other cities. The friendly locals with their distinctive high-pitched intonation, authentic pizza Margherita, narrow streets adorned with Napoli football club ornaments, the ever-present Mount Vesuvius, and the ancient architecture left her in awe. The unique blend of European and Mediterranean cultures even earned Napoli recognition as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site.

While accustomed to living in a predominantly Muslim country, Vina experienced life as a minority in Napoli, where the majority of the population is Christian-Catholic. She learned that Napoli has at least 500 churches from over centuries, with mosques being scarce, and small prayer rooms mostly visited by immigrants from Bangladesh or India. Despite being a Muslim minority, she never faced discrimination. On the contrary, locals often praised her for wearing a hijab and having an exotic Asian appearance. She also built friendships with many Indonesian priests and nuns serving in Napoli, considering them as part of her extended family.

Another remarkable experience that left a lasting impression on her was Napoli’s local football club celebration culture, known as “scudetto,” a celebration for Italian football clubs winning the Serie A trophy. Last year, Napoli emerged victorious after 33 years. Attending the scudetto celebration with her Indonesian friends, she witnessed not only the joy of the Napoli community but also an indescribable atmosphere of happiness and emotion. From children to the elderly, everyone celebrated the scudetto with joy. That night, the entire city of Napoli felt warm with happiness, and full decorated by red-flaming fireworks and sparklers.

Living in Italy became one of the most precious experiences in her life. She also had the opportunity to visit various other European countries, including Hungary, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, and Austria. In terms of tourism, Europe provided many benefits to students, such as discounted train tickets and free tickets to museums and historical sites. Living in Europe taught her to appreciate the cultural differences and diverse characteristics of people. She learned new perspectives from friends originating from different countries. The initial culture shock allowed her to better understand the importance of cultural adaptation for survival. Vina is grateful for this unforgettable experience and hopes that readers will also have the same opportunity.

Long distance travel from Surabaya to Yogyakarta apparently did not prevent them from continuing to show their enthusiasm when listening, watching, and discussing everything about the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Gadjah Mada University on Wednesday, February 7th 2024. Starting from the quiz session to the question and answer session, they were very enthusiastic about fighting to be appointed. The questions they asked were insightful and very varied, some asked about scholarships, the registration system, and the activities they would do if they were the students here. These high school students have had an interest in the social sector from the start, seeing from the major they take which is social studies, many of them dream of continuing their education at this faculty. The majors they wanted were very diverse, there were tourism, archaeology, Korean language and culture, Japanese literature, and others.

One of the teacher representatives who gave the opening speech repeatedly expressed his gratitude and thanks for the warm welcome they received, and hoped that in the future they would produce many superior generations who were able to compete and were worthy of being part of Gadjah Mada University student. Two other teachers who were also in the group were very humble enough to take the time to shake hands and joke around for a while before leaving the room. Apart from warm greetings, they also gave souvenirs and large parcels in the form of typical Surabaya souvenirs which they brought from far away. After having a light chat before going back, a group photo session was held. This visit ended with a very pleasant impression. The students and accompanying teachers continued their visit by going around to see the environment in the Faculty of Cultural Sciences while occasionally capturing the moment with their cell phone cameras.

SDGs 4: Quality Education|SDGs 17: Partnership for the Goals

Yogyakarta, January 26, 2024 – A student of the Arabic Literature Study Program, Department of Language and Literature, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FIB UGM), has completed the MBKM Campus Teaching program at the Miftahul Huda Kroya Islamic Boarding School with flying colors. This program is part of the Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka (MBKM) which aims to provide out-of-class learning experiences for students. This program focuses on assisting learning and fostering the use of Arabic and English in Islamic boarding schools.

While at the Miftahul Huda Kroya Islamic Boarding School, the two UGM students carried out various activities, including Language Classes, Foreign Language Talks, Student Mentoring, Bilingual Speech, Dhiba’ and Barzanji Readings, Language Tests, Listening Training, National Santri Day Commemoration Competition, Socialization of the Importance of Foreign Languages, and Vocabulary Book Making.

The Campus Teaching Program at the Miftahul Huda Kroya Islamic Boarding School is a real example of a beneficial collaboration between universities and Islamic boarding schools in improving the quality of education in Indonesia. This program is expected to produce a young generation that excels in Arabic and English and is ready to compete in the global arena.

SDGs 4: Quality Education|SDGs 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth|SDGs 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions|SDGs 17: Partnership for the Goals

Yogyakarta, January 27, 2024 – The internship program for UGM Arabic Literature students at the Sleman Regency Ministry of Religious Affairs Office was assigned to several service sections, namely Hajj and Umrah, Madrasah Education Section, and Public Relations Services. There are four students in this section. During the internship process, students were guided and monitored directly by the Mr. and Mrs. employees, they provided job descriptions that matched the students’ abilities, especially in the fields of communication, correspondence, archiving, and public services.

Some of the tasks given to the interns in the Hajj and Umrah section include: Assisting with the administration of registration, cancellation, and transfer of Hajj pilgrims’ portions; Assisting with the digitization of Hajj pilgrims’ data; Assisting with the registration of Hajj pilgrims’ passports; Assisting with the provision of Hajj consultation services to prospective Hajj pilgrims. The work sessions for the interns are adjusted to the working hours of the Sleman Regency Ministry of Religious Affairs Office.

For the Madrasah Education Section, the following tasks are given: Verifying data on educational personnel, starting from checking, validating, and ensuring the accuracy of the data; Managing the application on the Education and Teacher Personnel Management Information System of the Ministry of Religious Affairs (Simpatika) for educational personnel; Managing data and information systems for educational personnel, including updating data; Archiving supporting documents for the administrative needs of educational personnel; Assisting with the preparation of BOSDA and BOSNAS reports; Providing information services related to regulations, requirements, and facilities and infrastructure needs for educational personnel; Calculating the performance allowances for teachers and madrasah supervisors; Applying Ms. Excel formulas, especially VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP formulas, to ensure the accuracy of Teacher and Supervisor Performance Allowances.

Furthermore, in the public relations service, some of the tasks carried out include: Making videos of routine activities of the Sleman Regency Ministry of Religious Affairs Office; Making press releases; Assisting with the input of correspondence in the Sedakep application; Assisting with services at the One-Stop Integrated Service of the Sleman Regency Ministry of Religious Affairs Office. The work sessions are carried out in accordance with the working hours that have been applied for all employees of the Sleman Regency Ministry of Religious Affairs Office.

SDGs 4: Quality Education

Yogyakarta, January 27, 2024 – To support Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 on Quality Education, several students from the Arabic Literature Study Program, Department of Language and Literature, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FIB UGM) have completed an internship program at various Elementary Schools (SD) and Junior High Schools (SMP) in Yogyakarta and surrounding areas.

This internship program is an opportunity for students to apply the knowledge they have learned in college directly in the world of education. The students were assigned to several schools, such as SD Unggulan Muhammadiyah Lemahdadi, SD Kasongan, SDIT Luqman Al-Hakim, MI Ma’arif Candran, SMPIT Alam Nurul Islam, and Yayasan Tahfidz Sulaimaniyah in Yogyakarta, as well as SD Interaktif Harum Mulia, SD Muhammadiyah Tonggalan, and SDIT Ulul Albaab Weleri outside Yogyakarta.

During the internship program, the students had the opportunity to teach Arabic and several other subjects, such as Islamic Religious Education, Tahfidz, and Tahsin. In addition, students also participated in various activities at the school, such as religious studies, MABIT (Malam Bina Iman dan Takwa), healthy gymnastics, and extracurricular activities. This internship program is a real example of collaboration between FIB UGM and educational institutions to improve the quality of education in Indonesia. With this program, it is hoped that UGM Arabic Literature students can become competent and inspiring teachers, and contribute to realizing quality education.