On Thursday, May 23, 2024, the Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM Student Senate held an internal Upgrading and Bonding activity aimed at strengthening relationships between fellow administrators and students who are part of the management of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM Student Senate. The activity carried out at the beginning of this management is expected to synchronize the performance of the management based on solidarity and togetherness for the implementation of management for one period. The event was held in Room A201, Siti Baroroh Building, Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM.

The event began with an opening by Aisyah Muthmainnah Alamsyah, as Chairperson of the Student Senate for the 2024/2025 Period, with the presentation of information about the things that need to be done by the Student Senate of FIB UGM during one period as well as the rules that apply binding for each board. The presentation of information through presentations was then continued with a sharing session that presented the Chairman of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM Student Senate 2023/2024, I Putu Adhimas Radiansyah Aryawan and the Honorary Board of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM Student Senate 2023/2024, Ajeng Purwaniaratih Puspitaningrum. In the opportunity to share experiences, the two former administrators of the Faculty of Arts UGM Student Senate emphasized the importance of thorough knowledge of the functions and work of the Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM Student Senate as a legislative body that oversees the Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM Student Executive Board (LEM). They also mentioned the importance of communication and strengthening relationships not only with LEM FIB UGM, but also with Semi-Autonomous Bodies (BSO) and Department Student Associations (HMJ) in the faculty environment.

After the experience sharing session was over, the activity continued with a joint play session conducted by the entire committee to enliven the activity. With this fun interactive play session, the administrators can strengthen the sense of equality needed to support optimal organizational performance.

Tuesday, May 21, 2024, Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM participated in a webinar on the Kick-Off of Micro Credential Development for University Leaders through UGM Online organized by the Directorate of Academic Studies and Innovation, Universitas Gadjah Mada. This activity aims to introduce the term Micro Credential which is a certificate or recognition given to individuals after completing a course or learning module that focuses on certain competencies or skills. In conjunction with the learning management system portal through UGM Online, to form a new educational ecosystem to support continuing education and lifelong learning for students and alumni by obtaining online learning resources. Microcredentials that are delivered through the types of online learning classes offered are usually short in duration and highly focused. They are designed to enhance certain skills or master specific competencies to the point of recognition for learning credits.

Microcredentials are divided into six different classes, namely:

• Technical Skills Class
• Professional Development Class
• Soft Skills Class
• Compliance and Regulatory Class
• Entrepreneurship Class
• Industry Specific Classes

Each class is designed with a specific focus to develop different skills. This specific skill development is able to support each individual to deepen their knowledge and insight in a specific focus for career advancement and improve individual competence. Module or course development of micro credentialing modules is developed from courses that are then packaged and reproduced according to the principles of micro credentialing. Lecturers can develop micro credential modules from their expertise, which has strategic value in the community/market to be accessed widely and massively. The module may be different from the material in the course and what is taught to students.

In order to provide greater insight and knowledge about Cultural Heritage in the Sleman Regency area, especially for the younger generation, on May 21, 2024 a visit to the Cultural Heritage object was held, namely the Wisma Kaliurang Building, Wisma Merapi Indah I Building and Sri Widodo Joglo Building. The participants of this activity were high school students in the Sleman Regency area totaling 15 people accompanied by several teachers. The purpose of this activity is to introduce cultural heritage from the type of building, especially from the aspect of the important value contained in it. The important value of cultural heritage is related to the importance of history, the importance of education, the importance of science, the importance of culture and the importance of strengthening national identity.

The buildings of Wisma Kaliurang, Wisma Merapi, and Joglo Sri Widodo have historical significance as buildings used in the historical momentum of the Indonesian independence struggle. The Wisma Kaliurang building was used as the location of the KTN (Three State Commission) meeting on January 13, 1948 in order to obtain recognition of the sovereignty of the Republic of Indonesia from the Dutch colonial occupation. The meeting was attended by representatives from three countries, namely Australia, America and Belgium. While from Indonesia, there were a number of national figures such as Soekarno, Mohammad Hatta, General Sudirman, Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX, Sutan Sjahrir and others. An important result of this meeting was the minutes decision which stated that the Republic of Indonesia retained full power over the area it controlled.

This KTN meeting actually followed up on the Renville Agreement, which was disrupted by the Second Dutch Military Aggression which seized Yogyakarta as the capital of the Republic of Indonesia at that time. Wisma Merapi Indah I, located not far from Wisma Kaliurang, is a building that was once used as a place to stay by national figures when attending the KTN meeting, along with the Ngeksigondo Pesanggrahan complex which is also located not far from Wisma Kaliurang.

It is hoped that with this activity, the cultivation of cultural heritage preservation values among the younger generation, especially students in the Sleman Regency area, can provide provisions in the future for the community to be able to participate more in preserving heritage in the form of tangible cultural heritage that has noble values that must be preserved.

The National Library (Perpusnas) of the Republic of Indonesia in collaboration with the Nusantara Manuscript Society (Manassa) and the Office of Libraries and Archives (Dispusip) of Banyuwangi Regency held a seminar with the theme “Socialization of National Collective Memory (Ikon)” on Tuesday-Wednesday, 07-08 May 2024. The seminar was held in a mixed format at the Aston Banyuwangi Hotel & Conference Center, Jl. Brawijaya, Banyuwangi, East Java and through the Zoom Meeting application. The seminar was opened directly by the Head of the Center for Library Information Services and Nusantara Manuscript Management, National Library (Perpusnas) RI, Agus Sutoyo. In this seminar, the participants consisted of manuscript experts from various institutions, ranging from Ikon, Perpusnas, Dispusip Banyuwangi Regency, Gadjah Mada University, PGRI Banyuwangi University, Pegon Community, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), and others.

Ikon itself is one of the National Library programs that aims to record ancient manuscripts that are considered to have an important role and value for Indonesian civilization. After going through a process of research and discussion, the ancient manuscripts that have been designated as Icons will then be projected to be proposed as Memory of the World (MoW), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

In this seminar, the title of the material presented was “The Past as a Bright Present and Future: Banyuwangi Manuscripts as “Icons”. In this context, the collective memory in question is a memory composed of major events in the past that are preserved through cultural formations and institutionalized communication, such as recitation, inspection, and observation related to both written and visual forms of communication. Communicative memory is usually transmitted orally and within the family and can be referred to as private memory, while collective memory is usually transmitted outside the family and can be referred to as public memory. Manuscripts as collective memory function as a representation of the nation’s dignity, the identity of Indonesia’s diversity, strengthening national unity, national pride, and triggering the promotion of culture. The manuscript that was appointed was the Sri Tanjung manuscript/text. The reasons for the appointment of the Sri Tanjung manuscript/text as the Banyuwangi Icon itself are, 1) the Sri Tanjung manuscript is the work of Banyuwangi poets; 2) several centuries are present in the collective memory of the Blambangan / Banyuwangi people; 3) its survival shows its superiority as a literary work; 4) this advantage is its strength as a Banyuwangi cultural heritage; 5) Sri Tanjung and Banyuwangi are like two sides of a coin; and 6) is a representation of Banyuwangi and meets the requirements as a quality literary work.

The seminar with the theme “Socialization of National Collective Memory (Icons)” and material entitled “Past as Brilliant Present and Future: Banyuwangi Manuscripts as “Icons” is in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) fourth goal, “Quality Education: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”, and goal eleven, “Sustainable Cities and Communities: Achieve inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities and human settlements”, specifically point 11.4 Promote and safeguard the world’s cultural heritage and natural heritage.

Leveling is the determination of the equivalence of books for readers with reading levels. Non-textbook is a type of book that aims to provide enrichment of knowledge, insights and skills for textbooks from certain scientific studies. From this limitation, “Nontext Book Leveling” is an important tool that should be known, understood, and applied for writers/authors of nontext books.

The topic was delivered by Wiwien Widyawati Rahayu, lecturer of Javanese Language, Literature, and Culture study program, Department of Language and Literature, Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM at the “Technical Guidance on Writing Javanese Children’s Stories” organized by Yogyakarta Language Center (BBY) at Grand Rohan Hotel Yogyakarta on May 18, 2024 at 08.00-16.00 WIB. Bimtek is a series of activities that began with a proposal writing competition which was attended by 375 people / titles. From the assessment of three judges, including Wiwien Widyawati Rahayu, 97 titles were selected. This proposal contains not only the chosen theme, topic, title, and level but also contains a description of the character and his characterization, a synopsis of the story, as well as a draft of the contents of the script per page along with a description of the illustrations that must be included. Why does it have to be this detailed? Because through what is written by the proposer, it will be known that it is suitable for the age level chosen.

With the guidance, it is hoped that the discrepancies found in the 97 selected proposals can be recognized, consulted, and corrected by the authors. The suitability is based on the classification of readers, including early readers (A: 0-7 years), early readers (B1, B2, B3: 6-10 years), intermediate readers (C: 10-13 years), intermediate readers (D: 13-15 years), and advanced readers (E: 16 years and above). Of the five classifications, only three were presented (except for intermediate and advanced readers) in detail because they were adjusted to the provisions set by BBY as a requirement for the competition level.

The participants, who were children’s story writers, came from various districts in Yogyakarta. The diversity of professions, such as formal and non-formal educators, civil servants outside the field of education, students, journalists, retirees, professional writers, housewives, entrepreneurs, and private employees proves that writing activities occur widely in society. This can be used as additional evidence that being a writer is a professional choice that can be pursued and relied upon for all time.

At the end of her presentation, Wiwien said that, “writing non-textbooks is an opportunity for all of us as long as we are able to identify the disparity between the curriculum objectives to be achieved and the availability of textbooks, as well as existing learning practices. This needs to be known, considering that the function of non-textbooks is to complement and strengthen existing textbooks”.

The activities that have been carried out are related to the sustainable development goals (SDGs), namely Quality Education (4) because the participants/writers involved in the technical guidance can improve their writing competencies in accordance with the reader’s level; Decent Work and Economic Growth (8) because with the competencies gained, the technical guidance participants can recognize the opportunity that writing can be used as a profession; Partnership to achieve goals (17) because the relationship between participants with various professions, academics as resource persons, and institutions as stakeholders can take place well because they are aware of their own capacities so that relations of mutual need and complementarity are realized to achieve goals.