CULTURE OF SCHOOL FRIENDLY CHILDREN : Challenges and Expectations into Development of Student Character Education in Manado (North Sulawesi)
Ruth Sriana Umbase, Apeles Lexi Lonto, Yoseph D. A. Santie

Social Science Faculty Manado State University

Abstract

The Governments policy on child protection and character education has not been implemented synergistically at the educational unit level, because at the educational unit level there is still a diverse perception of "character education models and disciplined ways of character". At its practical level, the facts about the existence of Child Friendly Schools sponsored by the Ministry of Women Empowerment and Child Protection have been established in various districts / municipalities in relation to the formation and fulfillment of District/City Eligible Children indicators. However, teachers understanding of childrens rights in both the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Inadequate Child Protection Act has led to a false perception of childrens right to protection in schools. The establishment of Child Friendly Schools was also not fully integrated with the school culture. This encourages the need for assessment in order to identify inhibiting factors as well as to support the synergy of establishing Child Friendly School and Character Education. In this research have used Qualitative Research Method. The results showed that there are factors supporting the synergy of the establishment of School Child Friendly and Character Education of learners are: first, the existence of the determination of the government to conduct a mental revolution, especially in the field of education; second, the synergy of policies / programs at the ministry level; while the inhibiting factors are: firstly, there is still a lack of knowledge and understanding of teachers about childrens rights, character education, positive discipline, and various regulations related to Education and Child Protection; secondly, teachers continue to maintain the old paradigm that when children are "loved" the child becomes spoiled; thirdly, there is still a wide variety of teachers views on school violence, some being passive-not hitting but omitting, apathy or ignorance of importance have carried out teaching duties, on the contrary there is an extreme active-hitting, threatening with exams and values, intimidating students behave in discipline; fourth, there are still some teachers who assume that the task for character education is the responsibility of the Civic Education teacher. Fifth, there are schools that have declared themselves as Child Friendly Schools but the indicators have not yet appeared on the school culture. Thus, to realize the effectiveness of the development of the Culture of Child Friendly School and Character Education, it is necessary to build a paradigm shift towards equalizing the perceptions of educators through socialization and Training on the Convention on the Rights of the Child and Training of Child Protection System for Headmaster of Child Friendly Schools, so as to create synergistically of development of student’s character education with the Child Friendly School movement in a Child Friendly School Culture.

Keywords: Child Friendly School Culture, Character Education, Synergy Policy and Child Friendly School Movement

Topic: Virtues, Characters and Civic Community