ENGLISH LANGUANGE LEARNING IN INDONESIA
Foreign language learning in Indonesia has a long history. In the colonial era, foreign languages were
taught in certain schools, especially for the descendants of nobles and Dutch children. Instead of
wanting to create a future generation that can compete at the international level in the era of
globalization, English lessons in elementary schools are eliminated and English lessons at the junior
and senior high school levels are reduced in the 2013 curriculum. The purpose of this study is to
analyze various learning policies. English in Indonesia in the perspective of forming world citizens with
intercultural competence because being a citizen of the world in the era of globalization is a certainty.
The method used in this research is a qualitative approach with document analysis techniques.
Various documents from books, research articles and curriculum documents themselves were
analyzed. The results of this study indicate that the Indonesian government has allocated foreign
language learning since the first curriculum, namely the 1947 curriculum to the 2013 curriculum.
However, in the 2013 curriculum the allocation for foreign language learning is less than the previous
curricula. On the other hand, globalization demands more language learning at the school level in the
context of forming all Indonesians to become citizens of the world. However, the influence of learning
English that is not in accordance with Indonesian culture needs to be anticipated with intercultural
competence. Therefore, in the context of forming world citizens through learning English, both
students and teachers must have intercultural competence which is reflected in the learning materials
so that they remain Indonesian cultured even though they study English.
English learning in Indonesia is still static and less innovative. Many factors influence; starting from
the lack of educators, the number of teachers who are incompetent in this subject area, the lack of
practice, as well as the limited facilities and learning media, especially those who receive education in
the regions. Many teachers in the country are still incompetent, especially in this field. The teacher
can be the first problem solver, but can also be the first trouble maker, for students. Because,
teachers are people who have a big role as a bridge between the student's introduction to the subject.
If in the early days, the student doesn't like it, then most likely the next student will not be able to
absorb the lesson optimally.
However, the fact is that until now learning is still focused on LKS books and is more busy in
understanding grammar which has always been like that, although there are also listening and reading
lessons that are less emphasized. The success of students is also determined in working on questions
whose success rate is determined by the value on the paper. This does not mean that they do not
appreciate learning through this LKS. In essence, we learn the means of communication, but we learn
it like learning exact formulas, memorized but then lost. We have forgotten the true essence, why
should we learn languages? The point is as a practical means of communication and understanding.
After graduating from junior high school, high school, and even college, we forget what we have
learned before. Imagine, learning a language for years and some even volunteered to take a language
course but got nothing. In addition to the sheet of paper that most of us will use to apply for jobs.
