Indonesian Teacher Prize: Inug, the Fairy Tale Storyteller with Big Dreams
Albert Einstein, a leading physicist who is certainly very well-known and familiar to us all once said “ If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read more fairy tales.”
Yes, fairy tales. According to Einstein, fairy tales storytelling is the right way for children to grow and become intelligent individuals. Stories such as Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, and many other stories, can shape character, teach life values, and moral messages to children. But, as we see now, the existence of fairy tales is decreasing. Children no longer tell each other what they want to be.
A study conducted by Jamie Tehrani, an associate professor in the Department of Anthropology at Durham University conducted research in 2013 on a fairy tale titled the Peacock Hooded Girl. What did Jamie find? He found 58 different storylines for the same title. Fairytales are never silent, they are constantly moving and developing. However, the moral message stays the same, “Listen to your mother’s advice.”
Are fairy tales starting to dim in existence? This statement is definitely not true in Inug’s life, his father was a storyteller. Starting from his childhood memories, Slamet Nugroho, who was called Inug since childhood, has always been exposed to fairy tales. His grandma was the first person who made Inug love fairy tales. Every now and then, his grandma would ask for a massage. While enjoying her grandson’s massage, she told fairy tales to make Inug happy. Besides his grandma, his mother also likes to tell him stories about various things. While his father sometimes brought him fairy tales books given to him by his boss at work.
“My father is only a junior high school graduate, he works as an office boy in the office, but he has big dreams. Wanting his child to get the highest education as possible. That’s why it’s really nice when my father brings home a new storybook.”
His pleasure in the books made young Inug grow with imaginations that emerge from the stories he read, as well as stories from his grandma and mother. All that makes him become a carefree person, loves storytelling, confident, and is very respectful to his parents and older people. Until one day, he was asked by his father to enter the Middle School of Engineering (STM), a place that he himself did not enjoy. During school, he really didn’t enjoy it even though in the end he managed to graduate. One time, while he was still going to school at STM, there was a moment when Inug spoke to his father, shared his heart content that he really didn’t like going to school at STM. His father began to understand, understand the true talents of his son. Finally, Inug was entrusted to the Ketoprak traditional art group near his house.
“Incidentally at that time my neighborhood had a Ketropak performing arts studio. My father said to my neighbor, I entrusted my child, please train him. That’s what he said,” Said Inug imitation the style of his deceased father when speaking in a Javanese accent.
Since then, Inug has been active in the role of Ketoprak, something he really feels is his passion. When he entered university, he was still exploring his hobby, he even joined a theatre group on campus. After graduating from university, Inug began his entry into the world of education by becoming a teacher as well as a storyteller. In 2000–2001, he was informed about a job opening as a storytelling teacher in kindergarten. A new challenge that he wanted to take immediately. After registering, Inug was accepted at the school.
“Maybe I became the first male to become a kindergarten teacher in Solo, maybe even in Central Java at the time. It’s a challenge for me because I was asked to be a class teacher and also a storyteller, and it turned out that it was really cool to tell the stories, I am glad I could become closer to the children,” said Inug.
During his time working as a teacher, Inug participated in several fairy tale competitions. He even received several awards, ranging from the city level to the provincial level. His achievements in the world of fairy tales and teaching children advanced Inug’s career. In 2005, he began his adventure in the city of Palembang, South Sumatra. Because of his various achievements, Inug was accepted to become a storyteller and a character-building teacher, in kindergarten and elementary school.
“I don’t have any relatives in Palembang, just by myself, in the city trying to introduce fairy tales. Over time I started teaching with a partner. She first noticed me and was interested in my fairy tale storytelling. As time goes by, she was also interested in my personality and everything that is in me. Finally, we started developing feelings for each other, and in 2007 I married my partner who was also a kindergarten teacher,” he said while remembering the beautiful moment.
Through his abilities in storytelling, Inug received many awards from a number of events he participated in. But Inug still wasn’t satisfied, he wanted fairy tales to re-exist in society and become a medium of education in schools and at home. As a storyteller, Inug knows exactly that fairy tales can be a very effective medium used by teachers, especially for kindergarten and elementary school. A teacher must be able to talk well to build the imagination of the students. In addition to reading books, children’s imagination can also be built through stories told by teachers expressively.
By participating in the Indonesian Teacher Prize event, Inug wanted to share his big dream. He wants his tales to be enjoyed by all people in the regions of Indonesia, not just Java. He hopes that if he can work together with Ruangguru, many teachers, parents, and children can go back to enjoying fairy tales. According to Inug, many parents are now distant from their children. They no longer share stories in the family room. However, through fairy tales, Inug believes that the distance between parents and children will immediately disappear.
“I hope that I can soon work together with Ruangguru. Through technology and its application, equal distribution of education in Indonesia can become a reality. I also wish that fairy tales can be enjoyed by children with special needs, as well as children who have physical disabilities, like my first child,” said Inug.
Inug’s first child has limitations on his hearing. When Inug arrived in Jakarta, he got a WhatsApp message from his son, Telaga Bening Desraya. Bening tried to encourage his struggling father who wanted to make his big dreams a reality. By sending a series of emojis: an airplane, waving hands and an open palm. Bening hoped his father would always be in good hands, and his prayers would encourage him.
