Learning from Ikhbal: Economic Conditions Is Not an Excuse
We live in a country that has a very long, and heroic history. It is independent, fighting tirelessly against anyone who comes with the intent to harass or destroy what this country has. Big names such as HOS Cokroaminoto, Sukarno, Syahrir, Hatta, Kartini, Dewi Sartika, Tan Malaka, Bung Tomo, Agus Salim, Ki Hajar Dewantara, and many others, are proof that this country was built by people with big ideas and high morale in building a nation. It is possible, that the spirit of struggle and great thinking of the founders of this nation, also declined to subsequent generations. I believe that, especially after meeting a Ruangguru user in a village in West Karawang.
Meet Ikhbal, Ikhbal is the son of a farm laborer and migrant workers. In 2018, Ikhbal had the opportunity to represent Indonesia to take part in a student exchange program in China. Ikhbal is also about to attend Gadjah Mada University which is one of the best tertiary institutions in Indonesia. How did he achieve all of this? This is one of the reasons we wanted to meet Ikhbal. Ikhbal invited us over to his house. Inside the house, there was an open room with lots of books inside, there was also a small desk and a white blackboard hanging on the wall. It turned out to be the room where Ikhbal studies. Ikhbal considers this room as storage for his weapons, where he devised a strategy before the war. On the hanging blackboard, there was “World War II” written on it.
“Were you studying history yesterday?” I asked.
“On no, World War II is what I call the Independent Admission for universities such as SIMAK UI, UTUL UGM, and UM Brawijaya.”
Ikhbal said, his mother who was working as a migrant worker had to leave him ever since he was an elementary school student. His mother can only go home once every three to four years. All this was done to provide for Ikhbal’s educational needs. As a child who does not want to waste the effort and sacrifices of his mother, Ikhbal wants to continue to study hard. His father who was busy farming every day also continues to encourage Ikhbal to focus on his education. He even forbid Ikhbal several times from going down to the fields. But during the holidays, Ikhbal still took time to help in the fields, even just to bring lunch to his father.
Ikhbal grew into an independent child. Even though he is far from his mother, he can still take care of his daily needs alone. Since elementary school, Ikhbal is very fond of languages, both Indonesian and English. For him, language is the window for him to be able to see the world. One big goal of Ikhbal’s is to become a diplomat in agriculture. According to his story, as a child born in a village with large agricultural land, he wants to be able to develop the potential of his village. For the sake of reaching his dreams, the only way to do so is to continue learning.
When entering high school, Ikhbal had difficulty understanding the lessons at school. To overcome that, Ikhbal took the initiative to find learning videos on Youtube. But what he found wasn’t satisfying for him, it was incomplete.
“When I was in grade 11, I found out about the Ruangguru application. But, at the time I could only use ruanglesonline,” Ikhbal said.
Thanks to his efforts to find a suitable learning method, Ikhbal was finally able to follow and understand the lessons at school. Every semester, he always the best in his class. Until 2018, Ikhbal had the opportunity to join an exchange student program in China. An extraordinary achievement that he wanted to show to his mother and father. While studying in China, Ikhbal continues to prepare his ammunition for war in World War I and II (a term Ikhbal use to call the Joint Selection Entrance to State Universities and the Independent entrance exam).
“When I was about to enter the 12th grade, I heard that Ruangguru had a big discount. For the longest time, I wanted to study using the learning videos, but couldn’t because the money is used for other things. But since there was a discount, I asked my dad to buy it. At that time I was still in China, but I still asked for my dad’s help to pay for the subscription. Finally, he did. After returning from China, and attending 12th grade, I have 3 weapons to help me ace the college entrance exam, the Ruangguru application, study groups with my school friends, and teaching young children,” Ikhbal said.
Yes, all three are the most effective weapons for Ikhbal to be able to pass the college entrance exam. During World War I (Joint Selection Entrance to State Universities), Ikhbal failed to get into college. But he evaluated it all and continued to improve, until finally, with his three weapons, Ikhbal managed to get into two state universities at once. And he chose the Department of Agricultural Industrial Technology, Faculty of Agricultural Technology, Gadjah Mada University.
Besides successfully registering his name as a student at Gadjah Mada University, Ikhbal also managed to get a scholarship from outside of the school. This, all costs for Ikhbal’s tuition have been covered by the scholarship provider. Ikhbal said that he did all of that, to prove to his mother. What his mother has worked so hard for is not in vain, Ikhbal successfully worked hard to accomplish his achievements.
Ikhbal hopes for two things, the first is that his mother returns to Indonesia, stops being a migrant worker, so that she can return home. Then the second, Ikhbal can be a diplomat in the field of agriculture, so that he can advance his village so that no one dares to damage and take away the natural wealth of the area he lives.
Ikhbal’s figure shows us that he has the same spirit as the founding heroes of this nation. Finally, Ikhbal left a message for all children in Indonesia:
“Learning is easy, but what is difficult is desire. Learning, it must be done with intent. And the Ruangguru applications helps everyone to study harder.”
