PARENTS DAY LEARNING
LEARNING SYSTEM PARENTS DAY
TO IMPROVE STUDENT COMPETENCY
Nurita Hardini Meita Sari, Saiful Anwar, Tantri Ardhiana
Department of Management, Faculty of Economics Malang State University
Jalan Surabaya 6 Malang
Abstract: The Parents Day learning system is intended to improve student competence, create a good relationship between the school and student guardians, and increase their awareness of the socialization and development of their child. This research was conducted to determine the effectiveness of the Parents Day program at Madrasah Ibtidaiyah Jenderal Sudirman Malang with qualitative methods. Data were collected through interviews, documentation, questionnaires, and observations. The results showed that students' responses to the Parents Day program were very positive. This is evidenced by an increase in learning outcomes. So it can be concluded that the Parents Day program has proven effective as an alternative to improve student competence.
Keywords: Parents Day Learning, student competencies
PRELIMINARY
Education is needed by humans as a means of obtaining new knowledge and developing it. A person's knowledge will quickly become obsolete, irrelevant and lose value if it is not continually updated with new learning methods. This learning method is closely related to the curriculum, which is one of the important components of the education system because it becomes a reference for every education unit, both administrators and administrators. The latest curriculum launched by the government since 2006 is the Education Unit Level Curriculum (KTSP). The curriculum is an operational curriculum developed in accordance with the educational unit, the potential of the school / area, the characteristics of the school / area, the socio-cultural characteristics of the local community, and the characteristics of students (Mulyasa 2006). The real form of this KTSP is local content lessons and self-development activities. Local content is a curricular activity to develop student competencies that are tailored to the characteristics and potential of a region whose material cannot be grouped into other subjects so it must stand alone. In its implementation, schools are required to be creative and dynamic in order to improve the quality of education. Unfortunately, many schools have difficulty meeting these demands. As a result, Local Content lessons are often boring and become a learning burden for students.
One interesting alternative to support Local Content lessons is a learning program Parents Day, which means parent's day, where the guardian of students who have a profession or life skill given the opportunity to teach. This program, according to Indrafachrudi (2003), helps to establish good relations between the school and the guardians of students so as to create a more conducive learning climate. Besides being able to improve student competence, Samhsa (2003) added that parents' day (parents day) is also an effort to increase parents' awareness of their responsibility in carrying out their role as a support for children's social skills and their development.
With a learning program Parents Day, students can get real knowledge from their own learning experiences, not just the theories they have been hearing about. This is in accordance with the three main things taught in schools in learning societies in developed countries, namely how to learn, how to think, and how to manage their own future (Dryden & Vos 2003).
Based on the above background, this study aims to describe the effectiveness of the parents day system in increasing student competence. The results of this study are expected to be taken into consideration in the development of learning systems in schools.
METHOD
The type of approach used in this research is a qualitative approach. In this case, individuals or organizations are not isolated into variables or hypotheses, but are seen as a whole (Moleong 2005). Researchers act as key instruments and providers of action or as observers and interviewers. The research location is Madrasyah Ibtidaiyah Jenderal Sudirman Malang which is located at Jalan Soekarno-Hatta 1 Malang 65113. The data is obtained through a single site, then processed by an interactive model analysis method which aims to summarize or simplify the data so that it can be interpreted so that the problem can be solved. The analysis process in qualitative methods is carried out from the beginning and throughout the research process (Miles & Huberman, 1992).
In order for the results of this research to be accounted for, it is necessary to check the validity of the findings or data. To meet this legality standard, the researcher took two actions in his research. The first action is to extend the participation of researchers in the field. Although it takes a long time (approximately 4 months), this extension will allow an increase in the degree of confidence of the data collected. The second action is peer debriefing which is done to get various inputs in the form of criticism and suggestions from colleagues obtained through seminar discussions.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The United States knows Parents Day by title "The First Day Festival"Where parents only explain about their profession at their children's school. Malaysia knows it as "Bazaar and Close of Academic Year". In Indonesia, this system is better known as "Parents Day", (www.disdasmen.org). In some countries, Parents Day made as a national day. South Korea, for example, commemorates it on May 8, Vietnam commemorates it on July 7, and in the United States, the national day Parents Day set on the fourth Sunday in July (En.wikipedia.Org).
In general, a learning system Parents Day done in four ways. First, parents attend and see the teaching and learning process of their child at school. Second, parents attend school at the end of the school year or certain times to attend school festivals where there are games involving parents of students. Third, parents attend school to explain their profession. Fourth, the school visits the parents of students to inform them of the progress of learning outcomes and the socialization process for their children. The expected benefit from such a system is the increased awareness of parents about their responsibilities in supporting children's social skills and development.
While in this study, the learning system Parents Day which is used according to student competencies and presents real knowledge from the learning experience, not just theory. For example, parents of students become day teachers at school, to be precise in the class where their children are located. The material provided is adjusted to the skills or knowledge of the students' parents and the competency standards that must be mastered by students. Furthermore, students will write reports about their learning experiences which are then used as portfolios. So, it can be concluded that Parents Day is the use and optimization of existing community resources in order to improve the quality of school education.
The steps for implementing the learning system parents day can be seen in Figure 1 Appendix 1.
The place for the implementation of this research is Madrasyah Ibtidaiyah Jenderal Sudirman Malang which is located at Jalan Soekarno-Hatta 1 Malang 65113. The initial research was conducted on April 12, 2007 and the second research was carried out on May 4, 2007. The research stages refer to the operational research design that has been made and adapted to the conditions and situation of the research location.
The first stage is research preparation. This stage begins with the making of a research proposal and making an operational design from February to March 2007. Furthermore, a research permit was made on March 5, 2007 to the Malang religious department and the Madrasah Ibtidaiyah Jenderal Sudirman Malang (MIJS) School. The final step is to procure good research materials including learning scenarios, observation sheets, invitations for parents, documentation, souvenirs, questionnaires, and consumption.
The second stage is the implementation stage which includes learning planning to post-implementation, namely selecting competent guardians of students through secondary data (the latest data on student guardians owned by the school). In this selection process, researchers were assisted by the school by contacting the parents via telephone and face to face. Then, the parents are given an explanation of the learning system Parents Day including learning scenarios (from the school). Furthermore, the schedule of parents is adjusted to the lesson schedule. The agreement was obtained if the schedule given by the student's guardian was the same as the schedule proposed by the homeroom teacher. While the implementation of classroom teaching was carried out on April 12, 2007 and May 4, 2007.
In the first study, Parents Day held in class 3C where the resource person is Ibu Task Dwi Koriyanik, who works as ABRI (KOWAD). He explained about the TNI profession, and everything related to the TNI according to the Indonesian language subject regarding the introduction of the profession. Whereas in the second study, Parents Day conducted in grade 5A, with the resource person, Mrs. Dra. Sriwardhani, M.Si. who works as a civil servant (Chemistry lecturer). He teaches about science and science in general, especially about food additives, which are in accordance with the subject of Science (Natural Sciences). After learning activities, students are given assignments by the subject teacher to make written reports based on their learning experiences after participating in the learning system Parents Day.
The last stage is reflection. Reflection is carried out to determine whether the learning system is Parents Day can be used to improve student competence, find out the constraints or obstacles of the whole research as a basis for improvement in implementation Parents Day furthermore, as well as knowing the success rate of the two studies conducted. The materials needed at this stage include: learning scenarios; observation sheet; questionnaire; documentation; consumption; invitation; and souvenirs. Especially in the second study, there were added stages finishing such as: making posters, movie, and the final report.
Implementation of learning Parents Day can run well if there is support from all parties involved in the learning system, namely the school, student guardians and students. The school plays an active role both in communicating with student or student guardians, motivating students and teachers, coordinating implementation time, and providing learning tools and simple learning scenarios as controllers so that the learning atmosphere remains conducive.
To find out students' responses to activities Parents Day In the first study, researchers prepared a questionnaire for 21 students (1 person was absent due to illness). The results of student responses can be seen in table 1, attachment 1.
As for knowing student responses in the second study, the researcher prepared a questionnaire for 37 students. The results of student responses to the implementation of learning can be seen in table 2, attachment 2.
Table 1 and table 2 can show the interest of all students in the learning system Parents Day. Even though at point no.6 table 1 and table 2 students are less interested in persuading their parents to come to school as resource persons, this is because there are some students who have poor communication with their parents, so they feel unsure about persuading their parents. This can be resolved by the school as a mediator between students and parents.
The success of the learning system Parents Day This is able to make all physical and non-physical components of students free from pressure, relax, and pleasure. This pleasant state will pave the way for students to optimally utilize all their potential, or in other words, this pleasant state will encourage students to be genuinely involved and happy to learn (Dyden & Vos 2003).
To find out the stages of student achievement in learning, students are also given a test at the end of each lesson. The test material is to summarize the descriptions that have been given by the resource person (student guardian) in accordance with their respective subjects. The Minimum Graduation Standard (SKM) set for the Indonesian language subject is 70, while the Natural Science (IPA) subject is 65. In the Indonesian language subject, the average student learning outcomes obtained are 81.23 from a total of 20 students (100%), while in the science subject, the average student learning outcomes obtained were 86.89, with details of which 36 students completed (97.29%) and 1 student had not completed (2.7%). One student incompleteness is due to not following the implementation of the learning system Parents Day from the beginning. The table of student learning outcomes is shown in table 3 in attachment 2.
Based on the description above, it can be concluded that learning outcomes experience completeness after implementing the learning system Parents Day. The learning outcomes are directly proportional to the students' responses. So it can be concluded the learning system Parents Day is a good alternative to improve student competence.
There are five obstacles that we face in carrying out this activity. The first is the difficulty in gathering student guardians to school. However, this obstacle was able to be overcome with an official invitation from the school via letter or telephone. The next obstacle is the adjustment of the student's spare time to the existing course schedule. However, this can be solved by changing the schedule of subjects according to the willingness schedule of the guardians of the students. There is a tendency for guardians to lack self-confidence. This is the third obstacle that is overcome by the school by motivating student guardians that what is taught in class is in accordance with their competence. The time of the research carried out in the even semester is the fourth obstacle. The school finally looks for time outside of academic activities, namely the time for admitting new students. The last obstacle is late funding. However, we were able to solve this by looking for sponsors (Mahameru TVC & C production house) and using personal expenses.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Based on these results, the implementation of the learning system Parents Day can run well if there is support from all parties involved, namely the school, student guardians (not only student guardians who are resource persons) and students. Learning system Parents Day success makes students feel happy and comfortable following the teaching and learning process. This situation encourages him to use all his potential optimally. This is directly proportional to the completeness of student learning outcomes after following this learning system. Learning system Parents Day effectively and simply build students' future, because it requires students to know themselves, their learning abilities, processes, interests, and knowledge of the subjects they want. So it can be concluded that the learning system Parents Day is a good alternative to improve student learning competence.
Learning system Parents Day can be applied to other schools with relevant levels of education and adapted to the situation or conditions of the school or region. This is in accordance with the principles of implementing the KTSP (Education Unit Level Curriculum). Some of our suggestions for the school should communicate well with parents of students, organize time well, and prepare the learning tools needed. The suggestions for parents are that they should actively participate in supporting the learning system Parents Day this is to improve the competence of their children. Before learning in class is carried out, the teacher must always provide direction and motivation to all students, so that they are motivated and more active in expressing their ideas.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Dryden, G & Vos, J. (2003). Learning Revolution: Effective Learning When You are in a "fun situation", Part II: The Miracle of the Mind, Bandung, Kaifa Publishers.
Indrafachrudi, S. (1993). 'Relationship Patterns between Schools and Parents of Students: A Study on Elementary Education in Malang Municipality', Journal of the Research Forum Th. 5 No. 1 and 2. pp. 115-126.
Miles, Mattew B, Hubberman. (1992). Qualitative Data Analysis, Jakarta, UI Press.
Moleong, J. Lexy. (2005). Qualitative Research Methods, Bandung, PT Remaja Rosdakarya.
Mulyasa, E. (2006). Education Unit Level Curriculum, First Printing, Bandung, PT Remaja Rosdakarya.
Samhsa. (2003). What is National Parents Day ?.www.parenlingteens.about.com.