BUILDING STUDENTS’ POSITIVE CHARACTER THROUGH HOLISTIC EDUCATION

Character building is fundamentally based on the need to create community that process humanity, discipline, democratic, cooperative, problem solving, and encourage the students to put those values into practice out side of the class room. In general, character deals with God, individual, other people, environment and nationality reflected in the mind, attitude, feelings, remarks, and action based on religious norms, law, ethics, culture, and tradition. Character is built on the internalization of particular values which are considered good. There are many factors which influence the presence of those values such as social situation and condition, economic, and political condition, and so on. As the time elapses, those values undergo crisis. For example, the economic crisis and corruption happen due to crisis of honesty. Tolerance crisis brings about violence and anarchy. A tree can be taken as an analogy. Roots stem, branches, and twigs are interrelated and so are those values. Therefore, self-sufficiency, cooperation, honesty, passion, appreciation, bumbleness, responsibility, care, patience, peace, tolerance, and equation can be developed through holistic education which covers teaching and learning (tarbiyah), instruction (ta’lim), and character building (ta’dib). The role of family, educational institution and government are sbsolutely needed in holistic educatio