Juara 1 Karya Lomba Esai Nasional IBC 2023 HMPS PBS UIN RMS Surakarta oleh Jihan Nafisa Az-Zahra Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris Fakultas Adab dan Bahasa UIN Raden Mas Said Surakarta

Is Education Necessary for a Better Future?

Apart from being a means to add insight, education can also train someone in solving problems, improve the economy, and increase employment opportunities. According to Ki Hajar Dewantara, education is an effort to guide every child so that they can grow and develop as someone who can gain happiness and safety in their life. In article 1 paragraph 7, Law Number 20 of 2003 concerning the National Education System, the definition of education is a vehicle through which students develop their potential in an educational process that is by educational goals. In Indonesia, education has several types, namely formal education, non-formal education, and informal education. Formal education is an academic study activity carried out through institutional pathways and has a systematic, structured, multilevel, and tiered starting from elementary school to university. Non-formal education is an organized and systematic activity carried out outside the school, independently, or by serving students to achieve learning goals (Sudjana, 2004: 22).While informal education is an educational path that is carried out independently by the influence of family and the environment which includes manners, moral education, and socialization with the environment. According to Law Number 20 of 2003, informal education is a path of family and environmental education in the form of independent learning activities. From the statement above, it can be seen that education in Indonesia is not only in the form of formal education which contains only academic matters, but also includes non-academic education and even character education. Non-formal education can be in the form of course institutions, tutoring, training institutions, and so on. While informal education is in the form of character education which includes manners, ethics, morals, and so on related to the environment. Someone who is highly educated will find it easier to achieve his goals than someone who is less educated.

Education is the most important thing that every human being has the right to have. By being educated, a person can determine their direction and goals for their future. Someone knowledgeable will find it easier to socialize in their new environment because they have broad enough insight to interact with the different characteristics of other people. The purpose of organizing education is to help the family environment to educate and teach a child. Previously uneducated parents mostly wanted their children to have more knowledge than them. Many parents want their children to be as educated as possible so they can change the fate of their families through the jobs they have. Whatever circumstances parents face, they want the best for their children. This proves that education is very influential on a person's future.

The right to education for every Indonesian citizen has been guaranteed by law. But in fact, education in Indonesia is still less than optimal compared to other countries. There are still many people who are not aware of education in Indonesia, especially people who work as farmers. In the village of Punungerjo, Purworejo Regency, Central Java, some people work as farmers. The Peasant Community of Pogungrejo Village is still relatively lacking in terms of educational awareness. Especially for "higher education". This can be proven by the fact that only a few children from farming families in Pogungrejo Village continue their education to the tertiary level. Based on the researcher's pre-research, this fact is caused by several factors, namely: the public's view of education is expensive, education is considered not a guarantee of obtaining a decent job, and the level of parents' education is low. Thus, the awareness of farming families on the importance of formal education in Pogungrejo Village is important to study.

It's true, not a few educated people still have difficulty finding steady work. However, educated people will have a greater chance of getting a job than someone who is not educated. By being educated, a person can gain the skills needed in the world of work and assist in realizing career development. Expertise is knowledge about a particular field that can open up good career opportunities for the future. So that proper and good education can help some to realize their dreams. Not only for potential development and career advancement, but education is also very important to make someone have a positive character. Growing character in oneself is the goal of education. This can make Indonesian Human Resources better.

Education is very important for the future of a person to achieve the goal that the person wants. I believe that educated people have broader insights so it will be easier to get a job. Not only affects work, but education will also affect one's mindset. Someone who is lacking in education will be easily influenced by the outside world and have no self-foundation. The most important education that must be owned by everyone is character education. Even though a person has a high education, if it is not accompanied by good character, then that person can be said to be a person who has no value. So, formal, non-formal, and informal education must be balanced.