Violence in an Urban Indonesian High School

The purpose of this study is to examine the students’ perceptions of violence in an urban Indonesian high school. An ethnographically-informed case study is employed in an attempt to understand the students’ day-to-day life within the school environment and its influence on the construction of the students’ understanding of school violence.
Drawing from participant observations over more than 6 months, personal interviews with 4 key students and 4 teachers, 5 focus group discussions, 15 selected students’ diaries, YouTube, Facebook, blogs and BlackBerry Messengers, this study presents some key findings in relation to the students’ perceptions of violence. First, school violence is associated with masculinity. Toughness and physical prowess are perceived to be the male characteristics which should be performed through school violence. Showing male characteristics through school violence is crucial to avoid the stigma of being banci or she-male – an unacceptable gender representation in Indonesian society. Second, school violence is crucially perceived by the students to be about identity, either in conjunction with the self, a group or institutional identity. Third, school violence is seen as a medium to construct social capital – strong connections, trustworthiness and reciprocity.
This study argues that the students’ positive perceptions of violence are influenced by the dynamic of social and cultural practices within the educational environment. The segregation of school facilities, the designed place for hanging out, the communication patterns among the students and the overt hierarchical system between juniors, seniors and alumni regulated by the students’ norms are clear factors in this. This study, therefore, reiterates the view that attempts to control school violence should focus beyond the boundary of the individuals per se; it should consider the social, cultural and institutional context.