Ki Hajar Dewantara

Javanese educator who created Indonesia's first inclusive school system during colonial era

Raden Mas Soewardi Soerjaningrat (1889-1959), known as Ki Hajar Dewantara, established the Taman Siswa school network in 1922, defying Dutch colonial education policies. His "Among System" pedagogical approach blended Javanese wisdom with Montessori principles, emphasizing education as liberation.

Dewantara's radical decision to teach in Javanese and Malay (rather than Dutch) empowered over 12,000 indigenous students within a decade. His 'Three Education Commandments' became Indonesia's educational foundation: 1) Lead by example 2) Understand cultural context 3) Nurture through challenges.

During Japanese occupation (1942-1945), he secretly preserved indigenous scripts by encoding them in wayang puppet performances. Recent linguistic research at University of Indonesia discovered 74% of modern Javanese literature derives from Taman Siswa's hidden archives.