In this post, which is my first post in 2019, I would like to share my thought about rulemaking and self-reflection. This writing is purely my opinion without anything or anyone influences me. Therefore, I apologize in advance if this writing somehow offends you.
Before going to the main topic, I want to share my personal experiences when it comes to rules. For some people, a set of rules can stand side by side with a set of torture devices. This set of rules trap and forbid us to have our own freedom. However, for some people, a set of rules is a set of paths to achieve discipline and well-organized life. I lean toward the second one.
Both my parents work to support our life. My father is a policeman and my mother is a treasurer in a government organisation. With both of them working, my sister and I were and raised in an environment where being discipline and organized is very important in order to do our daily activity well. Therefore, since we were young, we were taught how to prepare everything beforehand, always fulfil our promises, arrive early or at least on time for all occasions or appointments and do what you are supposed to do first before anything else. This kind of parenting leaves me to be a person who is able to adapt in every rule which is applied to me such as school rules, university rules, PPL rules, KKN rules, PPG rules and now my institution rules. I did not utter a single complain that even made my friends wonder how can I live with rules all the time. Well, that's because I am used to it. Do we not live with rules even if we do not aware of it? We have our own rules for our own lives, what's the difference? However, I will never complain IF the rules are being implemented WELL.
When the rules are implemented well, in my opinion, there is no reason for us to reject them, refuse to obey them or complain about them. However, when the rules are just sentences on a piece of paper without any meaning and proper implementation, then something must be fixed. There must be a problem in that kind of situation and from my experiences, something from the inner circle is the problem.
In my view, when a set of rules does not work, the first thing we have to do is self-reflection. Have we as the rule makers actually follow them? That is the question we should deeply think about. When we do not obey the rule, we do not have the right to force other people to obey them as well. When you do not even follow the rules, then do not expect the rules can be implemented well. Even the most simple rule will have a big chance to fail if we do not have an awareness to realize how important it is to follow them. Giving an example is the most effective way to make people obey the rule. They will imitate what other people do.
There is a simple example which happened when I taught in a certain school. A student was asked why he came late and he said something "Well, the teachers come late too, right? So why should I come on time? What's for?"
Another example is where I live right now. I live in a dormitory with students and several guardians. One of the guardians' jobs is making the rules for the students who live in the dormitory. Ironically, the guardians do not obey the rules they made. They break them themselves. For example, there is a rule to keep quiet and not making any noise but of my.... how LOUD these guardians are. Do you expect the students to keep quiet when the guardians are two or three times louder than the students? Yeah, dream on...
These examples show the importance of the awareness of self-reflection in rulemaking. Before validating a rule, we as the rule makers should consider 'can I obey this rule?' question first. This simple mistake can lead to more serious consequences if it is not handled well. It can backfire so bad that it can create protection for the rule breakers with a simple backtalk:
'We should do this when you break this?'
'We get a punishment when we break the rule but you are free to do as you please?'
Another self-reflection in rulemaking is are we consistent with our punishment? This question is important when the rulebreaker is someone important or a student with an important background.
Should we allow this student to do whatever he/she wants because her/his parents have a certain influence in this school?
Should we keep this student even though she or he is a bad influence for other students?
When we decide to apply the punishment to this student, are we brave enough to take a risk?
When you are not brave enough to punish a rulebreaker just because of his or her family background, then people will not take you seriously. The worst consequence is you can be a puppet. When you do what you have to do without any bias, then you will get respect and dignity you deserve.
Obeying the rules and consistent with our decision are important in rulemaking as parts of self-reflection. Think carefully before creating a set of tough rules because there will always a chance for them to backfire, especially when you carelessly break your own rules.
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