THE VALUES OF CHARACTER EDUCATION IN A NOVEL NUN: PADA SEBUAH CERMIN BY AFIFAH AFRA

A novel can be used as one of teaching materials which is believed to provide valuable education for learners. We can find extensive research dissecting the content of educational values in a novel aiming at providing practical ways for teachers to teach the values to the students. This study aims to describe about content of character education values in a novel Nun: Pada Sebuah Cermin by Afifah Afra. This study focused on discovering the traits of the characters in the novel. The research employed a descriptive method by analysing qualitative data sources. The findings and discussion argue that characters education can be taught at school, especially senior high school, by using literary works, in this particular case novel.


Introduction
Education at present has become an effective instrument to shape people's attitude. Parents expected that education leads to the formation of children's characters. Education indeed plays a major role in the development of a nation, so that the society improve the quality of living (Berkowitz & Bier, 2007). Government of a country should educate its citizen to foster their good quality. Indonesian policy of a national education system (no. 20 of 2003) explains the importance of character education to students. Character education is still the basis of reference in learning materials. Character education can be realized explicitly or implicitly in the materials so that students can understand the concept and practice the character's education into daily life (Althof & Berkowitz, 2006).
Character education can be taught from various sources, written or oral. Character education can be learned from parents, teachers, or someone who is a role model by showing attitudes that reflect the pillars of character education. Orally, this can be the form of direct or indirect speech to someone, such as advice or admonitions. In the written from, reading sources may highlight the importance of character values, which can be found in literary works.
Through reading activities, students can get more positive values in life. Children's literature has an identity in terms of providing mandates that can encourage children to have honest, courageous, responsible, and strong. Therefore, parents and activists are expected to introduce children's literature to the children so that they can take the good ones, especially those that contain character education.
But in reality, the current source of reading is also less desirable. It is characterized by students' low reading interest, particularly reading literary works. In fact, literary work can instil desirable characters, such as religious, honest, discipline, hard-work, reliable, compassion, and responsible (Depdiknas, 2010).
Language becomes the medium for everyone to trigger their imagination and creativity. The author uses this language to serve as a literary work that has a beautiful language and vivid imagery in order to provide stimulus to the audience of literary works and review them in accordance with their respective understanding. The reading process makes the readers get the benefits conveyed by the author. Through language in literary works, the authors instil the benefits of character education through the stories that are close and personal to the community.
Literary works are not simple cultural aspects. It is a social institution that uses language as a medium, while language itself is a social creation. Thus it can be said that literature presents a picture of life, which is a social reality. The drama script as a part of the literary works and as a cultural product contain the existing cultural treasures in society. Authors or writers do not only convey the events that occur in society, but also the wisdom resulting from deep reflection. Reality in works of fiction is an illusion of reality and a convincing impression that is displayed, which is different from everyday reality.
Novels are one form of literary works that can be the medium of character education. Novels become one of the literary works that serve as teaching materials in schools, especially class XII senior high school. Through novels, students can learn positive things so it can serve as "educators" other than teachers (Herreid, 1994). The use of novel is in agreement with the formulation of Basic Competence (KD) Curriculum 2013. The materials are contained in KD 3.1 and 4.1. KD 3.1 contains materials that require students to identify information, include orientation, and relate sequences of events, complications and resolutions, in oral or written novel stories. Furthermore, in KD 4.1, students are required to construct information from story or history in explanatory texts. This means, the novel is able to act as a medium of introduction of character education because it is relevant to teaching materials in high school (Liasna & Ansari, 2016).
The real aim of using literary works is to build students' character. Hardiningtyas states that literary learning aims to inculcate moral values, ethics, manners, and humanity to learners (Hardiningtyas, 2008). This opinion was confirmed by Andayani that the purpose of learning literature should be able to develop students' personality, such as diligent, tenacious, and kind to others (Andayani, Suharyanti, & Mujiyanto, 2013).
Along with the emergence of new novels are very significant. One of the novels is the novel Nun: Pada Sebuah Cermin (NPSC) by Afifah Afra. This discussion presents several traits, such as (1) religious, (2) honest, (3) discipline, (4) hard work, (5) reliable, (6) compassionate, and (7) ) responsible. These character must be cultivated by each student to provide him or her direction and provision when facing real social life (Lickona, Schaps, & Lewis, 2002).

Method
This research employs a qualitative descriptive research by describing the characteristics found in the novel Nun: Pada Sebuah Cermin by Afifah Afra. Concretely, the researchers first read the whole of the novel. After reading and understanding the contents of the novel, the researchers proceeded by selecting the data by way of purposive, i.e. choosing it based on the consideration of the research focus. Validity test in this research is done by using three triangulations. The three triangulations are: (1) theory triangulation; (2) triangulation of data sources; and (3) triangulation of researchers. Through the validity, the researchers can obtain data. Triangulation of data sources is a technique to synchronize the analysis results with different source interviews.

Findings and Discussion
Character education in schools should be taught from many aspects, such as: curriculum content, learning and assessment processes, subject management, school management, and implementation of activities or co-curricular activities. Character education is also defined as everything that teachers do, which is able to influence the character of learners (Andayani et al., 2013). Teachers help shape the characters of learners. This includes examples of how the teachers behaved, the way the teachers spoke or delivered the material, how the teachers tolerated, and other related matters. The essence of character education in the context of education in Indonesia is the education of values, namely the education of noble values derived from the culture of Indonesia itself, in order to foster the personality of the younger generation.
Character education is a systematically designed and executed effort to help learners understand the values of human behavior related to God Almighty, self, fellow human being, environment, and nationality embodied in thoughts, attitudes, feelings, words, and deeds based on religious norms, law, etiquette, culture, and customs. Character education teaches habitual ways of thinking and behavior that help individuals to live and work together as family, community, and state and help them to make responsible decisions.
The education system in Indonesia recognizes the term values of character education as set forth in Puskur Depdiknas 2010. There are at least 18 pillars of character education, but in this paper will focus on 7 pillars of character education values, among others (1) religious, (2) honest, (3) discipline, (4) hard work, (5) reliable, (6) compassionate, and (7) responsible. These seven values become the focus of discussion to explore the education of characters in the novel Nun: Pada Sebuah Cermin by Afifah Afra.

Religious
Religious means the attitudes and behaviors that are obedient and obedient to the religion it embraces. Religion became the most effective educational tool because in religion it is shown the suggestions and restrictions that every believer should obey (Pépin, 2009). Novel NPSC is loaded with religious education, especially Islam that guides its people to always obey and obey the command of God and keep away from God's prohibitions. Integrated religious education in a work of literature or tradition is said to be able to touch readers, with concrete images close to the reader (Saddhono & Kurniawan, 2017).
Nun, as a figure of a woman at the age of twenties, has been educated religiously by their biological parents. One example, the name Nun Walqolami is taken from the first verse in the Qur'an Surah Al-Qolam.
Gatra with her innocent attitude dares to honestly answer Mr. Raharja's question. Through honesty, Gatra also makes the conversation between them connected and builds good atmosphere. Moreover, Nun trusts Pak Raharja to be able to pursue Package C in SMA Cahaya. Gatra honesty is not separated from the Javanese custom which always showing lembah manah attitude (being humble) in the presence of an older person. An honest and frank attitude is also shown by Mas Wir. Mas Wir also intends to tell the true intentions why Nun's mother worries if he follows National High School Equivalency Program. "… Kamu main ke SMA Cahaya ya?" "Lha, kok panjenengan tahu?" … "… Kemarin ibumu sempat cerita ke aku perihal niatmu untuk mendaftar kejar Paket C. Ibumu awalnya keberatan." … "Ibumu hanya khawatir kamu akan kecapekan dan jatuh sakit." (Afra, 2015, p. 164).

Discipline
Discipline means actions that demonstrate orderly conduct and abide by various rules and regulations. Attitudes of discipline can also be realized in the regularity of one's life in carrying out routines in it (Barker & Cheney, 1994).
The quote shows that Nun is discipline in her in daily activities, ranging from after waking up to the afternoon. Although there are some exceptions, it is the regularity that shows the attitude of discipline.

Hard Work
Hard work means willingness with a strong determination to achieve performance in a way, of course, accompanied by discipline (Schaufeli, Shimazu, & Taris, 2009). The form of hard work in the NPSC novel is demonstrated by the concrete form of Nun's hard work in earning a living to help her mother who has done for six years, as a ketoprak player and a maid at Fitri's Laundry.

Reliable
Self-reliance is an attitude and behavior that is not easy depending on others when completing tasks. Being reliable also cannot be separated with one's personality. A person who has a good personality will prefer to solve his/her own problems first rather than have to bother others (Campbell et al., 1996). Being reliable is depicted from the figure of Gatra, Nun's friend in playing ketoprak. Gatra who had dropped out from school refused the help of Mas Wir who offer to pay his school fees, although Mas Wir's own economy is quite difficult.
Gatra's explanation shows his self-reliance. Gatra prefers to be a ketoprak player and earn his own without depending on others. Nun as the oldest child also showed her self-reliance attitude. She really understands how hard her mother works and she doesn't depend her mother. Nun also helped to meet their daily needs, by playing as a ketoprak player.
The quote shows the figure of young Mas Wir who at that time helped Nun and her twin young brothers who had just settled on the river banks of Kali Anyar after moving from Wonogiri. Nun was still a toddler and left by her mother to sing around the street. That day, her mother had troubles so that her children starved at home. But, Mas Wir as her neighbour also shows empathy by giving them food.
Mas Wir also became an influential figure to Nun by becoming a ketoprak player. After graduating from junior high school, Nun cannot continue to high school because her mother cannot afford it. Mas Wir invites Nun to try to play ketoprak, rather than having to follow his mother's invitation to deal with garbage cleaning.

Responsible
Responsibility is the attitude and behavior of a person to carry out his duties and obligations, which he should do, to himself, society, environment (nature, social and culture), state and God Almighty.
Through the novel the author also wants to convey that the name is a prayer and a responsibility that must be held firmly by the owner of the name. In addition, the realization of responsibility also manifested Nun in the following quotations.
The quotation shows the responsibility of a brother to her younger brothers. Although the income as a ketoprak player is not much, Nun is still responsible to meet his brothers' desire, by giving them a present, a second-hand bike.
Responsibility also manifests in regrets if a task is not done well (Ordóñez & Connolly, 2000). The following quote shows the regrets of Nun's mother for feeling unable to take responsibility for the lives of his children properly.

The Implication of Character Education
NPSC novel presents seven pillars of character education values. The seven values of character education are very potential to be used as teaching material in high school as it is compatible with KD 3.1 and 4.1. The implications of NPSC with high school learning are reflected through the values of character education in novels which are considered close to the students, especially for students residing in Surakarta City. The problems raised in the NPSC novel come together with the ways to overcome them so that the readers are encourage to be critical in solving a life problem. The education represented in the novel is able to produce a great impact for students. They can be encouraged to reflect and take lessons from this novel so they can foster noble traits in society (Bulach, 2002).

Conclusion
Character education becomes a tool of human development. Character education has values referred to as several pillars, namely being (1) religious, (2) honest, (3) discipline, (4) hard work, (5) reliable, (6) compassionate, and (7) responsible. Character education can be taught by reading literary works, telling stories close and personal to the readers. The seven values of character education can be found in a novel entitled Nun: Pada Sebuah Cermin by Afifah Afra. The NPSC novel presents the seven values of character education concretely on issues close to the reader's situation, which in this case is society. It also narrates how the characters address and overcome them. This novel is directed to be a teaching material in high schools so that it can encourage students to know and understand real problems in society and how to respond to them well.