Global-Local Context and Challenges of Academic Shifting Paradigm of Islamic Higher Education in Indonesia

The more intensified global demands and challenges toward education in Indonesia the more insisted Islamic higher education and universities (Perguruan Tinggi Agama Islam or PTAI) have to strive for and compete with the other universities in global as well as local context. Henceforth, PTAI have to be able to solve various internal and external challenges and barrier that are presumably stand for its competitive power. As long as concerned, the management system of these PTAI remained dualistic and dichotomy in their curriculum and trapped mainly on administrative and quantitative orientation. These circumstances urge to improve the development of academic, scientific and culture, professional capabilities, and fighting for quality assurance acknowledged by international standards. The backwardness of PTAI to responds the global and local (glocal) challenges were primarily due to the incapability of its rational based to solve the problems. PTAI that has existed since 1960s has to make academic rationales reorientations and reforms in developing its qualities within glocal context and challenges. Consequently, those challenges need to be responded positively by PTAI to re-shape the image as well as to re-modeling the rationale and operational aspects of Islamic university in Indonesia. This paper tries to elaborate further on how the glocal context and challenges blocking PTAIs have insisted their existence to develop its rationale and operational model for future betterment without altering their local wisdom. The main focus and goal of this study is to enrich the horizon to develop Islamic higher institutions in international forum, as well as founding the policy basis for developing university community engagement in contemporary Indonesia