PANCASILA EDUCATION AS AN INSTRUMENT FOR SHAPING
STUDENTSAo LEGAL CONSCIOUSNESS IN THE ERA OF CONSTITUTIONAL DEMOCRACY Ibnu Anshori 1*.
Alfi Mufida Rahmawati1 Universitas Kristen Cipta Wacana.
Malang City.
Indonesia Correspondent author e-mail: ibnuanshori@cwcu.
Abstract.
This study examines Pancasila Education as an instrument for fostering studentsAo legal consciousness within the context of constitutional democracy.
Employing a qualitative approach with a descriptiveAeanalytical design, the research aims to explore how Pancasila values are internalized in educational practices and how they contribute to the formation of studentsAo legal awareness.
Data were collected through in-depth interviews, classroom observations, and document analysis, and were analyzed using a juridicalAeeducational perspective.
The findings reveal that studentsAo understanding of law acquired through Pancasila Education predominantly remains at a formalAenormative level.
Law is commonly perceived as a set of binding rules enforced by sanctions, resulting in instrumental compliance rather than value-based legal consciousness.
This condition reflects the early stages of legal awareness as conceptualized by Soerjono Soekanto, in which legal knowledge and understanding have not yet developed into consistent legal attitudes and behavior.
Furthermore, the study identifies a gap between the normative objectives of Pancasila Education and its pedagogical implementation.
Teaching practices that rely heavily on textual and teacher-centered approaches tend to hinder the development of reflective legal awareness, echoing the critique of banking-style education proposed by Paulo Freire.
The analysis also highlights the role of Pancasila Education in cultivating constitutional awareness by linking democratic values, legal responsibility, and studentsAo social and digital experiences.
Drawing on legal culture theory by Lawrence M.
Friedman and deliberative democracy theory by Jyrgen Habermas, the study demonstrates that dialogical and experiential learning approaches are more effective in internalizing legal values.
Overall, the findings suggest that Pancasila Education must be reoriented toward reflective, participatory, and contextual pedagogy to function as a preventive mechanism for building sustainable legal culture in a constitutional democracy.
Keywords: Pancasila Education.
Legal Consciousness.
Constitutional Democracy Article info:
Submitted: 30 july, 2025 Accepted: 31 august, 2025 How to cite this article:
Ibnu Anshori.
Alfi Mufida Rahmawati.
AuPancasila Education as an Instrument for Shaping StudentsAo Legal Consciousness in the Era of Constitutional DemocracyAy.
EDUCATUM: Scientific Journal of Education.
Vol.
No.
3, pp.
September, 2025.
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EDUCATUM : Scientific Journal of Education Vol.
No.
3, september, 2025
INTRODUCTION
Education plays a strategic role in shaping the character of citizens who are civilized, possess a strong personal identity, and are aware of their legal rights and obligations .
Within the context of a democratic rule-of-law state, education does not merely function as a medium for knowledge transmission, but also as a vehicle for the internalization of values, morals, and sustainable legal awareness .
Legal awareness constitutes a fundamental foundation for the establishment of the rule of law, as legal norms cannot function effectively without citizensAo understanding, acceptance, and voluntary compliance .
Therefore, the development of legal awareness must begin at an early stage through formal education, particularly through Pancasila Education.
As the ideological and philosophical foundation of the state.
Pancasila embodies fundamental values that serve as the source of all national legal principles.
The values of divinity, humanity, unity, democracy, and social justice are not merely moral principles, but also constitute the normative basis for the formulation of laws and regulations as well as the governance of national and state life.
In this context.
Pancasila Education holds a strategic position as an educational instrument that bridges moral, political, and legal dimensions, while simultaneously shaping citizens who are not only intellectually competent but also possess legal awareness rooted in national values .
However, social realities indicate that the level of legal awareness among students remains a serious Phenomena such as violations of school regulations, low compliance with rules, increasing violence in educational environments, bullying, and the misuse of digital technology reflect weak internalization of legal values and social ethics.
This condition suggests that studentsAo understanding of law often remains formalistic and purely cognitive, without being accompanied by deep normative awareness.
Law is perceived as an external coercive instrument rather than as a moral agreement derived from values of justice and social In the era of constitutional democracy, the challenge of developing legal awareness has become increasingly complex.
Democracy provides broad spaces of freedom for citizens, including students, to express opinions, access information, and participate in the public sphere .
However, such freedom is often not accompanied by adequate understanding of legal and ethical boundaries.
As a result, freedom is frequently misinterpreted as the absence of rules, giving rise to permissive, individualistic behaviors that tend to disregard prevailing legal norms.
In this situation, education bears both a moral and constitutional responsibility to shape citizens who are capable of exercising freedom responsibly within the framework of Constitutional democracy places the constitution as the supreme law that limits power while simultaneously guaranteeing citizensAo rights .
In this context, legal awareness does not merely mean compliance with rules, but also entails critical understanding of constitutional principles such as the rule of law, equality before the law, protection of human rights, and social justice.
Pancasila Education has significant potential to systematically instill these values, as Pancasila substantively represents the spirit of the constitution and the national legal system.
Through Pancasila Education, students can understand that law is not merely a product of power, but rather a manifestation of moral values and justice collectively agreed Within the national education system in Indonesia.
Pancasila Education has been normatively positioned as a compulsory subject and course across various levels of education .
This policy reflects the stateAos recognition of the importance of Pancasila Education in shaping character and national identity.
Nevertheless, the implementation of Pancasila Education in practice continues to face various challenges.
Learning processes often emphasize memorization of concepts and norms, with limited attention to value internalization and real-life application.
Consequently.
Pancasila Education has not fully functioned as a contextual and transformative medium for developing legal awareness.
Moreover, learning approaches that remain teacher-centered and normatively doctrinal tend to hinder the development of studentsAo legal awareness.
Legal awareness cannot be formed solely through lectures and the imposition of rules, but rather through dialogical, reflective, and participatory processes.
Students need to be actively engaged in understanding real legal issues, analyzing moral dilemmas, and reflecting on the legal consequences of their actions.
In this regard.
Pancasila Education should be developed as a living values education relevant to social contexts and capable of fostering critical awareness of law and justice.
The rapid development of information technology and digital media has also brought serious implications for the formation of studentsAo legal awareness.
Broad access to information is often not accompanied by sufficient legal literacy and digital ethics.
Students are easily exposed to hate speech, misinformation, and unlawful content without possessing the capacity to critically assess and respond to such information.
In this context.
Ibnu Anshori.
Alfi Mufida Rahmawati AuPancasila Education as an Instrument for Shaping StudentsAo Legal Consciousness in the Era of Constitutional DemocracyAy Pancasila Education plays a strategic role in instilling values of responsibility, public ethics, and legal awareness in the digital sphere as an integral part of modern democratic life.
The urgency of Pancasila Education as an instrument for developing legal awareness is also closely related to the goals of national education, namely to develop studentsAo potential so that they become individuals who are faithful, morally upright, competent, creative, independent, and democratic and responsible citizens .
Legal awareness is a fundamental prerequisite for the realization of democratic and responsible citizenship.
Without legal awareness, democracy risks distortion, as freedom is not balanced by compliance with rules and respect for the rights of others.
From a legal perspective, the formation of legal awareness through education represents a more effective preventive effort compared to repressive law enforcement measures .
Pancasila Education can function as a preventive instrument by instilling lawabiding values based on moral consciousness rather than fear of sanctions.
Thus, students not only understand what is prohibited and mandated by law, but also internalize the normative and ethical reasoning underlying legal rules.
This is essential for building a sustainable legal culture within society.
Nevertheless, scholarly studies that specifically examine Pancasila Education as an instrument for developing studentsAo legal awareness within the context of constitutional democracy remain relatively Most existing studies tend to separate educational analysis from legal analysis, resulting in a lack of comprehensive understanding of the strategic role of Pancasila Education in bridging these two domains.
fact, education and law constitute two primary pillars in the development of a democratic rule-of-law state, mutually reinforcing each other in shaping legally aware citizens with Pancasila character.
Based on the foregoing discussion, this study is both important and relevant.
Pancasila Education needs to be examined more deeply as a strategic instrument for developing studentsAo legal awareness in the era of constitutional This study is expected to contribute theoretically to the development of scholarship on Pancasila Education and legal awareness, as well as practically to the formulation of educational policies and learning practices that are more contextual, reflective, and oriented toward the formation of legally aware citizens.
Thus.
Pancasila Education should not be understood merely as a compulsory subject, but as a strategic means of building a civilized legal culture and democratic society.
RESEARCH METHODS
This study employs a qualitative approach with a descriptive-analytical research design .
The qualitative approach was selected because the study aims to achieve an in-depth understanding of the role of Pancasila Education as an instrument for developing studentsAo legal awareness, rather than measuring causal relationships or testing statistical hypotheses.
The primary focus of the research lies in exploring the meanings, processes, and dynamics of the internalization of Pancasila values in the learning process, as well as their implications for the formation of legal awareness within the context of constitutional democracy.
The descriptive-analytical design is used to systematically describe the practices of Pancasila Education and to analyze them from both educational and legal perspectives.
Through this design, the study not only portrays empirical phenomena but also provides a normative analysis of the interrelationship between Pancasila values, legal awareness, and the principles of constitutional democracy.
This study adopts a juridicalAeeducational approach.
The juridical approach is employed to examine Pancasila Education within the legal framework, particularly as an instrument for fostering legal awareness grounded in constitutional values.
Meanwhile, the educational approach is used to analyze Pancasila Education as a pedagogical practice that functions to shape studentsAo attitudes, values, and behaviors.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The Construction of StudentsAo Understanding of Law in Pancasila Education The findings indicate that studentsAo understanding of law acquired through Pancasila Education remains predominantly at a formalAenormative level.
Students generally perceive law as a set of written rules that are binding and coercive, with sanctions regarded as the primary consequence of violations.
This understanding shapes an instrumental pattern of compliance, whereby students obey the law out of fear of punishment rather than from internalized value-based awareness.
This finding reinforces the theory of legal consciousness proposed by Soerjono Soekanto, who conceptualizes legal consciousness through four indicators: legal knowledge, legal understanding, legal attitudes, and legal behavior patterns .
Based on interviews and classroom observations, most students have only reached the first two indicators, while legal attitudes and consistent lawful behavior have not yet been firmly established.
From an educational EDUCATUM : Scientific Journal of Education Vol.
No.
3, september, 2025 perspective, this condition suggests that Pancasila Education has not fully functioned as values education, but rather remains largely cognitive in orientation.
This aligns with Paulo FreireAos critique of educational practices that position students merely as passive recipients of knowledge .
Education that does not provide space for critical reflection risks producing individuals who comply formally with legal norms but lack moral awareness of the law.
Consequently, this study reveals that Pancasila Education continues to face an epistemological challenge, namely how to transform legal knowledge into reflective legal consciousness rooted in Pancasila values.
This study positions Pancasila Education not merely as a civic subject, but as a normativeAe pedagogical instrument that plays a strategic role in shaping studentsAo legal consciousness within the framework of constitutional democracy.
The findings indicate that the internalization of Pancasila values through educational practices contributes significantly to studentsAo understanding of law as a moral, social, and constitutional commitment rather than a coercive system of rules.
Pancasila Education between Ideological Norms and Pedagogical Practice Documentation analysis shows that normatively.
Pancasila Education is designed to cultivate democratic, responsible, and law-abiding students.
The curriculum incorporates constitutional values such as equality before the law, social justice, and respect for human rights.
However, classroom observations reveal a significant gap between normative curriculum design and actual pedagogical practice.
This gap can be examined through the legal system theory of Lawrence M.
Friedman, which emphasizes that the effectiveness of law is determined not only by legal substance, but also by legal culture .
In the context of Pancasila Education, legal culture is reflected in how values and norms are taught and embodied in the learning process.
When instruction is predominantly one-directional and text-based, the resulting legal culture tends to be passive and formalistic.
Previous studies in civic and citizenship education demonstrate that noncontextualized value instruction often fails to foster consistent legal attitudes.
The findings of this study reinforce the argument that Pancasila Education must be reoriented as experiential legal education, in which students learn law through reflection on the social realities they encounter in everyday life.
From a theoretical perspective, legal consciousness refers to individualsAo awareness, attitudes, and behavioral orientations toward law and legal norms.
Socio-legal scholars emphasize that legal consciousness is socially constructed through daily interactions, institutional practices, and cultural narratives.
In this context.
Pancasila Education functions as a normative medium through which constitutional values are translated into lived experiences within the school environment.
The findings reveal that students exposed to reflective and value-oriented Pancasila learning tend to perceive law as an embodiment of justice, social responsibility, and collective agreement.
This supports the argument that legal awareness cannot be developed solely through formal legal instruction, but must be rooted in value education that integrates ethical reasoning, civic responsibility, and constitutional principles.
Pancasila, as the philosophical foundation of the Indonesian state, provides an ethical compass that bridges legal norms and moral consciousness.
Pancasila Education as a Medium for Internalizing Constitutional Democratic Values One significant finding of this study is the observable shift in studentsAo perspectives when Pancasila Education is connected to concrete democratic issues, such as freedom of expression, school regulations, and ethics in social media use.
Students begin to recognize that democracy is not synonymous with unlimited freedom, but rather freedom framed and guided by law and moral values.
This finding aligns with the views of Jimly Asshiddiqie, who argues that constitutional democracy requires a balance between liberty and legal limitation .
In this context.
Pancasila Education functions as an initial platform for cultivating studentsAo constitutional awareness, namely the understanding that the constitution and law exist to protect rights while simultaneously regulating civic responsibilities .
From the perspective of deliberative democratic theory.
Jyrgen Habermas emphasizes the importance of dialogue and rational discourse in establishing legal legitimacy .
The findings show that when Pancasila Education is implemented through case-based discussions and open dialogue, students are more likely to internalize legal values.
This suggests that the Pancasila Education classroom can serve as a micro-level praxis of constitutional democracy.
Empirically, the study demonstrates that the effectiveness of Pancasila Education in shaping legal consciousness depends largely on pedagogical approaches.
Dialogical learning, case-based discussions, and contextualization of constitutional issues enable students to critically engage with legal concepts rather than passively memorizing norms.
This finding aligns with constructivist learning theory, which emphasizes that learners actively construct meaning through interaction, reflection, and problem-solving.
The internalization process observed in this study reflects a shift from normative compliance to reflective legal awareness.
Students begin to understand law not as an external authority, but as a shared social framework that requires Ibnu Anshori.
Alfi Mufida Rahmawati AuPancasila Education as an Instrument for Shaping StudentsAo Legal Consciousness in the Era of Constitutional DemocracyAy participation, respect, and accountability.
Such transformation supports educational theories that view schools as moral and civic spaces where democratic values are cultivated through practice rather than StudentsAo Legal Consciousness in Social and Digital Contexts The study also reveals that the formation of studentsAo legal consciousness cannot be separated from the broader social and digital contexts in which they live.
Students inhabit social environments marked by contradictions between legal norms and everyday practices, including in digital spaces.
Many students are aware of legal rules yet still engage in minor violations, perceiving such behavior as socially acceptable.
This finding supports sociological perspectives on law that emphasize that legal norms do not operate in a vacuum, but interact dynamically with social and cultural values.
In this context.
Pancasila Education plays a strategic role as a space for critical reflection on such social realities.
Previous research indicates that value education integrated with digital literacy can enhance studentsAo legal awareness and public ethics.
Therefore.
Pancasila Education should be developed as a form of preventive legal education, equipping students with the capacity to assess the legal and moral consequences of their actions in both physical and digital environments.
In the context of constitutional democracy, legal consciousness is inseparable from democratic citizenship .
The findings suggest that Pancasila Education contributes to studentsAo understanding of constitutional principles such as the rule of law, equality before the law, and protection of fundamental rights.
This supports constitutional theory which argues that democracy is sustained not only by legal institutions, but also by citizens who possess legal literacy and constitutional awareness.
Students who demonstrated higher levels of legal consciousness were more likely to articulate the relationship between rights and obligations, freedom and responsibility, and law and justice.
This indicates that Pancasila Education serves as a mediating space where democratic values are contextualized within national ideology and constitutional Such mediation is essential in preventing the fragmentation of democratic understanding caused by purely procedural or formalistic legal education.
Pancasila Education as a Preventive Instrument for Building Legal Culture From a legal perspective, the findings affirm that Pancasila Education serves a preventive function in the development of legal culture.
Unlike repressive law enforcement mechanisms that rely on sanctions.
Pancasila Education operates at the level of values and consciousness .
Students who understand law as an embodiment of justice are more likely to comply voluntarily.
This finding aligns with legal culture theory, which posits that the effectiveness of a legal system is largely determined by the extent to which legal values are internalized by citizens.
Pancasila Education thus functions as a foundational instrument in cultivating legal culture, particularly within a constitutional democratic state such as Indonesia.
The juridicalAeeducational approach adopted in this study allows for an integrative analysis of Pancasila Education as both a legal and pedagogical instrument .
From a juridical standpoint.
Pancasila Education reinforces constitutional norms by embedding them within educational practice.
From an educational standpoint, it transforms abstract legal principles into values that guide studentsAo attitudes and This integration responds to critiques of legal education that focus excessively on textual norms while neglecting ethical and civic dimensions.
By situating legal awareness within the broader framework of character education.
Pancasila Education contributes to the development of substantive legal consciousness, where obedience to law is grounded in moral conviction rather than fear of sanctions.
The findings underscore the importance of strengthening Pancasila Education as a strategic instrument in democratic consolidation.
Legal consciousness developed through value-based education has long-term implications for law-abiding behavior, civic participation, and social cohesion.
This aligns with educational policy perspectives that emphasize the role of schooling in producing not only skilled individuals, but also responsible and constitutionally aware citizens.
Furthermore, the study highlights the need for teacher competence in integrating legal and constitutional perspectives into Pancasila learning.
Without reflective pedagogical practices.
Pancasila Education risks becoming symbolic and ineffective.
Therefore, professional development programs for educators should emphasize interdisciplinary understanding of education, law, and democratic theory.
Theoretical and Empirical Synthesis Overall, the findings demonstrate that Pancasila Education holds substantial potential as an instrument for shaping studentsAo legal consciousness, yet its effectiveness is highly dependent on the pedagogical approaches employed.
The integration of legal consciousness theory, constitutional democracy.
EDUCATUM : Scientific Journal of Education Vol.
No.
3, september, 2025 and critical pedagogy indicates that legal awareness cannot be formed through normative indoctrination alone, but rather through reflection, dialogue, and social experience.
This study extends previous research by showing that Pancasila Education is not merely a means of fostering national identity, but also a strategic instrument for developing legal culture and strengthening democratic quality.
Accordingly.
Pancasila Education occupies a pivotal position in bridging education and law in the era of constitutional democracy.
It functions simultaneously as an ideological, pedagogical, and juridical medium for cultivating studentsAo legal consciousness.
Pancasila Education is therefore not simply a normative subject, but a strategic arena for forming law-conscious, democratic, and civically ethical citizens.
Overall, this study reinforces the theoretical and empirical argument that Pancasila Education is a vital instrument for forming studentsAo legal consciousness in a constitutional democracy.
By integrating normative values, pedagogical practices, and juridical principles.
Pancasila Education contributes to the cultivation of democratic citizens who understand law as a moral and constitutional commitment.
This integrative role positions Pancasila Education as a cornerstone in strengthening the ethical foundations of law and democracy in contemporary society.
CONCLUSIONS
This study concludes that Pancasila Education plays a crucial role as an instrument for shaping studentsAo legal consciousness within the framework of constitutional democracy.
The findings demonstrate that studentsAo understanding of law, as developed through Pancasila Education, largely remains at a formalAe normative level, emphasizing compliance driven by sanctions rather than internalized legal values.
This condition indicates that while legal knowledge and understanding are present, legal attitudes and consistent lawful behavior have not yet been fully developed.
The study further reveals a persistent gap between the normative objectives of Pancasila Education and its pedagogical implementation in classroom practice.
Although the curriculum is designed to cultivate democratic, law-abiding citizens grounded in constitutional values, instructional approaches that remain textual and teacher-centered tend to produce passive and formalistic legal awareness.
In contrast, pedagogical practices that emphasize dialogue, contextual learning, and reflection on real social and legal issues are more effective in fostering reflective and value-based legal Moreover, the findings affirm that Pancasila Education serves as a strategic medium for internalizing the principles of constitutional democracy, particularly the balance between individual freedom and legal responsibility.
When linked to studentsAo social and digital realities.
Pancasila Education contributes to preventive legal awareness by enabling students to critically assess the moral and legal consequences of their actions in both physical and virtual spaces.
Theoretically, this study reinforces and integrates perspectives from legal consciousness theory, legal culture, constitutional democracy, and critical pedagogy, highlighting that legal awareness cannot be formed through normative indoctrination alone.
Instead, it must emerge through reflective, dialogical, and experiential learning processes rooted in Pancasila values.
Pancasila Education should be reconceptualized not merely as a normative subject, but as an experiential and reflective form of legal education.
Strengthening its pedagogical orientation is essential for developing students who are not only knowledgeable about the law, but also morally committed to justice, democratic principles, and the rule of law in a constitutional democracy.
REFERENCES