Sekolah Tinggi Teknologi Garut
Diselenggarakan mulai tahun 1991 dan bernaung di bawah Yayasan Al-Musaddadiyah.
Program Studi Teknik Informatika
Berdiri pada tanggal 30 Juni 1998.
Rinda Cahyana
Dosen PNS yang diperbantukan di Sekolah Tinggi Teknologi Garut sejak tahun 2005
Minggu, 15 Februari 2026
Sambut Ramadhan dengan Mengunjungi Orang Tua
Rabu, 11 Februari 2026
Penelitian: Dari Tahu Banyak Menjadi Banyak Tidak Tahu
Di awal kuliah Doktoral, saya membayangkan prosesnya seperti upaya keras menaiki bukit domain penelitian. Di setiap tingkatannya, ada banyak artikel yang harus dikumpulkan, dibaca, dipilih sesuai rencana, dan disintesis sesuai tujuan, untuk kemudian diuji dengan keras. Lelahnya luar biasa.
Namun begitu berada di atas puncak bukit, saya melihat setiap tingkatan itu seperti undakan sawah. Pengetahuan yang terungkap seupama objek apapun yang ada di setiap undakan tsb. Secara keseluruhan terlihat indah. Itu adalah perasaan yang muncul saat membaca hasil studi pustaka. Ada banyak orang yang sombong dengan kondisi seeprti itu karena merasa telah melihat lebih banyak jika dibandingkan dengan orang yang masih berada di bawah dan sedang merangkak naik ke atas.
Bila saja tidak ada ujian kualifikasi, saya akan terlena dan merasa sudah tahu banyak hal. Ternyata itu baru awal perjalanan. Saya harus turun kembali, memilih satu undakan yang akan ditempati. Di undakan itu saya harus melihat sesuatu yang diperlukan untuk membuat undakannya menjadi lebih indah menurut orang yang melewatinya.
Ada banyak area penelitian yang bisa dipilih. Sepupama memilih "tumbuhan", "hewan", atau "benda mati". Semuanya tersedia di undakan tersebut. Pemilihan tersebut tentunya disesuaikan dengan minat yang dipengaruhi oleh pengalaman penelitian dan pengabdian di masa lalu. Mentor berusaha mengarahkan saya ke arah yang benar. Setelah itu, barulah saya memilih objek spesifiknya apa. Pemilihan itu tdk sederhana, alasannya harus jelas. Ada banyak ahli yang berusaha melihatnya dan menguji kekokohannya. Saat itu saya sudah masuk ke usulan riset.
Proses kreasinya menyenangkan, ada banyak kritik dan masukan dari para ahli yang mengklarifikasi dan menguatkan. Prosesnya tidak instan, melewati tiga fase. Seupama membangun gubuk, mulai dari bagian pondasi kerangka kerja, bagian pilar formulasi, lalu bagian atap aplikasi dunia nyata. Semuanya harus kokoh dan satu kesatuan. Bangunan itulah yang mengisi ruang kosong di undakan tersebut. Harapannya bukan hanya terlihat bagus, tetapi juga bermanfaat bagi pengguna spesifik, khususnya bagi setiap peneliti yang sedang menaiki bukit.
Seusai itu, saya tersadar, ada banyak ruang masalah di undakan tersebut yang tidak tersentuh. Padahal di bukit domain itu ada banyak undakan yang bahkan tidak saya masuki. Ternyata kontribusi penelitian saya sangatlah kecil, dan apa yang tidak diketahui sangatlah banyak. Sementara, semua undakan dan objek di dalamnya adalah kontribusi dari banyak orang. Pengetahuan yang dimiliki ini seperti setitik air di tengah samudera yang luas.
Kondisi tersebut berbeda dengan titik di mana saya berada di puncak bukit, tempat di mana ada banyak orang yang merasa sombong dengan pengalaman dan pengetahuannya terkait banyak undakan yang sudah dilewati. Saya pernah mendengar: Orang yang merasa benar sendiri itu belum sampai. Orang yang bijak itu seperti padi yang menunduk. Saya sekarang bisa memahaminya dengan lebih jelas lagi dengan perjalanan riset yang sudah dilalui.
Minggu, 01 Februari 2026
Fokus Manusia: Hasil, Proses, Tuhan
Jumat, 09 Januari 2026
Learning First, Leading with Heart: A Reflection on Becoming a Teacher in the Age of AI
I still remember how I felt in May 2025, sitting quietly in a training room in Banten, joining a week-long program on Coding and Artificial Intelligence (KKA). I came as a teacher who wanted to learn something new, but I also brought doubts I did not say aloud. AI sounded powerful, almost intimidating. I wondered if, one day, it would slowly push teachers to the margins of their own classrooms.
As the days passed, my fear did
not disappear, but it changed. I began to see that AI does not replace what
makes teaching meaningful. It does not notice when a student loses confidence.
It does not understand why a child suddenly goes silent. Only teachers can do
that. AI can assist, but it cannot care.
"AI does not
understand children the way teachers do."
That understanding became even
clearer when I was asked to serve as a facilitator for KKA teachers in Garut
Regency and later across West Java. Standing among fellow teachers felt
different from standing in front of students. I was not there to impress or
instruct. I was there to listen.
Some teachers spoke with honesty
and worry. They feared losing relevance. They feared becoming dependent on
machines. I did not try to convince them quickly, because resistance is often
rooted in love for the profession. I realized that fear does not mean refusal.
It means teachers care deeply about their role.
At the same time, I met teachers
who moved forward with quiet courage. One of them showed a simple attendance
system powered by AI. It was not sophisticated. It was not perfect. But it
represented something far more critical: confidence to try.
“The real change
was not in the technology, but in the teacher’s confidence."
These contrasting experiences
stayed with me. When I later facilitated a larger program in West Bandung
Regency, I brought real stories into the discussion. Interestingly, the
conversation shifted. Teachers spoke less about fear and more about reality. Limited
devices. Weak internet connections. Schools that were not equally prepared.
That was a powerful reminder that transformation must always respect context.
Through this journey, I learned
that AI literacy is not merely a technical issue. It is a human one. It
requires patience, empathy, and ongoing support. The most important work does
not end when training ends. It begins afterward.
That is why I believe deeply in
mentoring and community. Together with fellow facilitators, I helped forge a
teacher community focused on strengthening KKA. It became a safe space to
share, to fail, and to grow. When I was asked to serve as a mentor, I accepted
not because I had all the answers, but because leadership sometimes means
walking together, not walking ahead.
"Being a
teacher leader means learning alongside others, not standing above them."
This work is closely tied to my
long involvement with the ICT Volunteer (Relawan TIK) movement. Since 2002, I
have worked with communities to strengthen digital literacy. In 2025,
university students I taught joined schools to support AI literacy for younger
learners. Watching teachers, students, and volunteers learn from each other
reminded me that meaningful change is always collaborative.
Looking back, I now see that this
journey with AI is not really about artificial intelligence. It is about
identity. About courage. About reminding ourselves why we became teachers in
the first place.
We cannot stop change from
entering our classrooms. But we can choose how we respond to it. We can choose
fear, or we can choose growth. As Trainer, our role is not to master every
tool, but to model lifelong learning with humility and heart.
"AI will
never replace teachers who are willing to keep learning."
And perhaps that is the most
crucial lesson I carry forward. Before we ask our students to adapt to the
future, we must be willing to learn first. That is how we lead. That is how we
stay human in a digital world.
