Case Studies in Indonesian Foreign Policy Teaching: Retrospective and Decision Making Approaches
Case Studies in Indonesian Foreign Policy Teaching: Retrospective and Decision Making Approaches

Summary/Abstract: Background/purpose. Teaching Indonesian Foreign Policy (IFP) for international relations (IR) students comes with its challenges. The wide coverage of substantive topics and the use of pedagogical strategies that facilitate active learning have been largely overlooked by instructors in Indonesian and Southeast Asian higher education institutions offering IFP courses. The purpose of this study is to explore alternative means of learning IFP, which enable a more nuanced understanding of the key empirical cases, events, and policies related to Indonesia’s external outlook. Materials/methods. This study employs a qualitative empirical case study that bridges the analytical frameworks of ‘retrospective’ and ‘decision-forcing’ case studies, as proposed by Ralph G. Carter (2021), and draws upon existing studies on the benefits of case studies for IR learning processes. Results. Through Student-Centred Learning (SCL) methods such as simulations, debates, and discussions, retrospective and decisionforcing case studies can cover a wide range of themes to enhance learning in IFP courses. Retrospective case studies, which examine past events or policies, can select cases such as the ‘Bandung Conference’ and the policies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Meanwhile, decision-forcing case studies, which address unresolved crises, can explore the following topics: the South China Sea dispute, foreign policy identity dilemmas, and Indonesia’s challenges in the context of transnational organized crime. Conclusion. Retrospective and decision-forcing case studies have immense potential to elevate students' learning experiences in IFP courses, enabling instructors to enhance students’ critical and creative thinking throughout the learning process. Nevertheless, there remains the challenge of generalizing these methods to other empirical cases and different fields of study, which can be intriguing themes for future studies.

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