Dakon as a Local Traditional Game to Promote Protection, Provision,
and Participation in Early-Childhood Learning Process
Senowarsito Senowarsito, Dyah Nugrahani, Siti Musarokah and Yuli Kurniati Werdiningsih
Universitas PGRI Semarang,Kampus 4 UPGRIS, Jl. Gajah Raya, Semarang, Indonesia
Keywords: Dakon, Provision, Protection, Participation, Early-Childhood.
Abstract: This article is presenting Dakon as a child-friendly learning media to promote protection, provision, and
participation (3Ps) of the child-hood learners. It was a part of an ongoing research and development of child-
friendly game models for early-childhood education by using traditional games. The objectives of this study
were to find out 1) whether Dakon as an alternative media enhance 3Ps for early-childhood learners; 2) how
Dakon promote 3Ps in the learning process. The data was collected by observing traditional games at some
early childhood education and by reviewing some documents. Narrative analysis and focus group discussion
was used to formulate the results. The results show that Dakon had substantial advantages as an alternative
media to promote 3Ps. To promote 3Ps, it was needed some modifications on the physical performances, the
material of the board, the number and the shape of the holes and marbles, the players, the way to play the
games, and the syntagmatic of the learning. Pedagogically, it had considerable benefits for enhancing the
cognitive, psychomotor, mental, emotional, and social development of children in a learning process.
1 INTRODUCTION
Dakon can be considered as traditional learning
media to realize children’s right to play, as well as
developing their mental capabilities, personal, social
and academic competencies, and serving to introduce
them much of the local wisdom of their heritage.
Dakon with its characteristics possibly gives much
chance for children to play. Playing is the world of
children. Children use most of their time to play to
express whatever they want. Playing has substantial
benefits for mental, emotional, psychomotor,
cognitive, social, and personal development. Lester
and Russell (2010) argued that playing is fundamental
to the health and well-being of children and the
principal way in which children participate within
their own communities.
It is in line with UN Convention on the Rights of
the Child: ‘play is essential to enhance the quality of
childhood, to fulfill the children's privilege to
optimum development, to promote the resilience and
the realization of other rights'. Child-friendly
approaches should extend to the preschool years as a
way to enhance the opportunity, equity, and quality
of early interventions. The approaches contribute to
improving better learning outcomes and readiness
among children to involve in next higher school level.
Child-friendly learning media can be considered as an
approach to fulfill children’s rights which are set up
from the four general principles of the convention of
child rights. Those principles convinced not to
discriminate against the child or individual groups of
children; to support the child’s life and optimum
development; to ensure for the best interests of the
child; and to respect and enable the child’s right to be
heard and to participate. The articles of the
Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) have
often grouped into the ‘3Ps’: protection, provision,
and participation (Lester and Russell, 2010; Muhdi et
al., 2010; Senowarsito, 2013, Senowarsito and
Werdiningsih, 2017). The three categories
accommodate the children rights having the privilege
to create protection, contribute optimum
development, and offer them having a chance to
participate within their communities through child-
friendly learning media.
Traditional games have many positive values and
benefits that can be reconstructed as an alternative
play introduced to children to develop their expected
learning outcomes, and encounter the rapid wave of
digital games as well. Indonesia has various
traditional games under different cultures, which have
existed from ancient generation to modern
434
Senowarsito, S., Nugrahani, D., Musarokah, S. and Werdiningsih, Y.
Dakon as a Local Traditional Game to Promote Protection, Provision, and Participation in Early-Childhood Learning Process.
In Proceedings of the Annual Conference on Social Sciences and Humanities (ANCOSH 2018) - Revitalization of Local Wisdom in Global and Competitive Era, pages 434-438
ISBN: 978-989-758-343-8
Copyright © 2018 by SCITEPRESS – Science and Technology Publications, Lda. All rights reserved

generations. One of the traditional games in Indonesia
is Dakon or Congklak. Dakon is played on a board
with the number of house holes on each side. The
boards have two ‘storehouse’ holes, one on each end,
which is generally bigger than all the house holes.
The game is played with a number of small markers
such as shells or beads, which are divided evenly
between all the house holes. It is possible to modify
the game to reinforce the children learning to meet
expected results. Kasim (2016) modified playing the
game of Congklak with reinforcement learning. He
recommended changing the rule to make the game
fairer and more challenging to train artificial
intelligent agents to play the game.
The 2013 National Curriculum of Indonesian
Early Childhood Education (PAUD) affirmed that the
main objective of the early childhood education is to
develop moral, social-emotional, cognitive, language,
psycho-motoric, arts, and creativity of the learners
(Ananthia et al., 2016). It means that the Early
Childhood Education (PAUD) as an institution which
is responsible to form early-children’s readiness for
strong attitudes to attain all the competencies should
facilitate children in learning process with
appropriate approaches and treatments. The
approaches and the treatments employed should meet
the level of children developments and capacities,
psychologically and physically. Teacher’s awareness
of psychological and physical developments of
children will enhance the expected learning
outcomes.
In pedagogical perspectives, one of the
characteristics of children in learning is playing-
based learning. Playing is valued pedagogically in
early age settings. The playing functions to mobilize
children’s participation in learning and to generate
learning activities for reaching academic and attitude
outcomes. So early childhood educators should place
playing as potential opportunities to enhance
children’s participation in everyday activities as
supporting initial academic activities (Breathnach et
al., 2017). In line with article 31 of the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of the Child, every child
has the right to rest and leisure, to engage in play and
recreational activities appropriate to the age of the
child and to participate freely in cultural life and the
arts (Rachel, 2007; Sulistyo, 2011). Children should
have opportunities to develop themselves in the
process of their growth. The nature of playing among
children can be used as a vehicle to develop their
expected competencies.
On the other hand, the digital era increasingly
stimulates every part of children’s lives with
multifunctional and interactive features of digital
devices (Siu and Lam, 2005). Many children of
preschool age are encircled by digital technologies
and they are aware to use them. In fact, the real play
in children’s world is constantly replaced by virtual
games available and children rarely play traditional
games in digital device era (Ananthia et al., 2016).
Children are sometimes considered as digital natives.
In such conditions, children have exposed excessively
games in digital devices and they gradually fail to
recall traditional games as an alternative game they
can play. Some researchers (Wright, 2001 and
Subrahmanyam and Greenfield, 1994) as cited by
Vittrup et al. (2016) have shown several benefits from
the use of digital devices. They found that digital
programming designed for children not only
increased their academic skills, but also improved
spatial skills, visual attention, problem-solving skills,
fine motor coordination, and computer literacy.
In contrast, negative effects of excessive using
digital games will be encountered by the children
physically, emotionally, socially, and culturally as
well. A report from the Children’s Commissioner for
England was calling on parents and teachers to do
more to prepare children for the emotional impact of
social media before they start secondary school
(Voce, 2018). The Children’s Commissioner
highlighted the risks involved in the digital devices
and the social media pressures. It was found that
many 7 year children felt under pressure to be
constantly connected online and that this constituted
a risk to their mental and emotional wellbeing. Anne
Longfield (A Children’s Commissioner for England)
asserted while social media clearly provided some
great benefits to children, but it was also exposing
them to significant risks emotionally.
Those are the reasons why it was needed to find
out 1) whether Dakon as an alternative media enhance
3Ps for early-childhood learners; 2) how Dakon
promote 3Ps in the learning process.
2 METHODS
This research was preliminary research and
development (R&D) mainly focused on identifying:
1) Dakon as an alternative media to enhance 3Ps for
early-child learners; 2) how Dakon promote 3Ps in
the learning process. The data was collected by
observing traditional games at some PAUDs (early
childhood education) in Semarang Municipality,
which was selected with purposive random sampling,
and by reviewing some documents of traditional
games in Indonesia and some related literature.
Narrative analysis was used to analyze field notes,
Dakon as a Local Traditional Game to Promote Protection, Provision, and Participation in Early-Childhood Learning Process
435

surveys, documents, and related literature, and to
reformulate the results of focus group discussion
among the early childhood experts, involving early
childhood teachers, and education lecturers.
3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
There are many traditional games of different
Indonesian cultures, passed down through
generations to today’s children. Based on research
conducted in Semarang municipality, it was found
that there were some traditional game tools used in
learning activities at PAUD. The traditional games
used were Mini-gamelan (Javanese musical
orchestra), Hula-hoop, Puppets, Marbles games,
Angklung, Kuda Lumping, and Dakon. As part of the
social and cultural products of a certain group of
people, the traditional game tools are believed
containing benefit values for the community
(Senowarsito and Werdiningsih, 2017).
Philosophically, in Javanese context, a traditional
game should be considered as guiding principles of
life, what one believes to be correct and appropriate
in life. For example, the circle shape of the hoop can
be interpreted as a circle of life that started at a point
and end at the same point. This concept is not easily
conveyed to early childhood, but these values can be
introduced early to them by considering the level of
children capacity to understand. In education
perspectives, using the hula-hoop games for early
childhood can enhance the personal competence, such
as a jovial person, willing to work hard, tranquillity,
and discipline. The cheerful character is derived from
the entire game, starting from how to turn the hoop
and hold back the spin. The ability to work hard for a
child can be sharpened from the child's effort to be
able to play the hoop which is not an easy to do. Every
game has their own values relating to the
characteristics of the game itself (Senowarsito and
Werdiningsih, 2017).
After analyzing the overall potentials of
traditional games tools, one of the traditional game
tools that have philosophical and educative value is
relatively complete and can be developed for early
childhood is Dakon. Dakon as one part of the
traditional game tool can be assumed to also contain
values of personality development, has positive
functions that can be taken, non-violence, and
friendly to young children. Dakon can be modified as
early childhood media to promote 3 Ps in enhancing
child-friendly learning. Philosophically, it contains
guiding and teachings people to save for their life in
the future. Dakon board represents houses and
storehouse which give a description of the stereotype
of parts of traditional Javanese houses, as they were
mostly traditional rice farmers. Storehouse or barn
which is used to put the seeds in the game reflects the
rice barn (where the rice is stored). The winner in this
game is the one who keeps the most seeds in the barn.
To fill the barns to the edge, then the Dakon players
should have some strategies and anticipation. It
teaches Javanese people the principles of anticipating
and thinking of strategies in gaining their life
prosperous (Senowarsito and Werdiningsih, 2017).
In education perspectives, Dakon as a learning
game tool contributed to enhancing: 1) academic
competence, especially in mathematics, natural
science, natural environment, and natural resources.
In playing Dakon, the players should distribute a
number of seeds in a number of holes, in which it
introduces them to calculus. Dakon is made from
natural materials such as plants, soil, tiles, or stones
in different shape and weight. It means that children
are often closer to nature which enable them to
become more integrated with nature, to acknowledge
with natural resources surrounding them, and
naturally introduced to a science or knowledge of
objects in nature, as biology or physics; 2)
intelligence and logic competence. This game trains
children to count and determine the steps that must be
passed. It gives a space for children to enhance their
strategic thinking skills; mathematical thinking skills;
cognitive skills; analytical skills; planning and
developing strategies; and creative skills. Carefulness
or accuracy can be obtained when determining the
steps and seeds in which holes will be used to
distribute. The mistake, inaccuracy, or blunder in
determining the hole and the number of the seeds
chosen will inhibit the turn of the game itself.
Therefore, players must be attentive and
conscientious; 3) kinaesthetic intelligence. In general,
this game enhances motoric skills. It encourages
players to move and to sit steadily. For early
childhood, it encourages them to use their hand and
fingers to put and to place the seeds in proper holes;
4) emotional and interpersonal competence. This
game is played in pairs or modified in groups. In a
pair or in a group, a child will learn to practice
his/her emotions that give rise to tolerance and
empathy for others, as well as comfort and familiarity
with social interaction, or face-to-face social
interaction and cooperation. In groups, all players
have to work together to make the game run
smoothly. Substitution of players is also governed by
the principle of cooperation. Such game directs
children in a communal perspective and avoiding the
development of individualistic personalities; 5)
ANCOSH 2018 - Annual Conference on Social Sciences and Humanities
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personal competences. This game builds some
personal characters, such as discipline, fairness,
sensitivity, mutual respects, and others. To play the
game needs discipline in following the rules of the
game and should not violate it. Violations will make
players lose in the game. Sensitivity and mutual
respect can also be embedded through this traditional
game tool; 6) psychological rehearsal. While playing,
children experience and release their emotions. They
shout, laugh and move. This kind of activity can be
used as therapy for children experiencing distress.
Moreover, this game functions to foster attractive and
joyful learning.
To reconstruct of those competencies as fostering
their capacities to actualize child-friendly learning
process, a framework that was initiated on four
principles of the Child Rights Convention (non-
discrimination, survival and development, the best
interests of the child, and participation) in three Ps
(3Ps) can be described as follows:
Figure 1: Framework of Dakon in Child-Friendly Learning
Process.
Figure 1 shows that Dakon as child-friendly game
should deliberate 3Ps: Protection, Provision, and
Participation, which accommodate five principles of
child rights: 1) non-violence; 2) respect for children’s
evolving capacities; 3) respect for children’s
individuality; 4) engagement of children’s
participation; and 5) respect for children’s dignity
(Rachel, 2007 and Sulistiyo, et. al., 2011).
3.1 Protection
Protection should be considered as children’s rights
to encounter any kinds of violence, child abuses,
bullying, excessive academic pressures, loss of
security and adult’s supports, distresses,
discrimination, and unsafe environments and
communities. Moreover Lester and Russell (2010)
assert that protection rights relates to children's rights
to protect themselves that can be seen as a self-
protecting process offering the possibility to enhance
adaptive capabilities and flexibilities. The adaptive
capabilities and flexibilities elevate children’s
physical, social, and cognitive competence which is
possibility to reduce severe stress and to build
resilience to cope with stress. According to them, the
experiences of playing effect changes to the brain
construction, relating to emotional and motivation
systems. The acts of playing acts contribute to health,
including pleasure and enjoyment; emotion
regulation; stress response systems; and creativity.
Dakon as a learning game tool secures children to
play. It is a self-protecting process that offers the
possibility to enhance adaptive capabilities and
resilience (Lester and Russell, 2010). The game
enables children to practice their emotions that give
rise to tolerance and empathy for others, as well as
comfort and familiarity with social interaction, or
face-to-face social interaction and cooperation.
3.2 Provision
Provision should be deliberated as serving the
children’s needs to survive and develop as well-
being. It requires wider consideration of social and
physical environment which guarantees to support
children's rights behind the four principles of the CRC
(non-discrimination, survival and development, the
best interests of the child, and participation). It gives
a space for the children to fulfill their needs as the
whole including their secure, equality, welfare,
health, knowledge, and skills. Dakon can be
considered as a useful child-friendly game tool to
enhance children’s academic, social, emotional, and
personal competencies. It offers and provides space
and opportunities to develop children capacity as an
individual or social well-being to survive for their
future; to fulfill the best interests of the child, to
develop children’s dignity, and non-discrimination.
Provision implies much more than providing children
facility in learning and playing.
3.3 Participation
Participation denotes to the children’s capabilities
and flexibilities involving in their learning and
development process. Children’s involvement in
learning and development in their everyday life
represents a primary form of participation. The
quality of children’s participation is usually
influenced by some factors such as a range of social
and cultural conduct, gender, disability, and socio-
economic status. The role of the adults is essential to
Dakon as a Local Traditional Game to Promote Protection, Provision, and Participation in Early-Childhood Learning Process
437

support and create conditions addressing to the
children’s rights for participation. Children usually
find ways to participate in any activities that come
apart of the adult orders. Children's independent is
valued for their roles in learning and development but
in children's settings, it is necessary under the
direction, guidance, and supervision of adults. Dakon
can be played in pairs or modified in groups. It directs
children to learn in a communal life, which facilitates
and provide a space for children's engagement in
participation.
4 CONCLUSIONS
In 3Ps perspectives, it places Dakon as an alternative
game tool to enhance the expected capacities of the
children in learning and to establish learner-centered
approach. The game tool provides places and
opportunities for the children to develop academic,
social, emotional, and personal competencies without
avoiding their rights to play. In child-friendly
education, learners are placed either as objects or
subjects of learning. So the roles of the teacher are to
facilitate children to have space to play. The creativity
of the teachers is needed to support the
implementation of the principle of child-friendly
education conquering the whole objectives of
learning. As a local wisdom, Dakon is also offering
some values found in traditional games that may
benefit for future generation. The widespread
popularity of Dakon around the world can
undoubtedly be attributed in part to the simplicity of
the local materials within its variations used to play
the game to be more attractive, valuable, and
advantageous child-friendly game.
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