Tarmadi, M.Pd., the English Teacher of MAN 1 Bandar Lampung

Tarmadi was born 58 years ago in a small village called Gandri, located in Pangkur Subdistrict, Ngawi Regency, East Java Province. He is the second of four siblings and the only son in the family. His childhood was spent in his hometown, living a simple village life. Like many children in the countryside, after school he would spend his time playing and herding livestock such as goats and cows. From a young age, he was accustomed to foraging for grass to feed the family’s animals.

In the evenings, he would attend Qur’an recitation lessons (mengaji) at a small prayer house (mushola) behind his house, studying with friends under the guidance of his father, who was also his Qur’an teacher. He was even entrusted by his father to help teach younger children how to read the Qur’an.

He completed his elementary and junior high school education in his hometown. For high school, he attended SMA Negeri 1 Ngawi in the regency capital. During this time, he also lived in a nearby Islamic boarding school (pesantren), where his evenings were filled with religious studies under the guidance of local kyai (Islamic scholars). He is grateful to have received religious education at an early age—knowledge and values that have stayed with him throughout his life. Since his teenage years, he has developed a deep love for reading religious books, a habit he maintains to this day.

After graduating from high school in 1986, he aspired to continue his studies at a university. However, he failed to pass the national university entrance exam (Sipenmaru). The following year, he tried again but was not accepted. Despite these setbacks, he remained determined. He studied harder and attended a preparation course in Madiun. In 1988, after three years of persistence, he was finally accepted into the English Education Diploma Program at the University of Lampung (Unila).

Lampung was his first experience living outside Java, and without any relatives there, he initially stayed at the campus mosque for about four days before finding a boarding house. Becoming a university student was a long-held dream, and he made the most of his time by actively participating in both academic and extracurricular activities. He believed that non-academic experiences would be valuable later in his professional and community life.

After graduating, he began working as an honorary teacher at a private vocational school (SMK), while also offering private English lessons at night to help support himself.

In 1993, he was appointed as a civil servant teacher (CPNS) at MTs Negeri 2 Bandar Lampung, where he worked until 2015. Beyond teaching, he was actively involved in guiding students through extracurricular programs and various personal development activities. In 2007, he was awarded First Place in the Provincial Level Outstanding Teacher Competition (Guru Teladan). His passion for improving education in madrasahs led him to work closely with his then principal, Mr. Drs. Ridwan Hawari, to design and implement an excellent class development program. Thanks to their efforts, many students achieved outstanding results, some even at the national level—an achievement that had been difficult to reach in the past. Many of their graduates went on to be accepted at top high schools and madrasahs both within and outside Lampung.

In 2015, he was appointed Principal of MTs Negeri 2 Pringsewu. A year later, in 2016, he was transferred to MTs Negeri 1 Tanggamus. In October 2017, he was reassigned to his original school, MTs Negeri 2 Bandar Lampung, where he had first been appointed as a CPNS. He served as Principal there until 2021.

Since 2021, he has been working as an English teacher at MAN 1 Bandar Lampung. Before ending his tenure as a principal, he participated in a selection for the Outstanding Principal Award and was honored as the best principal (Kepala Madrasah Teladan) at the MTs level in Lampung Province. Alhamdulillah, all praise is due to Allah.