Art education in Indonesia faces challenges stemming from globalization, digitalization, and a learning orientation that prioritizes technical competence over the strengthening of cultural functions which serve as the foundation for shaping students' character and identity. This article aims to analyze the reorientation of the art education paradigm through an ethnopedagogical approach, utilizing Wayang Bocah (children's wayang performance) as a model for contextual, culture-based learning. The study employs a qualitative approach with a critical literature review design, systematically examining relevant scholarly articles, academic books, policy documents, and research findings; these were analyzed using a critical-hermeneutic approach involving stages of reduction, interpretation, comparison, and conceptual synthesis. The results indicate that this paradigm reorientation positions culture as the epistemological foundation of learning across four key dimensions: education as cultural praxis, the strengthening of transformative ethnopedagogy, the development of cultural sustainability and creative agency, and the implementation of community-based and cultural-project-based learning. Wayang Bocah functions not merely as a medium for preserving traditional art but also as a pedagogical practice that integrates character building, cultural literacy, creativity, collaboration, and 21st-century competencies within a single learning ecosystem. These findings offer a conceptual framework for developing culture-based art education that is more contextual, participatory, and sustainable, thereby strengthening the relevance of art education in Indonesia amidst the dynamics of global society.
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