Berries World adds zest to Mandarin class<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Singing a Chinese children's song he learned 10 minutes earlier,
\nthree-year-old Jonathan cheerfully walks through a well-lit
\nspacious corridor at the Berries World of Learning School and
\nheads to a pond, full of paper cards, to fish.<\/p>\n
After successfully catching a Chinese character with his
\nmagnetic fishing rod, a teacher, recruited from China and trained
\nfor a month in Singapore, comes to Jonathan's side, explains what
\nthe character represents and gently shows him how to pronounce
\nit.<\/p>\n
"We want children to learn to love the language," said Ita
\nChrisjanty, who runs the newly opened 500-square-meter Kelapa
\nGading branch of the Singapore-based Chinese language and
\nenrichment center. "There's no reason why learning Mandarin
\nshould be a drag."<\/p>\n
Ita said Berries World aimed to provide a fun-filled
\nenvironment, making learning an adventure and laying down a
\nstrong foundation for children to learn Mandarin.<\/p>\n
She said the most common reason children thought Mandarin was
\ndifficult was because they were mainly instructed to memorize
\nwords and characters by rote.<\/p>\n
"Here, we don't want children to hate the language," said Ita,
\nwho is a mother of four young boys. "We want them to love it and
\nbe enthusiastic about it, only then will they be able to learn
\nindependently."<\/p>\n
Jonathan's parents, Wantoro and Eviary, who had looked around
\nextensively for a Chinese language program suitable for their
\nson, said that they were impressed by what they saw.<\/p>\n
"There were so many good things about it," said Wantoro. "The
\nteaching method is fun and the facilities are top-notch."<\/p>\n
At Berries, children in classes taught by two instructors and
\ncapped at 12 students, learn how to write, read and speak
\nMandarin through games, songs, art and crafts. Children are
\ntaught a traditional poem to the beat of "We Will Rock You" from
\nthe British pop band Queen. Chinese characters are firstly
\nintroduced using finger painting instead of brushes.<\/p>\n
"They really focus on the children and because of this, I
\nthink the children enjoy learning," said Eviary, carrying
\nJonathan, who was enthusiastically nodding in agreement.<\/p>\n
Eviary said that so far Berries World of Learning, which
\ncharges between Rp 175,000 to Rp 230,000 for a two-hour lesson,
\ninclusive of tax and materials, was definitely their No. 1 pick.<\/p>\n
"To be honest, their program is not cheap," said Eviary, who
\nalso enrolls Jonathan at an English-based play-school. "But I
\nthink it will be worth every penny."<\/p>\n
Wantoro, who like many Chinese-Indonesians raised in the
\nSoeharto era cannot speak Mandarin, said that he felt it was
\nimportant for his son to master the language.<\/p>\n
"It's the language of the future," he said. "I feel obligated
\nas a parent to give my son an opportunity to learn it."<\/p>\n
He added that he was glad that the political climate was more
\nreceptive to Chinese culture than in the past. Chinese cultural
\ncelebrations and the formal instruction of Mandarin was banned
\nfor over 30 years under Soeharto's New Order.<\/p>\n
"When I was growing up it was much more different than now,"
\nsaid Wantoro. As a child he was sometimes made to feel ashamed of
\nhis cultural heritage.<\/p>\n
Berries World of Learning School was started in Singapore in
\n1993 with 80 students. It now educates over three thousand
\nchildren, ages three to 12, in its five centers in Singapore
\nevery year. The Kelapa Gading center, located across the Artha
\nGading Mall, is the sixth branch and the first one outside of
\nSingapore.<\/p>\n
According to Steph Chan, a manager at the Berries World
\nheadquarters, about 20 percent of their students in Singapore are
\nnot of Chinese descent. She also said that 100 percent of their
\nstudents who took the mandatory sixth-grade Mandarin language
\ntest, conducted by the Singapore Ministry of Education, pass,
\nwith most topping the test.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/berries-world-adds-zest-to-mandarin-class-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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