~ checked<\/p>\n
;JP;
\nANPAd..r..
\nInt'l-schools-advantages<\/p>\n
Int'schools offer diverse, complex learning<\/p>\n
Simon Marcus Gower
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
The name Maria Montessori is perhaps most readily associated
\nwith the many schools that bear her name (a number of which may
\nbe found in various locations around Jakarta).<\/p>\n
But she has also rightly been described as a profound and
\noriginal thinker on education, a scientist, a philosopher, a
\nphysician and a feminist and humanitarian. But perhaps her own
\nwords tell us more about her than all those descriptors and
\ntitles.<\/p>\n
She once stated, (in a way that most likely troubles many
\npoliticians), that, \"establishing lasting peace is the work of
\neducation; all politics can do is keep us out of war.\"<\/p>\n
Recent events might suggest that politics has tended to keep
\nus in war but her thinking about education as a \"peacemaker\" is
\nprofound and highlights what international schools and
\ninternational education can be involved in and achieve.<\/p>\n
Growing up and attending school in the United Kingdom allowed
\nfor an ethnically and culturally diverse education. I was able to
\nenjoy friendships with classmates from many different ethnic
\nbackgrounds and even nationalities and this clearly had a
\nbeneficial effect.<\/p>\n
The kind of understanding and tolerance that is, quite simply
\nand unconsciously, learned from having a multiethnic and
\nmultinational education can be hugely beneficial later on in life
\nwhen meeting and working with people from around the world.<\/p>\n
This is an experience that may be had in international
\nschools, as quite often they have a student population that is
\nvery diverse too.<\/p>\n
But in addition to having benefits from a diverse student
\npopulation, there can be benefits from having a diverse range of
\nteachers. Again, a personal example can illustrate this. In my
\nprimary schooling I had a teacher of German origin. It was quite
\nunusual for a German person to be teaching in a British primary
\nschool, but the benefits were considerable.<\/p>\n
At a time when many school children, and indeed adults, were
\nstill dwelling on negative imagery and thoughts of Germany and
\nGermans; this German teacher - living and working in England -
\nwas able to broaden her students' horizons and give them
\nappreciation and understanding beyond the naivete and
\nstereotyping that was so common.<\/p>\n
This again is an experience that may be replicated in
\ninternational schools here in Jakarta. Education really ought to
\nbe about broadening people's horizons and setting up the
\npotential for Maria Montessori's \"lasting peacemakers\" and
\ninternational schools can be seen to be bringing educators of
\nmany nationalities together to advance the education available in
\nthe Indonesian capital.<\/p>\n
Also, it should be recognized that this \"availability of
\ninternational education\" is something that is, more than ever
\nbefore, available to Indonesian people. International schools now
\nwelcome many Indonesian students into their ranks and this adds
\nto that stated diversity.<\/p>\n
However, diversity does not exist alone in these international
\nsettings for education. There is also a complexity that people
\nshould be aware of and consider. The multinational and indeed
\nmultiethnic and multilingual settings that students may be
\nentering when they join an international school can be very
\ncomplex and even quite difficult to assimilate for students.<\/p>\n
For example, one teacher in a Jakarta-based international
\nschool consistently makes reference to the complex language
\nsituation that can exist in international schools. As she points
\nout, even though the English language is used as the lingua-
\nfranca in most international schools, \"the many varieties of
\nmother tongues of students in these schools can sometimes make
\nlife difficult\".<\/p>\n
This can go to quite extreme circumstances where, as another
\ninternational school teacher noted, students of different
\nnationalities will group and stick together and not really mingle
\nwith others. This creates a complex situation that an
\ninternational school needs to take care to address and possibly
\nalleviate the problem of exclusion and cliques forming divisively
\nwithin the same school or even the same classroom.<\/p>\n
It is probably fair to say that the saying \"birds of a feather
\nflock together\" often holds true in human nature but an
\ninternational school does provide an opportunity for boundaries
\nto be broken down and stereotypes and prejudices to be redressed.
\nA key component to any good school is the manner in which it
\nseeks to engender and generate a sense of school spirit and
\ncommunity. Even though various nations represented within a
\nschool can mean a very varied and complex school community, this
\nshould not preclude the development of that community.<\/p>\n
There are consistently ways and means in which international
\nschools can and do create understanding and appreciation of the
\ndiverse and complex nature of humanity. For example, cultural
\nevents are often a feature at international schools and these
\nevents are often multinational in nature. Students from different
\ncultures and nationalities are given opportunities to express
\nthemselves and represent who and\/or what they are.<\/p>\n
Maria Montessori's claim that \"establishing lasting peace is
\nthe work of education\" can and should be a guide and a target for
\nall schools -- whether national or international -- but it should
\nalso be realized that when entering a school, participation and
\ninvolvement in the school's community can and should be expected.
\nBut this is not always the case.<\/p>\n
The complex nature of international schools can make it
\ndifficult for all parties to get involved in the school's life
\nand sense of community. For example, one student attending school
\nfound that her parents could not really attend meetings with her
\nteachers because they did not have sufficient English to either
\nspeak or receive the information that is quite normally shared in
\nparent-teacher conferences.<\/p>\n
Although this situation does seem rather sad in many respects,
\nit does also, in a way, highlight how the international school
\nexperience for the student is proving beneficial. Instead of the
\nparents talking directly to the teachers, they would talk to
\ntheir daughter and she would translate. Effectively then, her
\ninternational exposure in school was allowing her to break down
\nboundaries of nationality and language barriers.<\/p>\n
International education does, then, provide potentially very
\ndiverse and even complicated settings for students; but, with
\ngood handling, they can indeed be primary and excellent settings
\nfor the cultivation of true learning and understanding and hence
\nlasting peace.<\/p>\n
-- The writer is the principal of Raffles International Christian
\nSchool, Pondok Indah<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bi-checked-bi-1447893297",
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