Four schools follow Gandhi's example<\/p>\n
By Gedsiri Suhartono<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): There are four schools in Jakarta which use the
\nname of Mahatma Gandhi, who is considered by many a symbol of
\nnon-violence.<\/p>\n
To make sure the schools measure up to their namesake, the
\nvision of Ghandi, who was called mahatma, which means \"the great
\none\", is also being used to underlay their mission of drawing out
\nthe best in each person -- body, mind and soul.<\/p>\n
The schools' administrators believe that education goes beyond
\nacademic achievement. Equally important is conditioning students
\nto think positively about their world and their role as citizens
\nof the planet.<\/p>\n
\"We are giving our future, the children, the best. When it
\ncomes to education, there is no compromise,\" said Pishu Sawlani,
\nan administrator at the Sekolah Gandhi Pasar Baru in Central
\nJakarta.<\/p>\n
The real challenge, according to A.P Singh, Gandhi Memorial
\nInternational School's principal, is bringing to life the virtues
\nand theories students encounter in their studies.<\/p>\n
Through the years, the students of the schools have been
\nfinancially supporting the educations of less-privileged young
\npeople.<\/p>\n
The first of the four schools opened in 1947 in a modest
\nbuilding at Jl. Pasar Baru Selatan 10 in the center of the city
\nwith around 20 students. The school, founded by the Bombay
\nMerchants Association (BMA) was called the Gandhi Memorial
\nInternational School.<\/p>\n
In 1966, the school was put under the auspices of the Indian
\nEmbassy in line with Indonesian regulations on schools for
\nforeigners.<\/p>\n
When Ram Gulumal, then principal of the school, heard of the
\ncity administration's plan to appropriate 12 meters of the
\ncompound for the street, Ram sent a request to the governor to
\npurchase a 10,000 square meter plot of land in Ancol, North
\nJakarta in 1973.<\/p>\n
The request was approved by Governor Ali Sadikin, at a 60 per
\ncent price cut, meaning only Rp 4,000 (US$1.3) per square meter,
\nconsidering that a school was being built.<\/p>\n
The status of the plot of land on Jl. Pademangan sparked a
\nforgery lawsuit which led to headlines about collusion at the
\nSupreme Court.<\/p>\n
Deputy Chief Justice Adi Andojo Soetjipto charged that there
\nwas a Rp 1.4 billion bribe involved in the document fraud case
\nagainst Ram Gulumal, an Indian citizen.<\/p>\n
Adi Andojo Soetjipto's reports of alleged collusion between
\nRam Gulumal and the Supreme Court have led to his being
\nprohibited from speaking to public.<\/p>\n
A new management was installed in 1992 when the status of the
\nschool changed from that of an international school to that of a
\nprivate school. The Gandhi Memorial School in Pasar Baru then
\npromoted the image of new private local school which follows the
\nnational curriculum. The international school is now located in
\nthe Ancol school complex in North Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The 10,000 square meter compound in Ancol now comprises an
\ninternational school called Gandhi Memorial School and a private
\nlocal school called Sekolah Gandhi Ancol.<\/p>\n
The Bombay Merchant's Organization changed the name of the
\noriginal school to Gandhi Sevaloka in 1992 following a government
\nregulation on foreign organizations.<\/p>\n
Schools administrators of both branches of Sekolah Gandhi in
\nPasar Baru and Ancol said that most parents are interested in
\nenrolling their children at those schools because they offer an
\nintensive English curriculum meant to enhance the students'
\nconfidence as global citizens in tune to the current of progress
\nand globalization.<\/p>\n
\"We are just a national school plus English, and we have to be
\nglobal-oriented if we wanted to progress at all,\" Pishu told The
\nJakarta Post.<\/p>\n
The four-story building in Pasar Baru has 12 classes ranging
\nfrom kindergarten to junior high school. In the next two to three
\nyears, the school is considering expanding into high school.<\/p>\n
Gandhi Ancol has offered senior high school classes for the
\nlast two years. This new academic year will see the school's
\nfirst graduating class.<\/p>\n
All classrooms at the Gandhi schools are air-conditioned. Only
\n30 students are assigned to a classroom, an attractive policy to
\nmany Indonesians, considering that classrooms at state schools
\nhave to accommodate 50 students.<\/p>\n
School administrators say they want to give students the best
\nlearning opportunity possible through a conducive environment and
\nsufficient teacher's attention.<\/p>\n
\"Our location in the middle of city on a busy street easily
\ndistracts students' attention,\" Sawlani added.<\/p>\n
The schools are equipped with two libraries, a computer and
\nscience laboratories to assist students in their learning
\nprocess.<\/p>\n
A small clinic is open during school hours in case of medical
\nemergencies, while four psychologists are employed to closely
\nmonitor and assist students with developmental problems.<\/p>\n
The international school complex in Ancol is a rectangular
\nfour-story building with around 30 air-conditioned classrooms in
\nwhich some 900 students study.<\/p>\n
The school follows the International Baccalaureate (IB)
\ncurriculum, a preuniversity curriculum and examinations geared
\nfor internationally mobile students. Taught in secondary schools
\nand recognized by leading universities around the world, the IB
\nprogram offers a diploma which has come to serve as a kind of
\nacademic passport for those who obtain it.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/four-schools-follow-gandhis-example-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}