English First opens new branch

JAKARTA (JP): English First, a Boston-based company specializing in English education, opened a new branch on Jl. Timor, Central Jakarta, yesterday.

Yanti Tirta, an assistant to the school director of English First's Indonesian office, said the opening of the new branch was to strengthen English First's foothold in Indonesia.

"This is English First's eighth branch in Jakarta and its 14th in Indonesia, with about 10,000 students nationwide. The other branches are located in Bogor, Bandung, Cirebon, Semarang and Surabaya," she said.

The company plans to open other new branches in Ujungpandang, Palembang and Lampung by the end of the year, she said.

Yanti said 60 percent of English First's teachers were native English speakers from the United States and Great Britain. The teachers are required to have at least two years' experience teaching English, she said.

English First, which has branches in 35 countries, opened its first school in Indonesia in 1987. (hhr)