Four schools follow Gandhi's example

By Gedsiri Suhartono

JAKARTA (JP): There are four schools in Jakarta which use the name of Mahatma Gandhi, who is considered by many a symbol of non-violence.

To make sure the schools measure up to their namesake, the vision of Ghandi, who was called mahatma, which means "the great one", is also being used to underlay their mission of drawing out the best in each person -- body, mind and soul.

The schools' administrators believe that education goes beyond academic achievement. Equally important is conditioning students to think positively about their world and their role as citizens of the planet.

"We are giving our future, the children, the best. When it comes to education, there is no compromise," said Pishu Sawlani, an administrator at the Sekolah Gandhi Pasar Baru in Central Jakarta.

The real challenge, according to A.P Singh, Gandhi Memorial International School's principal, is bringing to life the virtues and theories students encounter in their studies.

Through the years, the students of the schools have been financially supporting the educations of less-privileged young people.

The first of the four schools opened in 1947 in a modest building at Jl. Pasar Baru Selatan 10 in the center of the city with around 20 students. The school, founded by the Bombay Merchants Association (BMA) was called the Gandhi Memorial International School.

In 1966, the school was put under the auspices of the Indian Embassy in line with Indonesian regulations on schools for foreigners.

When Ram Gulumal, then principal of the school, heard of the city administration's plan to appropriate 12 meters of the compound for the street, Ram sent a request to the governor to purchase a 10,000 square meter plot of land in Ancol, North Jakarta in 1973.

The request was approved by Governor Ali Sadikin, at a 60 per cent price cut, meaning only Rp 4,000 (US$1.3) per square meter, considering that a school was being built.

The status of the plot of land on Jl. Pademangan sparked a forgery lawsuit which led to headlines about collusion at the Supreme Court.

Deputy Chief Justice Adi Andojo Soetjipto charged that there was a Rp 1.4 billion bribe involved in the document fraud case against Ram Gulumal, an Indian citizen.

Adi Andojo Soetjipto's reports of alleged collusion between Ram Gulumal and the Supreme Court have led to his being prohibited from speaking to public.

A new management was installed in 1992 when the status of the school changed from that of an international school to that of a private school. The Gandhi Memorial School in Pasar Baru then promoted the image of new private local school which follows the national curriculum. The international school is now located in the Ancol school complex in North Jakarta.

The 10,000 square meter compound in Ancol now comprises an international school called Gandhi Memorial School and a private local school called Sekolah Gandhi Ancol.

The Bombay Merchant's Organization changed the name of the original school to Gandhi Sevaloka in 1992 following a government regulation on foreign organizations.

Schools administrators of both branches of Sekolah Gandhi in Pasar Baru and Ancol said that most parents are interested in enrolling their children at those schools because they offer an intensive English curriculum meant to enhance the students' confidence as global citizens in tune to the current of progress and globalization.

"We are just a national school plus English, and we have to be global-oriented if we wanted to progress at all," Pishu told The Jakarta Post.

The four-story building in Pasar Baru has 12 classes ranging from kindergarten to junior high school. In the next two to three years, the school is considering expanding into high school.

Gandhi Ancol has offered senior high school classes for the last two years. This new academic year will see the school's first graduating class.

All classrooms at the Gandhi schools are air-conditioned. Only 30 students are assigned to a classroom, an attractive policy to many Indonesians, considering that classrooms at state schools have to accommodate 50 students.

School administrators say they want to give students the best learning opportunity possible through a conducive environment and sufficient teacher's attention.

"Our location in the middle of city on a busy street easily distracts students' attention," Sawlani added.

The schools are equipped with two libraries, a computer and science laboratories to assist students in their learning process.

A small clinic is open during school hours in case of medical emergencies, while four psychologists are employed to closely monitor and assist students with developmental problems.

The international school complex in Ancol is a rectangular four-story building with around 30 air-conditioned classrooms in which some 900 students study.

The school follows the International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum, a preuniversity curriculum and examinations geared for internationally mobile students. Taught in secondary schools and recognized by leading universities around the world, the IB program offers a diploma which has come to serve as a kind of academic passport for those who obtain it.