Gabsi set to have bridge taught at schools
Gabsi set to have bridge taught at schools
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The game of bridge has moved a step closer to being taught at
schools as the Indonesian Contract Bridge Association (Gabsi)
announced here on Monday that talks were underway with the
schools administrations.
"We met with officials from 50 High Schools (SMU) in Jakarta
last week and another round of talks with junior high schools
(SMP) is set for next week," Ekawahyu Kasih, a Gabsi chief in
charge of development, said.
"They are enthusiastic about the program. We are looking to
establish a timetable for bridge as an extracurricular activity
for the students, after which we will sign an agreement with the
selected schools," he said.
"Hopefully, the bridge program can begin this August. We
expect a once per week 45 to 90 minute session," he said.
He added that Gabsi had prepared the teaching model adopted by
that taught in the United States and some European countries.
"In France, bridge is taught at some elementary schools," he
said.
The campaign aims to promote bridge nationwide in a bid to
groom new bridge talent with a far-reaching view to ensuring
Indonesian competitiveness at the international level.
Gabsi, then chaired by Gen. (ret) Wiranto, proposed the
program in 1999 but it was canceled due to the discouraging
economic condition.
Now with the new organizational board under the leadership of
Miranda Goeltom, Gabsi has rejuvenated the campaign this year
with nine cities and towns becoming the priority: Jakarta,
Bandung in West Java, Semarang in Central Java, Surabaya in East
Java, Mataram in West Nusa Tenggara, Bali, Manado in North
Sulawesi, Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan and Palembang in South
Sumatra.
However, Ekawahyu said the program outside Jakarta would have
to undergo a coordinating phase with local bridge bodies.
According to Ekawahyu, Indonesia is currently home to 5,000
players, which is about 0.0025 percent of Indonesia's 210 million
population, while the world ratio is about 0.14 percent.