Good schools are rare

Good schools are rare

We arrived in Sunter, North Jakarta, in July last year. Our
choice of schools was limited by distance. However, at the time a
new school called Singa Kindergarten had opened in the area. The
idea of having a school on the third floor of Plaza Metro Sunter
Mall was strange, but then again anything is possible here.

As the name suggests, the school program is based on a
Singapore model. A group from Singapore invited me to visit their
school. I was introduced to the Singaporean teachers, not the
local teachers or the local principal. We were shown the material
and agreed the Singaporean model seemed like a good one. We
agreed to enroll our three-year old son in the program so we
signed and paid for one year of schooling. Our son began school
in July. It didn't take us long to realize, however, that we had
made a mistake.

In September, much to our surprise, the Singaporean staff left
and the training period ended. At a parents' meeting, the
principal from Singapore tried to reassure us that the teachers
left in charge were competent and were familiar with the
materials. But this was not the case. As soon as any problems
arose, the local team was not able to solve any of them. At least
they were a good intermediary between us and Singa Kindergarten
in Singapore.

I'm not surprised that all the teachers, except one, has since
resigned. We had good faith, but this was certainly not the
educational program we wanted for our son. We stopped sending him
to Singa Kindergarten in October. Although the situation of the
school had changed dramatically and we had good reason for
discontinuing the program, the school refused to refund our money
for the unused terms.

Let this serve as a warning to other expatriates.

MATHILDE ALEXANDRE

Jakarta