Int'l schools battle on amid dwindling enrollments

By Stevie Emilia

JAKARTA (JP): The girl's little fingers tap and squeeze a portion of play dough from a large chunk prepared by her teacher.

A few minutes later she laughs cheerfully, showing off her work to her teacher and a classmate. The teacher caresses her blonde hair, smiles and murmurs soft words, praising her work.

It's hardly noticeable that little Sarah is a child with special needs -- she has Down's syndrome, a genetic disorder, and is among the lucky few who get extra attention and can go to school with those categorized as normal.

"Students with special needs can do anything just like the others," said Penny Robertson, principal of the Australian International School in Jati Murni, Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta.

The school started operation 18 months ago and was officiated last February by then minister of education and culture Wardiman Djojonegoro.

According to latest figures there are 43 international schools across the country, spurred by the need created by the many expatriate families living here.

The Australian International School is among the new ones, while the first in the city was the Deutsche International Schle. The latter was set up in Bandung, West Java, in 1957, and moved to the capital 10 years later.

Integration of children with learning problems is one interesting feature at the Australian International School.

Fees here range from US$5,050 for preschool students to $8,900 for junior high school students, or ninth year students in the Australian education system.

Out of the school's 200 students Sarah is one of 17 students with special needs.

"Here, we encourage learning by collaboration and cooperation by mixing students of different learning abilities in one class," Robertson said. The method, she said, is practiced in Australia and has proved successful in increasing the average achievement in one class.

Robertson said other students were "tremendously accepting... They learn how to share and take care of others (with disabilities)," she said.

The school mostly employs Australian teachers, but others are from New Zealand, Canada and Britain, and 15 Indonesians.

Australian text books are used and special teachers are assigned to help students whose first language is not English before they join regular classes.

Parents

Children at international schools, such as at the German international school, seem to enjoy high parent involvement compared to local schools, where low parent participation is a common complaint among teachers.

At the Deutsche Internationale Schle, parents are quite active through various associations.

"In extracurricular activities, parents offer courses and help in preparing theater performances, sometimes donating to help out particular projects by classes," said the school's principal, Wolfgang Hinners.

The Deutsche school offers education from kindergarten to senior high level. Most of the 320 students are German, while others come from Austria, Switzerland, the United States and the Netherlands.

Indonesian is also taught at the school along with the country's culture and art through a special program that concentrates on Indonesian geography, culture and regional differences.

The students also learn about local values and make discovery trips around Jakarta. They engage in projects to get to know more about the country's fauna and flora.

The school for kindergarten and preschoolers is on Jl. Prapanca, South Jakarta, while older students go to school on Jl. Dr. Sam Ratulangie in Menteng. Following the steps of the British and Japanese schools, Deutsche Internationale Schle has also plans a move to the outskirts, to the less crowded Bumi Serpong Damai area later this year.

In North Jakarta, the North Jakarta International School now has 350 students. It opened in August 1990.

It has gained full accreditation from the European Council of International Schools and adopts a U.S.-based international school curricula. Parents here are also deeply involved in the school's activities.

"Many parents spend a great deal of time on campus, helping in the library, on field trips and in other capacities," said the school's principal Michael S. Dougherty.

In addition, parents are involved in periodic meetings with teachers regarding their children's progress and how they can help their children work at home, he said.

Teachers here come from Australia, Canada, Europe, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States.

The school's students, from preschool through ninth grade, come from more than 30 countries. These include Australia, Canada, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, the United States and the United Kingdom, while the medium of instruction is English.

Even though international schools only enroll children of foreigners residing temporarily in Indonesia, teachers say students tend to adjust to life here quickly. They also express concern about what is happening in their host country.

"We're going to discuss forest fires next week," said a student in year six at the Australian International School.

His class just finished discussing space and stars. Pictures and drawing of stars, astronauts and spaceships still fill the classroom's white board. And some slogans: "Reach for the Stars," "Space-Extending Our Boundaries," "Aliens: Fact or Fiction" were all over the walls.

Crisis

The dramatic fall of the country's economy has forced many companies to cut their dollar-based costs, leading to many expatriates finding themselves out of a job.

Without much preparation, some expatriates suddenly found themselves heading back home along with their children, who had just settled into elementary school here.

Students at the North Jakarta International School had to bid farewell to friends who had to leave the country recently.

"About 30 of the school's current enrollment of 350 have left the country. A possibly significant reduction in enrollment is projected for the new school year which starts in August," said Dougherty.

The Australian International School has also lost some of its students due to the crisis.

"We lost 20 students and 20 more who were supposed to come here but canceled because of the crisis. So, we lost about 40 on projected numbers," said Robertson, whose students come from 38 different countries.

Students were very sad to leave Indonesia, she added.

"And it's very sad for the students to watch their friends suddenly have to pack up and go immediately," Robertson said.

For their friends still in the country, the crisis has also become a hot subject.

"Like everyone, they (students) are very concerned about the current economic crisis and how it is affecting the whole country," Robertson said.