Learning to grow, not just for the sake of learning

By Mehru Jaffer

Whether students appreciate it or not, the philosophy at most international schools remains to try and make learning a fun experience.

To learn not just from text books but through data gathering, finding information by research, from talking to people and visiting places, so that everything that is taught can also be applied to real-life experiences. What is encouraged most is the art of learning to question teachers, parents and the world around them.

The focus is not just on scoring good grades but also on having a well-rounded, healthy personality. Apart from classical subjects like mathematics, world studies, literature and science, there is great emphasis at international schools on the arts, including painting, music and drama, sports and languages. After- school activities include debate, extempore public speaking and clubs that follow up creative hobbies like photography or charity work. Computer technology is popular, too.

Most class periods are stretched to 75 minutes or more so that all work is finished in school and only review or follow up work is left for children to do at home. In some schools, two sets of text books are often provided so that there is a copy at home and in the school in order to prevent the school bag from becoming a bundle of burden.

However, children will be children and to behave childishly is their prerogative. Totally oblivious to the unimaginative courses offered at the large majority of schools run in the old fashioned way, some students at international schools look upon their own learning experience as a mere chore.

"School sucks!" is the spontaneous response of more than one student at the Jakarta International School (JIS), rated as one of the best campuses in the region.

But, Indonesia's Ministry of Education is impressed; for ministry officials recently invited JIS along with other international schools to participate in a planned pilot project to provide for a limited number of Indonesian students to attend international schools for a prescribed period of time.

The project is envisaged as a way to improve communication and interaction between different types of schools and to help upgrade the national curriculum.

An international school program is based on the best of its respective country's and other curriculum models, trying to be sensitive to the Indonesian environment, delivering a comprehensive academic education involving teachers and parents to students of foreign nationalities temporarily residing in this country.

Michael S.Dougherty, headmaster North Jakarta International School told The Jakarta Post that constant interaction between teachers of local and international schools is a help. To keep in touch with what is going on locally, he tries to encourage the staff and students from neighboring schools to participate in events like the science Olympics and music festivals held on his campus.

An Indonesian teacher of science pointed out that at local schools, the subject is taught in a very theoretical and abstract manner. The result is that even those students who might score high grades in class may not actually know how to apply the same knowledge in their real life.

The attitude at most forward-looking institutions these days is to encourage students to reach their full potential not just inside the classroom but also outside. The idea is not to cram students with information but to help them grow into self-reliant adults who are able to cope responsibly in a complex and rapidly changing world.

At Jakarta's Kinderland they start them young. The focus is on giving each child individual attention when they come into kindergarten at about the age of 2 years. The philosophy is that each child is unique, whether he or she is a slow, or quick achiever, and that all students should be challenged in class to reach their full potential. Within one class itself it is not unusual to teach at three different levels in separate groups. This way the quicker learners remain in the same classroom as the ones not so quick but without being discriminated, with special teachers concentrating entirely on slower learners.

Memorization is discouraged, and to think logically and critically is encouraged, often making the students at international schools sound too out spoken, almost rude. "We never talked to our parents this way," is a standard rebuke many parents chide their cheeky children with these days.

To which many a 14-year-old also has a ready reply that may sound something like, "But mom ... dad ... this is the year 2000, not the 1960s."