One more international school comes in Jakarta
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Another multilingual school is set to open on Jl. Lodan, North Jakarta, in July, giving more options to parents who are seeking a comprehensive education for their children.
A partnership between the Australian International School and the Bunda Mulia Foundation, the Bunda Mulia Australian International School will be one among over 20 schools across the capital that use a few languages, besides Indonesian, for lower education levels, as languages of instruction.
An official from the Ministry of Education, Herwindo, who attended the inauguration of the school on Saturday, expressed hope that the presence of more international schools would lift the quality of education in the country.
"Each province has at least one school with an international standard of curriculum, the ministry is now working on a set of rules to regulate cooperation between the international schools and the government, including on the curriculum applied," he remarked.
The ceremony was also attended by Australian Ambassador to Indonesia David Ritchie.
Formerly Bunda Mulia School, the new school will provide five levels of basic education: A nursery, pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, elementary and junior high school.
In the near future, the school will also offer high school education.
"I think this kind of school is great because it provides many unique facilities that other school don't have. The school where my son currently goes provides less physical activities," said Susan, who is looking around for a suitable school for her seven- year-old son, Leonardo.
Besides fun and educative facilities, such as an indoor sports hall, dance studio, performing arts hall, art room, and book store, the school also offers multicultural approaches to learning.
According to Penny Robertson, the principal of the Australian International School in Kemang, South Jakarta, the school will emphasize not only the Australian culture and English, but also the culture and languages of Indonesia and China.
Besides English, the school will also use Mandarin as a main language of instruction.
Penny said that the school provides an adaptive environment, which takes into consideration the diverse backgrounds and experiences of the students.
"We accept students regardless of their backgrounds -- including religion, race or ethnicity. We also accept students with special needs, such as learning difficulties or gifted students, whom we will focus on individually," she said.
Graeme Robertson, the chairman of the Australian International Schools Board said the school charged reasonable tuition fees. "It also opens greater opportunities for Indonesian children to study here. So, no need to spend five to six times more money to get a similar education abroad," he said.
Fees range from Rp 900,000 (US$100) per month to Rp 4 million, on top of the fixed Rp 10 million entrance fee, depending on the level of education.(001)