My host school in Kudus, Central Java is SMA 1 Bae Kudus, a senior high school. The school is similarly sized to mine with 1,100 students and 70 staff members. I've had the chance to interact with much of the staff and many students, and I am floored by the kindness, hospitality and respect that everyone shows not only us as visitors, but each other as well. My heart feels so full walking around the school that it's no wonder that everyone is always smiling. It's a wonderful environment to be in.
The outdoor, covered hallways
The view from the front of the school
The classes each get a garden patch to tend to and plant how they want
Teachers always stop to shake each other's hands and check in with one another. Student show respect to teachers with a special handshake where they touch the teacher's hand to their cheek or forehead (it's the sweetest thing and I melt every time). We have been hosted almost every day in a different teacher's home, and they always provide a huge home cooked meal (complete with many vegetarian options for the two of us and assurances that there are no nuts in the food for Kate's allergies), and they insist on packing food up and sending us off with copious snacks for later. In every home we visit, we are offered to stay with them rather than at our hotel, and the offers are so genuine that it's very hard to say no (we couldn't possibly impose!). We have co-taught with 3 different English teachers so far, and they are eager to collaborate and try out new strategies. The Javanese culture teacher set up a private batik lesson for us, and she even finished filling in the last of my design when I started pouting about all my drips (seriously, I threw a mini tantrum after the third giant drip in a row, and she swooped in to fix it for me). She is also dyeing and framing them for us because she's amazing.
Batik class 2.0
My mini tantrum at my incompetence at art
My hero finishing filling in the big parts because I was dumping wax everywhere. What can I say, I get what I want.
Our host teacher Sri has become our adoptive mom and calls me her "baby," and bends over backward to meet our needs (and to keep Kate from dying from her nut allergy). What I will remember most about Indonesia is absolutely the people and how we have smiled and laughed together constantly, even when not able to speak the same language.
Sri and her husband Sar. The. Cutest. Couple.
Just like any school or school system, there are things they are doing incredibly well and areas where there is room for improvement to increase student success. The mutual respect I have seen between teacher and student has been incredible, many teachers have been very eager for professional development and ways to improve and diversify their practice, and teachers work very well with the government provided curriculum. One US system that I think would help a lot here is our sub system. It definitely works far from perfectly for us, but I can be out of school knowing that there is an adult in the room who has my plans and instruction, and they will at least to some degree implement them. My administrator knows that no teCher will be out of the building without first getting a replacement and (hopefully) providing detailed instructions. That is not the case in Indonesia, and I have seen a number of classrooms full of students without an adult. The students here are 1000 times more responsible and on task when unsupervised than my students would be, but students still need qualified instructors to learn best. It seems to me that this is one sysem change that would have a huge impact on student success.
The student motorcycle parking lot. 1,100 students, 1,100 motorcycles!!