Lombok Students Visit Australian BRIDGE Sister School to Share Sasak Culture

Nine students and two teachers from Kesuma Mataram middle and high schools departed last weekend for a twelve day visit to their sister school Victor Harbour High School, just outside Adelaide, as part of the BRIDGE student and teacher exchange program.

The group, led by Mr Johanes Budi Walujo, will be involved in various cultural activities, such as performing traditional Sasak dances and songs, modern dance and exhibiting local handicrafts. This visit builds on the school partnerships exchange established under the Australian Government BRIDGE program.

Kesuma Mataram high school principal, Mr Vincentius Utomo, said he sees the partnership as an opportunity to learn about Australian teaching practices and then adapt relevant parts to the Indonesian curriculum.

Parent support of the BRIDGE program has also been strong. One parent, Mr Benedictus Djou, said “BRIDGE has improved the teaching methodology at our school resulting in students becoming more enthusiastic about learning.”

The group was farewelled by Mr Ruslan Effendy, Head of the Education, Youth and Sport Office in Mataram and Mr L Syafi'i, Head of the Education, Youth and Sport Office of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB).

The BRIDGE project commenced in 2008 and was implemented by the Australia-Indonesia Institute in partnership with the Asia Education Foundation. Funding support has been provided by the Myer Foundation and the Australian aid program. Since then, 91 teachers from 47 Indonesian schools in 7 provinces have visited Australia under the BRIDGE project as a way of forging ongoing relationships between schools in both countries.

The participating Indonesian schools, located in Jakarta, South Sumatra, Bali, East Java, South Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara and West Kalimantan, have included several funded through the Australia-Indonesia Partnership project to build 2000 junior secondary colleges in Indonesia.

Media Enquiries:
Josephine Ratna, BRIDGE Office Indonesia tel. (031) 2981332 Mob. 0811 327812