BRIDGE connects Indonesian Madrasah and Australian Catholic School

Students from Madrasah Aliyah Negeri 2 (MAN 2) in Jakarta and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College Adelaide in Australia will get connected through a program to promote educational exchanges and cultural understanding.

The Building Relationships through Intercultural Dialogue and Growing Engagement (BRIDGE) program first brought the two schools together in March 2011.

And on Monday October 24, the students will talk to each other on Skype to mark the launch of the International Class being introduced at MAN 2.

“At the International Class, students will have the opportunity to join the Australian class via video conference technology to learn English, Mathematics and Science,” said Ms Isnadiar Dekok, Principal of MAN 2.

Australian Ambassador to Indonesia, Greg Moriarty said, “The BRIDGE program brings students from Indonesia and Australia closer together. These educational and cultural exchanges will show a new generation how much we can learn from each other.”

As part of the BRIDGE program, two teachers from MAN 2 spent two weeks at the Australian school in March 2011. After their visit the schools established a sister school agreement and the relationship has since flourished.

The BRIDGE program has worked with the private sector and communities to deliver education benefits to thousands of teachers and students in Australia and Indonesia.

BRIDGE will build stronger people-to-people links for hundreds of thousands of Australian and Indonesian teachers and students through information technology, social networking tools, school visits and on-line training sessions.

The program is funded by the Australian Government aid program in partnership with The Myer Foundation and delivered by the Asia Education Foundation and Australia-Indonesia Institute.

Media inquiries:
Ray Marcelo, Counsellor (Public Affairs) tel. (021) 2550 5290 mob. 0811 187 3175