On Friday, 26th March 2021, two classes of Year 8 Indonesian had the opportunity to participate in a virtual immersion session with SMP Kristen 4 Penabur in Jakarta, Indonesia. The objectives of the session were for students to practise the language they learn (Indonesian for MTCC students and English for SMP Kristen 4 Penabur students) and to learn more about each other’s way of life, thus developing students’ intercultural capability. The session started with a whole-class introduction activity, which was then followed by small group discussions, where they talked about themselves, their family, daily activities and school life. MTCC students are to be commended for putting their best efforts to communicate in Indonesian using the vocabulary and sentence structures they have learnt in class. Applaud to SMP Kristen 4 Penabur students, who, despite the fact that were still learning remotely from their respective home, participated enthusiastically in the session. It is hoped that more virtual immersion sessions will be scheduled in the future to provide opportunities for students in both schools to connect and develop not only their language skills but also their global citizenship competencies.

Below are some comments from Year 8 students:

The Indonesian teleconference went quite well. It was fun, and connected better than what I expected considering the distance. It was an amazing experience! It was so good to talk to others who speak the language you are learning on a day to day basis. To be able to ask them if we are saying it right was very helpful. It was incredible to hear people fluent in that language, and to try and translate to figure out if you know what they mean. It was also helpful to have resources such as Quizlet to help. Overall is was an incredible and spectacular experience. (Kendall Forbes)

I really enjoyed the experience. I loved that we were able to connect with the students living in Jakarta. I feel very lucky to be able to be one of the very few classes that were able to participate in the Zoom calls. I really liked showing the students a tour of the school. I hope we can do this again. My partner and I had a lot of fun answering and asking questions and I feel that this activity was so amazing. I learnt so much and I had a great time. (Koby Wilkinson)
It went really well. I met some new friends and get to learn more about Indonesia. It would be a good idea to do it again but it would be there turn to show us around. I would love to try this again next term and met some new people again. Thank you. (Zeta Mae Gamolo)
The call was fun and I hope to do it again some other time. The people were fun to talk to. (Emily Bass)

Indonesian Virtual Immersion Session