LITERACY DAY 2012

Literacy Day 2012

"World Heritage Tour"

According  to UNESCO, literacy is a fundamental human right and the foundation for lifelong learning. It is fully essential to social and human development in its ability to transform lives. School as an educational institution should equip the students as individuals, members of their families, and societies alike with literacy to improve one’s relationship with the world. Literacy Day as school’s annual event has a chance to exchange of knowledge and ideas for a better quality of life. This year, the activities will focus on appreciating and conserving world heritage.  

The aim of this program is to help and encourage the students and teachers to appreciate and conserve our world heritage by reading, writing, telling and listening to the amazing world heritage of 28 countries so that it raises awareness of the importance to be a literate community for a better quality of life. I was the person in charge of this event and here are the activities we have done in our Sugar Group Schools:

Reading skill

• High school students learned to collect and read information and/or stories about the traditional song/music/dress of a country. In addition, they also learned to collect and read information and/or stories about the landmarks of the chosen country. 
• Middle school students learned to collect and read information and/or stories about the mother tongue language and the folklore of the chosen country. 

Writing skill

• High and middle school students learned to make four booths in their classroom displaying each information they got (traditional booth, landmark booth, language booth, and folklore booth) in an interesting way. The students also learned to write the information in the form of leaflet and/or flyer to be given to primary students when they visited their classroom. 
• Primary students learned to write the world heritage information such as Taj Mahal, The Great Wall, etc. they had watched and/or listened to on a postcard. Then, they brought the postcards and attached them on the wall magazine provided by high and middle school students in front of their classroom.     

Speaking and Listening Skills

• High and middle school students worked together to be able to tell the information of the world heritage to primary students in an interesting way. Some of them taught primary students how to greet using the mother tongue language of the chosen country. Others performed a storytelling of the folklore to the primary students. Another booth taught the primary students to do a traditional dance and another booth told the stories/history of the landmark by showing the miniature and/or illustration of it to the primary students. Most of the students were happy and excited to do the activities. What made me happy was that they could learn to each other. 

• Primary students did a world heritage tour to visit at least four countries. They watched and listened to the performances, interesting presentations, videos, and joined the activities prepared by their high and middle school students in each classroom. What can make us, teachers, happier than a smile of our students learning and doing something meaningful. :) Happy Literacy Day. 

Donations

I am sure all of you would agree that we including our students are part of the community and live in the community. Then, what else could make the event more meaningful than having an activity that the students can give a contribution to the society or community. Therefore, I asked the students to bring coins and/or paper money on the event. To motivate them, I showed pictures of the kindergarten condition where they were going to donate the money to. The total donation we got was Rp 4.758.000,00. Then, we spent Rp 3.670.500,00 to buy educational toys. Here is the documentation video when we gave the donation to Kilometer 37 Kindergarten on February 14, 2013. 

YOS CUP 2010

YOS CUP 2010 BATAM

Basketball and futsal competition

Why do I want to write this event? Because I miss this kind of activity where the students can learn something outside the classroom. The students learned how to make a proposal, how to find a sponsorship and convince them to support the event, and how to work together to solve the problems. It was not easy but they could make it happen :)  I was the general coordinator of this event and I was responsible to help the student representative council (OSIS) to hold Yos Cup, basketball and futsal competition for senior high schools in Batam.

I still remember when we were making the proposal, one of my students said that it was easy to get a sponsorship.... hmmmm he he he  :) then when the proposal was ready.... they realized that it was not an easy job to do.... Most of the sponsor could only offer their products such as drink and food. I just smiled and kept saying 'keep trying to get the sponsorship' They learned to solve the problem together. I was happy to see young boys and girls, my students, tried to solve the problems together. Solving the problem together and working together with friends who have different characters are important skills for them. :)

After school, once or twice a week, they had a meeting to discuss the preparation of this event. They made a list of companies they were going to ask for the sponsorship. They learned to meet people, to communicate and explain about the event to the companies and related local government, and they learned to organize a big event. Moreover, they learned not to give up when their proposal was rejected ;) and finally they could get enough money to hold that event. If I am not mistaken at that time they could get more or less 20 million. . . Yeahhhhh
the game was begun.....   

While they were trying to get the sponsorship, they also prepared the administration needed to hold basketball and futsal competitions for senior high school students in Batam. They asked the permission from PERBASI (basketball association) and local government to hold the competitions. Once they got the permission, they contacted the official referees to help them to make the rules of the game. Then, they made the  invitation letter and sent it to every senior high school in Batam. THE STUDENTS made all of the administration things by themselves. My job as the general coordinator was making sure that every committee of  this event worked and I would give necessary suggestions and/or advice for them to reach the target on time because they had to follow the deadline they had made. I always said to them to try to make it first then I would check and we corrected it together. It was not easy since at that time it was the first time for them to hold this kind of competitions. As a teacher, I was really happy and proud to have the students like them. Somehow, I felt more alive and full of energy and motivation. Thank you my students, it was one of the best moment I have ever had. 

              There was a moment when the students and I had showed the best we could do to prepare this event but we had not reached the money we needed to hold the competitions and one of the school management said to cancel it. What?! in this kind of situation what we need is SUPPORT. Fortunately, Bu Jenny, one of the VPs said 'the show must go on' She said,"We will help you. We will contact our graduate and ask them to give some donation to you. The competition must be held." Yeaahhh.... :) That what we need.   'SUPPORT' 

Once the school can work together to support to each other for the sake  of the students' development, I am sure the school name will be better. Whether the students can win or not, it is not the matter. What matters is that they get the experience. Even if they failed, they could learn from it and it could be a good lesson for them to try to be better next time. We will appreciate and respect more on happiness when we have ever felt sad or failed. Life is not perfect. When they have meaningful experiences, happy or sad, their characters can be stronger and ready to face and conquer this changing world.