Kang GURU Magazine - March 2010

A special thank you to Aldo Suryadiputra for the Joeys cover graphics

Kang GURU
Magazine for March 2010

Welcome from KGI
The Dec 2009 edition
Kang Guru Voices
Idioms Inggris
Quick Fix
The Symbols of Peace
Promoting Peace through Life Skill Activities
Our Environment Part 1
Our Environment Part 2
The Australia Indonesia Partnership (AIP)
Oz-Indo Connections
KGI visiting KGI broadcast radio stations
Joeys - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
Kang Guru in the Classroom
The World Cup and Facebook
Different Pond Different Fish (DPDF)
Kang Guru News Room

Kang Guru Indonesia has been helping English language learners in Indonesia for over 20 years, however the current phase of KGI will finish on June 30th, 2010. But the good news is that a new phase of Kang Guru Indonesia will begin later in 2010. KGI is currently being re-designed and all of us here at KGI are excited to see the new KGI for the period 2010 – 2015. Even though the KGI magazine will not be published in June 2010 please be assured that we WILL keep you fully informed of the new KGI by email, Facebook and on the KGI website over the next few months.

The KGI Team in Bali - March 2010

A fond farewell and thank you

Three very important long-time supporters of Kang Guru Indonesia are leaving Indonesia this year. All of the staff here at KGI want to say a big, big thank you to them. We will miss you.

Firstly, a fond farewell to Mr. Geoffrey Crewes, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the IALF in Indonesia. Geoff is returning home to Australia after 30 years in Indonesia, firstly as an Australian volunteer, and for the past 20 years as CEO of the IALF. Geoff has been a keen supporter of KGI since 1989. Without Geoff's vision and guidance, particularly in the late 1990s, KGI may have disappeared many years ago. So goodbye to Geoff and all the best for your new life and career in Melbourne.

Secondly, Mr. Bill Farmer, the Australian Ambassador to Indonesia since 2006, is also departing Indonesian shores to return home to Australia. Bill has been a great friend of KGI and together with his wife, Elaine, has always been there to promote KGI and to support us in all of our endeavors. Their efforts and time have always been most appreciated and we all wish both of them all the best for the future. Simply marvelous!

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Thanks a lot for the December edition, I’m really glad of it. I like all about it especially for the back cover, ”batik“ it’s really Indonesia. The content is so interesting, the quizzes are able to motivate students to read and study about English. One thing that makes it different and special for me is about scholarships information it’s useful for us especially for me because I wanna take S2 but I don’t have finance ability. Thank you so much and good luck! Be our friend always...

Mila, Banyuwangi, East Java

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Excellent .. I wrote this message right after I opened your December edition & I like the calendar .. it’s awesome. You know that I’m an employee in milk & mistakes in my english coz i’m still learn ...Thank you very much.

Nadya, Bone Sul-Sel

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Thanks KGI for u’re des mag. its so special for me cz i get story u’r party anniversary 20th n thanks again for u’re new calendar.

Bravo kGI
Zainuri, Probolinggo

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Don’t stop the magazine. I’ve read what Wildan writes on KGI on December 09 edition. I agree with him. This magazine is very important to me in developing my skills in learning English. I can also know about something from Australia such as culture, education, life style, etc.

I hope you don’t stop to give the KGI magazine for KGI’s fans.

Lia, Klaten, Central Java

+628574630XXXX

Hi KGI thank u so much for your Dec magazine. It’s very interesting for me. It gives many information and knowledge for me! I like your articles in Different Pond, Different Fish. There is information about Australian culture and customs. Drink from the tap? Take a bath for not more than 4 minutes? Keep the bathroom floor dry? Wow,it’s really crazy! I never do it in my life? I usually take a bath for one hour and minimum for 15 minutes. In Australia only 4 minutes? It’s amazing? Wow, Australian peoples is very discipline i think! N from your information i want to try be a better people than last year! I want try to change my bad habits! He he. May God bless u.

Rulli indah Sari, Rogojampi, Banyuwangi, East Java

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Hi KGI, my name’s Fera Setyaningsah.I’m from SMA 2 Batang,Central Java. When i read Desember 2009 edition, i’m very surprised because the back cover is very unik and used backgound batik. The Quick Fix is very different. This edition Quick Fix gives some correct to reader’s email. And I hope you give a new page to “ADVERB” and “SMALL DICTIONARY”.

+628575571XXXX

Hi, kang guru! Wow it’z so amazing when i receive ur dec magz. People to people ‘till volunteering rubric are so inspiring. The story bout aussie alumni and the scholarship info create a chance for me (and other readerz i think) to build n reach our dream on studying abroad. Great job for kgi! Luv u full.

Nurul Ardlian, Malang

• KGI, You're FANTASTIC!

Hi,there. I’m Arif Syarifuddin, an islamic student (santri) of a pondok pesantren in Indramayu. I’m your new fan. I’ve received your magazines for two editions in 2009 and what will I say here is AMAZING! When I first received it I showed you to my friends. And do you know what happened? They’re fighting to read you and they ask me many questions about you. Where have you got this (magazine) from? How could I get it? Do I have to pay for receiving it and many others. I tried to answer their questions as far as I know about you. Thanx KGI, you’re FANTASTIC!

Arif Syarifuddin - +628522112XXXX
Indramayu, West Java

Hello Arif. You're also fantastic by sending your story to us via SMS. And thanks for sharing the KGI magazine with your friends. Did you know that some of KGI magazines are available in pdf format on the KGI website

• Where is my LRCS?

I’d like to thank KGI for regularly coming to our school through in the Kang Guru magazine. I am one of the lucky English teachers who regularly get Kang Guru's Listening and Reading Class Set which my students and I find useful to improve our English skills. Well, thank you so much for such a great help both through the magazine and Listening and Reading Class Sets. I have selected activities from various Listening and Reading Class Sets that I received so far. I compiled them into two booklets and let my fellow teachers photocopy. I have also compiled the audio in CDs and many of my fellow teachers have copied them. I am happy that Kang Guru continues to be a close friend for many of us. I am longing to have a December Listening and Reading Class Set which I haven’t got up to the present. Could you please send me this set?

Rm. Nani Songkares, Pr
Mataloko, Ngada - Flores, NTT

Dear Nani, we hope that you have received the LRCS by now. Better late than never, don't you think?

• I love KGI magazine!

I have to say thank you so much for your magazine. There are many great bits of news and interesting information in it. And I also join your Facebook and I also find many friends to learn English with. I can share my problems with them besides my teachers. Recently I got my TOEIC test result. Before I know KGI magazine my score was 375 but after I know and use KGI magazine my TOEIC score is 520.

Thank you for all that you have done (provide a lot of materials, give grammar information, make funny competitions, etc). I love the KGI mag. You make me wanna read it repeatedly. Your content about Idioms English & Quick Fix really helps improve my English. I like it. Good job too for 2010 calendar design. I hang it up in my small library.

Ayu Rochmawati
Banyumas, Central Java

Dear Ayu, we're very happy to know that you got such a good score for your TOEIC and that our KGI magazines have helped you with your English. I hope you enjoy this March 2010 edition. Be sure to check Facebook often for more news and competitions.

• Nothing stopped me!

There is no word or sentence enough to say except thanks so much to Kang Guru. I thought that the letter I sent was lost on the way coz there is no reply. But on Jan 8th when I went home from 'ngarit' (looking for grasses for my goats) a postman approached me and gave me a wrapped mag.

Kang, I'm so happy coz I get what I want. I still remember my sacrifice to get your magazine at the first time. I must ride my bicycle tens of kilometers to take it at Bonanza FM in Kediri as a gift of BES (Bonanza English Show). Now I can read your magazine freely and I can lend it to my friends. I can explain about relationship and partnership between Indonesia and Australia. And I'd like to say matur nuwun to Kang Guru for your attention to Cah Ngarit.

Harun Arrosyid
Blitar, East Java

What a lovely letter Harun! We are touched by your great effort to get the KGI magazine. And you share it with others as well. Sincere thanks from all of us at KGI and all the very best with your English. It is already very good.

Now, what do you think these idioms mean?

They all use the word peace. Can you match them with the correct meanings in the colored boxes?

If someone says to you, ‘Oh, leave me in peace’ it usually means to stop bothering them. You should go away and leave them alone. Have you ever heard someone say that?

This expression is sometimes used by parents and teachers. Maybe by you too? Think about a very noisy classroom. The teacher might say - Come on you guys, quieten down, let’s have some peace and quiet around here!

To be at peace with the world. She was relaxed and happy because she was satisfied with her life. Sitting on the terrace, looking out over the ocean, she felt at peace with the world. She was calm and happy with her life.

A peace offering is something you give to someone to show that you are sorry and that you want to be friendly. This may be true especially after you have argued with them. For example, Siti was always borrowing things from Dewi. She never gave them back. One day they had a big argument and stopped speaking to each other. The next week Siti came to Dewi with a big box of chocolates as a peace offering. She wanted to be friends with Dewi again.

There are some other collocations* which use the word peace – such as peace talks/proposals, a peace conference/initiative, a lasting peace and keep the peace.

* Collocations are the combination of words formed when two or more words are often used together in a way that sounds correct.

Okay, hang on just a minute Ayu. Bahasa Indonesia is also very confusing to us and I think to many other people learning it. Oh my goodness - the affixes and suffixes.

Here's an example of our confusion - the word tinggal. We basically know what that means BUT then we see words such as meninggal, meninggalkan, tertinggal, ditinggalkan, meninggali, and even ketinggalan. Okay, they all have different meanings depending on the sentences they are used in but to a learner they present some degree of difficulty for sure!

Which one do we use?

And another to learn to use correctly is bangun. How many variations of this word are there to drive us slightly crazy? Okay, there's also membangun, membangunkan, terbangun, bangunan, dibangun, pembangunan, berbangun, sebangun and kebangunan. Our brains are in overdrive Ayu - HELP US PLEASE!

The Symbols of Peace

This most widely known peace symbol (see left) was originally the anti-nuclear emblem. It was invented on the request of Lord Bertrand Russel, head of the British ‘Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament’ (CDN). The symbol is derived from semaphore signals (just like we learned in scouts Pramuka) for the letters ‘N’ and ‘D’ standing for Nuclear Disarmament. The Peace Action Symbol was designed on February 21, 1958 for use in the first Peace Walk in England.

was painted on walls as a symbol of freedom from occupying forces. The sign was once again widely used by peace movements in the 1960s and 1970s as a symbol of victory for peace and truth.

The olive wreath originated in Greece and was the highest award given to a citizen in ancient Greece. The prize was also given to winners at the ancient Olympic Games as a symbol of victory. Greeks considered the olive tree as the most valuable gift, a symbol of peace, sustenance, and life. In the Olympics, it’s given for the idea of peaceful competition through sport.

The Peace Crane (origami burung)

In Asia the white crane is the bird of peace in terms of prosperity and friendship. The origami crane became popular after the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In 1955, when an eleven year old Japanese girl was diagnosed with leukemia from exposure to nuclear radiation, she heard that if she folded a thousand paper cranes (origami), she would be granted a wish. She began folding one crane after another wishing for a healthy body within a world of peace. Would like to know how to make a Peace Crane?

Search You Tube - How To Make An Origami Peace Crane

The white dove carrying an olive branch has been the symbol of peace and hope for thousands of years. The ancient Egyptians saw the dove was as symbol of quiet innocence. The Chinese felt the dove was a symbol of peace and long life. To early Greeks and Romans, doves represented love and devotion and care for a family. In some other religions an olive branch is a sign for peace and good will.

The Peace Corps

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and U.S. President Barack Obama announced their intent to re-establish a Peace Corps program in Indonesia following their November 15th, 2009 bilateral discussions at the APEC conference in Singapore. The first group of Peace Corps volunteers is expected to arrive in Indonesia by mid-2010. They will work as English teachers in high schools and teacher training institutions.   

Indonesia will be the Peace Corps’ 76th host-country. Peace Corps volunteers serve in the communities where they live and work in sectors such as education, health, agriculture and food security, the environment, youth and community development, information technology and business development.  For more information about the please visit Peace Corps.

Here is Suryadi (at back, far left) with his friends in Madura
during a recent HIV-AIDS activity organized thru LAPIS-PGMI

A School Garden - now that's a great idea!

At the beginning of 2010 KGI met with Julia Arden, a teacher from Kerang Technical High school, a school four hours drive north of Melbourne in Australia. KGI was interested to interview her because we heard her school had created something unusual. The teachers and students have built a school garden. This is not a garden with scented flowers and trees but an edible garden. All the plants they grow in the garden can be eaten. Tomatoes, chilies, beans, carrots, lettuce, radish, pumpkin and peas are grown there by the students and the teachers.
About ten years ago the school used to have a big school farm. Unfortunately because of the water shortages in this part of Australia the farm had to finish. Now they have planted a number of different vegetables in small box containers and they are enjoying great success.

KGI asked Julia what the benefits of a school garden were. She said it’s been wonderful because the school community seems to have pulled together and become much closer because they have a joint project to work on. Some issues of cooperation have included -

Whose turn is it to water the garden?
Who will visit at weekends and water the plants?
Who will water the tomatoes over the long six week school holiday?

So what do they do with the vegetables they grow? They eat them of course! But Julia also pointed out that growing the vegetables in the school shows the children where their food comes from. She told Kang Guru many students, particularly in the city areas, don’t know where their food supply comes from.

In the future the school hopes to involve more students in the program. Next year the geography class will combine with the home economics class which will combine perhaps with the maths class. It will be a thematic approach so many more students willl have input into the garden.

Action on the Environment with Papua

Recently at IALF Bali, students from Papua created an exhibition showing some of the environmental problems in their province. The exhibition was on display for everyone at IALF Bali to see and ask questions about - in English of course. Some of the environmental problems presented by Sepo Nawipa and Fiktor Wanane (see pic) were a lack of proper town planning, inappropriate housing projects, waste management and poor drainage. KGI went along and joined in with the discussions. It was terrific to hear the students using their improved English language skills to talk about the important environmental issues in Papua. The students were sponsored by Dinas Pendidikan, Pemuda dan Olahraga Provinsi Papua (DPP) to upgrade their English to a level whereby they could be in a position to apply for scholarships to study overseas. During 2009, there were 3 phases of training over a 9 month period involving 40 participants.  All participants sat an official IELTS test at the end of their training.

What's New from Tunas Hijau?

What does Tunas Hijau do? KGI has talked about Tunas Hijau for many years now so you probably already know that they plant trees, make compost, clean rivers, and also conduct environmental workshops for school and community groups. Yes, they do all of these activities throughout the year working together with schools in Surabaya and surrounding areas. The many volunteer members of Tunas Hijau are dedicated to looking after, protecting and improving their environment.

And what’s new from Tunas Hijau? It's TV Tunas Hijau. It’s a 2 minutes news info segment and you can see it on FaceBook. How incredible is that?

Check out their fantastic website

Do you think you can make a similar event (combining art, culture, and environmental awareness) at your school or maybe in your local community? Get some of your interested friends together and start by talking about it ! That' a good start!

Green Roofs, also known as eco-roofs or vegetated roofs or living roofs is the idea of growing plants and grass on roofs. That sounds an odd idea, doesn't it? Some countries in Europe, America and China have implemented green roof activity by planting trees on top of the apartment buildings and houses in response to a trend toward environmentally-friendly technology. What do these roofs do?

A planted rooftop helps to filter air, lessen the burden on sewers by absorbing rainwater, providing insulation, and creating a habitat for wildlife. It also helps to lower air temperatures in the buildings below, and combat the strong effects of heat and the sun. Modern green roof trends began in Germany in the 1960s. These days it is estimated that about 10% of all German roofs have been “greened.” Several European countries including Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Italy, Austria, Hungary, Sweden and the UK are promoting green roofs.

Have you seen any green roofs in Indonesia?

Did you know that Australia's Parliament House in Canberra has a grass topped roof? Well, it HAS!

Photos by Hasrul Ichsan, KFCPMonitoring Hydrology Coordinator

Ogi started by asking what is carbon emission?

Carbon dioxide, or CO2, is one of the greenhouse gases that creates a big problem in the atmosphere especially contributing to the global climate change. So carbon emission means to emit, to release greenhouse gases such as CO2 into the atmosphere. We have to reduce that otherwise our planet will become warmer and warmer from time to time. That's not good.

How do peatlands contribute to the greenhouse gases?

Peatlands actually contain huge amounts of carbon (organic matter) within that peat soil itself. If we burn it or if we drain the water from it that means we allow this carbon to make contact with the air. That creates a CO2 gases emissions. That means peatlands will be big source of emission of CO2 into the atmosphere.

Why was this project started?

The Kalimantan Forests and Climate Partnerships want to reduce this kind of emission because the majority of CO2 emissions now actually come from peatlands ecosystem because of fires, overdrainage and using the peatlands for other land uses.

What is this project trying to do with the peatlands?

That’s why this KFCP is focused on the ex- mega rice project which cleared a lot of the land. Now we have to help the land recover to prevent more fires by damming opened canals and planting trees.

So KFCP has taken real action in reducing carbon emission.

We all need to see peatlands as strategic resources especially in related with the mitigation and adaptation of climate change. So if we want help lessen the effects of climate change we have to stop the degradation of these peatlands. We need to do something real on the ground like restore the degraded peatlands, stop the deforestation on the peat swamps ecosystem, and STOP digging canals on the peatland swamp ecosystem. That’s real action.

KGI vocabulary help:

peatland = lahan gambut
underground fires = kebakaran didalam tanah
CO2 emitter = penyumbang gas CO2
overdrainage = pengurasan air secara berlebihan dari ekosistem gambut
damming opened canals = membendung kanal yang terbuka

Since June 2007, a group of dedicated people based at Institut Agama Islam Negeri (IAIN) Sunan Ampel in Surabaya have been working very hard with university lecturers, schools and teachers in several provinces of Indonesia. The LAPIS-PGMI team has been working to build the capacity of lecturers in the Islamic teacher education system in Indonesia. These lecturers have been learning how to deliver better training courses to student teachers through the development of syllabus, curriculum and teacher competencies for a 25 teacher education and general subjects including maths, science, social science, bahasa Indonesia, and citizenship. Their objective has been to improve the capacity of targeted education faculties to design and to deliver programs for the development of the Madrasah Ibtidaiyah.

Here are some of the facts and figures that will amaze you. During the program PGMI has trained 814 teachers, 228 school personnel, 1,150 support agency personnel and 495 community members. That’s a lot of people, right? But not only that, the average number of training days that each one of those people attended was 10 – that’s also a lot of training days.

There are seven universities in the LAPIS-PGMI Consortium which support the placement of student teachers and provide contextual settings for both lecturers and student teachers working with PGMI. These people in training with PGMI come from 81 partner madrasah in the provinces of South Sulawesi, Lombok - NTB and East Java.

What about those 2000 new AIBEP schools?

The latest update on the 2000 AIBEP schools?

• It is expected that all schools will be completed in the first half of 2010, creating about 330,000 new junior secondary school places for 13-15 year olds.
• All 2,000 AIBEP schools will be operational for the new school year 2010.

Isn’t this fantastic news! Australia and Indonesia Partnership (AIP) through AIBEP are also focusing on education quality and governance by supporting Indonesia’s implementation of its national education reform priorities. These include strategies to improve teacher and curriculum quality, school-based management and improving the equitable distribution of school funding. AIP also includes activities to ensure greater equity for girls and boys in accessing and participating in all aspects of the education system with a focus on poor, remote areas.

AIBEP Teacher Workshops with KGI
During the period March - April 2010, KGI is presenting specially designed KGI teacher workshops to English language teachers from AIBEP schools in Bali, Madura, and Sumba.

These workshops will cater for mainly young teachers from these brand new schools - schools with quite young students and schools that are built in new areas. KGI presented a workshop for AIBEP English language teachers in Lombok in July 2009 and the first of the 2010 workshops was held in Bali on March 2nd (see pic above). Twenty keen teachers attended for a full day of activities with KGI. They all left the workshop with a free KGI SMP Teacher Package PLUS a big box of materials for their school's English teachers to use in their busy classrooms.

KGI's Madura AIBEP workshop was held on March 11th and Sumba's workshop is planned for April.

Strike a Chord

Fifty students from Madrasah Tsanawiyah Nurul Huda in Tangerang visited the Strike A Chord Exhibition at Taman Mini on February 22. Taman Mini staff presented spectacular science experiments to the students. Kevin from KGI gave them a special Oz/Indo language quiz about Australia and Indonesia. The students were so clever. Excellent answers were given to all questions. Congratulations to all the students.

Madrasah Tsanawiyah Nurul Huda is just one of 2000 schools being built by the Australia Indonesian Basic Education Program (AIBEP). KGI worked together with the Cultural Affairs section at the Australian Embassy and AusAID to present the activities at Taman Mini.

Strike A Chord - The Science of Music has attracted tens of thousands of visitors each month since December 2009 at Indonesia’s National Science and Technology Centre (PP-IPTEK), Taman Mini. It has been sponsored by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in cooperation with the Australia International Cultural Council.

Australian Embassy Media Release - 20/1/10
Did you know that Australia and Indonesia really love football and did you also know that there is a lot of cooperation between the two countries.

The Australian Ambassador to Indonesia, Mr Bill Farmer, welcomes the recent signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Football Federation Australia (FFA) and the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI).The MoU provides a framework for cooperation between Australia and Indonesia in areas including coaching education, development of talented players and women’s football. In the MoU, Indonesia and Australia agreed to cooperate on their respective bids to host the Football World Cup. Did you know that Australia is a candidate to host the World Cup in either 2018 or 2022, and Indonesia is a candidate to host in 2022?

President of PSSI, Mr Nurdin Halid, commented, “We enjoy a close relationship with Australia and we are proud to be involved in this agreement which will bring us even closer together.”

ACICIS

Do you know about ACICIS program? It is the consortium for ‘In-Country’ Indonesian Studies program and is offered to Australian university students to study at Indonesian partner universities. The students also complete an internship at selected institutions based on their study discipline. In February 2010, Ayu from Kang Guru went to Jakarta to meet with some ACICIS participants at their work places in Jakarta. Kang Guru met with journalism students Clare Slattery (RRI Jakarta), Clare Gavin and Taiski (Metro TV) and Sarah Hunt (Reuters). They all shared some interesting stories with KGI about their experiences being placed in Jakarta and about the environment.

Clare Gavin and Taiski working at Metro TV
Here in Indonesia people seem to smoke everywhere. They smoke at work, they smoke on the bus, on their motorbikes and so on but you know in Australia you can’t do that. Smoking is strictly controlled. In Jakarta it’s hot and very busy but it’s also exciting because there aren’t so many rules as in Australia, I suppose.

School Community Partnership
SMA Yos Sudarso Sokaraja Banyumas and Aquinas College, Gold Coast, Australia

An exciting friendship is now in progress between Aquinas College, Gold Coast, Australia and SMA Yos Sudarso Sokaraja, Banyumas, Central Java, Indonesia. The relationship is designed to immerse both students and staff in the culture and life of their partners over the waters. Staff and students from both schools will exchange places in Terms 2 and 3 in 2010. This authentic immersion experience (pengalaman berbaur) will strengthen the shared passion for social justice issues while promoting the idea of community service. The students from Australia will stay in students’ homes around Banyumas Regency. During their stay at SMA Yos Sudarso, they will gain valuable learning experiences at school by joining some classes, practicing Javanese dancing and visiting traditional food industries nearby.

From Alex Karyadi, English Teacher at SMA Yos Sudarso.

Notes from KGI: This is an example that schools in Indonesia are making their own partnerships with Australian schools. You should try it. It is worth it!

The Joeys RRR Workshop Activity
BE CREATIVE WITH YOUR RUBBISH - REUSE, REDUCE and RECYCLE!

Kang Guru's Facebook Q 'n A

1. How can I become a friend of Kang Guru on FB?
When you want to join Kang Guru you MUST add a personal message in English.

2. Can we answer the magazine tasks through FB?
Yes, you can write the task answers on FB but you must include your address.

3. How often is there a KGI Quiz on FB?
Two to three times a week.

4. What kind of prizes can we get from the FB quizzes?
CDs, prize packs, jas hujan and badges from KGI.

5. If we win the quiz on FB can we join again?
Yes, after four weeks.

6. Can we use Bahasa Indonesia on the Kang Guru wall?
No, you have to use English.

7. Does KGI always respond to all the messages on FB? Yes but maybe not immediately.

8. Can we send an article through FB and ask Kang Guru to translate it?
Kang Guru can help you with some difficult vocabulary but we can not help you with the whole translation.

“What a strong nose ……”

In Australia smoking inside a building is prohibited. When I went to Melbourne last year with the BRIDGE participants we stayed at a new apartment building in the city. After a few days, Bonnie, who was in charge of the BRIDGE participants in Melbourne, came to the apartment. To her surprise when she walked along the corridor she smelled Indonesian kretek cigarettes.

The next day during tea break Bonnie announced to the participants that smoking is prohibited in hotels and apartments. If anyone is caught breaking this law they could be fined AUD$250 - that's about 2 juta rupiah! All the participants just stayed silent. Someone said, ”Wow, Mbak Bonnie you have got a strong nose”. Bonnie said that her husband is Indonesian and she has lived in Indonesia so she’s familiar with the smell of kretek cigarettes. After that day there were no more kretek smells along the corridor anymore.

Sniffing Dog

After passing through immigration in Sydney, all the BRIDGE participants went to the carousel to collect their luggage. While they were waiting for the luggage one of the participants was approached by an airport staff member with a dog. The dog went straight to Pak Ramli’s carry bag and jumped on it and put his head into the bag and sniffed, sniffed and sniffed. Pak Ramli was shocked. The dog could smell a piece of left-over bread inside Pak Ramli’s bag. The airport staff then asked Pak Ramli to throw the bread into a bin. Pak Ramli felt relieved that it was only left-over bread that the dog found. He thought it was a smart dog. Lucky he didn’t bring shrimp paste with him. If he had, the dog might have sniffed, barked and even sneezed a lot!

KGI Note: Dogs are used in both Indonesia and Australia to search for drugs at airports, and also note that for entry into Australia, certain foods are not allowed to be taken in.

'Shoots me fine'

This story happened few years ago when I was still in Malang. I had a very experienced friend who had lived abroad for years. Because of his background, I learnt a lot from him especially about my English. One day he gave me one English proverb which means setuju in Bahasa Indonesia. Soon I practised this with my American friend. One day he invited me for dinner by sms.

I was very happy at the time and replied to his sms by writing shoots me fine. My American friend understood what I meant and that I had accepted his invitation but he made a little joke to me and sent an sms saying 'Do you want me to shoot you?' I was shocked when reading the sms. He later told me that the right expression is suits me fine. Oh man ... I was a bit embarrassed. The dinner was great fun.

Cross-cultural dancing lessons in Oz - great!

In March, several young dancers from Bali went to Perth to participate in Perth Travel and Holiday Expo. While there they taught several Australian students from Tranby College how to dance. Isn't it terrific to see a blonde Australian girl, Katlin, performing Balinese dancing? In fact, the Indonesian Consulate in Perth was so impressed with Katlin that they want her to perform again soon for them. By the way, Katlin has never done this type of dancing before her lessons with Putri, Devi and Dextri. Well Done!

And a special hello to Pak Latif at SMA 5 Sby and Vicki Richardson from Tranby from all of us here at KGI and to BRIDGE

How does KGI write a radio program?

The process for making the KGI radio program is a long one. Did you know that KGI actually makes 6 programs at the same time. So, how do we make the program? What do you think are the steps (urutan pekerjaan) that KGI takes? Can you put these making a radio program steps into their correct order? If you can then you will know how KGI staff create the radio programs that you love to listen to.

Parlais vous Francais?

Kang Guru usually meets with Indonesian students who are learning English but in January 2010 a group of students from a French school in Bali visited the KGI office. The Grade 4 students were about to begin work on an MP3 recording project with their class teacher, Mr Olivier. They visited the KGI office and studio to get a taste of recording. The 16 students along with their English teacher, Lisa, had been working hard on their English before they came to KGI. In the KGI recording studio each student told a joke in English then two students interviewed Sue and then Lisa and three students discussed the environment. Extracts from their environment discussion can be heard on the KGI radio show. Some of their suggestions for protecting the environment included riding bicycles more instead of driving, not wasting water, using solar energy and recycling. Although most of the students are only 8 or 9 they can already speak two, three or even four languages. But on that day we all communicated in English – the true International language!

Listening & Reading Class Set - March '10

Teachers, be sure to order the latest edition of KGI's L&RCS - march 2010. KGI is producing a bumper issue - the BEST ever so be sure you get your copy. It will be the last edition and it will be fantastic. Remember, L&RCS are free for English language teachers in schools.

Contact Tjok by email asap - tningrat@ialf.edu

Do you love KGI magazines?

Are you a fan of the KGI magazines? Did you know that all of the KGI magazines since March 2009 are now available on the KGI website in pdf format. You can download the magazines, in black and white OR even color, from the KGI website. Maybe you just want certain pages. You DO NOT need to download them all. Check this out for yourself.