Kang GURU
Travels to Mungkid, March 2008
Kevin traveled to Mungkid, near Magelang in Central Java for a teacher workshop, a student meeting and to join together with Keyko, a Kang Guru Champion. Read Keyko's report/email to Kang Guru and Reaz Khan's too.
This trip began at midday on Monday the 10th of March. The first part of the journey was flying by Garuda Airlines to Yogyakarta. The flight was okay until nearing Yogyakarta when the weather made flying a little bit bumpy. Did you know that inside those clouds can be quite rough as the plane flies through them. Often pilots try to miss them and they go around them BUT this day I think there were too many of them. The plane went right through the middle of them. Bumpy ride. However it wasn’t as bumpy or rough as the landing. The runway at Yogyakarta is one of the roughest in Indonesia. Landing can be quite scary as the plane bumps along the rough runway at high speed. It was a year ago that a Garuda plane landed at Yogyakarta, too fast they say, and I can just imagine how frightening that landing must of been even before the plane crashed right off the end of the runway.
Pak Sutikno, Bowo and Antok met me at the airport and took me to Magelang. On the way we stopped for lunch at a very nice restaurant. It was terrific until the thunder and rain became so loud and wild that we had to move from the garden into the restaurant itself. I think I heard one of the loudest claps of thunder that day that I have EVER heard in my life. The rain poured down all the way to Magelang. It was wild weather for sure.
As we drove through Mungkid we stopped to check out the venue for the teacher workshop. It had been organized by a very hard-working committee of 15 or so people and in conjunction with the local education office. The venue looked terrific and everything was being well set up for the workshop the next day. They are expecting 120 teachers to attend. |
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After the venue I was dropped at the Puri Asrih Hotel in Magelang. It was a very nice, clean and modern hotel. However several things were a little strange. For one thing there was a real jet passenger aeroplane parked just 100m from the reception desk AND to walk around this hotel you needed to be a mountain goat. The hotel is built on the side of hill – steep but beautiful. The re is a river at the bottom of the hill and my room was right down near the river. To get to Hotel Reception meant a 20 minute walk up hill, and I mean UP hill. Luckily there are small motorized carts that are provided for guests. I used them a lot.
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At 3.30pm on the same day about 70 high school students joined the workshop venue for their meeting with Kang Guru. They were quiet to begin with but by 5pm they were all chatting and asking questions. It is always fun to meet keen and active students and hopefully they will write to Kang Guru soon to register for the Kang Guru magazine and to ask for some of the many free Kang Guru materials.
I also want to thank Keyko, Kang Guru Champion from Semarang for joining in with the workshop. Keyko, and her student friend from Bangladesh, Mr Reaz Khan, accompanied me to Mungkid for the workshop and student meeting. Reaz Khan has been studying in Yogykarta for18 months and has also been helping Keyko with promoting Kang Guru to schools and teachers in both the Semarang and Yogykarta area.
Read Keyko's Report
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Reaz Khan and Keyko together with
students after the meeting
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Pak Sutikno, Bowo and Antok drove me back to Yogyakarta after the student meeting. They even found a good warung serving nasi rawon for me. Delicious!
Keyko's Report
- emailed to Kang Guru 13/3/2008
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I want to share my report and also my first experienced attended the Teacher Workshop with KGRE In Mungkid, Magelang, Central Java on last Tuesday, March 11' 08.
It was New and GREAT experience for me, because I found many interesting methode to teach English, more specific to teach listening. I also met with CAPTAIN and we had some FUN there...
I brought my friend from Bangladesh, Reaz Khan. He asked me to join because he is so interesting how to teach english and he want to improve his english too. He said to captain that he want to make the english club free for all of the Bangladeshi people, such as what Kang Guru did for us Indonesian people so far. He said KGRE really help Indonesian people and more general people who love english including him to improve their english. So both of us Reaz and I learned many things from that activity. I found something that really important to my teaching method was Pre_listening and Brain storming. I even never think about it before. But after I followed what Mr. Kevin said to all the teachers then I got some new Idea to teach my students. And I'm ready to teach now!!!
I LOVE the captain when he explain about KGRE classroom and methode to the teachers, He was so energic and FUN. I also learn how he is so patience and SEMANGAT!!! Thanks captain for sharing your idea's and knowledge to us here. It was TERRIFIC!!!...
And my favourite moment was when I met with the students, they were so shy at the first time but captain made them more relax then they really active and brave enough to answer and askes the questions to Kevin, Reaz and me. And after the show many teachers and students asked about my contact number and they want to invite me to visit their school. And that would be great if I can visit all of them.
Last but not least I want to say thank you so much for KGRE who held this kind of interesting activity and sharing knowledge to the teachers. I'm sure if they really use this methode then they would be able to develop their teaching methode to their students. Of course I also will practise and use this methode for my students.... I will make sure they will never feel bore with me hehehehe....
Ok I have to go now.
Keyko
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Well I am Reaz Khan from Bangladesh. I got an Indonesian scholarship on august 2006, filed of Photography. So I have been here in Indonesia for about 1 year 6 months.I am studying photography in P4TK Seni dan Budaya Jogjakarta.
On 2006 my program was 6 months studying and 6 months teaching. I was an English Teacher at SMK 1 Jepara-Central Java. During my teaching period, one day I was invited at Corner English Club Jepara. There was also the members of English Society Club Semarang. On that meeting I met with Keyko. She is one of the KGRE Champions in Central Java. She took my interviews for her English radio program in RRI Pro 2 FM Semarang. Then she told me about KGRE. Since then I know about KGRE very well, and having voluntary works with Keyko from KGRE around Central Java. So me and my others foreign students visited many schools and promoting English and sharing about our cultures. It's really nice for us to explore many cities, improve our English, and meet with many people's. I am a fans of KGRE magazine, especially IDIOMS INGGRIS and DIFFERENT PONDS DIFFERENT FISH.
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TEACHER WORKSHOP
I joined the teachers workshop in Mungkid, Magelang on 11 March' 2008. I went there with Keyko. Many English Teachers surrounding Magelang participate on that workshop. Luckily I got opportunity to be there. The Workshop was leaded by Mr. Kevin Dalton (The Project Manager of KGRE.). He had a very well background as a successful English Teacher in Australia. So his workshop was very LIVE and PRACTICAL. Then all the participants enjoyed his teaching method very much. His teaching systems can make the students interested and attentive in English. It was also really helpful for me, especially listening. However I hadn't any idea before about Pre-Listening and Brain Storming. Anyway in the future if I get any opportunity to be an English teacher, I will be able to follow his method, and i believe if any Indonesian English teachers can follow his teaching method obviously they can improve students English and their English as well.
In the morning during the breakfast I was so nervous to meet with Mr. Kevin. Even though it was my second time to meet with him. I thought he must be very moody person but through his workshop I found him as a funny, energetic, sincerer, interesting man in creative way. He has nice gravity, during the workshop I never been bored. We were like SHIPS THAT PASS IN THE NIGHT (Idioms from KGRE). Any way time was so fast, in the second session when Kevin told me to say something to the students. I finished that quickly from my side because I wanted to hear more from Kevin. At last I would like to thanks Mr. Kevin and KGRE. It was great experience for me. I wish I can bring KGRE program to Bangladesh to help our people's English. Thanks Kevin and LONG LIVE KGRE.
REAZ KHAN
Student of Darmasiswa Regular Program
Bangladesh
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