Australian Teachers Visit Their Indonesian Partner Schools

​Several Australian teachers have visited and joined classes at their partner schools in Bali, Indonesia. These include teachers from Alphington Primary, Aitken College and Billanook College in Victoria, as well as Pacific Pines in Queensland.

In early September 2015 Kristen Widdop from Alphington Primary visited their partner school SDN 15 Dangin Puri. Kristen brought photos and videos from the students at Alphington Primary School, which explained the  environmental activities at their school as well as introducing the BfB team at Alphington Primary! 

On this visit Kristen was able to give the year 6 class the first BfB bottles for students in Denpasar! ​This class, taught by Pak Komang Hindu Karmadi Dawan, is the first primary class to finish the BfB lessons in Denpasar.
 
The following day Kristen joined us on a visit to West Bali where we handed out bottles to students at four schools as well as visiting a turtle conservation program. 

​In late September 2015 Melissa O’Neil, also from Alphington Primary, visited in time to join a teacher workshop with teachers from 10 Denpasar schools. The teachers were reviewing and discussing improvements to the eight BfB lessons, in particular how the program had been adapted to suit Primary, Junior High and Senior High students.  At the workshop Melissa met other Indonesian Primary teachers. 

​The following day we visited her partner school SDN 15 Dangin Puri where she met with the Principal, students and teachers at the school. After the school visit we went to the local waste management site, where waste is sorted and compost is made.

Are you interested in visiting your partner school in Indonesia?
That’s great! Please contact our Australian Education Manager Melissa to discuss your visit. You will need to contact us before booking your tickets so that we can discuss your proposed dates with your partner school to make sure they don’t clash with exams, school holidays or other important dates. We ask for a minimum of one months notice so that we can coordinate with your partner school and plan which classes you will be able to join.  A member of our team will accompany you on the school visit to introduce you to the school and translate between Indonesian and English, this is also a necessary condition of our child protection policy.
 
We need time to plan your visit because a school visit is an opportunity for meaningful cross-cultural dialogue and building relationships between teachers and students in Australia and Indonesia. We will do our best to support your visit, but please understand that we are a small team in Indonesia, with one full time staff member and three volunteers.
 
You must organise your own travel insurance for your visit.

What to prepare before your visit?
Ensure you have more than 6 months left on your passport.
Ask your doctor whether your inoculations are up to date.
Organise travel insurance.
Let your bank know you are going to Indonesia.
Turn off data roaming on your mobile phone to prevent incurring charges.

Can BfB organise my travel in Bali to and from the school?
Yes, for groups of six or less teachers and students we can organise travel to and from the school on the day of your visit. It will likely be cheaper for you if on the day of your school visit we book a car and driver for 6 hours to pick you up, bring you to school, and drop you back at your accommodation. The driver will have clear instructions for how to get to the school. Depending on the schedule, after visiting the school we could visit a local place of interest. Please contact us to find out the price and details for this booking.

We can also recommend airport pick-up and drop-off and accommodation options close to our office for groups of teachers with less than six people. However, we do not have funding to cover these expenses. 
 
What to bring?
Your Bottle for Botol water bottle!
 
We recommend that you bring some photos or video of your school and your students, then you can share these with the Indonesian teachers and compare your experiences in Australia and Indonesia.
 
In the past teachers have brought books about their school, products with their school logo on them such as key rings, pictures or photo books about Australia.
 
Be respectful when choosing your clothes for a school visit. Appropriate clothing for visiting schools include a short-sleeve shirt and a skirt to your knees or long pants. Do not wear singlets, short shorts or skirts. Please wear enclosed shoes not thongs.
 
What to do when you return to Australia?
Please let us know whether you enjoyed your visit and what we can do to improve teacher visits for the future.
 
We are always on the look out for opportunities for the Indonesian teachers to visit their partner schools in Australia. If you know of a funding opportunity please share it with us.

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