School mural more than artwork

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Wed, 04/09/2008 11:20 AM  |  City

WONDER WALL: BIS students pose in front of their underwater scene (JP/Adrian Thirkell)

Teaching English generally involves learning about Western society, where the language is mostly used. But five students from the British International School (BIS) decided to share their Korean background whilst teaching English.

As part of a recent school project, Soo Min Oh and her four friends, who are all senior students, decided to use the mural they painted at a local elementary school to teach English vocabulary.

The state elementary school SDN Pondok Pucung 1 in Bintaro, Tangerang, now has a "Learning Wall" depicting four Korean sceneries, based on Korea's four seasons, with English words next to objects painted.

"We first went there to set an English teaching class. But when we found a big dirty blank wall in the schoolyard where the children play, we thought it was better to leave behind something permanent, rather than just a temporary visit," Soo Min told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

The wall is 13 meters long and 4 meters high.

The group said painting colorful pictures on the wall was a better way to teach English than the classroom.

"Firstly, because we can't speak good Indonesian, which makes it a bit hard to explain English vocabulary to the children. Pictures explain the meaning of the English words better," said the student, who has been living Indonesia for seven years.

She said painting an English mural in the school's playground would allow children to learn the English words every time they played.

"We're hoping the colorful pictures will accompany the children during their school hours and also teach them new things. It should be fun learning for them," said Shin Ah Oh, another member of the group.

The idea to depict Korean culture, however, did not come immediately to the students. The group discussed for weeks what should be the mural's subject, choosing between school subjects like music and sport.

"But we finally decided to draw objects we know best and we wanted to share with the children, objects from our own culture," she said.

They divided the mural into four sections -- spring, summer, autumn and winter -- each depicting a Korean season.

"So our scarecrow and snowman are in Korean style, and the leaves and the trees as well. They all came from our childhood memories and experiences in Korea," said Ji Hyun Park.

The girls painted the mural themselves, spending around ten hours a day for four days during their holidays. They were amazed by the elementary school students' response, who took great interest in their project.

"It was like everyone in the school watched us while we were painting and some began to ask questions about the objects. Like once a girl asked me whether there is really snow in Korea," Ji Hyun said.

Several children later joined them painting the mural and the girls found themselves in a new experience.

"Before the project, I thought the children were living in a different world from mine. But as I got involved with the children, I found out that we share similarities, the same curiosities and interests," said Soo Min.

"It's has been a great experience. I got to sympathize and empathize with the children," said Shin Na.

The group planned to make a booklet containing the scenes on the wall, but with blank spaces to be filled in with the English words.

"We hope that by giving them pictures from another culture, which came from abroad, we would inspire thoughts and creativity in the children and curiosity about other parts of the world," said Soo Min. (dre)

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