JP/P.J. Leo

The school holiday has ended. To keep up with educational activities and new classes, or simply to improve some extracurricular skills, pupils and their parents commonly eye additional classes besides the official classes at school.

Here are just a few of the extra courses available that are the most popular among Jakarta'€™s students and their parents:

The talker

English should be like the second language for most Indonesian students '€” particularly those who live in big cities like Jakarta '€” so speaking good English besides Indonesian may not be so special anymore. Parents hoping to expand their children'€™s horizons have begun to take an interest in other popular foreign languages, including Chinese (Mandarin is the most popular), which is considered very useful for those aspiring businesspeople.

But as K-Pop culture begins to take over Asia, including Indonesia, classes to learn Korean have also become increasingly popular. Among the most popular Korean language providers in Jakarta are the Korean Cultural Center, the Atma Jaya Catholic University'€™s language center and the University of Indonesia'€™s (UI) foreign language
center.

The scientist

More conservative parents want their children to dominate in science, whether it be math, biology, physics or chemistry, as they still consider majoring in science is more prestigious; primarily because it requires higher scores, making people believe that science students are smarter than social science students.

Mastering the sciences requires extra effort; thus, private institutes providing science classes are never short of students. Some institutes, like Primagama and Sony Sugema College, even provide special classes for senior-year high school students aspiring to enter prestigious universities.

For younger children, several trademark methods for learning math, such as Kumon and Sakamoto, are also available in Jakarta. The latest trend is E.nopi, a method for learning math and English from South Korea.

The craftsman

Creative pupils do not want to spend their student lives dealing with textbooks. Their capable hands might need something more colorful and challenging for their more right-sided brains. Art, craft and cooking classes for children are blooming in Jakarta, providing a wide range of options from bakery, scrap work to
bead work.

Some course providers offer open classes in English. Marvellous Little Maestro, Kutakatik Arts and Crafts, the Jakarta International Community Center, the Young Chefs Academy, Koki Kecilku, Dapur Anak and the Jakflo Creative Center are among the popular options for Jakarta'€™s hands-on
youngsters.

The athlete

Some children love their sports classes at school so much that they may not be enough to accommodate their passion.

Swimming, soccer and tennis classes may attract the interest of some, while others who aim to strengthen their bodies or equip themselves with self-defense techniques eye Taekwondo, Karate, Jiu Jitsu or Pencak Silat courses. And, of course, martial arts are not only about punching and kicking.

The Jakarta Martial Arts Academy and the Kemang Fight Gym are among the popular choices for students who want to master self-defense at a young age.

The dancer

The classical ballet might be here to stay but the more trendy has become more popular. Upbeat and energizing dance styles like hip-hop and K-Pop have managed to attract students at a young age, who want to move like their hallyu idols.

No wonder that dance academies specializing in hip hop and K-pop dance, including the Forever Dance Center and Gigi Art of Dance, are becoming more popular among Jakarta'€™s
students.

Several dance academies that were once best-known for their ballet classes, like the Steps Dance Academy, also now provide such classes. '€” JP

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