Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Homework1: Setting the Family Vision

After participating in the first session of a Webinar conducted by Rumah Inspirasi, a homeschooling family in Indonesia, I have learned that before embarking on the journey to homeschool, we as parents must decide together what is important for our family. Our vision and our mission as a family is the key in deciding if homeschooling is better for our children than enrolling them in a school. It may be that what we envision for our children can be easily achieved by formal schooling thus having no need to even consider homeschooling.


Rumah Inspirasi never claim that homeschooling is always better than school. It could be that school is also good for our child. It depends on what we intend to achieve through our method of education. This factor also becomes the basis for deciding what type of school is best for our child, whether:
  • Secular School (Sekolah Negeri)
  • Religious School (Muhammadiyah, MAN, etc.)
  • Religious Boarding School (Pondok Pesantren)
  • International Schools (Sekolah Internasional
  • International Islamic School (JISc)
  • Etc.
Or the type of homeschooling approach, including:
  • School at Home
  • UnSchooling
  • Etc.
Finally, after a discussion with my husband, we have decided that for our child to have good manners and good character, is what's important for our children now. We observe that modern day schooling has if not almost completely wiped out Character Building in their curriculum. What good is the richest businessman if he does not do charity, what good is the smartest scientist if he thinks he can clone humans, and what good is a world traveler if he forgets his parents when they reach old age? We are concerned about the outcome of our children's personality and morality when we do not have control over what they learn at school. Consequently, we are in the stage of considering homeschool as a method to facilitate ourselves in teaching morals to our children.

We believe that children under age 7 must not be pressured to learn academics, instead to just let them play and discover their natural surroundings. So for now, I'll see what I can start teaching my boys as they are only 3.5 and 2 years old. Meanwhile, I will do research on the most suitable homeschooling method for them once they reach school age, 6 or 7 years old ~ if we decide to home school them, inshaAllah.

As a small note, I've always said "I" due to the fact that most of the education would be burdened on me since I would be the one with my children 24/7. al-Hamd'lillah for the blessing that I currently do not have to work outside the home. However, their father, not being home most of the time to carry out his occupation, would not be left out in deciding what all is important for them to learn. With this, as parents, we too will be pushed to constantly seek knowledge, both in deen and dunya to be passed on to our children. Praise be to Allah, I see this as my lifetime challenge.
So now, whenever I search for information on homeschooling, I should keep in mind always about what's important for my family to be taught and trained to our children.

Let's start the research!
Bismillahi rahmani rahim

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Al-Azhar Preschool

An Islamic Indonesian Preschool, Al-Azhar Preschools are run under the Al-Azhar Islamic Boarding School Foundation in South Jakarta (Yayasan Pesantren Islam Al Azhar) established by Prof. Dr.Buya Hamka.

Al-Azhar Yogyakarta

Al-Azhar Preschool Curriculum

InshaAllah, this school is on the list of schools to consider until we come to Indonesia to see for ourselves.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Budi Mulia Preschool

An Islamic Indonesian Preschool, Budi Mulia surprisingly teaches the children to practice HAJJ as part of learning the 5 pillars of Islam. Very cute photo, take a look: Budi Mulia students practicing the Hajj.

However, I noticed in their profile statement, the reason behind their establishment is "to provide nursing as well as daycare (literally: a place to drop off children) besides teaching some classes"

"Pra-TK dan TK Terpadu Budi Mulia Dua didirikan berdasarkan kebutuhan sebagian masyarakat yang menginginkan adanya sekolah yang menawarkan pengasuhan sekaligus penitipan anak selain pelajaran kelas. Kebutuhan ini terutama muncul dari pasangan suami istri yang bekerja, dengan jam kerja mulai dari pagi hingga sore hari. Selain membutuhkan keamanan bagi putera-puterinya, mereka juga membutuhkan pengasuhan yang terarah selama mereka bekerja. Pengasuhan seperti itu tidak mungkin dapat diharapkan dari para pembantu rumah tangga. Kebanyakan pasangan muda juga tidak ingin memilih salah satu antara karier atau anak seandainya ada solusi yang memungkinkan untuk memilih kedua-duanya."

Somehow, I don't find the word 'penitipan' very comforting.

Source: TK Budi Mulia Dua, Seturan

Saturday, April 7, 2012

English-Medium Preschool

One of the main reasons I am considering to homeschool my children is that I want to maintain the English language skills they acquired from living abroad. When we return to Indonesia, everyone speaks Indonesian and all schools are conducted in Indonesian (unlike India and other countries implementing English Medium Education). The choice boils down to either I put them in a school conducted in English or I teach them myself in English.

There are 2 options for English-Medium pre-schools in my city:

1. OLIFANT-PreSchool run by Locals (Bi-Lingual)
2. YIS ~ Yogyakarta International School run by Foreigners (Full English)

A quick glance into their curriculum did not give me any assurance that I want to put my children in either of those schools. They are definitely secular schools, no Islamic education at all whatsoever.

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Wajah Sistem Pendidikan di Indonesia

Wajah Sistem Pendidikan di Indonesia
WajahPendidikan.com ~ Timothy Wibowo

Points to Ponder
1. Pendidikan di Indonesia sudah berubah
2. Sistem Pendidikan di Indonesia sudah tidak mendidik karakter

Monday, April 2, 2012

Sekolah Rumah atau Rumah Sekolah

Homeschooling: Sekolah Rumah atau Rumah Sekolah
Indosiar.com

Points to Ponder:
1. Homeschooling Classification
2. Homeschooling Weaknesses and Strengths
3. Requirements to Succeed

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Home School Kak Seto

HOME SCHOOLING Kak Seto
(Sekolah-Rumah, Pilihan untuk Kembangkan Potensi Anak)
The Independen's Weblog's: Jujur, Terbuka & Apa Adanya

Points to Ponder:
1. Kak Seto's Method of Homeschooling
2. Reasons for Homeschooling