High school in South Sumatra breaks new ground with radio station

By Channel NewsAsia’s Trixia Carungcong in Sumatra | Posted: 15 February 2007 2131 hrs

INDONESIA: One of the top high schools in Indonesia’s South Sumatra province has launched a radio station that is breaking new ground.

High school students in Sekayu take to the airwaves at the launch of their community radio station.

Called the Suara Smanda or Voice of Smanda, the station will air programmes to reach out to the student population and beyond.

In times of disasters, it will also help disseminate information to the public and coordinate emergency response.

The area experiences widespread flooding during severe monsoon seasons as well as annual forest fires.

While there are many community radio stations across Indonesia, this project is unique – it is the first radio station in Indonesia to be run by high school students and teachers.

Apart from its use in warning people during disasters, it will serve as a platform for informing the community about current affairs and educating them about social and development issues.

While many homes have television sets, radio is still the most popular medium in the province.

John Pederson, English Teaching Assistant, said: “It has the potential to bring in news from Jakarta, from Singapore from anywhere in the world with a very simple receiver. It can broadcast to the Sekayu community, providing an immediate benefit to the community and it also gives students an idea of what quality journalism sounds like.”

Students will get the latest news from the newly built internet café, which has 10 computers with broadband access.

The internet cafe and radio station were built by an NGO in Singapore, with help from local authorities and an Indonesian foundation.

They hope to improve the quality of education by creating a model school for the province.

Eddy Henry, Sampoerna Foundation’s Program and Alumni Affairs Director, said: “This is just a start. The education problem in Indonesia is such a big problem and the Ministry of Education cannot do the work itself and neither can Sampoerna Foundation. So we are trying to gather support firstly from Lien Aid and Lien Foundation from Singapore to help us work together to help the other areas of education.”

Organisers hope that in the long run, the students will feel empowered to make a difference in their community.

– CNA/so

There has never been a more important time for our youth to turn information into action. The way we respond to reports about issues like global warming and the food crisis will determine the fate of the world we live in – and how much longer we will even have that privileged. Students in Jakarta are taking the lead in changing the world – one song at a time – with the help of a Radio Ed activity called “Radio Idol.”

Over 150 students and teachers gathered at Green Radio in East Jakarta last week to hear students from SMA3 perform Radio Idol songs that they wrote themselves after listing to news stories from Asia Calling.

Watch for yourself. Check out Video of the performances!

Click here for more photos from the big day.

And Click here to download the Radio Ed teachers packets, which includes the Radio Idol lesson plan and other activities you can use to use real radio broadcasts to practice your English while learning about the latest headlines from around Asia.

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Rebecca Henschke is the editor of Asia Calling. She spoke at the opening ceremony of the launch event, encouraging students to use a critical mind when they listen to the news.

iAnez Yolanda steals the show with a solo performance of a song called Hold On, which she wrote herself about poor children suffering from homelessness and malnutrition.

Radio Ed all-stars perform an original piece inspired by a radio story from Asia Calling about corruption.

John says a few words to open the program

The group Green Life is Life sings wrote a song about deforestation in Bogor, a city just outside of Jakarta, which suffers from massive urban sprawl, lack of green space and clean air.

The Sunshine Group kicked things off with the song “Stand up for Love,” which was inspired by a radio story about malnutrition in the Philippines from milk formula