What if students from various countries live and work directly with rural communities in Indonesia? The experience for living in a village was given by Indonesian Language for Foreign Speakers (BIPA) University of Muhammadiyah Malang (UMM) to 17 BIPA students in the context of cultural orientation.
In title "Indonesian Homestay", the 17 foreign students were invited to stay for a week with Indonesian family in Desa Sidomulyo, Kota Batu. This program collaborated with Karya Bunda Community (KBC). Additionally, this is the second agenda which was held by BIPA UMM. Those 17 foreign students spread into nine host-family.
"The students will live with their host-family and the surrounding community. The most of host-family works as a vegetable, fruit and flower farmers. Moreover, they will learn from the real life of Indonesian families, "said Dr. Arif Budi Wurianto, M.Sc., Head of UMM BIPA.
The 17 foreign students were involved in a series of activities, those are planting oranges, diba'an, painting batik, doing gymnastics, learning in waste banks, visiting orange fields, and also teaching at SMP Raden Fatah. Finishing this activity, those foreign students were expected to get to know, gain experience and knowledge about the culture and social life from Indonesian.
Not only cultural and social, but this program is also an opportunity for BIPA students to practice their skills in Indonesian. Before going to this agenda, all these students have followed Indonesian Language learning around five months at BIPA UMM.
"Surely it will be a very valuable and different experience for them. They try to be a farmer, join all the activities of locals people. Every day they will note a daily of activities. By the end of this program, the students intended to write a text about living in Indonesia, "said Arif.
This program was part of the Darmasiswa Scholarship provided by the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia for foreigners whose countries have diplomatic relations with the Indonesian.
