As I told you before, after trying to register and take exams at several local private schools, I was finally accepted into a Catholic school in South Jakarta called SMP Seruni Don Bosco Pondok Indah.

Some of my teachers when I was in school at Seruni Don Bosco Pondok Indah Junior High School.

Photos of the classmates above me 1 year old. Uniform with blue batik top that is worn every Friday.

Becoming the attention of teachers and school friends

At that time, I became the attention of everyone in the class because I had not been able to master Indonesian, and their curiosity about me as a Hong Konger. At that time, there were not many Hong Kongers living in Indonesia.

The one they like to question me about the most is kung fu, Hong Kong movie stars, and the mafia in Hong Kong.

At that time, it was rare for foreigners to study there. As far as I remember, some of my classmates who were already in high school were from Korea. When I entered the second semester of 1st grade junior high school, there was also an Indonesian child who grew up in the United States, but just like me, I couldn't speak Indonesian.

Having difficulty grasping what the teacher is talking about

I remember when I first started school, I was completely unable to grasp what the teacher taught, let alone have to take notes of the lessons read by the teacher. So I often borrowed notebooks from classmates, and they were all very kind to me and willing to lend and explain to me.

Of course, for the first year my grades in all the lessons were very bad because I had a hard time grasping what the teacher was teaching in class. The dislike of school still carried over from Hong Kong and was also an obstacle for me in my first year of school in Indonesia.

First time attending the flag ceremony

When I was in elementary and junior high school in Hong Kong, Hong Kong was still under British occupation, and I never attended a flag ceremony or sang the national anthem.

When I first attended the flag ceremony in a school hall in Indonesia, I was very unfamiliar and wondered why spend the time doing this. After adapting to life in Indonesia, I began to realize the importance of flag ceremonies and national anthems for a country and its people.

Not moving up in the first year of junior high school

With a situation like this, of course, I was ranked last in the class in my first year. After the last semester exam in 1st grade junior high school, the teacher and principal called my mother to school and asked if she wanted me to move up or repeat 1st grade junior high school. My mother didn't want an incident like my grandmother forcing me to enter the best junior high school in Yuen Long, Hong Kong, to happen again, so my mother agreed that I repeat my 1st grade junior high school.

I am grateful that my mother made such a decision at that time, because my grades spiked after that and at the same time I was able to make friends with 2 generations at the school.

A passion for school and learning began to arise

After experiencing the school environment in Indonesia for approximately 1 year, a strong enthusiasm and desire to learn began to arise in me that I had never felt before. The main reason is that I don't feel pressured during my time studying at school. I also felt the attention of teachers, principals, and school friends who were kind and joking around. Outside of study hours, I can play and develop my creativity without being overwhelmed by classroom lessons.

Unlike what I used to feel in Hong Kong, the teachers were very serious and feared; the schoolmates also had an attitude and way of thinking starting to look like adults. The way of teaching was also very rigid at that time. In my observation, this is the reason why in Hong Kong many people are smart, but they are very calculating and lack creativity.

Got good grades in several subjects

In my second year at SMP Seruni Don Bosco Pondok Indah, which is a 1st grade junior high school for the second time, my grades began to soar as I told you above. For Indonesian, Religious, and PMP lessons, I often got a score of 9. The biggest spike was in Maths and Physics subjects, where I often got a score of 9 or 10 and always ranked first or second in class on every exam and exam of the semester.

When I was in Hong Kong, my ranking in Mathematics was always in last place. The main cause is that in Hong Kong, the answers that are assessed are not only the answers, but also the formulas used are the same as those taught in school or teacher books. In Indonesia, the assessment is based on the results of the answers. If the formula we use, according to the teacher, is reasonable, but it is different from the formula taught in school books, we are still given a good score.

In the next articles, I will tell you how I got along with my school friends in Indonesia and the interesting events I experienced.

Photo during a reunion with teachers who are still teaching at Seruni Don Bosco Pondok Indah Junior High School in 2015. From right, Mrs. Tutik (Biology), me, Mr. Totok (Mathematics and now the principal) and Mr. Faradin (Indonesian).