UNS — Students of Universitas Sebelas Maret (UNS) Surakarta tested the ‘Bersiniar’ Program at the Davao Indonesian Foreign School (SILN), Philippines. This program is an alternative medium for learning Bahasa Indonesia, literature, culture, and literacy. The initiator of Bersiniar is Pradana Ricardo, a student of the Indonesian Language and Literature, Faculty of Cultural Studies (FIB) UNS.
This simulation and dissemination were conducted virtually on Monday (21/3/2022). This event was attended by 16 students; 3 (three) Junior High School students and 12 Senior High School (SMA) students. Pradana Ricardo, often known as Ricard, reveals that Bersiniar contains numerous materials. “The material includes the use of letters, how to write a word, the use of punctuation in Indonesian, and the use of calque elements in Indonesian. Additionally, we also included materials for the development of Indonesian literature and culture, as well as the principle of politeness in speaking Bahasa Indonesia,” explained Ricard, Tuesday (22/3/2022).
Through this media, Ricard hopes that Bersiniar can become one of the media platforms that can be accessed easily and flexibly by secondary school students in Indonesia and abroad through Spotify and Tiktok. The objective is to facilitate students in using a good and correct Bahasa Indonesia in everyday life. Currently, Bersiniar is accessible via Instagram @bersiniar, Tiktok @bersiniar, and Spotify ‘Bersin(i)ar’.
Students and teachers warmly welcomed the simulation and dissemination at SILN Davao, Philippines. Jeki Tahindaki Arbaan, a 10th-grade student, admitted that he was thrilled with the activity because he got a lot of new knowledge about Bahasa Indonesia. “I am excited because my knowledge of Bahasa Indonesia improved, such as the use of diphthong letters, combined consonant letters, and terms in Indonesian,” Jeki said.
A similar opinion was expressed by Raja Fatwa Ad-daffa Siregar, a student currently sitting in the 8th grade of Junior High School. “There are many words that are less familiar to me. Bersiniar let me know more about the words,” he said.
Meanwhile, one of the teachers at SILN, A. Ramlan, said that SILN Davao students have lived in the Philippines for a long time, so they do not understand Bahasa Indonesia. “That is our challenge every day in teaching a correct and proper Indonesian. The presence of Bersiniar helped us in the process of teaching Bahasa Indonesia to students,” said Ramlan. Humas UNS
Reporter: Bayu Aji Prasetya
Editor: Dwi Hastuti
