On Wednesday, May 8th, 2024, Pusat Bahasa at the Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada welcomed a group of enthusiastic students from Pondok Modern Selamat 3 Batam who were keen on enhancing their English skills. The visitation took place in the Language Laboratory room 616, Soegondo Building, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada where students were introduced to a world of English language learning opportunities. As a result, this visitation opened a new horizon for the students of Pondok Modern Selamat 3 Batam to gain knowledge on how to learn English and what English tests available at university scope, which further sparks their learning interest.

Accompanied by their teachers, 15 students from Pondok Modern Selamat 3 Batam embarked on this educational journey, absorbing insights shared by a Pusat Bahasa staff member. They listened attentively to the detailed information about the importance of learning English, services offered at Pusat Bahasa, and units at Pusat Bahasa that can assist them in engaging with foreign languages.

During the interactive Q&A session, the students showed great interest in learning about the importance of English proficiency and the various services provided by Pusat Bahasa. Furthermore, the students eagerly participated by raising their hands and asking questions during the question and answer session. Some students questioned the difference between English tests such as AcEPT, TOEFL, and IELTS while others expressed their interest in taking English tests to assist them in enrolling at their dream universities. With detailed responses to their questions given by the speaker, the students were able to obtain valuable information and direction on which test they should take based on their specific goals.

All in all, this visitation not only familiarized the students of Pondok Modern Selamat 3 Batam with Pusat Bahasa but also equipped them with valuable insights into English language tests and foreign language learning, empowering them for their future endeavours.

Seven week of lectures have passed and the students have to take their mid-term exam. The university had determined the mid-term exam period on the 1st–26th of April 2024 where the lecturers have the authority to organize the exam. The Master of Linguistics students batch 2023 shared their experience taking this examination.

“I am taking seven classes and I have to submit three papers for this mid-term exam,” said Tata and Ilham, Master of Linguistics students who take Social Linguistics as their field of interest. From the Descriptive Linguistics group, Damai said that she had to submit several papers and present her research. Similar to other students, Wanda, who chose Translation as her field of interest, said that she had to submit papers reviewing some journals and discussing a particular topic, write a thesis proposal, and take a practical exam.

The students expressed that the preparation for the exam was challenging. Gathering ideas, topics, and literature to construct the papers was tough and laborious but still enjoyable. “I was clueless about the things that I had to write but having a fun discussion with my friends helped me a lot to find enlightenment in making my masterpieces,” Ilham declared proudly.

“It is my second mid-term examination and I got the experience (from the previous semester) that made me more prepared. But still, it was stressful since I was the one who was a deadliner” said Damai while giggling.

In composing the papers, the students have several strategies such as making their own deadline for collecting the data and writing every part of the papers. Despite all the intricacy, according to Tata and Damai, this mid-term exam period would be another experience since they will join a field trip for Anthropological Linguistics and Dialectology where they need to collect the data by interviewing and observing a particular group of people as part of the mid-term examination.

The mid-term exam is finally over. The students hope that they will get good marks. “It’s not only about the good marks but I hope I can comprehend all the material and the things that I read and learned well. It is more important than only having a good grade without knowing the essence and mastering the lesson,” Ilham ended.

KPG Publisher (Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia) together with Palmerah, Yuk!, and Faculty of Cultural Sciences (FIB) Universitas Gadjah Mada have successfully organized a cultural event entitled “Celebrating Indonesian-Chilean Poets’ Poetry: Discussion/Reading/Music Performance”. The event took place at the 7th floor Auditorium of Soegondo Building, Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM, Yogyakarta on Monday, May 27, 2024 from 3 to 5 pm.

The event was held to commemorate the launch of “Para la Vida: Antologi Puisi Indonesia-Chile”, which is the first poetry anthology that combines the works of Indonesian and Chilean poets. The anthology is the result of a residency program conducted by FX Rudy Gunawan and Afnan Malay in Chile in late 2022, supported by the Directorate General of Culture.

In addition to poetry readings from the anthology “Para la Vida”, the event also included a discussion with Rudy Gunawan, Ramayda Akmal, Annecy NM, hosted by Ni Made Purnamasari. Jubing Kristianto also presented music that responds to one of the poems that tells the story of Victor Jara and a composition about Chile. The event was open to the public and free of charge, so anyone interested could attend the event on the day of the event free of charge.

One of the staff of Japanese Language and Culture Study Program, Akbar Rizqi Dhea Habibi, was invited by Progressive School Bumi Shalawat Sidoarjo to fill the Cross Cultural Experience activity on May 6-7, 2024. The activity was attended by Japanese Class extracurricular students. This activity consisted of a sharing session by Akbar Rizqi, accompanied by an international student from Japan, Yoshikawa Ryoga, who is studying at INCULS FIB UGM. The topic raised in the activity was discussing school life and environment in Japan and Indonesia. In addition, it was followed by a workshop and practice of writing Japanese calligraphy (Shuuji). In the sharing session, Akbar Rizqi provided in-depth insights on how to get a scholarship, learn Japanese language and culture, and shared experiences about school life and environment in Japan. There was also a sharing session by Yoshikawa Ryoga about his experience as a foreign student in Indonesia.

In addition to the sharing session, the event also included a workshop and practice of writing Japanese calligraphy, known as Shuuji. In this session, the participants were taught the basic techniques of writing Japanese calligraphy, which not only enriched their knowledge of Japanese art and culture, but also practiced their fine motor skills. This activity not only provided academic and cultural insights, but also strengthened the bond between students through collaborative activities. The Cross Cultural Experience went smoothly and left a deep impression on all participants. The students were very enthusiastic listening to the experiences and tips shared by the speakers, which are expected to motivate them to pursue study abroad opportunities, especially in Japan.