On January 28^th, ETA Alex Bue and his counterpart, Bu Dona, drove from Padang to Dharmasraya, a gold-rich regency of West Sumatra founded in 2003, to host a teaching workshop at a local public high school.

At SMAN UNGGUL, Alex and Bu Dona first met with headmasters from throughout the region to discuss AMINEF and the ETA program. Then they hosted a workshop for English teachers. Some 80 percent of the regency’s English teachers were represented, and it was humbling to work with a group so dedicated. Most of them found the demands of government curricula frustrating, but Bu Dona and Alex encouraged the teachers to integrate games into their lessons and to make class fun for themselves and their students. At the end, teachers were given resource folders that included descriptions of activities used by other ETAs.

Finally, Alex and Bu Dona taught several classes, each composed of students from different schools in Dharmasraya. Many students were excited, many were shy; together they played games, practiced speaking, asked questions, learned about each other, laughed, took pictures, promised to stay in touch. And then they left.

Alex Bue is currently teaching at SMAN 11 Padang, West Sumatra