ETA Christina Stoll and her student Qonita Anis Zhofira from class X10 SMAN 2 Palangkaraya recently attended the annual national WORDS Competition in Jakarta, hosted by AMINEF this month. Qonita was selected from a group of students at SMAN 2 Palangkaraya who competed in a local competition for the chance to go to the national competition in February. Qonita won the local competition, making her the representative for her school at the national competition.

This year’s theme was community. Qonita’s storytelling and storybook centered around her experience in middle school, in which she had to choose between two communities she loved: English club and Scouts (Pramuka). Her story, “2 Commitments,” was performed on stage at @america in Jakarta and is immortalized in storybook form, personally illustrated by Qonita.

This national competition was an incredible opportunity for students from all over Indonesia to gather and speak English. Many of them got to experience Indonesia’s biggest city for the first time. ETAs had a wonderful time introducing their students to the MRT, visiting the national monument MONAS, as well as the National Museum in Jakarta. Students bonded over their love of English and storytelling, and ETAs got to see the fruit of their students’ work on stage at @america. Overall, this experience was a true highlight of the grant period.

Christina Stoll is currently teaching at SMAN 2 Palangkaraya, Kalimantan Tengah.