Offered By	Faculty of Asian Studies

The Indonesian language is the official language of a nation of over 200 million people, with the world's largest Muslim population. It is the vehicle for a vibrant and quickly changing culture expressed through the mass media, schools and government, as well as being the common medium of everyday formal communication across the many local cultures of the country.

Indonesian 1A and 1B are designed to give beginning students competence in the basic skills of self-expression, comprehension and reading. Indonesian 2A and 2B aim to develop a deeper understanding of the language. Emphasis is placed on the development of the skills gained in 1A and 1B plus a more explicit understanding of grammar and an awareness of the cultural and documentary character of the materials studied. From 2006, Indonesian 1B, 2A and 2B are available in-country in Indonesia in January and June-July.

Students enrolled in the Bachelor of Asian Studies (Indonesian) will build on the language skills attained in Indonesian 2A and 2B by taking a year of study in Indonesia in courses arranged between the Southeast Asia Centre and approved Indonesian universities.

The alternative is to proceed to Indonesian 3A and 3B at the ANU. These courses develop spoken skills and increasing attention is given to English-Indonesian and Indonesian-English translation.

The literary and intellectual traditions of Indonesia and Malaysia are explored in courses such as: Reading the Indonesian Media, Reading Traditional Malay and Reading Modern Malay.

The Centre also offers two very attractive courses for later year students. Introduction to Asian Performing Arts is being offered jointly with the School of Music. It involves a practical performance component (learning to play the gamelan) and examines the role of performance in Asian societies. For advanced students of Indonesian and Thai, the course Practical Assignment in Southeast Asia requires students to be placed for six weeks with a voluntary organisation in Indonesia or Thailand. Assessment is based on an extended assignment which describes and analyses the work of the organisation. Placement may be determined specific international security concerns, or international health crises. It may not be possible for students to undertake these programs in any given year. No alternative programs are offered.

Prerequisites

Beginners and students with existing knowledge of Indonesian or Malay
First-year Indonesian is taught on the assumption that students have no previous knowledge of the language. Those who have studied it before, or whose previous education has been conducted largely in Indonesian or Malay, must sit a placement test to determine their level of entry.

Javanese
With more than sixty million speakers, Javanese is the language of the largest ethnic group in Indonesia and has produced a highly developed literary tradition since the tenth century. It has such a strong influence on the development of Indonesian vocabulary that some knowledge of Javanese is often necessary to read articles in contemporary Indonesian newspapers and periodicals. Several introductory courses in Javanese are offered for those with this interest.

Tetum
Tetum is the national language of East Timor and the lingua-franca understood by most people in the country. The Faculty's two Tetum courses offer (in Tetum 1A) a practical introduction to the spoken language and (in Tetum 1B) continuation to advanced spoken Tetum. There are no pre-requisites for Tetum 1A and students should have no substantial prior knowledge of Tetum as they commence. The two courses are usually supported by the non-language course 'Future of East Timor'.

Malay
The Malay language, spoken today with minor variations in the Malay Peninsula, Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei, Singapore and Southern Thailand, is the basis of modern Indonesian. Contemporary Malay (Malay as used in the press, media and literature) can be studied in the course Reading Modern Malay. Pre-modern Malay literature and its intellectual traditions can be studied in the course Reading Traditional Malay.

Burmese
Burmese is the national language of Myanmar (Burma). The Faculty's Burmese 1A course offers a practical introduction to spoken Burmese and to the Burmese script. There are no prerequisites and students should have no substantial prior knowledge of Burmese as they commence.

Burmese within the Asian Language Major
Whilst Burmese is not related to Bahasa Indonesian, Burmese instruction is supported by the Southeast Asia Centre. Burmese may be included in the study sequence for most of the Asian languages on offer in the Faculty, but students must satisfy the minimum requirements for their designated Asian language major and should seek advice from the Sub Dean or the relevant language convenor.

Requirements

The Asian Language Major (Indonesian) may comprise courses from the Summary of Courses page and must include Indonesian 3B.

 

 

The information published on the Study at ANU 2009 website applies to the 2009 academic year only. All information provided on this website replaces the information contained in the Study at ANU 2008 website.