IALF Jakarta gains NEAS Accreditation

IALF Jakarta is the first English language centre outside Australia to be accredited by NEAS – the National English Language Teaching Accreditation Scheme of Australia – and is the first accredited centre under NEAS International.

On 29 September this year Terry Austin, Chair of the NEAS Board of Directors, presented a Certificate of Accreditation to Geoffrey Crewes, CEO, IALF.

The IALF – Indonesia Australia Language Foundation – was established by the governments of Indonesia and Australia in 1989. Its mission is to contribute to the development of Indonesia through the provision of high quality language training services. The IALF has language training centres in Jakarta, Surabaya and Bali. The IALF offers a range of language training courses in English and Indonesian as well as teacher training and consultancy services.

NEAS accreditation requires centres to meet standards of compliance in areas such as management and administration, premises, staff, student services, programs, student assessment, educational resources and promotion. The accreditation process includes a desk audit of documentation as well as a site visit by NEAS.

NEAS is looking to expand its accreditation services overseas as part of providing quality assurance in the international education environment. NEAS has had enquiries from language centres and governments from Korea, Chile, Malaysia and Mexico.

Information about NEAS can be found on their website – www.neasaustralia.com

IALF Surabaya providing training for Aceh

As a result of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Aceh in 2004 a consortium of 13 British universities established a scholarship scheme for academics from the two tertiary institutions in Aceh – Syiah Kuala University and Ar-Raniry State Islamic Institute (IAIN). There are 52 scholarships available over a four-year period. IALF Surabaya is working with the Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency for Aceh (BRR) and The British Council, Indonesia, on the provision of pre-departure English language training and testing for the successful candidates. The first group of awardees attended a seven-week intensive course at IALF Surabaya in mid 2006 taught by Patrick Strei. Most of the candidates achieved the required IELTS scores and are now enrolled on post-graduate programs in the UK. The IALF conducted two IELTS testing sessions in Aceh in August as part of the selection process for the next group of awardees. As many of the candidates were unfamiliar with the IELTS they attended a two-day IELTS Orientation workshop before taking the test. Some of those selected are currently attending an intensive course at IALF Surabaya being taught by Nigel Dixon, Noel Chivers and Philip Rees and will sit for the IELTS test on 16 December. Those who require a longer training program are undertaking an intensive course being taught by Patrick Strei at Syiah Kuala University before proceeding to IALF Surabaya. In total, three groups will begin intensive pre-departure training at IALF Surabaya in January 2007.

The success of this assistance program has been the result of the cooperation among several organisations – Syiah Kuala and IAIN Aceh, BRR, The British Embassy and The British Council in Indonesia and the International Office of the University of Leeds which is coordinating the scholarship scheme.

Indonesia Australia Language Foundation IALF Language Centres in Indonesia:
Jakarta Sentra Mulia Building, Ground Floor Jl Rasuna Said Kav X-6 No. 8 Jakarta 12940 Tel. (62-21) 521-3350 Fax (62-21) 521-3349 ialfjkt@ialf.edu	Surabaya Jalan Sumatera No. 49 Surabaya 60281 East Java Tel. (62-31) 502-6400 Fax (62-31) 502-6408 ialfsby@ialf.edu	Bali Jalan Raya Sesetan 190 Denpasar Bali 80223 Tel. (62-361) 225-243 Fax (62-361) 263-509 ialfbali@ialf.edu