Cruise Indonesia

About the Author

Background
Learning Objectives
Related Standards
Tools and Materials
Teaching Strategy
Methods of Presentation
Other Resources
Assessment Recommendations
Extensions and Adaptations

Subject: Social Studies

Grade Level: 7-12

Background

Indonesia is the world's fourth most populous country after China, India, and the United States. It is a nation made up of over 17,000 islands stretching 3,200 miles and is home to unique wildlife and many different cultures. More than half of the Indonesian people live on Java, where Jakarta, Indonesia's capital and largest city, is located. Although the islands are home to more than 100 ethnic groups, most Indonesians are of mixed Malay origins and practice Islam.

Learning Objectives

In this lesson students will work together to create a cruise package to Indonesia. The objective is for students to discover the diversity among the islands that make up Indonesia. Students will collaborate on a travel brochure and coordinate the activities for fictitious travelers. Students will be in charge of organizing daily activities for travelers on their virtual cruise.

Related Standards List

National Geography Standards from the McRel Standards Database at http://www.mcrel.org/standards-benchmarks/

• Knows the location of places, geographic features, and patterns of the environment.
• Understands the nature, distribution and migration of human populations on Earth's surface.
• Understands the nature and complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics.
• Understands the patterns of human settlement and their causes.
• Understands the concept of regions.
• Understands that culture and experience influence people's perceptions of places and regions.

Tools and Materials

• A reproducible map of Indonesia (one can be found at http://www.tourismindonesia.com/).
• A copy of the program "Wild Indonesia," a television and a VCR.
• Computers with Internet access.
• Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia CD-ROM or other encyclopedia CD-ROM.

Time Needed

It is recommended that 3-4 hours of class time be scheduled to complete the entire lesson.

Teaching Strategy

1. Ask students to identify Indonesia on a map. Make sure to make students aware that Indonesia is not just located in one place, but that it is made up of thousands of islands. Ask students what they know about Indonesia. If they have trouble coming up with ideas, ask them what types of animals and agriculture might live and grow in such a tropical, southern location.

2. Once they have some familiarity with Indonesia, divide the class into groups of 3-5 students. Each group will be assigned an island of Indonesia. Once each group has their island, have them identify it on a map. The islands featured in Wild Indonesia are Sumatra, Java, New Guinea, Bali, and Sulawesi. Student groups will be responsible for researching their assigned island.

3. The following clips from Wild Indonesia will be helpful for students to watch. After viewing, ask students to write down what they think is unique about each island.
   • Where Worlds Collide, 5:00 to 20:00 - Sumatra
   • Where Worlds Collide, 22:00 to 28:00 - Sumatra Coral Reefs
   • Where Worlds Collide, 29:00 to 36:00 - Bali
   • Where Worlds Collide, 38:00 to 42:00 - Bali Coast, sea trenches
   • Where Worlds Collide, 44:00 to 52:00 - New Guinea
   • Mystery of Sulawesi - Pick out a segment you would like your students to focus on.
   
   

4. Once students have watched the clips and generally discussed Indonesia, tell students that they are going to be creating a two-day cruise package excursion to and island of Indonesia that should be rich in Indonesian culture. Students should be sure to explore cities as well as the ocean surrounding their island. For example, students could create a snorkeling excursion that takes place in the coral reef of Sumatra.

5. Each student in the group should choose one or more of the following areas to research. Students might begin with one of the Web sites mentioned below.
   • General Information (population, major cities, landscape) for the travelers.
   • Cultural events to watch or participate in.
   • Native food to feed the travelers (breakfast, lunch, and supper).
   • Weather to prepare for.
   • Sporting activities and events to watch or participate in.
   • Wildlife native to the island.
   
   

6. When students are addressing cultural events or activities, have students answer the following questions as well.
   • What is the event/activity?
   • Will travelers participate in this event/activity or just observe?
   • What will be learned and/or experienced by this event/activity?
   • How is this event/activity unique to Indonesia?
   • How is this event/activity a part of Indonesian culture?
   
   

7. When students have completed their research, have them each write a one page paper discussing what they have discovered about their island. After they've written their papers, have them come together to complete activity sheet 1. After they have filled out activity sheet 1, they will be ready to create the itinerary for their island excursion using activity sheet 2. In addition, students should be sure to map out the journey they will take travelers on using a map of their island.

1. Depending on the availability of computers to your class, you have several different options for each group presenting its two-day travel package. If you have HyperStudio or PowerPoint, have your students create a slide show of each activity or event. Students can easily add pictures and sounds to their slide show from the Internet or the Encarta or Virtual Globe CD-ROMs. If you do not have access to such programs, have students create posters of their event to present in front of the class for each activity. Students can create their own drawings or cut out pictures from magazines.

2. Have each group present their two-day cruise excursion to the rest of the class. During the presentations, each group should have a map of their island and chart the path of each day's activities on it.

3. Invite other teachers or administrators to the presentation.

Other Resources
Use the resources below to find information about Indonesia.

Online Resources:

The Library of Congress Country Studies: Indonesia
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/idtoc.html

Tourism Indonesia
http://www.tourismindonesia.com

Indonesia Government Site
http://www.bps.go.id

PBS Living Edens: Borneo
http://www.pbs.org/edens/borneo/

Offline Resources:
Microsoft Encarta Deluxe Encyclopedia CD-ROM
Microsoft Virtual Globe CD-ROM
Any encyclopedia set

Assessment Recommendations

Assessment for this assignment should be based upon whether the students worked cooperatively and efficiently in a group and participated in the group presentation. Students should thoroughly research their activity and be able to provide additional information about this area of research.

Extensions & Adaptations

1. Have students take their work one step further and publish it on the Internet. Students can create an Indonesian theme to their web site graphics and create a virtual travel agency featuring a cruise to Indonesia. As a part of the virtual travel agency, have students calculate the cost of a cruise to Indonesia. Students can use the Internet to find out how much airplane tickets would be for a round trip to Indonesia. They can compare cruise packages to other distant lands for pricing the actual cruise.

2. In order for students to get a better flavor of Indonesian culture, they can use e-mail through www.epals.com to communicate with their Indonesian peers. Have students get more in depth information about their island, the culture, landscape and foods from students who actually live there. This will give students a more personal look at Indonesia.

Chris Hungerford is a technology teacher at EXCEL Alternative High School in Marshalltown, Iowa. Chris was named the Midwest Regional Teacher of the Year by Technology and Learning Magazine for 1998. Chris created a class called Virtual City that uses SimCity 2000 to help his students learn all about cities. Students in the class have real mayors in the United States as e-mail partners. In his spare time, Chris enjoys serving as a reserve deputy for his local sheriff's office.