Yacinta Kurniasih
Yacinta Kurniasih, Assistant Lecturer
Biography
Qualifications
Contact Details
Subjects Taught
Supervision of Research
Students
Research
Interests
Publications
Biography
Yacinta Kusdaryumi Kurniasih was born in a small village surrounded by Teak forest in Kedungjati, Central Java. In 1986, she went to Yogyakarta where she did her degree in English Literature, Education, and Language Teaching Methodology at the University of Yogyakarta (formerly known as IKIP Negeri). She has been teaching English and Indonesian as a foreign language in various formal and non-formal educational setting since then.
She obtained her B.A. (Hons) with a thesis which examined the correlation between the learner's perception and attitude toward the culture of the target language and their academic achievement in language learning.
Yacinta has a wide variety of hobbies ranging from dancing, drama, writing poetry and short stories to cooking, and self defence.
In 1994 she was invited to work as an Indonesian Guest Teacher in northern Tasmanian Schools and at the University of Tasmania for twelve months (she visited about 40 schools and lived with 18 different families! Great experience!). This experience enriched her knowledge of Australian schools and the education system. She then continued working as Indonesian teacher and dancer for several schools and the University while completing her M.ED. in Applied Linguistics, TESOL and LOTE at the University of Tasmania.
In February 1997 she joined the Monash Indonesian Program, teaching Indonesian/Javanese Language and studies. Currently Yacinta is working on her PhD focussing on Indonesian language and society.
Outside teaching and studying, Yacinta has an active role as a language/culture consultant for Indonesian textbook publishers, as an interpreter for Amnesty International, as a resource person for the Overseas Service Bureau, and as a language friend for the SBS Indonesian Language Program in Melbourne.
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Qualifications
Bachelor of Education (Hons), University of Yogyakarta
Master of.Education, University of Tasmanina
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Contact details
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Room: |
S508 Menzies Building (Building 11), Clayton Campus |
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Phone: |
(03) 9905 2235 (international: 61 3 9905 2235) |
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Email: |
yacinta.kurniasih@arts.monash.edu.au |
| Fax: | (03) 9905 5437 (international: 61 3 9905 5437) |
| Mailing Address: | Ms Yacinta
Kurniasih |
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Subjects Taught
Yacinta is the Speaking Class coordinator for Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced Indonesian, ISP and Beginning Javanese. She is also the subject coordinator for Advanced Indonesian. Yacinta believes in communicative approach where the students are the centre of the learning.
The ultimate goal of her speaking/conversation class is to give the students as many chance as possible to communicate to each other (and to have fun!) in the target language. The teaching material is also used and integrated in the lectures and other tutorials.
1. Beginning Indonesian
The students are taught to be able to talk about themselves ( introducing themselves and their family-friend-pet, traveling to Indonesia,bargaining, visiting interesting places in Indonesia)
2. Intermediate Indonesian
This expands on Beginning Indonesian. Students are taught to be able to talk about relationships, work and hobbies, food and multiculturalism, ideal partner, modern fiction, youth and arts.
3. Advanced Indonesian
The students develop their knowledge of issues in Indonesian society, culture and politics by translating, discussing and analysing the texts from the media print, watching the video relevant to the topic, and workshop writing relevant to the topic. (The fun part is at the end of the semester, when students work in groups to write a script and film it to produce a video project - it's fun! fun! fun! but it's learning as well.)
4. ISP Level
The students learn to use and analyse language for specific purposes. This subject involves various activities such as; translation, writing workshop, group work, and presentation. Concept, terminology, and discourse of journalism, environment, technology, law, and business are the focus of the learning.
5. Beginning Javanese
The students are taught to be able to talk about themselves and to others, using a simple grammar and the cultural aspects of the language. Lots of conversation in pairs, small groups, presentations, and writing exercises. It is good fun and quite easy, especially for those who have studied Indonesian.
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Supervision of Research Students
- 2002: Australia-Indonesia
relation; from student perception (Hons)
Joint with Anthropology Department - 2002: Australia and Indonesia on
Tampa issue (Hons)
Joint with Anthropology Department - 2002: "Rainbow Heart" a narrative of an NGO for disabled peoplein Central Java (Hons)
- 2001: The role of The Indonesian Press during separatist movement (Hons)
- 2001: Identity, activism and motherhood (Hons)
Joint with Centre for Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies - 2000: Cultural relativism and human right in Indonesia (hons)
- 2000: The way forward for the Indonesian Women's movement in the post Suharto era (Hons)
- 2000: Gender, Power, Development and the Keluarga Berencana Initiative (Hons)
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Research interests
- Indonesian Language and Society
- Gender and Education
- Javanese language and study
- Australia and Indonesian relation
- Cross cultural understanding
- Women studies
Current research
- The teaching of Javanese at schools in Yogyakarta
- The Spirituality of Modern Javanese Fiction
Awards and grants
- State Government Scholarship for Research Project (hons.) 1992 - 1993
- Macquarie and Forrester District Education for Indonesian Guest Teacher Project 1994 - 1995
- Post Graduate Scholarship, Faculty of Education, Tasmania University 1995 - 1996
- Research Initiative Grant, Faculty of Arts, Monash University 2000 - 2001
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Publications
Recent Publications
Robson, Stuart and Kurniasih, Yacinta: "Describing Character in Javanese; Three Grammatical Categories" August 2000 in Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land-en Volkenkunde, Royal Institute of Linguistics and Anthropology, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Articles, Interviews and Poetry
Interview with Abun Somawijaya S. Kar - Cross-cultural Music,Pelangi - an Educational Magazine about Indonesia, Vol. 14 No.2, 1998
Rinduku, a poem, Pelangi - an Educational Magazine about Indonesia, Vol. 14 No. 2, 1998
Interview with Aziz - Hope for the Youth in Indonesia, Pelangi- an Educational Magazine about Indonesia, Vol. 14 No. 4, 1998
Tabahlah! Indonesiaku, a poem, Pelangi - an educational Magazine about Indonesia, Vol. 14 No. 3,1998
Berbeda-beda tetapi sama lezatnya, a poem, Pelangi - an Educational Magazine about Indonesia, Vol.14 No. 3, 1998
Pelangi, a poem, Pelangi - an Educational Magazine about Indonesia, Vol.13 No. 2, 1997
Language Development Project, Scholastic Publishing, and Editorial Work
Coordinator for designing communicative language and study material for Advanced Indonesian , Monash University(1997 - present)
Advisory panel member of 'Pelangi' An Educational Magazine about Indonesia, USQ Press Toowoomba, Queensland
Project officer and resource teacher for 'Good" Language Assessment Task, AFMLTA Inc's 1996 project under the Australian Government's National Professional Development Program
Project officer and resource teacher for An Integrated Unit Technology and LOTE "Kite Making" in Indonesia, Published in October 1996 by Macquarie District Education Tasmania
Co-author of Beginning Indonesian material, Monash University(1997 - present)
Language and Culture Consultant for Indonesian Textbook Publisher, CIS. Heinemann