GRADUATION

By Agatha (11 Social)

Graduation is the receiving of an academic degree or diploma. As the matter of fact, we graduate at least 4 times throughout our school years: at the end of Primary School, Middle School,  High School, and University. Now some people even organise a graduation ceremony for kindergarten students.

In Indonesia there are 6 grades in primary school, and 3 grades each for middle and high school. Then many students go to university which can take 3 or 4 years to graduate from depending on what major they take.

Usually, schools here will hold graduation ceremonies after the students receive their National Exam results in grades 6, 9 and 12. For each ceremony the graduates have to wear a graduation gown and cap, which the school provides for them. So, the female students usually wear Kebayas underneath their gowns, and male students usually wear Batik shirts because it is a formal event, and also we wear those to show that Indonesia has a different tradition to other countries. Even our parents who attend will dress up formally, and of course look very proud of us.

Each graduation ceremony starts with a prayer. At our school there are speeches from the chairmain of our foundation and the principal. After that everyone sings ‘Indonesia Raya’, followed by ‘Hymn Guru’. Then they call out each student’s name one by one and present the students with tubes, which contain their graduation certificates, and maybe a flower or a doll also. At least these are things that Harapan Bangsa usually give us when we graduate. During the graduation ceremony the school will also announce the students with the best academic scores in different subjects including English and Mandarin. Then we ac knowledge the best teachers at the school too. Before everyone goes home, there is usually a photo booth for us to take photos to make our graduation day even more memorable.

Apart from the graduation ceremony, the students usually organise another event where they will get together again. It can be a farewell party, like prom night, where they invite all the teachers that have taught them over the years, or maybe they collect money to take a trip together somewhere. Usually High School students will plan a trip somewhere together for a week or less, because after High School, many will go to different universities and some even will go abroad. They will be busier and no longer have as much time to have fun together again.

For me, graduation is like a phase of life. It can be the best time in our lives although it indicates a farewell as well as a new start. It’s a farewell because we have to say goodbye to our friends and teachers, and it’s a new start because we will have to adapt again to a new environments, a new styles of learning, and also new people.

Everyone usually expects us to become better and more mature people as we progress through school. Usually after Middle School, people will start asking about our futures. They ask what universities we are going to attend, and what majors we are going to take. But the future is not a thing we can predict. It is something we can create, but creating the future we want isn’t an easy task. That’s why, after graduating, especially from middle school, most students focus on finding their passions. They think a lot about what they are going to do after graduating for work and for their lives in general. Some of us may not have discovered our talents, but those who have practise their skills and expand their abilities, and we all try new things that may help us to improve.

So although graduation is a reward that we all look forward to after our hard work and efforts, as we it is also the really heartbreaking moment when we know we won’t see each other again so easily like we did before.