Holding Annual Meeting

Friday April 25th 2025

“To Shape Our School, and thereafter the School Shapes Us”

Alhamdulillah, again this year, Al Azhar 55 Islamic Primary School successfully held its annual meeting, marking the culmination of a year of growth, challenges, and achievements. The meeting served as a vital moment for reflection, evaluation, and strategic planning, centered around the compelling theme, “We Shape Our School, Thereatier the School Shapes Us.”

The principal, teachers, and supporting staff atiended the meeting, all of whom gathered with a shared purpose: to review the school’s performance over the past academic year and to collaboratively design an improved road map for the upcoming year.

This year, the meeting started with an annual report held on March 7, 2025 at the Tara Hotel. Atier that, the opening and motivation session was held along with the Early Years Program, Junior High School and Senior High School teachers and supporting officers of the Al Azhar Yogyakarta World Schools-Gamping International Campus on Friday, April 11, 2025 at the Teachers’ Lounge. Leaders from the Board of Management, i.e. the Head of Academic Affairs, Head of Secretarial Affairs, Head of Religious Affairs, Head of Human Resources and Law, and Head of Finance gave speeches to motivate teachers and staff as well as explain the foundation’s projection. Then, the plenary sessions was held at Hotel Nava Tawangmangu on Friday-Saturday April 25-26, 2025. In the sessions, each commission presented their programmes for the academic year 2025-2026.

Comprehensive presentation from each commission, evaluations of academic and extracurricular programs, and discussions on student character development and curriculum enhancement filled the discussion. Not only that, interactive workshops and breakout sessions took place for dynamic collaboration and fresh idea generation. Teachers shared best practices, voiced their aspirations for the school, and contributed innovative suggestions aimed at improving teaching quality, student engagement, and administration efficiency.

As the meeting concluded, a renewed sense of purpose filled the room. Teachers and the supporting staff left with a strengthened vision — to not only shape a school that nurtures excellence but to become individuals who are continuously molded by the very values they uphold within its walls.

(by Ms Riyantini)

Testimony

Prof. Dra. Hj. Suwarsih Madya, M.A., Ph.D.

Amidst the globalized situation which poses challenges of which one is a possible threat to identity, yet provides ample opportunities to excel for those who possess the prerequisites, we need to equip our children as the continuing generation with necessary competencies—affective, cognitive, psychomotor and interactive. In other words, we need to help them grow and develop into total persons and this can be achieved through the whole-child development approach which ensures the development of all potentials. In addition to this is the need for developing some competence which enables the children to communicate globally. All of this will ensure that the children will develop their citizenships both at the national and global levels. How can this ideal development be realized?

If you want to find out about how efforts are made to develop children’s whole potentials, you can come to SD Islam Al Azhar 55 Yogyakarta. Here you can see how the four-year old school has grown fast due to the stakeholders’ trust to send their children to study here. With only 54 children in the first year, this school now has 185 students. These students are educated to respect and preserve the social-cultural environment by learning the local language (Javanese, including the script) and arts (dance). Simultaneously, they certainly learn the national language (Bahasa Indonesia) and national content, which is unquestionable since it is compulsory, and English, which has now become a global lingua franca; thus, a prerequisite for successful global communication. More importantly, children in this school also learn to practise their religion consistently. So, in this school children’s identity is rooted in the local culture, with nationalism and global awareness being inherently developed together with reliogiosity.

Does the whole-child development approach at SD Islam Al Azhar still give room for children to excel? In my belief, when all their potentials are developed, children will have a greater chance to excel and I can see the truth in my belief in this primary school. In the last two years, the students have made great achievements in various competitions held at the local and national levels–gold medals in English, math and science competitions (national), silver and bronze medals in IT competitions (national), silver and bronze medals at colouring and swimming competitions (local) to mention some.

In conclusion, SD Islam Al Azhar has given evidence of the right efforts of true education to develop both intelligence and character.

Prof. DR. Budi S. Daryono, M.Agr. Sc.

Testimoni Sebagai Orang tua menyekolahkan anak Di Al-Azhar 55

Sudah menjadi kewajiban bagi orang tua untuk memberikan pendidikan yang terbaik bagi putra putrinya. Tantangan untuk mendidik anak di Era Global dan Digital pun semakin besar, kita tidak bisa lagi membendung segala perubahan yang begitu cepat terjadi, dan harus mempersiapkan anak-anak supaya bisa survive dan sholeh/sholehah tentunya. Saat ini dunia bagaikan kampung, dimana tidak ada batas-batas untuk melakukan transaksi kehidupan, untuk itu anak harus bisa berkomunikasi dengan bahasa universal sebagai modal utama. Disamping itu, pendidikah Ahlak dan Aqidah harus diberikan secara dini sebagai dasar anak dalam menghadapi gejolak gelombang kehidupan. Atas pertimbangan tersebutlah, kami selaku orang tua memilih untuk menyekolahkan putra kami tercinta Hikari di Sekolah Islam, yang menggunakan dua bahasa pengantar, yaitu Al-Azhar 55.

Prof. DR. Budi S.Daryono, M.Agr. Sc.