Olifant School

Dual Curriculum Approach

Olifant School is positioned as an innovative national school that incorporates internationally recognized qualifications. The school is known to offer the Cambridge IGCSE curriculum, which is internationally recognized as a benchmark of secondary school achievement and a pathway to further international qualifications.

This dual positioning — as both an Indonesian national school and an IGCSE provider — gives Olifant students access to a broader range of university options, both domestically and internationally.

International Partnership

The 2015 collaboration with Warrnambool College in Australia provided an early signal of the school's international academic ambitions. While the details of this collaboration are not fully elaborated in available sources, such partnerships typically involve curriculum alignment, teacher development, and student exchange opportunities.

Student-to-Teacher Ratios

With approximately 281 elementary students supported by 19 teachers, the elementary student-to-teacher ratio is approximately 14.8:1. The senior high school has a lower ratio of approximately 3.7:1 (96 students, 26 teachers), though this figure may reflect the broader range of subjects and specialist staff at the senior level rather than class-size arrangements.

These ratios suggest relatively manageable class sizes, particularly at the senior level, which can support more individualized learning and academic mentorship.

Language of Instruction

As an Indonesian national school with English-language ambitions, Olifant primarily uses Bahasa Indonesia as its medium of instruction, with English playing an increasingly important role — particularly in IGCSE subjects. This bilingual environment prepares students to operate across Indonesian and international academic contexts.

Founding and Early Years

Olifant School was established in 2007 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, by a group of families and education professionals united by a shared concern for educational quality. The founders were driven by a desire to create a learning environment that would go beyond rote learning, nurturing children in a holistic and forward-thinking manner.

The name 'Olifant' reflects the school's ambition — resilient, purposeful, and community-driven. From its earliest days, the school offered programs for very young children, including a preschool accepting children from as young as one year of age, alongside primary education and daycare services.

Expansion and International Partnership

A significant milestone came in 2015 when Olifant School signed a long-term collaboration agreement with Warrnambool College in Australia. This partnership was conceived as preparation for a major educational expansion. True to this vision, in July 2016, Olifant officially launched its junior high school (SMP) and senior high school (SMA) divisions, completing its transition from an early-years-focused institution to a full, multi-stage school.

This expansion reflected a broader ambition: to keep students within the Olifant community through their entire educational journey, from toddlerhood through to university entrance.

Today

As of the most recent data, Olifant School serves approximately 377 students across its divisions — around 281 in the elementary school and 96 in the senior high school — with a teaching staff of approximately 45. The school is located in Sleman, a regency within the Yogyakarta Special Region, and has established itself as one of central Java's leading innovative national educational institutions.

The school's IGCSE curriculum offering signals its aspiration to provide internationally recognized qualifications alongside the Indonesian national curriculum framework.

Mission: Nurturing the Whole Child

Olifant School's mission is clearly articulated on its official website: "To nurture children holistically on both a local and global level with the purpose of raising a generation that is competent, confident, tolerant, assertive, creative, communicative, respectful of others, and with an open and clear global perspective."

This mission statement reveals a dual commitment — to both local Indonesian identity and global citizenship. Rather than choosing between national roots and international outlook, Olifant explicitly seeks to cultivate both in every student.

Vision: The Sociopreneur Pioneer

The school's ten-year vision articulates an aspiration to develop "a young generation with pioneer and global-oriented mindsets, carrying sociopreneurial characters and a strong self-identity grounded in Pancasila."

The concept of the 'sociopreneur' — an entrepreneur motivated by social impact — is central to Olifant's educational DNA. Rather than producing graduates who simply enter the workforce, Olifant aims to develop young people who will innovate for the benefit of their communities and society at large.

The explicit grounding in Pancasila — Indonesia's foundational philosophical framework of five principles including belief in God, humanitarianism, unity, democracy, and social justice — reflects the school's commitment to Indonesian cultural values as the foundation for its global outlook.

Core Value: Unity in Diversity

Olifant's core value of "Bersatu dalam perbedaan" (Unity in diversity) echoes the Indonesian national motto Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in diversity). This is not merely a philosophical aspiration but a practical commitment to welcoming students from diverse backgrounds and nurturing mutual respect.

Educational Approach

The school describes itself as an 'innovative' national educational system, suggesting a pedagogical approach that moves beyond traditional Indonesian schooling norms. While the specific methodologies are not fully detailed in available sources, the emphasis on competence, confidence, creativity, and communication suggests a student-centered, project-oriented approach.

Community at the Core

From its very founding, Olifant School has been a community endeavor. The school was established in 2007 not by a single corporate or government entity, but by families and education professionals who shared a common concern for educational quality in Yogyakarta. This collaborative founding spirit continues to shape the school's culture.

The Yogyakarta Context

Yogyakarta — often called the cultural heart of Java — is a city renowned for its universities, arts, and intellectual life. As a school rooted in this environment, Olifant draws on a rich cultural heritage while simultaneously preparing its students for a globalized future. The Sleman regency location places the school within easy reach of Yogyakarta's urban amenities while maintaining a community-oriented atmosphere.

Unity in Diversity

The school's core value of Bersatu dalam perbedaan (Unity in diversity) is particularly significant in the Indonesian context, where diversity — of ethnicity, religion, language, and culture — is a lived reality. Olifant's embrace of this principle signals a school culture that actively celebrates difference rather than merely tolerating it.

Family Involvement

The founding story — in which families played an equal role to education professionals — suggests that parental involvement has been valued from the outset. While specific details about parent governance structures are not available in current sources, this founding ethos typically translates into a school culture where family-school relationships are close and collaborative.

Growing Community

With approximately 377 students across its divisions and a staff of 45, Olifant remains a relatively intimate community by international school standards. This scale allows for personal relationships between teachers, students, and families — a quality that the school's holistic philosophy actively promotes.