How Australian high school student found his love for Indonesian language

Australian Year 12 student Wes Fraser shared on how he came to love Indonesian culture and language.

Wes Fraser visited Yogyakarta, Indonesia, July 2025. Credit: Supplied/Wes Fraser

Wes Fraser, a student at Dromana Secondary College in Victoria, was one of the winners of last year's National Australia Indonesia Language Awards (NAILA) competition.

The Year 12 student, who aspires to be a doctor, said he chose to study Indonesian in seventh grade even though other languages were also offered at his school at the time.

"From there, I fell in love with Indonesian culture and continue to study Indonesian to this day," he said.

Wes Fraser, Senior Category winner of the NAILA 2024. Credit: Supplied/NAILA

As the first in his family to learn Indonesian, Wes said he believes learning a foreign language definitely has its benefits, especially Indonesian, given the geographical proximity of the two countries.

Wes also expressed his concern about the declining number of Indonesian language learners.

My concern is that not many people understand all the opportunities that learning Indonesian language has to offer.

Wes Fraser

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