Sri Suharyati is one of 30 Indonesian teachers who have come to Australia as part of BRIDGE (Building Relationships through Intercultural Dialogue and Growing Engagement).

Ms Suharyati arrived in Port Lincoln on March 16 and will be here until March 25, with a visit to Melbourne prior to Port Lincoln and time in Sydney before she leaves.

She said it was her first time in Australia and described the Australian and Indonesian schools as being "very different".

An English teacher in Indonesia, Ms Suharyati works at a school only two-years-old that has 15 teachers and 99 students.

Because of Federal Government restrictions, Australian teachers and students cannot visit Indonesia, but there will be links developed through the internet.

Port Lincoln Primary School Indonesian teacher John McKinnon said the students loved participating in the new project and showing Ms Suharyati around the school.

"The students have just been delighted because they get to hear the authentic pronunciation of the language," he said.

"They are facinated to learn about a different part of Indonesia and the culture of Kalimantan because all the parts of Indonensia have unique cultures."

Through the project Australia is providing $355 million to build 2000 schools and basic education services in Indonesia.

Ms Suharyati's school has received two computers already.

Australia-Indonesia Institute chairman Professor Tim Lindsey said the government relationship between the two countries was the best it had ever been, and they were emerging as diplomatic partners.

"Yet, at a people level, we still have real misunderstandings about each other," he said.

"Education is the key to directly tackling that gulf in understanding."

During the three year project, 180 teachers and 80 schools will be involved including up to ten Indonesian schools from the Australian Government's $355 million Basic Education Program, which is building 2000 schools and basic education services in Indonesia.