LearnServe Paraguay 2016, Day 11 - Learning about Learning

July 6, 2016 - Last Friday we went back to the Viñas Cue neighborhood where we have been working and went to the local elementary school. We worked with a teacher there named Carolina, and her lovely students. Earlier in the week we visited the kids to see what they were working on in school. Three students from our group – Maxine, Hannah, and Brea – talked to Carolina so they could get an idea of how they would set up the lesson plan on Friday. The school was small compared to the schools I’m used to seeing in Washington, D.C. It was really exciting seeing all the different looks on the children’s faces. Some of them looked at us strange. Some were really happy, and were open to having us come to their school.

The kids we spent most of our time with at the school were in third grade. We had different math lessons set up for them. It was a little difficult for me to work with the children since they only spoke Spanish, and my Spanish is not that good. So I did everything I could to try and understand them. I really enjoyed helping the students out.

Yesterday, we went to a high school called Colegio San Clemente. When we first got to the school I was a little surprised because the school was big. I thought it would be the same size as the other schools we have seen and been to. I was a little nervous when they split us into groups because of my Spanish skills, but as the students start giving us a tour, some of them started speaking English. I was shocked at how good their English was. I felt a lot more comfortable talking to them. I felt like was able to really connect with the kids because they were around my age and could speak English. The kids there were very welcoming and excited. A lot of them said it was their first time meeting people from the United States.

One of the first students that I had a really good conversation with was named Clarisa. She spoke English really well, and we had a lot in common. We were the same age. She really wants to travel the world. She likes writing. I also had a good conversation with a boy. Though I forgot his name, I was really impressed at how much he knew about the U.S. He also told a lot about how he felt about how the education system works in Paraguay. After talking to them, I felt for the children that really care about their education here because they do not get the opportunities we get with education. Many of the students said they if they wanted to go to college they had to get a job to be able to pay for all of their schooling. To make matters worse, they also said it was hard to get scholarships. The students also cannot pick classes like we can in the U.S. A lot of students really take education opportunities for granted and we shouldn’t because there are children out there that wished they had the same opportunities like us. I think it was good that we went to a school where it was kids around our age because we got to hear about how they felt about where they live. We also got to really connect with them.

Sorcha H-R., E L Haynes Public Charter School