Time for School

Today was our first school visit. We conducted a cultural and professional intercambio at the Escuela Brasil, a typical public school in the San Carlos neighborhood of Santo Domingo.We arrived just in time for the line up of students to enter the school. Each day, the kids line up by grade and raise the flag, singing the national hymn and also chanting a daily oration. They then enter the school grade by grade and get ready for class. In the DR, there are two "ciclos"--a morning group and an afternoon group. Students attend only one ciclo and attend school for roughly four hours. The next ciclo is a completely different group of kids. So we observed the morning group, grades preschool to 8th grade. Our teachers divided into pairs and observed everything from 6th grade language arts, to 5th grade math, to preschool animal lessons, to 6th grade sex education. We were amazed by how poised, well-behaved, and participatory the kids were. The Dominican teachers clearly have a close, family-like relationship to their students, colleagues, and principal, which makes for a supportive and welcoming school environment.

We were overcome by the generosity of our hosts. Ivelisse, the school principal, gave each of us a Dominican Republic t-shirt with our names and the name of the school written beautifully on each one. As a gesture of our appreciation, we made a small contribution to a refrigeration project that they are trying to get under way, so that all students have access to cold water during the day--something that is a real necessity when students are faced with hot classrooms and outdoor environments.

After our classroom observations, we met in small groups and then as a large group of 35 teachers to discuss our respective school systems and to ask honest questions about how best to support the whole child and create a learning environment that is engaging and motivating for all. We realized that we have much to learn from our Dominican hosts. The day concluded with a "coffee break." What we thought would be coffee and cookies was actually a huge lunch spread, complete with rice and beans, sweet plantains, chicken, and cake. It was an amazing gesture from a school that seemed to have boundless energy and a warmth of spirit that moved us all. Several teachers made personal connections with other educators that they hope to nurture in the coming months and years, so that students in both countries can benefit from an exchange of ideas and cultures, as their teachers did today.

Tomorrow, we leave Santo Domingo and head to Cambita Garabitos, a small village northwest of the capital, where we will participate in a second school visit. We look forward to drawing comparisons and filling in our picture of education in the DR.

Photos: 1) the school bell that rings between classes at Escuela Brasil, 2) children in the preschool class, 3) Ivelisse and Julia show off the gifts received from their respective partner school, 4) the group in front of the school