As a member of the literacy
team, I have had the wonderful opportunity of teaching and sharing my knowledge
in and out of the classroom in four of the schools in Dangriga. From these teaching experiences I have taken
away not only a new outlook on education in Belize, but also a clearer vision
of where I want to be as an educator next year.
While in Dangriga I worked with a small group of students from Christ
the King. I tutored these students 3-4
days a week and developed strong relationships with them. In other schools I worked in more of a
"whole-class" setting, teaching different aspects of literacy,
including creative writing.
As both a student and a
teacher in Belize, I had to be very flexible in my planning and very open to
change, as any educator must be. Prior
to coming to Belize, the literacy team came together and shared lesson plans
and learning experiences each member created to implement abroad. Flexibility was necessary when it came to
teachers requesting that we do something more along the lines of the assessment
they give students each year. In the
states we are told not to "teach to the test" and I'm sure the Belize
Department of Education encourages to avoid this too, even though it is evident
in the classrooms.
While living in Dangriga I
have observed different aspects of the culture that I didn't expect. Even though I was told about the trash in the
streets, yards, and ditches, I was absolutely shocked when I saw it with my own
eyes. Throughout our excursion to Caye
Caulker and San Ignacio, I was able to see other examples of culture. Honestly, the two excursion destinations were
much cleaner than Dangriga and the community members there seem to care way
more about their home/s appearance and the way people perceive them. I hate to say it, but Dangriga frustrates me
when reflecting on all aspects of the town that I became familiar with. I just
wish the people here were more appreciative of what they DO have so that those
things would be taken care of and would last.
I am not talking about material things like clothes-even if we take care
of those, they sometimes fall apart. I
am referencing things like homes, vehicles, buildings, streets, etc.
In reflecting on my
expectations for this experience, I was expecting to feel more appreciated for
what we came here to do. I can honestly
say that only one administrator that we partnered with thanked us for our
efforts. That's one out of four schools
that we were involved in that said thank you and expressed
appreciation.... Approval was something
else I was looking for in the classroom and didn't see much of that
either. I felt as though even after
approaching teachers and administrators that I was partnered with, and
explaining to each of them that I would be approaching each teaching experience
with the hope to not only teach the students and engage them, as well as work
with the teachers to assure that I would uncover all that they needed to while
I was teaching, I still didn't feel too welcome in their classrooms. I tried to make it clear that i was NOT there
to "step on any toes" or to tell them that they're "doing it
wrong"...I shared with them that this is a learning experience for me,
just as much as it was an opportunity for me to experience a new culture and
new views on education and teaching strategies.
I don't know what more I could have done to stress to them that I wasn't
there to "correct" them, but I felt that even though I was proactive
in considering how they might feel about me being there, i don't feel that I
was received in a very positive way.
All in all, I have grown in
my personal beliefs and values as an educator, assisting my goal of remaining a
lifelong learner. It's weird, but I've
grown maturity-wise in Belize as well. I
attribute this to this being my first time abroad without my parents, being a
project leader for the literacy tutoring, and to being one of the oldest
members of the literacy team. I
graduated a week prior to leaving for Belize, allowing me to be one of two students
who already had a degree dealing with education. I am thankful for this experience because I
was not only able to be a mother-like figure to some team members, but I was
also able to fill the role of a leader for others that needed that guidance. This has been a fantastic experience and i
have gained so much from it. I will
definitely be able to use refer to these experiences to better the environment
in my classroom in the states, as well as throughout my life. Belize has truly opened my eyes to how
fortunate we are at home and has allowed me to gain a new appreciation for the
work ethic and ways-of-life in the states, more specifically, in Arkansas. Thank you, Belize!
Margaret Esch - College of
Education and Health Graduate, Spring 2013
