The experience really made me evaluate the German heritage of my name, until recently the origin of my last name had been irrelevant. I think people from the U.S. often take their heritage for granted, identifying simply as people of the United States, a cultural phenomenon in a nation of immigrants. Possibly an origin of conflict between the Irish, English, German, Nordic, Polish, and other ethnicities in existence today that came from waves of immigration in the 1800s and early 1900s, and the new wave of immigration from Latin America. What I think is important to understand is that someone who has immigrated, or whose parents immigrated to the U.S. can be proud of their heritage whether it be from Nicaragua, England, or Mexico and still be entirely committed to the United States. With any transition there are rough edges, and unfortunately the negatives too often outshine the many benefits. Today our memories are conveniently short, I am sure that European immigrants brought their languages and their flags to the United States. It just took time to transition to a new country and a new language. A Mexican flag at an immigration protest is not Mexico taking over, but people trying to retain their identity as they assimilate into a new environment. To people here in Nicaragua heritage matters, it helps people understand what to think of you, where to store the information about you in their brains.
Outside of the MASINFA school.
My first day I was taken to each classroom by a MASINFA employee introduced to the teacher and I waved at all of the kids. Everywhere I walked kids stared, the students are generally high school aged so inside I identified more with them than I do the teachers and the older staff. An interesting feeling to say the least, caught in between being a teacher and the new kid (who is at least 6 inches taller than everyone else, and the only gringo). My first morning there were not any English classes so I sat outside of the Admin office and read La Prensa (Nicaragua’s best newspaper), and started to work on my ever present notebook of Spanish vocab words with my Spanish/English dictionary.
The main plaza of MASINFA.
However, I couldn’t be alone for more than 2 or 3 minutes without a student, or a group of students, coming over to me and introducing themselves and making conversation. Of course I was given a lot of attention because I was something new and exciting to happen on a Monday morning, but I was very pleasantly surprised to not have any kids giving me a hard time. There were the groups of guys who barely acknowledged my existence to keep the cool image, but not a single student young or old to this day has been rude to me (after 2.5 weeks).
So each English class I introduced myself to, my first activity was to exchange in a question and answer. Students practiced their question words, by trying to figure out my life story. In about 15 different classes, about 90% of the questions were the same. My favorite sports and the world cup were common as well as my taste in music, my personality, and questions about my family. In nearly every class, a girl worked up the courage to ask if I am married, and the follow up question am I single. My favorite part of every exchange was the questions about Nicaragua, “Do you like Nicaragua? What like Nicaraguan food? What is your favorite Nicaraguan meal? What cities have you visited in Nicaragua? Which one is your favorite?” Every time a question about Nicaragua was asked the whole class perked up, tightened their facial expressions and widened their eyes, anxiously awaiting my thoughts on their country. I was honest about my developing affection for Nicaragua after just one week, and the students loved it. I cannot effectively put into words the pride Nicaraguans feel for their country, and their excitement to show me all their favorite parts of their country and their culture. It is a unifying force for the people, and part of what makes the country such a welcoming place for me, the 6’3” gringo summer intern. “A la orden” is an extremely common Nicaraguan expression that is a beautiful description of the selflessness of people here and the hospitality for guests. It is a way of saying at your service.
In about 75% of the classes I was asked my opinion about the new immigration law in Arizona. A clear indication of how all of Latin America has its finger on the pulse of U.S. immigration policy. A considerable number of my students (probably 25%) have divided families, with aunts, uncles, a parent or grandparents living in the United States. My professors would teach them the word contradiction every time the Arizona question came up in conversation was asked in the context, “Isn’t it a contradiction that a nation of immigrants would create a law like the one in Arizona?” Each time the question was asked I was simultaneously embarrassed of my country and anxious to inform the students that there are people in the United States fighting against the xenophobia and racism of the reactionary sector of the right wing. In 2 or 3 of my classes we got into a more advanced discussion (mixed in Spanish and English). They asked what I would like to see. I said we need to prioritize human rights for the immigrants currently undocumented in my country, and develop a new system that tightens border security and provides legitimate legal avenues to citizenship or worker visas. When I said that it is important to many people in my country, myself included, that people work to learn English in order to become citizens or acquire worker visas, everyone nodded their heads like “well, yea of course.” The reactions shed some new light on the issue for me, because I was not sure how everyone would react to that, I said it with a little hesitancy. When there are opportunities to be documented, and participate in a legal exchange of work and commitment to the United States for citizenship or a worker visa, it is a mutually beneficial situation for all. I am not advocating an open door policy, but the only way to stop illegal immigration is by creating a realistic and legal path for people to immigrate.
MASINFA is a small private school (probably 150 students) for ages 12-20 every morning from 7:30 to 1:15 PM. Then in the afternoons and on weekends MASINFA becomes a technical school for people of all ages to take classes primarily to learn English, but also computation, and accounting. In total around 300-400 different students probably take classes in a typical week.
I work Mondays -> 1:15-5, Tuesdays -> 10-5, Wednesdays -> 10-5, Thursdays -> 10-7
And either Saturday from 8-5 or Sunday from 8-12.
The semesters here are from February to the end of June, a week break, and from July to December. The 2 month break is given from December to February. My day to day work is teaching alongside an English teacher in different classes throughout the day. I do not have my own official classes because I will only be here for such a short time. I find myself most effective being a supplement to a traditional grammatical lesson. A future post will better detail my work plan, but my goal is to create something that will be used at MASINFA long after I am gone. As of right now, I am working with all the teachers to create a master list of common expressions and idioms that are actually used in the US today (a lot of expressions taught in non-native speaking environments are outdated or awkward). Also, I am developing supplemental material for teachers to use in addition to the current textbook activities. I want the students to learn English by being excited about the material they do in class, by replacing generic stories, and boring articles with articles more relevant to their lives and interests. I will be working on the organizations website (translating), and hopefully starting an anti-litter campaign at MASINFA. When students finish a snack or a drink they throw their trash on the ground, this behavior is mirrored all over Nicaragua. Litter is an enormous problem across the country.
I have two distinctly different experiences teaching at MASINFA with students from the traditional school, and the technical students who come in the afternoons and on weekends. I spend each day with students of all ages, but mostly basic levels. On weekends there are more advanced conversational students who are on the level in English that I am in Spanish. However, during the week there are few students who can communicate beyond basic how are you type of questions. These students have on average taken 1 or 2 English classes in the past. Specialization based on ability is severely lacking. At MASINFA during the traditional morning classes there are no advanced courses for students whose ability in English clearly surpasses their peers in class. Also, the students who are really behind tend to remain quiet in class, and in a class of 40 or 50 it is nearly impossible to reach them. They do not have the confidence or ability to speak up because they are clearly behind. When the teacher tries to involve them it only makes the problem worse because they are unable to participate.
One of the largest classes at MASINFA.
On Tuesdays I have an English class from 10:45 to 12:15 with 53 students between the ages of 14 and 17. The students only have the class once a week. The only realistic goal for English classes at the primary, or secondary level is to provide basic skills that can be built upon if the student chooses to commit to English by taking classes in the evenings or weekends. Extra classes on weekends or in the evenings are at private schools which the student must be able to afford. Based on my experience in high school I was able to take 3 classes with 30 or less students and only test into Beginner II in college. However, for those students that wanted to enter college at a more advanced level, there were honor classes available, or they could have worked much harder than I did and retained a lot more. However, a classroom of 50 students does not provide any opportunity for an advanced student to work effectively. With 50 students in one room, even if every student was highly interested in the material, middle and high school aged children are incapable of functioning successfully. Not to mention the class at MASINFA is in the building near the road so every time a truck drives by the students in the back cannot hear a thing. The most unsettling part of this is that I am working at a private school. 50 students in the classroom is rare, usually it is between 15-30. However, I talked to the English teacher after class and he said public school classes are almost always larger than 50, sometimes with students standing during class. In classes of that size even the best of students cannot refuse the temptation to talk or not pay attention. With 5 or 6 conversations always going on classroom noise is to the point that the teacher cannot hear students trying to participate and the students cannot hear the teacher effectively.
Simple, but very important lesson learned: Reading on the World Bank website that Nicaragua has free public compulsory primary education, does not mean children are actually getting an opportunity to learn. Also, students even at public schools have to pay for their uniforms and textbooks.
Solving education problems cannot be done only with money, but funding is needed to break up such enormous classes. Even the most quality of teachers are crippled by such gargantuan class sizes. One aspect of the public system I was impressed by is that there are 2 school days at many public schools. Students who have to work during the day for their family are not robbed of the opportunity to attend classes, and school facilities double their usage, instead of having to build new schools. However, after a days work it is hard for me to imagine that students have the ability to work effectively in the classroom. So avoiding one evil, students missing class to work, creates another, that students are likely too exhausted to be productive. Education is certainly a difficult issue.
My first and most overwhelming reaction to my job is that even I am surprised at how much I am enjoying teaching. Even though it is much more difficult in the mornings with the larger classes and younger (and more distracted) students, there is an excitement in spreading knowledge. When I am working one on one with a student and he or she grasps a concept it is very rewarding. Also, being in front of a class and challenging myself to be concise and put concepts into as few words as possible is an entertaining challenge. The best part of working at MASINFA is undoubtedly interacting with, and helping the students in the afternoon and on weekends who are driven to succeed and learn English. Most of these students work 6 or 7 days a week and go to school in the evenings or once a week on the weekends. One of my greatest inhibitions before leaving for Nicaragua was that I was not going to be able to help very much in my time. I was nervous I would leave Nicaragua with an unforgettable experience, improved Spanish, and a more well-rounded world view, but that I wouldn’t have made a meaningful contribution to the lives of the people here.
After just 3 weeks in working at MASINFA, I already feel useful. My ability as a native speaker is a valuable resource for people in Nicaragua trying to learn English. No one here has the resources, teachers or students, to get an education in the U.S. or even from native speakers, so there is a lot of improvement to be made on pronunciation and word and phrase usage. These students are exceptionally aware of the opportunities that become available as they become more educated. It is inspiring to be around motivated students who want to work hard. The kind of stuff that keeps me going while I am dehydrated and my body is desperately trying to acquire nutrients from the meat, bread, and sugar that is my diet here in Nicaragua. No offense to all of my friends and family, but the thing I miss most and find myself daydreaming about multiple times a day is a fresh spinach salad garnished with a raw food vegan’s assortment of vegetables.
-Chris
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