Andrews Year
in Chile with Project Trust - Blog report 27/06/2016
An extremely overdue blog
report as the end draws ever closer……
The end of my adventure in this amazing and beautiful country
is fast approaching and the weeks have certainly been flying by as I´ve been
very busy both within and out with school. Here is a short update of what I´ve
been up to!
Things have been going well in school, largely down to
the new English teacher who arrived back in March. As well as being fluent in
English, her teaching style and willingness to get us more involved, have
greatly improved the classes, both for the students and Kyle and I.
Dressing up
as Dobby the Elf with the teachers for World Book Week, where we also read
short English stories to some classes.
I am always looking to be as involved as possible in
classes, and since March we have been taking half of the younger classes to
work in the library, which is great as it provides a much better learning
environment given the huge class sizes (40 roughly). We have also been busy
preparing and delivering classroom activities, marking tests for the entire
school and teaching the kindergarten kids their first English which is great!
There are only three English teachers in the school, and with the other two ill,
the other week was particularly busy as I was left to hold the fort and deliver
all the classes.
Keen to develop the generally poor English oral
communication skills in the school, we are now running 3 new afterschool
workshops for up to 35 kids. These are centered on an active approach, using
fun games and activities as a means of improving such skills, among others,
whilst also reinforcing content from the classroom. They have definitely been
an enjoyable and worthwhile undertaking so far, especially as a large number of
kids who previously struggled and lacked confidence in English, are improving
significantly on both fronts!! I also accompanied the 8th grade on
their science trip to an eerie display of ancient human bodies!
In addition to the community class we are running on
Thursday evenings, I have been teaching two young brothers one on one, and with
classes suited just to them and their needs for school, we have already made
some good progress!
One
of the great things about this year is the spontaneous opportunities that
arise, and one of the best so far is the new volunteer project that I have been
attending once or twice a week since April, having met one of the volunteers
while out running. The project is a community school, located in one of the
poorest and most dangerous communities around, and run by people from the local
church. A wee while ago, I took part in
a special event for the first anniversary of the Project, which offers support
to the kids with their school work on Tuesday´s and Thursdays and a bible class
on Saturday´s with games, songs, activities and plenty of street football! So
far I have helped with history and maths, as well as English, which is a
welcome and positive change. The project is an ever growing success and it’s
great to see the positive impact the volunteers are having on the kids, especially
in a spiritual and moral sense, given the numerous social problems in the
community. I have made some great new friends through the project and it´s also
great to see the way in which the school has become an integrated part of the
community. The gay Gordons I did with the kids on Saturday was a great fun and memorable experience, as it was likely to have been the first time the kids have been exposed to a different culture to their own. They were all very pleased with their tartan bracelets, particularly when we told them about the tradition behind them!
1.Singing and dancing for anniversary celebrations.
2. Teaching animals to Micheal and Christopher.
3. The schools motto : “Happiness. Nothing is impossible for God ”
4. Liangi, who founded the school in his parents old house.
5. New friends.
Through
the friends I have made here, I have attended church meetings on two Saturdays,
which are a lively insight into another part of Chilean culture, and have also
been playing 6 a side football on Sunday mornings. On the topic of sport I
completed the Santiago Half Marathon in April which was a great experience; and
I have set my sights on next year’s London Marathon!
Looking very Scottish at the finish line! With all the friends from the project and church, saying goodbye to our
French friend Priscilla!!
Chile
is an extremely young country, very much connected to and proud of its brief
history, much of which centers on the naval battles of the war of the Pacific
in the late 19th century. A number of events have particularly
caught my eye this year; firstly the Independence Day celebrations I
experienced back in September and more recently the national day of ´21 de
Mayo´ as part of ´el mes del mar´ (May is the month of the sea). Initially I
found it extremely ironic that this day commemorates Chiles defeat in the Battle
of Iquique in 1890 under Arturo Prat. However, as I later learned, it is celebrated
as the key turning point towards the overall Chilean victory, which was pivotal
in securing vast areas of modern day Northern Chile. As the country´s major
port, Valparaiso played host to the main marches and band displays from the
navy and military, a poignant spectacle in front of the monument to Prat. We
only managed to watch the school displays the week before, but it was great to
see this important event being marked throughout the generations in Chile.
However, it was fortunate we were out of town
celebrating the mum’s birthday on the 21st, as Valparaiso was
gripped by violent protests that were sparked by President Bachelets speech
nearby in the Congress. Demonstrations, often violent, are unfortunately a
common occurrence in Chile, and this wave aimed to attack the Government for
their slow and minimal delivery of social reform, and an alleged corruption scandal
involving the President´s son.
The
ugly protests and subsequent attacks on public property very much overshadowed
the displays. Although there are always violent protests in Valpo on this date,
there has never been a recorded death, as was the case this year when masked
protesters torched this pharmacy, just a 10 minute walk from our home,
tragically killing the guard inside! The whole city felt on edge that morning,
with most streets blocked off by riot squads and driving through a roadblock,
and past the burning pharmacy and police water cannons and gas vans, was a tense,
yet memorable experience.
Living
in Chile for an extended period of time has given me an in depth insight into
life out here, and whilst there are clear signs of ongoing economic development
and social change, any advancements are generally slow in coming, meaning a lot
remains to be done. The great inequality in the distribution of Chile’s wealth,
partly owed to an extremely low minimum wage and allegedly widespread
corruption among the countries politicians, leaves many really struggling, and generally unable to access good quality healthcare and education services; both of which are extremely expensive. In some communities such as the one I visit weekly, it also creates a social
climate where problems such as drugs and violence prevail.
Another social matter I am really interested in is the
student reform movement, an extremely hot topic at the moment, due to the
thousands of students who turn out each week to protest. The main demands for
change center on the poor quality of the higher education system, which is not
only very expensive (and allegedly corrupt) but also provides poor student
conditions and lacks proper student involvement in reform making. Whilst I would
never condone any violence and damage to public property (as is the case among a small minority of students) I can sympathise
with the students in their quest to achieve a system that meets student needs,
because access to a decent education is a fundamental right rather than a
business of the rich.
Although a fundamental issue worldwide, I find it very unfair
that such inequality exists in relation to the access and quality of
fundamental services such as healthcare and education!
Easter
was an interesting and fun experience, split between religious celebrations in
the school and lots of family time with all the cousins. As a predominantly
Roman Catholic country, Good Friday was a religious holiday in Chile, meaning
the entire school celebrated the last supper on Thursday. It was great to be
involved in the teachers ceremony, where I did a short reading, and much to
everyone´s great amusement; mistakenly answered (I blame the Priests accent)
that Jesus the Messiah had already returned.
I have met so many lovely and amazing people this year
and since the last post, I have attended some really fun celebrations, such as
the Grandpa´s birthday. Family is of central importance in Chilean society and
along with some 60 family members, I enjoyed a great day, full of good company drinking
and dancing!
We have also been a lot more involved with the
teachers in the school, and recently celebrated Barbara´s birthday with them,
as well as playing in a teacher versus ex-pupils 5 a side football match! On
Saturday night we celebrated the English teacher’s birthday, which was combined
with her ´pagado de piso´( a strange tradition whereby new teachers in Chile
throw their own welcome party). The views from the 27th floor over
the port were stunning, and everyone enjoyed a great night helped by Chile´s
7-0 thumping of Mexico!!!!
After a good day up in the mountains near Santiago yesterday with a friend, it was great to watch Chile defend their Copa America title against Argentina. The penalty shootout was intense, but the celebrations in the house and on the street afterwards were very lively, with everyone shouting, singing, honking their horns, waving flags and some even letting off flares!!
I
am committed to making the most of every opportunity these final two months
present, and in addition to seeing everything I haven´t got round to yet in
Valpo, I am planning on using the winter break to travel to the Andes and down
South. I have also set myself the challenge of learning to cook two simple, but
very tasty Chilean dishes, one song plus all the notes on the guitar (if
possible) as well as having a final push on improving my Spanish. Finally, I
have made friends with a lovely family through the community class and hope to
be able to learn about Chile´s legal system through the mum as a lawyer, as well as
being able to attend court with her, which is great!!
That´s all for now folks! Thank you for reading and I
am really looking forward to seeing you all in just under two months.
Nos vemos pronto amigos!!
Best wishes,
Andrew
