me and my english students
ok, i didn't actually teach the baby to speak english, but isn't he cute?
even at the party you can still be learning!!

After chug chug chugging along with just two students the last few classes, we finally said goodbye and had a little graduation for my English students. Turns out the party was better attended than the classes, which I found to be interesting – and it’s not like there was a tremendous amount of food or freebies. The kids that came, and the two teachers, really enjoyed speaking English, and learning, and trying something new. So why is it, then, that so few of them ever came to class?

I think it has a lot to do with the reality of these families – I know that at least two of the girls worked during the summer, and that bringing in money for their families trumps having a little fun with me. Sometimes I think they just forgot, but only once or twice. And for some, I think after missing a class or two they had verguenza, or embarrassment, to come back – both teachers at one point told me they weren’t going to come again since they had missed so much, and I had to beg them to return. Maybe it’s just too hard to do classes this way – a little at a time, over a few months, which requires quite a bit of dedication. Maybe it would’ve been better, more successful, or more culturally appropriate, to have an intense class of four hours every day for a week or something like that, something that allowed for more success for the students.

Because I hate that some of these kids feel bad about not being able to come to class. Some of these girls (and they were all girls for some reason) are incredibly smart, and I could tell that they just loved learning – there are such few opportunities here for them to take an interest in something and learn about it. So as annoying as it was towards the end to be preparing lovely lessons for just three students, the attendance (and interest in the English spoken) at the party confirms for me that this was a good use of my time. I had my doubts at the beginning, but I do support the teaching of English as a secondary project for PCVs. If my students follow through and really learn how to speak quality English, there are certainly more opportunities for jobs and scholarships and such here in Paraguay. If nothing else, though, they’ll each have received a certificate from me and maybe a small sense of empowerment that they are capable of learning, of taking advantage of the opportunities that are available to them, and of being special.