Educational Inequalities

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The more I teach, speak and learn to love the children in this small part of Ecuador the more bothered I become. They do not seem to grasp that a whole other world is at their fingertips. You ask them in what other countries they speak Spanish and they name Puyo, Ambato, and Quito…all cities in their country. Some of these children are so bright and could aspire to much more, but the mindset of the parents and sometimes even the directors does not encourage doing something extraordinary.
Education here in the Pastaza region is much different than that of the Western world. The children learn about agriculture, poisonous plants and tactics for crossing the street safely. They learn about life’s practicalities while the developed world teaches their children classic literature, technology and the arts. This lack of exposure and encouragement creates a huge gap in the creativity of our students. They don’t read in their spare time or have the desire to form sentences of story lines off the top of their heads. You ask them to draw a picture of a house and most of them (even the older ones!) will copy yours detail for detail. Some days, English class will be canceled so the children can plant trees or shovel dirt. Sure, these things do need to be done, but at the expense of each child’s personal growth? The other day a volunteer asked a nine year-old boy what he wanted to be when he grew up. Do you know what he said? A sugar cane grower. What child aspires to work on their parents’ farm and clean sugar cane? I think if a director encourages other options beyond having babies and living on the farm then some children may begin to see their lives in a different light…and the presence of our volunteers only increases that notion. The children see our volunteers and ask about their lives: “Do you have a farm?”, “Are you married?”, “Where do you live?” These types of questions show the children that another way of life is possible, but they still don’t see that it could be them.
I’m still trying to find a way to alter this mindset. However, we can only give children the opportunity to change, not necessarily the drive. I believe that change in thinking and way of life will lie with the directors; the more the directors emphasize abstract thinking and reading to their students, the more likely they will begin to enjoy it. I understand that we cannot help all the kids develop more aspiring goals, but I think that a certain number can be reached…they just need the opportunity and encouragement. Thankfully we have two directors in our region who are actively trying to show their students another way is possible. One is forward thinking enough to ask us about how sex education is taught in our public school systems, something that goes virtually without mention here, despite the high rate of young pregnancies. He has a goal to show not only his children, but also those of his school, that they must enjoy being young before they have boyfriends/girlfriends and start a family. He understands the differences in resources and educational advancements possible between where the volunteers come from and the school where he teaches. As cheesy as this sounds, I want nothing more than to give these children a shot at branching out and discovering what the world can offer them.

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