For the students in the indigenous town of Huantugloma, access to quality education is hard to come by. Students do not have enough teachers and in fact there are only four in the entire school teaching hundreds of students. The school needed all the help they could get and the vice president of the school along with the president of the parents association welcomed us with open arms during our introduction to the school. One of the teachers of the school mentioned how they recently lost one teacher and in order to qualify for additional teachers the school needed to have hundreds of more students. To make matters worse Ana mentioned also how the government turns a blind eye to the needs of the community. We were able to briefly interact with the students who were ecstatic to meet us. Most of us could not wait to meet the rest of the students.
-Bo Na
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It's our second full day in Ecuador and the pressure to write the perfect blog from my phone is on. Looking back on these mere two days, I’ve learned so much that it’s unbelievable to me. Today was our first day visiting the indigenous community that we will be working with and it was truly awe-inspiring.
We were greeted by one of the teachers who shared with us a bit about the school's history and mission. She, along with the president and vice president of the (their community’s equivalent to) PTA, shared with us the severe need that the school has for teachers. We learned about the inequality that exists in the Ecuadorian education system due to lack of funding for rural schools and the inadequate preparation for the national college entrance exam amongst these communities.
This allowed me to reflect on the parallels in income gaps and achievement gaps in Ecuador and the Unites States. We see this pattern amongst different social classes in the U.S. Additionally; it was powerful for me to see the different realities amongst my host family's lifestyle and those of the community. It's frustrating to see that inequality and to realize that the majority of the population ignores the voices of this community.
Moving forward, I hope to learn more about ways in which we can ally our voices to those of the communities and ways to implement changes for marginalized communities in my future profession.
-Erica Fuentes
A beautiful view
The area outside of the school where the children play
Ana, our liaison who works for the University of Cuenca, introducing us to a parent
A poster in the preschool/Kindergarten classroom about the exploitation of oil
Ana and some members of the community showing us their gardens
Another beautiful view
Enjoying a rest after struggling to walk down the hill
Angie about to try a typical Ecuadorian drink called "chicha"
Kalala, Sophia, Angie, and Joyce play on the playground. (It was a Saturday, so few kids were around!)
The altar in the community's small church
Ana gives our group a talk on the education system in Ecuador
The "Río Tomebamba", an important landmark in Cuenca. "Which side of the river is it on?" is a commonly asked question!
A group picture on the bridge over the Río Tomebamba
A beautiful view of the river
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