September 4, 2016 - 11:19
Over two summers ago I went on a week-long volunteering trip with a group called Outreach 360 in Monte Cristi, Dominican Republic. Before this trip I was expecting to just meet some adorable children and do fun English lessons, but little did I know how much of an impact this experience would have on me. The night before the camp started, the organization that runs the summer camp informed us that there was no air conditioning or a running toilet, which immediately made me nervous. On the first day I did not know what to expect with not being in the conditions that I am usually in. The first thing that I saw was a concrete floor, two very small rooms, and a frail leaf roof. At that moment I could not possibly believe how I was going to be able to make my lesson exciting to these children in these poor conditions. After setting up we began to hear the laughter and see children with the biggest smiles on their faces. I have never seen so many children happy and excited to come to school. Many children came running up to me to give me hugs even though I had never met them, but they were so grateful to have us there to teach them English. The lessons were created in a way so that the teacher were not to say any Spanish and they were strictly taught in English. This presented a very difficult obstacle to children, because many of them had never spoken any English. Despite this hardship the children still did not stop trying and would overcome their frustrations, because they were so eager to learn something new. Although, I would see many students helping others that looked like they were struggling. Towards the end of the week it went from 30 students to 90 students who to this small area to learn some area. Not once this whole week did I hear one child complain about the heat, or that there was no school equipment besides the concreate floor and rusty chalkboards. Now I’ll never have the same perspective on education after this week.
I come from a privileged family where I never had to worry about going hungry or not having all my school supplies. While in the Dominican Republic numerous children have to go to work to help their parents just barely get by instead of getting an education. Many of the children who came to the summer camp had to walk miles, but they would do anything to get an education. In contrast I only live a mile from my school and I still take a car or bus. Additionally, my school was well built with air conditioning, technology, and paid well educated teachers. Yet with all these amazing conditions I would still complain about not wanting to go to school and I found my peers doing the same. In America many children always want to get the latest technology and the trendiest clothes, but never stop to think about the other children who do not live that lifestyle. Since my parents had an education and did not have to work all the time I knew I could rely on them to help me with my homework. Meanwhile these children were so happy even though they do not have any of this. Children would the arrive to the camp worn down clothes or would not have any shoes at all. They also could not go to their parents for help because many of the Dominican people from the area never received any type of education, because they needed to go to work to support their families. These children were making me realize things about myself that I have never even thought about.
The differences in education reminds me of the quote from Jean Jordan’s memoir, “Report to the Bahamas”, “They sell and I buy or I don’t. They risk not eating. I risk going broke on my first vacation afternoon” (41). In my story I worry about not having the latest technology, and they risk going to get an education and going hungry from not using that time to work. I knew before this trip that I was privileged and I never wanted to stop going to school, but I had to see for myself what it looks like to have nothing. These beautiful children know that they do not live in the best conditions yet they still remain very happy with what they have. They did not care about my race, class, race, or my gender to make me feel loved, because they were so grateful to have someone give them an education. The atmosphere in Monte Cristi is made up of very friendly, welcoming people, and everyone was enjoying each other’s company. Coming from my Hispanic background I understand the value of family, because my grandmother always told to always stick together no matter the situation. This idea of unity is not very prominent in my school because everyone was mainly worried about themselves instead of helping each other out. Now I want to bring this type of community into my community, because it felt so good to know that we were all in this together.
The main lesson that I got from this trip is to appreciate all my fortunes in life and especially not to take education for granted. I also value my teachers even more because I saw their point of view as I had to create lessons as well. I had lots of difficulty coming up with lessons that were actually going to help the children learn. Then once it came to the time where I had to teach the lesson it was very nerve-wracking because I did not know if they were going to enjoy it. I never really stop to think of how much teachers put effort and time into their lessons. Not only did I learn something from the student’s perspective, but also from the teachers. From this trip I realized how much I love to volunteer and getting an education. Not every person gets the chance to go to such an amazing college and it is my responsibility to do the best that I can, so that I will later have the resources to give others this opportunity. Part of my identity is the desire to want to build a supportive and loving community. I came to this trip to teach children for to speak English, but in the end they helped me figure out a part of what my identity is.