Teacher Treks: Born to Teach, Listen and Care for Students
Gabriela Ramirez, from San Pedro Sula, Honduras, had several years of experience working as a teacher in Honduras, but nothing had prepared her for her first year at Washington, DC’s Columbia Heights Education Campus (CHEC). Despite the differences teaching in Honduras and the U.S. in terms of the educational system, schedules, and culture, and the fact now that she is miles away from home, family, and friends, Ramirez says she “wouldn’t change anything in regards to her teaching experience.” This is her story.
HOUSTON, TX / WASHINGTON, DC — Sometimes in life a basic need leads to an opportunity. For Honduras native Gabriela Ramirez, that was exactly her case and a fortunate situation that turned her first teaching experience into a lasting one.
Ramirez started studying English when she was 16 and by 21 she was bilingual. Her teaching journey commenced shortly thereafter.
“I was looking for a job in Honduras and found a first grade teaching position at a bilingual school for families with limited resources in my hometown, San Pedro Sula,” says Ramirez.
“In the beginning, my student’s didn’t even know the alphabet in Spanish. But, by the end of the school year, I’d taught them to read in English,” she says. “I felt extremely proud, powerful, and inspired to keep making a difference in my student’s lives. Since then, I knew I was born to teach.”
Ramirez says she was always interested in learning new languages, and thought speaking English would offer more professional options than if she didn’t. “I was right,” says Ramirez, now a second year teacher at Columbia Heights Education Campus (CHEC) in Washington, DC.
The Right to Education
While United Nations’ Article 26 declares, “Everyone has the right to education.” That right often times is easier in developed than in under-developed countries. No surprise then that in Honduras it’s still a challenge to get access to a basic and quality education.
Students in the U.S. have access to free meals and buildings that offer necessary conditions for learning, including good chairs and desks that are comfortable for studying, says Ramirez. In Honduras things are quite different, she says.
“In my country, not all public schools have seats for every student, not to think of air conditioning or even a fan to assist teachers with classes of up to 60 students feel comfortable as they learn. Meals are not varied, and most times, they aren’t free,” says Ramirez.
“Almost 25% of Honduran children do not receive education in any capacity, and this is in large part due to factors such as location, funding, and lack of government support,” wrote Rachael Meyer in a her Op-Ed piece for Action4Education.org titled “The Educational System in Honduras.”
When one considers U.S. school students have access to computers, climate-controlled classrooms, and free transport, the disparities between developing countries like Honduras seem insurmountable. More so considering that at the end of the 20th Century, the educational system in Honduras still struggled with a lack of funds, teacher shortages, poor pedagogic training, and antiquated curricula, according to data published by StateUniversity.com on its website.
Ramirez may have changed countries, but she still deals with classroom issues commonplace in many U.S. schools. Nonetheless, her past experiences in Honduras have helped her transition from teaching in San Pedro Sula to teaching in the U.S. capital.
Different Educational Settings
CHEC, part of the District of Columbia Public School (DCPS) system, offers world language studies and student exchanges, according to details published on its website. In terms of student demographics, the campus’ students are predominately Hispanic/Latino, with 61% falling into this group, followed by Afro-American/blacks (34%), other (4%) and Asians (2%).
While the U.S. educational system is considered one of the best when compared to underdeveloped countries in the Americas, that’s not necessarily the case when it is compared to many developed countries in Europe or elsewhere.
Despite the apparent U.S. educational advantage in the Americas, problems still exist. At CHEC, the biggest problem hasn’t been teaching students Spanish.
“One of the biggest challenges is the fact that some of my students don’t have access to technology at home, or even the opportunity to afford a journal to keep their notes in class,” says Ramirez. “I try to provide them with alternatives and make sure they understand the supplies I give them are not free.”
Other issues that complicate students learning in class don’t necessarily relate to technology, but students’ having “more important things to worry about,” she says.
“In some cases they probably don’t have a place to live, or someone to hug them, or confront other difficult issues, which lead to behavioral problems when they are instructed during class,” says Ramirez.
Now, I always make sure these particular students — the one that are always late, or doesn’t have a notebook or a pencil, or falls asleep in class, or easily gets aggressive — have a chance to talk to me, says Ramirez, who will soon pursue a masters to teach Spanish as a second language. “Once I listen to them and show them I care, and that they are important to me, they start to understand that when instruct them in class that it’s part of my job and because I want the best for them.”
Teaching teenagers is definitely a challenge, admits Ramirez. But, once you get to know them and they get to know you, and you both share some things in common, the student-teacher relationship improves a lot.
“Working at CHEC has brought so much joy to my life. I have learned through experience and conviction how to succeed even in tough situations, and even with very few resources, that I can make a difference in my student’s lives. For this reason I wouldn’t change anything in regards to my teaching experiences,” concluded Ramirez.
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The BTE Teacher Treks series is a collection of short stories from educators native to countries ranging from Colombia and Honduras to El Salvador and Costa Rica, and teaching subjects spanning mathematics to social studies. The series profiles their challenges and triumphs teaching and living in a new country and sometimes in a new language. (Writing, Editing, Proofread by P. Don Pitts for Donatello Inc.). On Twitter: @PietroDPitts and Linkedin: P. Don Pitts)
