Dominican Education in Crisis

[RHM]

Dominican Education in Crisis

In part I of this post, I mentioned how colonialism and imperialism have no doubt affected the growth of the Dominican Republic. However, I also proposed that those reasons alone do not tell the whole story. It?s been a long time since Spanish conquistadors and pirates plundered the Caribbean and 40 years since the last foreign military interference on Dominican soil. So, at the end of the day there must be other more immediate reasons for the country?s state of perpetual development. While there are likely many factors that contribute to our struggle, I propose that the current crisis in public education, rampant corruption, and an inability to prioritize is what?s killing the country. And, as I stated before, this cannot go on forever. Today?s post will focus on education and over the next day or two we?ll tackle corruption and priorities. Each of these issues are sure to generate discussion and thus deserve to be unpacked separately. I look forward to your comments and criticism.

Currently only 1 in 10 Dominicans graduate from high school. That means that 90% of the population lacks the basic educational skills needed to advance (or maintain) Dominican society, much less compete in an increasingly globalized world. Worse, it means that all of our professionals (doctors, lawyers, educators, politicians, etc.) come from a pool that only represents 10% of the country?s human capital. To make matters worse, those lucky enough to be in that ?top 10%? graduate from the public school system which, according to a recent study of 15 Latin American countries (DR1 Daily News 8/1/08), is in a state of crisis (in addition to overall poor quality and funding, the average student only receives 2.5 hours of instruction per day under horrendous conditions.)

In 2006, President Leonel Fernandez?s PLD won a majority of both houses of the Dominican congress (Chamber of Deputies and Sendaores.) The first order of business? These new functionarios were given ?courses on etiquette aimed at helping them to learn how to behave at public and private functions, table manners, and to dress correctly for every occasion? (Diario libre 9/1/06.) This did not inspire confidence in anyone who was paying attention. How can we expect the men and women of our government to have the intellectual maturity, wisdom, and education to fix the complex educational, economic, and institutional problems of a struggling country when they must first be taught how to eat with utensils? The acquision of basic manners typically comes before any real education and not vice-versa. Although, I must admit, when I was 12 years old I waited in line directly behind Tip O?Neil as he fed himself raw seafood from a buffet using only his hands (true story.)

The U.S. has plenty of leaders who are not worth their weight in fool?s gold, but I?d venture to say that the majority have studied and worked in their fields of endeavor. In addition, there are legions of public service schools where, for better or worse, many of our future bureaucrats are bred. In addition to the crisis around primary and secondary level education, the Dominican Republic lacks these higher-learning institutions and, as a result, we end up with ambassadors who know nothing about diplomacy, ministers who know nothing about their particular ministries, and tens of thousands of others who fill unnecessary government jobs for no other reason other than their party affiliation. This reality should scare the hell out of anyone who cares about the country.

Those in the ?bottom 90%? (non-high school graduates) are literally being left in the dust and have almost no hope of ever bettering their situations. Worse yet is the realization that even if we woke up tomorrow with a perfect educational system it woud likely take several generations before tangible progress would be realized. Thus, we are looking at millions and millions of people for whom there is very little hope and a country which will more than likely be left further and further behind.

I?ll leave you with a quote from economist Robert Kaplan.

?Only in a society where most people can read, that has a sizable middle class that pays taxes, and reasonable institutions manned by literate bureaucrats, where people do not have to worry about being killed or attacked by their neighbors, will democracy unleash all that is best in a society. Only then will democracy lead to more transparency, more honesty, higher growth rates.?

I look forward to reading your comments.

RHM

 

[RafaelPabon]

In 2006, President Leonel Fernandez?s PLD won a majority of both houses of the Dominican congress (Chamber of Deputies and Sendaores.) The first order of business? These new functionarios were given ?courses on etiquette aimed at helping them to learn how to behave at public and private functions, table manners, and to dress correctly for every occasion? (Diario libre 9/1/06.) This did not inspire confidence in anyone who was paying attention. How can we expect the men and women of our government to have the intellectual maturity, wisdom, and education to fix the complex educational, economic, and institutional problems of a struggling country when they must first be taught how to eat with utensils? The acquision of basic manners typically comes before any real education and not vice-versa. Although, I must admit, when I was 12 years old I waited in line directly behind Tip O?Neil as he fed himself raw seafood from a buffet using only his hands (true story.)

Well, maybe this is less than confidence inspiring... but then again, you have to start somewhere, and someone has to set the example.. the fact that it was reported in a public fashion can lead one to hope that over the coming years it will continue and become the norm, and not something newsworthy.

 

[suarezn]

...and the above post from grst818 (spamming us) shows why some people get strangled and every applauds their death...

On a different note...Great thread which even though we've discussed it in the past is always good to revisit. One thing though, where are the figures that show that only 1 out of 10 graduates from High School. I'm truly shocked if that's the case...it seems to me that nowadays almost everyone graduates at least from High School (At least everyone in my family).

Here's a link to an interesting article by renowned reporter Andres Oppenheimer on things that The DR (all Latin America really) could learn from Finland regarding the importance of education.

http://www.elnuevoherald.com/172/story/277840.html

 

[RHM]

...and the above post from grst818 (spamming us) shows why some people get strangled and every applauds their death...

On a different note...Great thread which even though we've discussed it in the past is always good to revisit. One thing though, where are the figures that show that only 1 out of 10 graduates from High School. I'm truly shocked if that's the case...it seems to me that nowadays almost everyone graduates at least from High School (At least everyone in my family).

Here's a link to an interesting article by renowned reporter Andres Oppenheimer on things that The DR (all Latin America really) could learn from Finland regarding the importance of education.

Finlandia, un ejemplo para Latinoam?rica - 09/03/2008 - El Nuevo Herald

I think you are on to something here. But it's not just time to model other systems, it's time to actually hire someone with experience building one. Yes, that means hiring someone from "afuera" but, hey, there's nobody in the Dominican government (or private sector) with such credentials that I am aware of. We've had dozens of "Alejandrina Germans" over the years and none of them have been able to pull off much.

As for the data of 1/10 graduating from high school, that number is 2 years old and might have crept up to 1.something by now. However, don't confuse that with progress. About a year ago a representative from the Ministry of Education told me during a meeting that "we have one of the best systems in Latin America because we don't let people fail." Also remember that the majority of those graduates come from the public school sector and lack the basic level of skills that you would normally associate with high school grads.

RHM

 

[catcherintherye]

Great topic RHM.

Although I think you are underestimating the effects of the past on what is happening now in the DR, I think focusing on these three issues is a good way to closely examine the current state of disfunction.


The question that needs answering first is 'Cui bono?' Who benefits from the present situation. Obviously, the Plutocracy running the country has the most to gain from the present situation of a population comprised of an overwhelmingly undereducated, uneducated, and illiterate citizenry.

Why would they want anything to change? With a uneducated, disorganized and generally subserviant population, they have their hold on power pretty much guarenteed.

Although many politicians routinely pay lip service to improving the educational system, few actually follow through with concrete action and/or the money and resources required for such an effort. They know a good opportunity when they see it.

All this brings me back to my first point; the lasting effects of historical events. In my opinion, Trujillo's years are still casting a shadow, which is long and wide, and covers the DR with a tradition of cronyism, an underlying popular acceptance of poor governance, and the learned helplessness that comes from being ruled by dictate, deception and deprivation, for decades.

 

[planner]

Even with political will - they would have to invest massive sums of money to bring the system up to any kind of standard. Where would this come from?

I am appalled at the lack of education, the lack of fundamental skills, common sense etc etc. For those with a high school education - the real level of education is maybe grade 7 when compared to North America or Europe.

We need well educated teachers, working with classes the full day, in well structured schools, with electricity! They need books, supplies and tools to do the job. And we need to make it mandatory! Kids need to learn.

 

[Chirimoya]

Not to mention the years it would take to train a whole generation of new teachers!

 

[planner]

we can import from Cuba! They are doing things right well at least in the educational field.

 

[Charlielyn]

Teachers could also be brought in from Puerto Rico. I believe that Cuban and Spanish American teachers should be hired to train the Dominican teachers. Of course money for supplies and a full school day are also necessary. When teachers are poorly paid they do not have a great incentive to work. I visited a grade 2 classroom, in the countryside one year ,and the students were all there but the teacher didn't show up until an hour later. There were no books or supplies in the classroom - nothing but old desks. Sad. The classroom was also over crowded. A difficult situation for the teacher.

City schools do a better job at instructing students from what I have observed. The children of the families that I know are very intelligent and have parents that care about their education. They live in poor barrios, but value education.

Education is of great interest to me. I taught for 30 years at the elementary level in Canada. I tutor a 15 year old in English when in PP.

 

[LaTeacher]

I've noticed a trend in the education field lately to compare our schools here in the DR with schools in Cuba and Chile. I don't think that's fair. Both are countried distinctly different from the DR and for reasons of infrastructure and, in Cuba, severe obligation (punishable by law), their school systems work. And work well.

But the things that make their school systems work is lacking in the DR. In order to compete with Chile and Cuba there would need to be drastic changes in the government, in infrastructure - hiring of teachers, a sense of responsibility from the universities to impart modern and applicable knowledge to teachers in training...

i think it's a good idea to hire some from "afuera" to rebuild the system. sadly, it's not going to happen anytime soon. take money away from the "botella"? nope.

full day school is also a great idea. there are schools in santiago that are planning on putting "intensive" high school - 2 grades in one year, 4 hours a day - because they want to be able to put "full day" school in the near future and need to "weed out" the "bad seeds" as quickly as possible. what happens to the students that get lost in that process? if we have a deficiency already teaching ONE grade in a year, how much higher will it be teaching TWO?
the point is, there is no physical space for all day school. it's a rampant problem in latin america. i know that in mexico, guatemala, honduras, el salvador and english speaking belize all have half day school and did not score nearly as poorly as the DR.

maybe it has something to do with the fact that in one week, there is ALMOST ALWAYS one day with no class - teacher's meetings, rain, holiday, araganania (laziness, i'm not sure if that's correct, but it's what we call it here in my spanglish speaking household). or maybe it's because there are only FOUR valid hours of class and students are given a thirty minute "recreo." or maybe it's because there is no focus on the 4 basics: spanish, math, science and social studies.

has anyone noticed how many classes are REQUIRED by the board of ed? in elementary school there is: espanol (which is divided into: reading, writing, spelling, handwriting and speaking... but only given one period (about 40 minutes) a day, math, social studies (both history AND geography), science... and now, the "extras" formacion humana (religion), art, civics (isn't this really part of social studies?), gym class (how do you have gym with no playground?), computers (even if the school has NO computers), from 5th grade on BOTH ENGLISH AND FRENCH (neither of which are given the proper time or effort to actually learn them) in high school there are THIRTEEN classes that dominican students take in ONE semester - including "agroeconomia" and "comercio".

even with a full day, it's kind of a system overload. not to mention that the setup is so fragmented it doesn't really allow for continuity. Instead of one full year of biology, one full year of chem, one of physics and one of bio2 or chem2 (etc), there is ONE SEMESTER of bio and ONE SEMESTER of chem freshman year and ONE SEMESTER of bio and ONE SEMESTER of chem junior year (3). how can those students actually be expected to retain the information and not have to reinvent the wheel each time their subject comes up?

I think the thing that most bothers me about these studies that recently came out is that they only focus on PUBLIC schools, but really the problem extends to the private sector as well. The teachers in the public school are typically more qualified than teachers in the private and overwhelmingly better paid that private school (let's all forget about bilingual where teachers get paid, mostly, for speaking english). the problem is an all around curriculum program, mixed in with lack of interest or a culture of education.

 

[georgea67]

Dominican Education in Crisis Dominican Education in Crisis

Along with this damage to our school came the doing away with customs, so off came the nun?s habits, and often times we saw the priests in shorts and shirts without Roman collars. We were supposed to call them Fr. Bob or Fr. Russ. The nuns with knee-length dresses who had formerly worn habits were now teaching us sex ed. Familiarity breads contempt, but not in the New Church
--------------------------
georgea

http://www.dr1.com/forums/newreply.php?do=newreply&noquote=1&p=669642.

 

[catcherintherye]

RHM,
I noticed this thread started out in the right direction back in August and September, but was side-tracked by Pichardos's thread on a similar topic. That thread went around in circles and died an unpleasant death. I'd like to see this one come back to life.

There were plenty of good ideas on the other thread, but I think people were a little leery of the intentions of the OP, and perhaps felt their input wasn't leading to any useful conclusion.

I believe that many of the contributors were on to something, with many great ideas being developed, and I think those basic ideas might do well and flourish here.

So, if MikeFisher, LaTeacher, BushBaby, and all the rest, want to follow through with their thoughts, perhaps this is the thread on which to do it. Of course, Margaret is always welcome, and I'm sure I missed a few other major players from the other thread as well.

 

[catcherintherye]

I realized I should have mentioned all of the major contributors in the other thread if I was going mention a few, so:
MaineGirl, BronxBoy, socuban,, A. Hidalgo, notlurking, Lambada, theforceinme, Bob Saunders, olddog, Leromero, and did I mention Margaret?
I apologize if I missed anyone or misspelled any names. I'm going on my very fragile memory.
Of course, Margaret is always welcome!

 

[bob saunders]

maybe it has something to do with the fact that in one week, there is ALMOST ALWAYS one day with no class - teacher's meetings, rain, holiday, araganania (laziness, i'm not sure if that's correct, but it's what we call it here in my spanglish speaking household). or maybe it's because there are only FOUR valid hours of class and students are given a thirty minute "recreo." or maybe it's because there is no focus on the 4 basics: spanish, math, science and social studies.

has anyone noticed how many classes are REQUIRED by the board of ed? in elementary school there is: espanol (which is divided into: reading, writing, spelling, handwriting and speaking... but only given one period (about 40 minutes) a day, math, social studies (both history AND geography), science... and now, the "extras" formacion humana (religion), art, civics (isn't this really part of social studies?), gym class (how do you have gym with no playground?), computers (even if the school has NO computers), from 5th grade on BOTH ENGLISH AND FRENCH (neither of which are given the proper time or effort to actually learn them) in high school there are THIRTEEN classes that dominican students take in ONE semester - including "agroeconomia" and "comercio".

I think the thing that most bothers me about these studies that recently came out is that they only focus on PUBLIC schools, but really the problem extends to the private sector as well. The teachers in the public school are typically more qualified than teachers in the private and overwhelmingly better paid that private school (let's all forget about bilingual where teachers get paid, mostly, for speaking english). the problem is an all around curriculum program, mixed in with lack of interest or a culture of education.

In Yris's private school there are around 500 kids from pre-kinder to grade 7. Morning and afternoon. 5 classes of 1 hour each with a 15 minute snack break. Largest class is 32 students - one teacher and an assistant. All pre-school/kinder have a teacher and assistant. Physical fitness classes twice a week, small school yard(concrete 35 ft by 80 ft) but adaquate for exercise and ball games. She has a principal with a masters degree, 3 teachers with the 4 year BA in teaching, and the rest with the 2 year basica. 15 computers - keyboarding, MS Word and basic computer skills are taught- no internet. Teacher's salary vary but you are correct, most make less than Public system, in fact half work in the public system teaching night classes. English teacher's knowledge of English not as good as it should be but she is a very capable teacher and highly interested, which is why we are paying for her to take ESL Summer classes at Queens University in Kingston, Ontario this summer. Lots of room for improvement but progress is slowly but surely being made.

 

[LaTeacher]

Bob - sounds like your wife is on the right track. sadly a lot of private schools are opened as businesses and not as educational endeavors (ie: the people who open them aren't exactly interested in education). and ANyone can open a school with just a little paperwork!

i'm glad that your english teacher is interested in learning more, that's the real key to being a good teacher. the desire to keep learning.

hopefully this thread will be more productive than the other. i noticed the OP to that thread had opened a new thread and no one responded. karma, i tell ya.

 

[MikeFisher]

and this one shows us again the same missing:
teachers.
we need to get a bunch of better trained teachers to better the results of the public and private school system. and i am not attacking the teachers, noap, they do what they can or what they've been taught to do.
2 weeks ago i've been with my pre school 5 years old in a discussion about his homework, mostly checked by the mother, but as often as i am home in the afternoons i join in and we do that the funny way so he enjoys to learn at home. the discussion came up when i saw that the homework he want to start with me to do know been given for the prior day, not for today, so i asked why he did not do his yesterday's homework. the boy asured me he did not have homework yesterday, and this one been given this morning to do today. the date in his book been the date from the prior day. handwritten by the teacher. next day he brought his new homework and again the handwritten date by the teacher been the date from the prior day. so i saw that my boy told me right, i put a note to the teacher under his homework with the little hint about the real date of today. at least the next day i saw in the book that the teacher been checking the homeworks, because my little note been signed with "gracias".
my boy is in a private school, yes.
if the teacher is not even focused on the actual Date for 2 days in a row, how focused is that lady when teaching writings, some new numbers for the little ones aso? IMO to change anything to the better in the DR educational system we have to better the education of teachers. of course such can not be done in some months, it is a process taking several years because a bigger effect will be felt, but it has to be done. otherwise one day we may have enough classrooms and maybe the needed materials, but the boys have to teach themselves their maths 'cause there's no teacher available enought knowledgeable in math to teach a 2nd or 3rd grade,
great topic
should always stay on, that subject will stick with the country for a long while.
Mike

 

[catcherintherye]

hopefully this thread will be more productive than the other. i noticed the OP to that thread had opened a new thread and no one responded. karma, i tell ya. LaTeacher


I think just by not focusing on the impractical and improbable scheme of implementing a digital classroom for every community, this thread can be a hundred times more productive, and more interesting.

Although I'm a high school teacher in the US I do not have the practical knowledge of what the DR system consists of now, nor what is needed to change. I just know that many Dominican kids are not getting anywhere near what they need to compete in the world economy.

I don't know if this situation is the result of any conscious policy or not, but it has certainly served the powers that be very well, up to this point.

If the maintenance of an inadequate educational system that results in an uneducated and subservient under-class is an official or de facto policy, then that information should become a very important consideration for anyone attempting to change the system.

 

[LaTeacher]

it's true - the teachers are lacking in some very vital areas. but to change the teacher training would be a complete overhaul of the dominican system - not just educational. the universities who accept payment for grades (and please don't deny that it happens) or push students through "just because they paid for the class" isn't going to help anyone in the future. the very same teachers in the university would need to step up their game and get with the program - show up for class and actually teach something useful instead of showing up late, or not at all and then gossiping with the students. there needs to be an introduction to (more) modern teaching philosophy's and more creative thought happening AMONGST THE TEACHERS. if the teachers have no creative, logical or critical thinking skills, how do we expect them to impart those skills to their students?

remember, though, that the lack of these skills isn't just a burden on teachers. last weekend some friends of mine went to a "workshop" with their employer - a group of engineers and construction workers alike - where they were asked to complete some brain teasers and critical thinking puzzles and (my friends included) told me HOW HARD it was and how they couldn't even figure out where to start. it was the first time one of these friends acknowledged to me his real lack of those skills. i think it scared him.

mike - just because your sons teacher didn't know the date doesn't mean that she's not interested. i often forget the date, it's probably the last thing on my mind most days as i'm more concerned to get the more important things taken care of. when you son stops bringing home homework or is showing real deficiencies, then i would worry.

but your point brings up another very valid point. remember people, it's NOT JUST THE PUBLIC SYSTEM THAT IS IN CRISIS. the private schools ARE JUST AS BAD - even the really expensive ones that are supposed to be BETTER. they're not. in fact, the teachers who work there spend THEIR days complaining about how little they get paid and not really focused on how MUCH the kids should be learning. sad fact. but i'd send my kid to public school over an overpriced waste anyday (but that's a personal opinion and not meant to start an argument, everyone has a different situation/philosophy and i'm by no means the end all on dominican educatioN)

 

[cobraboy]

I had dinner with a bunch of folks who run a large private school here in Jarabacoa. I asked them about gubmint involvement in their school, and they said it was minimal, they rarely hear from any gubmint office.

So I sincerely ask this: IF their experience is common with all private schools in the DR, how does the gubmint accuartely say only 10% of Dominicans graduate from HS? There seem to be a BUNCH of private schools wherever I travel.

What % of Dominican kids go to private schools?

 

[Theforceinme]

Ah, lovely thread. I wish I had more to contribute. I am Dominican and I teach, but my experience with public or private schools is somewhat limited. I teach mostly at an institute, where students mostly want to learn since it is a) expensive and b) totally voluntary for them to start classes.

I did teach in one small private school, and I can definitely agree with two things already mentioned here: the teachers are under qualified and it is run as a business, and not as a school. Take, for example, my situation: At that small private school the administration wanted me to teach biology, chemistry, maths and English to the kids. I told them I was not qualified to do this, at least, I didn't feel qualified. They insisted, offered better pay, and I tried my best to teach them.

I later found out that they didn't care I didn't know how to teach these subjects, they just wanted their students to stop complaining to rich mommy and daddy that they were not receiving biology, chem or maths. YES, THEY WERE NOT RECEIVING THESE CLASSES BEFORE!! I was amazed.

Of course, the children's interest was less than rock bottom, and the administration, instead of helping me to force them, did the exact opposite. I sent a letter to the children's parents warning them that if their child did not take an active interest, they would fail that year. The school refused to deliver the letters and proceeded to fire me and put all the blame on the failed school year on me. Like I cared...

I left that school on pretty bad terms since I told them what I thought of them...

In any case, those CHILDREN, who will soon be the owners of Banco Central, Banco Popular and Telemicro... well, I won't mention names but I feel SAD that these uneducated idiots will be leaders in some of our major corporations. They can't even sum their fingers without help.

Is this the students fault? Partly... I think sometimes we blame the teachers and the government a lot but as someone mentioned, this is a cultural thing. Maybe it doesn't matter what the government tries, it is the population that needs to change its habits.

Unfortunately, it seems that the smarter we are, the less we reproduce. Dumb ppl have 13 kids, smart ones use birth control. Super-over-generalizing of course, but maybe there is a grain of truth there. In any case, seems like we're only getting dumber. Dumb consumers... the US must love it. Imports are up, after all.