Liz teaching in the school
‘’I wanted to travel whilst experiencing something ‘real’. Everything is Possible gave me the opportunity to do so. Working on a project that benefits those living in the community where I’m staying made me feel like part of the culture rather than your average ‘gringo’. ''
Liz, volunteer in Peru.
Over the past 2 months I have been working as an EVS volunteer at SKIP, an NGO which works in the impoverished district of El Porvenir on the Northern Coast of Peru. SKIP fosters the capacity of children and families to be the principal agents of change in their own lives, by providing a quality education to economically disadvantaged families from the local area. To achieve its aim SKIP works in the centre of El Porvenir, both with children aged between 4-16, providing extra classes in English, Maths, Communications, Art and Sport, alongside other initiatives to encourage adults to create and develop sustainable sources of income for themselves.
My role within SKIP has primarily been as a teacher to Primary School children. This certainly has opened my eyes to a lot of the educational difficulties here in El Porvenir. One of the main realisations I’ve had is how lucky we are in England to have a curriculum that encourages independent thought, as a lot of the teaching methods in Peruvian schools involve mindless copying from the blackboard with no actual explanation of what is being taught. The children are constantly set homework by their schools that you would see a PhD Maths student avoiding and it’s not uncommon to see 7 year old children trying to work out the answer to what looks like Einstein’s doodle paper.
As well as the learning about the education system here in Peru, it’s also given me a new-found respect for anyone that ever taught me at school! Being a teacher is far more difficult than I ever could have imagined. The endless hours I’ve spent preparing lessons that never turn out how they’ve been planned and the little resources we have available here can sometimes make you frustrated, but it’s the most amazing feeling when you deliver a great lesson. Nothing beats seeing your class understand something new for the first time and I’m slowly getting use to having children hanging off me at the end of the lesson, wanting to stay in class to learn some more.
Outside of teaching, I’ve also had some interesting experiences discovering Peruvian life. From eating many empanadas (the Peruvian version of a Cornish pasty) to tasting cuy (that’s guinea pig to me and you!). From salsa-ing with my two left feet, to trekking through the jungle for miles to swim in the bottom of a 2000ft waterfall. South America is a beautiful, crazy place that I will never forget. After all, there aren’t many countries where you can share a taxi with 10 other people whilst the aptly chosen song ‘I Will Survive’ is blasting out from the speakers.
So, what next? Well, when I eventually return to England I’m hoping to go back to study for my PGCE and train as a teacher; A decision which has been largely influenced by my time as an EVS volunteer. After this, well who knows? I hope to travel some more in the future and have some more crazy stories to share about my travels around the world and all the interesting people I’ve met along the way.
Liz, Volunteer in Peru
Project part of BREAKING BARRIERS
BUILDING PARTNERSHIP
and supported by EACEA
BUILDING PARTNERSHIP
and supported by EACEA
and the Youth in Action Programme
of the European Commission.
For more information about BREAKING BARRIERS BUILDING PARTNERSHIP, visit the special webapge in clicking here.
For more information about BREAKING BARRIERS BUILDING PARTNERSHIP, visit the special webapge in clicking here.
