Latin American priorities

So this entry is going to be a bit of a rant because I continue to be baffled by what, in my opinion, are the crazy priorities of my beloved Latin American countries.  Having been a school teacher now in two LA countries, I have become quite accustomed to not having class for a wide variety of reasons.  In Guatemala I felt like everyday we didn't have class because it was "Day of the Pencil" (please note my sarcasm) or some other obscure and/or random holiday.  Much of the same goes on here at the "Montessori" school, but I even find the reasons here for missing classes are even more ridiculous because as a wealthy school they're able to spoil these children ridiculously with lots of crazy fanfare.  A few examples: When the Chinese teachers came back in October they canceled classes to hold an elaborate welcoming ceremony; back in December some famous local children's tv show stars came to the school for a meet and greet; in February the children rehearsed for a parade with the President's band to inaugurate the Montessori Olympics; the MBS Olympics themselves, etc. Don't get me wrong, I love having a day where I don't have to teach or in which I miss a few of my classes.  But at the end of the day, it's the children's education that is affected when all of us have to scramble to try to make-up for lost days of classworks, exams, and reinforcement.

So today's rant is about the student theatrical performances. Every bimester (or maybe twice a bimester) a grade level or two puts on a different themed performance.  Now I think the arts are great, don't get me wrong, but two to three days before the performance, the children are in rehearsals ALL DAY, EVERY DAY, which means they miss all of their other subjects.  In the US, if the kids are in a talent show or play or whatever, they rehearse AFTER or BEFORE the school day for several weeks, if not months (or they are in an actual class called "Theater").  I understand missing a class here or there because of a rehearsal but when they are out three full days and it's the end of the semester and we're doing final exams and trying to get our grades entered into the system on time??  C'mon, Montessori!  And then the administration wonders why we are always late with our grading when the system is only open for 10 days and the children already missed several assignments within those 10 days.  For me it's even worse because my computer classes only meet once every 8 days, so when you factor in the weekends and any puentes AND they're missing my class on top of that because of rehearsals...well, it's pretty near impossible to be 100% on top of my grading, let alone make sure all of my groups have done the same assignment.

Then to top it all off, today the school brought in some famous local actors to come and play a friendly pick-up soccer game against the teachers.  So apparently at 2pm the discpline coordinators and administrators said the children could go watch the game.  However, I was not told this was going on (and most teachers were clueless) so I went to my computer room at 2:40 like always on Day 5 waiting for my second grade class, Baldor, to show up.  And I waited. And waited. And nobody.  Until finally the auxiliar said that Don Omar of Convivencia (the Discipline Squad) had given the kids permission to go watch the match.  Fantastic.  Another day when they're missing an assignment.  So apparently soccer trumps academics.  And all of you out there who know me you KNOW I love sports.  But really??  And I know this isn't a problem just in Latin America.  Hello!  Even in the USA we are notorious for putting sports programs first, especially at the collegiate level.  But then everyone sits there scratching their heads wondering how and why we're falling behind in terms of academic standards when compared to other countries (and not to mention the ramifications that has on our competetiveness in the global market).  Ummmm....could it be because we prefer to support our football programs and not our science and engineering departments??  Okay, I'll stop.  I love sports and I do think they should be nurtured but I still think academics should come first.

I guess what made me most upset about today's incident was NOT the fact that I or my students missed class but rather the LACK of communication.  This school is notorious for not communicating anything to anyone until literally the last minute. Getting prepared for teaching takes a lot of mental and emotional energy and even though there are moments when I really like to not have to teach, I would always rather be informed of when I don't have to teach so that I can play my schedule accordingly. Why, after 5 years of living in the developing world, does this lack of communication continue to drive me nuts???  You think I would be used to it by now.  NOPE.  Okay, well, I'm done for today.

Hope everyone is well!