While in Ecuador, I am studying Spanish in the exchange program at Universidad de Especialidades Espiritu Santo in Samborondon, a small city just outside of Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city.
UEES has a really beautiful, open-air campus, complete with palm trees and wandering iguanas:
When not in Spanish classes, I am volunteering at this also-beautiful, equally open-air campus:
Unidad Educativa Jose Domingo Santistevan is a part of the Junta de Beneficencia (Board of Charities) in Guayaquil. This non-profit school educates students from preschool through high-school graduation. I am working with classes of students aged 14 and 15.
While volunteering at this school, I am shadowing a wonderful, talented English teacher, Ms. Diana. Diana is a young and energetic teacher who cares so much for her students that it is truly palpable. She began each class by thanking her students for being there, sometimes reminding them that they were a family, together every day in their shared home, the classroom. While I was there, she also sometimes reminded them that I was their guest, and so to show me the hospitality required when you host a guest in your home. She conducted class with a real passion for her material, then closed each session with
"Thank you for your hard work, have a wonderful day,
and remember to always be kind, and to be good people."
It was such a pleasure and inspiration to get to work with her every day. I learned so much from Ms. Diana. I know she will be successful in her future as an educator, and I hope that in my time with her I have learned enough to be successful in a similar way.
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