Transforming Lives through Education Rural Oaxaca

In these moments of uncertainty worldwide, in schools and informal educational spaces that remain closed, we want to extend our admiration and recognition to parents who have been doing an enormous job educating their children at home. Thank you for the great effort you make every day, for learning new things together with your children, for maneuvering your time between so many activities, thank you for acknowledging that education begins at home.

This school year has been different; we are learning the art of resilience, adapting to change, finding a way to go back to our routines while walking on unknown land. Fortunately, here in the mountains of Southern Oaxaca, we have the great privilege of living a somewhat “normal life.” Thanks to the fact that no cases of Covid have been reported in the area, we were able to go back to our face to face classes.

After having worked from home and tutoring our children for half a year, we came to the decision to begin with face-to-face classes with great caution and taking preventive measures against Covid19. In September of this year Ananda Learning Center reopened its doors. From that moment until today, we have been working in new ways; bigger groups were divided, with a maximum of 8 children per classroom, alternating class days.

To start a new cycle, it was essential to bring closure to the previous school year. A small ceremony was held for the children who graduated from preschool to elementary school.

The Bridge of Knowledge ceremony is a transitional Waldorf ritual that allows children to experience the beginning of school life and the closing of their golden childhood. As children go through The Bridge of Knowledge their relatives shower them in flower petals, calling out their virtues. It was a very special moment for children, parents and teachers; seeing the courage of each child as they crossed into a new stage was a remarkable moment. 

One of our preventative measures has been working in open spaces. Now that we have the outdoor craft studio, it is being used very often to work outside the classrooms. The work in the kitchen, garden and forest has also been reinforced.

Thank you for continuing to support us during these uncertain times. Your support is now more needed than ever so that this project can continue to give this precious gift that is Education.

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Hello dear readers! 

My name is Adriana Paredes. I am an English teacher, from central Mexico, currently working at Ananda Learning Center. In these moments of uncertainty, with no chance for planning worldwide, adaptability can become our best friend. COVID has come to remind us that we are not in charge, to slow down and to rethink our whole existence. And of course education is part of that change. Concerning our school, there are two aspects I would like to share with you: how we have been dealing with COVID and an earthquake that took place in Oaxaca very recently. 

Despite the fact that COVID has not reached us here in this small village in the mountains, we found ourselves in need of suspending our school work for reasons of prevention and global solidarity. Given this unexpected situation, we were meticulously searching for the best option to continue accompanying our children from home until the end of the school year. Contrary to many schools, in the context in which we live, it is not possible to continue our school program through zoom or any other online platforms due to the fact that not all of our community has access to internet. For that reason, the best solution we found to address this problem was designing printed workbooks. 

These workbooks were designed by the teachers, having a question in mind: how to make learning happen from daily life experiences. The focus shifted from learning content to sharing with family, learning at home, making the best of their time with their families,  and communication with classmates and teachers through letters and sharing of recipes and dolls with other children.

And if COVID was not enough, another unexpected event occurred recently, a 7.4 Earthquake hit the region. That morning all the teachers were gathered at the school organizing materials to give away to the children. We were sitting down in a classroom located on the second floor when everything started moving, at first we thought it was just a small shake because we are used to having those frequently, but it was not. It was so strong, trying to make our way out of the classroom was a difficult task. We stood in front of the school; the building looked like it was going to collapse. The trees were moving. I could  see my house dancing in the distance. A thought came to my head, “this is the end, this is it.” We were all holding hands, hopeful that the shaking would be over soon. It suddenly stopped. We went into the classroom to pick up our personal belongings; the place was a mess, books and Montessori materials scattered all around the floor, broken pots and more uncertainty. Fortunately in our village, the earthquake did not destroy buildings.  A neighboring village had more extreme damage, fallen walls and broken homes. Many of us have come together to raise money as well as visit them to support in this time of crisis. I believe that all these events are a wakeup call to change, to resilience, to new beginnings. 

It has been difficult thus far financially for the school. Most of the families are unable to pay tuition due to the many impacts and stresses during coronavirus. The teachers continue to receive full salary. We have continued working hard on several levels. And now, Ananda has to repair the damages after the earthquake. We are grateful for all we have learned the past several months.  

Thank you for your continued support. Through education, we plant seeds for a brighter future.