Summer 2006 Newsletter

Summer 2006, Newsletter

Wow! What a summer! CEDEI is in full swing this summer with 1 spring program come and gone that overlapped 6 simultaneous summer programs. Currently, we are hosting almost 100 students taking classes, doing tutorials, going on trips and becoming members of our host families here in Cuenca. The staff has been working tirelessly to get everything in order, and finally getting to meet all the wonderful students who have come here to study has made our efforts worthwhile. CEDEI would like to give a very warm welcome to the following groups:

LIFE IN THE TROPICS- ST. AMBROSE UNIVERSITY

CEDEI is proud to announce the successful inauguration of the biology-based program directed by Richard Legg, Marge Legg and Joan Trapp, all of whom are professors at CEDEI's affiliated St. Ambrose University. It was an intense and very rewarding trip during which the students transferred from one ecosystem to the next, taking advantage of the vast biodiversity that is so unique to Ecuador. The group started off in the coastal lowlands, then traveled to the Andean highlands, which included visits to cloud forests and the paramo. They spent a week in a remote biological diversity research station in the Amazon Rainforest, and had a grand finale with a week of sea-lion and blue-footed boobie watching in the Galapagos Islands.


AUGUSTANA SUMMER SPANISH PROGRAM

The veteran program of CEDEI is by no means any less exciting than the very first one in 1992. Consisting of 27 students, the group arrived as the first group of the summer in Quito on the 7th of June. The students have spent the last month and a half settling in with their host families, taking trips to the countryside towns of Jima and Principal, and working hard on their Spanish. Just recently, the majority of the group returned from a trip to the jungle region of Macas. There they stayed for 3 days in group cabañas along the River Yuquipa, hiked along jungle paths and cooled off under waterfalls. Everyone came back a little muddy, a little tired, but very happy. A few others in the Augustana group, alternately decided on the trip that was offered to the coast. These students stayed in the eco-friendly hotel of Al-Andaluz, made completely of biodegradable materials, and enjoyed the great beaches that Ecuador has to offer. In addition, they had the opportunity to take a boat trip to go whale watching. The whales were very active that morning, and the students are excited about the various photos they got.

This weekend, the "Augie" group, as they are affectionately known around here, is looking forward to their weekend trip to the town of Saraguro. Saraguro is a town steeped in Andean, Incan and even pre-Incan tradition. The Saragureños (people of Saraguro) are very proud of their heritage and customs as there has been a resurgence of interest from the younger generations in bringing back their pre-Colonial ways. While in Saraguro, the Augie students will be able to experience Shaman demonstrations, the ancient art of medicine here in the Andean region, as well as eat at a Pampamesa, which is like a big community picnic filled with traditional foods from the Sierra region.

And, of course, there is already chatter amongst the students about the Peru trip that they will take mid-August at the end of their program. Luckily, though, there's still plenty of time to hang out with host families, take some more classes and explore Cuenca and it's surrounding regions.


TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language)

It wouldn't be a summer at CEDEI without Bea Jacobson, Kathleen McInerney and their band of TEFL'ers. These brave souls endure an intense month of class during the day, teaching in the evenings, daily planning and yes, plenty of fun trips, cultural exchanges, and stays with our host families. At the end, their efforts will be rewarded with a certificate in TEFL that will qualify them for English teaching positions in language institutions all over the world. This year's class of TEFL'ers arrived June 19th in Quito. Now in Cuenca, they have been working diligently and having a lot of success as well as important real-world experience in the classroom. Many have expressed how much they enjoy working with the Ecuadorian students here.

The TEFL'ers, in fact, just returned after spending their mid-program week off in the jungle with the Augie group. It was a good time for them to unwind, see some amazing jungle scenery and get some good exercise in on the hikes! Now, that they're back, they're getting plans together for the coming weekend when the group will incorporate their skills in teaching English with an Ecuadorian cultural experience. First, they will travel to the town of Gualaceo where they will check out the new Gualaceo branch of CEDEI. With the opportunity to talk with the teachers there, the students will get first hand accounts of what it's like to teach English in a small-town setting. The students will then have the chance to see Tejemujers, a handmade sweater cooperative, as well as Chordeleg, a town right next to Gualaceo, known for it's silver and gold filigree jewelry. Then, the students will continue on to the rural town of Principal where they will have a chance to actually teach English in a rural setting to the local tourism group. Everyone is getting their plans together to take advantage of the different teaching environment.

BERKSHIRE

Don Morley, former Peace Corps volunteer, has been trucking high school kids from Sheffield, Massachusetts down to Ecuador since 1994. Nine Berkshire High School students, including two German foreign exchange students, packed their gym shoes, jungle pants, and open minds in preparation for the educational experience that Ecuador offers. ?The best part of this summer?s course has been the group of students that I have worked with,? says Morley.
The students began their adventure in Quito, arriving to Ecuador?s capital a day before the country welcomed back its World Cup team. So, the students got a real taste of la fiebre de fútbol. After some time exploring the capital and the surrounding areas, the students headed deep into the jungle via canoe where they were soon surrounded by the sounds, beauty, and of course, the monkeys that the jungle has to offer. As student Charlotte Clasen says, ?I never thought I could have that much fun in the jungle.? Cambell Swift agrees, ?I will never have another experience like the jungle. There are few places in this world that are as beautiful.? From the jungle, the students headed to Patate where we had a wonderful and safe view of the volcano, Tungurahua.
Finally, the students landed in Cuenca where they will live with families for four weeks. Many students feel that Cuenca is the best part of their experience so far. ?Laughing and joking with my family, I am able to transcend language differences to connect with them as people,? says Steve Piatelli. Cuenca has offered the opportunity to better appreciate the Andean culture while accomplishing a comprehensive Spanish education. As Kayla Arsenie contemplates, ?The people in Ecuador are some of the nicest people I have met. Whether I?m learning new Spanish words with the cab driver or attempting to haggle in Otavalo, I am consistently met with smiles and reassurance. My family goes out of the way to help me with things I never though I?d need help with. It has been a phenomenal experience and I?d do it again in a second.?

BURR-BURTON

Our other high school program here at CEDEI is Vermont's own Burr-Burton High School, and we are all very excited to have them here on their inagural trip to Cuenca. A three week program designed by one of Burr-Burton's own teachers, Pia Nolan (maiden name Tamaríz). Pia is originally from Cuenca, and has finally realized her vision to share her hometown with her students while providing them an opportunity to put their Spanish skills into action! Each student will spend 3 weeks with a host family here in Cuenca and attend class in the afternoons to reinforce the language skills they are learning in their host family's home.

The students are very enthusiastic about making Cuenca their home, if only for a few weeks. It's not hard to notice their determination and excitement when you stop to talk with a group of them in the student center. Not only have they improved their knowledge of the language, but their confidence in speaking as well. The staff is already working along with Pia for next year's possibilities, to make this CEDEI's newest addition.


RACE AND ETHNICITY IN THE ANDES- UNIVERSITY OF LETHBRIDGE

The group of 18 anthropology students and their professor Pat Wilson arrived safe and sound in Guayaquil on July 14th. Their excitement and enthusiasm made for a great start to the trip during their visit to the rural community of Principal, where they jumped straight into speaking Spanish with the town members and got a glimpse of the changing realities of traditional rural life here in Ecuador. They have now been in Cuenca a week and are settling into their lives with their host families. With the help of their intensive Spanish classes, their language and communication skills are improving daily, while their anthropology classes are giving them a new way to absorb their surroundings. This past week the students had a blast at our ?Noche Cuencana? festival at CEDEI, where they were able to taste roasted cuy (guinea pig), listen to live traditional Ecuadorian music, and dance the night away with a salsa band and fireworks. The group is also taking advantage of the ceramics, dance, and jewelery making classes that are offered. This coming Sunday will be their first weekend trip to Ingapirca, where they will be able to enjoy the largest Inca ruins in all of Ecuador as well as the local animal market in the nearby town of Cañar.

BILINGUAL EDUCATION- CHICAGO STATE UNIVERSITY

CEDEI welcomes a new and innovative addition to our repetoire from Chicago State University headed by Kathleen McInerney and María Teresa Garreton. The two professors have worked hard to develop a multi-disciplinary program specifically designed for Spanish-English bilingual teachers in the Chicago area. The idea for this program arose from 2 needs unique to Chicago-area primary schools. Firstly, the teachers will be able to take advantage of Ecuador's diverse ethnicity, history, geography and biology to bring authentic experience and knowledge across the curriculum. As primary school teachers, they will be able to incorporate their jungle experiences into their biology lessons, or maybe their cultural experiences into their history lessons.

The second purpose of the program is to fulfill the need to connect with Chicago's growing Ecuadorian population. Chicago's statistics on Ecuadorian migration to the city have grown rapidly in the last few years, and it has become the third most popular destination for Ecuadorian immigrants, behind New York and Los Angeles. Many of the teachers studying in this program already have Ecuadorian students currently in their classroom. Coming to Ecuador through CEDEI has enabled the teachers to investigate the educational standards and evaluate the cultural differences in the backgrounds of those students sitting in their classrooms. This experience is invaluable to helping their Ecuadorian students make a smooth transition to their lives in the US. In addition to these objectives, the teachers are also working on very specific and custom-made investigation in the form of a program project. For instance, one teacher is studying Bilingual Education of Quichua and Spanish. Another is studying children who live in the streets and how they learn language. There are other topics like this that can allow the teachers to specialize in a specific social problem while taking a general survey of Ecuador at the same time. We look forward to their feedback and the results of their studies once they are able to return to the classroom and put their new experiences into action.