The Intellectual Environment of the classroom

 Previously, I’ve talked about the physical environment of the typical Nicaraguan classroom and the behavior of students: dirty classrooms, worn equipment, open aired, and with constant interruptions coming from the students, other teachers, or stray dogs. But what I haven’t talked about is the intellectual environment of the classroom, that is to say, the behavior and mindset of both teachers and students alike. It’s something I’ve been aware of, but have only subconsciously analyzed until recently. With so much traveling to and from many different schools and so many physical distractions to begin with, it’s no wonder it has taken me this long to really contemplate the psychological state of the classroom.

Where to start…I guess the best way to start is with the general attitude towards grades. Unlike the states, where there is a high level of confidentiality between the teacher and student about sharing grades, no such discretion exists here. A teacher finishes grading a test, and simply just drops the packet of tests off in the classroom for the students to distribute themselves. I have a feeling some students and parents would throw a hissy-fit back home if they knew teachers were so cavalier with exams. But here, it’s not even a second thought. And as a result, students have no problem sharing their grades to their friends or the whole class. That was especially shocking to me, because back at home, even amongst my best friends, there was a high level of secrecy and competition. Although friendly with everyone, you secretly, or openly, wanted to crush your neighbor in any sort of academic activity. Home in the states, every student wants to be the best in the class, and that competition impulses an environment that promotes a higher degree of learning. Unfortunately, that competition is almost non-existent in the Nicaraguan classroom. Students see school as an obligation, as something that every adolescent must finish. What seems to be certain is that they do not see it as a vehicle to better their lives. And in part I can’t blame them, because a better education does not guarantee a good job by any means, and the students of the rural schools don’t often have the resources or money to even consider attending a university. But the fact that there is such little desire and emphasis placed on learning proper language (reading and writing), as well as basic mathematics, is honestly shocking. In one of my classes last year, the equivalents of seniors were earnestly complaining that they had to do basic division and multiplication by hand, that it was too hard. Or how to the same students, the concept of percentages (1 = 100%, ½ = 0.5 = 50%, 2/3 = .666666 = 66%) is still not well understood. Recently, a graduated student told me he likes math, but only addition. How he was really good at that, but couldn’t really do subtraction, division, or multiplication. Well buddy, that’s not being good at math.

To be fair, the low level of enthusiasm and knowledge can also in part be blamed on the teachers. The following idea came up in a recent conversation with another volunteer:

Students will only rise up to the expectations you place on them. If you don’t expect them to excel, than they will perpetually under perform and squander their education. If I accept that principle as fact, than I can go further and say that lower standards and expectations lead to less in class competition, less actual learning and lower grades. At least to me, classroom competition is what’s most important, because it causes everyone to strive to do their best. After all, who wants to be the worst in the class? No one.

I feel the best way to exemplify the low expectations of teachers is the test taking process. With the exception of math (the only subject I haven’t first hand witnessed the students take tests in), teachers actually hand out the test in advance…with the answers attached! To a degree, I can understand handing out the test in advance. It’s almost like a take home test, where the questions are obscure, not simply definitions, and makes you think. But theses tests often only include fill in the blanks sections, or definition sections that come right out of the textbook. So as a result, students aren’t actually learning any new material or challenging themselves with new problems, but memorizing the answers right before the test is taken. And short term memory at that. The next day, the correct answers are nothing but a distant, forgotten memory. Like in the states, you need at least a 60% to pass a class, and a 60% overall average to graduate at the end of the year. But the big difference is that in the eyes of the students, at least it seems, there is no difference between a 60% and an 80%. Either way, you still pass. And a 90% or above is no real indicator of intelligence, or better said, mastery of a subject, because it’s all relative on the whim of your teacher. To strengthen this argument (for you skeptics out there), I’ll provide some hard stats taken by la UNAN – Managua in the last scholastic year. UNAN – Managua is one of Nicaragua’s top universities. To even be considered, you must first pass a matriculation exam that tests your basic language and math skills. Of the 12,000 students or so who took the exam, only 20% of students passed the Spanish test, and even less, 10%, passed the mathematics test. And these are the students that should be the top of their class, if they considered applying to la UNAN.

So in more ways than I realized, the typical Nica student is at a disadvantage from the get-go. Besides the obvious distractions and problems of the physical environment, a Nica student simultaneously has to fight against the intellectual environment of the classroom. Perhaps a simple solution exists, if we think of the Broken Window Effect. The BWE being that if we see one broken window, we’re more likely to break the one next to it, because it your mind, the building is already starting to fall down. Perhaps, Nicaragua needs to fix up the classrooms and make them more conducive to learning, which consequently has a profound effect on the attitude of teachers and students. But if you ask me, nothing will change until there is a profound cultural change in the attitude toward education. Until as a culture, the Nicaraguan people realize the importance of education, and put more emphasis on it, the classroom will continue to simply just exist. I guess you could say I’m hear to help encourage that change.

****An important disclaimer. I use the words Nicaraguan and they referring to the greater population in general. But by no means am I saying that this is the attitude of every single Nicaraguan student and teacher. In my time here, I have come across multiple teachers and students, who seem to stand as the catalysts for change, and make me exited for what the future holds for these individuals and the country itself. It’s also worth pointing out that most Nicaraguans are very creative and intelligent. They use the limited resources that they have to solve everyday problems, like a real life version of Odyssey of the Mind. Think Street Smart over Book Smart.