So, what have you been up to the past four years?

Traditional blogging plays a slightly different role than it used to. There are now plenty of arenas for fast updates, pictures, and information spreading generally. This blog has been in passive mood since Schools for the Future successfully celebrated the pilot phase of our first program Reading for the Future, four years ago. My focus has since been directed towards developing the organization and to communicate through fast and efficient channels such as Facebook, Twitter, and our website. Time has been limiting the ambitions to keep the blog live.

However, all this time I have been missing the blogging. Or, more accurately, I have been missing the writing. Because 40 words in a Facebook post or 40 characters on Twitter offer nothing of the beauty of writing, or reading. At best, they offer the beauty of communicating, and that is a different beauty altogether.

So, my aim is to revive this blog, and to bring back proper writing into my life. I will write about my passion, educational development and learning, from different perspectives. My inspiration stems from the work I do, the people I meet, the books, articles, and posts I read, and sometimes just from the air I am lucky to breath and from whatever my eyes happen to rest upon.

Project results and how to move on

WHAT ARE THE RESULTS OF THE FIRST PILOT PHASE?

After almost two years of planning and four months of hard work in El Salvador, the first pilot phase has now come to an end. The evaluation process has just begun. All participants, their parents/caretakers, teachers, school principals and facilitators have been interviewed, and the final evaluation report will be published in July/August. However, I want to share some conclusions with you already now:

- All participants, their families, teachers, school principals and facilitators claim to be extremely happy with the project and want to continue with the second phase.

- All participants and their parents say that the kids are more interested in reading now than before the project started. Several of the kids told us that in the past, they only read if they had to as a part of their school assignments. Now, they vounteerily look for books to read in their spare time. "I remember what you said about books being our friends. Now, if I feel sad or if I'm bored, I grab a book and start reading", as one girl puts it. The facilitators have also observed a great advance regarding the reading level of the participants during the project.

- Teamwork, non-violence and value games and exercises seem to have paid off on a short term. All participants claim that the group environment has improved during the project, and many acknowledge a change in their own behaviour. That's also something that the facilitators have observed. As one boy says: "Yes, I have changed. Before, I used to hurt other kids physically, now I'm more respectful towards others". An older sister to one of the participants shares: "I've seen how the communication within our family has improved during this project. We almost never talked, and now she tells us a lot about what you've been doing in the workshops and she asks for help with her school assignments".

- Our "LIfe Plan" work has had an impact on the kids. One of the orphanage workers told me, regarding one of our orphan girls: "One day she started to ask me what I thought she would be doing in 20 years... When I came to the closing ceremony and saw her life plan I understood why!". Both parents and teachers also claim that they've seen a change in the participants when it comes to study motivation and completing school assignments.

- The participants have discovered talents no one ever acknowledged before the project. Some of the most "restless" kids have shown extraordinary talent in narrative writing, drawing and drama. One of the girls, who is an orphan, would have a good chance of entering in one of the Salvadoran schools for students talented in writing.

You find pics from the closing ceremonies here:

Group 1: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=426626&id=607940023&l=2e7b46dfef

Group 2: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=427612&id=607940023&l=e5991ac587

Group 3: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=428749&id=607940023&l=760cef1ecf

WILL THE PROJECT CONTINUE?

Yes, the project will continue and expand

even though I now leave El Salvador. Our new local project manager is the Savadoran Luis Alvarenga, who is responsible for the coordination of the project and for reporting to the Executive Committee in Sweden. During the first phase, we developed a strong team of dedicated, reliable local volonteers

who will continue with two of the three groups, every Friday as before. Furthermore, two more schools and two more groups will be added to the project. These new schools are situated in rural areas, which is a new challenge for the project. Up until now, we've only been working in urban areas. Altogether, four groups consisting of totally 40 children aged 11-13 will be receiving weekly workshops until the end of the Salvadoran academic year in October. After that, we have a lot of schools waiting for us to start working with them, too. Furthermore, we will start training teachers and more facilitators in our methodology in the future. Hopefully, the methodology will spread also to other parts of the world (including Sweden).

WHO SUPPORTS US?

The project is financed by donations from friends and members of Schools for the Future around the world. The cost of the first phase was approximately $1400 (about ten thousand SEK). All donations were spent on direct project costs such as books, material, snacks and bus transport for local facilitators. Flight tickets, food and accomodation for me as a project manager was financed privately. All people involved work as volunteers without any financial compensation. We believe that we've proven that a very small amount of money can make a significant difference and lead to sustainable project development.

Examples of local partners helping us with certain material, facilities, field trip transport, PR etc. are our co-operating schools, the Municipality of Santa Tecla, The Salvadoran Ministry of Education, the companies Grupo AGRISAL, Diszasa and Editorial TMR, Fundación Empresarial para el Desarrollo Educativo and Central American Foundation for Rural Education Development.

CAN I HELP?

Yes, of course you can! The more the project expand, the more funds we need. If you wish to support us in our work, do not hesitate to become a member of Schools for the Future, or to send us a donation. Or maybe you know of a school that would like to cooperate with us and support our work in El Salvador? You find all information here:

http://www.schoolsforthefuture.org/Howtosupportus.html

I kindly ask you all to write me any comments, ideas or doubts that might come to your mind. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND SUPPORT!!!

Media attention and field trip to volcano

SCHOOLS FOR THE FUTURE IN THE MEDIA

The Santa Tecla newspaper De Primera published a full page article about the project in the latest issue, based on a visit to one of our workshops. We even covered the fontpage! Read the article here (in Spanish): http://www.deprimeraonline.com/index.php. Thank you Tony Carbonero for a great reportage!

The Uppsala student newspaper Ergo published an article by me about the project in the latest issue. Read it online here (in Swedish): http://www.ergo.nu/nyheter/20100331-ronja-star-upp-mot-valdet. Thank you Ergo!

FIELD TRIP TO EL BOQUERÓN

Last Saturday we went on a field trip with the kids and their families to volcán San Salvador and the crater and national park El Boquerón. The objective of the trip was to foment positive relations within and between families and to promote environmental consciousness. One appreciated activity was the reading of stories from “Cuentos de la selva” by Horacio Quiroga, right there on the top of the volcano! It was an amazing experience watching parents and children reading together, and at the same time admiring the scenic view of the crater in one direction, and that of San Salvador in the other.

See photos from the field trip here: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=407933&id=607940023&l=2ad507f7e9

Video clips:
Bus ride with a great view: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HraqBr2yPIc
Getting to the volcano: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdbupjXtoAQ
The crater: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkHbDeJMPHI
Families reading: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tb8MbvMzrI8

SHORT-TERM EFFECTS

The parents of our participants have been a great help in making us understand the short-term impact of the project after just a couple of months of activities. As one dad told us: “Nowadays when my daughter has some spare time at home, she picks up a book and starts reading. That never happened before.”

LONG-TERM SUSTAINABILITY

The best news of them all: The local facilitators are very enthusiastic about continuing with the workshops, and even start new groups, during the rest of this academic year (until October). That means that the activities will go on even after I’ve gone back to Sweden, and I will keep supporting the team from there and at the same time work on the planning of the long-term continuation of the project. It’s absolutely fantastic that the project already now has the capacity to go on and develop without my presence, because that would mean that our most important principle of SUSTAINABILITY is being fulfilled.

BUT WE NEED YOUR HELP! IN ORDER TO MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR THE LOCAL FACILITATORS TO CONTINUE WITH THE ACTIVITIES, WE NEED MORE FUNDS. I ESTIMATE THAT WE NEED APPROXIMATELY $800 (6 000 SEK) IN ORDER TO GO ON SUCESSFULLY UNTIL OCTOBER 2010. ALL MONEY WILL BE USED TO PURCHASE MORE BOOKS, MATERIAL AND TO COVER LOCAL TRANSPORT COSTS.

If you can and want, please send your donation to PG 48 84 49-0 (from Sweden) or to this PayPal account (from abroad): http://www.schoolsforthefuture.org/Howtosupportus.html. If you wish to become a member, you can find out how on that same page.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND SUPPORT!

www.schoolsforthefuture.org

Voices from the project

DREAM TEAM

We're proud to announce that we´re now working actively with all three pilot groups! The team of facilitators consists of me and three excellent volonteering co-workers; Natalia, Cristabel and Luis. Natalia is 26 years old, and has relevant experience from working in an alphabetization project for women. Cristabel, 31, is a teacher and has also been working in the same alphabetization project. Luis is 21 years old and is studying communication at the university. It's a real dream team, and it's amazing how everyone's contributing with invaluable ideas, experiences and inspiration! Without them, we wouldn't see half of the success that we've achieved so far. To compensate at least a little bit for all their hard work, I've started to give them English lessons, which is good not only for them but also for the future of the project. I really can't express how much I appreciate these people, and all the other people (especially Roy and Enriqueta) helping out with this and that! Salvadorans ROCK!!!

VOICES FROM THE PROJECT

"I love books and they fascinate me, because they teach me things and they're like friends." - Monica, 12

"Books give me the sense of happiness, because when I read I get totally absorbed and I forget about all the problems that a teenager has to face daily." Kriscia, 15

"Do we have to get back already? Let´s stay here the rest of the day...and the night, too!" - María, 12

"What I want to do in the project is to read more in order to learn more and be somebody in life." - Gladys, 15

"Today I learned to keep on struggling, because outside this community there's an exciting life waiting for me." - Kriscia, 15

OUR THREE PILOT GROUPS

Group 1: Eleven girls aged 11-12, at the public school Centro Escolar Margarita Durán in Santa Tecla

Total number of workshops during the entire project period: 16

Number of executed workshops so far: 6

See pics from one of the workshops here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=384254&id=607940023&l=683d48029e

Group 2: Five girls and six boys aged 11-12, at the public school Centro Escolar Refugio de la Paz in Santa Tecla

Total number of workshops during the entire project period: 10

Number of executed workshops so far: 1

See pics from one of the workshops here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=391094&id=607940023&l=e9e8cf0a99

Group 3: Four girls and one boy aged 15-16 at the public school Complejo Educatico Católico Fe y Alegría in San Salvador

Total number of workshops during the entire project period: 5

Number of executed workshops so far: 1

See pics from one of the workshops here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=385814&id=607940023&l=7c1c51d97a

PLANS FOR THE UPCOMING WEEKS

- To keep on reading "Ronja, la hija del bandolero", "Alex Dogboy", "La hija del puma", "Cuentos de la selva" and "Colin y los monos" according to the stage of each group.

- To bring in expertise from the theatre community, in order to work with that creative art of expressing and reflecting.

- To take the two groups in Santa Tecla, and their parents, on an excursion to El Boquerón, the volcano of San Salvador, with it's important flora and fauna and amazing views over the city.

- To start working with the "Life Plan"; an individual map of the future that each participant will be developing during the project.

- To keep on bringing in foreigners to talk about their life and culture. One group recently had visitors from Denmark!

- To start planning a literature event with the book store La Ceiba.

- ...and more!!

Exciting progresses!

Last Friday, we realized our fourth workshop with our first group of 5th graders in the Palacio tecleño de la cultura y las artes. We practiced the democratic process by suggesting and voting about a group name (the majority voted for “Las Chicas de la Lectura” = “The Reading girls”), and then we planted a seed as a symbol for the development of the group during the project. After that, we finished reading the book “Colin y los monos” by Monica Zak in smaller groups.

Last Saturday, we arranged a meeting for the parents/caretakers of the participants of this group, also at this beautiful place in Santa Tecla, in order to incorporate them into the project. Representatives for seven of the eleven girls showed up, which is a really good outcome. Three girls accompanied their parents to the meeting, and they helped us present the project activities, values and the books we’re reading. The meeting was very successful, and through group dynamics, chats in smaller groups and (of course!) coffee, an environment of mutual trust and communication was created between the parents and us as facilitators.

Good news is also that we have initiated cooperation with the Salvadoran Ministry of Education and with Grupo AGRISAL and Diszasa, two of the most successful companies in El Salvador and the region, among others. Our network is growing stronger every day!

Photos from the last two workshops with the kids are found here:

Workshop 4: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=384254&id=607940023&l=683d48029e

Workshop 3: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=380531&id=607940023&l=a94ca5bd85

Some video clips are found here:

Reading “Colin y los monos”, workshop 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dTLweq-o

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Group dynamic, workshop 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBp3MQdZb3s

This week, we will start working with a group of ten students in 9th grade at the school Fe y Alegría in La Chacra, San Salvador. La Chacra is one of the neighborhoods of San Salvador that suffers most from violence. Two of the biggest criminal gangs (so called “maras”), Mara Salvatrucha and Mara 18, are fighting for the same territory, and the school and the community are situated in the middle of this conflict. Living in a situation like that, everyone has some kind of relationship to either one of the gangs. We will visit La Chacra five times during the project, thus developing a different methodology adapted for that age group and social situation. We will also start working with a second group of 5th graders in Santa Tecla, with a mix of girls and boys. The aim of that pilot group is to compare it to the group of only girls that we already have. This means that we will have three pilot groups in total, representing two very different age groups and neighbourhoods.

If you wish to support us in our work, do not hesitate to become a member of Schools for the Future, or to give us a donation. You find all information here: http://www.schoolsforthefuture.org/Howto

supportus.html

I kindly ask you all to write me any comments, ideas or doubts that might come to your mind!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND SUPPORT!!!

First workshop successful!

Our first workshop last Friday morning was a success! Nine girls aged ten to twelve attended the workshop at the Palacio tecleño de la cultura y las artes*, a beautiful, recently renovated cultural centre a couple of blocks from their school. The workshop was 1,5 hour long, during school hours, and consisted of various elements. Drinks and fruits were served. Two instructors (Natalia and I) were facilitating the activities, and a communication student, Luis, was filming and and taking photos.

Photos are available here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=374938&id=607940023&l=6903f0c21b

Some vides clips are available here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBp3MQdZb3s (group dynamic)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhwORJn921s (saying goodbye)

This first workshop was dedicated to the welcoming the girls to the project and making them excited to participate these four months to come. Together with the girls, we listed all activities we will be doing (read, write, listen, draw, travel, play, enjoy, etc.), and the girls got to brainstorm "normas de convivencia", norms for the group atmosphere (respect each other, not fight, laugh, pay attention, etc.). We also did some group dynamics in order to create a playful atmosphere and get to know each other in new ways. Another exercise was "Guess what I am", in which the girls got three statements and were to guess what object these characteristics where describing (a book). I explained why books are my best friends.

Then, the four books that we are going to use in this group were presented (Cuentos de la selvaby Horacio Quiroga, Colin y los monos by Monica Zak, Ronja, la hija del bandolero by Astrid Lindgren and Alex Dogboy by Monica Zak. The main character of each book was presented in order to make them and their environment vivid and real to the girls. "Arpías", "gnomos culones" and "enanos grises" (vildvittror, rumpnissar, grådvärgar) from Ronja generated a lot of laughing in particular! The characters were all eager to tell their stories to the girls, and the girls were all eager to get to know more!

One story in Cuentos de la selva ("Las medias de los flamencos") was read in the end of the workshop, and then discussed. All participants were listening carefully, and they all seemed to really enjoy the story. The discussion afterwards focused on animals and the environment. "Why should we respect animals?" one of the girls asked. "Because animals have the same feelings as humans" another girl responded.

Lastly, the girls got paper and pencil and answered some evaluation questions. What did you like most today? What did you like less? Do you like reading books? Why/why not? What do you want to do next time? Most paticipants answered that they liked everything, disliked nothing, that they do like reading books because it is fun/they learn from it/books are like friends, and that they want to draw next time!

The written evaluations are, of course, extremely important to us, and will be a permanent element of each workshop. They reflect not only the thoughts and development in reflection of each participant, but also the level of writing and spelling skills etc.

Next Friday, we will start working with the book Colin y los monos, and we will also interview each girl individually in order to get to know them and the group profile better. Hopefully, we will also start working with the other group (13-15 years old, mixed boys and girls) next week. That other school is situated in a more remote urban area, with higher degrees of violence and the presence of criminal gangs, so it will be very interesting for the project but also a bit trickier for practical reasons.

*The Palacio tecleño de la cultura y las artes is sort of a town hall, governed by the mayor and the local government of Santa Tecla, where cutural events and workshops such as movie shows, concerts and guitar lessons are arranged. It is open to everyone from early morning to late at night, and the café offers really good capuccino which you can enjoy at a table outside at the pavement or inside just beside the open patio. This is a kind of place you rarely find in El Salvador. Culture, for most Salvadorans, means US American films and music, and those in power have done very little in order to promote a more varied cultural arena. However, there are positive examples, like that of Santa Tecla, and one can see that the general political discourse is prioritizing culture more now than ever before.

Towards a less polarized future?

The historic election in El Salvador finally came to an end on the past Sunday 15th. After a year of campaigning, every single corner of the country covered in party colors, after all the fear, the lies, the accusations from both sides, the dirty battle is over and another kind of struggle is about to begin. Half of the population is now in a state of deep happiness and hope, whereas the other half is disappointed, worried and fearful. Both sides feel the way they do for perfectly rational reasons. As a foreign observer, what are my feelings this first week after the leftish FMLN leader Mauricio Funes won the presidency with just over 51 percent of the votes?

On election day, I was observing the process in the country’s biggest voting center, La Feria Internacional, in San Salvador. What I saw gave me so much hope and faith in the Salvadoran people, a people that I have admired from the first time I set foot in the country. The atmosphere at the voting tables, each group consisting of two ARENA representatives and two FMLN representatives with alternate members, showed a spirit of professionalism, mutual respect, dialogue and co-operation. I watched them working in favor of the process rather than of their respective party. I watched thousands of voters come and go, so proud and happy to participate. And when the result came, no revanchism, no acts of violence. I have never felt so safe walking the streets of San Salvador as I did when I left the voting center after counting the votes on Sunday night.

Of course, the election had its problems and irregularities. Sadly, some rumors of fraud showed to be true, like that of foreigners being brought to El Salvador to vote under the identity of dead citizens, and that of employers forcing their employees to take a photo of their ballot with the “correct” party flag marked. But many errors were also committed by the voting facilitators because of inadequate training rather than of bad intentions. The process, furthermore, had its flaws, like messy citizen registers and denying the millions of Salvadorans living abroad the right to vote.

Nonetheless, on the night after the election, it seemed that both parties had matured ages in just a couple of hours. I am thinking that five years from now, in the next presidential election, maybe the Salvadoran people will finally be represented by political parties worthy their confidence. By politicians who are able to match their intelligence, pragmatism and honesty. I truly hope so, because no matter the political affiliation in the election on the past March 15th, those are the outstanding characteristics of the Salvadoran citizen.

So, as an international observer and a Swede with many beloved happy, hopeful, disappointed, worried and fearful Salvadoran friends, I have come to the conclusion that the strength of this society is that complexity finally will win over polarization. The best of ARENA will make sure to drag out the worst of FMLN, and the best of FMLN will help forcing ARENA’s transformation. Because if there is one thing that the seemingly divided Salvadoran people would agree on, it is that both these transformations are indispensable for the welfare of their extraordinary “paísito”.