A Discussion with Elmer Eriberto Castro Rodriguez, Teacher, Nueva Trinidad, El Salvador

With: Elmer Eriberto Castro Rodriguez Berkley Center Profile

July 1, 2011

Background: As part of the Education and Global Social Justice Project, in July 2011 undergraduate student Codie Kane interviewed Elmer Eriberto Castro Rodriguez, a school teacher in Nueva Trinidad, El Salvador. In this interview, Castro Rodriguez discusses the disparities in education between rural and urban communities in El Salvador, the needs of the education system in Nueva Trinidad, and the close connections between teachers and students at his school.

Tell me about your experience as a teacher. How did you arrive at your present career?

I’m from San Juan, Chalatenango. I went to elementary, middle, and high school there during the civil war. After the peace accords were signed, a satellite university opened in Nueva Concepcion, a small city in the Chalatenango region. I was forced to decide between going there and going to a university in San Salvador. I ultimately decided to take classes in Nueva Concepcion. Though the two cities were the same distance from my house, Nueva Concepcion was easier to reach. I could get there without leaving the department, which was almost impossible at that time due to its extreme isolation.

Attending university was a huge sacrifice because it was so far from my home. I traveled two hours there and two hours back every day. The afternoons were the most trying because, unlike the mornings, there was no bus service. When we got out of school at 5:00 p.m., the other students and I began walking, hoping we’d find a ride. Sometimes we’d go for hours without encountering anyone. Once we reached a certain point, we had to separate and continue on foot to get home. I had to walk about 10 kilometers alone. Because El Salvador was just coming out of a civil war, this was extremely dangerous. I never knew if I would run into some kind of danger, if I would be held up, or even killed. I usually got home at 9:00 p.m. or 10:00 p.m. at night and then woke up at 4:00 a.m. in the morning. In between that time, I had to do homework.

On top of this, I also had to negotiate paying for university. There were no scholarships available to me. I had to figure out how to afford both tuition and transportation myself.

After graduating, I got my first job in a town near Nueva Concepcion. Later, I switched to working in Los Pozos. It’s closer to where I live, San Juan, but still quite a distance. I can’t go home every day, so I have to live here during the week. I’m only able to see my wife and daughter on weekends.

Describe to me the state of education in Los Pozos from your point of view. What are the positive aspects? What are the challenges?

The major challenge we face in Los Pozos is bringing the school up to par so it can compete with others. We are not at the same level as the rest of the country. When students leave here and go to high school or university, they struggle. They are unprepared because we don’t have the tools to provide them with a rigorous, complete academic experience. We are able to teach the students theory, but we do not have the resources to show them how theory is put into practice. We must teach them about laboratory work without a science lab, for example, and information technology without a computer. They have a less enriching, memorable academic life because they are forced to rely on lecture alone.

The Ministry of Education more or less ignores this issue. It has implemented a national education plan, the Educational Plan of El Salvador, which works to standardize education and treat all schools in the same manner. In doing so, it disregards the fact that all schools in this country are not equal. Rural schools, like the school in Los Pozos, have significantly fewer resources than schools in urban areas. They are often prohibited from implementing educational policies because they do not have the materials or funding to do so. This divide is exacerbated by the government’s tendency to offer extra assistance to urban schools more than their rural counterparts. It rarely implements special projects in schools like Los Pozos, focusing instead on those that already have sufficient support.

How do you compensate for this?

We have to turn to other institutions. We are supported by the mayor’s office, the Church, and Spanish and American NGOs. For example, none of these school buildings came from the Ministry of Education. A community in Spain donated the preschool building. An NGO donated the money for the new bathrooms that are going to be constructed.

Let’s go back to the positive aspects now.

All situations have their disadvantages and advantages. Though Los Pozos may be lacking in materials, it has a very positive school culture. Teachers and students have similar backgrounds and come from approximately the same socioeconomic class. As a result, we are very egalitarian. We have strong relationships. The other teachers and I tend to connect better with our students than our counterparts in urban areas. We encourage them to give opinions in class and discuss things with them frankly. We’re able to get involved in their lives and help them as people. Fatherless households, for example, are becoming more and more prevalent in El Salvador. Because we know our students so well, we can offer those who live in them significant support, helping to compensate for what they don’t have.

Personally, I feel like I can talk with kids about their feelings, their role as family members, and their role as students. I can have a positive influence on them.

Have you seen that education here has improved recently?

Education has improved, but students still face great challenges. Once they graduate ninth grade, they must go to a different town for high school. Most decide to go to Las Flores. To get there every day, they have to either catch the bus in the neighboring town, Carasque, or walk along a path by the river. Carasque is far, while the river is incredibly dangerous in the winter. Their lives don’t get easier after graduation, however. For university, they must travel to San Salvador. This is not only distant, dangerous, and expensive, but also entails a culture shock as they adjust to the urban environment.

What does it need, then, to progress further?

The school has various concrete needs that must be met before education can truly improve. It must have better infrastructure, for example. The current buildings here aren’t suitable for learning. It also needs a more extensive library. What we now call our library has no research books. It doesn’t have a single adequate encyclopedia. If we want the students to do research, we have to make photocopies from books of our own or books from libraries in other cities. This comes at a cost to us, but we pay it because we know that the ability to do independent research in books is essential.

The school at which I worked previously faced the same challenges. It was located in a rural, poor community and, consequently, neglected by the Ministry of Education and other institutional channels of support. When I changed jobs, I left almost all of my own books there. They had almost no written materials, and I felt obligated to help in some way.

The irony is that all resources in this country go to places that already have them. When someone donates a computer, it always seems to be sent to a school that already has one. They get to throw out their old model and keep the new one. Los Pozos and other similar communities are left with nothing.

What’s the future of education here? What’s your idea of an ideal future?

People are finally beginning to leave this area to pursue higher education. They’re becoming professionals and, at the same time, carry in their heart love for where they came from. With their jobs, they can help their family, their community, and their country. I think and hope that this phenomenon, education for the purpose of improving one’s place of origin, is the future.

What motivates you in your work?

Before I was married, I wanted to help people. I taught because I wanted to shape children into good citizens. Now, I have a family, a wife and a daughter, and my motivations have changed slightly. I want to be an example for them. When my daughter asks me for help, I want to be able to offer it. I feel similarly about my students. I want them to know that someone is worried about them, that they’re not alone. So many families disintegrated during the war. I want to help make up for this.

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