Day 2 Binational Initiative in Guadalajara

Today we visited a preschool in Ajijic, Jalisco. Ajijic is a town about 3 miles from the town of Chapala, part of the municipality also called Chapala, in the State of Jalisco, Mexico.

The town is very beautiful, full of vibrant colors and historical culture.

Just below where the two people are standing is the entry way to CENDI No. 5 "Vida Infantil" - our preschool visit.

Upon arrival we were greeted by the director Sofia Abril Bateman Campos. We began to tour the very small facility. Below is a look in a classroom. Once again you will notice large class sizes. Our current preschool guidelines limit 8 student per teacher.

Schools are funded through the State or Federal Government as well as parent contributions. This preschool is federally funded and has been cut back on many of the monies it is needing to continue to operate. You will notice in classrooms that storage is a problem. They have plans on building a modest storage shed but have not been able to raise the funds as of yet.

We took some time to work with the kids as they were working on their drawings.

Below are evaluation sheets that are kept in a notebook for each student. Records of how well they are developing both with the content along with social emotional and communication needs. These records are updated quarterly.

This progress recording is very similar to what we as a school do utilizing TS Gold which is a state required web based competency assessment.

Here is a snapshot of the cafeteria. Everyone has been very friendly and accommodating. The cafeteria prepared a delicious plate for each of use with fresh fruit. Yes, we even got to sit in the little chairs! :)

Below is Laura Leyva playing soccer with the kids. I think she is attempting to be the goalie.

Our Commissioner of Education Dr. Katy Anthes also tries her hand a goalie.

In the evening we were honored at a Mexican celebration. Each of the below dancers are Binational teachers who have taught both in Mexico and the US. They presented use a fabulous program of singing and dancing.

We sat down and shared a delightful meal and some very stimulating conversation. Once question that was asked was, "What would you change about the education in America?" One of the teachers talked about the overuse of technology and how students are losing traditional means to work. Example was using a calculator instead of relying on math fact fluency.

After awhile listening to the conversation, I had an "ah ha" moment. I asked myself, "If I was to invite teachers from another country, how could I provide them with a cultural experience like the one I was currently enjoying?" My answer? I don't know. I told the group that in visiting their country, I have seen a great pride for their country, their state, their school, their classrooms and even their flag. But mostly I have seen it over and over again, the pride for their culture. Living in the US, we don't have one culture to expose, we have a multitude of cultures, a melting pot, if you will. This really got me thinking about how we can better serve our students going back and forth to Mexico and what we can do to help embrace parts of the Mexican culture and embed it into our school system. The purpose is not to rid someone of their heritage and have them conform but rather embrace the fact that we are all different in so may ways and that is what makes us unique as a country. I may not be able to create a celebration based on a particular culture but we can celebrate the fact that our uniqueness's are accepted and celebrated.