Children & Teachers Return to School in Guatemala

Maria Elena López, a second grade GLXi-certified teacher at Escuela Oficial Rural Mixta Caserio Nuevo Egipto, San Marcos, teaches her students in the first weeks of school.

One school doesn’t have electricity or clean water. Another doesn’t have enough desks for all the students. Most schools don’t have enough books for all the children.

Still, no matter the hardships, the children of Guatemala were overjoyed at the chance to be back at school.

For two years, Guatemalan children have had little interaction with their teachers and classmates.

Since most Global Learning Exchange Initiative (GLXi) students don’t have access to technology, e-learning was nearly impossible. Students struggled to learn from sheet guides provided for at-home study, with little access to supplies, technology, and guidance.

Finally, on February 21, students and teachers were able to return to the classroom. By all accounts, it was a triumphant day of reunion.

“The return to school is a moment of great joy and excitement as we are all starting a school year together in which we can share 100% in person,” said Miriam Lisseth Reyes de De León, a GLXi-certified second grade teacher at Escuela Oficial Rural Mixta Aldea Pachali, Santiago Sacatepéquez.

GLXi has been preparing for this day - working with teachers to give them the training, resources and tools they need to teach in the classroom.

While the mood is happy in the classrooms that boast GLXi-certified teachers, there are obstacles to face in the coming months.

Limited Resources in the Classroom

In the public schools of Guatemala where GLXi-certified teachers work, the resources are not proportional to the number of students - or evenly distributed across all regions. Each school must seek external support to meet its own needs.

The National Education System has been working hard on resolving the crisis of having children at home. And while they succeeded in getting students back into the classroom in 2023, there was no plan or preparation for furniture, classroom painting, or educational resources for the children.

The result: Some schools don’t have enough desks for all the students; others scarcely have enough books to go around.

“The need is great, in my school I have 28 children but only 19 desks: it's very unfortunate,” said Maria Elena López, a second grade GLXi-certified teacher at Escuela Oficial Rural Mixta Caserio Nuevo Egipto, San Marcos.

At López’s school, they don’t even have electricity or clean water. In other schools, there are problems with lights, paint and infrastructure.

Space is also an issue as schools will continue to receive children even if the space is not designed for the actual number of students in each classroom.

“Schools that do not have complete furniture must attend to children in the best possible way, understanding the situation, but also treating everyone equally with the same opportunities,” said Jaime Vielman, GLXi Executive Director – Guatemala.

While some of these issues are currently beyond our reach, GLXi is making a difference here - with your help. Teachers say the impact of GLXi’s work is felt daily through teacher training and the distribution of teaching materials, such as physical and digital books to support reading, school supplies, and technological resources.

“The children have the school supplies we requested, but we limit ourselves to asking for what is necessary,” Reyes de De León said. “It would be fantastic to have materials that could make their learning more creative. GLXi's books are definitely a great help in promoting my students' love for reading.”

“GLXi's book library and school supplies have been very helpful,” López added.

Addressing Setbacks from At-Home Learning

The last three years have taught teachers and parents in Guatemala many lessons - perhaps the most important is that in-person learning is essential to providing better educational outcomes for children.

While families tried their best to provide at-home education during the pandemic, many parents worked, and did not have the time or resources to teach their children or participate actively in online learning. 

Even the most supportive parents are not trained teachers. They do not have the training or techniques to exercise children's fluency and comprehension.

Teachers understand this and came into the 2023 school year prepared to work with students to help address educational setbacks in recent years.

“The reality is that there is a significant delay in children's learning and in the way they establish relationships with each other,” Vielman said. “Fortunately, GLXi classrooms are better equipped or prepared due to the interest and creativity shown by teachers trained in Open Books, Open Minds program.”

Many children in the Guatemalan public education system live in impoverished neighborhoods. Not only are their educational opportunities limited - but in-person schooling is often the one place where they are guaranteed a meal.

For López, who works in a particularly poverty-stricken area, the delays are striking.

“The children I received definitely come in at zero,” she said. But the setbacks were not as striking for Reyes de León.

“I believe that as a school in Pachalí, we gave a lot of dedication and commitment to our children, and most parents supported their children,” Reyes de De León said. “I wouldn't say that we are behind because we always took care to not only send self-learning guides that the Evaluation Committee reviewed, but also sent a video every week where the teacher explained the most important topics.”

Silver Linings

The pandemic caused many hardships, but there were a few positive outcomes, including a better understanding between parents and teachers.

To maintain ongoing education for the children, teachers relied on the participation and support of parents at home. Despite time constraints from work and family responsibilities, most parents did all they could to support and reinforce their children's learning.

“In the years before the pandemic, teachers had felt somewhat distant from parents, but the experience of recent times has reminded them that the success of the teaching and learning process depends on teamwork between teachers, children, and parents,” Vielman said.

After the events of the last three years, the children and teachers also seem to be more in tune with each other.

Even in these early days of the school year, they are seizing opportunities and are perhaps even more grateful for their time together.

“It makes me think that I must give my all to achieve excellent results,” López said.

The return to classes this year also meant children were able to interact socially with each other and see their friends in person for the first time in years. At the end of the day, happy children are excited to learn.

“The children are happy, enthusiastic, and eager to dive into the content even though we are in the integration phase,” Reyes de De León agreed.

A Quick Preparation

Teachers returned to the classroom on Feb. 15, giving them just a few short days to prepare before students arrived on the 21st.

For teachers who transferred to a new school or a new grade level, this gave precious little time to plan and organize the classroom.

“It was exciting and a lot of work because I only had three days to decorate the classroom and receive my students in a suitable environment, but we managed to do it and the children were happy,” Reyes de De León said.