I took roughly three years of gen. ed. :-(
For the last two weeks now, I have been staying in Monica's house in the town of Los Samanes (about 45 minutes away from El Recreo, in the city of Guayaquil). Before coming down to Ecuador, I was put in contact with some missionaries here in Guayaquil who have been very helpful in this quest for information. They arranged with Monica (who attends a church they work with here in Los Samanes) for me to stay with her a while while I do some research.
I have been able to find out a ton about the school system here, both at the university level and the high school level. Here is some of the information I have discovered:
There are six universities in Guayaquil. The one that our students from El Recreo attend is the University of Guayaquil, the equivalent of a state college. The other schools are private universities and are much more expensive, so I have limited my research to just the University of Guayaquil since that's the one we'll be dealing with. Students who attend the other universities more than likely don't need the financial help.
Last year in September, President Rafael Correa proposed a new constitution for the country and the citizens voted a big Yes to put it into effect. One change that has come along with that constitution is that education is now supposedly "free" for all students. The University of Guayaquil is the only school so far to implement this change. All students who enroll now do not have to pay tuition, however they do still pay for all materials, transportation, books, etc. They begin by enrolling in the Pre-Universitario which is basically a two-month long entrance exam. They have to take classes for two weeks at a time on various subjects depending on their major, and then each class is followed by an exam. They must pass the Pre with a grade average of 7.0 (their grading system is a little different-their scores are all out of 10, not 100. And they don't do "grade points" like we do. Why do we do grade points anyway?). If they pass with the 7.0 or higher, they can enroll in the first year of their major. Most majors are 4-5 years long. The first two years are all lower-division and the last 2-3 years are the upper-division classes. They basically do all thier general education during the Pre-Universitario. The last year of their education (for all majors) is spent doing a thesis involving some kind of internship and huge paper. Once they finish their thesis, they will have a degree in their major.
The free education is really more like a scholarship. How it works is that they basically get one chance for the free education. If their grade average drops below 7.0, then they have to begin paying tuition. Also, if they switch majors and start over again with a different Pre-Universitario, they must pay tuition. That's what happened with our friend, Gabriel. He started off studying computer engineering and after a while he switched to basic education. He now pays $30 a month in tuition and is not sure yet if that number increases with each year of study.
From what I understand, now that there are more students taking advantage of the free education, the professors are making it more difficult to pass the Pre. This, in my opinion is good. If it's harder to pass, then the students who do pass are obviously the students who want to be there. I'd rather be in a class full of students who want to be there than a class full of students who are just wasting everybody's time. However, part of the student commitment in the University Project program is to maintain the 7.0 grade average in order to continue receiving support. I think we'll need to take into consideration the increased difficulty in the classes and take it on a case-by-case basis if students in the program should have trouble maintaining the average.
Like our system, each major (carrera) is part of a larger department (facultad). Unlike our system, each department is basically its own school. Each department has its own building and the students whose majors are in that department don’t have classes in any other building than that one. So, for example, basic education (which Gabriel studies...we will be looking for a sponsor for him soon) and kindergarten education (Karen's major...she is already sponsored), both are in the Department of Philosophy and Arts, but they are completely separate majors. Unlike our system, students here in one major will never take classes with students in a different major. So Karen and Gabriel, even though they study in the same department, will never be able to take the same classes at the same times. That's kind of a bummer because it's always fun to take classes with your friends. Also, students in the same major but in different years will never take the same classes at the same times either. That is because the school determines a student’s schedule. Unlike our schools, where we choose our classes and our schedules each semester, the only choice these students have is whether they study in the morning or in the afternoon. (And even in some departments, they don’t really have that choice either. For example, in the science, math, and physics department (where Ismael studies), in order to study in the afternoon/evening, you have to bring a note from your job (which I believe is the only acceptable excuse) that says you are unable to study in the morning. Otherwise, the department gives each student their schedule for each semester and they can either take it or leave it. Not much in the way of flexibility…but I suppose on the upside, at least it’s a guarantee that each student will graduate within the amount of time that their studies are supposed to last. Michele, how long were you in school for your bachelor's degree again? Was it six years, like me? :-)
Well, my quest for information continues. What other questions would you ask? Let me know, your questions will help me!
Thank you for your prayers for Jomayra. She and I are meeting together on Wednesdays at 11 to do a Bible study. Please keep her in your prayers!
I have been able to find out a ton about the school system here, both at the university level and the high school level. Here is some of the information I have discovered:
There are six universities in Guayaquil. The one that our students from El Recreo attend is the University of Guayaquil, the equivalent of a state college. The other schools are private universities and are much more expensive, so I have limited my research to just the University of Guayaquil since that's the one we'll be dealing with. Students who attend the other universities more than likely don't need the financial help.
Last year in September, President Rafael Correa proposed a new constitution for the country and the citizens voted a big Yes to put it into effect. One change that has come along with that constitution is that education is now supposedly "free" for all students. The University of Guayaquil is the only school so far to implement this change. All students who enroll now do not have to pay tuition, however they do still pay for all materials, transportation, books, etc. They begin by enrolling in the Pre-Universitario which is basically a two-month long entrance exam. They have to take classes for two weeks at a time on various subjects depending on their major, and then each class is followed by an exam. They must pass the Pre with a grade average of 7.0 (their grading system is a little different-their scores are all out of 10, not 100. And they don't do "grade points" like we do. Why do we do grade points anyway?). If they pass with the 7.0 or higher, they can enroll in the first year of their major. Most majors are 4-5 years long. The first two years are all lower-division and the last 2-3 years are the upper-division classes. They basically do all thier general education during the Pre-Universitario. The last year of their education (for all majors) is spent doing a thesis involving some kind of internship and huge paper. Once they finish their thesis, they will have a degree in their major.
The free education is really more like a scholarship. How it works is that they basically get one chance for the free education. If their grade average drops below 7.0, then they have to begin paying tuition. Also, if they switch majors and start over again with a different Pre-Universitario, they must pay tuition. That's what happened with our friend, Gabriel. He started off studying computer engineering and after a while he switched to basic education. He now pays $30 a month in tuition and is not sure yet if that number increases with each year of study.
From what I understand, now that there are more students taking advantage of the free education, the professors are making it more difficult to pass the Pre. This, in my opinion is good. If it's harder to pass, then the students who do pass are obviously the students who want to be there. I'd rather be in a class full of students who want to be there than a class full of students who are just wasting everybody's time. However, part of the student commitment in the University Project program is to maintain the 7.0 grade average in order to continue receiving support. I think we'll need to take into consideration the increased difficulty in the classes and take it on a case-by-case basis if students in the program should have trouble maintaining the average.
Like our system, each major (carrera) is part of a larger department (facultad). Unlike our system, each department is basically its own school. Each department has its own building and the students whose majors are in that department don’t have classes in any other building than that one. So, for example, basic education (which Gabriel studies...we will be looking for a sponsor for him soon) and kindergarten education (Karen's major...she is already sponsored), both are in the Department of Philosophy and Arts, but they are completely separate majors. Unlike our system, students here in one major will never take classes with students in a different major. So Karen and Gabriel, even though they study in the same department, will never be able to take the same classes at the same times. That's kind of a bummer because it's always fun to take classes with your friends. Also, students in the same major but in different years will never take the same classes at the same times either. That is because the school determines a student’s schedule. Unlike our schools, where we choose our classes and our schedules each semester, the only choice these students have is whether they study in the morning or in the afternoon. (And even in some departments, they don’t really have that choice either. For example, in the science, math, and physics department (where Ismael studies), in order to study in the afternoon/evening, you have to bring a note from your job (which I believe is the only acceptable excuse) that says you are unable to study in the morning. Otherwise, the department gives each student their schedule for each semester and they can either take it or leave it. Not much in the way of flexibility…but I suppose on the upside, at least it’s a guarantee that each student will graduate within the amount of time that their studies are supposed to last. Michele, how long were you in school for your bachelor's degree again? Was it six years, like me? :-)
Well, my quest for information continues. What other questions would you ask? Let me know, your questions will help me!
Thank you for your prayers for Jomayra. She and I are meeting together on Wednesdays at 11 to do a Bible study. Please keep her in your prayers!
posted by Amy at 9:09 AM
2 Comments:
The school system does sound a lot like how a lot of American graduate level education is organized, or how European schooling is organized. Very specialized (you study only within a school/college, ie that of Math, Psych, etc.), highly scheduled, and with a final year of manuscript preparation and practical experience.
Anyway, you have my prayers that God continues to call J. and that he continues to bless you with courage and perseverance.
Besides the point system, having your schedule handed to you is how I did it. Grant you I went to a career college, but it was nice not worrying too much about what classes I had to take, just pick up the schedule. Yes, and I do agree with you Amy, what's the point of the GPA? I graduated with honors (3.90) and still can't find a job. What I like, is that they do internships as part of the program, that is a huge help. Now you mentioned about certain majors being morning or afternoon and needing to get a note from your doctor... er from you job to go to afternoon classes. Maybe that's what I can do, graphically design these notes for them. Anyway, what happens if someone can't get a note and misses a term? Do they then have to pay as if they changed majors? Are they allowed to duel major? Are there any majors where they could study abroad? And for all the guys, no that doesn't mean the study of women! I failed that a long time ago and have been waiting for that class to be taught again. *LOL* Now in your research for this, what are the jobs that have the likelihood of growing? For example a friend of my dad, his son graduated with a Master's in Library Science and can't find a job in that field. While an education is good, I think if I was going to help someone through college it'd make me feel better if they were studying in a major that was relevant to the real world. Have you thought about giving the money to certain majors. I know that sounds mean possibly, but I think for their benefit towards a major where they can actually do something with it. There are certain majors that will be better off for a person. I'm thinking at 2:07 AM, so if it's not coherent then ignore it... then again, am I coherent?
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