Schools in Peru are still closed, and will finish out the school year (in December) this way. As you might imagine, that has affected the way we train teachers through Living Libraries. Despite a great learning curve for virtual training, I asked our team—Lucía, Nancy, and Julié—to share some specific stories of teachers who have grown throughout this year, and what they shared is encouraging.
As a reminder, we are Living Libraries, a branch of the Christian Urban Development Association’s work in Arequipa, Peru aiming to break cycles of urban poverty and make way for justice, wellbeing, and joy in the city we love. We put a library in public schools where there were previously no children’s books, and train the teachers with reading comprehension strategies over the course of two years to get that school ready to function on its own with a reading program. We do this because we believe that when the kingdom of Jesus the Messiah comes into a community things get better. We believe that faith in Jesus leads to loving your neighbor in sustainable ways that make a community stronger and more able to participate in peace and reconciliation in a community. Learning to understand what you read is vital for the wellbeing of a community. Through the ups and downs of this year’s unique challenges, we’re as committed as ever to the tough work of making a sustainable impact, and we thank so many of you who are a part of this.
From Lucia:
Without a doubt “challenge accepted” is a constant in first grade Professor Maribel from John G Lake. For more than a year she has not stopped surpassing her own expectations, reinventing herself with every opportunity that the Living Libraries project gives her. She has a sense of urgency when it comes to enriching her strengths. She has sown in her children a strong desire to know how to learn. And she has effectively used the reading comprehension strategies that she was taught to stimulate intellectual development.
We have a new teacher this year, commented the principal of John G Lake school. Her name is Rosalía, and she has taken over the fifth grade of the elementary school. Rosalía showed a determination and disposition from the beginning to catch up with the other teachers with a great desire to learn. She faced something new with Living Libraries, and has had to work hard to get up to speed and understand the purpose of each of the comprehension strategies that we’ve shared. Today she manages the strategies with the confidence and composure of someone who has been empowered with practical knowledge.
From Nancy:
Elizabeth is a teacher that, similarly to all her colleagues, has had to face technology without being prepared. And on top of everything she has faced is also the challenge of being part of the Living Libraries program. This has required a great deal of effort and dedication.
In June she lost her parents because of the pandemic and she herself got sick. These have been some very difficult months for her health, but this has not damaged her hard work, her enthusiasm, and responsibility. Even when complications arose, which were reasons for us to be more flexible with what we ask for in the program, she fulfilled her obligations and has carried on. She is an example for us, she has given us strength and the will to continue on. She is still recovering, but talking with her and seeing her effort and love for her students, she shows us that every sacrifice is valid in order to improve the life of the boys and girls through their valuable teachers.
From Julié (who asked a teacher about the year):
Luz said: “Before, I knew a bit about the strategies but I know that I didn’t apply them as I should. One example was that I didn’t know how to infer, since I did it right away with my kids without considering the difference between inference and making predictions. These are abilities that one has to learn in order to discover clues and metacognitive bases.”
“Furthermore, the metacognitive bases have also helped build new knowledge in my students which has enabled them to express themselves more easily, helped them to understand and infer in the text and that the teacher guide them more easily, more quickly and efficiently.”
“Thank you, Living Libraries, I feel much more at peace knowing that I can help many more kids understand the texts that they read and share this with other colleagues who have also been anxious to learn things as I have been. Thank you.”
One more thing.
We are thrilled to share that CUDA's Microfinance program is experiencing resurrection! The situation is less than ideal: some of the city's most vulnerable took the hardest hit because of the pandemic and the economic collapse that went along with it. Through some of your spontaneous gifts we (the Daggetts) been able to provide blankets and bags of food for about forty families in desperate situations. This is relief work. We have a dear friend, Johan, who has been the link to make sure this food gets to the families who need it most. As the situation has advanced and parts of the economy have been able to open back up, God aligned conversations, financing, and opportunities with Paty and Johan to start our micro-lending and business and personal finance trading program up—and we are now working with 4 women and their small businesses!
There is much more to share about this, and it looks like this is going to be a big part of our 2021. I ask for two things: 1) Will you pray for Arequipa's most vulnerable to come to know Jesus and what it is like to be a part of a kingdom of justice, wellbeing, and joy? 2) Will you consider giving to CUDA? Hold off on making the donation for now if you’d like, I’ll be giving out more details soon. But please start setting aside what you may be able give for our 2021—we will need all the help we can get.