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What Makes a Successful Minerva Teacher? x
Flexibility In Honduras, punctuality and reliability are hard to come by; one has to be prepared, but also prepared to change. What happens when the copies ǯ ǫ when students are unprepared for class? When met with complications, successful Minerva teachers are able to easily roll with the punches. x Creativity
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ǯ learn much. This is something we strive to avoid at Minerva. Whether teaching third graders or 17-‐year-‐old seniors, teachers need to strive to provide creative lessons each and every class. Creativity also affects the way that teachers handle both problems and achievement. Minervaǯ teachers come to each class ǯdesires to learn and succeed. x Self-‐Motivation At the end of the day your lesson plans and your grading load depends on you. Successful teachers are able to push themselves to achieve along with their students, and they can work seven hours a day without the administration looking over their shoulders. With this responsibility comes the freedom to mold each classroom in the way that best fits the unique class. x Patience Successful Minerva teachers are exceedingly patient. Not only do they work with children, but they are also working with children who may not speak English proficiently. Plus, the cultural expectations and standards for students in Honduras are vastly different from those in the United States. Teachers at Minerva are ǯ
intenance and discipline. Teachers should also expect their lesson plans to move along slower than expected. Everything happens in due time in Gracias, but due time might be later than you first thought. x Passion Minerva desires international teachers to revel in the subjects they teach and the students they mentor. When a teacher is passionate about the material, it makes it exponentially easier for the students to be excited to learn. Achievement starts with the teacher and ends with the student. x Support Not every student is going to work hard and participate in class, and for those that struggle there must be a supportive teacher waiting to help them, inside and outside of the school day. Successful Minerva teachers are be available for after-‐
ǯǤ students will be candid about their need for help while others will try and hide it as
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best they can, and in both scenarios a Minerva teacher needs to be ready and willing to not only find the problem, but also solve it. x Confidence At Minerva, our international teachers are confident and outgoing individuals who are able to speak their mind and are willing to do so. The job of a teacher puts one on stage all day, every day, and this requires extraordinary poise. Minerva teachers are not only assured in their ability to manage a classroom, but they have fun doing it. x Organization While life in Honduras may, at times, feel very unorganized, the classrooms and teachers at Minerva always stay organized. Part of running a successful classroom is making sure that lessons are planned and methodical, especially when working with the younger students. Each teacher at Minerva is expected to organize class assignments
ǯ and success.
A Typical Day at Minerva Bilingual School
Teachers arrive at school by 7:20 AM. While school does not officially start until 7:50, it is important for the teachers to get to school ahead of the students. Your time in the morning is your own: read, prepare for the ǯ
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about their weekend plans. At 7:50 there are devotionals. Led by a different teacher on a rotating schedule each week, the devotional is a quick biblical lesson and prayer for the whole student body. It is then followed by announcements from the administration. By 8 AM, the school day has begun. In Secondary School (7th grade Ȃ 11th grade), classes are forty minutes long with no breaks in between. Due to the limited amount of classrooms, the students stay in their own room throughout the day while the teachers circulate
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between rooms to administer their classes. If a teacher does not have a class during a certain period, they are free to prepare for another class, grade assignments, or even take a nap. There are 9 class periods per day, not including recess and lunch. There is a 15-‐minute recess at 9:45 for the Primary School (1-‐6th grade) and 10 AM for the Secondary School. Students are free to play or eat during that time, and the teachers are expected to keep an eye on the students and manage the grounds. But, if you want to join a pickup game of soccer, you are more than welcome. Lunch is at 12:00 PM for Primary and 12:15 PM for Secondary, and it lasts 45 minutes. The same rules apply to lunch as do recess: students are free to play outside or inside the classrooms while the teachers supervise (and eat their own lunch, of course.) Lunch is a key break in the day to stretch ones legs and socialize with the students in a way one cannot do during class. Snacks are available for purchase at the school gate. The school day ends for Primary at 2:10 PM and for Secondary at 3 PM. It is important that at the end of the day the students are not set free before the final bell rings. In order to keep the transportation of students out of school as organized as possible, it is essential that teachers keep their students in line. This also goes for recess and any time between classes: it is expected that students stay in their rooms so as to not disturb other classes. The bell does not sound in between classes, so it is up to the teachers to keep track of their schedule. The only exception to the schedule is Friday. On Fridays, each class period is shortened by five minutes to allow for a chapel service during the first 35 minutes of the day called ǮHora Civica.ǯ During this time the student body gathers outside to recite the national anthem, prayers, and other songs, along with receiving a biblical message from a local pastor. As with the devotional each morning, the teachers attend and manage the students, keeping an eye out for talking or other distractions.
Teaching at a Bilingual School
The Minerva Bilingual School prides itself on an education that prepares students to be active, responsible, and accomplished members of society. Part of this process includes a substantial and consistent education in the English language. By the time a student graduates, he or she is expected to be conversationally and
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academically fluent, the hope being that they will thrive in an English-‐speaking university after graduating from Minerva. But, while this is the goal, the realities for individual students vary. Each ǯ English ability is dependent on many factors; including how long they have been at Minerva, how well they succeeded in the Nivelación class, their home life, and their personal work ethic. These variables mean that students at Minerva speak English with many different degrees of fluency, adding a layer of difficulty to properly teaching them other subjects. The Minerva Bilingual School has been open since 2006, and each year the grades become more cohesive and the standards for English ability become better realized. When a student wants to join Minerva but does not know English, they join the Nivelación class for 6 months. This class is an English-‐ intensive regiment of study where students learn English for the full school day, every day of the week. Upon completion of the course it is expected that students will be able to function and succeed in their respective grades in classes taught completely in English. For those students who already know English, the classes at Minerva are only taught in English. The exceptions are Spanish classes, Honduran History, Art, Music, and Gym. These classes are taught by Honduran teachers. The international teaching staff handles the English-‐speaking classes, which run the full gambit of a private school curriculum, from Literature, to Science, to Algebra, and Sociology. Because of the varying levels of English fluency, teaching at Minerva requires patience and creativity. Not every student may understand your lectures at the same pace, and not every student will be able to write essays with the same level of comprehension. This takes time to understand and utilize for their benefit. Classes need not focus on teaching English to students, but rather on the material at hand. Still, there will be times when students will need assistance speaking or writing in English. Understandably, this process can sometimes be frustrating, especially when it slows the progress of a class as a whole. Where there are issues, however, there are also opportunities for growth and accomplishment. The Minerva Bilingual School | International Teacher Informational Packet
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ǯ order to support their academic progress. We care so much for our students, and it is heartbreaking to see students held back by a language barrier. As a teacher at Minerva, you are not expected to be fluent in Spanish, and you are expected to not tolerate the use of Spanish during class. However, if it is helpful to use Spanish in order to facilitate a lesson, you are welcome to. The goal of fluency should always be kept in mind, and this can be fostered through consistent exposure and use of the English language. Every year Minerva grows, and every year we graduate students with a better grasp of the English language.
Living in the Developing World
Gracias is a mix of the wealthy and the poor living side by side. As opposed to the United States, there is almost no middle class in Honduras. The Minerva Bilingual School is not a cheap educational option for the children of Gracias, and many families struggle to send their children to us. ǯ
ǡ neighborhood near the school hosts both large homes and hardscrabble plots of land. Homes and businesses on the main street in town, Calle Principal, are nice and neat, but off the main drag the street conditions suffer and the quality of life deteriorates. Another part of living outside of the developed world is the fact that resources are limited and consumer goods are not as plentiful as in the United States. There are no Targets and there is no 2-‐day shipping from Amazon. While there are plenty of small shops in Gracias, certain goods can require some searching. Especially when it comes to food, some items are simply not available in Gracias or the surrounding area, such as dark chocolate and spinach. Being able to understand and appreciate Latin American culture is integral to successfully integrating into Gracias. Men will often make comments about foreign women, especially in groups. On or around roads, pedestrians definitely do not have the right of way. There is rarely a sense of urgency about anything. With the generally laid-‐back attitude of Latin American culture comes a lifestyle that is simpler and slower-‐paced. For many teachers, this is a welcome difference from life as a professional in the U.S. One of the most important issues when working and living in the developing world is safety. One cannot ignore the dangers, but one must also not exaggerate them. The two most dangerous places in Honduras are the cities of San Pedro Sula and Tegucigalpa. Outside these metropolises there is less danger for foreigners so long as they act safely and smartly.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Can family and friends visit me in Gracias? Yes! Although Gracias itself is a small town, we do have a few options for nice accommodations and entertainment for visiting family and friends. Visitors can hike on Mount Celaque, enjoy the hot springs, or visit the ǯǤ Will I have a mailing address? Ǥ
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up from the local post office. The address is: Minerva Bilingual SchoolȄ
ǯ Bo. Rosario Fundena Gracias, Lempira, Honduras What clothing should I bring? Does the school have a dress code? The school does not have a dress code, and dress is relatively informal. For women, jeans and longer skirts are appropriate with blouses or Tees. Sandals and flip flops are OK. No shorts or short skirts (just above the knee is OK). For men, jeans or khakis with a button-‐down or polo is fine. Men must wear close-‐toed shoes. Also, pants with holes in them are unacceptable. New teachers will be given a Minerva polo, which can be worn as well. What will my living situation look like? At Minerva, the school will pay for and arrange your housing. There are several apartments near the school, as well as a few larger houses. Most likely, you will either have your own apartment in a building with other teachers, or you will have your own room in a house with other teachers. Your apartment/house will be furnished with basic amenities, including a hot water heater for your shower. The school will pay for you electricity bill. Will I have access to the internet? The school does not have computers, so all international teachers should being laptops for their school-‐related and personal work. Currently, all of the international teachers have either Wi-‐Fi or Ethernet internet in their homes, and there are several restaurants, hotels, and coffee shops in town with internet access. If you want internet access in your home, the school can help you set that up, and you and your
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roommates can share the cost. The monthly internet bill is generally L 100 Ȃ L 200 per person (USD$5 -‐ $10). How can I communicate with people back home? Many international teachers use Skype to communicate easily with friend and family in the U.S. Another option is a Magic Jack phoneȄa landline which plugs into a computer USB port. With a Magic Jack phone, you can place and receive calls to the U.S. for free using even a low internet bandwidth. Should I buy a Honduran cell phone? Most international teachers purchase an inexpensive Honduran cell phone while living here (around USD$20). The Honduran call phones operate on a payment system of saldo. Cell phone users simply buy minutes as they need them from local shops and convenience stores. Is the salary enough to provide a comfortable living in Honduras? The salary is about $350 a month, which is sufficient to live comfortably here. Many international teachers do not need to use personal money after their first paycheck (although taking longer trips on vacations usually requires more money than what your paycheck may afford.)The school pays for housing, electricity, and visa expenses. The school does not cover your flight. Although you certainly will not have all of the creature comforts of life in the U.S., most international teachers are completely comfortable here. What kind of vacations and time off will I get? The calendar of Honduras includes several smaller holidays which give students and teachers a handful of long weekends throughout the year. Concerning longer vacations, international teachers can expect 3-‐4 days off from school for Thanksgiving, about 3 weeks off for Christmas break, and a full week off for Semana Santa (Holy Week), the wee preceding Easter. The Minerva Bilingual School | International Teacher Informational Packet
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ǫ On the evenings or weekends when ǯǡ
often find themselves getting caught up on grading or planning for class. If not, they usually hang out with other teachers at a local bar or restaurant, or they often have movie nights. There are a few quaint villages nearby so visiting them for a day is always fun. Minerva lies at the base of a national park, so there are a few hiking trails nearby. Also, teachers sometimes hang out at the hot springs just outside of town. Will I be able to travel on the weekends? Although travelling is an important part of the experience here at Minerva, the priority is providing the best education possible to our students. Because of this, it is recommended that international teachers spend the majority of their short weekends preparing for class. There are several nearby towns like Santa Rosa and La Campa that are good for a short day-‐trip. Long weekends are the perfect opportunity for more travelling! International teachers take trips to other places in Honduras, Guatemala or El Salvador. Do I need to speak Spanish to teach at Minerva? Spanish is definitely not necessary for the job (as all classes are taught in English), but you will definitely get a lot of practice here! People generally do not speak English in Gracias, so there are many opportunities to use Spanish in your daily life. Will I be able to take Spanish classes? The school will also be able to arrange Spanish classes here in town for any international teachers interested in studying Spanish more formally. The cost of these classes will depend on the number of international teachers participating. Is Gracias safe? Although Honduras has some very unsafe areas, most international teachers have never felt threatened in Gracias. Gracias, Lempira is in a small, laid-‐back town. Most teachers feel comfortable walking around alone, even in the evenings. Gracias is very quiet and calm compared to the bigger cities in Honduras, and safety is generally not an issue.
The Minerva Bilingual School | International Teacher Informational Packet