ECHO 2002 Daily Diary  
Columbia Education Center
ECHO 2002
DAILY DIARY
August 5, 2002

Today's ECHO activities brought to you by


Team "Liberty Spuds"

Jim Harper
Yohandre Suarez
Linda Nolevanko

 

Recess at Colegio del Sol

 Private Education in Paraguay
It's heartening to see that kids still act like kids, even way down here in the heart of South America. This morning we observed classes (and recess) at the 500-student, PreK-12 school "Colegio del Sol" in Asuncion. The English class for 13-14 year-olds even treated us to a performance of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. This school uses a humanistic curriculum and promotes consciousness raising through voluntary and compulsory community activities. The school boasts an incredible 100% college enrollment rate.

Liberty Spuds in Action!
Yohandre found the school social worker and chatted her ears off; Linda searched for science lab equipment to no avail; and Jim went on the playground and threw handfuls of candy into the air, causing a brief riot.

Special Thanks
We'd like to thank our hosts for the day: Maria Luisa Bazan, English Department Chair, and Lourdes Ruffinelli, Co-founder and Director of the school.

The Dwarfs mourn Snow White before
Prince Charming awakens her

Impressive student art work on exhibit at Colegio del Sol

 Getting Down to Business
After a school cafeteria lunch that was actually healthy and (surprise!) pretty tasty, we walked to the Universidad Columbia del Paraguay. The university president, Ruben Urbieta Berecoechea, explained how in 1991, subsequent to the coup that ousted the authoritarian Strossner dictatorship, the university became the first private, higher education entity in the nation. The school offers eight courses of study, including degrees in the areas of business, marketing, and social planning and administration. Additionally, the university participates in several exchange programs with other universities in South America, the U.S. and Europe.

Columbia University (PY) President discusses Kansas partnership

The Ruffinelli English School motto:"Where learning a foreign language is an invitation to dialogue with the world."

At the hotel, artist Gladys Imaz exhibits ceramics created
using indigenous techniques and designs


Habla Ingles?
Our third private school visit started off on the right foot - with cookies and coffee - at the Stael Ruffinelli de Ortiz English School. The school enrolls approximately 1,000 students at any one time and operates an English language teacher-training program. The school also sponsors the Charles Dickens writing contest, which received over 800 English-written entries last year.

Another Thank You and Adios
The "Liberty Spuds" would like to extend a most sincere Muchas Gracias to all our daily dairy fans, hosts, tour guides, Jim Connett, and to the Columbia Education Center for an incredibly enriching experience.