School Daze

Spanish classes take up 3 and a half hours each day, Monday through Friday, alternating mornings and evenings. The Institute offers not only Spanish, but also English for Spanish-speaking natives. In fact, it appears that is the largest portion of their business.

Because of my advanced level (ahem...) I am the only one in the class, so I´m getting lots of individualized attention. The classroom is in the basement of the institute, and the room is un-airconditioned, though not uncomfortable with a ceiling fan, and two wall-mounted oscillating fans all going at full throttle. In fact, it´s something like having language class inside of a wind tunnel. Or a giant lung. Often the noise of the fans is so loud I have to ask the teacher to repeat.

The instructor, Angela, is quite young -- I´m guessing about 25 or so -- and was not a language major at college, but instead a marketing major. She tells me she would like to be a family therapist some day. She is expecting her first child.

You may remember that in a former life I was a teacher, so I feel a bit sensitive to pedagogical techniques, pacing, and curriculum content. I have not been disappointed in ALPI. Every day, we discuss Spanish language proverbs, listen to a Spanish popular song (including some really nice Spanish Christian music) do dictation, grammar exercises, and composition. So the content is varied and the time goes quickly. Much of the time we spend simply conversing, and I´ve learned a lot about Angela, who I think in many ways is not a typical Dominican woman. She absolutely refuses to cooperate with the spirit of male machismo here, for one thing, and is quite cynical about the country´s heroes, beginning with Christopher Columbus who she believes was an evil man (her words). So our conversations are lively. Tomorrow I have the first of my ´cultural trips,´so I look forward to that.

I´m off to visit the preschool at Cristo Salvador this morning -- so the adventure continues.