How are Dominican Schools Different?

Dominican public & most private schools are different in some very important ways, from schools in the US and Canada.

For one thing, student books are not provided by the school; parents must purchase them. Book prices typically begin at $6, and go up from there, depending on the book, so it can be a heavy burden for a parent, especially if the parent has several children.

In an effort to help families in this regard, the government recently announced that all current editions of school books will be good for four years. This means that any new editions must receive special permission. Books will be able to be recycled, and purchased used, which will be very helpful to poor familes.

Another unusual thing about schools here is that all schools have uniforms. The standard school uniform, which is what our students wear, is a blue shirt with khaki pants or skirt. Many students have only one uniform, and must wash it daily.

Most schools do not provide transportation for their students. Students either walk to school, or ride public transportation at their own expense.

Most schools are very small, and do not have facilities such as gyms, libraries, and computer labs.

Another thing that is quite different in Dominican schools is that the main method of teaching is the teacher writes a lesson on the board, and the students copy it down.

The school day is short. Children attend either a morning or afternoon session which lasts a mere four to four and a half hours a day.

Students do not eat lunch at school. The big meal of the day (rice and beans) is around 1 pm, and is eaten at home. Many workers have a two hour lunch break which makes this possible.

Electricity can and does go off, at any time of the day, so schools don't always have electricity available during school hours.

Running water is likewise not necessarily available.

Schools have frequent breaks, due to rainy weather, and transportation strikes.

Another very great difference in education here: there are huge amounts of children who do not attend school at all. Most deaf children fall into this category.



There are a few schools that are more like North American schools. Those are the private schools that more well-to-do children attend.