Revisiting the school

This blog hasn't been updated because my last year was spent largely outside of Santo Domingo. This may be the last blog, as the school is now completely in Dominican hands, and they are doing a blog in Spanish.

It was a blessing to visit the school once again for the last three weeks of the school year. I was amazed at the progress of the students. It was more than just not seeing them for a long time...cognitive issues they have had for years have been resolved or improved upon this year.

For example, most of the children (other than the preschoolers) can tell you the day and date now. In the past, even after three years of work, most students remained unable to do so. Why? Well, first I would say it was the effects of severe language deprivation on the cognitive processes.  But now I have to wonder if that was the cause after all. What was different this year? The biggest difference perhaps was that the students had lunch every day at school. The students had vitamins daily. (Normally they don't eat a very balanced diet.) They were given parasite medicine from time to time. There were some new teachers and some older teachers, but the improvement was across the board. God certainly coordinated the combination of causes for their improvement, in response to the prayers and gifts of his people.

Whatever the reason, the students showed a marked improvement in their thinking. They were reading more, although they are still way behind in reading skills. They understand questions better. Previously this was a tremendous difficulty for most. Now, they are frequently able to answer the specific question, and if not, at least they do recognize that a question has been asked!

Thank you Jesus!

Christmas play

A note from the director...

Today we had our chapel service as always, but this one was very special because the students dramatized the birth of the baby Jesus. It was a real blessing for us to see the students enjoy this drama, as well as knowing that some were learning about his birth for the first time, in a form they could understand.

Christmas & Update on Framy

Christmas in the Dominican Republic is a time spent with family. Normally the people who live in the larger cities, like Santo Domingo, return to their native towns to visit friends and relatives there. There is lots of drinking and dancing during the holidays. You hear music everywhere. Children do not get their gifts on Christmas day. Rather they receive them on Three Kings day, January 6th. (Not all children get gifts; if they are very poor the family may not exchange gifts.) It is always difficult to get school going again, as many families take an extra week for their visits in the country. School does not restart until after Three Kings day, so they already have a pretty good break.

Teacher Yoselín has recently married. Teacher Marleny will be getting married tomorrow. She also just graduated, cum laude with her degree in education that she has been finishing up on Saturday. We ask your prayers for these new couples, that the Lord will be their strength and guide, and bless their families richly.

Update on Framy: Framy came back to school for just a day. He was able to talk to the kids, and the director was able to get better first hand information. My new info is that he does not have to use hand on hand sign (PTL), as I was told before, but he does have severe limitations on his vision. He has tunnel vision, from Retinitis pigmientosa. That means that his vision will worsen over time, the tunnel closing up little by little. Normally this takes years, but no one can really predict how long. It has dramatically worsened since May. And he only has one eye with vision, at all.

The director reports he is afraid to walk around with out someone to guide him, so he will need to learn to use a cane. Please keep him in your prayers.

He will come to the Christmas party and will return to school in January.

Thank you for your continued prayers for the school, its students and personnel.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Framy

You may remember a while back, talking about a teenage boy named Framy. He was having problems with his one good eye. Now, he is legally blind. Apparently his retina slowly detached over a period of time, but none of the eye doctors he went to recognized or dealt with it, even though they did give him cataract surgery. [Because I was out of the country for this post, I depended on reports from the DR, rather than giving you first-hand info. As time passed and I was given more accurate info, I updated it here in brackets.]

Going blind is one of the greatest fears of a deaf person. Framy is having a hard time adjusting. He refuses to use a cane, although he really needs to have mobility training. He is way ahead communication-wise,  of the kids in the deaf-blind classes across town, and the teacher there says he is better off in the deaf school because of that. 

Please pray for Framy. He is going through a very difficult adjustment. Pray that he will put all his hope in the Lord, and that he can learn to live as independently as possible, and maintain relationships with the other deaf. Deaf-blindness is very isolating.

The other kids can communicate with him with hand on hand sign language. It will take him a while to become as fluent in that as he has been in regular sign. [This was inaccurately reported. New info on this is that he is able to use the tunnel vision he has still to understand visually.]

The deaf-blind class across town is sending over someone later this week to give his teacher and classmates orientation on how best to work with Framy in class.  The school does not have the advantage of the technology that deaf-blind people use in the US. Most likely, his classmates will be watching their teacher and taking turns interpreting to Framy what they are seeing. [This really depends on how constricted his tunnel vision is, which is unclear at this time. The more limited it is, the more likely that he will not be able to understand the teacher.]

Burglars

The police recently released several local thieves, and now they are trying to get into the school. Although the Secretary of Education should have a night watchman posted at the school, they no longer have one. As a result, there have been several attempts recently to break in.

This brings the director to some difficult decisions. We have recently installed an backup system that allows the school to have lights when the city electricity is off--which is most/all of the school day. This would be one of the prime targets for the burglars. Should she take them all out for safekeeping? Then there would be no electricity once again. Should she leave them in? Then they will most likely get stolen, and once again there will be no electricity. There are no funds to hire a night watchman privately. Then there are the other supplies used in running a school that will also be attractive to burglars.

Please pray that the Lord will provide a resolution to this problem, so that it will not be a constant burden on the school.

Vision Trust medical team

This past week the school welcomed a medical team from Vision Trust. The children received checkups, and were given toothbrushes and toothpaste.

But the team didn't stop there.  They presented Bible stories for the children as well, and spent some time playing with and getting to know them.  The kids were thrilled, of course.

We thank the Lord for this team, and their work with us here in Santo Domingo.

Team members

New toothbrushes for all!

Thanks

The principal ("director")  was invited to speak to the mayor and city council among other government officials about the educational needs of the deaf. She feels that the meeting was productive and a sign that the government is taking more interest.

The new children were recently evaluated as to progress, and the teachers are pleased to report that they have surpassed expectations. Their sign language is steadily improving, and that is the basis for everything they learn.

From the school a big thank you to all who have supported us thus far with your prayers and with your offerings. Vision Trust has been an incredible help, and we thank also Calvary Deaf Church in Riverside for their help. The groups from Florida and Rochester are others who have consistently prayed and been available to help on site at summer camps and other times. From time to time we have had individuals and small groups come to work directly among us at the school, giving up personal vacation time and money in order to support us. There is a prayer warrior in VA who always holds us up before the throne of God. I don't like to name names on the internet, just know that every one of you is appreciated.  There is a saying often heard in Dominican Spanish "¡Dios se lo repaga! ---"May God repay you. And we know he will.

But don't give up now!  We've only just begun, stand beside us as we continue to fight the good fight. Continue to keep the school in your prayers, that the children will progress, and that they will grow mighty in the Lord.

Blessings!

Twins!

Today deaf twins, Diomery y Diomary, came for the first time in their lives to school. They are nine years old. Their teacher, Yoselín, knows just what to do. She is experienced. Only one of the 8, 9, and 10 year olds in her class has ever been to school before, and he is autistic. The rest are all in their first year, learning to sign, learning their names, and all the basics of kindergarten.

The second picture is from this week.  (Excuse the wrong date; they have a hard time resetting it each time they put in batteries!)

Blessings!

Día de la Raza--Columbus Day

Día de la Raza in the Dominican Republic is a celebration of ancestry. It is a time that Dominicans remember their roots. They remember Christopher Columbus who was the governor of the island at one time, and the natives that were on the island, as well as their own Hispanic heritage.

Yesterday the kids enjoyed celebrating their history. It is always fun to dress up!

Still coming in...

Every week that has passed has seen new children signing up for school. We rejoice in this, that they will have the opportunity to come, but at the same time, we recognize that this puts added work for the teachers, whose classes are already at capacity.

The issue of teachers is always a difficult one. The fact is, trained teachers of the deaf are not usually available to hire. It's easy to find someone with a teaching license, but s/he will not know Sign Language.

Every deaf child needs an education. Without it, in most cases, the child will not ever be fluent in any language. Imagine living without anything but a limited system of home-invented signs.

It's very important that deaf children not be turned away. On the other hand, if you put too many deaf children in a classroom, you end up with a day-care center rather than a school. It's very difficult to explain this to people who are used to working with hearing children in packed classrooms.

The greatest need continues to be educators of the deaf, and we continue to ask for your prayers and if you are a teacher of the deaf, your participation if you are able to come.

New kids

We welcomed three new students this week. We have over a hundred students now. Our little school is already running out of space! The Secretary of State of Education has asked us to add Saturday classes for adult deaf who need remedial classes in reading. Please keep praying for us.

We have been greatly blessed with a donation for buying batteries to go with the inverter.  Very soon we will have electricity for all or most of the school day. Up till this point we have had only very limited electricity daily. This is how an inverter works. When the electricity is on, the inverter charges up the batteries. When the electricity goes off, the inverter begins drawing on the battery power that is stored, and provides electricity until the city electricity comes on again.

Now we begin the task of getting and installing fans in each classroom. The classrooms are quite hot, although they are much better since the renovation.

Every Monday we are having chapel services for the children, and they are enjoying it very  much. The parents are reporting to us that their children are learning much from these services, and they are pleased. The children give their prayer requests, and learn all about trusting in the Lord for their needs, and the grace of living in obedience to him. They are even going home and teaching their parents about the Lord!

A note from the principal's office

Update from the Principal's office:

We will be resuming our regular school hours of 8-4 this week. The first couple of weeks we had only half-day classes while we continued teacher training, as attendance was poor--typical of August here.

The children are happy to be back at school after their summer vacation. The students who were studying with us have been longing for the beginning of school because they generally have very little communication at home.

This year we have a lot of new students, and especially little ones. There are 20 children who are from 2 to 5 years old!

Maria, the assistant principal,  spends her days in the classrooms, training new teachers.

Note: If there is a volunteer who would like to work alongside us here, please contact us. The school may be reached at 809-590-8666 (Spanish, voice) Emails in Spanish can go to gmail.com   to the name paulinacolegio. If you write in English, just allow a few days extra for us to get it translated.

The hurricanes haven't arrived, but are passing by close enough to cause us some torrential rains.

We ask for your continued prayers for the school and its students, and we appreciate the help you all have given, especially for your prayers.  We know that the Lord is able to supply our every need.

Staff picture

Here is our teaching staff. The assistant principal and the principal are the two ladies on the right end.

 This photo is really from this month! Honest! The green shirts are the new school uniforms, by the way.

Tuesday is the first day of the new school year

Tuesday is the day! CCES will be beginning the new school year with lots of new teachers, and lots of new students. There are over a hundred students signed up now, and if this year is like previous years, they will continue to sign up students well into September. After that, new students will still come, but not daily.

This promises to be a very difficult beginning. CCES has several new teachers who have minimal Sign Language skills and no experience teaching deaf children. You may wonder why we would hire such.

It comes down to this: there really are not any qualified teachers of the deaf available. CCES looks for Christian teachers--and thankfully, they are abundant. But there are more qualifications. The Secretary of Education will hire only teachers who have been licensed through the university system and passed an exam given by the Secretary of Education. (Only a small percentage of licensed teachers pass this test.) Teachers who know sign language are scarce. Teachers who have a degree and know sign language, scarcer still. Teachers who have a degree, can sign, and have passed the test given by the Secretary of Education are almost non-existent--and the few that exist are already working in schools for the deaf.

So the choice they have is to either have no education for the deaf, or to hire unskilled, unqualified teachers, train them on the job, and hope they succeed. This sounds terrible, and it is, because it means that deaf students will not be getting the quality education they should unless they get one of the teachers who has been trained in previous years.  Why even bother?

It is worth it for several reasons. First, the very most important thing we can do to prepare these children for life, and especially for coming to know the Lord, is to give them a language. Most who don't attend school will not learn a language. Even with inadequate teachers, deaf children learn a language just from being around other deaf children. 

Second, the teachers who start out knowing nothing, often end up being excellent teachers within a single year or two. It's a sink or swim situation. Many learn to "swim" beautifully. Each year new teachers are added, and each year more are trained, so progress is being made.

If you are a teacher of the deaf, and you would like to come and participate as a volunteer in the training of new teachers in Santo Domingo, let us know. CCES needs you! Spanish is nice, but not absolutely necessary. ASL is required. You can offer a school year, a semester, a month, or just come for a few days and give a workshop. Interested?  See this page for details about volunteering.

As always your prayers are desired. Please pray that teachers and students will settle in quickly to the work at hand, and that in everything God will be honored and glorified.

Getting ready for back to school

Today begins our teacher training for the new school year. We are also signing up quite a few new students.


Our teacher training includes a course in Cued Spanish given by Marleny, one of our teachers.  Maria, the assistent director,  will be giving workshops on new strategies for teaching content with the use of Sign Language.

You may notice that we have mentioned two different language methods. That is because our goal is for the children to be bi-lingual. First of all, we use Sign Language, the preferred language of most Dominican Deaf people. Most of our communication and content is conveyed in Sign. 


We also use Cued Spanish to teach the students Spanish, mainly for purposes of literacy and knowing how to write effectively. This allows them better communication with the hearing world. That is important for jobs, family, and societal interaction.


We encourage parents to choose either of these options for their home communication, and provide training for those who choose to do so. Still, did you know that the majority of the parents of deaf children, even in the USA, never learn to communicate effectively with their children? If you'd like to know why, here is a good article on it: Why parents don't learn to sign

Camp

Camp was  a success. Children learned more about Jesus, and some came to know him personally. There was too much fun to be believed, even though it poured down rain every day. The kids still had time to get in the pool.


Framy, who has been dealing with visual problems, at first didn't want to come, because he cannot see at night now. We assured him that we would assign someone to him, if necessary, to make sure he didn't have any problems. He decided to come. His classmates were happy to see him, and fought over who would be his guide.

The children had a bunch of new American friends to get to know, and American friends who they knew from last year to catch up with.

Several weeks later...oops! I just realized that this post was written but never posted. So here it is, better late than never!

Congratulations to our principal (director)

This past week, a little over a thousand public school teachers and principals took the state mandated testing for their positions. It is a grueling test, covering quite a broad spectrum of knowledge, including knowledge of education law. Less than 90 people passed. Our director (principal) Paulina, was among them. God has prepared her well for her position at the school. She was in the top ten percent of all scores.
We will be getting three of the teachers who passed, to work at the deaf school next year. This is a great blessing. The new teachers come in without Sign skills, or experience with deaf students, and will need on the job training. (Note: There is really no choice in this; teachers who already know Sign and have experience are extremely rare.)

On a personal note, I (Peggy Blevins) will be returning to the US for the next school year.  This mission is complete and in the hands of Dominicans who are capable and trustworthy. I'll be leaving after camp, on July 1st. While on furlough, I will attend some conferences, the Voice for the Deaf board meeting, visit some churches to give them a report on the work here, and of course, see my siblings, and many dear friends, most of whom I haven't seen for the past six years or more. Did I mention that there will be some R& R in there too?! While stateside, I hope to do some work on the curriculum as well, but perhaps that is being too ambitious. We'll see. This year will be a time of seeking God for his plan for the next mission. When I return, God willing, I will be working in an area outside of the capital, possibly on the Haitian border, where there is almost no education for the deaf, nor churches, and most of the deaf don't know Sign even as adults.

The director has asked me if I will continue to do the English blog for them, and I have agreed; they will send me the info and I'll write it up in English to keep you all posted.

Camp is coming up soon, the third week in June.  Keep us in your prayers!

Elections

The elections for senators, and other government posts (but not president) are being held on Sunday. For this reason all schools and colleges are canceled for tomorrow afternoon, and for Monday. This is nationwide, announced by the Secretary of Education.

Pray for the Dominican Republic, that Sunday's elections will be fair, and peaceful, and that God will guide in the choice of those who are to govern.

Framy update

We hear from Framy's mother that Framy is doing well and that he had light perception today at least. It is not really clear what surgery they did! They have said it was for detached retina and they have said it was for cataracts. I hope it is the latter, as that is much easier to deal with, although the symptoms he described (sudden pain, a lot of floaters, and inability to see), seem like the former.  Whatever, we are glad to hear that he is doing well, and will give him a few days of recovery before we visit. Thanks for your prayers.

Okay, it is officially hot here! Today we had a few tarps put up for shade, since the tree we used to have was taken down during the construction. At lunch time, when the kids have a little extra time to play outside, it is just too hot in the sun, so we hope this will help.