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Fellowship PaperWorld Build: An International Service Learning Project
By Mark O. Veader South Shore Charter School
Massachusetts Charter School Association 2002
The South Shore Charter School (SSCS) uses project-based learning. According to our model, a project involves a group of students who learn by working with a partner organization. The organization provides a goal, and the students help accomplish it, receiving school credit in the process. Each project lasts an entire year, and some students may even stay in the same project for multiple years. The project may also involve traditional course work. The rationale behind this approach is two-fold. First, students often learn better when they are able to use what they are learning. Second, students learn that they can be productive people, even at a young age. For the past four years I have led a project at SSCS entitled World Build. Students in this project meet three days a week for one hour and forty-five minutes per day. During the meetings, students learn about the history of El Salvador as well as some of the general themes in the history of Latin America. The course also focuses on the role of the United States in El Salvador, studying it as an example of U.S. foreign policy in Latin America and throughout the world. Finally, students study the current situation in El Salvador, gaining an understanding of the issues facing developing nations today. This learning prepares students for a trip to El Salvador in the spring, where they participate in a "blitz-build" with Habitat for Humanity. In this weeklong event, a group of students (traditionally 7-8) joins local and international volunteers to build simple homes for families in need. Students stay in basic accommodations and thereby gain some sense of the living conditions for many of the people in El Salvador. Upon returning, students record their experiences and make presentations to the school and local community. Throughout this paper I quote from essays students have written after their trips. I’ve excerpted material from writing done by tenth to twelfth grade students after trips in 2001 and 2002. Goals of the Project Like a classroom teacher, a project leader has many concepts he or she wishes to impart to students. In World Build one of my main goals is to help students understand, through learning and experience, the meaning of world citizenship. I want students to understand that we inhabit one world, a world that reaches beyond our nation’s borders. As U.S. citizens, we are often quite isolated from much of the world. This isolation is even more pronounced among teenagers. Often they have very little experience beyond their town or state. This gives them a mistaken sense that the whole world is like what they see every day, or perhaps what they see on television. Most students I’ve met do not understand that life in the U.S. is not at all representative of the conditions in which most of the world lives. I also want my students to understand that we can be agents of change and that working as change agents is another aspect of world citizenship. Students are often very interested in social issues. But most current events classes present only problems (economic, social, political). Rarely are students shown ways in which they can bring about real change. The subject matter is disconnected from their lives. Unless we present students with clear opportunities to be active, it seems to me perfectly valid that students question why they need to learn about current issues. Another goal is to teach students the importance of learning another language. Foreign language education in high school is often very ineffective, and I feel a large part of this is due to a lack of student motivation. Foreign language teachers have told me that often students do not see any real need to learn a language other than English. Rather than seeing English as one language among thousands, students see English as the world language. Although students know that other languages are spoken in much of the world, they believe that they can "get by" with English. Although immigration may lead students to encounter speakers of other languages, and students may experience the problem of being unable to communicate, they often see the "solution" as: others should just learn English. When individuals are immersed (as much as possible) in another country, to the point that they begin to feel that they are the ones who speak a "different" language, many begin to truly understand the need to speak a language other than English. What Students Learn in El Salvador By traveling to another country, students begin to see that the United States is just one country in a large world. When they travel to a developing nation such as El Salvador, they quickly see this reality. Students are able to judge their own living situation on an entirely different scale. Before traveling, students might judge how well off their families are by considering the sizes of their houses or the cars they drive. After witnessing life in El Salvador, they begin to see that even having a home might make a person well off. After living in El Salvador, students can no longer look at things like electricity, running water, or being able to go to school or see a doctor, in quite the same way. Experiencing life in a developing nation, even for a short time, gives students a new awareness of their privileged status in the overall scope of world conditions. One student observed: Driving through the country we saw whole families living in shelters made of cardboard boxes, or tents, no bigger than most of our closets or bathrooms, made of plastic sheets. We passed a landfill with vultures circling overhead and I was horrified to learn that people actually live in there. These kinds of things really shocked everyone because you just don’t see that kind of poverty here in the United States. Interacting with the people of another country, however, even one so different from the U.S. as El Salvador, can also reinforce the idea that we all share a common humanity. Students come to realize that despite living in very different conditions, people all over the world have much in common. As one student described it: I expected to feel strange coming from a different life as these people. The only thing that felt strange was how strange it didn’t feel. People working together reminds me that people are people. Yes, we can study their culture and say, "Wow, interesting, they are so different from us," but really, strip away everything, and we are the same. It gives me hope that maybe our world is essentially one big community. It reinforces inside of me a sense of connection between all people. Countries do not separate people. They are only lines on a map. In World Build students are put in a serious environment; they work alongside committed adults and gain a sense of both their own power and responsibility. They realize that they are not too young to be socially active and make positive change happen. The work is an important element of the learning. In the words of one student: As you watch the walls grow, your love of the work intensifies, as does your love of the people. I looked forward each night, coated head to foot with dirt, to the next work day. In addition, being in an environment where life is taking place in another language makes students realize that knowing English is not enough. They see how even a little knowledge of another language can vastly improve their ability to interact with people. They become much more motivated to learn another language; they see it as useful. The most common regret that students express when they return from a trip for the first time is that they did not know enough Spanish and were not able to communicate as much as they would have liked. However, students who return to El Salvador for a second year often speak of an improved willingness and ability to communicate with the local people. One student described her experience this way: From the first day my one master builder, Samuel, and I decided that I was going to learn Spanish by the end of the week and he was going to learn English. Throughout the week he would point to things and make me repeat them in Spanish. I felt like that barrier made us want to try to talk to each other. A group of volunteers came down to the worksite for one day to help out because they were going to have a build in their town next year. One of the girls who came, who was about 14, was very nice and kept trying to talk to me. We talked a little during lunch and tried to have a conversation. She taught me a little Spanish, and if we didn’t get what the other person was saying we would just laugh. I didn’t feel like I had to pronounce everything right because she seemed so understanding. I think that was the first time that I just sat with someone who didn’t know any English and tried to have a conversation with them without a translator. It was nice to have [a teacher] there almost all of the time translating things for me, but I felt more willing than last year to try to say more to people then just "Hola." What Makes World Build Unique While many schools take students on trips to other countries, often such trips are very tourist oriented. Students see the sights, but they do not get much of a feel for what it is like to live in another culture. World Build allows students to experience a taste of real life in the small towns of another country. One year, for example, our group was able to stay at a school located in the very small village in which we were working. The living conditions were very basic. Students slept on mattresses on the floor and took showers by filling buckets from large barrels of water and pouring them over their heads. This helped to give students some appreciation for the lack of running water that many Salvadorans live with every day. In World Build students work alongside the family who will live in the house they are building. No matter how many statistics a teacher recites about poverty and average income, nothing drives home the true standard of living in a developing nation like actually seeing how a family lives. One student commented on the level of poverty she witnessed in the living conditions of the family with whom she was working: Hanging under the rotting structure was the kitchen. What remained of the stove was rusting metal. The sisters carried water from down the street to fill a tub for the water supply, and the bathroom was a hole in the ground surrounded by woven bamboo. For once I imagined myself in this situation. Could I live like this? Staying in a small town also gives students the opportunity to experience local culture. Each morning, to get to the work site, we walk through town, seeing the houses and living conditions of the people there. For lunch and dinner, we eat typical Salvadoran food prepared by local women. At night we watch and even participate in the parades and processionals during the week leading up to Easter. All of this gives students a real glimpse into Salvadoran life, one that cannot be gained by staying in a hotel. Another strength of our trip is its connection to student learning throughout the school year. School trips are often a perk, something available but separate from the teaching and learning that goes on at school. In World Build, the travel is a central (and motivating) piece of an integrated curriculum. Throughout the year, students learn about the history of El Salvador in order to better appreciate the situation they will later experience. The travel component makes students much more invested in learning, both before and after the trip. One student summed it up this way: It is quite possible to sit in a classroom all day and read books and talk about the world’s problems. However, there is a limit to what can be gained from this. I was tired of these countries on the map being just countries on the map. What I wanted was not to study El Salvador, or to save El Salvador, but to live El Salvador. When our students travel to El Salvador, they have a goal to achieve, building houses, and they begin to see the rest of the world as more than just a travel destination. They begin to see that all countries and peoples have issues and struggles that they face each day, and they begin to feel a deep connection to the country. Students also come to realize that they can play a part in making positive change in the lives of others. Adapting the Practice Preparation: A Key Element Most schools do not offer projects. But a school could offer students a trip to a developing nation, a trip organized by a group such as Habitat for Humanity. However while the travel component is the heart of the experience, adequately preparing students is essential in order to maximize the impact. In order to be able to place what they are seeing in perspective, students need to have some sense of the history of the country to which they are traveling. In preparing for our trip, we look at several trends in Salvadoran history. First, we examine how a very small elite has controlled the vast majority of the land in El Salvador, leading to a huge disparity between the very rich and the very poor. We also examine the lack of democracy that led the majority of people to feel powerless to change their economic status. By examining these historic factors, students are able to understand some of the causes of the brutal thirteen-year civil war, which has left so many Salvadorans in such dire circumstances. By studying history in our project meetings, students also see that the government of the U.S. was deeply involved in much of the destruction that took place in El Salvador. By traveling with a service project, students see that the people of the U.S. can also be part of the reconstruction of El Salvador. Without background information, students can easily misinterpret what they see and experience in El Salvador. I was able to see this quite clearly in a recent trip. For the first time, there was another high school group working with us. From the questions and comment of these students, I could tell that they had not received much background on El Salvador. Not understanding the violence associated with the recent history of El Salvador, one student naively asked why there was so much barbed wire everywhere. Unless students understand the struggles that the people of El Salvador have had to endure, it is very easy for them to view Salvadorans as at best quaint or, at worst, backwards. When students understand what Salvadorans have been through, the students see them, and sometimes themselves, in a very different light. One student wrote, "The purpose of Habitat is to work throughout the world, not to rescue people, but to help them improve their current situation by building decent, affordable houses." Potential Obstacles There are different ways a project such as World Build could be carried out at another school, each with its own challenges. It could be conducted as a class, especially if a school uses block scheduling (allowing time for class but also for fundraising, trip preparation, etc.). It could be considered a social studies class or an interdisciplinary History-Spanish course, if more of a language component were included. One problem with this approach could be class size. It is difficult to coordinate the preparation and manage the travel experience of a large group. To limit the number of students, the project could also be run as a limited enrollment, after-school (club) activity. Money also has the potential to be a source of difficulty. In World Build, students are responsible for their own fundraising. This system requires a good deal of effort and initiative from students. Some students, especially those with limited financial resources, are not convinced they can raise the money and thus are reluctant to try. I work with students to develop fundraising plans, and I help them understand that with such plans, they can raise the necessary funds and not rely entirely on their own contributions. Once students have engaged in the fundraising process, they’ve been able to obtain the money needed to go on the trip. The issue of student perseverance ties in with another obstacle, which is having enough students with the responsibility and motivation to put in the work required to make the trip. At SSCS, students who wish to participate in the trip must meet a variety of criteria (with respect to grades, preparation, etc.; see Appendix for full list of Travel Criteria). Some years, limited numbers of students fulfill the criteria and are able to travel. One benefit of working with an outside organization, like Habitat, is that even with a small group, the trip can still take place. As with fundraising, when numbers are an issue, the problem often seems to be a lack of faith on the part of some students; some just don’t believe they can do what they need to do to take the trip. It is interesting to see that often as travel time approaches, students who have given up begin to regret not having stuck with it. Fortunately, these students are often more motivated the following year. Finally, gaining the support of the school and parents could pose an obstacle. Both must be willing to allow students to travel to a developing nation. There is often a feeling that traveling to a country such as El Salvador involves greater risks than traveling to a more developed nation, such as France. The concerns of parents and the school’s administrators need to be addressed before a program can be implemented. At SSCS parents are invited to meetings throughout the school year, to learn about the trip and ask questions. I explain that traveling to El Salvador poses different safety issues than traveling to Paris, for example, but not necessarily more. Going to a big city brings risks (such as crime or even the possibility of terrorism) that we are very unlikely to encounter in the small communities where we work in El Salvador. I also review the fact that our group has never had any safety problems on any of our trips and that we work with Habitat, which definitely helps everyone feel safer when we travel. As schools are often ultra-cautious when it comes to travel, I recommend open communication with all parties and linking up with a reputable organization such as Habitat. Long Term Effects As mentioned earlier, when students return from the trip, they share their impressions. It is remarkable to hear people so young talking about how their perspective on life has changed. Almost all students talk about things in their lives that they used to take for granted, which after the trip they appreciate much more. They also come away with a much greater respect for how hard many people have to work just to live. They describe the inhabitants of this developing nation not as poor and backward, but as courageous, generous people who can teach us about appreciating what is truly important. In the words of one student: Most people that I have talked to say, ‘The people [in El Salvador] are so happy even though they have so little.’ They are not happy because of what they have. They are happy because they realize what does matter in life. It is the intangible things that give true happiness. I do not pity the people in El Salvador. I admire them. Just as important is the change in how students view themselves. Students begin to see their own potential as change-makers, and the work they do after leaving SSCS reflects that. One student who participated in World Build now writes for a college newsletter that deals with issues of social justice around the world. Another student spent a year before college doing human rights work in Central America. A third student is pursuing a degree in nursing with the hope of being able to provide medical aid in developing nations. All of these students continue to study Spanish. While the World Build experience did not single-handedly turn these individuals into caring people, it did help them see that working for social change is an option for them. It is something they can pursue without having to wonder if they can really do it; they have done similar work already. One student summed up the experience in this way: We went there to help, . . . but what we took away was something more valuable than anything we ever knew. From the workers we learned dedication to a job and strength. From the volunteers we learned that people can help without expecting anything in return. And from the families we learned a sense of pride, and a determination to survive and raise their families in the best way that they can. These lessons have forever changed us.
About the Author Mark Veader has taught math and physics as well as leading projects at the South Shore Charter School for the past six years. Prior to that, he worked for three years as a mechanical engineer in Rhode Island.
Contact Information: Mark Veader, South Shore Charter School
Appendix World Build Travel Contract
In order for a student to be eligible to travel to El Salvador, s/he must:
I agree to the criteria listed above. I further understand that even if the above criteria are met, the project leader makes the final decision about which students travel.
Student Signature: _________________________________ Date: ________________ Parent Signature: _________________________________ Date: ________________
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