Reflections on Jamaica

by Pauline Valvo, Project Director at A Pass Educational Group

Working as a Project Director, I sometimes feel pretty removed from the field of education that captured my passion as a young adult. My first teaching job was helping inner-city youth in Chicago obtain their GEDs post-incarceration. Watching the spark of understanding flash across their faces, witnessing their pride upon graduation, mentoring them through their first jobs, and helping some of them move out of the projects to build meaningful lives was incredibly rewarding. I eventually transitioned from teaching to writing curriculum, editing, managing teams of writers and editors, and most recently to a director role. Instead of spending my days actively engaged with motivated students, now I sit in front of a computer, replying to emails, reviewing contracts, processing invoices, and ensuring deliverables are completed by their deadlines. At times, I can forget that I’m working in the education field I care so much about.

Recently, I had the privilege of spending a week in Jamaica. I taught a couple of workshops on the topics of communication and community building skills. In addition, I visited some local schools, where I had the opportunity to interact with the children and talk with the teachers. Students worked at wobbly, beaten up old wooden desks and shared dog eared textbooks, and they were proud to show me their pencils and cherished notebooks. The teachers had minimal supplies to work with, no or little computer access, and shared that they often run out of chalk to use on their faded green chalkboards. The buildings are open air and sometimes don’t have electricity. The playlot at the elementary school I visited contained only a broken swing set and tattered seesaw and was bound by barbed wire. The soccer ball I donated was a huge hit, and we engaged in a lively game of “football” during their outdoor time.

Students were dressed in pristine uniforms, polite, well-spoken, and engaging. They shared with me their dreams of being farmers, dancers, lawyers, and the older students talked of going to college in the States. The teachers were thrilled to receive donations of supplies and proud to show us what they were working on. I was surprised to learn how important standardized tests are there, and that students are tracked based on how they perform in sixth grade. The tests they use in Jamaica are based on tests used here in the United States, as many students apply to college in the US.

I was inspired and reminded of why I chose to become an educator. One of my favorite quotes came to mind, by Maimonides: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” This is especially important in impoverished communities or countries. Education has the power to transform lives and cultures. What we create here in the United States impacts so many people’s lives.

Today as I worked with my spreadsheets, number crunching and revising schedules, I saw the faces of the school children and teachers in Jamaica working to pursue dreams. I thought about the hungry, dyslexic kid from inner-city Chicago trying to reason out a math question on a standardized test and the teacher whose job hangs in the balance based on test scores. I thought about the single mother who took out a loan so she could take night classes at a community college and the instructors who immigrated to the US and work three jobs to support their families.  

So I’m even more committed to being part of an organization that creates quality, accessible educational materials that help educators do their jobs more effectively and efficiently. I feel honored to contribute in the ways I do, to support teams of content experts, writers, and editors, knowing that the work we do individually and collectively has the power to positively affect thousands of people’s lives. Who can resist being inspired by the purity, innocence, and unbridled possibility that shines through this photo of Lashelle?