Day 1 in Puerto Rico: Exploring Old San Juan

Today is our first official day in Puerto Rico. It has been an interesting but tiring first day. We spent our morning in classes at the university. I am in the Spanish for beginners class and even though it was designed for non-Spanish speaking students it was intense and very draining. The class was taught in total immersion and it was very rare that the professor spoke to us in English. Even with having taken Spanish classes in high school, I felt a little overwhelmed and questioned whether I would survive this week of total immersion. Although having class totally in Spanish is a scary idea and is going to be frustrating at times, it is a real eye opener as to what our ELL students must feel on a daily basis. I have had some experiences with this language and know that I am a very capable person, but being put in a position where everything is in Spanish is not only very mentally draining but also overwhelming and causes me to want to shut down after a while. Our ELL students are going through these same feelings and are expected to do well in school when they feel like they are not succeeding. Our students constantly struggle with the issue of what they are truly capable of verses the limitations and failure they feel due to the language issues. As the classroom teacher we need to find ways to help these students feel successful and provide more strategies and support systems into our classroom that allow students to demonstrate their true capabilities rather than just what they are able to accomplish in the restraints of a foreign language. The support our students receive when they are pulled out by the ELL teacher is not enough and we need to figure out how to help them bridge the gap.

We also learned a great deal about the history and politics of Puerto Rico through our morning class and the tour of Old San Juan. One of the things that really stuck out to me in the tour of Old San Juan was how much religion was incorporated into all aspects of the culture. Pictures of saints are displayed on buildings, plazas and streets are named after saints, and you can find religious figures in practically every shop. Religion is clearly a strong aspect of this culture and I am curious as to how that translates into the public schools. In the United States, religion is a big influence in our culture, but it is not Incorporated as much in the public structures of our society. We are not allowed to address religion in the public schools at all. The issues that arise in the school system from the religious aspects have caused me to be afraid to go near the topic. Even when my students bring up something from their religious beliefs, I am afraid to address it in the slightest manner and quickly brush the issue aside. It is a very uncomfortable topic as a teacher for fear of the repercussions that could come from the parents and administrators. I wonder if teachers in Puerto Rico have this same dilemma or if the topic of religion is acceptable in the public school since it is such a big aspect of their culture.