School Today
 
 
Fact: Most Deaf Dominican children never receive more than three years of schooling, if they receive any at all.
 
 
 
Fact: It is unusual to find a Deaf Dominican adult who can read with understanding even at first grade level.
 
 
 
Fact: It is very difficult for a Deaf adult to find a job, and even then,  Deaf people are usually paid at wages far below those of the hearing worker doing the same job.
 
 
Fact: Parents of DR deaf children often believe that their children can hear, but just have difficulty speaking.
 
 
 
Fact: Most DR deaf people are not called by their names, but simply referred to as “the mute.”
 
 
Fact: Sunday Schools are not available for deaf children in most of the country.
 
 
Fact: Most Deaf people in the DR do not live within a reasonable distance of a Deaf church or Deaf ministry.
 
What are your students like when they arrive?
  1. Their average age is 13.  
  2. They cannot count to 100 or do basic math; many cannot count to 10!
  3.  They have little or no Sign Language skills.
  4.  They cannot read.
  5.  They don’t know their last names (most have two), and many don’t even know their first name.
  6.  A previous school may have not allowed them to return because of     learning disabilities or hyperactivity.
  7.  Some have had no previous schooling; those who have, typically have had less than three years, by age 13.
 
 
What are school-days like?
 
Due to a number of factors, most Dominican schools are usually about four hours long. Children coming on public transportation are often an hour or more late, making their school day even shorter.
 
Classes are cancelled when transportation strikes are called, and these happen several times a year.
 
A heavy rain will shut down school as effectively as a snowstorm does in the Northern US and Canada. In hurricane season, this is a frequent occurrence.
 
Although the country, including the capital suffers from extended blackouts, they often fall into a regular pattern which varies from area  to area.  Currently we get electricity during school hours in our area. (Each of the teachers, including myself, goes home to a blackout in progress, however.)
 
Today’s weather in Santo Domingo
There aren’t many possibilities during the day. Here they are: hot and humid, even more hot and humid, or raining. During the winter, we have very pleasant temperatures after sundown.
 
What’s happening in the DR?
English news site for DR news: http://www.dominicantoday.com/app/frontpage.aspx