PCV: Paid Caribbean Vacation

I realize that I constantly talk about the education system here without ever really explaining it, so this is my attempt to give insight and history to what the education system in Belize is. I will show what national stats that I could find and compare them to what I know from Yo Creek Sacred Heart RC, where I work.

• Belizean education is rooted in slavery and was seen as a way to teach morals to slaves and keep them in line.
• 1860- First school was established. No blacks allowed, only for the few white children who couldnt afford to attend school in England
• They only accepted people from their denomonation in order to teach doctrines, not quality education. The motto was "win souls to build a church."
• 70% of schools in Belize are run by the church. Other 30% are run by the government.
• Until 1998, there was a teacher's college that certified teachers to teach
• Despite the teacher's college, it was not required and until last year high school graduates were allowed to teach with the permission of the Pastor
• Church often hires people in church, regardless of experience
• The government pays 100% of teacher's salaries
• Subjects covered are Language Arts, Science, PE, Expressive Arts, Sewing, Math, Social Studies, and Health.
• Although there are laws on what to teach and at what grade, the enforcement seems to be extremely lacking by both the church and the government.

All of this is for every student to prepare to pass the PSE (pre secondary exams). They are taken country wide and if you do not pass them, you do not go to high school. Not only must you pass it but it only accepts a certain percentile. This creates an automatic ceiling for students going to high school and puts the majority out on the streets. Thus, recreating the cycle of poverty and lack of education.

The system does not allow for repeating of grades. Just moves students up based on "social promotion."

Basic breakdown is 8:4:2, which is primary, secondary, associates

• Infant I - 5 years old
• Infant II- 6 years old
• Standard I- 7 years old
• Standard II- 8 years old
• Standard III- 9 years old
• Standard IV- 10 years old
• Standard V- 11 years old
• Standard VI- 12 years old
• Form I- 13 years old
• Form II- 14 years old
• Form III- 15 years old
• Form IV- 16 years old
• Form VI- 17 years old
• Form VI- 18 years old

Some of these ages vary depending on the birthday of the child, but I know that students must be 13 or younger when they graduate from Standard VI. It is not a typo to have 2 Standard VI classes. Those are considered junior college and if you complete them, Im fairly certain you get an associates degree. After that you go onto University to pursue a bachelors degree.

The problem with this system is how many kids it fails. Almost all schools have uniforms and books that parents must pay for. School fees are very cheap (my school is $15 per year) but often times students have trouble paying. Books are treated very similar to how the college system works in the states so that every year new editions are published and it becomes hard to buy books for every class. Especially if you have multiple children. Kids are only required to attend school up to Standard VI. After this, many are forced into the work place to find jobs that dont really exist for them.

I have heard reports that the national average is around 30% of kids move onto the Forms. Last year, my school sent 95% of its students to secondary school, which is extremely high. In the Cayo district the rate was 24%. I have heard that in Toledo, the poorest district in Belize and where most of PCVs are located, is as low as 6%. It is no wonder why certain areas of the country are falling behind when only 6% of their children are being educated after age 12.

There have been rumors that the government wants to take over education in Belize. Right now, this is simply not possible. Being that the Roman Catholic church has a strong hold on education in this country, they also make the laws and rules for the education system. The RC church has too much power and if the government tries to step in, the education system itself could easily crumble.

There have been many attempts to reform the education system throughout the years, but none have made significant progress. After the teacher's college closed in 1998, it left most of the hiring and firing up to the church. Many schools give jobs to anyonly willing to teach. The difference between Belize and the United States is that teaching a very sought after job here. The most respected person in any community is the Priest, followed by teachers. When I walk around Yo Creek, I am referred to as Mr. Kevin by all adults and as Teacher Kevin by all the kids and some adults. It is a level of respect that I have yet to earn.

Most places dont have teachers that are trained. Like I said earlier, in many Toledo villages teachers can be 18 and teaching already with no experience. In my school, I am extremely lucky to have a very qualified staff. We have 8 staff members (9 if you include me) who teach Infant I-II and Standards I-VI. Of those 8, we have 2 masters degrees, 3 bachelors, and 3 who have gone through the teacher's college. Everyone has atleast 5 years experience. Another great asset is every teacher lives in the village, which is uncommon for most schools. The only drawback that Yo Creek Sacred Heart has is that it's principal is a teaching principal which means she is in the classroom as well as all the administrative things she must do.

The easy question to ask here then is "Why are you at such a nice school when there is so much need at other places around the country and around the world?" Well one of the pros, and one of the cons of Peace Corps is we are only put in places where we are asked for. The obvious problem here is that not everyone knows how to ask. These are problems that may slowly become fixed since after the next training class comes in, there should be a PCV in every village in Toledo. Something that is very important to remember is Peace Corps is not the answer.

Some people want to develop and others do not. What most Americans consider development is a McDonalds on every block with street lights and electricity for everyone. This is simply not possible and Peace Corps would never want this. The best thing I have realized about Peace Corps thus far is that we dont seem to push ideas on people. Our services are asked for, we provide what we can, and hopefully both parties learn from the experience.

Education is needed in all parts of this country. In some places more than others, but I feel lucky to be in a place where the staff is all here for the right reasons and I am supported and treated like I've been here for years despite only being here for a few weeks. I will be teaching Standards I-VI for the next two years in computers to better prepare them for secondary school and beyond.

Today was my first day of teaching and it went something like this. Standard II never got passed the giggles and we had a lot of fun just laughing at the white guy that is really big (thats me). Standard V didnt show up when they were scheduled. Standard IV got to turn the computers on, then turn them off. It was a productive day. Then Standard V just showed up later in the day for 25 minutes (they were scheduled for 45). We played games and other things to waste the time. They seem to know more than I expected about computers anyway. 1 day in, I still have no idea what Im doing, but as long as they dont know that... I'll be just fine.

thanks for reading

Well, its official... I am a United States Peace Corps Volunteer. I can finally be referred to as what my blog is titled: PCV. It happened on October 22, 2009 and from that day on for 2 years I will be serving as a Youth Development Volunteer in the Orange Walk district village of Yo Creek.
The swearing in ceremony happened at the Belize House outside. I think they tricked us by saying it was a house and we all thought this would mean air conditioning and inside but we were duped yet again. It was held outside and it was a very sunny and hot day. Host families came as well as different counterparts of the 40 trainees that became volunteers. We all had to stand, raise our right hands and repeat some words about upholding the consitution of the United States of America and to promote peace and all that jazz. After that... we were PCVs. Easy as that.

This is our PC class of 2009. I think I got cut out of the picture, I was supposed to be on the right side but I guess thats tough luck when you dont have a camera and rely on stealing pictures from other people. We came in with 41 and 40 made it to swearing in. This is remarkable considering the class before us came in with 42, had 35 swear in, and now have 28 remaining. Some people drop like flies. We seem to have 40 dedicated people ready for the long haul.

This is our Country Director Dr. Stephen Miller and Ambassador Thummalapally (Tom-al-i-pal-i). The Ambassador swore us in before Steve got up and made a speech about how we need to be just like an Ol Blues song. It was touching. He never fails in delivering something in a new and interesting way. The Ambassador has only been in Belize for about 5 weeks. He just came from Colorado Springs and was appointed to be the Ambassador of Belize to the United States by the President himself. That President, Obama, just so happened to have been the Ambassador's college roommate or something. Talk about good luck.

The most depressing part of going back to Belmopan was finding out the day before swearing in that Steve would be leaving. He also got appointed by Obama to take a job in Washington for the Peace Corps. He will be missed and we wont get another country director until sometime around January. The things I will miss the most about Steve are how he always seemed to be totally in control while appearing not to care, and how he always had quick little jokes that not everyone understood. He told me during out picture when we were swearing in "welcome to the mafia." Meaning that he was a sociologist as well and we had some kind of secret team now.

Im starting to notice there are many things here that are not what I expected. I guess all the times someone told me "the only expectations one should have in Peace Corps is to have no expectations." I tried, I really did. But there are a few things that I just cant seem to get over.

One of them is something Im convinced someone made up a long time ago and the rest of the world jumped in to make a good joke to us ignorant Americans on the home front. As long as we dont know the secret, then we can continue to make movies that arent factual and we can be the laughing stalk of the world.

I can remember when I was a small tot that while I didnt watch as many as most kids, I did watch a lot of cartoons. From cartoons to movies about the Old West, there is one thing that they all have in common that is total crap.

Roosters crow when the sun comes up.

It seems pretty simple, there are hens running around everywhere all the time, but every once in awhile the rooster gets his time to shine. Right at sun up each morning, he takes a deep breath and then lets out a big cockle-doddle-doo and then everyone wakes up. Then Jesse and Sara plain & tall know when to get up and start milking the cows. I always imagined that just how farms work. The rooster does his thing, then everyone else does theirs. Kind of like a General in the military, they bark the orders and because of that one action, everyone else falls into place and does the required work for the day.

Not in the slightest. While the rooster does crow in the morning, it is not as loud as I would have imagined. Not only this, but everyone has a rooster. They do not get along. While its not possible to get them all together, I think it could be possible for all the roosters of Yo Creek to get together, have a little meeting and come to some agreements. Some of them should be:

1. At what point of sun rise do we crow?
2. How many times will we crow in one day?
3. What are the penalties if someone crows out of turn?
4. Is our machismo ruining our image in the village?

Now, lets get back to the point. The first question needs to be answered so they have some consistency. There seems to be no organization and its annoying. It reminds me of a symphony orchestra all playing to their own tune whenever the hell they want to. It doesnt work. Its a broken record and I think they are better than that.

As for Question #2: I always thought (and the cartoon/movie industry had me duped) that they only crowed in the morning. This is a big fat lie! They never stop. All day, they just run around the village with their chests out crowing at each other. There should be a quota per day. Make it similar to how people aren't allowed to use their horns in NYC, roosters shouldnt be allowed to crow except for sun up and maybe once more through out the day just for fun.

Question #3: Like any law out there, its pointless unless there are consequences for the action that has taken place. I suggest taking their voice boxes out but this is too much of "an eye for an eye" kind of thing and this is the "Peace" Corps after all. Not sure how well that would go over back in Washington. So that wont work, not to mention before long, all of them would be mute and how would Buckwheat the farmer ever know when Sally the Cow needs to be milked? This question may need more thinking.

Question #4: The roosters may not care about this one, but I have noticed something recently. The hens seem to be afraid of them. I am no farmer, nor will I ever be, so I dont know the slightest about these creatures. For all I know (and will assume), hens lay their eggs just fine without the help of a rooster. They sure do lay enough of them. We then take them and eat them before they hatch but its all in the name of controlling the pet population. Roosters seem to think they can prance around in the streets, crowing whenever they want, and sticking their chests in the air as far as they can. It reminds me of a big fight on the playground where one kid screams about how his dad can beat up your dad. No one ever actually does anything but there sure is a lot of screaming going on.

I'll be the first to usually bring up machismo and how men believe they have a special place in the world that is higher than women, but I think we may have learned these behaviors from chickens. Let me explain here... My friend Patrick is convinced that chickens are decedents of dinosaurs (Do you think dinosaur meet tastes like chicken? I do). Watch them if you ever get the chance. Most of them have very short arms, long legs and a wide body. They walk around and stick their head out with every step. They can be very aggressive. Chickens are the exact same way! If chickens are in fact dinosaurs, then they were here long before humans. I know from all my studies that much of our behavior is learned and not just coincidence. Therefore, those first humans had to learn from someone. Why not the dinosaurs? Or the chickens? Dinosaurs were at one time the top of the food chain, now we are. Why not look to them for advice on how to act. So lets say that chickens are dinosaurs and time has gone by. We dont even know it but we look to chickens like we used to look at T-rex, with lots of respect. We then see a rooster, he is in charge, makes a lot of noise, and doesnt ever really accomplish much.

Now think of men. We are in charge, make a lot of noise, dont accomplish much and waste most of our time pumping ourselves up to look better than the others around us. Are you seeing the methods to my mayhem now? Probably not, but next time you see a movie where the roosters wake every one up, know that its a bunch of crap and the only purpose that they are serving is to be a modeling reminder of how to act and to feed our carnivorous appetites when we feel like killing them for crowing too much. The only problem here is we usually eat the hens... ughh male privilege seems to win again.

• We're number one in millionaires.
• We're number one in billionaires.
• We're number one in military spending.
• We're number one in firearm deaths.
• We're number one in beef production.
• We're number one in per capita energy use.
• We're number one in carbon dioxide emissions (more than Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, India, Indonesia, Germany, Italy, Mexico, and the United Kingdom combined).
• We're number one in total and per capita municipal waste (720 kilograms per person per year).
• We're number one in hazardous waste produced (by a factor of twenty times our nearest competitor, Germany).
• We're number one in oil consumption.
• We're number one in natural gas consumption.
• We're number one in the least amount of tax revenue generated (as a percentage of gross domestic product).
• We're number one in the least amount of federal and state government expenditure (as a percentage of GDP).
• We're number one in daily per capita consumption of calories.
• We're number one in lowest voter turnout.
• We're number one in number of political parties represented in the lower or single house.
• We're number one in recorded rapes (by a factor of almost three times our nearest competitor -- Canada).
• We're number one in injuries and deaths from road accidents (almost twice as many as runner-up Canada).
• We're number one in births to mothers under the age of 20 (again, more than twice as many as Canada, and nearly twice as many as number two New Zealand).
• We're number one in the number of international human rights treaties not signed.
• We're number one among countries in the United Nations with a legally constituted government to not ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
• We're number one in number of known executions of child offenders.
• We're number one in likelihood of children under the age of fifteen to commit suicide with a gun.
• We're number one in lowest eigth-grade math scores.
• We're number one in becoming the first society in history in which the poorest group in the population are children.

Pause and reflect on that list. Doesn't it make the heart swell with a sense of pride, knowing that we as Americans - and no one else - can get to the top in so many categories?

Call this my office. It's the only air conditioned room in the village and 1 of 3 places with internet. I live a tough life. It still needs some work but the computers are state of the art and better than I have used for most of my life.

These are some of the Infant 1 & 2 kids that knock on my door and bother me everyday while Im trying to "work." My two favorite, or the only ones that have actively talked to me instead of just the awkward stare, are the two farthest to the right. The little guy in the red shirt jumps on me at every chance and spouts off at the mouth in Spanish that I can often not understand. I think his name is Barrinito. The girl in the yellow shirt is my favorite thus far. She is very well spoken in English and Spanish and talks to me everyday. It's usually just a repeated line of "Mr. Kevin... haha... Mr. Kevin" but it's cute.


Who would have thought that tires could be so much fun?

Am I the only one that finds this creepy? I wish I would have taken pictures of some of the other ones.

This is the Hawkworth Bridge.As many of you know,bridges kind of get me going. Its nothing compared to some bridges in the world, but in terms of what Belize has to offer, it's one of the best. Traffic only goes 1 way and when the wooden bridge that is a bit down stream goes out (which it does almost every time it rains), traffic is a mess. You would think that instead of spending a lot of money constantly repairing a horrible, sketch wooden bridge that they would just build a second reliable one. That seems smart, but I may just be thinking out loud.

This is Julio and Sheldon.They are cousins. Sheldon, as you should already know, was my host brother in San Ignacio. He is 9, acts 14, and throws tantrums like a 2 year old. You never know which Sheldon you are going to get. Julio is only 4 and I can never understand a word coming out of his mouth. His speech is hard to understand, not to mention on top of that he only speaks Kriol. Such a cute kid, but dont let those looks fool you.
Look what I found! Some of you may be thinking you have no idea what this is, but others know exactly what it is. They take me back to Mrs. Szul's third grade class when I got caught making out with the icing during story time. Dunkaroo's! I saw them on the shelf at the grocery and immediately looked to make sure they were expired but oh lets guess 10 years and sure enough they were fresh! It was one of the greatest moments I've had since I've been here. I remember them tasting better but doesnt everything when you are 10 years old?

Part of me thinks that I should wait until I can a.) remember all the names of my new family and b.) pronounce all the names of my new family, but I figure I will tell you how things all work now and figure out all the details later.

My host mom is Ms. Anita. She is a nice woman who mostly keeps to herself and runs a small shop that is connected to the house. My host dad is Arturo. This is a man's man if there ever was one. I think we are going to be best of friends. He just recently was forced into retirement after he lost his job after 30 years due to a change in the political powers that be. He is a short, stocky man who has a chest as wide as a small truck. If I ever get trapped under a fallen tree in a storm, I want this guy to be there to save my life. I dont care how old he is, he can take care of the job. He is also the sweetest man who's major joys in life revolve around his grand kids.

Anita and Arturo have 4 daughters ranging in age from 24-32. The 3 youngest are married with kids that make up 5 grand kids in total. Amilita (Ami) is the oldest daughter and she lives at home and takes care of the children during the day while the other sisters work. Malani is next, she is married to Abell and has 2 children. Abellito is 9 and Zilani is 5. Milani is a teacher at a high school in another village. I have limited exposure to them thus far. Ina (I am not sure of this name) is next. She lives at home in a room that is an extension to the house with her husband (name I cant remember) and her 4 year old daughter Coralis. Ina teaches 6th form which is basically like Junior College.

Then there is Rosi (its short for something I cant remember). She is 24 and has 2 kids. Her son Jaden is 10 months old and her daughter is 3 named (cant remember). She is the 24 year old that is married but currently separated from her husband and living with Milani. She is at the house a lot and seems to be my sidekick. Ms. Anita says its because we are close in age and she can try to be young again even though she has children.

We talk in broken Spanish and broken English most of the time laughing at one another because I look like an idiot but it's all to be expected in a culture that I have no idea what is going on. Last night we sang Karaoke to songs only I knew in English but they tried their best. They kept telling me I wasn't saying the words right but I am the one that knows most of these songs by heart and the one that speaks English fluently so it was a fun argument to have.

I have it more posh here than I did in San Ignacio to some degree. I have my own room (which they made 15 years ago to host another PCV, Karen, during her training with a private bathroom. From of the looks of the house, it seems that every time the family gets bigger, they just simply build another room onto the house, knock out a wall and put in a door. Easy as that. The best thing about my room is the bed. I think its a king sized bed, I'm not too sure on how the sizes work. I know I'm short and all but I cant touch any other side of the bed if I am touching another side of the bed. Its longer than I am tall both in length and in width.

I think the biggest difference between the Trapp's and the Cal's is the way the host family goes about treating me. The Trapp's have been to the States many times and have family there. They understand American culture and basically let me be unless I asked them something. I lived there, but mostly it was a small conversation here and there with food in between. The Cal's dont have a lot of exposure outside to the USA besides a few volunteers they had 15 years ago. I got in the house and it was like they were looking at an alien for the first time. They asked so many questions, wanted to see pictures, and were so much more interested than the other host family. I feel that I will get more out of this host family and they'll definitely help me integrate more into the village by helping me to learn Spanish among other things.
I realize the only thing that is missing are pictures. Well, as you last read... I am a genius and broke my camera. So those will have to wait. I'd say send me one and I'll send you money but the duties on electronics in this country are through the roof so I'll pass. I hear they are cheap in Mexico and then I can just smuggle it in the country like everyone else.

Until next time, enjoy the playoffs in baseball and enjoy being in a country that understands what baseball is.

It takes about 2 hours on a bus to get from Belmopan to Orange Walk Town. After that its usually another 20 minute bus to the village of Yo Creek. I was lucky enough to have my trusty counterpart Damian with me and he had his car in Orange Walk so chalk that up to $1 saved on the bus ride.

Although compared to others its nothing, I brought way too much crap and it's easy to see. Most people got a car ride all the way back to their site, but I got to have fun and ride the bus. I got to enjoy a wonderful sunset and a seat all to myself the entire ride (which is rare).

Once arriving in Orange Walk and getting into Damian's car, we started going west in the direction of what will be home. He told me the road would be paved but by paved he really meant gravel with pavement in spots from time to time. Granted it was was dark, but this road reminded of the kind of road I would drive someone down if I were thinking of killing them. It was a little scary and reminded me a lot of how horror stories began.

As we started to see lights again after 15 minutes of driving in pitch black, Damian turns to me and says, "Welcome to Yo Creek." Katie Perry is in the background of the stereo singing some remix of "I kissed a girl" and I thought to myself that it was all finally becoming real.

There were no other white people where I'd be going. I couldnt just go down the street to find the next volunteer to hang out with. This was it. Things were about to get very real very fast. Damian had told me that he lived very close to where I would be living with the Cal family, but I didnt think he would mean they were 4 houses away and his last name would be Cal too. They are somehow not related but in a small town, it seems a little bit fishy to me that neighbors would have the same last name but not be related. Who knows? Maybe its like the Smith's or Garcia's, I guess only time will tell.

Destination: Yo Creek
District: Orange Walk
Assignment: Sacred Heart RC School

Sites are in and I got the one site that I never looked into because I thought there'd be no chance of me going there. I guess that's what I get for thinking. While I know nothing about this place, because I havent been there, I'll pretend like I do and ramble on for a bit.

The village is about 1,500 people and is located just 10 miles from Orange Walk town and about 4 miles east of the Mexican border. I will be working in a primary school which the equivalent is roughly K-8 in the states. My primary job is to help run a computer literacy program. From what I have been told they have one of the nicest computer labs in the country but not many people there know how to use them. The computer lab is air conditioned so thats damn exciting! Maybe I wont be going through numerous sets of clothes a day from sweating through what I'm wearing.

Secondary projects are open but ideas are to organize sports teams and possibly coach different sports. There are a few youth groups already formed and they seem to need leadership and organization. Im excited for all these things, despite not being really an expert at any of the things that I get to do.

The best part about this site is that for the most part the village is exactly what I asked for. The job itself could be different things but there seems to be plenty of flexibility. My favorite part is the language. Being so close to Mexico and in the North makes it easy to learn Spanish. My packet says that "Spanish is the primary language here and some people speak English and Kriol."

Chetumal is the nearest big town in Mexico and is rumored to be the greatest place on earth when you are living in Belize. They have everything you can imagine. It's like a WalMart without the non-unionized workers. Instead, it's just capitalism at its best in the 3rd world. Makes no sense with the WalMart analogy, but just go with it. Either way, it only costs $5 bz for me to get there and this is a long shot but I hear they have US microbrews there. Someone is probably just lying to me so I get excited but I'll keep my hopes up and cross your fingers for me.

If you are wondering exactly where Yo Creek is on that map up there, its basically at the bottom of the "v" in River Hondo just west of Orange Walk town.

I will be in Belmopan until Monday morning then I head up there to live for 2 weeks with another host family, then swearing in, then 2 more weeks with the host family... then Im on my own. Visitors will be welcome. Check that: visitors are required.

If you ever thought that songs get overplayed in the US, you have no idea. From what I have been told, every few months Belizeans get hooked on a song and cant stop listening to it. To the point that people will listen to it on repeat for hours and not get tired of it. My host dad has 8 cds in his car right now, this is the first song of every mixed cd.

And being that the song fits the time, since this is my last night in San Ignacio... its only fitting.