School in Mexico
School is an important part of life in Mexico and other areas of Latin America. Mennonite students attend various types of schools Mexico, often depending on their location and church denomination. Generally each Mennonite village has it's own educational institution. Schools can range drastically from having certificated Mexican teachers teaching the full range of K-12 subjects we are accustomed to in Canada, to small one-room classrooms taught by one male teacher chosen from the community where students learn the 3 R's - reading, writing and arithmetic.
In the more conservative village schools, children are often taught via rote memorization and recitation, with little emphasis on comprehension. Children usually begin their schooling between 6 and 7 years of age. In these one-room schools, girls generally complete their academics between 11 and 12 years of age and boys complete a year later. The school year is based around seasonal farm work in most areas. Resource: http://mcco.ca/lowgerman/education |
Above: The alphabet in Gothic script, which many traditional Mennonites in Mexico and South America grow up learning in school. Left: Photo of a very traditional one-room school. **All of the information below was written by Christa Dueck, a former teacher in Mexico with first hand knowledge of the Mexican Mennonite school systems. Used with permission.** |
Most Mennonite colonies in Mexico still use
the traditional one-room school system in part.
This system basically teaches reading, writing, and arithmetic. Geography, for example, or the study of a
different language than German, is considered unacceptable. Here the motto is, "What was good enough
for our ancestors is good enough for our children."
Some communities now have what is called a committee school. In this school, children are divided into grades and placed in separate classrooms. Looking at them, one might label them traditional, but their curriculum now includes a variety of subjects besides the Fibel, catechism, Testament, and Bible. Special emphasis is placed on understanding what is being read (the Bible especially) and providing an environment in which even slow learners advance. The committee school was born out of discontent with the strict limits the traditional system placed on education, and its alarming tendency to yield students who did not know how to read by the time they were done with school at age 12 or 13. This new system offers an 8th grade education, including the Spanish language.
Some communities now have what is called a committee school. In this school, children are divided into grades and placed in separate classrooms. Looking at them, one might label them traditional, but their curriculum now includes a variety of subjects besides the Fibel, catechism, Testament, and Bible. Special emphasis is placed on understanding what is being read (the Bible especially) and providing an environment in which even slow learners advance. The committee school was born out of discontent with the strict limits the traditional system placed on education, and its alarming tendency to yield students who did not know how to read by the time they were done with school at age 12 or 13. This new system offers an 8th grade education, including the Spanish language.
There are also Mennonite schools that offer
a high school education. These put an
emphasis on meeting certain legal requirements even for primary and secondary
school. In these schools, students begin
by learning German in first grade and go on to learn two more languages by the
fourth grade. At the high school level,
studies switch to one primary language, which is usually Spanish or
English. A lot of these schools use the
CEE/CLE curriculum, which is written or translated by a Mennonite publishing
house (Centro Escolar Evangélico) that supplies schools in Mexico, South
America, the US, and Canada with Christian school material in German.
Mennonite education in Mexico has seen changes over the last 50 years. Many have come as a result of the formation of new church groups. A greater awareness seems to be rising of the importance of being able to communicate values well – to one's own people, as well as to fellow countrymen. As was true throughout Mennonite history, faith remains a central ingredient of education.
Mennonite education in Mexico has seen changes over the last 50 years. Many have come as a result of the formation of new church groups. A greater awareness seems to be rising of the importance of being able to communicate values well – to one's own people, as well as to fellow countrymen. As was true throughout Mennonite history, faith remains a central ingredient of education.
The video below portrays one of the more liberal Mennonite schools in Mexico. A translation of the Spanish phrases included in the video is included below and on the right.
**A brief Mexican T.V. broadcast, some of which portrays a very traditional school setting, can be found under the tab: Who Are They?** Let’s take a tour of the Alvaro Obregón school.
It is situated on km. 11 on the road to Rubio in Cuauhtémoc, Chih. Its principal is Lic. Abraham Dyck Rempel. |
It covers Kindergarten to high school.
The students are Mennonites. Mexicans are accepted, provided they enter at the first level of Kindergarten. The(se) Mennonites are liberal, not dressing traditionally. From the first year of Kindergarten to the fourth year of primary school, the classes are in German. From the fifth grade they are in German and Spanish, and in secondary school they add the English language. They use the SEP program and its books and exams, as well as their German books, their Mennonite history classes, and the Bible. They recite the 23rd Psalm every day, “The Lord is my shepherd”. They give voice, piano, flute, and guitar lessons. Thank you for your attention, Norma A. Hernández R. Translated by Christa Dueck. |