Escola Aberta

04.06.2012 20:18

Extra long entry today, as I missed yesterday (what can I say, it was Sunday). A day of beach, reading, and chatting with my Senhora for hours, literally. From here on out, it’s a schedule, and a packed one at that! Today was the introduction to the Service Learning of my studies, as well as the starting point of my Masters research on music for social change. After morning classes, our group of about 20 visited the three organizations: Escola Aberta, a community elementary school in Calabar; Steve Biko, an institute for Afro-Brazilian highschoolers; and Didá, an Afro-Brazilian women’s drumming group that I’ll be with. As a preface, this component is not the typical one-way street that so often dominates volunteer work.  Yes, we are there to help but they will help us as much as we help them. All of these groups follow the teacher-as-learner, learner-as-teacher pedagogy of the Brazilian philosopher and educator Paulo Freire who sought social justice in education. This is a major issue in Brazil, where schooling is not accessible to everyone, particularly if you are black and poor. Today we first visited Escola Aberta, a community school in Calabar. A favela, yes, but really a comunidade. What Calabar lacks in money and aesthetic it exceeds in courage and resiliance. Residents were historically pushed into this area (slavery wasn’t abolished in Brazil until 1888) and left with little to no resources including schools or hospitals. Many kids were discriminated against in public schools, and as a response the community started Escola Aberta in 1982, first with a wooden hut of sorts and now in a concrete building. In addition to traditional schooling, the elementary-school aged kids are encouraged to be creative with art and music, fostering pride in black identity, an understanding of their history, and how to use their skills to improve their own community. Our visit today was nothing less than precious. There are about 130 students and 5 teachers, all of whom volunteer. We visited the classrooms, watched and participated in caipoiera, and checked out the project that my colleagues will do over the next five weeks. Basically, there is a room in the school with bookshelves, not-so-pretty walls, and several hundred donated books. The group is going to arrange it into a fun, creative library space so the kids can read, study, and check out books.  UT is paying for paint supplies, and the rest of the designing elements are up to the group. My colleagues will be also be teaching the kids English words and songs, and the kids will help with Portuguese, dance, and music. There is nothing better than learning language and culture from a 5-year old! Though I will be working with Didá in another part of town, I am so glad to have had the chance today to see Escola Aberta, exchange names and smiles with eager learners, and I can’t wait to hear stories from the group. More on Steve Bikó and my project with Didá to come…