During the past several weeks we have visited a local school and also met with Fanny Salmerón, one of our host mothers who is a former teacher and currently subdirectora (vice principal) at a secondary school here in Jinotepe. Having heard about the 1980-81 Literacy Crusade in previous lectures, we wanted to know not only what has happened to the literacy rate since that time but also what the current educational system is like.

Public education in Nicaragua starts at age three (preescolar) and goes through the 10th grade. The school calendar is approximately 10 months, with all of December and most of January off. School days are scheduled in shifts: half of the students attend from 7:00 am to noon, and the other half from 1:00 pm to 6:00 pm. Even so, many classes have between 40 and 50 students in them. That was the case in the classes we visited at Escuela Luis Leon Espinoza, a primary school in Jinotepe.

Doña Fanny reported that although all Nicaraguan children get through the 2nd grade, in 2005 the high school graduation rate was only 39%. (This is an improvement over 29% in 2000.) Girls graduate at a higher rate than boys (45% versus 33%), and the high schools in Carazo, the department in which Jinotepe is located, boast a 50% graduation rate, significantly higher than the national average.

The primary and secondary school curriculum in Nicaragua is similar to that of the U.S., with core classes in language and literature, mathematics and science. Recent reauthorization and "transformation" legislation also added courses in "cultural and artistic expression" and technical and vocational education.

One aspect of the curriculum of particular interest to our group is Convivencia y Civismo, which translates as "living together" and "community spirit" (or patriotism). These classes seem to be a combination of what we in the U.S. might call "civics" and "life skills." Doña Fanny described these courses as covering the values we need in order to live in society: tolerance, respect, cooperation, democracy, love of family, patriotism, nationalism, love for and protection of the environment, leadership, and non-discrimination against those with disabilities and chronic illness.

Also of interest is the fact that schools are not allowed to expel children. As principal Flor Maria Medrano told us when we visited Escuela Luis Leon Espinoza, expelling a student turns the child out onto the street, where gang activity is likely -- and what good does that do for the child or for society? During our visit to Escuela Luis Leon Espinoza, the sense of responsibility Medrano and her staff feel for the students’ personal and social development was obvious.

The lecture on education also confirmed an unfortunate fact that one of the SSTers had read in the newspaper recently: the average pay of a Nicaraguan teacher earns between $200 and $250 per month in U.S. dollars. (The average wage in Nicaragua is $290-$295 U.S. per month.) Other challenges faced by Nicaraguan schools are lack of textbooks and other teaching materials and the cycle of poverty that forces many children to drop out of school in order to help earn money for the family. Although school is compulsory in Nicaragua, Doña Fanny said that child labor laws are not strictly enforced.

Regarding the literacy rate, Doña Fanny presented statistics showing that literacy declined in the decade after the 1980-81 literacy crusade but since 1993 has been improving once again. According to a 2005 Envio article, conservative estimates set the illiteracy rate at around 20% twenty five years after the literacy crusade, while more pessimistic estimates were around 30% overall (and higher than 40% in rural areas). For more information, see http:/www.envio.org.ni/articulo/3026. Interestingly, just a few weeks ago the Nicaraguan Minister of Education announced that the national illiteracy rate is lower than it has ever been before, at 6%, in part due to a recent "educación popular" campaign focusing on primary education for illiterate adults.