In Mexico, all public schooling is free, up to and including the university level. The schools are open to any student who has the motivation to attend. I was very surprised when I learned this fact, because most students here don't make it past the 6th grade. Huh? That's when I learned that while tuition is free, transportation, uniforms, and school supplies are not, and that is an incredible expense for the average Mexican family.
Although there is no compulsory schooling in Mexico, most students attend Primary School. Most families see the benefits and importance of a basic education. Because of this, Primary Schools are plentiful, and there is usually one near any given child's home. They can walk to school.
Secondary school is another matter. It is not widely considered a necessity for children to continue their education past 6th grade, particularly in the poorer colonias. At the age of 12, many children get jobs and help support the family. That means drastically fewer Secondary Schools than Primary Schools.
Fewer schools for fewer students makes sense, but it has a negative consequence for those students who do want to continue their education; they can no longer walk to school. They must travel much further to reach the nearest school and that means taking a bus. Even at only 5 pesos each way, that is almost $1US each day – an insurmountable financial challenge for many families. That doesn't even include the cost of school supplies and uniforms.
To help students from poor families, the Friends of Mexico has started a scholarship program for students in some of the most impoverished areas of Mazatlan. They have talked with the teachers and administrators at the schools and sorted through the applications and have a list of the most deserving and needy students. They are now looking for donors to grant those scholarships. It only costs $250USD to send a child to school for a year.
I have been to the schools the children asking for scholarships attend. They are basic cement structures with cement floors. There is no glass in the windows. There is no air conditioning. The windows are covered with a mismash of cast off bed sheets scrounged by each teacher to keep the sun off the students and keep out some of the heat. The desks are old, home-made tables. They are small and scarred with age, but they are faithfully sanded and repainted by the teachers every few years.
The teachers I met are marvels who take great pride in their classes and take the task of educating the children very seriously. Many have spent their own time after school and on weekends painting their rooms to create a livelier learning atmosphere and making their own teaching aids. They show up every day professionally dressed, despite the heat, to show the students they are there for serious business.
The students take their cues from the teachers. They come to school with faces scrubbed and uniforms laundered and pressed, carrying whatever school supplies they have. They listen to the teachers and learn. I watched one class doing a math lesson. When one young boy was having trouble with a problem on the board, another student helped him work it out. There was no sniggering by anyone. The classroom is a community and everyone works together.
Despite the lack of basic comforts and funding, dreams grow and are nourished inside the cement buildings. When asked on his scholarship application what he wanted to be when he grew up, Erick Guadalupe Chavarin Picos wrote, "I want to be an astronaut, to discover many things. I want to be recognized by many people and I also want to be one because I like it." Life goals of the scholarship applicants include a wide range of professions: soccer player, attorney, veterinarian, astronomer, and even, "I want to study to be a teacher, because that is the profession I like the best."
Both parents of Diana Silvia Camacho Castillo are deceased. She, her brother, and two cousins live with her 70-year-old grandmother, who can no longer work. When asked to tell something about her family, she wrote, "In my family we are poor but honorable, I have a brother who helps my grandmother with the expenses."
You can see the applications of the students who need scholarships on the Friends of Mexico web site. There is also more information about the scholarship program. As each child is chosen, they are removed from the web site, so each child you see there is still hoping for someone to help them continue their education. On his application, Hector Gonzales Guevera wrote he needs a scholarship, "Because I need help to continue studying and I promise not to let you down, I promise to work really hard on my studies."
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