The school "Viña del Mar" is the local elementary school for around 130 children of the village of Estero de Plátano on the Pacific coast of Ecuador.
Children study from 5 to 13 years old in 6 classrooms with 7 teachers. Around 85% of children finish all 7 grades, and very few go on to secondary education. Yanapuma is sponsoring 10 scholarships in 2010 to allow children to attend a secondary college in the nearby village of Tonchigwe.
One of the principal problems at the Viña del Mar school has been the low motivation of teachers to improve the education of the children. This is in part due to the low pay that they receive which may even be delayed several months. In addition the teachers receive little training and no support for professional development. Another problem is the lack of teaching materials in general. Click on the picture below left to watch a short video about the school and some of the children.
Yanapuma has worked with volunteer groups on various projects in and around the school. These include the construction of a new dining area, terracing the slope behind the school to plant vegetables, and painting classrooms, as well as donating two new laptops so that the children can begin to learn the basics of computer use.
We remain committed to helping the children of Estero de Plátano to improve their level of education as a means of improving their future prospects.
Navigate and zoom in on the map below to learn more about the location of Estero de Plátano.
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