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Bridge Partnership Seeks Better Career Prospects For Guatemalan Youth
Bridge partnered with the Asociación de Exportadores de Guatemala
In 2020, Bridge partnered with the Asociación de Exportadores de Guatemala (AGEXPORT), or the Association of Guatemalan Exporters, to support public school teachers with high-quality TEFL training. Through discounted TEFL courses, AGEXPORT and Bridge hope to increase the level and importance of English throughout the Central American country to improve teachers’ and students’ employability and career prospects.
Challenge
A Countrywide Effort
AGEXPORT collaborated with the Guatemala Ministry of Education, and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) sponsored the initiative to deliver select Bridge courses to Guatemalan teachers. The three institutions agreed that a partnership with Bridge was an efficient way to provide teachers with professional development.
“The English level in the public schools is very low, so the Ministry of Education wanted to do something to train teachers and create better opportunities for students,” explained Jacqueline Pérez, Program Manager at AGEXPORT
Upon successful completion of the course components, graduates are issued their corresponding accredited, internationally recognized TEFL/TESOL certificate. To date, 723 teachers in Guatemala have enrolled in a Bridge course. Of these, 613 opted for Specialized Certification in Teaching English in English and 110 for Specialized Certification in Teaching English to Young Learners and Teenagers.
“The English level in the public schools is very low...”
- Jacqueline Pérez, Program Manager at AGEXPORT
Solution
A Partnership with a Vision
“The only way to attract foreign investment is to invest in English,”
- Jacqueline Pérez, Program Manager at AGEXPORT
Currently, English sits behind the Spanish and Mayan languages in Guatemala, which is holding back its younger population from finding good jobs after completing their education.
AGEXPORT saw the need for more English in the country in order to have more foreign investment and, consequently, more employment opportunities. The best avenue to achieve this is through better-qualified teachers in the public sector.
“The only way to attract foreign investment is to invest in English,” said Jacqueline.
What makes this partnership unique is that AGEXPORT won the Request for Proposal (RFP) submitted to the Guatemalan government for this specific project. Both AGEXPORT and Bridge understand that teacher training can have a ripple effect in several different aspects of societies and hope that this partnership is only the start of more teachers enrolling in courses to better their level of English.
Results
Challenges and Results
Every new undertaking has its initial challenges. In the case of Guatemalan school teachers, many struggled with the online aspect of their Bridge course. They weren’t familiar with using a laptop or a phone for their lessons.
“Students have the technology, but we have old teachers who are stuck in their ways,” said Paola Barrios, English Specialist at AGEXPORT.
While Bridge does offer a Micro-credential course in Teaching English with Low Resources, the partnership is more focused on equipping school teachers with the right tools for their young learners and teenage students. This approach has proven successful, with a Bridge course satisfaction rate of 100% out of the current 177 reviews.
“There are real examples and situations that we go through as teachers. The techniques are useful and we can apply them immediately,” said one of the graduates.
Paola adds that results are largely measured by the enthusiastic emails they get from teachers upon course completion.
“They show appreciation and are happy. There were two teachers who finished the course in under a month. They were eager to get that knowledge,”
- Paola Barrios, English Specialist at AGEXPORT
Impact
Planting a Seed in Guatemala
"If we really want to transform our country, we need education"
- Jacqueline Pérez, Program Manager at AGEXPORT
AGEXPORT hopes to continue this partnership with Bridge to provide more teachers with opportunities for professional development and increase the overall level of English in Guatemala.
“We hope this program has left a seed for the government to continue partnering with Bridge,” said Jacqueline.
While English is not prioritized right now, this partnership hopes to have a wide enough impact for that to change. The better the level of English, the better the employment prospects.
“If we really want to transform our country, we need education,” concluded Jacqueline.
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