The Asturias Academy is a special place for me. I worked there in 2012 as a Development Coordinator and English Teacher shortly after graduating college and was profoundly impacted by the transformative vision of the school’s Director, Jorge Chojolan, and the dedicated staff of educators tasked with implementing the unique Freireian curriculum that encourages students to break free from that status quo and be part of solutions to problems affecting their communities. GEF has partnered with the Asturias Academy since 2013, supporting teacher training, curriculum and program development and trade & entrepreneurship programs.
There is no denying that the Asturias Academy is a unique school. Not just for someone like myself who has been impacted by its philosophy, but for thousands of students who have been given the opportunity to not only receive an education, but learn a new way of thinking that will stay with them for the rest of their lives. I spoke with one of my former students, Luis, during his carpentry class about what makes the Asturias Academy unique.
“I have friends who go to both public and private schools, and after talking with them I think what is special about my school is here we put everything into practice, don’t spend all our time taking notes. I feel like there is a focus on taking a future into our own hands so we don’t have to depend on other people, and are encouraged to come up with our own ideas.” - Luis, 10th Grade
I had the opportunity to speak with Jorge Chojolan about some of the obstacles he has overcome in the past 20 years, the direction of the organization, and the role of education in the future of Guatemala.
Q: Running an alternative school like the Asturias Academy that seeks to challenge that status quo is not always popular with the government. What challenges do you face that make achieving your goals more difficult?
A: As we are working to transform a society, we have to look at it from perspectives. The same society has deep rooted barriers preventing progress, which we have to work extra-hard to overcome. For example, corruption, that has its roots in many aspects of our society, and both racism and machisimo that have been prevalent since the Spanish invasion. These are the issues we address and challenge in our curriculum, and sometimes the people we have to deal with in government do not want that change. Many people in authority do not want a next generation of forward thinking young leaders like we are trying so hard to create.
Q: How have you seen the school grow since you first founded it 20 years ago and what do you see as its current direction?
A: I started the Asturias Academy in a one-room house. Our first year I think we had 40 students. Now we have this beautiful 3-story building, and this amazing library we are talking in right now. The dream has always been to create a system of schools like this throughout the country, and show that it is possible to do a lot with very little. We have encountered a lot of resistance because of our approach, but this year, we are finally beginning plans to open a second school. Two teachers from the area of Sololá, where we hope to start the second school, are training with us here at the Asturias Academy, learning about our education philosophy so they can implement it. I can’t wait to see that happens because it has been a goal of mine for many years.
Q: What role does education play in shaping the future of Guatemala?
A: I am one of the converted, that the only way someone changes their quality of life, and for a country as well, is through education. We can see that since the beginning of man, advancements in society have been made through education and transmission of information. Critical and analytical thinking is the only thinking that can truly transform a country. That is what I am trying to achieve on a small scale and eventually on a national scale: A country of thinkers in solidarity with one another. Doctors, lawyers, construction workers, farmers, that are educated, will elect politicians out of logic and make informed decisions, not out of fear or material empty promises.
- Noah Sternberg-Di Stefano, Global Education Fund Development Coordinator
