School in the Dominican Republic (DR) has changed a lot in the past ten years, as the Dominican government has shifted from half-day school to tanda extendida (full-day), which follows a Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. schedule. The Ministry of Education (MINERD, for short) is focused on increasing literacy rates in the DR and ensuring that students don't get left behind or drop out of school. MINERD collaborates with the Peace Corps to send volunteers (like me!) to schools that request literacy tutoring and support.
In many ways, school in the DR is very similar to school in the U.S. There are recess, lunch and classes like Math, P.E., and Lengua Española (Spanish Language), the American equivalent of English class. Students are expected to arrive at 7:50 a.m. and join their class line for the acto de la bandera (flag ceremony, similar to the American pledge of allegiance), during which the students sing the national anthem. This is usually followed by a prayer and recognition of any birthdays or holidays happening that day. Then, students go to their classroom and begin their workday. My escuela básica (primary school) has preschool and grades 1 - 6, and about 500 students in total.
