As a Peace Corps Volunteer, my role is based on my community's needs. My official title is Primary School Literacy Promoter. This program in the Dominican Republic is extra special because we are the only people out of all the Peace Corps positions in education who teach in the native language of the community. This ensures that students' needs are being met in the most effective way and in their fullest capacity.
I learned about my community's need for education--more specifically, for a more specialized and individual approach to advancing children’s literacy skills. Along with teaching literacy skills to the students, an Education Volunteer’s role is also to pass on their methods and practices to the local teachers and schools, as well as to the parents and guardians of the students. This leads to a more sustainable impact and ensures collaboration between volunteers and community members.
The community is working toward increasing literacy rates at schools because there are many students who do not know how to read, and/or because schools lack the resources to provide a sufficient education to all students. For example, when I first arrived, there were no books at my school, and many of my students didn't have any books at home either.
