Cross Cultural Connect

The road between schools just got shorter.

Anna Hoppel

Costa Rica Connection Meets In Person

by Leave a Comment

Recently, CCC had the unique opportunity to facilitate an in-person workshop with one of our global connections! Last month, we connected nine 11th-grade students from the school of Jorge Debravo in Turrialba, Costa Rica, to nine American college freshmen studying abroad with Verto Education. Verto Education gives students the opportunity to take general education courses in a foreign country during their freshman year of college. These students were enrolled in a college course titled Social Problems, which examines a variety of perspectives about issues facing society today.

Before they met, CCC program moderator Kayla Angstadt began the connection by engaging students in discussions around effective communication and multicultural awareness. In their separate classes, students shared interests and doubts about meeting and collaborating with students from the other country. They made observations on how an individual’s values and viewpoints are affected by their culture, surroundings, and experiences. At the end of the discussion, the Jorge Debravo students wrote individual letters in Google Docs and shared them with the Verto students. Letters included information about the student, their school, their values, and questions about their connecting partners.  

After connecting online, students had the opportunity to meet for a three-hour workshop to practice their communication skills. The day started with a warm-up introductory activity, where students learned each other’s names while practicing the principal concepts of effective communication; empathy, open-mindedness, honesty, and active listening. Without introducing themselves beforehand, students were asked to call out each other’s names and toss a whitewater rescue rope bag back and forth between the groups. They were thrilled to discover who their digital penpals were in person!

Verto students were then given a tour of Jorge Debravo and got to practice answering questions in person. Verto students worked on their Spanish speaking skills, while the Costa Rican students practiced their English. 

One ambitious Verto student named Marie decided to spend her volunteer hours at Jorge Debravo, working on a service-learning project about the importance of composting. Using her research, she first engaged the 2nd-grade classroom in her project and then introduced it to the 11th-grade classroom and other Verto students. She presented her project and educated the students about composting and sustainable agriculture. Her work extended to the cafeteria workers as well, effectively changing the culture of the school to be more environmentally conscious.

The 11th-graders and Verto students worked together for the next hour in two groups. One group created posters about what could go in the compost mix and the other group worked together to put the finishing touches on the compost bin. 

In the last activity, students had an hour-long session speaking in small groups about global issues. They then participated in a seminar-style discussion led by the Verto college professor, María Fernanda Batista Lobo. MA., professor of international relations and humanities. Students broke into smaller mixed groups and discussed different global issues throughout the world. They came back to the classroom with one focused issue that they see in their community.

Issues such as equal education, pollution of rivers, poverty, and greenhouse gases were brought up.  They then discussed possible real-life solutions to each issue. We concluded the discussion with the example of compost, and they decided that it served as a real local solution to the issue of greenhouse gases.  This experience gave the high school students from Jorge Debravo the opportunity to engage in college-level course material for the first time.

To conclude the activity, Jorge Debravo School invited the Verto students and staff to eat lunch in their cafeteria. Students enjoyed a typical dish of chicken with rice, plantains, and refried beans. Students sat in a mix of groups and laughed over how nervous they were at the beginning of the day. They exchanged social media (after completing permission forms provided by CCC) and many of them have remained in contact with their new friends over the past few weeks. Overall, many students reported that this experience was something that was very enjoyable and has become one of their favorite memories of the year.

We continued the connection at the end of April when the Verto students hosted the 11th-graders on their campus. Read more here!

About the organizations:

Centro Educativo Jorge DeBravo is a local private school in Turrialba, Costa Rica that values multicultural education and global citizenship. Cross Cultural Connect has been hosting connections through their school around the world for the past 7 years.

Verto Education is a study abroad program available for first year university level students in the United States. Students have the opportunity to take their general education courses abroad in countries like Spain, Italy, England and Costa Rica.

Cross Cultural Connect is the glue that brings them all together!

Pandemic Penpals

by Leave a Comment

Clara writing a letter from her school in Costa Rica.

Quarantine has caused an unprecedented amount of global isolation and loneliness. For many, penpal relationships are a way to alleviate this lack of connection. In 2021, we connected two high school students named Abby and Clara, who exchanged letters from the US to Costa Rica. Conversing with a peer from across the world can provide a sense of community for students, which humans need to thrive. For Abby and Clara, it also helped them develop their skills at effective communication with those from different cultural backgrounds and served as a way to document history as it unfolds in this pandemic era.

Abby independently reached out from the United States through the Cross Cultural Connect website, hoping to make an international connection. We connected her to Clara, one of our most advanced English students in Jorge Debravo, Costa Rica. They began communicating by exchanging digital letters through Google Drive. According to Clara, she had some initial anxiety: “In the beginning, I felt nervous, I had no idea how she would react. I was scared of saying something rude or something that could make her feel offended.” 

Clara found it easy to overcome these cultural barriers and connect on a human-to-human level. “Humans can be able to start a relationship even if they have different characteristics. Language and some cultural aspects may make this process complex, but not impossible.” Gaining confidence in forming multicultural connections empowers students to engage empathetically with people throughout their lives.

Abby and Clara practice effective communication over video chat.

Both students also utilized CCC’s Effective Communication module, which helped them develop the social skills to have meaningful conversations and practice active listening. When asked about her definition of effective communication, Clara wrote: “​​Effective communication is the ability of sharing thoughts and messages staying away from accusations. By sending and receiving clarified messages, there is no room for misunderstandings.” As students practice these skills, they form deeper relationships, avoid conflict, and learn about each other as individuals.

Later on in the program, they connected over video chat and shared what it was like to experience the pandemic in their communities. Clara gave Abby a tour of her school in Costa Rica, which was still holding classes in person. In the United States, Abby was experiencing virtual learning, as her school had been closed due to quarantine restrictions. Sharing your personal feelings through a pen-pal connection has been a cathartic way for many people to cope with Covid-19.

Clara gave Abby a tour of her high school.

Learning how each country handled quarantine differently was enlightening for Clara. “​​I learnt a lot about politics and health care in USA. While we were writing to each other she described me how USA was trying to control the pandemic. I learnt about USA’s restrictions and the new educational system.” Alongside mental and emotional benefits, having a written record of individuals’ experiences and reflections during this time could prove historically potent in years to come.

Afterward, Clara used the lessons she learned to write her 10th-grade final project, which centered around her experience in the program. In her final reflection, she wrote: “The program is a great start for understanding and for challenging intolerance. With the help of this program, I changed my mentality. While I was interacting with my penpal, many cultural aspects made me realize what is truly important and what is not. As humans from around the globe, we have our differences, but we are still human beings. I challenged stereotypes and ideologies that were taking control over me. Nowadays, I consider myself a more open minded person.” Penpal connections like these provide students with global citizenship skills that will shape their futures for years to come. 

Clara’s final project focused on the lessons she learned during the connection.

Global Citizenship Bracelets

by Leave a Comment

CCC’s Global Citizenship bracelets have made a difference around the world!

This project initially began as a grassroots fundraiser in Turrialba, Costa Rica. Students communicating with penpal connections in Allentown, Pennsylvania were struggling with unreliable internet and old computer hardware, which made it incredibly challenging to host video calls or even send emails. We realized that we needed new technology to enhance the connection and decided to create bracelets as a fundraiser.

The project started in two classrooms but quickly spread across the school until all students wanted to participate. A school-wide competition concluded in over 1,000 bracelets. Students were so excited and decided to sell the bracelets in their community as well as to their peers. The students in Pennsylvania wanted to continue their connection and, in their writings, offered to help sell bracelets as well. Out of their own initiative, students made enough money to purchase fifteen laptop Google Chromebooks. The following year they earned five tablets to assist in continuing research.

Students create bracelets for one of our first fundraisers.

In 2020, students quickly became in charge of running their own drive. They set their personal school goal by figuring out how much they needed to benefit their school and how they could assist other schools in India. They wrote the card that comes with the bracelet and kept in contact with the schools. Each year, their connections become even stronger as they are able to access a higher quality of technology.

This fundraiser has become an empowering and enjoyable activity that allows the students to make a positive impact on their school. It demonstrates to them how their hard work and efforts pay off in the long run. Bracelets have been made in multiple schools in Costa Rica, India, New Zealand, and more.

100% of the proceeds from these bracelets go to purchase the necessary technology that meets the specific needs of each school. Once the school’s goal is met, the remaining money is put towards new schools in need. Much developmental work has been accomplished for schools in India as well as indigenous schools of Costa Rica thanks to the kindness of students in countries around the world.

Our most recent batch of bracelets, handcrafted by these students!

Most recently, in 2021, bracelets were created by high school students in Turrialba, Costa Rica, who will be participating in the next CCC global connection. Their current fundraiser goes towards a laptop cart for their school, Jorge Debravo, as well as future service-learning projects to benefit upcoming connections from lower-income schools. These bracelets were sustainably handcrafted from wood and acai beads to reduce plastic consumption, and are for sale at multiple locations in the US and Costa Rica. Contact us to learn more about how you can participate!

We thank you for your donations and we hope that these unique bracelets serve as a reminder that we are all globally connected!

Early Connections

by Leave a Comment

We started connecting schools in 2014, when CCC hosted its first connection between two schools in Cuzco, Peru, and Boston, Massachusetts. 9th and 10th-grade students at Ausangate Bilingual School in Cuzco were connected with 7th-grade students at W.S. Parker Middle School Reading in Boston.

That same year, we formed a connection between 4th and 5th-grade students at The International School Nido De Aguilas in Santiago, Chile, and 4th and 5th-grade students at Wilton Manors Elementary in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

We continued to grow our International Network in 2015, when honors Spanish classes at Parkland High School in Allentown, Pennsylvania connected with 9th and 10th-grade students in Centro Educativo Jorge DeBravo in Turrialba, Costa Rica.

In 2016, a new group of 7th-grade students at W.S. Parker Middle School Reading in Boston, Massachusetts connected with 7th, 8th, and 9th-grade students in Centro Educativo Jorge DeBravo in Turrialba, Costa Rica.

Most recently, 5th-grade students at Centro Educativo Jorge DeBravo in Turrialba, Costa Rica wrote handwritten letters and created videos to share with indigenous students in Alto Pacuare, Costa Rica at Escuela Yoldi Kicha.

Top Ten Reasons to Connect

by Leave a Comment

There are a number of reasons pen pals experiences benefit teachers, students, schools, and both communities.

Our top ten reasons we are inspired to connect people across the globe are:

1.) Cultural Awareness – We live in a world filled with an incredible number of unique individuals, beautiful cultures, and ways of life. An understanding of the value of such diversity is imperative to a world citizen.

2.) Technology Integration – We redefine the term “Common Knowledge” on a daily basis. As our society becomes more technologically advanced, it becomes essential for people to have the technological skills to succeed.

3.) Professional Development – Teachers acquire the technological skills that their students will need to be taught. These tools teachers will not only be useful in the CCC program but in future classes as well.

4.) Research-Based Learning – Rather than gathering information from a textbook, students are using primary sources to answer questions that they find interesting.

5.) Team Building Skills – Students work together to increase the common knowledge of the classroom during their research projects. This allows a student to recognize personal strengths they can share for the good of the group.

6.) Multilingual education and communication – The benefits of learning a new language are almost infinite. Language can open doors and create connections.

7.) Higher Level thinking skills – CCC promotes open communication, understanding, and fairness, all important skills to practice and master.

8.) Common Core Standards – Using these Standards results in a common structure and level of expectation in our English curriculum, whether the teacher is in Allentown or Turrialba. This also assists in gathering measurable assessment data.

9.) Preparation for an International Business World – As the global economy continues to grow, it is imperative to understand how international business operates. Students gain the necessary skills to communicate and collaborate with people around the world.

10.) Taking Ownership in Learning – According to the ASCD (Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development), a learner is more passionate about a topic they choose to study. Combining student ownership and literacy leads to meaningful student involvement.

Cabécar Students and COVID-19

by Leave a Comment

Although the COVID-19 pandemic is a universal issue, it has disproportionately affected Indigenous communities across the world, amplifying and exposing the social inequalities they already face. Indigenous populations have been left behind in the first waves of relief. Issues such as food insecurity, language barriers, and lack of access to healthcare are being exacerbated by this global health crisis. For the Cabécar community of Costa Rica, COVID-19 has highlighted a lack of educational resources that will likely have long-term effects on a generation of their children.

Quarantine has drastically changed the lives of the Indigenous population of Costa Rica. Poor access to healthcare makes COVID-19 a greater health risk for isolated communities, such as the Cabécar village of Yoldi Kicha, where the nearest hospital is 25 miles away across rugged terrain. The population of Yoldi Kicha is taking as many precautionary measures as possible. Outsiders must now receive special permission to enter the community, as well as pass through a gated entrance with guards after a temperature check. Before, the Cabécar would get food and supplies at the local town of Turrialba; now, they have supplies delivered to them in trucks to limit their interaction with people outside of the community. Like most of the world, they have also been forced to close their schools to decrease the risk of transmission.

CCC interviewed one 10-year-old student, Joyce, who lives in Yoldi Kicha. We first met her 4 years ago when we established a connection program between her school and the local school in Turrialba. She told us that when she first learned about the pandemic, it seemed like an issue for the outside world that would never come to Costa Rica, let alone her village. COVID-19 restrictions have also impacted the Cabécar’s ability to connect with other local communities. Before, the Cabécar would travel regularly to Turrialba, patronize shops, and socialize with the non-Indigenous population. Cabécar students would also interact with students from the school in town, through programs like the one Joyce took part in. Now, little to no face-to-face cultural exchange is possible. This lack of intercommunity interaction affects how the Cabécar are viewed by the non-Indigenous population. Although they receive regular government support and interact with nearby towns such as Turrialba, they remain a pervasively invisible group in much of Costa Rica. Social isolation will increase non-Indigenous blindness to the Cabécar’s needs. This could have long-lasting ramifications, increasing inequalities such as lack of representation in local government and the lack of access to education that the Cabécar are struggling with now.

Due to COVID-19, students globally have been forced to transition to online-only learning. However, the ability to utilize online learning tools at all can be impossible for students who already live within education deserts. This problem is not exclusive to the Cabécar community: around 1 in 10 of the poorest children living in the U.S. don’t have access to the Internet or the technology that online learning requires. This puts low-income students at a disadvantage, furthering the education gap, which is already a product of generational wealth inequality and a variety of other socioeconomic factors.  Education presented difficulties for the Cabécar community even before COVID-19. On average, the non-Indigenous population of Costa Rica are in school for 7.6 years, yet for the Indigenous population, the average is only 3.4 years, and illiteracy is 30%.

Before COVID-19, teachers would walk several hours from the nearby town of Turrialba to the school, stay for one week, and then return to their homes. Now, the Cabécar are having to establish new methods of educating their children. Although the Costa Rican government donated computers to the Cabécar schools at the beginning of 2020, students will not be able to use them this year due to limited access to the Internet. Patricia, the principal of the Cabécar school Kjalari, gave her perspective on these issues. To obtain more educational materials or even cell service, she must either drive a motorcycle for an hour or walk three hours over uneven terrain. While there is internet installed in the school powered by solar panels, it does not work most of the time. She believes that the situation is going to get worse before it gets better, and does not think they are going to start school again this year. 

Online learning is not an option for the Cabécar. However, because of new restrictions, teachers are only able to travel to the community in person once a month. Not only does this mean the teachers must prepare a month’s worth of paper educational materials and hand-deliver them, but students are now forced to wait for extended periods of time to receive grades and feedback on their work. These extremely delayed grades mean a student could have incorrect answers for up to two months, hindering the academic growth of an entire generation.

There is also a language barrier to consider. The nationalized school system continues to offer materials only in Spanish, even after efforts to produce bilingual materials that would suit the needs of Indigenous children. Some Cabécar students, such as Joyce, are lucky enough to have parents who read and write in Spanish, but most do not, forcing them to reach out to other members of the community to assist them in their studies. Studies have shown that this type of education gap has long term effects on a population, with consequences such as a limited capacity for upward mobility, increased risk of poor health and hygiene, and shorter lifespans. Unequal access to education also contributes to gender inequality, potential exploitation, and the restriction of a given community’s political power.

The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified barriers to education that will affect Cabécar children for years to come. Indigenous populations such as the Cabécar must be prioritized in efforts towards COVID-19 relief. Internationally, we need to listen to their needs and include them in government solutions. Only by amplifying Indigenous voices can we ensure that their rights are respected as we move forwards in this global health crisis.