Students of the College Horizons program and the English Access program (from five different provinces) participated in an English immersion camp. Participants from Santo Domingo, Manabi, Esmeraldas, Guayas and Loja spent three nights and four days in Mindo in order to strengthen their English skills.
Eleven professors, 22 volunteers from Cuerpo de Paz, and one English language learning specialist designed the program with an emphasis on environmental themes, such as recycling, conservation of natural resources, and protection of biodiversity. This is the sixth camp set up for scholarship recipients to strengthen their capacity to communicate in English through interactive activities.
The English language learning specialist, Ellen Comis, stressed the importance of this experience to native professors as a means of stimulating learning. “This gathering offers students the opportunity to expand their academic knowledge outside of the classroom, and to share with their peers from other provinces their interest in the English language and the culture of the United States.”
In Ecuador, the micro-scholarship programs sponsored by the U.S. government have benefited nearly a thousand students. These scholarships offer talented youth of low-income status the opportunity to learn English as a tool with which to access better jobs and educational opportunities in the future.
