November 2008

photos: 3rd year students' trip to the Chaco

Praise God because all the donations we were promised this year have now come through. Please continue to pray for more people and organisations to become interested in supporting FEISA’s work. Due to the severe fall in the value of the pound and Paraguay’s high rate of inflation over the past year, the same work costs a lot more money to carry out. Our bank reserves, which we rely on each year before the donations come in, have diminished greatly during 2008 and, even if the exchange rate stays as it is, will only see us through to July. However, most of the donations we receive come through in the September of each year, so we need to build up our reserves so that we have the funds we need to get to the end of September. We rely on your prayers!

Give thanks for a successful time of teaching practice for the majority of our students. We were most encouraged to hear positive feedback from teachers at the schools about how well-prepared the students were and how creative their lessons were.

The third years went to the Chaco as part of their teaching practice experience (see photos). They saw a variety of different education projects in indigenous and Mennonite communities. In one indigenous school in El Estribo they painted a mural and organised games and a snack for the children. Praise the Lord for safety on the trip and the positive impact it had on the students.

Praise God for a very successful workshop with indigenous teachers in El Estribo on how to use FEISA’s Christian education resources in Enxet with children. The project co-ordinator, Sam Parsons said, “It was very exciting to watch the teachers have a go themselves and see them be creative with the resources.”

Please pray for wisdom for Estela and Gloria, the head and academic co-ordinator of FEISA, as they make modifications to the teacher training curriculum in order to make it even more effective and cost-efficient.

Pray for the 1st and 2nd year students and teachers this month as lessons finish and exams start. Pray for wisdom for the teachers in planning the final weeks of teaching and for good time-management for the students so that they can revise well. Exams start on the 17th November and last 3 weeks.

Finally, praise the Lord because the drought in the Chaco this year provoked a quick response from the authorities, who instituted a state of emergency in the area and provided water and other necessities to the indigenous communities there. Give thanks also because of the recent rain which has alleviated the situation significantly.

October 2008

Cynthia on teaching practice

Praise the Lord because all the funding applications we have submitted this year have now been accepted and we received a number of donations in September. This means our cash-flow is now at a comfortable level for this month, though if other promised donations don’t come through quickly, we will be facing another critical month in November. So please keep praying!

The two-year degree extension course was losing students throughout the first semester because of exhaustion. In the second semester it was decided to change to a modular system, teaching only two subjects a week for six weeks and giving the students tasks to do at home. Praise God for the students who were thinking about leaving but have decided to stay on as a result of this change. Please pray for wisdom as the academic head, Gloria, sorts out a few teething problems. Pray too that the quality of teaching would not be compromised as a result of fewer classroom hours for each subject.

Thank God for the success of all the training visits to the Chaco communities in September. The evaluation of the indigenous nursery project in Yatnata was particularly positive: The mothers involved told us they had felt at the beginning of the project that they would not have anything of value to bring to the nursery. However, now that they have gone through the training, they realise that they have a lot to give to the children in their community. The project co-ordinator, Sam Parsons, was thrilled to see that the women’s self-esteem has been given a real boost.

Please pray for the two training visits to the indigenous Chaco community of El Estribo in October:
• 3rd & 4th - pre-school training
• 24th & 25th - workshop for primary and Sunday school teachers on the use of the children’s Bible resources in the Enxet language which FEISA recently produced.

Please continue to pray for the 2nd and 3rd year students on teaching practice placements. Pray that they would all have a positive impact on the lives of the children they teach and that God would shine through those of our students who know Christ.

The third year students are going to El Estribo on 21st and 22nd October as part of their teaching practice commitments. While there, they will give the 9 schools some resources they have made, paint a classroom and do games with the children from one village. Please pray for this visit to be a blessing as much for the students as for the community.

The Ministry of Education is going through a period of instability at the moment, following the change in government. This means that they are not addressing the education issues they need to deal with. FEISA is putting together a number of proposals for new training courses and improvements to our diploma course, which we hope to implement next year. Please pray for stability and a sense of responsibility in the Ministry so that they can listen to FEISA’s proposals soon.

Nati on teaching practice