Proyecto Itzaes offers a free, community service-based educational programme in Yucatan.
stopped or drastically reduced production of their own food via gardens and raising animals. This is a recipe for disaster on many levels. Project of the people Proyecto Itzaes, a registered non-profit organization offers a free, community service-based educational programme in Yucatan. We serve Mayan communities where traditional lifestyles that depend on farming and seasonal fishing cannot support families. What started out in 1995 as a modest book-lending programme has grown to comprise an expanding number of community-supported programmes in diverse fields. We envision a future where all children have opportunities to access the education they need to participate successfully in a changing economy. As an organization, Proyecto Itzaes aims
October 2012 • Volume 57 • Special Issue 1
to develop and extend an effective approach to sustainable community service-based educational programmes.
‘Project of the People’ is dedicated to the goal of democratizing learning and knowledge The name, Proyecto Itzaes, means ‘Project of the People’. Dedicated to the goal of democratizing learning and knowledge, Proyecto Itzaes offers realistic motivation and provides practical means for villagers to develop essential skills. This is a community-driven effort and every learner also has a role as a teacher. This is reflected in the motto of the project: Kaambal U tia’al Ka’ansaj (Learning in order to teach). Project participants go on to promote literacy in others, sharing their new skills in the community.
Promoting literacy in Yucatan Through Proyecto Itzaes, local children acquire learning skills and build an academic foundation in three languages (Maya, Spanish, English) in after-school programmes focussing on early-childhood education, family literacy, specialneeds education and the importance of safeguarding an ancient culture. Leamos Juntos Yucatán, the literacy arm of Proyecto Itzaes, currently provides high-quality children’s books and family literacy programmes to six villages in Yucatan. In 2001, a specific programme, Raising a Reader, collaborated with Proyecto Itzaes to provide literacy education to families in Chicxulub Puerto, Yucatan. In 2006, we began a partnership with the Bring Me a Book Foundation (www. bringmeabook.org) to provide Spanish
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