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Most Dangerous Ways To School | COLOMBIA | Free Documentary

Free Documentary・20 minutes read

In the Bajo Calka region of northern Colombia, children like Kendy and Juan Carlos undertake perilous journeys to school, facing treacherous landscapes, including a dangerous wooden bridge, as they pursue education amid poverty. Despite their exhausting travels and the challenges of a resource-limited school environment, these children are motivated by the hope that education will improve their futures and help them achieve their dreams.

Insights

  • In the Bajo Calka region of northern Colombia, children like Kendy and her classmates undertake perilous journeys to school each day, facing treacherous landscapes, including a dangerously high and unstable wooden bridge, to access education that they believe will help them escape poverty and improve their futures.
  • Despite the challenges, including extreme heat and the exhaustion from long commutes, dedicated teachers like URI work hard to engage students and foster a love for learning, adapting lesson plans to meet diverse needs while relying on limited resources, highlighting the community's commitment to education even in the face of significant obstacles.

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Recent questions

  • What is the importance of education?

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Summary

00:00

Children's Dangerous Journey for Education in Colombia

  • In the Bajo Calka region of northern Colombia, children face dangerous journeys to school daily, navigating treacherous landscapes to pursue education and escape poverty.
  • The Diageo family starts their day at 4:30 AM, with parents Salvador and Yazidis preparing breakfast in their small wooden hut, emphasizing their limited financial means and commitment to their children's education.
  • At 6:00 AM, ten-year-old Kendy wakes up for school, which is far away and requires a challenging journey, including crossing a dangerous bridge and dealing with the lack of running water in their community.
  • Kendy's 11-year-old sister attends high school 20 kilometers away, and both girls have been taught the importance of education from a young age, with Kendy particularly enjoying painting.
  • The children primarily use motorcycles, boats, or walk to school, facing slippery roads and high humidity, with Kendy and her mother leaving at 6:30 AM to tackle the first part of their journey.
  • Kendy's classmate, Juan Carlos, lives with his grandparents and helps with farm chores before school, including milking cows, and he consumes a breakfast of rice, eggs, cheese, and an oat drink to prepare for the day.
  • Juan must navigate a canoe to cross a river, which poses its own risks, including the potential to tip over, and he often has to swim home in the afternoon with his school supplies.
  • The most perilous part of Kendy's journey is a 180-meter-long, 4-meter-high wooden bridge made of rotting tree trunks, which requires extreme caution as a fall could lead to serious injury or drowning.
  • The children are never allowed to cross the bridge alone, and they must maintain focus and follow safety rules to avoid accidents, as the nearest hospital is two hours away.
  • After overcoming the bridge, Kendy and her friends continue their journey in extreme heat and humidity, motivated by the hope that education will lead to better futures, with school starting at 8:00 AM and only 85% of children in Colombia attending school despite compulsory education laws.

31:55

Students Overcome Challenges to Pursue Dreams

  • The school provides education in subjects like math, Spanish, art, religion, and sports, relying on donations for textbooks, while teacher URI spends her monthly salary of €350 on classroom materials. She teaches six different grade levels simultaneously, which complicates lesson planning and requires her to create tasks with varying difficulty levels to accommodate all students.
  • Two years ago, many students struggled with writing and attendance, but teacher URI has successfully fostered a love for school among her students, who now enjoy attending. However, they often arrive exhausted and have difficulty concentrating, prompting URI to incorporate fun, engaging activities into her lessons to maintain their interest.
  • After three hours of classes, students take a 45-minute break to rest and eat, with some parents bringing food while most receive a "break box." The school lacks a cafeteria, so students often rely on family for meals, and they cherish the time to play and be children during breaks.
  • The journey home poses risks for students like Candis and Kwan, who rely on their father Salvador's motorcycle for transport. The roads are muddy and dangerous, especially when it rains, and accidents are common. The trip takes about 30 minutes, but the midday heat of 38 degrees Celsius makes the walk home challenging, requiring breaks for shade and rest.
  • Despite the dangers, both Candis and Kwan are determined to pursue their dreams; Candis aspires to be an artist, while Kwan aims to become an engineer. They understand that attending school is essential for achieving their goals, even if it means navigating perilous routes daily.
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