July 2014

Pez Maya

Intensive English workshop for Las Orqudeas
de Sian Kaan

Objective: Our community projects aim to increase access to uni versal education, ensure
gender equality, and work towards providi ng envi ronment al sustainability.


Summary: As well as our marine project here at Pez Maya, we also work with the community
by provi ding di fferent educational opportunities. This report talks about a recent workshop we
deli vered t o a womens cooperati ve in the l ocal town i n the Biosphere reserve of Si an Kaan.
This was an English language workshop focusing on the l anguage needed as guides and the
language used in their specific eco-t ours. It was an important step for the cooperati ve towards
getting thei r eco-t our business up and running. Through thei r tours they hope to educate tourists
about the reserve and increase thei r economic independence.


Report

The Pez Maya community project works principally in the Community of Javier Rojo Gomez,
better known as Punta Allen, which is located in the north section of the Sian Kaan Biosphere
Reserve.

We have been working with this community since 2003 through a vari ety of di fferent projects,
workshops and English classes. With the increase of tourism in the area the necessity to have a
basic level of spoken English has become evident and since 2012 we were approached by a
womens cooperati ve in Punta Allen to help them with thei r English.

The name of this womens cooperati ve is Orqudeas and it comes from the Mangrove Orchid
(La Orqudea de Mangl ar). The women in this cooperati ve use the Mangrove Orchid as their
logo and identify wit h it as they are very resistant and strong flowers.

The Orqudeas formed as a way for the women of Punta Allen to earn an income in a
community where the main i ncome earning acti vities (lobster fishery, fly fishing, and boat tours)
are domi nated by men. They have recei ved support and fundi ng from vari ous organizations and
are almost ready to launch thei r eco-tours.


Fig. 1 A Kayak demonstration in English.


They will offer four eco-tours: a bike t our, a kayak tour, a walking tour and a history tour. A few
months ago we sent four Spanish-speaki ng staff members to experience each of their four eco-
tours and not e down how the tour was conducted i n Spanish. Feedback was gi ven on the tour,
and the basic phrases and important vocabulary that the gui des used was then translat ed into
English by our staff members.

In early July our two community officers, Val eria (nearly at the end of her time at GVI) and
Rachel (j ust at the beginni ng of her time here) taught a three day English for Specific Purposes
workshop for the Orqudeas. English l earning gui debooks were gi ven to all of the women in
attendance. The gui debooks were di vided into sections including; general phrases and
introductions, separate sections for each of the tours that included tour-specific phrases and
vocabulary, and, a glossary. As well as the English-Spanish translation, a rough phonetic
transcript was provided for all phrases and words so that the women could practice the
pronunciation in thei r own time.


Fig. 2 More tour role plays.

The workshop was a wonderful success. Learni ng a language as an adult is a di fficult challenge
but after a few fun icebreakers and English speaking acti vities everyone felt more comfortable
practicing pronunciation, making mistakes and l earning the ambitious amount of English that we
were abl e to get through in just three days of workshops.


Fig. 3 Valeria and Rachel pretending to be annoying tourists

We taught using the communicati ve approach, focusing on speaking and listening. The
workshops were styled so as to accommodate di fferent learni ng styles and also to
accommodate one of the members of Orqudeas who cannot read or write. As well as teachi ng
English, we hel ped with di fferent communicati on strategi es and techni ques to help them with
their tours.

We used crazy role pl ays to build up energy and squash all of the inhi bitions that most had
about speaking English. It was amazing to see the incredibly rapi d progress of all of the women
who attended and very rewardi ng when women who were t oo embarrassed to say thei r name in
English on the fi rst day, acted out crazy scenarios invol ving crocodiles, tourists that wanted to
touch everything, and tourists desperate for the bathroom.

On the last day of the workshops the members of Orqudeas threw Val eri a and Rachel a
surprise dinner party to say thank you. Everyone had brought some food and we all sat down to
a delicious meal together and cel ebrated the success and efforts of all of those who attended
our workshops.



Fig. 3 The surprise dinner!




To find out more about the Pez Maya expedition visit:
http://www.gvi.co.uk/programs/marine-conservation-expedition-mexico