About Peru
Peru is a democratic republic located on the western side of South America. As its name (derived from Quechua) suggests, it is a land of abundance characterized by its diversity in culture, landscapes, cuisine, and ethnicities. In addition to Spanish, Peruvians speak indigenous languages like Quechua and Aymara. Peru’s various landscapes include the mountains, beaches, deserts, and the Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest. In addition, Peru was a cradle of ancient civilizations that arose over ten thousand years ago on its highland plains. One of the most prominent Peruvian cultures was the Incas, who thrived for centuries until 1532, when the Spaniards conquered Peru, bringing Catholicism, the language of Spanish, and, later on, free labour through enslaved Africans. Following Peru's independence and the prohibition of slavery, Chinese and Japanese arrived to work as laborers. Thus, modern Peru's complex ethnic mosaic is rooted in its history.
The Impact of the Pandemic on Education
Today, Peru is a middle-income country with high levels of inequality. Many people live in extreme poverty with minimal access to essential services including education. As a result, Peru was greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the country’s restrictive lockdowns, which resulted in the suspension of in-person classes for over a year.
2.4 million students without WiFi
At the beginning of the pandemic, many modalities of remote learning were implemented. However, many school-aged children did not have access to these resources, which were mainly distributed through television, radio, and online. In fact, according to ENAHO, as many as 2.4 million Peruvian students do not have a computer with working WiFi and 400,000 Peruvian students completely stopped attending classes due to the pandemic. Spanglish was established during this time as a way to supplement Peruvian students’ education in response to these pandemic-induced academic gaps.
400,000 students out of school