Institution: Portsmouth Grammar School

“I took a sabbatical during the summer of 2008, the key outcome of which was to create a new kind of school trip in which our pupils could see another reality with which to compare their own lives, whilst also putting their language skills into practice. Above all, the volunteering trip has created limitless goodwill between our two very different communities. The best thing of all was that our students were given the chance to learn positive lessons on humanity from some of the poorest people in Buenos Aires.” Steven Page, Head of Spanish at PGS

Context
Portsmouth Grammar School is one of the country’s leading independent co-educational schools. Its enduring aim is to provide academic, pastoral and extra-curricular opportunities of the highest order. PGS is a family school for girls and boys of all ages from 2½ to 18 years. Founded in 1732 by Dr William Smith, philanthropic Mayor of Portsmouth, PGS is Portsmouth’s oldest school. It is proud of its traditions, but also ambitious to be at the forefront of good practice - and proud of its success in being so.

How the project was organised
In April 2009, 15 sixth form pupils from Portsmouth Grammar School (PGS) embarked on a nine-day language and volunteering trip to Buenos Aires. The group comprised eight girls and seven boys, the majority of whom are studying A Level Spanish. Those not studying Spanish have a good GCSE pass in the language and are now studying A Levels in History, Government & Politics or Science. All students shared the same passion for volunteering and for wanting to develop other skills by working in a social milieu very different from their own. They worked with Voluntario Global, a local charity operating at the heart of impoverished communities in the Argentinian capital. As well as putting their Spanish language skills into practice, the key feature of the trip was the opportunity for PGS pupils to meet children in their own neighbourhoods and understand the reality of their lives in a shanty town. The trip was possible thanks to the vision and hard work of Steven Page, Head of Spanish at PGS, and the support of the Suzanne Furstner Foundation.

It is essential that a trip like this is well planned by the teachers involved – either through experience of doing the volunteering activities or having close, personal links with the charity groups supporting the visit. Alternatively, a company such as Cactus School Groups Abroad, which set up the Suzanne Furstner Foundation, can provide similar experiences for groups.

Evidence of success
As well as giving participating students a fantastic opportunity to practise their Spanish language skills outside of the classroom, it also gave them the chance to create strong and lasting ties with another community, completely different from their own. The trip demonstrated to all involved that a better world is possible by working together, combining efforts from both the PGS students and those children from some of the most impoverished barrios of the city. Following the trip, several of the PGS students have expressed an interest in taking gap years to volunteer, and even going back to Buenos Aires to do so. 

During the trip PGS pupils were involved in many projects, including preparing meals for the local community of the La Boca neighbourhood in the food kitchen of Los Pibes community centre. Set up some years ago, primarily to feed the children of the poorest families of the barrio, Los Pibes has now grown to provide work opportunities for adults in the printing and sewing micro-industry workshops as well as literacy, numeracy and English tuition to children and adults alike. PGS pupils were introduced to the various leaders of the community centre and also got hands-on experience of T-shirt printing and baking.

PGS students were also involved in several day trips, including taking twenty teenagers from Villa 21, a shanty town in the Barracas district of Buenos Aires, to the cinema, and another twenty children from Los Querubines orphanage being taken out for the day to enjoy walks and games of football in the open air: hands on volunteering at its best.

The two teachers leading the trip, Steve Page (Head of Spanish) and Alexandra Cross (History Dept), saw firsthand the positive impact that volunteering had on their pupils. The positive outcomes were carefully communicated to the pupil body on their return and the outcomes of the trip will have a firm place in the moral, spiritual and welfare aspects of the teachers’ respective curriculum areas.

Steve Page has developed, through personal interest, an A Level Spanish topic area focusing on Latin American socio-political issues. His own first-hand experiences in Argentina have been built into the curriculum, making it contemporary and relevant, using film, literature, press articles and the Argentina volunteering experience. This has invigorated the A Level Spanish Scheme of Work and has captured the imagination of the pupils. Across the school, there has been great interest in the volunteering trip to Buenos Aires and school trips in the future will now aim to engage PGS pupils with the local communities they visit, creating lasting and worthwhile partnerships and collaborations.

"My most memorable part of the trip was being shown around the Los Pibes community centre and the surrounding area, especially the humble homes, and playing with the orphans in the park. To be honest, I’m never going to forget any part of the trip because it was all so amazing and so different to anything I have experienced before. Seeing the two sides of Argentina, rich and poor, made me appreciate how separated they are as people but then they all lived so close together, the slums and the ‘rich only’ developments. I learnt a lot, met some incredible people and experienced so many things I have never done before and may not get the chance to do again. I hope in the future I will be able to return to Argentina and if I did, I would love to help at the same places. If I take a gap year I would definitely do some volunteer work.”Year 12 pupil

Future developments
It is hoped that the trip will become an annual school event, embedding the PGS ethos of international giving into the curriculum. With the introduction of the International Baccalaureate into the school in 2009, a volunteering trip to Argentina will give more pupils opportunities to develop their personal skills to fulfil the requirements of CAS, Duke of Edinburgh or their UCAS personal statement.

Author: Steven Page, Head of Spanish, Portsmouth Grammar School