Teaching English to the Bird Guides

Gale Gibson

There are more bird species in Colombia than anywhere else in the world. Unlike its neighbors Costa Rica, Panama and Ecuador, Colombia has not been able to benefit from this resource. Because English speakers are a large portion of the bird watching population, the ability to speak English is an advantage for bird guides. As security returns to more areas of the country, more groups of foreign bird watchers are anticipated. My friend Sergio Ocampo, an avid bird watcher, President of the Colombian Network of Bird Watchers and Director of the Rio Blanco Nature Preserve, recruited me to teach English to a group of young people who are fledgling guides. Since I am not a teacher, I agreed reluctantly, hoping that as an unpaid volunteer my pedagogical shortcomings would be overlooked.

So it was that with the help of my wife, Eloina, I taught English two hours a day for three weeks. The students, who ranged in age from 10 to 21, came after school, which was no small feat since their schools were located in Manizales, an hour by jeep over a mountainous rural road that is subject to mud slides. The classes were located in Rio Blanco, a bird refuge and water reserve for Manizales. In reality, it is a huge rainforest containing a few open fields where dairy farms operate. It is managed by La Fundación Ecológica Gabriel Arango Restrepo. (www.fundegar.com). There are dozens of bird species, including several kinds of hummingbirds, toucans, and the rare Rufous Antpitta.

We spent three weeks practicing English speaking skills, learning greetings, bird names and parts, directions, pleasantries, and words and phrases that future guides might find useful. After the class the boys played a free-wheeling pickup game of soccer and the girls got together for a chat. Some nights we had to force them to go home, fearing that they would get lost in the Andean darkness. I doubt there was a great leap forward in their English language skills, but they enjoyed it and so did we.

If you would like to know more about the English classes, contact galegibson@ msn.com.

For information about Colombian birds and bird tours, contact Sergio Ocampo at sergiofundegar@gmail.com.