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Hi there! I have to say that I really enjoyed your video, it was dynamic and well explained. Regarding to the question at the end of the video, from my point of view, based on my experience, what I have seen and read, I can say that things haven’t really changed. In the sense that we are still expected to make our students bilingual people with only 90 minutes of classes a week, also considering that English in mandatory only from 5th grade. In this course I have learned that older learners have their own advantages to learn a language but young learner also have advantages and by teaching them English from 5th grade we are not really using those advantages, by not including English from 1st grade we are not exposing our students enough to the language and we are also perpetuating the fact that some teachers do not know how to teach young learners. I dare say nowadays is somehow worse knowing that some programs do not provide teachers in training the instances to put into practice what they are learning, based on one of the texts I read, this is one of the causes why we have teachers feeling insecure about their knowledge and we have teachers teaching English in Spanish (M., Veliz, L. & Darwin, S. 2025). The differences on opportunities based on economic status is still part of our reality and have not changed for good. Is unfair to have that big of a difference in opportunities when all children deserve different ways to grow and to develop their knowledge. On one hand we have students with access to technology, updated textbooks, proficient teachers and on the other hand we have students with no access to technology nor internet, outdated textbooks or no textbooks at all and teachers that might not be very proficient.

Overall I feel that there might have been improvement but not enough to deeply change the current challenges, we are still struggling with issues from many years ago. Personally I think the situation is still the same and teachers are being blamed for this when is not truly their fault. We need strong changes to achieve our goals, they are not easy to make but we can do them if we really want to change the paradigm.

See you!

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Hi Dani and Mari! I really enjoyed your video, the visuals grabbed my attention and made it easy to stay focused, plus the explanation was spot on. About the question at the end of your video, from my experience and what I have learned, I feel that many of the issues you mentioned are still present today. Although there have been efforts to improve English education for young learners, challenges like underprepared teachers, limited classroom time, and a lack of resources still exist and have yet to be addressed.

Your video did a great job of showing how the idea to become a bilingual country often falls short when teachers aren’t given the necessary support. It reminded me that real change isn’t just about introducing new policies, it’s about ensuring they are realistic and effectively implemented in practice. I also liked how you clearly pointed out the disconnect between policy intentions and classroom realities. It made me reflect on how, as future teachers, we’ll be in the middle of this gap and hopefully, part of the solution.

At the end, you mentioned how the curriculum demands too much, which is something we also addressed in our video. It made me think of the ideas discussed by Veliz, Barahona, and Darwin (2025), who highlight how the national English curriculum often doesn’t align with the actual needs of students, pushing teachers to adjust it to better address the academic, social, cultural, and emotional needs of their learners.

Following that, what do you think are the most effective strategies we, as future teachers, can use to bridge the gap between the ideal curriculum and the realities of our classrooms?

Best, Valentina Sánchez.

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Hi Dani and Mari!

I found your video really insightful and thought-provoking. One thing I appreciated was how it encouraged me to reflect not only on the current state of English education, but also on how we, as future teachers, fit into that bigger picture.

From what I’ve seen throughout my own experience, it’s clear that there’s a big mismatch between the ambitious goals set by educational policies and what actually happens in classrooms. We keep aiming for bilingualism, but without the necessary foundations, like early exposure to the language, adequate teacher training, and access to resources, this goal feels more symbolic than achievable.

While preparing my challenge, I used the same text you referenced and it made me realize how crucial it is that teacher education programs offer real, hands-on opportunities to practice. Without them, we risk entering classrooms feeling underprepared, which only adds to the pressure we already face.

Your video also makes me think that educational inequality continues to be a major barrier. The contrast between schools with abundant resources and those with barely the essentials shows just how uneven the playing field is. And yet, despite this, teachers are often held responsible for outcomes that are shaped by much broader systemic issues.

Your video left me thinking not only about the problems we faceas teachers, but also about how we can become part of the change.

Best!

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First of all, I want to highlight how great and engaging both the animation and the choice of pictures were. They weren’t just decorative but actually functional, they supported the understanding of what was being said. As someone who sometimes needs visual aids to understand the information, I found the video excellent.

Secondly, regarding the content itself, I feel the way it was structured and presented was the “right one” if I can put it that way. It was easy to follow, very clear, and since you presented it through a kind of timeline, it helped me as a viewer understand how and why we ended up with the system we have today.

Thirdly, I found it really interesting to realize that even though we chose different texts, they made similar points. My text didn’t go into detail about what happened after the new policies were implemented, whereas yours or rather, your video did. I learned new information, like how English was initially taught only to teenagers, and how, when the government decided to extend English instruction to younger learners, we were simply not prepared for THAT. When the government realize that what was need was MORE, they kind of did something but they didn’t consider the context, this is coming from the information that you provided about the rural areas.

Lastly, in response to the question you asked at the end —> although the text was written almost ten years ago, I don’t think much has changed, those problems are still persist today. However, I do believe more people are trying to push for change. The government is starting to listen and recognize how important English is nowadays, and families are becoming more aware of its value too. In my opinion, this is pivotal because the importance given to a school subject often starts at home.

-Sofía Ancamilla Salazar

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Hi there! I have to say that I really enjoyed your video, it was dynamic and well explained.

Regarding the question at the end of the video, from my point of view, based on my experience, and on what I have seen and read, I can say that things haven’t really changed. In the sense that we are still expected to make our students bilingual with only 90 minutes of English classes a week, also considering that English is mandatory only from 5th grade onward.

In this course, I have learned that older learners have their own advantages when it comes to language learning. However, young learners also benefit greatly, and by teaching them English only from 5th grade, we are not truly leveraging those advantages. By not including English from 1st grade, we are not exposing our students enough to the language, and we are also perpetuating the issue that some teachers do not know how to teach young learners effectively.

I dare say that nowadays, the situation is somehow worse, especially knowing that some programs do not provide teachers-in-training with opportunities to put into practice what they are learning. Based on one of the texts I read, this is one of the reasons why some teachers feel insecure about their knowledge and end up teaching English in Spanish (M., Veliz, L. & Darwin, S., 2025).

The disparity in opportunities based on economic status is still a reality and has not improved significantly. It is unfair to have such a large gap in opportunities when all children deserve diverse ways to grow and develop their knowledge. On one hand, we have students with access to technology, updated textbooks, and proficient teachers; on the other hand, we have students with no access to technology or the internet, outdated textbooks (or no textbooks at all) and teachers who may not be very proficient.

Overall, I feel there may have been some improvements, but not enough to meaningfully change the current challenges. We are still struggling with issues that have existed for many years. Personally, I think the situation remains largely the same, and teachers are being blamed for it when it is not truly their fault. We need strong, systemic changes to achieve our goals. They are not easy to make, but we can implement them if we are genuinely committed to changing the paradigm.

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Hey Dani and Mari!
That’s a super valid question, and honestly, I don’t think we can say things are fully fixed. Yes, there have definitely been improvements in terms of access to materials and maybe even a shift in how English is perceived or what it’s for (more communication-focused, less grammar-translation).

But still... I wouldn’t say the system is anywhere near perfect. There’s so much left to improve. The biggest issue, I think, is that even though we now have all these amazing resources online, the conditions around them, like teachers’ time, training, or school priorities, often make it really hard to actually use them well.

So yeah, progress has happened, but it feels like we’re stuck halfway. Someone's gotta keep pushing for change, maybe that’s us byeee Fran