It's *possible* that Cuba is expecting something in return from Guinea, Liberia or Sierra Leone; I don't think it's probable (they're even poorer than Cuba). I agree that Cuba (and the rest of the world) have an interest in ending Ebola in West Africa so that it doesn't eventually enter their own countries and wreak havoc. That's a very legitimate reason for sending doctors. That's exactly what powerful countries should be doing too, because as long as it exists in West Africa, the threat of West Africans traveling and entering other countries is real (aside from the humanitarian goal of ending suffering in West Africa).
No, I don't know generally how it is regarding languages, but I have a good friend who only left Cuba a couple years ago, and he says that the educational system is completely bankrupted by bribery and plagiarism at every level. Teachers accept money bribes in exchange for passing grades, and students collude to plagiarize on exams and other assignments. It doesn't seem like an environment in which ANY kind of foreign-language-learning program would work.
It's great that Cuba is sending doctors to West Africa, but I have a lot of questions about that (including, for example, whether the doctors themselves consented to it or whether the government decided unilaterally to send them over).
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Date: 31 October 2014 12:19 pm (UTC)No, I don't know generally how it is regarding languages, but I have a good friend who only left Cuba a couple years ago, and he says that the educational system is completely bankrupted by bribery and plagiarism at every level. Teachers accept money bribes in exchange for passing grades, and students collude to plagiarize on exams and other assignments. It doesn't seem like an environment in which ANY kind of foreign-language-learning program would work.
It's great that Cuba is sending doctors to West Africa, but I have a lot of questions about that (including, for example, whether the doctors themselves consented to it or whether the government decided unilaterally to send them over).