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by Dr. Danny Recio, PhD, Program Director of The Bridge
It is probably not a coincidence that many young men I interview before coming to the Bridge explain that one of their main goals is to “come out of their shell”. This is not only a very powerful metaphor for their struggles, but it also defines, in a nutshell (no pun intended!), one of the key profile characteristics of the students we work with. This metaphorical shell provides a safe place, protecting them from any (perceived) harm or threat in the outside world. The shell is sometimes their parents’ basement, their room, electronic devices, excuses, fronts, or substances. But if this shell is safe and protective, why would they want anything to change?
Perhaps they have come to realize that the shell deprives them from fulfilling many needs, especially an intrinsic and basic one: growth. And that’s because inside the shell there’s not much of anything, at least not in the case of hermit crabs. We have to come out of the shell in order to grow, and it is through interacting with our environment that we do so.
However, in hermit crabs and metaphorical shells, coming out is directly related to feeling safe; as long as there’s a sense of considerable threat out in the environment, there will be no coming out. Thus, coming out of the shell entails both feeling confident in one’s own skills to deal with the world, as well as trusting that the world is not just going to sweep us away.
The equivalent of the metaphorical shell in the nervous system is the vagus nerve, which plays a fundamental role in a process Steven Porges named neuroception. This process allows people to decipher signals from their environment, both from objects as well as detailed cues from people, to help determine whether a situation deserves a threat response (get in the shell) or is safe (come out of the shell and engage). Porges explains that this process can go “out of tune” so that people activate defense systems when it’s actually a safe situation, or exhibit engaging or risk-taking behavior in an unsafe environment.
So, how does one support someone’s desire to come out of the shell and continue to grow? Not by frantically tapping on the shell, which will only reinforce the sense of unsafety in the environment, and not by just feeding the hermit crab so he’s nourished without having to come out of the shell. Why? Because neither of these strategies will help the person fine-tune his neuroception of safety; he will continue to perceive erroneously his capacity to engage the world
At The Bridge and our high school program, New Summit Academy, we believe in a middle-way approach we call supportive immersion. Supportive Immersion is an approach to learning that focuses less on instruction and product, and more on experience and process. It is highly individualized in that it relies heavily on the lived subjective experience of the learner toward what he’s learning, and it keeps at its center the goal of learning how to learn. The facilitator (teacher, therapist, etc.) of this learning process is both hands-off and very involved at the same time; walking with the learner in the process, but not doing the walking for or just shouting instructions from the sidelines. Empathy is a key element, and it’s used to see the task from the worldview of the learner while also using the facilitator’s own knowledge to guide experiences and invite shifts in the learner’s worldview. It’s teaching how to fish, instead of being given a fish type of approach.
This process is very successful for people that are in the shell, because it provides the feeling (neuroception) of safety coming from the support, guidance and processing of the (often out-of-the-comfort-zone) experiences our students are going through and, at the same time, it allows the learner to walk his own path, and feel what it’s like to poke his head out of the shell, and find his own way to gradually make changes that allow the growth they are seeking.
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This year two Bridge students participated in an intensive English camp called JumpStart with the indigenous Bribri in Sepecue.
The aim was to provide support, offer lesson planning, and to help with organization. They were able to experience the day to day life of Bribri students during their summer vacation.
After their week there, they returned with three Bribri students and the JumpStart student organizer.
They came to experience the average week of a Bridge student. They visited internships, went on cultural and weekend activities, played soccer, participated in weekly meetings, and cooked alongside community members.
Here are some comments from the Bribri about their experience with the exchange:
"It was nice to have them visit in Sepecue, because they helped us with pronunciation and organization/preparation for classes. There were able to give us a lot of ideas to make our classes more engaging. After the camp, the shy students were a lot more confident with speaking."
"I like how everything was organized. I've never had a set schedule like this. The guys were friendly and receptive to us, and they made us feel at home. "
And some comments from Bridge students about the exchange:
"It's been nice to connect on a less formal basis. We still have goals with our relationship, but each day to day experience has deepened our connection."
"It's been nice to connect on a less formal basis. We still have goals with our relationship, but each day to day experience has deepened our connection."
"It was difficult but rewarding in Sepecue. This year the JumpStart program was led by former students, which led to opportunities for improvisation and learning for the new teachers."
"It's been nice to spend a week with the people I taught with. The week in Sepecue and the exchange with them here has allowed us to build a strong friendship."
"It's been nice to spend a week with the people I taught with. The week in Sepecue and the exchange with them here has allowed us to build a strong friendship."
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How many people do you know who can say that their most fun activity is actually their occupation? At The Bridge, guiding our students to find passion in what they do is of utmost importance. We listen and observe intently to our students' interests, talents, and where they seem most engaged and energized.We offer close to 30 different options of internships and have enough connections with local professionals that we can find almost anything a student wishes to engage in.
Costa Rica is a relationship based culture, which strongly believes in apprenticeship. This has allowed us to connect our students with great mentors and have most of our graduates go on to follow the profession they first practiced at The Bridge. The dedication our students show once they are interning at the occupation of their dreams makes them highly regarded members of their internship’s teams, which allows them to create great resumes with strong letters of recommendation, and it opens up opportunities for other students to have the same internships other graduates have had. That’s why we keep on adding more and more to the list!
Watch this 45 second video of Christian at the welding shop, and see what we mean when we say our students feel at home in their occupation:
Watch this 45 second video of Christian at the welding shop, and see what we mean when we say our students feel at home in their occupation:
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We recently revisited the Bribri community of Sepecue during our last aventura.
Our goals were to reconnect with the group, learn about and document their traditional farmingtechnqiues, and to raise money for two students to study in Oregon next year.
We visited farms and interviewed elders to understand more about the Bribri culture and how pivotal farming is to their lifestyle.
Afterwards, the Bribri accompanied us back home for a week to visit the city, raise money at the Feria Verde, and to watch USA vs Costa Rica.
The Bribri were able to conclude their visit by watching the Costa Rican national team win 4-0 against the US.
This exchange of culture helped everyone, both the Bridge and the Bribri, grow more aware of the important need to connect and share.
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by Joey Steinberg
For the past two months I have been taking Cultural Photography at Universidad Veritas in San Jose. This class has taught me how to use my camera in the manual setting, as well as step out of my comfort zone for getting the right shots. I’ve had to ask people on the street for their photo, as well as try and be secretive. My most memorable day was when I walked around San Jose for three hours because class was canceled, and I ended up getting lost, just to get good photos.
I took this photo before taking the class with Veritas while my parents and I were in Manuel Antonio at the national park. This was the first time I used my camera on its manual setting and had the photo come out viewable. This was the clearest photo of a monkey I was able to capture without having our guide put my camera to the telescope, a device he used for spotting and viewing different animals.
This was the fifth photo I took with my camera in Costa Rica that happened to be on my birthday in Guanacaste. I never paid attention to the photo, because it didn't look that good on the camera screen at first. When I was able to upload it to my computer, I was happy to see that I captured the boat as a silhouette with the sunset in the background. This is by far my favorite photo I’ve taken while in Costa Rica.
I took this photo one day while I wandered San Jose after class was canceled. I saw the kid on the far left showing the man sitting down in the plain white shirt a video. I wanted to capture the interaction without them knowing, but they looked up and saw me, so I asked to take their photo. I was not expecting the response I got from the three guys, which was surprisingly positive and enthusiastic. This type of photography is known as street photography.
Lastly, this photo was taken for class and is called drawing with light. To get this photo, I opened the shutter speed to 10 seconds while my friend, Will, was drawing with a ball of light. When the shutter speed is open, it captures everything moving in the photo. This technique is used for making photos of a river or waterfall look like a cloak.
Commuting every Monday and Wednesday to San Jose has become something I look forward to, because it forces me to speak Spanish and use public transportation. I also enjoy talking to the different cab drivers everyday and finding out which ones lived in the United States, and saying the same thing to them everyday, because they all ask the same questions. I’m looking forward to continuing the class and learning about different techniques
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Over the past few months the Bridge has been connecting with a group of college students from Universidad Tecnica Nacional (UTN).
The goal has been to establish relationships, practice language, and have some fun.
The group from UTN is in a similar situation. They are young adults learning how to organize their lives, develop meaningful and lasting relationships, and how to define their passions and plan their futures.
The first meeting consisted of breaking into groups and having a language exchange. There were themes to discuss, but the main idea was to get to know one another. Plenty of confusion and laughter resulted in more meetings, which led to a delicious potluck, and eventually weekly pickup soccer games.
Now strangers are called friends, and both groups have people to rely on for conversation and fun activities. The connection has been made and both communities are stronger, not from similarities or differences, but from the desire to share.
Now strangers are called friends, and both groups have people to rely on for conversation and fun activities. The connection has been made and both communities are stronger, not from similarities or differences, but from the desire to share.
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by Malcolm, written for the NSA student publication, The Milieu
As a great six months in a tropical paradise comes to a close, one phrase comes to mind: Pura Vida.
The time I have spent here in Costa Rica has been eye opening. I have had the marvelous opportunity to experience so many different things. The thing that I believe will stay with me the longest is the culture. This has come in many different varieties: getting on a public bus at six in the morning well knowing I was going to sit in traffic for at least an hour and a half, for example. This experience has been the cornerstone in my development into an international citizen.
I came here knowing barely any Spanish and now I can have an hour or more long informal conversation with a Tico. This did not come from a Spanish class it came from living in a culture that is different from my own.
Not only can you use transport or learn a language way faster. You can eat some ridiculously good food. Olla de Carne, casados, mamonchinos, Gallo Pinto, jacotes, and the big two; Chicharones and Ceviche. All of these are just a small example of the diverse food selection that any one can experience in one of Costa Rica's many sodas.
All of the things that I have learned have taught me about myself and who I want to be in my future. The importance of family and friends is something that I used to take advantage of and now it is something that I cherish.
If I could advise anyone in this world about anything it would be to never pass up an experience that lets you expand your own horizons. Take a gap year, move somewhere new, try a new food what ever it is.
You never know that experience could be the one you tell your grandkids about in 60 years. My grandkids will hear about my experiences in the great land of Costa Rica.
PURA VIDA, Malcolm
The time I have spent here in Costa Rica has been eye opening. I have had the marvelous opportunity to experience so many different things. The thing that I believe will stay with me the longest is the culture. This has come in many different varieties: getting on a public bus at six in the morning well knowing I was going to sit in traffic for at least an hour and a half, for example. This experience has been the cornerstone in my development into an international citizen.
I came here knowing barely any Spanish and now I can have an hour or more long informal conversation with a Tico. This did not come from a Spanish class it came from living in a culture that is different from my own.
Not only can you use transport or learn a language way faster. You can eat some ridiculously good food. Olla de Carne, casados, mamonchinos, Gallo Pinto, jacotes, and the big two; Chicharones and Ceviche. All of these are just a small example of the diverse food selection that any one can experience in one of Costa Rica's many sodas.
All of the things that I have learned have taught me about myself and who I want to be in my future. The importance of family and friends is something that I used to take advantage of and now it is something that I cherish.
If I could advise anyone in this world about anything it would be to never pass up an experience that lets you expand your own horizons. Take a gap year, move somewhere new, try a new food what ever it is.
You never know that experience could be the one you tell your grandkids about in 60 years. My grandkids will hear about my experiences in the great land of Costa Rica.
PURA VIDA, Malcolm
Graduation Tribute Video:
https://www.facebook.com/SummitToSummitBridgeProgramS2s/videos/2703898069647805/
https://www.facebook.com/SummitToSummitBridgeProgramS2s/videos/2703898069647805/
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When asked about their experience in developing these projects in Costa Rica, this is what our students had to say:
Doing community service is very rewarding; you can actually see the difference in what you do, especially with the one at the preschool. People walk by it everyday, people see that kids can now play. It's a great way to interact with the locals, with a wide variety of people. It takes me to different places in Costa Rica that I wouldn't go to as well as gives me connections and friendships.
The people who receive the help are gracious for the help in ways that I have not seen before, they provide direction but they don’t feel the need to oversee; there is an inherent trust in the people. They all treat us as friends. I’ve gotten out of it a renewed desire to learn the language and a respect for the costa rican culture that runs deeper than I expected.
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Our students engage in meaningful community service projects all over Costa Rica with local Ticos. This allows them to connect with different populations in need and learn to value their own contributions as well as the relationships that one can develop with any human being.
Bridge students will do at least 50 hours of community service, and easily reach 150 before they graduate.
A couple of students recently shared a morning with the center for special needs in our town, where they made breakfast, danced and taught them some English. The gratitude and bond was visible and reciprocal.
Bridge students will do at least 50 hours of community service, and easily reach 150 before they graduate.
A couple of students recently shared a morning with the center for special needs in our town, where they made breakfast, danced and taught them some English. The gratitude and bond was visible and reciprocal.
Seeing the smiles on their faces when we were interacting with them. How appreciative they were, how much they enjoyed having us there. I’m passionate about working with people with special needs, and doing that in a different country was amazing. Every time I do something like that, I appreciate my life and these people so much.
I’ve worked with special ed students before, they’ve only been younger students than me. Getting to see adults with disabilities, functioning within a structure but happily. Being able to provide them with learning a new language, and seeing them behave like any other class I’ve taught before was interesting. Being able to cook for them was amazing, because they all appreciated the effort and they made that known.
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We were part of Costa Rica's biggest pilgrimage, walking 15km to the famous Los Angeles cathedral. We supported the thousands of other pilgrims in their petitions and also petitioned for our friends and family.
