Paraguay
From AFSWiki
AFS Country Code: PAR
Contents |
Placement
- Age requirement:
- Language requirement:
- Health restrictions: Almost all families have pets that spend at least part of the time indoors.
- Graduates:
- Smoking: It is quite common for at least one family member to smoke.
- Dietary Restrictions: Vegetarians are difficult to place.
- Dress:
- Other: The majority of placements are in small towns, but all of them have easy access to larger cities.
Travel Information
- Visa:
- Departure Preparation:
- Arrival & Orientation:
- Departure:
Host Families
In families, supervising the children and managing the household are typically the responsibilities of wives, while husbands are more occupied with work outside the home. Paraguayans are usually protective of their children, especially daughters; for example, teenage males have much more liberal curfews than their sisters have. Parents expect to know when their children are going out and where they are going. Most social activities, vacations and weekends are family events.
AFSers to Paraguay must be prepared to live under conditions very different from those at home. Sometimes host families will not have modern facilities, and the level of material comfort can be much lower than that of the typical wealthier household. Few homes have air conditioning, washing machines, dishwashers or microwave ovens.
- Food: Paraguayans are accustomed to large meals at lunch and dinner, but breakfast is quick and light (milk, coffee or tea and bread). Meat is prominent in all national dishes. Corn, rice, potatoes and wheat are important staples, as are fruits in season. Sopa Paraguaya, considered the most traditional dish, is a corn flour cake made with eggs, milk, cheese and onions. Paraguayan families eat their main meal of the day together, and on Sunday the extended family gathers for dinner. It is considered inappropriate for individuals to request special foods or to prepare separate food for themselves.
- Transportation:
- Extracurricular:
- Hosted-in:
Support Information
Information needed.
Academics
- Transcript/Diploma: AFS students can obtain a written report on their academic activity if they attend all classes, complete assignments and pass the exams.
- School: School is one of the best places to meet people and make friends during your time in Paraguay. It gives opportunities for intensive practice of Spanish and helps to immerse you into the culture and community.
- Classes run from 7:00 a.m. to noon, or 1:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Some schools require attendance at both morning and afternoon sessions. Most students attend private schools and are placed in the senior year. Most schools require uniforms.
- There are 11 mandatory subjects including chemistry, fine arts, geography, history, Latin, math, philosophy, psychology and Spanish. Students remain in one classroom, while teachers move from room to room. Ideal interests: history, international politics, environment
- Interactions between students and teachers are formal and respectful,l and students are expected to participate fully in class. There are few textbooks; classes stress theory. In some courses, such as psychology and philosophy, students form study groups. Homework is assigned daily, and each subject requires reports, oral quizzes and exams. Teachers rotate classes, students stay in the same room
- School year: School is in session from March to October, Monday through Friday, with a two-week winter break in July.
- Language: Spanish
Scholarships & Sponsored Programs
See Scholarships or Sponsored Programs for Sending for more information.
General Country Information
Landlocked Paraguay is bisected by Rio Paraguay. West of the river, the hot infertile plain known as the Gran Chaco is sparsely settled and less explored than the Amazon. Ninety-eight percent of the population lives instead in Paraguay’s more verdant eastern half. Until recently, the government isolated Paraguay both politically and economically, and though the country was once a colony of Spain, most Paraguayans are also fluent in Guaraní, the native language, as well as in Spanish. Recently, however, Paraguay began to shake off its self-absorption, and the capital, Asunción, is modernizing. Yet Guaraní still sell feathered headdresses as well as bows and arrows on Asunción’s plazas, and life throughout the country preserves an old-fashioned pace and courtesy.
Paraguay is steeped in tradition. It proudly keeps alive its native arts, crafts, music, instruments and dance. The original inhabitants of eastern Paraguay were semi-nomadic native Americans of various tribes collectively known as Guaraní because of their common language.
In the 16th century, the first Europeans settled in Paraguay and created flourishing Spanish colonies. The native Indian population gradually absorbed the Spaniards, who in turn adopted Guaraní food, language and customs. Colonization also meant that Jesuit missionaries were sent to “civilize” the Indians. This early history, mixed with turbulent political development, expansion, civil wars and dictatorship, evolved into a peaceful, leisurely paced life, sometimes seemingly preserved from an earlier time.
About 95% of the people in Paraguay are mestizos, a word that describes people of mixed European and Native American descent, and most are bilingual in Spanish and Guaraní. Paraguayans are very hospitable, and conversation is a national pastime.
Paraguayan teenagers like to go out together as a group; they play sports, have picnics, go to parties or a movie, take walks or hang out in parks or malls.
- Description:
- Religion: Roman Catholicism is the religion of the country (90%), with minor representation of Mennonite and other Protestant denominations.
- Climate:
- Population: Paraguay has a population of 4.9 million. About 98% of the people are located in the eastern region and almost half of them live in urban areas. Asunción has a population of approximately one million.
- Politics: Paraguay is a democracy with three branches of government: the executive, consisting of the President and Vice President, each elected for five years, and their cabinet; the legislative, consisting of a bicameral Congress; and the judiciary, consisting of the Supreme Court, composed of nine magistrates.
- Language: There are two official languages in Paraguay, Spanish and Guaraní. Most Paraguayans either speak or understand both languages.
Return to the Country Information page.
For information, questions or concerns on the Program Information Specialist or email countryinfo@afs.org.
