Raising kids in Dominican Republic

Unless you have the $$$$ for private school here this is not a great place for kids as public schools here are a joke at best.

Bob K

Kids are kids, good parents are etc,etc.. Unless you home school tis best to have them in a private school.  However, not all have to be very expensive.  Ie, in cabrera there are excellent affordable private schools. Pre-schoolt up to 12th. grade. Most students go on to university & state side colleges. Contact Tom Cabrera on this site & he can direct you to more info.

My son is 8, we moved to the DR last year because his mom is Dominican and she was homesick and I retired.  I have to say the DR is kid friendly if you have money.   There are good private schools, my son goes to Santiago Christian School and he loves it.  They teach in English a have children from all over the world.  There are private clubs with nice facilities and sports. Baseball, soccer, and basketball are big here, but the leagues you would want are in the private schools or private clubs.  You do not want to send your Kids to the public school and you want to avoid public transportation.  There are very few decent public parks or playgrounds.  The roads are very dangerous and it is a poor country as a result anything of value is subject to get stolen. So you want to be able to afford to live in a gated community with guards.   You want to teach your kids to be very careful taking out ipads, cell phones, jewelry, bikes, etc.   A newer, very reliable car to get around in a must.  There is plenty to see and do. We go to the beaches, go hiking, the rivers, waterfalls, and sightseeing a lot.  My son is almost already fluent in Spanish after only 7 months. I have taken years of classes and still struggle speaking Spanish.  I think the most important aspect for children is that they have a large loving family or good friends their age to be around.  My son has lots of cousins and uncles and aunties plus Grandma that love him,  so his adjustment was much easier.

You don't have to be rich to raise kids here. The very strong family orientation here is great for the kids. Neighbors & friends watch & help keep them on the right path. There are excellent small private schools that are $100 or less for the middle class kids. The parents MUST take part in their education as well.  Segregating kids in compounds, surrounded by their "peers" is a recipe for a diminished view of the world. I agree that it is a foolish & at times stupid to flash their advantages.  Why live here if you must seclude yourself & your family? This only promulgates  a sense of separation from the realities of living here.  If you need that separation, go live in the middle east or the like.  Don't mean to offend, but paranoia isn't beneficial for parent nor child. It is possible to meld different cultures & grow as people in a foreign land.  Good luck in enriching your lives. The Tuba has spoken.  Wish you well.

Raising kids here is very different.  I will NOT say much as I don't have kids and know little about it.

What I know - public school education sucks.  Private school in 95% of time is expensive.

You have to be rich,.....by Dominican  standards, to live and raise kids here to even minimal gringo standards.   Most gringos won't, and don't live by local standards, and most don't live in local barrios.   I used to live amongst locals in a 4k Peso/month place.  Half the gringos though it was pathetic, the other half wouldn't even visit.

I can relate. Lived in a 4,500 rd a month place. It was an amazing experience.

You are very right, rich by local standards in order to properly educate chilften here. That is very well said!

To hell with the gringos who said pathetic or wouldn't visit! They weren't worth knowing. Do they visit you now?  Shame on those who judge a man by his wealth or lack of it. Va carajo to them all.

I remember the reaction of a friend who visited me. He was from Canada and had never been here. he spent a week in a resort and then came to visit me in my barrio. He was SHOCKED to say the least. For me it was an awesome experience.

It is not for everyone. Just like living in a gated community OR living in Santo Domingo, OR living in Punta Cana OR whatever is not for everyone.

We all must  practice tolerance and understand what works for me may not work for you.  We offer our advice and our experience. Individuals make choices!

Bet you don't really live like locals either.  Almost no gringos do.

Absolutely not Colonel. I live a modified life now. 

Even the "poorest" gringos still have way more money to live on than a typical Dominican does.  There is a huge disparity.

Okay back to the subject of raising kids here.

One big difference I do notice -  kids out in public are subject to all adults being willing to take them in hand.  For example a child running amok in a grocery store will get told by all adults close by to control themselves!   That is not gonna happen back home!

Not all locals live in barrios. There is a middle class here. Nowhere as evident as the barrios, but it definitely exists. I live among locals & have since 2002.  I have a small income that is sufficient for my basic needs. local friends who own some of those walled in homes that are so surprising once inside. We sometimes blind ourselves with preconceived notions of our environment & who is living among us. Supposition is belief without fact. An affliction which fogs our vision & creates separation of people. A bias without foundation is a loss to all.  One friend has a 9 year old daughter who speaks 4 languages & well on the way to a fith. She attends a local semi-private school here in Sosua. Her parents both work & by U.S. stanrds are lower end middle class.  Parenting is the  building blocks of education.  By example they lead the way to successful maturity.

Well statistics are pretty darn clear here Tinker -

75% of the population are the poor and poorest!
Then we have the working poor.
A very small middle class.
An even smaller  upper class.

Over 90% of the wealth here is controlled by a very very small percentage of the people. In fact I believe its 8 families who control it.

And to be clear you have not lived here since 2002.  You were back in the states for several years and if I am not mistaken moved back here last year full time. 

Your insights are always welcome, much has changed and much stays the same!  You have a recent experience of living in  Florida to compare with life here. 

Back to education -  clearly very few Dominicans can afford a real quality education for their kids here.

As expats with children their education needs to be a main concern!  Its a big big deal.

Yes, sure we know some locals are middle class, but most aren't.  Most have rock bottom education too Watch them try to write in their own language:.  :"Ta yeno, no ay lugar"....etc

The public education is horrible here. I know professionals who cannot write correctly

Forgive me for implying a continous residency here. For medical reasons I had to spend  time combating cancer & incipient blindness.  Won the battle with cancer, but not so the slow loss of vision.  My insurance covered my expenses (medical).  I moved back here as soon as my health permitted. I'm here for the duration now.  A good education here is more costly than in the states. However much of the basic living costs are a bit lower to help off-set the difference.   I recommend reading A book by Jacques  Barzun,  "Teacher In America".  It will open your eyes as to the decline of education in the states.  It was written many years ago so it isn't a comparison but a prediction.  Alas, it has come true.

And we are glad you won the battle!   

Many people move here because of the lower cost of living. But raising children here can  simply add back to that cost of living.  Its not just tuition, its  books,  field trips, parties and uniforms and all the extras associated with a private education. In addition is the kids associating with other kids of "means".  To get a decent basic education  here expats kids will be considered upper class and all the trappings that go along with that!

I have a couple friends here in the capital who tell me that the "party" circuit is bloody expensive. Birthday parties and parties at every holiday!

Hello All,

Wonderful conversation. Thanks for all the different points of view. I have a more poignant question related to the topic of Children Education in the DR...

I have 3 little ones and my wife and I are looking to move to the DR. A good Education for our kids is naturally our #1 consideration when we look at where we will.move in the DR.

I have done some research but have found that private schooling is SO expensive, it practically has shot down our plans to move to the DR. As an example, I called the International School of Sosua and spoke with their admissions person. She told me that for my 3 kids, I would be looking at $1800/month for their education and food expenses... $1800 American dollars a month blows my budget completely out of the water. I had thought that I could get private schooling for all 3 kiddoes for maybe $400 to $700/month (for all 3 of them), which I could afford, but not $1800 per month.

Someone in this threat mentioned that there is affordable private schooling for expat kids... so my question is: what are the names of those schools, where are they located and how much would it costme per month in American $? I sure have not been able to find affordable private schools on line so as of right now, my plans to move to the DR with my family are shot.

Any specific insight is well appreciated. Thanks.

Bruno

How does one go about contacting "Tom Cabrera"? I searched for his name under community but he didn't come up. If you can help me get in touch with him so I can ask some questions around private schools, that would be awesome. Thanks.

You are correct the school  you are searching for is in Cabrera.  Tom is quite knowledgeable and I will ask him to respond to this thread.

Yes private school is expensive. In Santo Domingo there are more options  but not sure on each ones charges.  I do know some are much more expensive!

Thank you Planner, you are always very helpful and I appreciate it.

Incredible to think that there are more expensive schools even... feels like I maybe SOL on this dream of moving to the DR. 

Bruno, PM me. My god daughter went to summer school in Cabrera.

Hello, you refer to a middle class Dominican family.  Income wise...what does that mean?   I'm just curious.  Thanks.

In response to Planner's post about spelling......

Very true of the US as well.  It's pathetic to work along someone with a master's degree who can't even speak or write proper English and it's their native language.  Who the he _ _ hires these people?  Have we completely abandoned all of our standards?

Is homeschooling legal in the DR?  Can expats hire private expat "tutors" to educate their children?

As a US parent, we ran the whole gambit of educational choices here in the States.  First, private Montessori, then homeschooling, then private classical Christian, then public high school.  The worst of the worst was the public high school.  What a freaking nightmare that was, and it was considered one of the "better" public schools in our area.  The best choice was homeschooling.

So, I'm wondering can expats  move there and either choose to homeschool their children, or hire other expats to privately "tutor" their children?

YES homeschooling is legal. I do not know how it works but I know people doing it!

Yes, it is appalling to me how many cannot spell,  use proper  or close to proper grammar!

Here we see decent grammar and spelling and mistakes are often "damn fingers" or those for whom English is a second language. I follow several groups on FB and am absolutely disgusted at what I read.

Middle class -  I do not know for sure but those who make over  say 40,000 RD per month maybe.  Household income would be higher than that I am guessing. I will see what I can find. Currently the exchange rate for US is about  48 pesos to the US dollar.

There are cheap private schools in the DR, but you would not want to send your kids there.  Theses schools are just a little better than the public schools which are very bad.  You get what you pay for... In many cases the classes at the cheap private schools are only half a day, either you go in the morning or in the afternoon.  None or the teachers or students speak English in these schools and the teachers pay is very low.  Unless your Kids speak fluent Spanish, they will end up sitting in a corner unable to communicate, learning nothing for the first year will be more susceptible to bulling and teasing.  Please note that the Spanish spoken here is not like Rosetta Stone. You are going to want your children to learn proper Spanish as well as the street Spanish.  A decent school for an expat's kid is going to run you $5,000 to $7,000 a year.  Whatever is quoted online, you will need to add at least $2,000 a year for school lunches, snacks, uniforms, fees, activities, etc. The more you pay, generally the more you get in facilities and quality of classmates and teachers.  I have in-laws that work at the cheaper private schools and neices and nephews that go.  I listen to the stories and can see the difference.  Believe me You are going to want to send your kids to the most expensive private school you can find, it will make the adjustment much easier. Note that very few schools in the DR teach in English or even have more than a few English speaking teachers, even those schools that claim to be bi-lingual.  Also note that the better more expensive schools are tougher to get in and in some cases there are waiting list. If you decide to come apply early.  Also see my earlier post, good luck.

Wow great info from someone who has experience. Thank you!    That is good info.

Folks the bottom line is if education of your children is a "must" then the DR will NOT work for you.
Yes the International school in Sosua is probably the top of the heap but still not the education that can be had elsewhere.  And as far as college goes.........

Bob K

We are also looking for schools. Does anyone have a link to a list if International schools showing their prospectus and annual attainments, amount of pupils etc.
Other countries we have lived in this has been easy to find but it surely must exist.
We are given to believe the international school in Sosua outperforms most international schools worldwide but the garden school in Peutra Plato is also good and significantly cheaper.
It is difficult to create a list of schools to approach and visit with so little information

I've never seen a list and a friend of mine went thru this last summer. Her child is at  Garden School and she is quite happy with the school!   

There does not seem to be an association or anything of private schools here. We looked extensively and found nothing!   I am sorry this isn't of much help to you.

Thanks Planner, this seems to be a stumbling block. We have found a basic list for Santo Domingo but nothing else. I guess it is a case of finding other parents views in order to short list a few schools. Any input on this of connections would be welcome as we will shortly be in DR to complete visa process and decide where to initially lay our heads. Also looking for reasonable accomodation for 2 adults 1 child in or close to Santo Domingo, Las Terranos and Peurtro Plata about 4 weeks in each April, May and June if anyone has any or knows of some.

In your case try AirBnB for this. It will get you into an apartment or house in each of these areas. For sure let me know when you  will be in Santo Domingo!!!

Since we know that homeschooling is better than the government sector schooling in that states, of course that will be the case here too.  So it's only a matter of private ones here, and those are in the capitol, where most gringos don't even want to live.  Then too, many gringos apparently can't even afford those.

I think we have lost sight of what an education consists of. It is the preparation to enter the world as an adult. We tend to forget that the three "R" are the foundation of learning. Parents are the cause of most of the lack in th most important areas. Education is not becoming computer literate, it is not many years of association with your peers, then being thrown into an unknown world. If the schools are lacking in the basics, it is the parents responsibility to provide the foundation. The benefits of multi- cultural,multi lingual relationships far exceed the closed society that many private schools can provide.The parents must provide the guide lines of behavior & values. This begins from birth, it doesn't appear by miracle at school age. Anything that local schools can't or are not capable of providing, the parents must.  If you can afford to move here to live, you can afford the time and effort to ensure your children an excellent chance of success  as a human being in the world of their tomorrows. I am not saying that you should dump them in shitty schools, I'm saying you should be pro-active in their education. Remember, we don't want them to mirror us, we want them to be better than us!  There are excellent schools in Cabrera That won't break the bank.   One time buying clothes for school, my son insisted on designer jeans.  I asked him if he wanted to be known by who he was or by some body else's name on his ass?  We compromised, two expensive & two cheaper priced.

Okay on that note lets get back on topic, which is......Raising Kids in the DR.

Aren't parents part of the education of their children, & isn't the choice of schools part of that?  The advantages of a multitude of experience a bad thing? Raising kids just ain't feeding them & a roof over their heads & clothes to cover their butts. What topics do you consider applicable to raising kids here? Parents have a huge part in the development of their children. Let those who have children reply to my post.  Always hugs to you, even in the midst of battle.

The questions & difficulties in raising kids exists where ever you may reside. Here in the DR you have the problem of a bi-lingual society. Young kids adapt much easier the we adults. The exposure to a different culture can & should be an edifiying (SP) experience. However, it cannot be avoided. Much better to use it as examples of other thoughts & ways to see the world. The values here can be used as well. To teach is a requirement of being a parent. It is much more difficult to transplant an early teen to such a foreign place. Patience & an open mid will ease the path.  Kids like dogs, are so much smarter than we give them credit for.  Give them a strong foundation that they can rebel against & they will have something to fall back on.  Never let them think that they are superior to others, they won't recover when they realize they are just equal in the scheme of things. They also have the luxury of learning to like eating mufungo & lachon. (SP I'm sure is wrong) We can't live any more with unlocked doors, but we can live with open minds.