Colegio Arubano

Colegio Arubano (English: Aruban High School) is a senior high school in the Dutch Caribbean colony of Aruba that serves students in grades seven through twelve (measured in Ciclo Basico as equivalents to seventh and eighth grades and in VWO (four-year program) / HAVO (three-year program) as equivalents to American high school grades nine through twelve) from one of its two campuses in either the capital city of Oranjestad or the southern community of Sint Nicolaas. The school is the only of its kind in Aruba.^[1]

On 15 February 2008, demonstrations took place surrounding the quality of education in Colegio Arubano and other schools on the island of Aruba;^[2] a 2007 study in the Colegio Arubano student body indicated that about 70% of students graduate from lower grade feeder schools and are eligible to enter Colegio Arubano. 60% of students participating in VWO pass final exams, while 50% of all HAVO students pass the HAVO final exam.^[1] The current director of the school is Jossy Tromp, and the underdirectors are Whitney Kock, Anne Cameron and Milouschka Wernet. The school has around 100 teachers and around 1800 students. At the school different languages are taught: Papiamento, Dutch, English, Spanish and French. When a student is going from the third grade to the fourth grade, the student may choose some subjects. For the HAVO section the student must choose from three different courses, or profiles: Mens En Maatschappij (Economy, Management & Organisation, Statistics, Math and History), Natuurwetenschappen (Math, Physics, Biology and Chemistry), and Humaniora ("CKV" subjects, which include Dance, Music, Visual art and the Dramatic Arts). In the VWO section, the student is not allowed to choose the Humaniora profile.

School

Classes start at 7:30 AM, but the last hour of school is different for every class and depends largely on the profile of each individual student. Students from VWO 3( 9th grade), HAVO 4 ( 10th grade) and on, generally will have school time from 7:30 AM to 2:10 PM and occasionally to 3:00 PM. Every period lasts 45 minutes, with the exception of the week in which the teachers and mentors of the students come together and discuss the report cards.In this week all periods are cut with 15 minutes. This usually happens the week before the report cards are given to the parents.

Certain subjects such as CKV and LO ( physical education) which are given once a week occur in a two-period timespan, thus lasting one hour and thirty minutes. Other subjects are also often given this, commonly subjects relevant to the grade or depending on the difficulty of the material dealt with during that specific year. The amount of hours given to each subject are generally equal to all classes of the same grade, with certain differences between HAVO and VWO

English, Dutch and mathematics are considered to be the most important subjects and a lot of emphasis is put on the study of the aforementioned.

Festivities

Several national holidays are observed and celebrated. On nationally celebrated days, such as Dia di Betico, which commemorates the birth of Gilberto Francois "Betico" Croes on the 25th of January, all schools are closed.

Every year, during the celebration of Carnaval ( or Carnival) class queens are chosen from the different grades and compete for the crown of the school queen.

The Key Club branch of Kiwanis Aruba on Colegio Arubano organizes several events, such as the selling of roses, candy and stuffed animals for Valentine's Day, bake sales and fundraising for charity.

Other festivities which have risen in popularity in recent years are the so-called 'water balloon fights'. These are fully coordinated by students of different grades, albeit often happening on the last day of school for the ones who have finished their exams successfully or on the last day of school in general. These water balloon fights have been going on for several years, each year with a new twist. On the last official school day in 2014, balloons were prepared early in the morning, some with glitter or ink. These 'fights' are often harmless and enjoyable. Bottles are also filled with water and emptied on laughing or surprised students as a second resort for balloons. The 2014 water balloon fight was led by V6-A also known as Chando-Life. Chando abréviation comes from Mr.Chando Chandwani, founder of the Chando Life movement.

References

• School home page (in Dutch)