by Paola Moreno-Roman
Last year, thanks to an anonymous donation and our partnership with Enseña Perú, I had the incredible opportunity to visit seven schools in rural areas in Cajamarca, a region in northern Peru. During those school visits, I trained teachers on how to use Foldscopes - our paper microscopes - and integrate them into their classrooms. We also provided materials (Foldscopes & accessories) for the entire school. Nearly a year later, we returned to follow up on how the Foldscopes had been utilized and to gain a deeper understanding of the realities of education in rural Peru.
Day 0: The Journey Begins
On Sunday, I met Melissa Ninamango from Enseña Perú at Lima’s airport. Our suitcases were packed with Foldscopes and additional materials to build on the donations we had provided the previous year. We were also joined by a filmmaking crew, Smit and Luis, who would capture the impact of Foldscopes in action.
We arrived in Cajamarca without any issues and, after a delicious local dinner, we prepared ourselves for an early start the next day.
Day 1: First School Visits
Our Monday began at 4:30am when our driver, Mr. Joel, picked us up. It took us nearly four hours to get to our first school “Instituto Educativo Pisit-Tongod”. Thankfully, the hotel we were staying at gave us breakfast-to-go, which we also shared with Mr. Joel.
I remembered this school vividly from our previous visit, and it was heartwarming to see the teacher that I had trained, Julissa, welcome us back. She led a classroom session that beautifully demonstrated how the students were using Foldscopes for scientific exploration. I was impressed by their curiosity and Julissa’s skillful guidance in nurturing their observations. As we were preparing to leave, the school’s director invited us to a nearby house for what he called a "little treat"—a delicious lunch featuring local trout. I was deeply touched by their hospitality.
After lunch, we quickly made our way to our next stop, "Instituto Educativo La Zanja". Here, the teachers had also prepared a demo class where the students used Foldscopes to examine plant pests. They guided the students through various steps of the scientific method, including sample collection. For this, we headed to their small greenhouse, where we discovered that their rocoto chili plants were infested with aphids! The students eagerly gathered samples and examined the tiny creatures under their Foldscopes, marveling at the intricate details of the aphids' legs and body parts. Edwin, one of the teachers, explained how they had also been using Foldscopes to explore microorganisms from water samples.
After the workshop, the director kindly invited us for a "little treat" — a delicious plate of chicharrón. Their hospitality was truly touching. As we were getting ready to leave, three young girls ran up to me with small handwritten letters before hurrying off, as it was getting dark and some of them had long walks home, sometimes up to two hours. The letters were sweet, saying they loved me and asking if I wanted to be their friend. It was a deeply moving moment that brought tears to my eyes. I really hope I can return one day.
Mr. Joel, our driver, got us back safely that evening, and we all went straight to bed, completely worn out from the day.
Day 2: Training New Teachers
Tuesday required another early start, though not quite as early as the day before. Mr. Joel picked us up at 5:45 AM, and we set off to visit three schools where, unfortunately, none of the teachers who had received Foldscope training last year were still teaching. As a result, we had to lead new training sessions for the current teachers.
At “Instituto Educativo Miguel Grau”, we were welcomed by a teacher in charge of Science and Technology who was initially skeptical about the Foldscopes. She had tried using them when she started teaching this year but had difficulty getting clear images. However, after participating in the workshop, she was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the Foldscopes and expressed excitement about integrating them into her lessons. After the training, we headed to “Instituto Educativo Apalin Alto”, though we got lost along the way due to unmarked dirt roads. Luckily, we found some local villagers who guided us to the school, and we made it just in time. Here, the story was similar: new teachers had replaced the ones we trained last year, and they were unsure how to use the remaining Foldscopes. After guiding them through the assembly process and showing them how to properly use the microscopes, the teachers were amazed by the clarity of the images, even of something as simple as a strand of hair.
Our final stop of the day was “Instituto Educativo Micaela Bastidas”, close to downtown Cajamarca. We led a workshop for 18 teachers, a large group, so I decided to have them work in pairs to ensure everyone had time to practice. This approach worked well, and it was rewarding to see how quickly they grasped the Foldscope techniques. By the end of the session, they were excited to use the microscopes in their classrooms.
We returned to the hotel a bit earlier that evening, but I began feeling a scratchy throat and mild flu symptoms, so I took some medicine and went straight to bed.
Day 3: Wrapping Up with Gratitude
I woke up today with a bad sore throat, though the medicine I took last night helped a bit. We got to sleep in a little longer than usual, waking up around 6:30 AM, and prepared for our last day of workshops. Today, we planned to visit two schools.
The first stop was “Institución Educativa Llushcapampa Baja”, an elementary school. The teachers greeted us warmly and offered us ‘caldo verde’—a traditional soup from the region, packed with herbs and spices that give it its signature green color.
Afterward, we headed to the classroom, where all the students had gathered. The teachers explained that every Wednesday morning, they run activities using Foldscopes. I was there to check how well they were using them, and I was pleasantly surprised. The students were already skilled in handling their Foldscopes, needing only minor corrections. We looked at a variety of samples, including water, and it was a great experience working with both the students and teachers. For a moment, I even forgot about my sore throat.
After that, we stopped for a quick lunch before heading to "Institución Educativa Cristo Redentor". Like some of the schools from the previous day, all the teachers trained last year had moved on, so the current staff didn’t know how to use the Foldscopes properly. We trained three teachers and two students. Fortunately, the students had been trained the previous year and quickly recalled how to assemble the Foldscopes and prepare samples, which made the training smoother. My voice was starting to give out by then, but we managed to complete the workshop and returned to downtown Cajamarca just in time for dinner.
The four of us had dinner together and debriefed about the trip. I was relieved that everything had gone smoothly, and we had made it to all the schools safely and on time. After picking up some local cheese and other traditional products, we stumbled upon a large parade in the main plaza, celebrating a school’s anniversary. It was a lively and fitting end to our trip. We returned to the hotel, finished packing, and went to bed early, as we had an early flight the next morning.
I’m incredibly grateful for the anonymous donation that made this work possible, helping us support rural communities in my home country, Peru. I look forward to developing more programs in the coming months. If you’re interested in donating or supporting our outreach efforts, feel free to reach out to us at partnerships@foldscope.com.
