Teach for Success — Brain Drain Handout

VOCABULARY SET 1 — ECONOMIC MIGRATION & DEVELOPMENT

BRAIN DRAIN (n)

The emigration of educated or skilled people away from a region, leaving it less developed.

"Ayacucho experiences brain drain every year as graduates head to Lima."

URBAN MIGRATION (n)

The movement of people from rural to urban areas in search of opportunity.

"Urban migration is accelerating in the Andes as young people seek professional work."

COMMUNITY INVESTMENT (n)

Using money, time, or skills to develop and improve a local community.

"A doctor who returns home is one of the best forms of community investment."

ENTREPRENEURSHIP (n)

The activity of setting up and running new businesses, often with financial risk.

"Rural entrepreneurship can create local jobs without requiring migration."

TO RETAIN (v)

To keep talented people rather than losing them to another place.

"How can rural provinces retain their most qualified graduates?"

REMITTANCES (n)

Money sent home by people working in another city or country.

"Remittances from Lima support many rural families each month."

ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY (n)

The chance to earn a good wage, advance professionally, or build wealth.

"Students leave because economic opportunities in Lima are simply far greater."

LOCAL TALENT PIPELINE (n)

A system that develops skilled people within a community and keeps them there.

"Our university could become a talent pipeline if salaries were competitive."

VOCABULARY SET 2 — VALUES, TENSION, AND IDENTITY

BASIC sad · proud · guilty · worried · loyal

→

INTERMEDIATE frustrated · responsible · homesick · ambitious · disappointed

→

TODAY'S WORDS ★ torn · rooted · obligated · conflicted · resentful · indebted · pragmatic

TORN (adj)

Unable to choose between two things you value equally.

TRY IT: "She felt torn between her career and _______________."

ROOTED (adj)

Having a deep connection to a place, community, or culture.

TRY IT: "I feel deeply rooted here because _______________."

OBLIGATED (adj)

Feeling a strong duty or responsibility toward someone.

TRY IT: "Scholarship students may feel obligated to _______________."

AMBITIOUS (adj)

Having a strong desire to succeed and achieve more.

TRY IT: "Being ambitious doesn't mean you have to _______________."

RESENTFUL (adj)

Feeling bitterness about something that seems unfair.

TRY IT: "Those who stayed can become resentful when _______________."

PRAGMATIC (adj)

Dealing with problems in a practical, realistic way.

TRY IT: "A pragmatic approach means looking at _______________."

CONFLICTED (adj)

Experiencing two opposing feelings or values at once.

TRY IT: "I felt genuinely conflicted when _______________."

INDEBTED (adj)

Feeling that you owe something to a person or community.

TRY IT: "Many graduates feel indebted to _______________."

UNDERUTILIZED (adj)

Not being used to your full potential or capacity.

TRY IT: "Talented people feel underutilized when _______________."

SECTION A — PAIR DISCUSSION

Choose any two questions — discuss with your partner

6 MINUTES

1Did you face a choice between staying in your hometown and moving somewhere larger? What factors most influenced your decision — or what factors would influence it today?
2Think of a former student who left the region. Think of one who stayed. Who do you think made the better choice — or is it even fair to compare them?
3Is there a difference between leaving for economic reasons and leaving for personal ambition? Does the reason change how you feel about it morally?
4What would need to change in your region for a talented 25-year-old to choose to stay — not out of obligation, but because it genuinely seemed like the best option?

SECTION B — PERSPECTIVE TASK: THE CASE FOR STAYING vs. LEAVING

Your teacher will assign you Group A or Group B. Read your card, identify your 3 strongest arguments, then find a partner from the other group.

First 4 minutes: argue your assigned position as strongly as you can. Then drop the role and discuss what you actually think.

GROUP A — THE CASE FOR STAYING

Rural communities lose their best talent precisely when they need it most
Schools, hospitals, and universities in rural areas desperately need qualified staff
Lima is already overcrowded — internal migration creates urban poverty, not just rural poverty
Entrepreneurship and remote work now make it possible to build a strong career locally
Social capital — family networks, trust, deep community ties — is worth more than a higher salary
Who will teach the next generation if all the teachers leave?
Cultural identity and ancestral knowledge are lost when educated youth become fully urban

Your role: argue strongly for staying. Then tell your partner what you actually think.

GROUP B — THE CASE FOR LEAVING

Professional development and career advancement rarely exist in rural areas
Salaries in Lima can be 3–4× higher for the same work — this matters for families
Young people have the right to pursue the best opportunities available, wherever they are
Migrants send remittances home — often greater economic impact than staying on a low local salary
Urban experience builds leaders who may later return with more skills, capital, and networks
Staying in a limited environment can produce frustration, resentment, and underperformance
Brain drain is the government's responsibility to fix — not a burden individuals must carry alone

Your role: argue strongly for leaving. Then tell your partner what you actually think.

SECTION C — WHERE DO YOU STAND?

Circle your position (1 = strongly disagree → 5 = strongly agree). Be ready to explain your choice in one sentence.

1. Young people who leave their rural community to work in Lima are, in some sense, abandoning the people who need them most.

strongly disagree

strongly agree

2. It is the government's responsibility, not the individual's, to make rural areas attractive enough to retain talent.

strongly disagree

strongly agree

3. Rural universities should focus more on preparing students to build businesses locally than to compete for jobs in national corporations.

strongly disagree

strongly agree

4. A student who received a scholarship from a rural province has a moral obligation to return and contribute to that community.

strongly disagree

strongly agree

5. Brain drain is ultimately good for rural communities — migrants return with more skills, capital, and ambition than they left with.

strongly disagree

strongly agree

6. Teachers and professors who stay and work in rural areas are making a greater social contribution than those who pursue careers in larger cities.

strongly disagree

strongly agree

USEFUL LANGUAGE — EXPRESSING MORAL POSITIONS & QUALIFIED OPINIONS

Expressing a Strong View

"There's a strong argument that …"
"I'm firmly convinced that …"
"This is, for me, a question of …"
"I don't think it's fair to say that …"
"The evidence clearly suggests …"

Qualifying and Softening

"That may be true, but we also have to consider …"
"It depends entirely on …"
"I used to think that, but now I'm less sure …"
"It's not as simple as saying …"
"I feel torn on this because …"

PERSONAL REFLECTION — TAKE HOME

After today's lesson, write a few sentences in response to one of these prompts. There are no correct answers.

Choose one:

→ Describe a moment when you felt torn or conflicted about staying in or leaving your community.
→ Describe one specific change that would make your province significantly more likely to retain talented young people.
→ If a student asked you today: "Should I stay or move to Lima?" — what would you tell them, and why?