VOA慢速英语2016--索马里兰支持学生出国受教育

AS IT IS 2016-07-17 Somaliland Prepares Students for Education Abroad 索马里兰支持学生出国受教育

Mustapha Mohamed Ibrahim is a recent graduate of the Abaarso School of Science and Technology, near Hargeisa, Somaliland.

Like many other Abaarso graduates, Ibrahim was recently accepted to a university in the United¹ States -- with a full scholarship².

Ibrahim expressed excitement.

"For a kid whose parents never graduated from middle school, it is a very, very big deal for getting accepted into universities in the United States."

The Abaarso School of Science and Technology

The Abaarso School of Science and Technology is a school that teaches students from Grade 7 to Grade 12.

Entrance to the school is competitive³. Usually, between 500 and 600 students compete for 50 spots in the school. This year, at least 1,000 students are expected to take the test.

The school's curriculum⁴ centers on math, science, and technology. Students develop their English language skills, too.

The school's education helps students win scholarships⁵ at schools around the world.

The head of the school, James Linville, says that universities and secondary⁶ programs around the world have accepted 80 students from the school.

Most of the 80 students received full scholarships, he says.

"It's incredibly competitive to get scholarships as international students to these schools, and not only that, but it's been a very long time since Somali-educated and Somali-raised students were able to get these scholarships… When our first students got these scholarships three years ago, they were the first in over a generation to be given scholarships to study in the U.S."

Abaarso graduates have success in schools around the world

When studying in other countries, Abaarso graduates are able to keep up with their classmates.

Linville says that Abaarso students have a grade point average of 3.2 out of four in college and preparatory school, on average. Abaarso students have also received high scores on the SAT, an American college entrance exam, says Linville.

High SAT scores are important, he says. "Especially considering that at the time they took the SAT, they've been taking classes in English for three years. So, imagine sending an American kid to another country, asking them to take the national exam in three years and then scoring in the 80th or 90th percentile."

Political⁷ problems in Somaliland

A civil war, financial problems, and political problems have limited the educational possibilities for Somalilanders.

Jonathan Starr, an American businessman, used $500,000 dollars of his own money to start the Abaarso school in 2009.

Since 2009, there have been three graduating classes of about 35 students each.

The hope is that the students will bring their knowledge home and improve their country.

Words in This Story

graduate – n. a person who has earned a degree or diploma⁸ from a school, college, or university

scholarship – n. an amount of money that is given by a school, an organization, etc., to a student to help pay for the student's education

curriculum – n. the courses that are taught by a school, college, etc.

1 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

2 scholarship   

n.学问，学术成就，奖学金

参考例句：

• The girl who won the scholarship was quite outstanding.得奖学金的女孩是相当杰出的。
• I made up my mind to apply for a scholarship.我决定申请奖学金。

3 competitive   

adj.竞争的，比赛的，好竞争的，有竞争力的

参考例句：

• Some kinds of business are competitive.有些商业是要竞争的。
• These businessmen are both competitive and honourable.这些商人既有竞争性又很诚实。

4 curriculum   

n.课程，（学校等的）全部课程

参考例句：

• Is German on your school's curriculum?你们学校有德语课吗？
• The English curriculum should stress both composition and reading.英语课程对作文和阅读应同样重视。

5 scholarships   

学问，学识( scholarship的名词复数 )； 奖学金

参考例句：

• They awarded scholarships to needy students. 他们给贫苦学生颁发奖学金。
• The best students are awarded special scholarships. 最好的学生将授予特殊奖学金。

6 secondary   

adj.中级的，中等的，次要的；n.次要位置，副手

参考例句：

• It's a question of secondary importance.这是个次要的问题。
• Secondary school means junior school and high school.中学是指初中和高中。

7 political   

adj.政治上的，政党的，政略性的，政治的

参考例句：

• He was forced to leave his homeland for political reasons.因为政治原因他被迫离开自己的祖国。
• In ideas those two political parties are worlds apart.那两个政党在思想上有巨大分歧。

8 diploma   

n.毕业文凭，学位证书

参考例句：

• She won her diploma in only three years.她仅用三年时间就取得了毕业文凭。
• She worked hard to earn her music diploma.她刻苦用功，以求获得音乐学位证书。