VOA标准英语2011--Haiti Struggles to Begin Free Public Education

Haiti Struggles to Begin Free Public Education

One out of every two Haitians is illiterate¹. Haiti's President, Michel Martelly, has made free public education one of his top priorities.

On the first day of school in Haiti, adding to the normal chaos² - the president was handing out free backpacks.

“I’m now the superstar of the school,” a boy who received one of the coveted³ backpacks said proudly.

President Michel Martelly says his recent taxes on international calls and wire transfers have changed the public schools of Haiti.

“That money has enabled us to provide free schools for the people,” explained the president.

But at a public school in Tabarre, a poor neighborhood outside of Port au Prince, the moms told a different story. They said it’s far from free.

The mothers said they paid to send their children to school.

"I gave $220, $130, $130." [US dollars: $27, $16, $16] the mothers said.

To back up their claims, they showed receipts.

"Somedays I am not even able to sell the bread that I have and I have to let my kids go hungry so I can have enough money to send them to school," one mother, who said she sell bread on the street lamented⁴.

When VOA returns one week later - it's bedlam⁵. Children are kept outside the school because their parents have not paid a new fee to purchase emblems⁷ for uniforms.

"We asked for children to have an emblem⁶ on their clothing to differentiate⁸ them from students of other schools," explained Jean Francois Lucien, the director of the school. "So the parents are being stubborn and they are refusing to put the emblem on their children’s clothing."

The fee is less than $1.50 U.S. But it's still a hardship for the average Haitian who makes $2 a day.

"A lot of times, you can't sell anything," another mother complained. "You walk and you walk before you can finally make 100 gourdes [US $2.48]."

And, what about the hundreds of dollars paid to enroll⁹ children here?

“The minister asked us to stop charging parents to register their children, so we stopped and we didn’t collect any money after that," school director Lucien responded.

But one woman reported that she had been told that her children had to leave because she didn't have an extra $6 for enrollment¹⁰.

“They told me no, when you have the complete amount, come back,” she said.

Lucien says the school relies on the money from parents.

"As long as the government accepts to pay for what the parents were paying previously¹¹, we can operate the school, but the school can’t operate without any money," he said.

President Martelly says his administration will work with the school to make sure the money is refunded¹².

As seen on YouTube - the president used to be known as "Sweet Micky" - a successful singer. President Martelly says he will return to the stage in December to raise $10 million for education.

It has to help - because if current trends continue, only five percent of the children will finish high school.

1 illiterate   

adj.文盲的；无知的；n.文盲

参考例句：

• There are still many illiterate people in our country.在我国还有许多文盲。
• I was an illiterate in the old society,but now I can read.我这个旧社会的文盲，今天也认字了。

2 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

3 coveted   

adj.令人垂涎的；垂涎的，梦寐以求的v.贪求，觊觎(covet的过去分词)；垂涎；贪图

参考例句：

• He had long coveted the chance to work with a famous musician. 他一直渴望有机会与著名音乐家一起工作。
• Ther other boys coveted his new bat. 其他的男孩都想得到他的新球棒。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 lamented   

adj.被哀悼的，令人遗憾的v.（为…）哀悼，痛哭，悲伤( lament的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• her late lamented husband 她那令人怀念的已故的丈夫
• We lamented over our bad luck. 我们为自己的不幸而悲伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 bedlam   

n.混乱，骚乱；疯人院

参考例句：

• He is causing bedlam at the hotel.他正搅得旅馆鸡犬不宁。
• When the teacher was called away the classroom was a regular bedlam.当老师被叫走的时候，教室便喧闹不堪。

6 emblem   

n.象征，标志；徽章

参考例句：

• Her shirt has the company emblem on it.她的衬衫印有公司的标记。
• The eagle was an emblem of strength and courage.鹰是力量和勇气的象征。

7 emblems   

n.象征，标记( emblem的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His emblems are the spear and the burning torch. 他佩带的徽记是长矛和燃烧着的火炬。 来自辞典例句
• Crystal prize, Crystal gift, Crystal trophy, Champion cup, Emblems. 水晶奖牌、水晶礼品、水晶纪念品、奖杯、金属奖牌。 来自互联网

8 differentiate   

vi.(between)区分；vt.区别；使不同

参考例句：

• You can differentiate between the houses by the shape of their chimneys.你可以凭借烟囱形状的不同来区分这两幢房子。
• He never learned to differentiate between good and evil.他从未学会分辨善恶。

9 enroll   

v.招收；登记；入学；参军；成为会员（英)enrol

参考例句：

• I should like to enroll all my children in the swimming class.我愿意让我的孩子们都参加游泳班。
• They enroll him as a member of the club.他们吸收他为俱乐部会员。

10 enrollment   

n.注册或登记的人数；登记

参考例句：

• You will be given a reading list at enrollment.注册时你会收到一份阅读书目。
• I just got the enrollment notice from Fudan University.我刚刚接到复旦大学的入学通知书。

11 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

12 refunded   

v.归还，退还( refund的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Postage costs will be refunded (to you). 邮费将退还（给你）。 来自辞典例句
• Yes, it will be refunded to you at the expiration of the lease. 是的，租约期满时，押金退回。 来自无师自通 校园英语会话