新西兰英语 472 Back to school

 　　Schools opened again today after two weeks holiday. For some high school students in Christchurch, it was back to their own school for the first time since the February earthquake. Many high schools have been sharing a school site, with the host school starting in the morning and the visiting school in the afternoon. Linwood College and Catholic¹ Cathedral² College are now able to return to their school where classrooms have been repaired.

　　However, Avonside Girls’ High School, Shirley Boys’ High School and Marion College are still sharing a site with a host school. It is hard for the morning students as they go to school when it is dark; the afternoon students come home when it is dark. They have only four hours of classes a day so have more homework to do.

　　The future is uncertain for these schools which were badly damaged in the earthquake. Many houses in these areas will be demolished³. The Minister of Education said that Avonside students will return to their school next year but the school will probably close two years after that.

　　Some primary schools are still sharing sites with other schools. Redcliffs School is sharing with Sumner because of the danger of rock falls.

　　Many Christchurch schools are finding⁴ that student numbers have decreased. Many families have left Christchurch.

　　Listen to March 26th 2011 to hear more about schools sharing sites.

　　Questions

　　The principal⁵ of Linwood College said that there could be changes at their school after their site-sharing experience. Some things worked well. Some students liked getting up late. Some students liked the shorter class periods. Do you think high schools should start at 10am to give teenagers a chance to sleep in? Are 45 minute class periods better than one hour for students?

1 catholic   

adj.天主教的；n.天主教徒

参考例句：

• The Pope is the supreme leader of the Roman Catholic Church.教皇是罗马天主教的最高领袖。
• She was a devoutly Catholic.她是一个虔诚地天主教徒。

2 cathedral   

n.教区总教堂；大教堂

参考例句：

• We visited the magnificent cathedral.我们参观了宏伟的教堂。
• There's a cathedral in the town.镇里有一座大教堂。

3 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

4 finding   

n.发现，发现物；调查的结果

参考例句：

• The finding makes some sense.该发现具有一定的意义。
• That's an encouraging finding.这是一个鼓舞人心的发现。

5 principal   

adj.主要的；n.负责人，校长，资本

参考例句：

• When he saw the principal,he raised his hand in salutation.他看到校长时举手敬礼。
• Their school gave a reception to their new principal.他们学校为新校长举办了一个招待会。