英语听力—环球英语 1317 Nyaka AIDS Orphans School

 　　Voice 1

 

　　Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Robin² Basselin.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　And I’m Ryan Geertsma. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Twesigye Jackson Kaguri sat quietly listening.  He was in a classroom at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda.  He was learning³ about the United⁴ Nations Universal⁵ Declaration⁶ of Human Rights.  On this day, he heard these words for the first time,

 

　　Voice 3

 

　　“Everyone has the right to a life which includes an acceptable⁷ level of health and well-being⁸. This right is for every individual and his family - including food, clothing, housing⁹ and medical care and necessary social services.”

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Kaguri heard these words over 20 years ago. Today, he still remembers them because they changed his life. Before that day, Kaguri had never heard people talk about human rights. He was from a small village in Uganda called Nyakagyezi. In Nyakagyezi, many people lived in poverty¹⁰ - particularly the many children orphaned¹¹ by AIDS. This disease¹² had killed many people in Nyakagyezi. Many children lost both their mothers and fathers. These orphans¹³ had few human rights.  And Kaguri wanted to change that.  Today’s Spotlight is on Twesigye Jackson Kaguri and the Nyaka AIDS Orphans School.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Kaguri understood well the problems caused by the AIDS crisis¹⁴. His own brother, sister and his sister’s son died from AIDS. Losing his family members was very painful. After his brother’s death, Kaguri began supporting his brother’s children. He paid for their education and made sure they had food, clothing and housing. But this caused him to think about his whole village. He wondered who would care for all the other young AIDS orphans.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Often other family members like grandmothers would try to care for the children orphaned by AIDS. But many of the family members had other children they were already caring for. Kaguri explained to the news organization CNN,

 

　　Voice 4

 

　　"You see the grandmothers again and again. Their own children have died and left them. Some of them have up to 14 grandchildren¹⁵ to care for in their homes. Sometimes the child is living with HIV or AIDS. They need medicine. The grandmother needs food. They need a house. And nothing is there."

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　After university, Kaguri moved to the United States.  There he continued his studies and began working.  But he did not forget Nyakagyezi.  He decided¹⁶ to work for human rights in his village - even if he was not there. Each time he returned to Nyakagyezi he brought supplies for the people. He provided¹⁷ children with school clothes. He gave grandmothers money for food. And he paid school bills.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　But there were always so many more children that needed help. Kaguri knew he needed to do much more to help the village. He wanted to give the children hope for a better future. So in 2001, Kaguri and his wife made a major decision.  They decided to build a school in Nyakagyezi. It would be a school for AIDS orphans. It would provide free education and school clothing.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　For many years, Kaguri and his wife had saved money to buy a house for themselves.  However, they decided the school was more important.  So, they used their money to build the school.  They did not have enough money to build a big school.  They started by building two classrooms.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Kaguri knew two classrooms would not be enough. So, he began to make plans for more classrooms. He spoke¹⁸ about the project with everyone he could. He told his friends in Uganda. He told his friends in the United States. And he told people at his church.  Many people shared Kaguri’s belief that education could help the orphans of Nyakagyezi.  They believed it could help them escape poverty and achieve basic human rights. So, they offered money to support the project.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　The Nyaka AIDS Orphans School opened its first two classrooms on January 2nd, 2003. And on the same day, Kaguri began work to build a third classroom.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Building the school was a major achievement.  However, there were other problems that kept many of the children from attending.  Often, children were too hungry to study. Other children stayed away from school because they were sick. And dirty drinking water caused much of the sickness.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Kaguri knew the school needed to care for all these problems. So, the school began many other programs.  They started feeding meals to the children at school. They also started a seed program. Students could take seeds home. And the families could grow crops for eating.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Kaguri also raised money to pay for a water tank. This tank would catch rain water. The water in the tank was kept clean.  And the children and villagers could pump water out of the tank when they needed it. This clean water reduced disease and sickness. Finally, the school provided the students with basic healthcare.  A trained nurse cared for the children’s medical needs.

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　Life for the children orphaned by AIDS improved. And in December 2008 the school held its first graduation ceremony. The whole village celebrated¹⁹ as the first students of Nyaka School finished their primary education.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　The Nyaka AIDS Orphans School has become a great success. However, Kaguri does not believe it is his success.  He told the Huffington Post news organization,

 

　　Voice 4

 

　　“I could take credit²⁰ for the students’ success.  But without God's guidance²¹ every day, Nyaka School would not exist.”

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　In 2010, Kaguri stopped working at his job.  He decided to devote²² his life to working full time for the school.  Today, there are two schools - one in Nyakagzezi and one in the village of Kutamba. Together the schools serve almost 600 students whose parents died from AIDS.

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　Kaguri’s work is now even larger than the schools. He has also helped build a health center, more clean water tanks and a library for books. Kaguri continues to dream of doing even more.  And he encourages other people to do the same.  As he told TIME magazine,

 

　　Voice 4

 

　　“Many people think an issue²³ is so oppressive that you cannot do anything about it...I believed that I could make a difference. Now think of the 437 children that will finish Nyaka AIDS Orphans School over the next years...The power of one person is going to increase and affect so many.”

 

　　Voice 1

 

　　The writer of this program was Courtney Schutt. The producer was Michio Ozaki. The voices you heard were from the United States and the United Kingdom. All quotes²⁴ were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again and read it on the Internet at http://www.radioenglish.net This .program is called, “Nyaka AIDS Orphans School.”

 

　　Voice 2

 

　　We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye.

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

3 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

4 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。

5 universal   

adj.宇宙的，全世界的；普遍的，一般的；通用的，万能的

参考例句：

• First of all we should make primary education universal.首先我们应普及初等教育。
• Climate change is a universal problem.气候变化是个世界性的问题。

6 declaration   

n.宣布，宣告，宣言，声明（书），申报

参考例句：

• We read the declaration posted on the bulletin board.我们读了贴在布告板上的声明。
• At the recent convention a declaration was adopted.在最近举行的大会上通过了一项宣言。

7 acceptable   

adj.可接受的，合意的，受欢迎的

参考例句：

• The terms of the contract are acceptable to us.我们认为这个合同的条件可以接受。
• Air pollution in the city had reached four times the acceptable levels.这座城市的空气污染程度曾高达可接受标准的四倍。

8 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

9 housing   

n.房屋，住宅；住房建筑；外壳，外罩

参考例句：

• Do you think our housing sales will turn around during this year?你认为今年我们的住宅销路会好转吗？
• The housing sales have been turning down since the summer.入夏以来，房屋的销售量日趋减少。

10 poverty   

n.贫穷， 贫困， 贫乏， 缺少

参考例句：

• We must continue to war against poverty and disease.我们一定要继续同贫穷和疾病作斗争。
• He showed his poverty in his knowledge of agriculture.他表现出缺乏对农业知识的了解。

11 orphaned   

[计][修]孤立

参考例句：

• Orphaned children were consigned to institutions. 孤儿都打发到了福利院。
• He was orphaned at an early age. 他幼年时便成了孤儿。

12 disease   

n.疾病，弊端

参考例句：

• The doctors are trying to stamp out the disease.医生正在尽力消灭这种疾病。
• He fought against the disease for a long time.他同疾病做了长时间的斗争。

13 orphans   

孤儿( orphan的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The poor orphans were kept on short commons. 贫苦的孤儿们吃不饱饭。
• Their uncle was declared guardian to the orphans. 这些孤儿的叔父成为他们的监护人。

14 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

15 grandchildren   

n.孙子；孙（女），外孙（女）( grandchild的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He left a bequest to each of his grandchildren. 他给他的孙辈每人留下一笔遗产。
• His grandchildren afforded him his greatest pleasure in his old age. 他的孙子和孙女们在晚年的时候给了他最大的欢乐。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

17 provided   

conj.假如，若是；adj.预备好的，由...供给的

参考例句：

• Provided it's fine we will have a pleasant holiday.如果天气良好，我们的假日将过得非常愉快。
• I will come provided that it's not raining tomorrow.如果明天不下雨，我就来。

18 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

19 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

20 credit   

n.信用，荣誉，贷款，学分；v.归功于，赞颂，信任

参考例句：

• I credit him with a certain amount of sense.我认为他有一定的见识。
• He got the credit,and we did the dirty work.他得荣誉，我们做不讨好的工作。

21 guidance   

n.指导，领导

参考例句：

• Under his father's guidance,he learned how to swim.他在父亲的指导下学会了游泳。
• It is hoped you will give us guidance.请你多加指导。

22 devote   

vt.将…奉献(给)，把...专用于，致力于

参考例句：

• I devote myself to helping the poor.我致力于帮助穷人。
• He is determined to devote his life to sicence.他决心把毕生精力贡献给科学事业。

23 issue   

n.出版，发行，（报刊等）期、号，论点，问题，结果， （水，血等的）流出；vt.使流出，放出，发行（钞票等），发布（命令），出版（书等）发给；vi.发行，流出，造成...结果，进行辩护，传下

参考例句：

• I bought the book the day after its issue.这书出版后的第一天，我就去买了它。
• I'll support her down the line on that issue.在那个问题上我将全力支持她。

24 quotes   

v.引用，援引( quote的第三人称单数 )；报价；引述；为（股票、黄金或外汇）报价

参考例句：

• He quotes a few verses from Tennyson in his paper. 他在论文中引用了英国诗人丁尼生的几行诗句。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He quotes (from) the Bible to support his beliefs. 他引用圣经来支持自己的信念。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》