Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight, I’m Ruby Jones.
Voice 2
And I’m Marina Santee. 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
Welcome to our listener mail programme. People from all around the world have been writing to us this month.Our first letter is from Abdullah Yousif. He writes,
Voice 3
‘I am a Sudanese teaching English in Saudi Arabia. I like your programme and your strong concern for human life. I also like the way you treat other people well. I am a Muslim. My religion orders me to live at peace with everyone. I have a question: How do I download your speech? Can you send me your programmes? Thank you.’
Voice 2
Thank you for your letter, Abdullah. We are Christians, and we share your desire to live at peace with other people. We hope that your students also enjoy the programmes. The question you asked is a common one. And we will be answering it later in the show.
Voice 1
Our next letter comes for a listener looking for help at work. Osama is an accountant. An accountant is someone who deals with the financial side of a business.
Voice 4
‘I am facing a problem with my English. I have a good position in the company where I work. But I want to go to the weekly meetings with my manager. But he does not want me to. This is because my English is not that good. Also I do not have time to get more information to improve my English. Please help in this matter.’
Voice 2
Well Osama, This is a difficult problem! But, there is good news. There are ways to improve your English skills – even if you do not have very much time. An English class would be best – but there are many other choices too. The main thing is to speak, write or listen to English as much as you can. Take time every day to do this. Spotlight does not teach English, but Spotlight programmes can help you with listening skills. They can also help with learning how to say words correctly. For more detailed English help, there are links to English teaching websites on our website: http://www.radio.english.net.If possible, it is also very good to speak English with other people. Do you know anyone else who is learning English? When you speak together, you can encourage each other. We hope that you can also talk to your manager. Tell him that you are learning English. Tell him your plan for improving your skills. If he knows that you are working hard, he may involve you more in company matters.
Voice 1
Our next letter comes from Vance. He lives in Korea.
Voice 5
‘I am very pleased to have found Spotlight Radio. I now share this with other students in Korea who are also studying English. Are there any old programmes that I can listen to? I could not find any? Thanks for any information you can provide. Keep up the great work.’
Voice 2
Thanks for writing Vance. You are not the only one looking for more of our programmes. Abdullah from Saudi Arabia also wanted to listen to more programmes. We also had a letter from Carlos from Ecuador. He wanted to know where he could get scripts for the programmes. Well, the answer to all those questions is to visit our website.
Voice 1
That’s right, http://www.radio.english.net. On the website you can find all our old programmes. You can also find scripts of the programmes for you to read. To do this, go to the ‘listen and read’ part of the website. Here you can save programmes to your computer. At the bottom of the list there is a link to all of our old scripts. There are enough programmes to last you for a very long time!
Voice 2
And now it is time for this week’s Hodge Podge!
Voice 1
Recently, a listener wrote to us about a particular Spotlight programme. This programme was called Sickle Cell Anaemia. Today’s Hodge Podge is about this medical condition. The month of September is also National Sickle Cell Awareness Month in the United States. This is a month–long campaign designed to inform the public about Sickle Cell diseases. Events include education conferences and fund–raising activities.
Voice 2
Sickle Cell Anaemia is a blood disease that causes great pain. It can also cause breathing problems. It may turn a person’s skin yellow. In rare cases, it can lead to death! So, why do some people develop it and not others? And how can people get the disease?
Voice 1
Well, sickle cell anaemia is genetic – it passes from parent to child. This was what our listener was particularly concerned about. He was worried about how a genetic disease could affect his children.
Voice 2
The first thing to know is that, in most places, Sickle Cell disease is rare. Most people do not suffer from it. And, like many genetic diseases, people with the Sickle Cell gene do not always know that they have the disease. An individual can be a carrier of the disease – that he has the sickle cell gene in his body – and he may not ever develop the disease.
Voice 1
So, how can someone know if he is a carrier of this genetic disease? Well, a simple blood test can show this. If the person does have the sickle cell gene, then he may face some difficult decisions in the future. For example, choosing somebody to marry.
Voice 2
If a sickle cell carrier marries another carrier, this could create problems. Their children may develop the disease, and they may also pass the disease to their own children in the future. If Sickle Cell Anaemia is common in your community, or in your family, it is a good idea to be tested. Then, you can ask your doctor for more information about the risks to your children. This is also true for other genetic diseases. Blood tests are important to aid in planning a family.
Voice 1
Sickle Cell Anaemia affects people all over the world. It is common among people who have some family history in Africa, the Caribbean, or Asia. But it can affect anyone, no matter where they are from! And that is why many health experts want to teach people about this serious blood condition.
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