VOA慢速英语--世界对女性教育的不重视

AS IT IS 2016-03-08 World Fails to Educate Its Girls 世界对女性教育的不重视

Nearly twice as many girls are denied an education as boys.

That is according to a new report by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The report was released¹ to mark International Women’s Day on Tuesday.

A lack of educational options “stunt² the lives of girls and women from one generation to the next,” said UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova.

Across sub-Saharan Africa, 9.5 million girls will never walk into a classroom, compared to 5 million boys, according to the UNESCO report. More than 30 million children aged³ six to 11 are out of school across the region⁴.

The gender⁵ gap⁶ is wider in South and West Asia, where 80 percent of girls will never enter formal education -- compared to 16 percent of boys, according to the report.

Girls are the majority of the millions of children denied school in Arab nations, UNESCO said. But the organization said exact numbers are not available because of conflicts in the region.

Discrimination against girls and women drew worldwide attention in 2012 when Malala Yousafzai, then 15, was shot in the head on her way home from school in Pakistan. The Taliban targeted her and her family because they called for more and better education for girls.

Malala survived the attack, after successful surgery⁷ in England, and continued to advocate for girls education. She gave a speech on her 16th birthday to the United Nations. She wrote a book, “I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban.”

In 2014, Malala won the Nobel Peace Prize.

Alice Albright, chief executive⁸ of the Global Partnership⁹ for Education, said Malala Yousafzai helped show the plight¹⁰ of girls and women.

Albright said discrimination against girls is even worse after elementary school.

Girls face more barriers than boys to further their education.

The reasons differ, but include parents deciding they need their children to work in fields or do other work, Albright said. She adds that it is far more likely that girls are chosen for these tasks.

Another reason is that girls are often forced into marriages after elementary school.

Girls are also more likely to have no way of getting safely to school -- given military conflicts and crime problems in some countries.

And sometimes, girls or their parents decide against continuing education because, at many schools, girls and boys share the same bathrooms, Albright said.

Adding to the problems girls have getting an education is a lack of school buildings and teachers in many poor nations. Boys often get the chance at scarce¹¹ resources.

“I do think some progress is being made, but by no means is it enough progress,” Albright told VOA Learning¹² English.

The challenge to improving access includes changing long-held cultural views, she said.

She said it is important that her group and others show the “many benefits” of improving access to education for girls.

In a recent report, the Global Partnership for Education said educated girls are far more likely to get better jobs and more income. They are also likely to give birth to healthier children. And girls that remain in school past elementary school are less likely to be put into forced marriages or to marry as children.

A recent Brookings Institution report said better educated girls and women generally have fewer children. And that could reduce population growth in some of the world’s poorest nations.

Words in This Story

stunt – v. to stop someone from growing or developing

plight – n. a very bad or difficult situation

elementary – adj. first grades of school

bathroom – n. a room with a sink and toilet

challenge – n. to test the ability, skill, or strength of someone

generally – adj. in a way that is not detailed or specific

1 released   

v.释放( release的过去式和过去分词 )；放开；发布；发行

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• With hindsight it is easy to say they should not have released him. 事后才说他们本不应该释放他，这倒容易。

2 stunt   

n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长

参考例句：

• Lack of the right food may stunt growth.缺乏适当的食物会阻碍发育。
• Right up there is where the big stunt is taking place.那边将会有惊人的表演。

3 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

4 region   

n.地区，地带，区域；范围，幅度

参考例句：

• The students went to study the geology of that region.学生们去研究那个地区的地质情况。
• It is unusual to see snow in this region.这个地区难得见到雪。

5 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

6 gap   

n.缺口；间隔；差距；不足，缺陷

参考例句：

• We must see that there is no gap in our defence.我们必须确保我们的防御没有漏洞。
• There is a gap of five miles between towns.镇与镇之间相隔五英里。

7 surgery   

n.外科，外科手术；手术室

参考例句：

• What time does surgery finish?门诊什么时间结束？
• Your condition is serious and requires surgery.你的情况很严重，需要动外科手术。

8 executive   

adj.执行的，行政的；n.执行者，行政官，经理

参考例句：

• A good executive usually gets on well with people.一个好的高级管理人员通常与人们相处得很好。
• He is a man of great executive ability.他是个具有极高管理能力的人。

9 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

10 plight   

n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定

参考例句：

• The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
• She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。

11 scarce   

adj.缺乏的，不足的；稀少的，罕见的

参考例句：

• The food was scarce during the war.战争期间食物短缺。
• This kind of material is rather scarce.这种原料较缺。

12 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。