לומדים אנגלית / קוראים ספרי ילדים

In my last post I introduced the first aspect of the general subject of this unit: Voluntary Activities.

Today we will discuss another aspect: Voluntary Organizations in the field of Education.

Let's talk about it.

• Do you know any Voluntary Organizations in the field of Education?
• Can you mention any?
• Can you describe them?
• Why do we need them?
• Would you like to volunteer in the field of Education? What would you like to do? Why?

The following words may help you

motivation   –   מוטיבציה – תמריץ

potential   –   פוטנציאל – יכולת

underprivileged youngsters   –   צעירים טעוני טפוח

difficult subject matter   –   חומר לימודים קשה

drop out of school   –   לנשור מבית הספר

Getting ready to Read.

The passage you are about to read is about voluntary work in the field of education.

Make sure you know the meaning of the following words before you start reading the passage.

youngsters in distress

juvenile courts

productive citizens

dropouts

delinquency

vicious circle

Once you know the meaning of the words above, keep them in mind and try to predict the contents of the passage using the following questions as guidelines.

• What kind of youngsters is the passage about?
• What are some possible reasons for their condition?
• What may happen to them in the future?
• What can volunteers do to help them?

Reading Passage

Read the following passage and then answer the questions that follow.

1. The following figures may seem astonishing, but they are, unfortunately, true. Seven per cent of all Israeli youngsters neither work nor study on a regular basis. Many of them can be defined as youngsters in distress. Approximately ten thousand are charged with various degrees of crime in juvenile courts year after year.

2. Behind these cold figures lie many tragic human stories. Thousands of underprivileged youths of high potential may never become productive citizens. They often come from low income families where neither parent went beyond grade school, if they studied at all. They have no motivation to study, to work, to make an effort.

3. These potential dropouts are a danger to themselves and to society. Dropping out of school is only the first step on the downward path. Once these youngsters have dropped out of school and found no jobs, the road towards delinquency is sometimes very short. They become a burden on society and a source of bitterness and frustration to themselves and their families.

4. Various voluntary organizations in Israel have decided to meet the challenge and give these youngsters the hope, motivation and training necessary to break the vicious circle of poverty, poor education, failure and hopelessness. Psychologists, social workers, teachers and volunteers, full of love and goodwill, devote time and effort to help, guide and advise these youngsters. The aim is to provide them with a suitable basic education, professional training, adequate jobs and above all, the appropriate values that will enable them to become active members of society –  productive citizens.

Questions

1. The number of Israeli youngsters who neither study nor work
    (paragraph 1) is

a. 10,000.

b. 7% of the Israeli population.

c. 7% of the young Israeli population.

d. approximately 7% of the Israeli population.

2.  Complete the following paragraph – (paragraph 3) – one or two words in each space.

When youngsters …………………………….. of  school, they often …………………… any jobs and have …………………………….. to do. This situation may lead ………………………………

3. Copy the sentence that shows that after quitting school, the situation usually gets worse and worse (paragraph 3).

" …………………………………………………………………………………………."

4. Complete the following paragraph – (paragraph 4) – one or two words in each space.

Many youngsters find it hard to break the …………………………….. of poverty, poor education and failure. They need ……………………………… Not only psychologists, social workers and teachers, but …………………………….. can be very helpful.

5. Rearrange the following captions according to the sequence of ideas in the passage. There is one extra caption.

• Taking preventive measures
• What lies ahead of school dropouts
• Statistics on problematic youngsters
• The need to punish delinquents
• Social background of problematic youngsters

And that's all for today. More texts and suggestions in my next post.