環(huán)球英語 — 568：Learning to Read in Mali

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Voice 1

Welcome to Spotlight. I'm Joshua Leo

Voice 2

And I'm Liz Waid. 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

In a small room, thirty men and women sit in the dark. On the wall there are words. These people repeat the words as a teacher reads them. With a small movement, the words on the wall turn into an image. These people are in a reading class. But this class is special. They are using a machine called the Kinkajou Projector. Today's Spotlight is about this machine and how it is helping people learn to read all around the world.

Voice 2

In 2001, a group of students started a new project for other students. They studied at MIT, or the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. MIT is one of the best technology universities in the world. This new project let students use their skills to build technology for people in poor communities. Student leaders believed they could develop tools for people in developing countries. After a few years, two former MIT students turned this project into a larger organization. They called this organization "Design that Matters."

Voice 1

Design that Matters works by finding problems, and then developing tools to deal with these problems. One problem they identified is illiteracy. That is, many people in poor countries cannot read - they are illiterate. In fact, one in five adults in the world does not know how to read. This problem is especially bad in West Africa. In some areas of West Africa, 75 percent of people cannot read. This is true in the country of Mali. For women, the problem is even bigger.

Voice 2

Reading makes a big difference in people's lives. It lets people read the information on medicine. It helps them to vote. It helps them get jobs. Reading is often the key to escaping poverty. Many people want to read but do not have the chance to learn.

Voice 1

In poor areas of Mali, it can be very difficult to take classes to learn how to read. Many people must work all day to make money or grow food. They do not have time to take classes during the day. So many people in Mali take reading classes at night.

Voice 2

When workers from Design that Matters went to Mali, they saw these classes. They saw groups of men and women sitting in a small room. The room was very dark. There was only one small gas light in the corner. The teacher stood in the light, so that the students could see him. But this meant that the students were sitting in the dark. They had books, but it was difficult to see the paper.

Voice 1

Most of these reading classrooms did not have electricity. Without electricity, the rooms did not have enough light for all the students to see their books. There was also another problem with the books. They were printed in the United States and then sent to Mali for a high cost. Aid groups have worked to help people learn how to read. But the groups could not solve problems like lack of light.

Voice 2

So, back in the United States, Design that Matters started working on a new project to solve this problem. The project was a projector - that is, a machine that uses light to show words on the wall. People use projectors all over the world. They use movie projectors to show films in theatres. Businesses use projectors to show information on large pieces of cloth in rooms. But these projectors cost a lot of money. And they use electricity to operate. Design that Matters wanted to create a projector that was easy to use and did not cost a lot of money.

Voice 1

The group also studied solar panels. These devices turn the energy of the sun into electricity. The energy is stored in batteries.

Voice 2

Soon, the group had a machine to test. They called this projector the Kinkajou Projector. A kinkajou is an animal that comes out only at night. It lives in South America and it looks a little like a monkey.

Voice 1

The Kinkajou Projector uses solar energy to power a light in the machine. The light shines through a long piece of film, kind of like a movie projector. Images are printed on the film. When the light passes through this film, the images appear on the wall.

Voice 2

The next part of the project was creating film for the reading classes. The group decided to use a material called microfilm. Microfilm is a very small film. But although the microfilm is very small, it can hold a lot of information. One roll of microfilm can hold 10,000 pages of information! That is like having thirty books on a single piece of microfilm! And the microfilm only costs five dollars.

Voice 1

Design that Matters created special materials for the reading classes in Mali. They put all this information on the microfilm. Then, they tested the Kinkajou Projector in a few classes in Mali. The projector put the words and images up on the wall of the classroom. The results were wonderful! Everyone could see it easily. It was like each person had a book, but it did not cost as much money.

Voice 2

So Design that Matters decided to create more Kinkajou Projectors. They made them for much less money than other projectors. The Kinkajou Projector and its solar power battery only costs twenty five dollars. The Projector is very strong and will not break easily. And it does not use much electricity to work.

Voice 1

Soon, classes all over Mali were using the Kinkajou Projector. And studies showed that the people who learned using the Kinkajou Projector did much better than students in other classes. The Kinkajou Projector classes did better than many daytime classes. And after two years of use, over 3,000 adults in Mali have learned to read using the Kinkajou Projector.

Voice 2

But the projectors are not just used in night classes for adults. Schools for children have also started using the Kinkajou Projectors in their classes. Students in these classes are doing much better than the children in classes without Kinkajou Projectors. The teachers in these classes do not have to search for books or other items. Each student can see what they need on the wall. The Kinkajou Projector is changing the way classrooms work. It is helping both adults and children learn.

Voice 1

Today, Design that Matters has expanded the Kinkajou Projector project to many more places. Classes in Bangladesh, Benin, and India also use the Kinkajou Projector. By increasing literacy around the world, the Kinkajou Projector improves people's lives. These adults can teach the children to read. They can vote for elected officials. They can learn about important issues such as health and medicine. For people in these countries, the ability to read gives power to make positive life changes.