时间:2019-01-07 作者:英语课 分类:2007年VOA标准英语(九月)


英语课
By Paige Kollock
New York City
11 September 2007
 

One of New York City's smallest public schools is probably one of the most controversial – the Khalil Gibran International Academy.  The Brooklyn middle school, devoted 1 to Arabic language and culture, opened its doors for the first time this week as the city's new academic year got underway. Paige Kollock reports.






New York City's new Arabic school, first day


New York City's new Arabic school awaited students and protestors on the first day of classes



Some 50 sixth graders arrived at their first day of school to heavy security and a gaggle of press.  They are in the spotlight 2 because they are the first to attend New York City's new Arabic school, Khalil Gibran International Academy.


Parent Najat Handou moved to the United States from Morocco nine year ago.  She is thrilled that her son can now learn his parents' native tongue. "I feel so proud because we have, like, a public school that's going to teach Arabic, which is good for our kids."


But even before it opened its doors, the school has been a source of intense controversy 3


New York City's Department of Education says the Khalil Gibran Academy is not a religious school – and  is just one of some 70 other bilingual schools in the city's public school system where classes are taught in a language other than English. 


But the academy is the first public school in New York to teach in Arabic and give some lessons in Arabic culture – this in a city still traumatized by the 9-11 terrorist attacks six years ago. 






NYC Arabic school, opponents gather at City Hall in Manhattan


NYC Arabic school opponents gather at City Hall in Manhattan



School opponents, who staged a small rally at City Hall in Manhattan attended by more media than protesters, fear the school could be a breeding ground for Islamic fundamentalism.


Jeff Wiesinfeld is a member of 'Stop The Madrassa Coalition 4'.  He says the school has no place in the public education system. "While most Muslims are not terrorists, virtually all terrorists are Muslim, says Wiesinfeld. “Yes, the world is different since 9/11. The Saudis have funded terror. Other Arabic groups have funded terror, and we have to look at those schools a little bit differently than we look at the Chinese and the Greek and the French [schools]."






Rabbi Ellen Lippman, NYC Arabic School supporter


Rabbi Ellen Lippman is an Arabic school supporter



But the school has many supporters, including Rabbi Ellen Lippman. "Many of us feel that there is room in this city for this new public school and that it will grow and thrive and perhaps build bridges between people, instead of having so much divisiveness."


Earlier this year, arguments surrounding the school were so intense, that the school's original principal resigned, and the building's location had to be moved.


But on opening day, there was no sign of protesters at the school, only supporters welcoming the students to a school they think is crucial to keeping America's children competitive in a world where Arabic and the Middle East play a significant role.




adj.忠诚的,忠实的,热心的,献身于...的
  • He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
  • We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
n.公众注意的中心,聚光灯,探照灯,视听,注意,醒目
  • 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。
n.争论,辩论,争吵
  • That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
  • We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。
n.结合体,同盟,结合,联合
  • The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
  • Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。
学英语单词
access authorization
actual obligations
AN-cut
ancelet
arcyria major
asplenium holophyllum bak.
asplenium prolongatum
assimilateness
Atterberg consistency
automates
ball peen
Ban Kham Wiang
blackite
Bland-White-Garland syndrome
blanknote
bow traction
breeding field crops for resistance to diseases
carry a sail
centrifugal clutch
chain index numbers
chimane
chondrogenic tumor
Church of Christ
clench bolt
clithochory
colostrum corpuscle
cross axle undercarriage
crosslinguistic
cycloidal toothing
dichlamydeous flower
distributed monitoring proxy
drag theory
eccentric tension member
exploit with
exponential law of attenuation
fair market price
filter down
four-eyed fishes
fugitive coexistence
gotire
graminids
grattarolaite
ground-truth
hexafluoroantimonate
homicidy
Huttoft
instructorship
interest on past due accounts
isoflavone
jamnitzer
knock box
Kuphit
lambda--definable function
lamp houses
lems
linelike
make full use
marsch
maximum static deflection
Melica turczaninowiana
MENIDAE
montross
morrisonicola
naela
neuromodulating
non-uniform shaft
obligatorius
off controller
optical fiber attenuator
optimizing performance
Pareto optimality
Pearson's correlation coefficient
piraeus
Polyglucin
POWER.EXE
pressure gas burner
quick reaction capability
re-enlistment
recalibration cycle
reinvested earnings
ring-like space
Rosslea
rubstics
scatterometric
Senhit Prov.
slatch
social experimentation approach
stake a bath
steady-state component
subject of much debate
The sun might rise in the west
thermoeconomics
total hydraulic head on damaged part
Tribune group
unsquelched
unwhiskered
US-ian
ventricular veins
ventriculocentesis
voltage matching transformer
waylanders