环球英语 — 426：Schools United: Hand in Hand

　　Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight¹, I’m Ryan Geertsma
Voice 2
And I’m Ruby² Jones. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Today’s programme is looking at some very special schools in the state of Israel.
Voice 3
‘When I talk about the school tears come to my eyes. I still cannot believe that our dream has come true. Our children now learn in a school with both Jewish³ and Arab children. Every time I am asked about the school, I can only say, “It is too good to be true”’.
Voice 1
Carmel Ron’s son goes to the Bridge Over the Wadi School. It is in the village of Kfar Kara. This is in an area of Israel called the Wadi Ara. What makes this school special is that children from Jewish and Muslim families learn together.
Voice 2
Many people know of the troubled history of Israel. We read of struggles between Israel and its Palestinian neighbours. But we often forget that Israel’s own population is about twenty percent Arab. Almost all parents in Israel send their children to either Jewish schools or Arab schools. Normally⁴ children will learn only with other children from their community. That means they do not mix with people from other cultures. But the Bridge Over the Wadi School is helping⁵ to change this. It is part of a project to build more bilingual schools. These teach in both the Hebrew and Arabic languages.
Voice 1
What makes the Bridge over the Wadi school even more unusual is where it is. Kafr Qara is an Arab village. For the first time in Israel, Jewish children enter an Arab area to go to school. But this school thinks that it is helping to bring the two groups together. They want to help the children to learn about the people whom they would normally try to avoid.
Voice 2
This school is part of a project called Hand in Hand. Holding hands is an image of the way this project is bringing divided communities together. The first Hand in Hand school opened in 1997. The idea was created by Amin Khalaf, and Lee Gordon. Gordon explains the idea behind the schools,
Voice 4
‘Hand in Hand students learn in classrooms with equal numbers of Jewish and Arab students. They are taught in both languages by Arab and Jewish teachers. Students learn to relate their own culture and language to others... They receive the skills and experiences to live in a peaceful and mixed community. Nowhere else in Israel do Arabs and Jews spend so much time together. Every day they work on the small and large issues of living together. This includes sharing each other’s religious holidays and staying united when violence happens.’
Voice 1
There are now four Hand in Hand schools in Israel. In total, over eight hundred children go to the schools. Some are Jewish, some Moslem⁶ and some Christian⁷. There are two headteachers in each school. One is Arab and one is Jewish. Bushra Masalkha is a student at the school in Jerusalem.
Voice 5
‘I like this school because Arabs and Jews mix here. Here I can learn the language of the Jews. It is also nice to see how other people live.’
Voice 2
There is now a waiting list to get into a Hand in Hand school. There are not enough places for all the children that want to learn there. So Hand in Hand now want to build more schools. The big plan is to have schools all over Israel, all linked together. Hand in Hand hopes that the schools could change the way that all Israeli children are taught. In the next few years the organisation⁸ wants to expand its schools. Until now the students have left school at the age of about fifteen. This is because the project does not have high schools. But Hand in Hand wants to fix this. They want the students to be able to stay for their last three years of school. They also want to create an education programme for all schools in Israel to follow. This would help other schools to teach about Jewish and Arab culture.
Voice 1
But not everyone is happy about Jewish and Arab children going to school together. Some religious leaders are angry about the schools. The anger of one Jewish leader was reported in an Israeli newspaper. The Rabbi said that starting such schools was ‘sinful’. He thought it was very bad for Jews to mix with Arabs. He said very hurtful things about the Arabs. Some other people are also worried about the schools. They think that by mixing with another culture they will lose their own culture.
Voice 2
But people at the school say this is not true. They say that even when people mix together, they remain different. They say that it is better for children to study their culture among other cultures. This learning⁹ experience teaches children who they are in a way that single culture schools can miss.
Voice 1
Many people in Israel and around the world are interested in the schools. They are happy to see the two communities coming together. Officials from countries such as the United States, Australia and Switzerland have all visited the school. Some countries even give money to the schools to help keep them open. In 2005 the leader of Germany’s capital city visited the Hand in Hand school in Jerusalem. The mayor¹⁰ of Berlin said:
Voice 4
‘I think it is very good that the children here are learning how to live together. This school is a wonderful model, not just for Israel and the Palestinians but for the whole world.’
Voice 1
It is true that it is not just in Israel that people are divided by their religion or culture. In many places around the world people fear or distrust people from other communities. People fight and communities divide because the people are different. Sometimes people think that religion is the cause of the trouble.
Voice 2
However, most religions encourage people to be kind to others. Almost all religions believe that you should treat other people as you want to be treated. This simple command has been called the Golden Rule. Many people think it is the best way for people to live in peace. Being kind to all people involves being tolerant¹¹. The Hand in Hand schools are helping to teach children this Golden Rule of tolerance¹². They hope it will bring peace to their divided communities.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• 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。

2 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

3 Jewish   

adj.犹太人的，犹太民族的

参考例句：

• The coin bears a Jewish symbol.硬币上有犹太标记。
• They were two Jewish kids;I was friendly with both of them.他们是两个犹太小孩；我同他们都很要好。

4 normally   

adv.正常地，通常地

参考例句：

• I normally do all my shopping on Saturdays.我通常在星期六买东西。
• My pulse beats normally.我脉搏正常。

5 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

6 Moslem   

n.回教徒，穆罕默德信徒；adj.回教徒的，回教的

参考例句：

• Moslem women used to veil their faces before going into public.信回教的妇女出门之前往往用面纱把脸遮起来。
• If possible every Moslem must make the pilgrimage to Mecca once in his life.如有可能，每个回教徒一生中必须去麦加朝觐一次。

7 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

8 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

9 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。

10 mayor   

n.市长

参考例句：

• The new mayor said he would clean the city up.新市长说，他要整顿本市。
• The mayor hurried into his office,brushing off the reporters.市长赶快走进办公室，拒不接见记者。

11 tolerant   

adj.容忍的，有耐力的

参考例句：

• She's tolerant toward those impudent colleagues.她对那些无礼的同事采取容忍的态度。
• A tolerant person usually has breadth of mind.有宽容精神的人通常胸襟开阔。

12 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。