Welcome to Spotlight’s Listener Mail Program. I’m Ryan Geertsma.

 

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　　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.

 

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　　Today’s Spotlight is on you! In today’s program we look at what you said about the subject of bullying. We look at Spotlight’s Word of the Day program. And we talk about the famous old story of Robin Hood. Keep listening!

 

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　　Our first comments today come from two programs about bullying. Bullies use words and violence to hurt other people. In the program “Drumming to End Bullying” we told about an anti-bullying program. Students in the program beat on drums with their hands. They use these musical instruments to communicate their emotions about bullying. And in the program “Bullying in Schools” we looked at how bullying can affect children in school. Some people commented on how it is important to stop bullying. Rain Bows, from Ecuador wrote:

 

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　　“I have heard about bullying recently. So it is a new word to me. I like this idea for struggling against this bad way to act.”

 

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　　In the program “Bullying in Schools”, we also told about a young boy in Japan who killed himself. He did this because other children bullied him. Long Pham hoped that this incident would encourage more people to stop bullying.

 

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　　“Bullying has happened for a long time. It is in schools and in our social lives. But people were not concerned about it. They did not think it affected anyone’s lives. They did not stop the bullies. So, bullies are still around today. A young boy was killed because of bullying. From this tragic story, we hope that governments and social organizations are more interested in this problem.

 

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　　He also added:

 

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　　“When I was a young boy, I was also a victim of bullying.”

 

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　　Some other listeners also had experiences with bullying. Hector wrote:

 

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　　“I was a victim of bullying until grade eight. It was terrible!”

 

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　　And Dzung believes bullying is a larger problem than it was in the past.

 

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　　“Wow, it was terrible when I was a young boy. I have seen some bullying in school, but it was not as serious as it is today. It is simply using force to get something from other people, such as a pencil or eraser or something like that. Why is bullying more serious now than in the past? Where does it start from? Maybe it comes from violent films or video games. Or is it simply a good feeling a bully gets from seeing other people suffering? I do not know. I quite agree with the KiVA program and the methods they are using.”

 

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　　These are all really good questions. Bullying is a serious problem. It seems as if we hear more and more about it all the time. But groups like KiVA and No Bully Beat are working to end bullying. Thank you all for your comments on this sad subject.

 

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　　Our next comments come from Facebook! Every day during the week we link to our daily program on Facebook. But we also post another short program called “Word of the Day”. Each day we choose a word from the day’s program. Then we define the word and use it in a sentence. Listening to this short program is a great way to practice listening. And it is also a great way to learn and practice a new word! This is how the program sounds.

 

　　Word of the Day program

 

　　Hi, I’m Colin Lowther bringing you Spotlight’s word of the day. Today’s word is EFFECTIVE. This word comes from today’s program, PROTECTING THE ALBATROSS. The word EFFECTIVE is an ADJECTIVE. It means “producing a result that is wanted: having an intended effect.” Here’s EFFECTIVE in a sentence from today’s program: “It is a very effective way of fishing.” Join us tomorrow for another Spotlight word of the day!

 

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　　After you listen to the Word of the Day program, you can practice using the word. Here are some of the sentences people wrote for the word “effective”:

 

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　　“The government has taken some effective actions to get a proper economy.”

 

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　　“An effective way to know English is to study it.”

 

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　　“The law is no longer effective.”

 

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　　“I want to find the most effective solution.”

 

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　　“There is no effective vaccine against HIV.”

 

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　　These are just a few of the sentences people wrote! You can practice your English writing too, on our Facebook page. To find us on Facebook, just search for Spotlight Radio. There you can find links to our programs. You can also find the Word of the Day program, and other Spotlight English resources. If you do write a sentence for the word of the day, leave a comment on the script page of this program telling us what your sentence was!

 

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　　Our final comments today come from the program “Robin Hood: An Old Hero”. In this program we told the old story about a man called “Robin Hood”. In the stories, Robin Hood steals from rich people. Then he gives the money to poor people. No one knows if the stories are real or not. But, people often think Robin Hood is a hero for his actions. Many people thought that this was a good story. Paulo wrote:

 

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　　“People in Brazil need many Robin Hoods!”

 

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　　And Lgavilanes agreed:

 

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　　“Many years ago, I read the book “Robin Hood” in Spanish. I think that the story is beautiful. For me, it is less important if it is true or false.”

 

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　　In our program, we also asked what you thought about Robin Hood’s actions. Is it ever good to steal if you are helping someone? Or is stealing always bad? DOC wrote:

 

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　　“We must not forget that good and evil are in the same person. The story of Robin Hood is a simple story between good and evil. But we know that the reality is much more complex. In fact, good and evil can be hard to define.

 

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　　And Minh Duc wrote a saying for people to think about.

 

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　　“It is said, and I believe that, ‘The way we do something is more important than what we do.’”

 

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　　Thank you all for your comments. If you have a comment for Spotlight you can visit the script page of any program. Or you can start a discussion on our discussion boards. There, people from around the world meet together to practice reading and writing English. We hope to see you there!

 

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　　The writer of this program was Liz Waid. The producer was Mark Drenth. The voices you heard were from the United Kingdom and the United States. All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at http://www.radioenglish.net This .program is called, ‘Listener Mail 130’.

 

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　　You can also leave your comments on our website. And find us on Facebook - just search for spotlight radio. We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Goodbye!