Build a School in Burma

Build a School in Burma Lyrics

Song Build a School in Burma
Artist 英语听力
Album VOA慢速英语:教育报道
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[00:00.10] From VOA Learning English,
[00:02.10] this is the Education Report.
[00:05.08] Burma also known as Myanmar,
[00:07.88] is one of the poorest countries in the world.
[00:11.46] United Nations says people there
[00:13.80] earn an average of about $460 a year.
[00:18.03] For more than twenty years,
[00:20.27] the military ruled the country
[00:22.37] leading to international economic sanctions.
[00:26.40] The country now has an elected government
[00:28.99] and international aid has begun to arrive,
[00:32.77] but there are few resources for education
[00:35.87] in rural villages.
[00:37.86] Bob Cornwell and the group called
[00:40.45] Build a School in Burma are trying to change that.
[00:45.07] Three years ago,
[00:46.62] he was a financial advisor to several foreign government.
[00:50.96] Today, he is building schools in Burma.
[00:54.79] "We're really trying to help kids on the margin
[00:58.17] who wouldn't otherwise get an education,
[00:59.92] and kids not having an education is just a recipe
[01:03.61] for every kind of personal disaster."
[01:06.60] He met some of those children in 2010.
[01:10.44] He and a friend were travelling from village to village
[01:14.18] in the northwestern province of Burma.
[01:17.22] "None of these villages had electricity.
[01:19.66] Many of them are not really accessible even by road.
[01:22.30] And lots of kids.
[01:24.60] Maybe like five on average per family. No school."
[01:28.61] Bob Cornwell returned to his home in California.
[01:32.84] Back home, he learned that the cost of
[01:35.48] building a primary school in Burma was just $15,000 to $20,000.
[01:43.30] So he sold his interest in the financial consulting company
[01:47.08] that he had started 25 years earlier, and returned to Burma.
[01:52.22] He looked for villages that would give land
[01:55.35] and construction help in exchange for school.
[01:59.00] Rick Heizman, an expert on Burmese music volunteers to help.
[02:05.37] He had been working on humanitarian
[02:08.52] and education projects in Burma for more than twenty years.
[02:13.74] (Music)
[02:27.03] Rick Heizman is married to a well-known Burmese harpist Su Wei.
[02:32.21] They live in San Francisco, California.
[02:35.37] But they return to Burma often to visit the school projects.
[02:39.70] Su Wei says the children are excited to learn to read and write,
[02:44.78] and she says their parents are happy that their children
[02:48.13] can getting an education without having to leave their village.
[02:52.72] "You know, The school is inside their village, nearby,
[02:56.40] so, at least, they don't have to worry about taking the kids
[02:59.89] to the school in faraway places. You know like that."
[03:03.09] Build a School in Burma has built two schools,
[03:06.47] and a third one is almost completed.
[03:10.04] In June, construction or renovation began on two more.
[03:15.03] Bob Cornwell says the group works with community leaders.
[03:19.32] "They have a very good connection to the local people.
[03:23.10] They understand what the needs are.
[03:25.24] So having someone who really understands the local situation is crucial.
[03:30.53] They are underground there all the time,
[03:32.33] so we really focused on those groups."
[03:34.92] Bob Cornwell is applying for grants and asking for donations,
[03:40.53] so he can build more schools.
[03:42.53] He says spending his retirement years this way
[03:46.12] has made him happier than he ever imagined he would be.
[03:50.15] And that's the Education Report from VOA Learning English,
[03:55.12] I'm Jerilyn Watson.
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