Name ______Core ______Date ______
The Only Place To Study
CONAKRY, Guinea It's after dark in one of the world's poorest nations, and the floodlights have come on at G'Bessi International Airport. Soon, the parking lot begins filling with children. They sit down, take out their notes, and quietly begin to study.
It's exam season in Guinea, a country in West Africa. Many schoolchildren are studying at the airport every night. They know it's one of the few places with electricity available to them. Students start heading to the airport at dusk, some walking for more than an hour, each hoping to get a spot under one of a dozen lampposts in the parking lot.
"I used to study by candlelight at home, but that hurt my eyes," says 18-year-old Mohamed Sharif. "So I prefer to come here. We're used to it." Mohamed sat under the glowing beam, memorizing his geography notes.
Mohamed does not take the lamplight for granted. Only about 20 percent of Guinea's 10 million people have electricity, and even they experience frequent power cuts. The lack of electricity led students to discover the airport.
Parents require girls to be chaperoned to the airport by an older brother or trusted male friend. They allow even their young children to stay late, as long as they return in groups. After all, the airport lamps could mean the difference between passing and failing grades.
The students sit by age group. Children ages 7 to 9 sit on a curb in a traffic island. Older students perch on the concrete pilings outside of the national and international terminals. There are few cars to disturb their studies. The children study their notes, covering everything from history to earth science.
These students are fortunate. Many Guinean children who live farther from the airport study at gas stations.
Every bit of light helps in this disadvantaged nation. Unemployment is widespread. The typical government worker earns just $60 a month. According to the United Nations, the average Guinean uses 89 kilowatt-hours per year. That's only enough power to keep a 60-watt light bulb burning for two months. The typical American, on the other hand, burns about 158 times that much.
Michael McGovern is a political anthropologist at Yale University. He says that Guinea's lack of electricity is "a geological scandal." Guinea has vast natural resources, he says. Its rivers could be used to produce electricity. The rivers also contain gold, diamonds, and iron. Yet these resources have remained largely untapped under the rule of Lansana Conte. Conte is an army general who took over the government in 1984. He has not worked to fix the situation in Guinea.
With no new electricity in sight, it looks as if students will continue to study at the airport. They won't complain, however. Eighteen-year-old OusmanConde admits that sitting on the concrete piling is uncomfortable. To him it's worth it, though, because he knows passing his upcoming exam could open doors for him.
"It hurts," he says, looking up from his notes. "But we prefer this hurt to the hurt of not doing well in our exams."
Name ______Core ______Date ______
Multiple Choice: Circle the letter of the choice the best completes the statement. (2 points each)
1)Which is the closest synonym for the word scandal?
a)Outline
b)Outfit
c)Outrage
d)Outrigger
2)What is the cause and effect relationship that takes place in the article?
a)A lack of gas stations has caused many children to walk an hour to get to the airport.
b)The lack of electricity has caused the government to search for new solutions.
c)The lack of electricity has caused Guinea's children to study in other places.
d)A lack of chaperones for younger kids has caused many students to study at home.
3)Which is the closest synonym for the word chaperone?
a)Escort
b)Enchant
c)Expand
d)Employ
4)What is this article mainly about?
a)Kids in Guinea study for upcoming college entrance exams.
b)Kids in electricity-starved Guinea study under airport lights.
c)Kids in Guinea study for tests by memorizing their notes.
d)Kids in electricity-starved Guinea study by candlelight.
5)Which of these is most important to include in a summary of this article?
a)The reason why Guinea's lack of electricity is a scandal
b)The reason why Guinea faces widespread unemployment
c)The reason why Guinea is led by Lansana Conte
d)The reason why Guinea's children study at the airport
Directions:"The average Guinean consumes 89 kilowatt-hours per year... while the typical American consumes... 158 times that much."How many kilowatt-hours does the typical American use per year? (5 points)