Name ______Core ______Date ______
A Free Ride to School
PATNA, India For Indian teen Nahid Farzana, the daily trip to high school was so long and so expensive that she saw no alternative to dropping out. Then, she received a bicycle as part of a government program, and everything changed. Now, Nahid is about to graduate from high school, with plans to become a teacher.
For the Indian government, bicycles have turned out to be a fairly simple solution to HIGHLIGHTa major problem.END HIGHLIGHT For years, HIGHLIGHTofficials in END HIGHLIGHTBihar—one of HIGHLIGHTIndiaEND HIGHLIGHT's poorest and least developed states—HIGHLIGHThave despairedEND HIGHLIGHT over how to educate its teenage girls. In India, the 53 percent literacy rate for girls is more than 20 points worse than the rate for boys. This is due in large part to the fact that HIGHLIGHTmany girls live far away from their high schools. Poor familiesEND HIGHLIGHT, like many in Bihar, HIGHLIGHTcannot afford to spend money on cars or public transportation.END HIGHLIGHT Some families are also reluctant to let girls travel so far away, fearing for their safety.
Anjani Kumar Singh is Bihar's principal secretary overseeing education. "HIGHLIGHTWe found that the high school dropout rate soared when girls reached the ninth gradeEND HIGHLIGHT," said Singh. "This was primarily because there are fewer high schools, and girls had to travel longer distances to get to school."
Nahid's high school, for example, is four miles from her home. HIGHLIGHTHer daily bus fare was an additional burdenEND HIGHLIGHT that her father Mohammed Shiraz Ahmad, a car mechanic, could not afford.
"I wouldn't have been able to keep [Nahid] in school for long," said Ahmad.
In 2007, HIGHLIGHThoping to offer a solution to young girls like Nahid who might otherwise forgo their education when faced with long, costly trips to high school, theEND HIGHLIGHT Bihar state HIGHLIGHTgovernment initiated a program that provides free bicycles to girls entering the ninth grade.END HIGHLIGHT Families must apply to take part in the program. However, the only requirement is to maintain an attendance rate of 75 percent or better. School administrators monitor whether girls use their bicycles or sell them and leave school.
Five years in, the program has proven successful. In remote villages, groups of school HIGHLIGHTgirls canEND HIGHLIGHT be seen cheerfully HIGHLIGHTbicycling to school. Thanks to the program, the number of ninth-grade girls registered in Bihar's high schools has more than tripled. END HIGHLIGHTIt went from 175,000 in 2007 to 600,000 in 2012.
"The results are remarkable; HIGHLIGHTthe school dropout rate for girls has plunged,END HIGHLIGHT" said Singh.
"HIGHLIGHT[The bicycle program] has workedEND HIGHLIGHT very well," said Syeda Hameed, an Indian government official.
The results in Bihar were so encouraging that the program is now expanding. Neighboring states have implemented similar programs. The Indian government is considering implementing the program across the country, in hopes of improving literacy rates among its high school girls.
The program has also had secondary benefits. In addition to causing dropout rates to plunge, the program has also raised the social status of Indian girls, who are often seen as a burden to their families. In many Indian families, parents have to pay hefty dowries to marry off their daughters, and often remain in debt for decades. Now, more and more, with more education and opportunities, girls are considered assets to their families.
Nizhat Parveen is a 16-year-old from a village in Bihar. For Nizhat, her bicycle is her proudest possession—one that has allowed her to dream of greater things.
"Even college doesn't seem far away now," Nizhat said.
Dictionary
asset (noun) somebody or something that is useful or valuable
dowry (noun) money, goods, or property that a bride's family gives to the groom's family at the
time of marriage in some societies
status (noun) rank or position
Multiple Choice: Circle the letter of the choice the best completes the statement. (2 points each)
1. According to the article, why do many ninth-grade girls in Bihar drop out of school?
A. Because Bihar's officials have long despaired over how to educate the state's teenage girls
B. Because parents in India marry off their daughters, a custom that involves the payment of hefty dowries
C. Because the literacy rate for Indian boys is 20 percent higher than the literacy rate for Indian girls
D. Because it's expensive for girls in remote Indian villages to travel the long distances to their schools
2. Based on information in the article, the reader can predict that ______.
A. Sixteen-year-old Nizhat Parveen will probably decide to open her own bicycle repair shop in Bihar, India.
B. By 2020, the literacy rate for boys in India will probably drop below 53 percent.
C. By 2020, the literacy rate for girls in India will probably exceed 53 percent.
D. Mohammed Shiraz Ahmad will probably quit his job as a car mechanic when Nahid graduates from high school.
3. The best alternate headline for this article would be ______.
A. Bicycle Program Succeeds in Reducing Dropout Rates for Girls in Bihar
B. Despite Challenges, Girl From One of India's Poorest States Becomes a Teacher
C. Hefty Dowries Remain Part of Marriage Traditions in Remote Indian Villages
D. Transportation Costs High, Incomes Low in India's Most Undeveloped State
4. Which two words from the article are the closest synonyms?
A. Solution and alternative
B. Benefit and asset
C. Dowry and requirement
D. Literacy and status
5. The author's purpose for writing this article was probably to ______.
A. Persuade readers to donate cash to help educate girls in one of India's poorest states
B. Recruit volunteers to help build high schools in remote villages of India's most undeveloped state
C. Question whether hefty marriage dowries should be outlawed in India
D. Inform readers about a program designed to keep Indian girls from dropping out of school
6. Which question is not answered by the article?
A. How has the bicycle program in Bihar affected the dropout rate for girls in the state?
B. How much would it cost the state of Bihar to build a high school in a remote village?
C. How has receiving a bicycle affected the educational goals of 16-year-old Nizhat?
D. How does the literacy rate for Indian boys compare to the literacy rate for Indian girls?
7. Which of these is not important to include in a summary of this article?
A. Because the daily trip to high school is long and expensive, many girls in India drop out of school in the ninth grade.
B. Because they have to pay hefty dowries to marry off their daughters, the parents of Indian girls are often in debt for decades.
C. In hopes of keeping girls in school, the state government of Bihar started a program that provides free bicycles for girls to ride to school.
D. Since the Bihar state government started the bicycle program, the number of ninth-grade girls registered in high school has increased.
8. The article states: The results in Bihar were so encouraging that the program is now expanding. Neighboring states have implemented similar programs. Which would be the closest antonym for the word implemented?
A. Financed
B. Canceled
C. Endorsed
D. Analyzed
Opinion Question: What do you think should countries do whatever it takes to keep kids in school?
Math Question: The number of ninth-grade girls in Bihar's schools was 175,000 in 2007. It was 600,000 in 2012. What is the percent increase in ninth-grade girls between 2007 and 2012? Choose the closest answer.
A. 342.9%
B. 291.7%
C. 141.2%
D. 242.9%
Thought Question: Write a summary of today's article.