Back to school second written test English Liceo Linguistico

This is the actiity for the next time.
Practice with the second written test
 Sessione ordinaria 2017
Seconda prova scritta
Ministero dell’Istruzione, dell’ Università e della Ricerca
PL01 – ESAME DI STATO DI ISTRUZIONE SECONDARIA SUPERIORE
Indirizzi: LI04, EA03 - LICEO LINGUISTICO
Tema di: LINGUA STRANIERA - INGLESE
A - ATTUALITÀ
Poverty Affects Education—And Our Systems Perpetuate It

It’s hard to argue that poverty does not affect education. It’s hard to argue that children who come from homes where they may be wanting—wanting for food, for time, or for resources—don’t enter the school door with a little less than others. And it’s hard to argue that children living in poverty and attending schools that are underfunded, underresourced, and understaffed are not literally up against the system.

We have established a system where those who are poor are more likely  to stay poor, and lately we have seen a sharp increase in those considered poor. In fact, a recent research bulletin from the Southern Education Foundation highlights that, as of this year, the majority of public school children come from poverty. According to the bulletin, “The latest data collected from the states by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), show that 51 percent of the students across the nation’s public schools were  low income in 2013”.

In 40 of the 50 states, low income students comprised no less than 40% of all public schoolchildren. In 21 states, children eligible for free or reduced-price lunches were a majority of the students in 2013.

51 percent of our children across the country now live in poverty, and the numbers appear to be growing. 51 percent.

Coincidentally, it has also been 51 years since we, as a nation, declared poverty unacceptable. It has been 51 years since President Lyndon B. Johnson launched the War on Poverty in his 1964 State of the Union Address.

This administration today, here and now, declares unconditional war on poverty in America. I urge this Congress and all Americans to join with me in that effort. It will not be a short or easy struggle, no single weapon or strategy will suffice, but we shall not rest until that war is won. The richest Nation on earth can afford to win it. We cannot afford to lose it. One thousand dollars invested in salvaging an unemployable youth today can return $40,000 or more in his lifetime.

During this address, Johnson also acknowledged that “many Americans live on the outskirts of hope— some because of their poverty, and some because of their color, and all too many because of both.”

Poverty, Johnson said, was a “national problem,” one that required a collective response across all levels of government and society. His address singled out every American to do his part.

Fifty-one years later, however, we have established systems that perpetuate and even accentuate poverty.

Schools in low socioeconomic areas are underfunded when compared to higher socioeconomic

neighborhoods. They tackle chronic issues with a chronic lack of resources. While those who work in these schools may be passionate, hard-working, and motivated educators, they frequently lack experience, support services, and political power.

Thus, the message becomes clear—if you are born into poverty, you are likely to stay in poverty.

As a country, we have deep-rooted negative stereotypes about people living in poverty, despite the fact that people who live in poverty are as diverse in their norms, beliefs, and behaviors as people who live in any other socioeconomic stratum. Poverty spans geographical and ethnic boundaries, from urban cities to rural towns. There are many communities that have battled poverty for decades and many where poverty has arrived recently, unexpectedly, and in a rush.

Poverty is neither fair nor equitable, and it is not productive for society. If we ignore, as Charles Blow

 called it, the “corrosive effects of poverty” on our nation’s children, it will come back to haunt us. And as Steve Suitts, author of the Southern Education Foundation research bulletin, said, “It’s a matter of our national future, because when one group becomes the majority of our students, they define what that future is going to be in education more than any other group.”

So what do we do? Rather than just get angry, we must get active.

 We can and should commit to addressing poverty via intersectoral alignment, change the formula by

which we fund our schools, and ensure that inequities are at the heart of all policy discussions. […]

Poverty affects our education, our economy, and our future. It is becoming the norm, and we appear

reluctant to address it. What was once a local, regional, or state concern is now a national issue and will affect our national progress. But we have the steps in place to change it—and we’ve had these steps for over half a century. What has been waning is our will to act and our determination to succeed. […]

[769 words]

From: Stephen Slade, “Poverty Affects Education—And our Systems Perpetrate It”,

The Huffington Post (US edition), 24 April 2015.

Available online: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sean-slade/poverty-affects-education_b_7861778.html

Accessed on 20 January 2017.

COMPREHENSION AND INTERPRETATION

Answer the following questions. Use complete sentences and your own words.

1. According to the author, in what ways do poor children “enter the school door with a little less than

others”?

2. What alarming fact regarding the children in the USA’s public schools is highlighted by NCES data?

3. How do you know from the article that poverty among children has become a wide-spread

phenomenon in the USA? State at least 2 facts.

4. Name at least 2 points that President Lyndon B. Johnson made in his speech to argue for the urgency

to fight poverty.

5. What relationship does the author establish between poverty and the education system in the USA?

6. Why is poverty depicted in the article as a trap out of which it is difficult for people to escape? Give 2 reasons.

7. Where can poverty be found?

8. What group is Steve Suitts referring to as having become “the majority of our students”?

9. Name two ways in which it might be possible to address poverty according to the author.

10. Why does the author believe the issue of poverty has not been addressed in the last 50 years?

PRODUCTION

Choose one of the following questions.

Number your answer clearly to show which question you have attempted.

Either

1. The European Parliament resolution of 24 November 2015 on reducing inequalities with a special

focus on child poverty (2014/2237(INI)) recalls that “child poverty is a multi-dimensional

phenomenon that requires a multi-dimensional response” and that “tackling child poverty requires the

adoption of a life-cycle approach […] that reflects the different needs of early childhood, primary

childhood and adolescence”.

In an essay of approximately 300 words, show your own personal understanding of what a “multidimensional response” and a “life-cycle approach” to tackling child poverty might entail. Think alsoabout what you have read in the article.

Or

2. Imagine that you and your volunteer group have been awarded a grant of 10 thousand Euro to set up a local community project to help at-risk teenagers in your neighbourhood stay in school and succeed in their education. Write a composition of about 300 words to describe the specific situation you would like to address, what you would do to address it and who you would involve. Try to make your project credible, also by considering the amount of money you have for it.

__________________________

Durata massima della prova: 6 ore.

È consentito soltanto l’uso dei dizionari monolingue e bilingue.

Non è consentito lasciare l’Istituto prima che siano trascorse 3 ore dalla dettatura del tema.