I. REVIEW

Hello everyone, today we are going to review the strategy of combining the solution of a reading sample with the Completing Tables exercise.

When doing this exercise, pay attention to:

– Number of words allowed to fill in a position vị

– Predict the type of word that can be filled in the required position (Noun/Verb/Adj/Adv)

– The word to fill will go near which keywords. Find the synonyms or paraphrases of those keywords

– Check the answer again

II. FULL PASSAGE

Micro-Enterprise Credit for Street Youth

Introduction

Although small-scale business training and credit programs have become more common throughout the world, relatively little attention has been paid to the need to direct such opportunities to young people. Even less attention has been paid to children living on the street or in difficult circumstances.

Over the past nine years, Street Kids International (SKI) has been working with partner organizations in Africa, Latin America and India to support the economic lives of street children. The purpose of this paper is to share some of the lessons SKI and our partners have learned.

Background

Typically, children do not end up on the streets due to a single cause, but to a combination of factors: a dearth of adequate funds funds, the demand for income at home, family breakdown and violence. The street may be attractive to children as a place to find adventurous play and money. However, it is also a place where some children are exposed, with little or no protection, to exploitative employment, urban crime, and abuse.

Children who work on the streets are generally involved in unskilled, labor-intensive tasks which require long hours, such as shining shoes, carrying goods, guarding or washing cars, and informal tracing. Some may also earn income through begging, or through theft and illegal activities. At the same time, there are street children who take pride in supporting themselves and their families and who often enjoy their work. Many children may choose entrepreneurship because it allows them a degree of independence, is less exploitative than many forms of paid employment, and is flexible enough to allow them to participate in other activities such as education and domestic tasks.

Street Business Partnerships

SKI has worked with partner organizations in Latin America, Africa and India to develop innovative opportunities for street children to earn income.

• The SKI Bicycle Courter Service first started in the Sudan. Participants in this enterprise were supplied with bicycles, which they used to deliver parcels and messages, and which they were required to pay for participants from their wages. A similar program was taken up in Bangalore, India.
• Another successful project, The Shoe Shine Collective, was a partnership program with the YWCA in the Dominican Republic. In this project, participants were lent money to purchase shoe shine boxes. They were also given a sale place to store their equipment, and facilities for individual savings plans.
• The Youth Skills Enterprise initiative in Zambia is a joint program with the Red Cross Society and the YWCA Street youths are supported to start their own small business through business training, life skills training and access to credit.

Lessons learned

The following lessons have emerged from the programs that SKI and partner organizations have created.

• Being an entrepreneur is not for everyone, nor for every street child. Ideally, potential participants will have been involved in the organization’s programs for at least six months, and trust and relationship building will have already been established.
• The involvement of the participants has been essential to the development of relevant programs. When children have had a major role in determining procedures, they are more likely to abide by and enforce them.
• It is critical for all loans to be linked to training programs that include the development of basic business and life skills.
• There are tremendous advantages to involving parents or guardians in the program, where such relationships exits. Home visits allow staff the opportunity to know where the participants live, and to understand more about each individual’s situation.
• Small loans are provided initially for purchasing fixed assets such as bicycles, shoe shine kits and basic building materials for a market stall. As the entrepreneurs gain experience, the enterprises can be expanded and consider can be given to increase loan amounts. The loan amounts in SKI programs have generally ranged from US$90-$100.
• All SKI have charged interest on the loans, preeminent to get the entrepreneurs used to the concept of paying interest on borrowed money. Generally the rates have been modest (lower than bank rates)

Conclusion

There is a need to recognize the importance of access to credit for impoverished young people seeking to fulfill economic needs. The provision of small loans to support the entrepreneurial dreams and ambitions of youth can be an effective means to help them change their lives. However, we believe that credit must be extended in association with other types of support that help participants develop critical kills as well as productive businesses.

Questions 5-8

Complete the table below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Reading Passage 161 for each answer.

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 161?

Write your answers in boxes 5-8 on your answer sheet.

III. DISCUSSION

Which answer did you choose and what do you think? Let’s discuss together

Note that the answer should not be more than 3 words

(5) Need a country name, go with keywords like “Bangalore“, “India“. Join the organization”SKI“, project “courier“

–>> KI Bicycle Courier Service first started in the Sudan. Participants in this enterprise were supplied with bicycles, which they used to deliver parcels and messages, and which they were required to pay for participants from their wages. A similar program was taken up in Bangalore, India.

–>> Answer: Sudan

(6) Need a noun, go with the noun “provision” or other word forms of this word, also in the paragraph containing the answer (5)

–>> Participants in this enterprise were supplied with bicycles,

–>> Answer: bicycle

(7) Need the answer is a type of project, along with the keywords “Dominican Republic“

–>> Another successful project, The Shoe Shine Collective, was a partnership program with the YWCA in the Dominican Republic.

–>> Answer: Shoe Shine Collective (Note the maximum number of words allowed)

(8) Need the answer is one noun, along with the keywords “Zambia“, “business training“

–>> The Youth Skills Enterprise initiative in Zambia is a joint program with the Red Cross Society and the YWCA Street youths are supported to start their own small business through business training, life skills training and access to credit.

–>> Answer: Life skills

This exercise is not difficult if we have a clear strategy and good scanning skills, right? Please try other Reading- Completing Tables exercises from IELTS- Fighter <3

Good luck with your studies <3