投稿類別 : 英文寫作
篇名 :
Cherish and Treasure─ What we , high school female students , have in Taiwan
作者 :
陳奕瑾。國立基隆女子高級中學。二年一班
指導老師 :
林瑞淑老師
Cherish and Treasure─ What we , high school female students , have in Taiwan
I.
Introduction
Southern Asia is a place where we can explore. The location of this unfamiliar place really
nears Taiwan. Due to the mysterious and unknown world, as a high school student, I wonder
whether I can find something in different or in common parts to compare with Taiwan.
This summer I took a trip to Cambodia, a country in Southeast Asia. In Cambodia I saw
various different types of living in that place. No matter in the culture aspect or in social status, the
situations in Cambodia is really different from Taiwan. For example, females often be the economic
support of their families. In the market or some vendor, females can always be seen working hard to
earn money.
II.
Thesis
In Cambodia , men and women have always technically had equal rights before the law. This
announcement is also stated in the Constitution of Cambodia. Women benefit from inheritance laws,
they can own property, they can bring property into a marriage. That might be the reason of why
females usually work harder than males. There are also some data indicate that Cambodians’
“Human development index is 0.598 (Taiwan 0.868), and the Literacy Rate is 73.6 %(Taiwan
98.04%) .Distribution of various publications and newspapers are limited to capitals, literacy
rates in rural areas are even lower, 70% rural residents couldn’t access to news and
information.Also, the sex rate of total population is0.94 male/female” (Kevin Watkins,2007)
The entire environment of Cambodia is not as prosperous as Taiwan , nevertheless, most
adolescents in our ages live in hard and poor lives. The costs of sending their children to school are
very high in some families, making them almost impossible for their children to receive education,
children in Cambodia are forced to give up the chance of being educated and have to work and
supply their family’s incomes. Some of them work in factories and work in quite a long time, the
1
Cherish and Treasure─ What we , high school female students , have in Taiwan
other may do some handwork such as polish the coconut shells and make them in some shape to
earn some money.In 2010, “The rate of child labor is 39 % .Based on the data from
International Labor Organization, close to 20% of children ages 5–9 are employed as child
labor. The figures then rise to 47% for children between age 10-14 and 34% for ages 15–17,
only 45% have the chance to attend school”.(Central Intelligence Agency )
However for some riches or some prosperous places in Cambodia, getting education may be
much easier for them. Besides, girls in our ages are also different from Taiwan. The number of girls
who drop out from secondary education is much higher than the number of boys, the rate of
male/female is 0.98. In 2008, the fraction of girls to boys in upper secondary is 75%, and only 50%
in higher education. This disparity can be partly attributed to the higher opportunity cost of sending
girls to school as there will be one less helping hand to earn an extra income. The trade between
school participation and economic activity increases as the child gets older and this trend is
particularly prevailing among girls. “In 2008, 23% of young women are illiterate compared to
16% of men.” (Wikipeda)
While female literacy rates in Cambodia have always struggled, and the unfortunate truth is
that they’re not much improved. “The female literacy rate is held to be around 76% country-wide,
while male literacy sits at almost 85% ...With a gap between the male and female literacy levels
that is considerable: 20.6 %. Another institution records rates in rural areas as female literacy:
56.3% and male literacy: 71.3%.”(Jernie,2009)
“It’s also been estimated that 50% of rural women are illiterate and have not completed
primary school education.”(LICADHO,2004). Dropout rates are significant; the Cambodian
Independent Teachers Association estimated that “only 60% of students completed primary
schooling in 2003 and most of those were male pupils” (LICADHO,2004). In older populations
disparities are even starker, “among those 65 years and older, only 15.7 % females are literate
compared to71.4 % among males” (CEDAW in Action in Southeast Asia).
2
Cherish and Treasure─ What we , high school female students , have in Taiwan
Different from Taiwan, the female students in Taiwan seem don’t have these problems and
disparity, specific on female students, the sorrowful situation in Cambodia will not happen in
Taiwan. Fortunately , females in Taiwan can get the education just as equal as males , based on our
constitution , The people shall have the right and the duty of receiving citizens’ education. “The
rights of being educated from men and women are born in equal.” (Constitution of the
Republic of China,2005)
III. Conclusion
In my opinion, teenagers should study until university or even the graduate school, but this
thought seems not adapt in the culture in Cambodia. As a high school student in Taiwan, I really
treasure the life that I live in Taiwan. In Taiwan, I don’t need to worried about the education
opportunity . What I have to do is focusing on my study and preparing for the exams. There is
always an equal chance for males and females in Taiwan to enter to school. Not like the situation in
Cambodia, we can even hard to image the unfair schooling system in Cambodia. People in our age
in Cambodia mostly have already gotten to work. What’s worse they often got exploited by their
employers. Working for a long time , but just get a little pay, I even couldn’t image that the
miserable teenage lives that they live in. Life in Taiwan is really better and more prosperous than
that in Cambodia , as a result, we should cherish what we have in our country.
IV. Reference
Constitution of the Republic of China(Taiwan)(June 10, 2005).
CEDAW in Action in Southeast Asia. Retrieved October 1, 2013,from
http://cedaw-seasia.org/cambodia_shadowreport.html
Central Intelligence Agency. Library publications. Retrieved October 10, 2013, from
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/cb.html
3
Cherish and Treasure─ What we , high school female students , have in Taiwan
China.com.CN. Retrieved October 1, 2013, from http://www.china.com.cn/chinese/WISI/264884.htm
Jernie(2009). Girls' Education in Cambodia. Retrieved October 1, 2013, from
http://worldpulse.com/node/14678
Kevin Watkins(2007).Human Development Repor 2007/2008, Retrieved October 3, 2013,
from http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_20072008_EN_Complete.pdf
LICADHO（2004）.The Situation of Women in Cambodia. Retrieved October 8, 2013,
http://www.fidh.org/IMG/pdf/kh2004_women-en.pdf
Wikipeda. Retrieved October 3, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/Cambodia
4