World Leaders Consider Answer to North Korea’s Latest Nuclear Test

  North Korea’s latest and sixth nuclear test has brought strong reactions from its neighbors and the United States. But Russia and China question additional moves. On Tuesday, South Korea announced that it plans to expand its own missile abilities. South Korea said it has reached an agreement “in principle” with the United States to increase the payload of its missiles. An agreement reached in 1979 limits the payload and distance of South Korean missiles. The agreement limits South Korean missiles to a payload of 500 kilograms and a distance of 800 kilometers,  according to Reuters. U.S. President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in spoke about the change during a 40-minute telephone discussion. In addition, Trump said early Tuesday on Twitter that the U.S. would permit the sale of “sophisticated military equipment” to Japan and South Korea. Nations consider latest North Korean nuclear test At the United Nations, the U.S. has said it will offer a new resolution targeting North Korea. However, Russia and China are questioning whether additional restrictions will improve the situation. After North Korea carried out a long-range missile test in July, the UN placed strong sanctions on the country’s economy. The bans on North Korean exports were aimed at cutting North Korean exports by one billion dollars. North Korea carried out its latest nuclear test as leaders of major developing countries -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (or BRICS) -- gathered in Xiamen, a China’s city on the Taiwan Strait. On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, at the BRICS meeting, increased sanctions would not help. He said such measures would not cause a change in leadership in North Korea. Putin warned of a “global catastrophe” if military tensions continue to increase on the Korean Peninsula. Leaders attending the BRICS meeting condemned the nuclear test. But Chinese president Xi Jinping did not mention the incident at the end of the meeting. Later, at a regular briefing, a foreign ministry spokesman called the situation “highly sensitive and complicated.” He called on both sides to avoid increasing tensions. Concerns about stability of North Korea Bruce Bennett is a defense expert with the Rand Corporation research group. He told VOA that the two nations are unwilling to place additional sanctions on the North. “They are reluctant because they just don’t know how unstable North Korea is.” Bennett said that China worries about a crisis on its border. He said China may consider the North too unstable to increase sanctions. China has also directed state media to control online discussion of the North’s activity, according to Radio Free Asia. The U.S.-based China Digital Times reported that, “All websites are banned from deliberately hyping related topics.” Explosion is largest test yet by North Korea North Korea’s nuclear test on September 3 was its sixth and by far the most powerful. The country said the device was a hydrogen bomb, a more powerful kind of nuclear weapon. The explosion was detected as an earthquake reported to be magnitude 6.3. The test was estimated to equal 100,000 tons of the explosive TNT, or 100 kilotons. On Sunday, a North Korean diplomat attending a UN conference on disarmament in Geneva suggested that North Korea may have another test planned. The official said North Korea is prepared to send “more gift packages” to the U.S. South Korean media reported that North Korea may be moving a long-range missile into position. And South Korea’s defense ministry has warned that the North could launch a missile at any time. Dan Sneider is a visiting scholar with Stanford University’s Walther H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center. He said it is not hard to understand why North Korea continues its testing activities. He said the North’s weapons programs have become too important to the country’s leaders to negotiate away for economic gains. I’m Mario Ritter.   Mario Ritter adapted this story for VOA Learning English from VOA news reports from Steve Herman, Richard Green, Bill Ide, VOA News and Reuters. Hai Do was the editor. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   payload –n. the amount of material that a vehicle can carry sophisticated –adj. highly developed or complex sanctions –n. measures taken to force a country to obey international laws usually by limiting or stopping some form of trade with other countries overwhelming –adj. very great in number or effect unstable –adj. likely to change easily or at any time hyping –v. to talk about in a way meant to cause people to get excited or outraged   We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2eIKPg3
via IFTTT

September 5, 2017

A look at the best news photos from around the world.

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2x90hcS
via IFTTT

Should English Teachers Explore Cultural Topics in Class?

  For VOA Learning English, this is the Education Report. If you are standing in front of an iceberg, it might look like the largest thing you've ever seen. But, you're still only seeing the small part above the water. About 90 percent of the iceberg is below the water. The same idea relates to culture, explains Amy Melendez. Melendez teaches English and trains English educators in the Washington, DC area. She works at a number of schools, including Northern Virginia Community College and Georgetown University. She says many students – and teachers – mistakenly think culture is just the things that are easy to see, like food, music, clothing and holidays. But, she says most culture is represented in what cannot be seen: people's expectations, beliefs and values. So, she brings lessons about this into the classroom. She teaches learners how to understand and value cultural differences and communicate more effectively with people from other cultures.   Like Melendez, Michelle Stabler-Havener is an English educator who has taught intercultural communication. Currently, she is a doctoral candidate at Teachers College at Columbia University in New York City. Both Melendez and Stabler-Havener explain that the subject of cultural understanding is a natural fit in language teaching. They note that language and culture are inseparable: words and expressions have cultural origins. They also say cultural tolerance helps learners feel safe in the classroom. Stabler-Havener explains: "In other words, they don't have to worry that people are going to criticize who they are or the things that they value most and believe in…this gives students the freedom to focus their energy on learning the language without having to be so concerned that these things that are so important to them are going to be questioned." Out of the comfort zone Ironically, providing this sense of safety often involves exploring subjects that pull learners out of their comfort zones. One tool both Melendez and Stabler-Havener find especially useful in the classroom is critical incidents. A critical incident is a short description of a situation in which a misunderstanding or conflict took place between people. The problem may be caused by cultural differences or some kind of communication failure. It is the students' job to discover what happened and why. And, they are asked to come up with as many reasons as possible – other than reasons based on stereotypes. Melendez gives an example of a critical incident she has used from a book called Tips for Teaching Culture*. "You have two students who are working on a project. And, the student is supposed to be sharing the book with the other student. And, it's time for one of the students to leave for class. And, the older student who had checked out the book grabs the book, gets up and leaves because it's time for him to go to his next class. The other student – he's left a little bewildered (thinking) 'Why is leaving? Why is he taking the book?' You know, 'We were sharing this book.' In another part of the incident, too, with that one, the younger student had come late." Another favorite tool of Melendez is digital storytelling. Digital stories are short movies that combine photos, video, animation, sound, music and words. Melendez says digital stories encourage healthy conversations around cultural myths. For example, last summer, she trained a group of Panamanian teachers. Through one teacher's digital story, she learned that the person believed Americans were cold, emotionless people. This led to a productive class discussion about cultural differences in how people greet one another and their ideas about personal space. "I think a lot of intolerance comes from the unknown. So, trying to make the unknown known, I think, is really important, even in a language classroom." As many teachers know, classrooms can be unpredictable. At any given time, a student may say something to accidentally hurt or embarrass another student from a different culture. To lessen this problem, Melendez has her students vote on rules for shared respect. And, they are asked to follow these rules throughout the course. Stabler-Havener says students can also practice respect by the way they use the language. For example, they can express possibility by saying, "Maybe this is what is happening" instead of saying, "This is true for every person in this culture." And, they can show respect for others' opinions with language like, "I see your point but..." rather than "As we well know..." To teach or not to teach Before exploring sensitive cultural subjects with a class, Melendez and Stabler-Havener say teachers can spend time examining their own cultural biases. Melendez says uneasy situations or subjects will probably arise in class whether or not English language teachers decide to explore the iceberg of culture. And, if a teacher chooses avoidance, they may be left unprepared. She says a website called Tolerance.org offers some useful resources for teachers, including web-based trainings. Stabler-Havener says, in addition, teachers can go hear experts speak about intercultural communication. She adds that it is a good idea for teachers to decide before teaching a class whether they will share their own opinions with students about sensitive topics. "Are the students who disagree with you going to feel somehow maybe disempowered or concerned that, because they don't share your opinion on a topic that might affect them in the class?" And that's the Education Report. I'm Alice Bryant.   Alice Bryant wrote this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. *Tips for Teaching Culture by Wintergerst and McVeigh _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   iceberg – n. a very large piece of ice floating in the ocean lesson – n. an activity that you do in order to learn something intercultural communication – n. communication between individuals or groups of different linguistic or cultural origins tolerance – n. the act of being willing to allow or accept something comfort zone – n. a place, situation, or level where someone feels secure and comfortable stereotype – n. an often unfair and untrue belief that many people have about all people or things with a particular characteristic grab – v. to quickly take and hold someone or something with your hand or arms bewildered – adj. very confused myth – n. an idea or story that is believed by many people but that is not true greet – v. to meet someone who has just arrived with usually friendly and polite words and actions bias – n. a tendency to believe that some people, ideas, etc., are better than others that usually results in treating some people unfairly

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2wEeWvn
via IFTTT

Trump Administration Ends ‘Dreamer’ Immigration Program

  The Trump administration is moving to end a program that protected 800,000 young, undocumented immigrants in the United States. Many of the immigrants were children when they entered the country illegally with their parents. President Donald Trump approved the move, but it was Attorney General Jeff Sessions who announced the change in policy. "We cannot admit everyone who wants to come here," Sessions told reporters on Tuesday. "All cannot be accepted." He added that limiting immigration "means we are properly enforcing our laws." The administration is ending a five-year-old program that former President Barack Obama created through an executive order. The program was known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), but the young immigrants also became known as “Dreamers.” DACA gave the immigrants legal permission to work, study and serve in the U.S. military. It also prevented them from being sent back to their home country. In a statement, the president said he does not believe it is right to punish the young people for the actions of their parents. But he added, “As I’ve said before, we will resolve the DACA issue with heart and compassion – but through the lawful democratic process.” Trump accused Obama of going around Congress to put the program in place through executive order. He noted that DACA faces legal tests in several states. He said the Justice Department had advised him the program was “unlawful and unconstitutional” and not likely to be successfully defended in court. All new DACA applications will be stopped. But officials said people currently in the program will not be affected until March 5, 2018. Existing permits that end before that date can be extended and will be honored for up to two years. Trump said the extended “wind-down” now puts the program’s future in the hands of Congress. “I am not going to just cut DACA off, but rather provide a window of opportunity for Congress to finally act,” his statement said. Several Congressional Republicans had urged the president not to cancel DACA. Paul Ryan, the Speaker in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, released a statement on Tuesday. It urged lawmakers to work for a solution for the “young people who came to this country through no fault of their own.” Ryan said he hoped the House and Senate can find a permanent legislative fix to the problem. He also called for new legislative discussions on border security and other immigration issues. Former President Obama criticized the decision as “cruel” and “self-defeating.” Obama defended his approval of the program, noting he waited years for Congress to act on immigration reforms, but they did not. Responding in a statement on Facebook, Obama said he believes the Trump administration decision was political, and not made for legal reasons.   “Whatever concerns or complaints Americans may have about immigration in general, we shouldn’t threaten the future of this group of young people who are here through no fault of their own, who pose no threat, who are not taking away anything from the rest of us,” the statement said.   Demonstrators marched in several U.S. cities to protest the decision. In Denver, Colorado, hundreds of teachers and students gathered outside Metro State University. Some carried signs reading, “No borders, no nations, no racists, no deportations.” Protests were also held near the White House, outside Trump Tower in New York City and in downtown Los Angeles. I’m Bryan Lynn. Bryan Lynn wrote this story for Learning English. His story was based on reports from VOANews.com, the Associated Press and Reuters. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   compassion – n. a feeling of sympathy for others expire – v. no longer be valid wind down – n. end gradually fault – adj. be responsible for or deserve blame for something cruel – adj. unkind, mean  

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2eJoVJM
via IFTTT

Celebrity Baby Announcements Make News

  This is What’s Trending Today. Two recent baby announcements involve famous names. News media reported last Friday that tennis star Serena Williams gave birth to a baby girl. Williams did not provide the child’s name to the media. On Monday came news that Britain’s Prince William and his wife Catherine are expecting their third child. An official statement said Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, is being cared for at Kensington Palace in London. Friday was a big day for the Williams family. Serena’s sister Venus Williams was set to play at the United States Open Tennis Championships in New York. At the same time, news came out that Serena had a baby girl. The baby weighed a little more than three kilograms. Her father is businessman Alexis Ohanian. Venus told a television reporter about her baby niece just before she played on Friday. Many people used social media to congratulate Serena Williams and wish her a fast recovery. One of them was Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou. He wrote: “I am so happy for you,” and “I wish you a speedy recovery … we have a lot of work ahead of us.”     Singer Beyonce used Instagram to congratulate Serena. Venus Williams won her match on Friday. With the victory, she moved on to the U.S. Open women’s quarterfinals. Serena Williams has said she plans to return to tennis in 2018. She last played in January, when she won the Australian Open. On Monday, Kensington Palace announced that Catherine was pregnant with her third child. The announcement read: “Their Royal Highnesses, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, are very pleased to announce that The Duchess of Cambridge is expecting their third child.”   William and Catherine have two children: four-year-old Prince George and Princess Charlotte, who is two. The palace also said Catherine is experiencing severe “morning sickness.” The condition forced her to withdraw from an event she planned to attend Monday afternoon. Morning sickness is when a pregnant woman has nausea and may vomit several times a day. It can be dangerous for the woman since she is at risk of dehydration, but it is not usually a problem for the baby. And that’s What’s Trending Today. I’m Dan Friedell. Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a story by the Associated Press. George Grow was the editor. What do you think of the baby news? We want to know. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.   ___________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   coach – n. a trainer; someone who trains someone else nausea – n. the feeling you have when you think you are going to be sick to your stomach vomit – v. to expel food or liquids through the mouth because you are sick dehydration – n. the state of not having enough water in your body

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2j222ST
via IFTTT

Mesh Networks Keep Americans Connected During Natural Disasters

  Natural disasters like earthquakes and powerful storms can be a threat not only to human life, but to telecommunication systems. When telecommunication networks go down, communities are unable to communicate with each other. But the United States has a system to help Americans get re-connected through wired or wireless technology. It also can provide important information in an emergency. It is called mesh networking. Mesh networks spread connectivity over a number of nodes or connection points that communicate with each other. The first such network was developed for military purposes. Daniela Perdomo is head of goTenna, a company that specializes in mesh networking. It creates products that use low-frequency radio waves to send text messages and Global Positioning System (GPS) information. The company’s latest product is the goTenna Mesh, a mesh networking device that works independently of traditional cell phone networks. Joshua King is lead developer at Commotion Wireless, which creates software products for mesh networks. King said one good reason for mesh networks is that if one connection goes down, others take its place. "A mesh network can potentially route around any kind of damage, if there is another path for the traffic to go," he noted. If at least one network point is connected to the internet, the signal can be shared. If there is no internet connection, a mesh network can still operate to provide emergency information and basic messaging services, like texts. Greta Byrum is director of the Resilient Communities program at the New America research center. "The idea is to make telecommunication systems more modular, more distributed. So that even if centralized points fail, you would still have working telecommunications in different areas." King and Byrum attended a recent gathering, called Sneakercon, at Columbia University in New York City. They and other attendees met to discuss the building of offline networks in local communities. "I think it's important for thinking about the future of utilities and telecommunications, because we're finding more and more that centralized systems just don't make sense." Byrum and others teach communities how to build their own mesh networks with everyday equipment. "[It's] about community control, community power,” she said. “People start thinking about things like telecommunications sovereignty — who controls the internet, who controls what we say online, who benefits from it, who gets the data?" Daniela Perdomo agrees that people should be more involved in issues of connectivity. "Why can't we empower people to create their own connectivity? And create more of a people-powered, bottom-up network as opposed to a heavy infrastructure top-down network?" I’m Jonathan Evans.   Tina Trinh reported this story for VOANews. Jonathan Evans adapted her report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. ______________________________________________________________ Words in this Story   infrastructure – n. the basic equipment and structures that are needed for a country, area or organization to operate offline – n. not connected to a computer, a computer network, or the Internet sovereignty – n. a country's right to govern itself low-frequency – adj. radio waves with frequencies much lower than the signals normally used in communications equipment route – n. a path or line of travel

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2eIuZ58
via IFTTT

Explainer: Net Neutrality

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2x7r4X5
via IFTTT

Is 'Goofing Off' Good for Children?

  From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. Something happens to many children when they are out of school over the summer months. It is called the “summer slide.” This may sound like a ride at a water park. But it’s not. Summer slide is when children forget much of what they learned during the latest school year. To fight the effects of summer slide, teachers often give students homework over the summer. Many parents may send children to camp or find other activities to keep them learning. As the new school year begins, most children are soon very busy with new classes and school-related activities. However, experts say keeping children busy all the time is not good for them. What should parents do instead? Nothing.   Helping children succeed is one of the issues Lea Waters has been researching for over 20 years. Waters is a psychologist – an expert on human behavior. Waters says slowing down actually helps children become the best they can be. "It's a little bit like, if you have too many programs running on your computer, your computer starts to slow down. And when you shut down those programs, your computer speeds up again. It's very much like that for a child's brain." Machines need to be reset, while kids need to goof off. "What I mean by goofing off is really allowing kids to have some downtime, where they’re not focused on a specific task -- something that they choose to do like shooting baskets, or doing a creative project, cooking. It's a project they're interested in doing that they can do more automatically and get enjoyment from." She adds that goofing off does not mean the brain isn’t working. "It goes into this default network mode and uses that time to process all the information it had during the day, to integrate new information. It makes a kind of decision about what information do I keep and put into my memory, what information do I not need and I get rid of. It's also an essential network for helping us to develop emotional intelligence, to consolidate a memory, to develop a sense of identity..." In her book, The Strength Switch, Waters suggests that parents work on building up their child's strengths instead of trying to fix their weaknesses.   "In working with parents around the world on this strength-based parenting approach, one of the common questions that I get is, ‘Once I identify the strength of my children, what do I need to do to build up these strengths?' In that question is often a misconception that, as a parent, the way we build up our children's strength is to get them into extra tutoring, get them into kind of every class possible..." Parents often mean well by wanting to keep their child busy. But the result is often a tired child with an overcrowded schedule. This keeps a child’s brain active -- learning, gathering information and preparing for the next event. And this may have the opposite effect the parents are hoping for. "Yes, practice builds up strength, but so does downtime. One of the “counter-intuitives” that we're finding in the field of neuroscience is that if you're constantly on task, if you're constantly practicing, in the end it doesn't help to build up a skill or a strength as effectively as you might think." Waters based her ideas largely on her own research in psychology, parenting and education at the University of Milbourn in Australia. But her book also describes studies by several American researchers. "I love Mary Helen Immordino-Yang’s research. She's a professor of education, psychology and neuroscience at the University of Southern California. And she's done a lot of work on the idea that our brains have these two alternative systems." Those two systems, or modes, she noted are known as “on-task focus” and “free-form attention.” Mary Helen Immordino-Yang says the on-task focus is about observing and understanding one's environment. That happens, for example, when you play sports. But the other mode is activated when you are resting. Here is Immordino-Yang. "You need to be watching other people on your team, and running fast and coordinating your motions, and reacting to the things you're perceiving. And then, there is another network that's extremely important for being able to make meaning out of what you're doing. And that network seems to be deactivated when people are sort of playing sports and attending to the outside. And it's activated when you're resting and just daydreaming, when you’re thinking about your memories and imagining things that don't exist here and now. You need those two modes of attention in order to function as a person in the world." Lea Waters says she hopes parents will accept the fact that children don't have to be busy all the time. Children and adults need time to goof off now and then. And that’s the Health and Lifestyle report. I’m Anna Matteo.   What do you think about letting children goof off – a good idea or a bad idea? Let us know your thoughts in the Comments Section. Faiza Elmasry reported this story for VOANews.com. Anna Matteo adapted her report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. _______________________________________________________________ QUIZ   ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   default – n. used to describe something that happens or is done when nothing else has been done or can be done mode – n. a particular way of doing something integrate – v. to make (something) a part of another larger thing consolidate – v. to join or combine together into one thing misconception – n. a wrong or mistaken idea tutor – n. a teacher who works with one student schedule – n. a plan of things that will be done and the times when they will be done counter-intuitive – adj. different from what you would expect : not agreeing with what seems right or natural approach – n. a way of dealing with something : a way of doing or thinking about something coordinate – v. to act or work together properly and well perceive – v. to notice or become aware of (something)

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2gzrnPZ
via IFTTT

How Leaders Use ‘Branding’ to Improve Image

  Throughout history, many leaders have used the media as an important tool to shape their image and connect with voters. Today, the use of marketing and branding is even more powerful because of the growing number of media sources and influence of social media. Former United States President Barack Obama is recognized for using marketing in new ways to get elected. He was largely unknown to many Americans before deciding to seek the presidency. Much of Obama’s success came from his use of social media to reach out to the public and engage with supporters. Online social networks were still new for most people leading up to the 2008 presidential campaign. One of his most memorable tools was the “Hope” image – created by artist Shepard Fairey – which Obama used to define his idea of leadership. This widely seen image became a big part of his campaign messaging. Advertising Age magazine even named Obama Marketer of the Year in October 2008, right before his election win over John McCain. It was the first time a politician had received the award. Marketing experts have also praised Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for his ability to create memorable moments through social media and surprise appearances. Many photographs and videos of these events have gone viral on the internet. Becoming prime minister at age 43, some media reported on Justin Trudeau’s good looks and warm, friendly personality. During the political campaign and while in office, Trudeau has shown up unannounced at cities and towns across the country to meet face-to-face with Canadians. He is often surrounded by excited crowds when he travels overseas.    One of Trudeau’s most powerful moments came in December 2015, when he went to an airport in Toronto to welcome the first Syrian refugees to Canada. He spoke with arriving families, offered them warm clothing and said he was pleased to “show the world how to open our hearts” to the refugees.     Salah Hassan is a professor of marketing at The George Washington University School of Business in Washington, D.C. He says leaders like Trudeau are good at finding new ways to connect with the public, as well as showing sensitivity.  "The sensitivity score with the prime minister of Canada is very high. People adore him for his sensitivity and sensibility. So these are very important aspects." Historically, Hassan noted, there have been other leaders who were very successful at shaping a strong, personal brand. "Two world leaders come to mind who become legends in their own way. And these are Nelson Mandela, the former president of South Africa, and Anwar Sadat, the former president of Egypt." ​ ​He noted the two men were similar in a number of ways and both became Nobel Peace Prize winners. They were seen as freedom fighters, making great attempts to achieve peace. Each man kept talking about his ideas for peaceful, democratic change. However, Hassan says the branding of political leaders is much different than advertising for services or products. This is because with people, the branding also includes their feelings, personal values and actions taken over time. Trust, he adds, is very important. "Truth and trust are very, very important elements of building the brand. And bringing an authentic message of that brand that can be believable to your target audience." Hassan adds that politicians must keep in mind that if they don’t take control of their own brand, someone else will. Some world leaders use photographs, videos and public events as a way to create a softer public image. One example is Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. The 65-year-old ruler has led the country for 32 years, and is preparing for a general election next July. Human rights groups have criticized his government for using its control over the judicial system to frighten his political opponents and activists. In a 2016 report, the U.S. State Department identified major human rights problems in Cambodia. ​ Recently, the Cambodian leader has been using social media to show more of his personal life, along with official activities. A favorite place to leave photos is Facebook, where people can see: Hun Sen shopping; Hun Sen working out; Hun Sen, with family. One photo shows him smiling while driving a passenger car, instead of riding in his bulletproof government vehicle. In another picture, he is seen surrounded by family members while recovering in a hospital bed. Other photos on his Facebook page show Hun Sen holding babies or meeting with young people.  ​Similar photos can be seen on the Facebook page of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. His government has also been accused of human rights abuses and attempts to limit political freedoms. Another leader who has appeared with children at public events is North Korea’s Kim Jong Un. He has faced international condemnation for his government’s continued missile tests and nuclear activities. Hassan notes that leaders trying to improve a bad image face a big problem if they have not already created a lasting brand to carry them through. ​ ​"The stronger the brand, the more likely that brand will survive these setbacks. But the weaker, the more vulnerable, the less truthful, the less authentic candidates, when they are exposed, may not be able to recover." Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin released a series of photos showing a different side of him than the world usually sees. Included were pictures of Putin shirtless in a boat, catching fish, swimming underwater and sitting in a forest.   In the past, Putin has released similar photos showing him in unofficial settings. Those images, as well as the most recent ones, have always been a big hit on social media.   I’m Bryan Lynn.     Bryan Lynn reported this story for VOA Learning English. His report was based on stories from VOA Khmer, Reuters and the Associated Press. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   branding – n. positioning people or products as a particular kind engage – v. to get and keep (someone's attention, interest, etc.) online – adj. related to a computer or telecommunications system gone viral – expression. to spread quickly, usually through person-to-person electronic communication adore – v. to love or admire very much sensibility – n. ability to feel and understand emotions legend – n. a famous person authentic – adj. real, true or accurate shopping – v. to go to a place where goods and services are sold vulnerable – adj. easily hurt or harmed  

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2gFU8xU
via IFTTT

Myanmar Ready to Hear Pope’s Message of Healing

  People who follow events in Myanmar are worried about its stability in the weeks leading up to a visit from Pope Francis. The pope will arrive in late November. It will be the first-ever visit to Myanmar by any Roman Catholic leader. The country, also known as Burma, was once a British colony, but has been independent since 1948. The majority of its people are Buddhist. For almost 70 years, Myanmar has had problems with ethnic and civil unrest. Recently, security forces have been attacking fighters from the Rohingya ethnic minority in the western state of Rakhine. The Associated Press reported Friday that almost 400 people have died in the latest violence. The government considers the Rohingya, many of whom are Muslim, illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. The Rohingya, however, say they have roots in Myanmar going back hundreds of years. Observers want to know if the pope’s trip can lead to peace. Mariano Soe Naing is a clergyman and a spokesman for the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of Myanmar. He is helping organize the visit. He said the pope’s message will be about love and peace. “I think he will try to emphasize this aspect of love, which will bring us to peace and harmony in this country,” he added. Pope Francis has spoken about the Rohingya several times in recent months. More than 120,000 Rohingya are living in camps for displaced persons in the Rakhine state. Tens of thousands of Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh from western Myanmar since 2012. That was when the latest religious violence started. The situation worsened last year when a group called the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army killed nine people in attacks along the border. The Myanmar military launched “clearance operations” that some rights groups have said could be compared to crimes against humanity. Myanmar leader, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, has condemned the attacks, but United Nations representatives are urging her to call for peace and a ceasefire. While some people hope the pope’s visit will start the peace process, others are concerned that he may be too focused on the troubles faced by the Rohingya. They think his message may not resonate with the majority of people in Myanmar. I’m Dan Friedell.   Joe Freeman wrote this story for VOANews.com. Dan Friedell adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. Do you think the pope’s visit will ease the tension in Myanmar? We want to know. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   stability – n. the quality or state of something that is not easily changed or likely to change harmony – n. a pleasing combination or arrangement of different things resonate – v. to have particular meaning or importance for someone : to affect or appeal to someone in a personal or emotional way focus – v. to direct one’s attention at someone or something

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2eWqy3F
via IFTTT

Let's Teach English Unit 1: Learning Strategies

Welcome to Let's Teach English. This series offers free online training for English language educators worldwide. Voice of America and the University of Oregon are partners on this project. In this lesson, the teacher presents the learning strategy summarize. Summary In this lesson, the teacher presents a learning strategy. Before this class, the teacher introduced the unit and the students practiced saying the new words and wrote them on their family trees.   Teacher Preparation Video Transcript This episode shows a model of teaching learning strategies. Click on the image below to download a pdf of the transcript. Women Teaching Women English Text Click on the image below to download a pdf of the student text and teacher manual. At the end of the ten-unit course, the whole book will be available for download.​ Women Teaching Women English Listening These audio files go with Unit 1 of Women Teaching Women English. Click on the "Direct Link" button to the right of the player to download them. Conversation:   Reading: ​ What Do You Think? Let us know what you think about this course. Email us or write your comment in the comments section below. Poll

from Voice of America http://ift.tt/2wBdpUZ
via IFTTT