Education Can Help Us Rise Up

王秀凤

知识改变命运，学习改变人生。所以我们必须努力学习和读书，获取更多的知识。

As we all know that education can change people’s futures. Everyone can give something from getting an education. Now let me tell you a real story.

It was a room full of boys. A girl， about 10 years old， was sitting in the center. She was the only girl among the boys. Her female（女性）cousins and friends had to stay home because they were not allowed to get an education.

The girl ，Shameem Akhtar， was born in a small village in Pakistan（巴基斯坦）. In her tribe（部族）， it was a tradition to keep girls inside their homes.

Fortunately， Shameem’s uncle， a university graduate， wanted to give her a chance to see the world. He offered Shameem an opportunity to attend （出席，經常去）school.

However， Shameem struggled（奋斗，努力拼搏）to complete her schooling（学校教育）. To get permission for college， she went on a three-day hunger strike（绝食抗议）.

After graduating from college， Shameem gained（获得）a position in a non-profit organization （非营利性组织）aiming to help women in rural areas（乡村）.

There， she saw a Pakistan that she didn’t know. Until then， she thought she had a difficult life. But there， she saw what women in other parts of Pakistan were experiencing. Some women had 11 children， but nothing to feed them. To get water， they would walk three hours every day to wells（水井）.

Shameem found that the position was more than just a job for her. She discovered her power. By setting an exmaple， her experience could encourage more people to understand the importance of education and send their daughters to school.

Now， Shameem teaches in a rural school in her regin（地区）. “ The first day I walked into the school，” she said， “ I saw all these little Shameems staring back at me with dreams in their eyes， the same dream of freedom which I had in my children.”

Today， there is not a single girl in her village who doesn’t go to school.