Comprehension: Ivory Coast Footballer Uses Sport To Get Kids In School

In a poor district of Ivory Coast's economic capital Abidjan, former professional footballer Souleymane Cissé has founded a football club for young people. He aims not only to improve the ball skills of children and adolescents, but to encourage them to go to school and learn a trade. Watch the video and answer the questions below.  

Decide if the statements are True or False.

1.Children who are good at football receive free training at the Cissé Institute.
a. True
b. False

2.Soulemane Cissé believes that football is the most important thing.
a. True
b. False

3. Everyone at the Cissé Institute becomes a professional footballer.
a. True
b. False

For transcript and answers see below.

Transcript and Answers:

This is a football club with a difference.  Here at the Cissé Institute in the Yopougon area of Abidjan, young people aged 9 to 18 receive free training from former professional footballer, Souleymane Cissé.  He founded this centre with his own money and a clear idea of what he wanted to achieve.

“The most important thing for me isn’t football - I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again - the most important thing isn’t football, its school.”

Even if students are primarily chosen for their ball skills, they must also maintain good grades to keep their place and as many are from disadvantaged backgrounds, financial help is available to fund places.

“I see many children who come from poor areas who have a real passion for football.  I said to myself, ‘Why not use that to get the kids to stay on the path to school?’, because many don’t go, they’re from poor backgrounds, so I said to myself, ‘Use football as a means to get them to go to school’.”

A skilled striker, Abdulla trains at the Cissé institute, but like everyone else, he still goes to school and the institute keeps track of his academic progress.

“Whenever we finish our homework or oral tests, they ask us to show them our work so that they can see how we are doing at school.”

The next stage is for Cissé to create a training centre for vocational skills, like plumbing and carpentry.  Not everyone at the Cissé Institute can become a professional sportsman, but they can all use football to get on the right path.

Answers:
1. a
2. b
3. b

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