Adolescents constitute a nation’s core resource - Multiple Choice & Short Question for HSC English First Paper - English for Today for Class 11 and 12 / Seen Passage for HSC
- Fakhruddin Babar
- Feb 13
- 9 min read
Updated: Feb 18
1. Read the following text and answer the questions A and B:
Adolescents constitute a nation’s core resource for national renewal and growth. Adolescence is a period in life when transition from childhood to adulthood takes place and behaviours and lifestyles are shaped. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), adolescence is the period which shapes the future of girls’ and boys’ lives. There are 28 million adolescents in Bangladesh; 13.7 million of them are girls and 14.3 million boys.
The situation of adolescent girls in Bangladesh is characterised by inequality and subordination within the family and society. This inequality leads to a widespread practice of child marriage, marginalisation or exclusion from health, education and economic opportunities, and a vulnerability to violence and sexual abuse.
In Bangladesh, the legal age of marriage is 18 for girls and 21 for boys. However, 33 percent of adolescent girls are married before the age of 15 and 60 percent become mothers by the age of 19. Research finds that adolescents with higher level of education and from more affluent families tend to marry at a later age. Boys, however, become ready for marriage only after several years of adolescence and young adulthood.
A. Choose the correct answer from the alternatives: 1×5=5
(a) What could be the closest meaning for the word "constitute" in the first sentence?
(i) take (ii) form
(iii) add (iv) make
(b) The phrase "take place" in the second sentence stands for __
(i) occur (ii) recur
(iii) go to a place (iv) all of them
(c) Adolescence is a __ period from childhood to adulthood.
(i) transition (ii) transitory
(iii) transitional (iv) transient
(d) The synonym of ‘affluent’ is __
(i) destitute (ii) poor
(iii) poverty (iv) well off
(e) The word "economic" can be replaced by __
(i) economy (ii) economical (iii) monetary (iv) finance
Answer to the question No. 1.A
(a) ii. form; (b) i. occur; (c) iii. transitional; (d) iv,. well off ; (e) iii. monetary.
B. Answer the following questions: 2×5=10
(a) How will you define adolescence?
(b) Why is adolescence important?
(c) What do the adolescent girls in Bangladesh usually face?
(d) What are the effects of female inequality in Bangladesh?
(e) How do wealth and education influence a girl's marriage?
Answer to the question No. 1.B
a. Adolescence is the period of life in which a young person develops from a child to an adult. In this transition from childhood to adulthood, the personality of a person is developed by shaping his behaviour and lifestyle.
b. Adolescence is the period of transition from childhood to adulthood, which forms the behavoiur and lifestyle of young people. According to World Health Organisation (WHO), the future of a young person's life is shaped during this period. Hence, adolescence could be termed as one of the most important periods in one's life.
c. The adolescent girls in Bangladesh usually face inequality in the family and society, which leads to child marriage, marginalisation or exclusion from health, education and economic opportunities, and a vulnerability to violence and sexual abuse.
d. Female inequality leads to exclusion from health, education and economic opportunities, and a vulnerability to violence and sexual abuse in Bangladesh.
e. Adolescent girls from more affluent families generally get more educational opportunities. They are also not exposed to child marriage as much as an adolescent girl from a less affluent family.
Bangla Translation
বাংলা অনুবাদঃ
কিশোর-কিশোরীরা জাতীয় পুনর্নবীকরণ এবং বিকাশের জন্য একটি জাতির মূল সম্পদ। বয়ঃসন্ধিকাল হল জীবনের এমন একটি সময় যখন শৈশব থেকে প্রাপ্তবয়স্কতায় রূপান্তর ঘটে এবং আচরণ এবং জীবনধারা গড়ে ওঠে। বিশ্ব স্বাস্থ্য সংস্থার (WHO) মতে, বয়ঃসন্ধিকাল হল সেই সময় যা মেয়ে এবং ছেলেদের জীবনকে রূপ দেয়। বাংলাদেশে ২৮ মিলিয়ন কিশোর-কিশোরী রয়েছে; তাদের মধ্যে ১৩.৭ মিলিয়ন মেয়ে এবং ১৪.৩ মিলিয়ন ছেলে।
বাংলাদেশে কিশোর-কিশোরীদের পরিস্থিতি পরিবার ও সমাজের মধ্যে বৈষম্য এবং অধীনতা দ্বারা চিহ্নিত। এই বৈষম্য বাল্যবিবাহ, প্রান্তিকীকরণ বা স্বাস্থ্য, শিক্ষা এবং অর্থনৈতিক সুযোগ থেকে বঞ্চিতকরণ এবং সহিংসতা ও যৌন নির্যাতনের ঝুঁকির ব্যাপক প্রচলনের দিকে পরিচালিত করে।
বাংলাদেশে, বিয়ের আইনি বয়স মেয়েদের জন্য ১৮ এবং ছেলেদের জন্য ২১ বছর। তবে, ৩৩ শতাংশ কিশোরী মেয়েদের ১৫ বছর বয়সের আগে বিয়ে হয় এবং ৬০ শতাংশ ১৯ বছর বয়সের মধ্যে মা হয়। গবেষণায় দেখা গেছে যে উচ্চ শিক্ষার স্তর এবং আরও ধনী পরিবারের কিশোরীরা পরবর্তী বয়সে বিয়ে করার প্রবণতা পোষণ করে। তবে ছেলেরা কৈশোর এবং যৌবনের বেশ কয়েক বছর পরেই বিয়ের জন্য প্রস্তুত হয়।
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Passage-2
1. Read the passage and answer the questions A and B.
Adolescents constitute a nation's core resource for national renewal and growth. Adolescence is a period in life when transition from childhood to adulthood takes place and behaviours and life styles are shaped. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), adolescence is the period which shapes the future of girls' and boys' lives. There are 28 million adolescents in Bangladesh; 13.7 million of them are girls and 14.3 million boys.
The situation of adolescent girls in Bangladesh is characterised by inequality and subordination within the family and society. This inequality leads to widespread practice of child marriage, marginalisation or exclusion from health, education and economic opportunities, and vulnerability to violence and sexual abuse.
In Bangladesh, the legal age of marriage is 18 for girls and 21 for boys. However, 33 percent of adolescent girls are married before the age of 15 and 60 percent become mothers by the age of 19. Research finds that adolescents with higher level of education and from more affluent families tend to marry at a later age. Boys, however, become ready for marriage only after several years of adolescence and young adulthood...................
A. Choose the correct answer from the alternatives. 1☓5 = 5
(a) Which of the following has the closest meaning of the word "constitute"?
(i) add (ii) undo (iii) form (iv) remove
(b) Adolescence is the period of — from childhood to adulthood.
(i) reduction (ii) transition (iii) increase (iv) decay
(c) The word "behaviour" refers to —.
(i) talks (ii) thoughts (iii) conduct (iv) belief
(d) The closest meaning of the word "violence" is —.
(i) unrest (ii) peace (iii) procession (iv) protest
(e) "— the legal age marriage is 18 for girls and 21 for boys"— what does the sentence mean?
(i) Boys and girls under 18 cannot get married (ii) Boys and girls under 18 can get married
(iii) Girls are married before the age of 15 (iv) Boys are married before the age of 18
(f) The word 'abuse' refers to —.
(i) insult (ii) misuse (iii) care (iv) torture
(g) 'Legal' could be the best replaced by —.
(i) appropriate (ii) expected (iii) legitimate (iv) actual
(h) Girls and boys under 18 and 21 cannot get —.
(i) job (ii) married (iii) money (iv) none of these
(i) What is the best synonym of subordination?
(i) domination (ii) supremacy (iii) principality (iv) obedience
(j) What is the meaning of the word 'characterized'?
(i) narrated (ii) mentioned (iii) categorized (iv) described
(k) What is the meaning of the word 'inequality'?
(i) disparity (ii) alikeness (iii) impartiality (iv) parity
(l) What is the meaning of the word 'research'?
(i) ignorance (ii) silliness (iii) inactivity (iv) experiment
(m) What is the closest meaning of the word 'marginalize'?
(i) to treat someone who is exceptional (ii) to treat someone who is mad
(iii) to treat someone as if he is not important (iv) to treat someone who is bad
(n) What is the doorway between childhood and adulthood?
(i) adolescence (ii) youth (iii) community (iv) family
(o) Where do the girls feel weightless?
(i) in the school or college (ii) in the family
(iii) in the community (iv) in the in-laws' house
(p) 'Dowry' stands for —?
(i) collection of girls for a marriage (ii) wedding gift given by the groom to the bride
(iii) wedding gift given by the groom to the bridegroom
(iv) the money or property demanded by the bridegroom from the bride's family
Answer (A):
(a) (iii) form (b) (ii) transition (c) (iii) conduct (d) (i) unrest (e) (i) Boys and girls under 18 cannot get married (f) (iv) torture (g) (iii) legitimate (h) (ii) married (i) (iv) obedience (j) (iii) categorized (k) (i) disparity (l) (iv) experiment (m) (iii) to treat someone as if he is not important (n) (i) adolescence (o) (iv) in the in-law's house (p) (iv) the money or property demanded by the bridegroom from the bride's family (q) (iii) inequality and subordination (r) (iv) anaemia (s) (i) death of the pregnant women (t) (i) multiplicity (u) (ii) maltreatment (v) (ii) banned
B. Answer the following questions. 2☓5 = 10
(a) What type of a period is adolescence in one's life?
(b) What is the notion of WHO toward adolescence?
(c) How many adolescents are there in Bangladesh? What is the proportion of their gender?
(d) What is the legal age of marriage for Bangladeshi boys and girls?
(e) Which adolescent girls tend to marry at a later age?
(f) What are the reasons of inequality and subordination of adolescent girls in our family and society?
(g) How do education play a vital role in a girl's life?
(h) Why do the boys get married only after several years of adolescence?
(i) Describe the conditions of in-laws' house of a girl in 2/3 sentences.
(j) Describe the role of adolescence in a person's life in one sentence.
(k) "Adolescents constitute a nation's core resource for national renewal and growth." Do you agree? Why/Why not?
(l) Can you guess the reasons of inequality and subordination of adolescent girls in the family and society?
(m) Describe the plight of adolescent girls in their in-laws' houses in 2/3 sentences.
(n) Why are the adolescent girls at high risk in term of pregnancy and childbirth?
Answer (B):
(a) What type of a period is adolescence in one's life?
Adolescence is the stage between childhood and adulthood when a person experiences physical, emotional, and mental changes. It is a time when people start to form their personality, habits, and future goals. During this period, young people learn to become independent and prepare for adult responsibilities.
(b) What is the notion of WHO toward adolescence?
The World Health Organization (WHO) believes that adolescence is a very important phase of life because it shapes the future of both boys and girls. The choices and experiences during this period affect their health, education, and career in adulthood. If adolescents receive proper guidance, education, and care, they can grow into responsible and successful individuals.
(c) How many adolescents are there in Bangladesh? What is the proportion of their gender?
In Bangladesh, there are 28 million adolescents. Among them, 13.7 million are girls, and 14.3 million are boys. This means boys slightly outnumber girls, but both groups make up a significant part of the country’s young population.
(d) What is the legal age of marriage for Bangladeshi boys and girls?
The legal marriage age in Bangladesh is 18 years for girls and 21 years for boys. This law is meant to protect young people from early marriage, which can lead to health risks, lack of education, and financial struggles. However, in many rural areas, child marriage still happens, especially among poor families.
(e) Which adolescent girls tend to marry at a later age?
Adolescent girls who come from educated and financially stable families tend to marry later. This is because education helps them understand their rights, and financial stability allows them to focus on their studies and career instead of marriage. Girls from wealthier families have more opportunities and are not forced to marry at a young age.
(f) What are the reasons for inequality and subordination of adolescent girls in our family and society?
Adolescent girls in Bangladesh often face inequality due to traditional beliefs, lack of education, and financial dependence. Some families believe that girls should stay at home and take care of household work instead of studying. Many girls are forced into early marriage, which limits their education and job opportunities. In some cases, violence and discrimination make their situation worse.
(g) How does education play a vital role in a girl's life?
Education is one of the most powerful tools for girls to achieve independence and a better future. When a girl is educated, she can:
Get a good job and support herself financially.
Avoid early marriage because she understands the importance of waiting.
Make better health decisions for herself and her family.
Gain confidence and respect in society.
In short, education helps girls escape poverty and inequality.
(h) Why do boys get married only after several years of adolescence?
Boys usually marry later than girls because they are expected to complete their education, get a job, and become financially stable before marriage. In most societies, men are considered the main earners of the family, so they are given more time to prepare for these responsibilities. Unlike girls, boys do not face pressure to marry early.
(i) Describe the conditions of in-laws' houses of a girl in 2-3 sentences.
When a girl gets married, she often moves to her husband's family home. In many cases, she is expected to do housework, obey her in-laws, and have children. If her in-laws are kind and supportive, she may feel happy, but if they are strict or controlling, she may face problems like domestic violence and lack of freedom.
Passage-3
vocabulary words from the text with their Bangla meanings:
Adolescents - কিশোর-কিশোরী
Constitute - গঠন করা
Core resource - মূল সম্পদ
Renewal - পুনর্নবীকরণ
Growth - বৃদ্ধি
Adolescence - কৈশোর
Transition - পরিবর্তন
Childhood - শৈশব
Adulthood - প্রাপ্তবয়স্ক অবস্থা
Behaviours - আচরণ
Lifestyles - জীবনধারা
World Health Organisation (WHO) - বিশ্ব স্বাস্থ্য সংস্থা
Future - ভবিষ্যৎ
Inequality - অসমতা
Subordination - অধীনতা
Family - পরিবার
Society - সমাজ
Child marriage - বাল্যবিবাহ
Marginalisation - প্রান্তিককরণ
Exclusion - বর্জন
Health - স্বাস্থ্য
Education - শিক্ষা
Economic opportunities - অর্থনৈতিক সুযোগ
Vulnerability - দুর্বলতা
Violence - সহিংসতা
Sexual abuse - যৌন নির্যাতন
Legal age - আইনি বয়স
Marriage - বিবাহ
Adolescent girls - কিশোরী মেয়েরা
Mothers - মায়েরা
Affluent - ধনী
Tend to - প্রবণতা থাকা
Later age - পরবর্তী বয়স
Young adulthood - তরুণ প্রাপ্তবয়স্কতা
Research - গবেষণা
Plight - দুর্দশা
In-laws' house - শ্বশুরবাড়ি
Risk - ঝুঁকি
Pregnancy - গর্ভাবস্থা
Childbirth - সন্তান জন্মদান
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