Asma's fight for girls' education in AfghanistanCEFR A2
16 Mar 2026
Adapted from Global Voices Eurasia, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Joel Heard, Unsplash
After the Taliban took Kabul and the president fled, schools for girls were first allowed to hold exams but then were closed. Asma was in the eleventh grade and could not enter her school; she stood at the gate and asked, "What was our crime?" She wrote, "Yes, we were born girls, but we are not criminals."
With family support she found a secret English centre in Herat where teachers taught quietly. After a year she reached a high level and became a teacher there. She applied to the online University of the People for Business Administration, received an acceptance letter and is set to start in April. She feels excited to study and sad that many girls still have no school.
Difficult words
- exam — A formal test at school or universityexams
- eleventh grade — The school year after tenth and before twelfth
- gate — The entrance in a fence or wall
- crime — An action that breaks the law
- secret — Something kept hidden from other people
- acceptance — Official agreement to join a schoolacceptance letter
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- How would you feel if you could not enter your school?
- Why might a learning centre need to be secret in this story?
- Do you have a time when you felt excited to start something new? Describe it.
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