China warns borrowers to pay up or be shamed

Pre-reading questions:

  1. Is it easy to borrow some money in your country? Please explain your answer.
  2. Is it a bad habit to borrow money from friends? Please explain your anwer.

Vocabulary:

  1. credit [noun] – a method of buying products that allows you to pay for them in the future
  2. The bank offered her a small business credit.

  3. behavior [noun] – the way someone acts
  4. Anna is tired of her brother’s behavior.

  5. borrower [noun] – a person who owes money
  6. A borrower should always pay what he owes.

  7. billboard [noun] – a large outdoor board for displaying advertisements
  8. I saw my friend’s picture on billboard.

  9. ban [verb] – to prevent someone or something from doing, showing, or using something
  10. The city has banned smoking in all public buildings.

China wishes to make a social credit system to track someone’s personal behavior. The Chinese Government created a list that focuses on people that they consider as irresponsible. The government officials require the local government to name the people who do not pay their debts. Some of these officials teamed up with phone companies to demand the borrowers to pay up. Some of the borrower’s names were shown on billboards as well and were also banned to travel by planes and trains.

True or False:

  1. The borrowers teamed up with phone companies.
  2. The borrowers were banned to travel.
  3. China wants to make a social credit system.
  4. The government wants to track the borrower’s personal behavior.
  5. The government wants to track down the people who pay their debts.