首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
PASSAGE TWO (1) In 1823, Thomas Jefferson wrote: "I am not fully informed of the practices at Harvard, but there is one from
PASSAGE TWO (1) In 1823, Thomas Jefferson wrote: "I am not fully informed of the practices at Harvard, but there is one from
admin
2022-07-06
33
问题
PASSAGE TWO
(1) In 1823, Thomas Jefferson wrote: "I am not fully informed of the practices at Harvard, but there is one from which we shall certainly vary, although it has been copied, I believe, by nearly every college and academy in the United States. That is, the holding the students all to one prescribed course of reading, and disallowing exclusive application to those branches only which are to qualify them for the particular vocations to which they are destined. We shall, on the contrary, allow them uncontrolled choice in the lectures they shall choose to attend, and require elementary qualification only, and sufficient age."
Unfortunately, there is a steady push of students into the STEM subjects so they can get high-paying jobs when they are done.
(2) This is college admissions decision season—a time when many young people have traditionally looked forward to an educational experience quite different from what they had (sometimes just endured) in high school. The days of checking off boxes to prove their worthiness to some future gatekeepers would be over. In college there might be requirements, but there would also be much more freedom, much more relevance, and much more intellectual excitement.
(3) But the discourse about colleges and universities today is underrnining these hopeful expectations. Everywhere one looks, from government statistics on earnings after graduation to a bevy of rankings that purport to show how to monetize your choice of major, the message to students is to think of their undergraduate years as an economic investment that had better produce a substantial and quick return.
(4) There are good reasons for this. One is the scourge of student indebtedness. When students graduate with mountains of debt, especially from shady institutions graduating a small percentage of those who enroll, they can fall into a vicious cycle of poor choices and ever more limited horizons. They are collateral damage in a world of rising tuition. While the wealthiest families have been benefiting from enormous tax breaks, many states have dis-invested in public universities, putting great pressure on these institutions to collect tuition dollars. Middle-class and low-income students often borrow those dollars to pay the bills. And the bills grow ever greater as colleges raise tuition in part to meet the demands of rich families for campus amenities so that their children can live in the style to which they have grown accustomed.
(5) But even students without the pressure of loans are being encouraged to turn away from "college as exploration" and toward "college as training." They hear that in today’s fast-paced, competitive world, one can no longer afford to try different fields that might improve one’s ability to interpret cultural artifacts or analyze social dynamics. Learning through the arts, one of the most powerful ways to tap into one’s capacities for innovation is often dismissed as an unaffordable luxury.
(6) Parents, pundits and politicians join in the chorus warning students not to miss the economic boat. Study science, technology, engineering and mathematics, they chant, or else you will have few opportunities. Other subjects will leave you a "loser" in our not-so-brave new world of brutal change. College, they insist, should be the place where you conform and learn to swim with this tide.
(7) As president of a university dedicated to broad, liberal education, I both deplore the new conformity and welcome an increased emphasis on STEM fields. I’ve been delighted to see mathematics and neuro-science among our fastest growing majors, have supported students from under-represented groups who are trying to thrive in STEM fields, and have started an initiative to integrate design and engineering into our liberal aits curriculum.
(8) Choosing to study a STEM field should be a choice for creativity not conformity. There is nothing narrow about an authentic education in the sciences. Indeed, scientific research is a model for the American tradition of liberal education because of the creative nature of its inquiries, not just the truth-value of its results. As in other disciplines (like music and foreign languages), much basic learning is required, but science is not mere instrumental training; memorizing formulae isn’t thinking like a scientist. On our campus, some of the most innovative, exploratory work is being done by students studying human-machine interactions, using computer science to manipulate moving images to tell better stories, and exploring intersections of environmental science with economics and performance art.
(9) Fears of being crushed by debt or of falling off the economic ladder are pressuring students to conform, and we must find ways to counteract these pressures or we risk undermining our scientific productivity as well as our broad cultural creativity.
(10) I’ve heard it said that students today opt for two fields of study, one for their parents and one for themselves. Examples abound of undergraduates focusing on: economics and English; math and art; biology and theater. But we make a mistake in placing too much emphasis on the bifurcation. Many students are connecting these seemingly disparate fields, not just holding them as separate interests. And they are finding that many employers want them to develop these connections further. Exploration and innovation are not fenced in by disciplines and majors. Students who develop habits of mind that allow them to develop connections that others haven’t seen will be creating the opportunities of the future.
(11) When Thomas Jefferson was thinking through a new, American model of higher education, it was crucial for him that students not think they already knew at the beginning of their studies where they would end up when it was time for graduation. For him, and for all those who have followed in the path of liberal education in this country, education was exploration—and you would only make important discoveries if you were open to unexpected possibilities. About a century later W.E.B. Du Bois argued that a broad education was a form of empowerment not just apprenticeship. Both men understood that the sciences, along with the humanities, arts and social sciences had vast, integrative possibilities.
(12) This integrative tradition of pragmatic American liberal education must be protected. We must not over-react to fears of being left behind. Yes, ours is a merciless economy characterized by deep economic inequality, but that inequality must not be accepted as a given; the skills of citizenship acquired through liberal learning can be used to push back against it. We must cultivate this tradition of learning not only because it is has served us well for so long, but because it can vitalize our economy, lead to an engaged citizenry and create a culture characterized by connectivity and creativity.
What can we infer from Para. 7 and Para. 8?
选项
A、Humanities are more creative than STEM subjects.
B、Increased emphasis on STEM subjects is not wise.
C、STEM subjects cannot be integrated to liberal arts curriculum.
D、The authentic education in the sciences is often misunderstood.
答案
D
解析
根据题干直接定位到第7段和第8段。第8段首句指出选择学习STEM应为选择创造力而非随波逐流(for creativity not conformity),随后解释真正的科学教育并不像人们所想的那么狭隘,而是善于质疑和富于创造性的,说明人们并没有正确理解科学教育。选项D“真正的科学教育常被误解”概括了本段的内容,为正确答案。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/CGnD777K
0
专业英语八级
相关试题推荐
(1)在考生文件夹下,“sampl.mdb”数据库文件中建立表“tTeacher”,表结构如下:(2)判断并设置“tTeacher”的主键。(3)设置“工作时间”字段的默认值属性为本年度的4月1日(规定:本年度年号必须由函数获取)。(4
Ifyouarelooking【C1】________information,libraryshelvesareagoodplace【C2】________.Butifyouneedup-to-the-minutedatao
Ifyouarelooking【C1】________information,libraryshelvesareagoodplace【C2】________.Butifyouneedup-to-the-minutedatao
Thereisdistinctionbetweenreadingforinformationandreadingforunderstanding.【B1】________Thefirstsenseistheonei
PeoplewhotravelalotflywithHeavenAir,becausetheyknowtheywillgetwhattheywant.Theywanttogoquicklyandsafely
Itisreportedthatbagsaregettingbiggerallthetime,andthattherearemorebagsperpersononthestreettodaythanatan
Itwasasummerevening.Iwassittingbytheopenwindow,readinga【C1】________Suddenly,Iheardsomeonecrying,"Help!Help!
EachtimeItaketheunderground1findmyself【K1】________(surround)bydozensofpassengersplayingsmart-phones.Theyalmostw
PASSAGEONEWhatdid"thisdream"inPara.16mean?
(1)ThelibraryatWoodgrovePrimarySchoolhasbeenturnedintoa"Maker-Space".Afterregularlessonsendataround2p.m.,pu
随机试题
根据《联合国国际货物销售合同公约》,下列关于损害赔偿的说法错误的是()
企业在进行厂址选择时,适于多个工厂决策的条件是()
病毒性肝炎的母婴传播哪些是正确的:
如图所示,经喉中间腔的横断层,图注3所标注的结构是
许慎在《说文解字》中对“形声”所下的定义是:_______,_______。
下列选项中说法错误的是()。
根据下列文字资料,回答106-110题。世界煤炭储量在世界能源总储量中占90%,按目前规模可持续开采200年左右。据19世纪80年代初世界能源会议等组织的资料,世界煤炭资源地质储量为14.3万亿吨,其中探明储量为3.5万亿吨,约占24.5%;在总储量中硬
快、中、慢三辆车同时从同一地点出发,沿同一公路追赶前面的一个骑车人。这三辆车分别用了6分钟、10分钟、12分钟追上骑车人,现在知道快车每小时行24公里,中速车每小时行20公里,则慢车每小时行()公里。
鼓掌:握手
简述我国利率市场化改革的历程及阶段性成果。
最新回复
(
0
)