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
Ask an American schoolchild what he or she is learning in school these days and you might even get a reply, provided you ask it
Ask an American schoolchild what he or she is learning in school these days and you might even get a reply, provided you ask it
admin
2014-03-02
60
问题
Ask an American schoolchild what he or she is learning in school these days and you might even get a reply, provided you ask it in Spanish. But don’t bother, here’s the answer: Americans nowadays are not learning any of the things that we learned in our day, like reading and writing. Apparently these are considered fusty old subjects, invented by white males to oppress women and minorities.
What are they learning? In a Vermont college town I found the answer sitting in a toy store book rack, next to typical kids’ books like "Heather Has Two Mommies and Daddy is ’Dysfunctional’". It’s a teacher’s guide called "Happy To Be Me", subtitled "Building Soft-Esteem". Serf-esteem as it turns out, is a big subject in American classrooms. Many American schools see building it as important as teaching reading and writing. They call it "whole language" teaching, borrowing terminology from the granola people to compete in the education marketplace.
No one ever spent a moment building my self-esteem when I was in school. In fact, from the day I first stepped inside a classroom my self-esteem was one big demolition site. All that mattered was "the subject", be it geography, history, or mathematics. I was praised when I remembered that "near", "fit", "friendly", "pleasing", "like" and their opposites took the dative case in Latin. I was reviled when I forgot what a cosine was good for. Generally, I lived my school years beneath a torrent of castigation so consistent I eventually ceased to hear it, as people who live near the sea eventually stop hearing the waves.
Schools have changed. Reviling is out, for one thing. More important, subjects have changed. Whereas I learned English, modem kids learn something called "language skills". Whereas I learned writing, modem kids learn something called "communication". Communication, the book tells us, is seven per cent words, twenty three per cent facial expression, twenty per cent tone of voice, and fifty per cent body language. So this column, with its carefully chosen words, would earn at most a grade of seven per cent. That is, if the school even gave out something as oppressive and demanding as grades.
The result is that, in place of English classes, American children are getting a course in "How to Win Friends and Influence People". Consider the new attitude toward journal writing: I remember one high school English class when we were required to keep a journal. The idea was to emulate those great writers who confided in dimes, searching their soul and honing their critical thinking on paper.
"Happy To Be Me" states that journals are a great way for students to get in touch with their feelings. Tell students they can write one sentence or a whole page. Reassure them that no one, not even you, will read what they write. After the unit, hopefully all students will be feeling good about themselves and will want to share some of their entries with the class.
There was a time when no self-respecting book for English teachers would use "great" or "hopefully" that way. Moreover, back then the purpose of English courses (an antique term for "Unit") was not to help students "feel good about themselves". Which is good, because all that reviling didn’t make me feel particularly good about anything.
What’s the best summary for this passage?
选项
A、New educational theories will revolutionize the way our children learn.
B、The influence of new methodology will spread worldwide.
C、Personal values like self-esteem will become predominant for school children in the future.
D、Current education trends may jeopardize the prospects of future, generations.
答案
D
解析
从文中可看出作者对现代的教育体制甚为不满,对下一代孩子的成长忧心忡忡。所以选D。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/EkQO777K
0
考博英语
相关试题推荐
Althoughtoomuch【C1】______tothesun’sultravioletrayscancauseskincancer,sunshinemayhavea【C2】______effectagainstsome
Auniversityeducationaimsatraisingtheintellectualtoneofsociety,at______nationaltaste,atcultivatingthepublicmind,
Mostparentsprizethediversitywithintheirchildren’spublicschools.Theyknowthatlearningtocooperateandexcelinadiv
Thesimplestanimalsarethosewhosebodiesaresimplestinstructureandwhichdothethingsdonebyalllivinganimals,sucha
Wehaveto______ourhopeofreachingtheproductiontargetthisyear.
Writersnowadayswhovaluetheirreputationamongthemoresophisticatedhardlydaretomentionprogresswithoutincludingthew
(1)TheChinese,fromthehighesttothelowest,haveanimperturbablequietdignity,whichisusuallynotdestroyedevenbyaEu
Unlikemostsports,whichevolvedovertimefromstreetgames,basketballwasdesignedbyonemantosuitaparticularpurpose.
Imagineaworldinwhichtherewassuddenlynoemotion—aworldinwhichhumanbeingscouldfeelnoloveorhappiness,noterror
ThestabilityoftheU.S.bankingsystemismaintainedbymeansofsupervisionandregulation,inspections,depositinsurance,a
随机试题
Internet和EDI占合的方式有
其辨证为:若患者恶寒症状加重,无汗,少腹及四末不温,可酌用下列何方:
以下哪项不是法洛四联症的常见并发症
某县百货商店和副食品公司签订一购销合同,合同约定由副食品公司供给商店10吨优质大米,商店支付货款2万元,双方如有违约,支付对方违约金2000元。副食品公司从某食品厂购进大米10吨,将大米运至百货商店。商店收货后不久,以大米质量不好为由拒绝支付货款并要求退货
我国创业板市场针对的对象是处于()期的企业。
案例:下面是教师在“电功率”一课中,向学生讲解纯电阻的电功率的教学片段。教师:同学们,我们已经学习过功率的概念,请大家说一下它的定义。学生:功率就是单位时间所做的功或消耗的能量。教师:对,今天我们推导阻值为R的电阻的
以下关于基层群众性自治组织的说法中正确的是()。
Hurricanesareseverecycloneswithwindsoverseventy-fivemilesanhour________originateovertropicaloceanwaters.
Forgoodorill,globalizationhasbecometheeconomicbuzz-wordofthe1990s.Nationaleconomiesareundoubtedlybecomingstead
OurformerforeignteacherwasayoungmanwhocamefromEngland.Hewasa【B1】______personwhodidnottalkmuchtostrangers,
最新回复
(
0
)