首页
登录
职称英语
Ask an American schoolchild what he or she is learning in school these days a
Ask an American schoolchild what he or she is learning in school these days a
游客
2023-12-18
15
管理
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 Self Esteem’.
Self-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 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, modern 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, 23 per cent facial expression, 20 per cent tone of voice, and 50 per cent body language. So this column, with its carefully chosen words, would earn me 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 diaries, searching their souls 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. [br] The writer’s intention is to get us to ______.
选项
A、rethink educational Strategies
B、confirm current trends
C、think about what constitutes communication
D、reassure parents
答案
A
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://www.tihaiku.com/zcyy/3283446.html
相关试题推荐
Leacockwasprobably’thefirstCanadiantoqualifyasa"pro-AmericanBritis
Leacockwasprobably’thefirstCanadiantoqualifyasa"pro-AmericanBritis
______wasnotoneofthegreatest20thcenturyAmericanplaywrights.A、EugeneO’
ThefirstschoolIwenttowasared-brickbuildingontheedgeofthetown,
ThefirstschoolIwenttowasared-brickbuildingontheedgeofthetown,
InAmerica,highschoolgraduateshavetotake______inordertoenterprestigi
Whichofthefollowingcitiesiscalledthe"cradleofAmericanliberty"?A、Bosto
Americancultureisdefinedbyrathergradualmovementsfromonestageofsoc
[originaltext]SchoolEducationInterviewer:Janet,as
[originaltext]SchoolEducationInterviewer:Janet,as
随机试题
Howmuchphysicalactivityshouldteenagersdo,
Itisallverywelltoblametrafficjams,thecostofpetrolandthequickpa
[originaltext]M:Iwouldliketospendtheeveningwatchingafootballgame.W:
下列部件(设备)中,存取速度最快的是()。A.光盘存储器 B.CPU的寄存
关于直肠癌,以下哪项是错误的A.约占大肠癌的60%左右 B.常见部位为直肠壶腹
下列有关储蓄一投资恒等式正确的有() Ⅰ.Ⅰ=S Ⅱ.Ⅰ=s+(T-G)
单克隆抗体与多克隆抗体主要的区别之一是A:对热稳定B:与抗原结合牢固C:高度
建设银行D分行要求员工每年自发通过网络学习平台参加20课时的线上教育课程,其中职
无效合同的法律效力()。A.自登记时无效 B.自履行时无效 C.自被确
关于可兴奋细胞动作电位的描述,正确的是A.动作电位是细胞受刺激时出现的快速而不可
最新回复
(
0
)