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
63
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] Which of the following does the writer NOT suggest ______
选项
A、subjects are no longer taught seriously
B、kids nowadays are encouraged to be self-critical
C、academic standards in schools nowadays are no longer high enough
D、the use of language has changed for the worse
答案
B
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://tihaiku.com/zcyy/3283444.html
相关试题推荐
______wasagreat19thcenturyAmericanpoet.A、EmilyBronteB、EmilyDickinsonC
Leacockwasprobably’thefirstCanadiantoqualifyasa"pro-AmericanBritis
Leacockwasprobably’thefirstCanadiantoqualifyasa"pro-AmericanBritis
Leacockwasprobably’thefirstCanadiantoqualifyasa"pro-AmericanBritis
ThefirstschoolIwenttowasared-brickbuildingontheedgeofthetown,
Americancultureisdefinedbyrathergradualmovementsfromonestageofsoc
Americancultureisdefinedbyrathergradualmovementsfromonestageofsoc
TheAmericanswonthewarofindependenceinthedecisivebattleat______.A、Bos
[originaltext]AseniorAmericandefenseofficialsaysthePentagonmayrepla
[originaltext]AseniorAmericandefenseofficialsaysthePentagonmayrepla
随机试题
[img]2016m8s/ct_epekm_epelist_0638_201607[/img][br][originaltext]Iwanttobe
Inastudyofmorethan8,000peopleusingtenbeachesontwooftheGreatLakes
[originaltext]M:EnglishLanguageCenter.HowmayIhelpyou?W:Yes.I’mcalli
如何促进教师角色形成
关于螺旋模型,下列陈述中不正确的是( )( )。 (1)A.将风险分析加入
关于土方开挖的一般要求,下列说法错误的是( )。A.确保设计的开挖轮廓尺寸
长期趋势法主要是用于推测、判断房地产的()。A.实际价格 B.市场价格
在情节反应中,与愤怒情绪产生关系最密切的神经中枢是A.杏仁核 B.小脑 C.
急性持续性腹痛,阵发性加剧并伴休克,最大可能是 A.输尿管结石肾绞痛B.绞窄
下列因素中,注册会计师在确定实际执行的重要性时无需考虑的是()。A.是否为
最新回复
(
0
)