When Donald Crouch first encountered Jim in his English class in rural Michigan, he saw an unhappy boy, who’d gone deep into a cocoon (茧) of silence.
Donald might have assumed that Jim was bored or uninterested or even backward. Certainly, he appeared to be all of those things.
But there was something in the young boy that lit up whenever the subject turned to poetry. It was unnoticeable, but Donald could see a shift in the boy ‘s attitude--a quiet but unmistakable enthusiasm that accompanied any discussion of Chaucer, Shakespeare, or Tennyson. A twinkle in his eyes would appear whenever Donald lectured on matters of English verse, something which proved to be most appealing to the otherwise disappointed teacher. Although Jim was interested in all manners of poetry, he seemed particularly excited when Donald would discuss Walt Whitman, that greatest of American poets.
One day Donald kept Jim after school and learned that Jim stuttered ( 口吃). Donald understood that Jim had accepted the written word because the spoken word had escaped him. The next day, Donald told the pupils to write a poem. Jim turned his assignment in, and Donald was surprised by how good it was.
The teacher read the assignment over and over again in disbelief and, truth be told, with a little bit of envy; how could a student from the middle of nowhere come up with something like this? He turned his head once again to the boy and began to have an idea.
Donald had noticed earlier that Jim’s stutter disappeared whenever he quoted his favorite poets out loud .
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__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________A Montessori Education
There are now at least 60,000 schools across the world using the Montessori method. There are different kinds of Montessori schools, but certain fundamental principles have remained the same.
One is the idea of teachers encouraging the children to complete the activities with as little adult involvement as possible. Take the Ecoscuola Montessori on the Italian island of Sicily. At the school, there is a subject called “Practical Life”. It involves real-life practical tasks, such as serving drinks to their classmates. For safety, teachers would take charge of boiling the water, but the children would play active roles in cleaning the work surface and then presenting the drinks to others. “During breakfast and lunch, they are also self-directed, taking it in turns to lay the table and serve their classmates,” says Miriam Ferro, the headteacher of Ecoscuola.
The method encourages not only independence, but also cooperation. Children of different ages are taught in the same classroom, so that the six-year-olds, for example, can help the three-year-olds. In addition, each session is three hours long so as to allow the children to bury themselves in what they are doing. The learning materials are also designed for being handled and explored with all the senses. For example, letters and numbers are made of sandpaper, which the child can trace with their finger.
This concept may sound sensible. But does it bring about any tangible (实际的) benefits, beyond those seen in a typical classroom?
Angeline Lillard, a professor of psychology, found some benefits for children’s development while looking at a Montessori school in Milwaukee, in the United States. Analyzing their progress at age five, she found that the children tended to have better literacy, numeracy, executive function and social skills, compared to those who had attended the other schools. And at age 12, they showed better story-telling abilities.
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71. Click to download teacher
“Books will soon disappear in schools,” Thomas Edison announced in 1913: they would, he believed, soon be replaced by silent films. Each new wave of information technology - radio, television, computers - has led to similar predictions.
Like teachers, digital educational technology comes in many forms, from wonderful to awful. But, used properly, it now deserves more prominence (重要性) in schools - especially in poor countries where human teachers are often ignorant, absent or both.
According to a recent World Bank study of seven sub - Saharan African countries, half of nine - year - olds cannot read a simple word and three - quarters cannot read a simple sentence. The reason is terrible. The same study found that only 7% of teachers had the minimum knowledge needed to teach reading and writing effectively. When classrooms were inspected to see whether a teacher was present, half the time the answer was no. As for the absence of teachers, if expensive teachers do not turn up to class, government would, surely, fire them? Easier said than done. Poor governments often lack the money to check on teachers in distant villages.
Several recent studies suggested - tech can help. It seems to bring about bigger improvements in poor countries than in rich ones. Some of the scarce resources being spent on teachers could therefore be better spent on ed - tech. That does not mean dumping computers on schools in the hope that children will understand how to use them. Instead, it means providing schools with software that children can use with minimal help from an adult, that sends teachers prompts about what they are supposed to be teaching and that allows the authorities to check on whether the teacher is in the classroom.
Technology is no cure - all. Good traditional teachers are not outdated, and are never likely to be. And authorities need to hold teachers to account. But ed - tech can help greatly - by monitoring pupils and teachers alike, assisting the best teachers and, most important, making up for the failings of the worst.
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It was September 1966, and I was twenty years old, facing my first class of kids as a new teacher. My class in downtown Toronto was made up of thirty-eight angels, and one street kid named Mike. His parents passed away when he was a baby, and he lived with a weak and indifferent grandmother. As for a ten-year-old boy, he was little and rough.
Like most new, young teachers, I was full of enthusiasm and determined to make a difference. Being so young, I knew very little about parenting. However, I did recognize a child in need, and decided to see if I could make a difference. And so my special “foster father (养父)” relationship with Mike began.
Each day as I arrived at school, I’d take Mike out for breakfast. Each noon hour as I shared my lunch with him, I taught him some new skills — for a while we worked on the proper method of using a microscope. On another day we constructed a camera, then we classified rocks. Mike would then “help” me teach these skills to the rest of the class. We had a lot of fun, and a kind of unspoken trust began to build up between us.
Early in our special relationship, Mike told me of his dream — becoming a lawyer. I believed then, and after thirty-four years of teaching I still believe, that all children have a gift. Everyone has the same opportunity to be the best person they can be. I realized this boy was brilliant, and that with a little love, attention, understanding, guidance and encouragement, he could probably accomplish whatever he put his mind to. I figured if he wanted to be a lawyer, I would do all I could to help him become the very best lawyer he could be.
Every Saturday morning, I took Mike to the Osgoode Law Library, which was attached to the University of Toronto. I explained to him that reading up on law was the only way to be a good lawyer. His young mind was eager and interested.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Paragraph 1: This was how we spent each Saturday morning for two years.
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Paragraph 2: One day, after we were out of touch for 30 years, there went my doorbell.
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5 . Directions: Read the following passage. Summarize the main idea and the main point(s) of the passage in no more than 60 words. Use your own words as far as possible.
Multicultural Education
The changing populations of students in American schools has brought come changes in what is taught in the schools as well.
One in three students in U.S. schools is a member of a racial or ethnic minority group, and one in five lives with a parent who was born outside the United States. Ethnic and racial minorities have criticized schools and textbooks for focusing too much on the literature and historical events of Anglo-Europeans or white males. They believe that schools have almost ignored the contributions of African Americans, Latinos, or Native Americans. Some have charged that American history has been told from the perspective of Anglo-Europeans, rather than exploring historical events from the various perspectives of those involved.
For example, the frontier movement west has been presented more from the perspective of descendants of white settlers than from the perspectives of the descendants oi the Native Americans who were moved in the process.
During the 1990s. schools began to seriously examine their curricula and to try to incorporate more varied cultural information and perspectives into education. These attempts to provide multicultural education have ranged from simply adding information and literature to the current textbooks and curricula, to more sweeping attempts to transform the basic curriculum into one which is more reflective of the diversity of the students who will study it.
At the most basic level, many schools celebrate African-American History Month or Hispanic Heritage Month, or they have international festivals which include dancing, singing, and foods from the native countries of their students. At a deeper level, many schools have adopted history or social studies textbooks which include more information about African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and other minorities, or American literature texts that include poetry and fiction written by Americans of all ethnic backgrounds.
In some colleges, the traditional set of Western great books, sometimes called “the canon,” has been replaced by a much broader set of literary texts, reflecting the experiences and backgrounds of the students who will be reading them.
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To adjust you baby to the external world, educating him is your main assignment. How will you educate him? What role will he play in the world?
According to Darwin’s theory of the evolution of the species, we are a competitive species and one survives by adapting itself biologically to various environments through various ways. Competition was useful for the progress of society and for the survival of human beings.
Today, however, the challenges are different. There are environmental imbalance, deaths of thousands of children every day by starvation and countless diseases. Therefore, it is urgent that the philosophy of preparing our children for competition and power be replaced by one of preparing them for love and cooperation.
The earth is a unique home to us all. We must educate our children so that they want to preserve nature and it can in return make them more powerful and capable in society. Our children have to learn that we don’t need to practice actions that benefit only our homeland while all other countries are destroyed. The destruction of other countries and lives leads to the impossibility of the future existence of our home. We must teach our children that the main necessity of men and children is love. Love is good to ourselves, others and nature.
But it is getting harder to love. We are not capable of demonstrating hate to a flower, grabbing it and throwing it at the floor and stepping on it. It sounds insane! But we are insensitive to the extent of seeing a homeless person on the ground and pretending it’s not our problem! Our strong idea of competition has led us to total insensibility!
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Mrs. Crawley, a large woman, often worked into night at a hotel beauty-shop. She was walking alone with a large heavy back-pack at about eleven o’clock one night when a boy named Jack ran up behind her and tried to snatch (抢夺) her pack.
The pack’s strap (带子) broke. The boy’s weight and the weight of the pack combined cased him to lose his balance, so Jack fell on his back on the sidewalk. Mrs. Crawley simply turned around and picked the boy up by his shirt front.
The woman did not release Jack. “I’m very sorry, lady, I’m sorry,” he whispered in an embarrassed (尴尬的) voice.
Mrs. Crawley said, looking at his face, “Now I got a great mind to wash your face. It’s dirty! Did you have nobody home to tell you to wash your face?”
“No, Ma’am,” said Jack.
“Then it will get washed this evening,” said Mrs. Crawley starting up the street dragging Jack behind her. “You ought to be my son. I would teach you right from wrong. Least I can do right now is to wash your face. Are you hungry?”
“Yes, Ma’am,” said the being dragged boy.
When getting to her door, Mrs. Crawley dragge Jack inside.
“You go to that sink and wash your face, and I’m going to fix us something to eat. You’re hungry — or been hungry — to try to snatch my pack.” said the woman, turning Jack loose. He went to the sink.
“I wanted a pair of blue suede shoes,” said Jack.
“Well, you didn’t have to snatch my pack to get your suede shoes,” said Mrs. Crawley. “You could have asked me.”
“Ma’am?”
The water dripping from his face, Jack looked at her. There was a long pause. A very long pause.
Then supper was ready, with a bite of cakes cooked for each. Mrs. Crawley set the table.
注意：
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
She did not ask Jack anything that would embarrass him as they ate.
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“Shoes got in that way will make you uncomfortable,” continued Ms. Crawley, ready to get her rest.
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Children Deserve Arts Education
Children are introduced to the arts in many different ways. Participation in the arts improves personal confidence, problem solving skills, and even memorization and social skills. As young brains develop, it is vital that the creative side of the brain receive equal attention to the logical side of the brain to ensure maximum education. Unfortunately, there are those who believe creativity holds little or no value. However, they could never be farther from the truth.
According to a National Education Association research report, “Teenagers and young adults of low socioeconomic status (SES), who have a history of in-depth arts involvement, show better academic outcomes than low-SES youth with less arts involvement.” This research report shows that the arts strengthen the academic hemisphere of the brain. According to recent studies, as the brain focuses on math problems or reading, only certain areas of their brain are activated. However, when teenagers and young adults are listening to music, drawing a picture or engaging the mind creatively, multiple areas of the brain are working at the same time. As a result, more areas of the brain are strengthened, resulting in stronger overall brain activity.
With all the benefits of arts education, it is shocking that some educational boards still believe sufficient education can be reached without the benefits of the arts. In January 2017, the Utah State Board of Education released an official command that added two classes to the school curriculum, requiring all students between sixth and eighth grades to take those courses. This in turn limited the opportunity for the students to take elective arts courses. This command created an uproar among parents and teachers in Canyon School District and—thanks to protests—was not put into effect.
Participation in the arts is one of the most precious gifts we can give our children. It brings them joy, creativity and helps them excel academically. Our education system is weakening the critical role the arts have in education. If we limit the arts within school systems, we take away our children’s chances of present and future accomplishments. We cannot do that. Our children need to have every opportunity to expand their minds through the means of the arts. We must give our youth the opportunities and advantages to reach their highest goals and dreams if we are to secure a bright future for generations to come.
| 学生的观点 | 一部分学生：劳动教育有助于身体健康，全面发展。 另一部分学生：劳动教育占用学习时间，影响成绩。 |
| 你的观点 | …… |
2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
劳动教育 labour education
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Hitting the right button
It has been found that in some countries, achievement in some subjects at school is not always good for boys as it is girls. It is possible that using computers may be a way to solve this problem.
Many boys seem to have a natural liking for computers, but it can often be hard to leave the screen and concentrate on the work the teacher wants them to do.
As computers are becoming more and more important in the world of education today, it is natural to assume that computers can help greatly with boys who do not do too well at school and need to raise their general educational standards. Many boys appear to be more confident than girls in using it, and they need to use computers more frequently, especially at home.
Researchers at universities now think that it could be a really good way of re-engaging under-achieving boys in the learning process, and teachers have indicated that it does work. They have found that, although lots of boys do not seem to like writing in the classroom, when they use a computer, they are more willing to compose longer pieces of writing and use different styles. The issue of unintelligible handwriting is no longer a problem, either, as the neatness and presentation standards rise when boys use a computer to print out their work.
Many boys welcome the “hands on” approach of computer. However, researchers and teachers need to be careful that boys don’t just “cut and paste” things that they have found on the internet, but haven’t read, and hand it in as a completed assignment. Some boys overestimate how good they are and think they can do things without any effort. They need to develop proper research skills and make their written work more structured. Other boys take short cuts, or look at internet sites they haven’t been asked to look at. They may not plan or think carefully about their work, or they may try to finish their work quickly. This tendency is not going to be completely cured by using computers. One way to get boys to concentrate properly on the work they have been asked to do may be to encourage them to use their computers at home. However, they also need to be set tasks that are interesting and relevant to them.
As in all things, the interaction between the pupil, the teacher and the computer is crucial.
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