Unit 8

Secrets of Straight-A Students

This text is taken from Improve Your English Through Comprehension Practice by Christina Lim Cher Kee. System Publishing House Pte. Ltd. Singapore. 2001.

close1RT A professor of education who has conducted major studies of super-achieving students revealed that top grades do not always go to the brightest students. According to him, other education experts and top students themselves, it is far more important for a student to know how to make the most of his or her innate abilities.

全優(yōu)生的秘訣

一位研究教育的老師對(duì)成績(jī)優(yōu)異的學(xué)生進(jìn)行過幾項(xiàng)大型調(diào)查，發(fā)現(xiàn)成績(jī)最優(yōu)秀的學(xué)生不一定是頭腦最聰明的學(xué)生。根據(jù)這位教授、其他教育專家以及全優(yōu)生們自己的觀點(diǎn)，懂得如何充分發(fā)揮自己的潛能對(duì)于學(xué)生來說更為重要。close2RT The students at the top of the class attain academic excellence by mastering a few basic principles that others can easily learn. To begin with, top students know how to set their priorities right. Study time is never compromised for phone calls, television programmes or snacks. In other words, it is always placed above recreation. In addition, top students make a point of study anywhere or everywhere. A top student who is also a top athlete memorises biology terms as he works out every day. Another student learns a new word every morning while brushing his teeth. Among all the students interviewed, every one agreed that study times are strictly a matter of personal preference. Some thrive at night when all is silent. Others prefer to study as soon as they come home from school when the lessons are fresh in their minds. However, all agreed that consistency is a main factor if one is to perform well at all times.

在班上名列前茅的學(xué)生之所以學(xué)習(xí)優(yōu)秀，是因?yàn)樗麄冋莆樟藥讉€(gè)基本原則，其他學(xué)生也可以輕松學(xué)會(huì)的。首先，全優(yōu)生知道如何決定輕重緩急。他們從來不會(huì)為了打電話、看電視或者吃零食而犧牲學(xué)習(xí)時(shí)間。換言之，學(xué)習(xí)總是擺在娛樂之前。另外，全優(yōu)生們總是注意隨時(shí)隨地學(xué)習(xí)。有位成績(jī)優(yōu)異的學(xué)生同時(shí)也是優(yōu)秀的運(yùn)動(dòng)員，每天利用戶外訓(xùn)練時(shí)間背生物學(xué)術(shù)語。而另一位學(xué)生則利用每天早上刷牙時(shí)間記一個(gè)新單詞。而在所有被采訪的學(xué)生中，無一例外都認(rèn)為在什么時(shí)間學(xué)習(xí)完全是個(gè)人偏好問題。有些人在夜深人靜時(shí)學(xué)習(xí)效果最好，有些人則喜歡趁著自己還能清晰地記得上課所講的內(nèi)容，一放學(xué)回家就開始學(xué)習(xí)。盡管如此，所有的全優(yōu)生都一致認(rèn)為，如果想任何時(shí)候都表現(xiàn)優(yōu)秀，一個(gè)主要的因素就是要持之以恒。close3RT A student must also learn to be organised. For example, a top student who is actively involved in his school band, track and field, rugby association and debate team disclosed that he keeps his things in their proper places because he simply cannot afford time-wasting searches. Another student immediately files the day's notes in colour-coded folders so that they are available for review nearing examination time.Another technique advocated by top students is to read effectively. This includes speed-reading, improving one's memory or retention ability, and actively asking questions that will lead to a full understanding of the author's message.

學(xué)生還必須學(xué)會(huì)有條理。舉個(gè)例子，有一位全優(yōu)生在學(xué)校樂隊(duì)、田徑隊(duì)、橄欖球協(xié)會(huì)和辯論小組里都很活躍，他透露，他之所以把東西放得井井有條是因?yàn)樗速M(fèi)不起到處找東西的時(shí)間。還有一位學(xué)生喜歡把當(dāng)天的筆記馬上整理出來并放進(jìn)用不同顏色標(biāo)記的文件夾里，以便臨近考試時(shí)能隨時(shí)用來復(fù)習(xí)。全優(yōu)生們提倡的另一個(gè)技巧是有效的閱讀，其中包括快速閱讀、提高記憶能力以及主動(dòng)提出問題以便充分理解作者的意思。close4RT It is also important for students to know how to schedule their time. They must know how to pace each assignment or project according to their daily timetable and work ability so that they might not be overwhelmed by the tasks at hand. Being able to set timetables not only allows students more time to review and polish their work, it also prevents them from procrastinating. Top students believe that a secret of their success is the taking down of good notes during lessons and using them for revision. One student revealed that she writes notes from the text on one side of her notebook and those from her teachers' lectures on the other side. This allows her to review both aspects of each lesson at once. The student also revealed that instead of wasting time whispering to friends and getting ready to rush out of the class just before the bell rings, she uses those few minutes to jot down a two or three-sentence summary of the lesson's principal points. She then scans the notes to refresh her memory before the next day's class.

對(duì)于學(xué)生們來說，合理安排時(shí)間也同樣重要。他們必須懂得如何根據(jù)每天的時(shí)間表和學(xué)習(xí)能力來安排做作業(yè)和項(xiàng)目的速度，不至于讓手頭的工作壓得喘不過氣。能制定時(shí)間表不僅讓學(xué)生能夠騰出更多時(shí)間來復(fù)習(xí)和完善功課，而且還能防止他們拖拖拉拉。成績(jī)優(yōu)異的學(xué)生認(rèn)為，他們成功的一大秘訣就是上課時(shí)做好筆記，供復(fù)習(xí)時(shí)使用。有個(gè)學(xué)生透露，她把從課文上摘抄的內(nèi)容記在筆記本的一邊，把課堂筆記寫在另一邊。這樣，就可同時(shí)復(fù)習(xí)到兩方面的內(nèi)容。她還透露，她不會(huì)浪費(fèi)下課鈴響前的幾分鐘跟朋友交頭接耳，準(zhǔn)備隨時(shí)沖出教室。相反，她會(huì)利用這幾分鐘用兩三句話概括那節(jié)課的要點(diǎn)，然后在下次上課前瀏覽這些筆記，借以加深印象。close5RT Another winning formula which teachers promote lies in a student's ability to hand in neat work. According to one professor, the student who turns in neat work is already on the way to scoring an A. In the classroom context, it is equally important for students to speak up and ask questions. This is perhaps the best way for a student to clarify any doubts. Classroom participation also demonstrates a student's intellectual curiosity. As a student concisely puts it, "Better grades come from better understanding."

老師們提倡的另一個(gè)制勝秘訣是盡力讓自己的作業(yè)整潔。有位老師說，學(xué)生交上整潔作業(yè)就已向高分邁進(jìn)了一步。在課堂上大膽發(fā)言和提問也同樣重要，這或許是學(xué)生澄清疑問的最好辦法。課堂參與還能反映一個(gè)學(xué)生的求知欲。有個(gè)學(xué)生概括得好，“成績(jī)來自透徹的理解”。close6RT The value of studying together was demonstrated in an experiment conducted at one top university. The study revealed that students who discussed homework and problems together, tried different approaches and explained their solutions to one another scored higher than those who laboured on their own. The experiment also illuminated the value of hypothetical tests conducted among the students and on their own. This means that students frame tentative test questions based on their notes and give each other or themselves written examinations the day before a test. Experts confirmed that students who devise possible test questions often find many of the same questions during the real examination and thus score higher.

一項(xiàng)在一所世界頂級(jí)大學(xué)進(jìn)行的調(diào)查證明了小組學(xué)習(xí)的價(jià)值所在。研究表明，學(xué)生們?nèi)绻黄鹩懻摷彝プ鳂I(yè)和問題，嘗試不同的解決辦法，并且互相解釋各自的方法，分?jǐn)?shù)就會(huì)比那些單獨(dú)用功的學(xué)生要高。研究也證明了學(xué)生間互相進(jìn)行模擬測(cè)試或自我測(cè)試的好處。這就是說，學(xué)生們根據(jù)筆記設(shè)計(jì)可能的試題，在考試前一天相互之間進(jìn)行書面測(cè)試或自測(cè)。專家們證實(shí)，那些能設(shè)計(jì)模擬試題的學(xué)生，往往會(huì)在正式考題中發(fā)現(xiàn)很多相同的試題，自然能得高分了。close7RT Another technique employed by top students is to do more than the assigned homework. A student revealed that if her teacher gives five problems, she will undertake ten. In the student's words, "Part of learning is practising. The more you practise, the more you learn." Last but not least, all experts and top students agree that the most important "secret" of super-achievers lies in the crucial contribution by parents. From infancy, super-achievers were taught the importance of learning by their parents. The latter set high standards for their children and held them to those standards. They encouraged their children in their studies but did not undertake the work for them. Instead of pressuring their children, these parents were always loving, gentle and took pains to explain and motivate. They impressed the lessons of responsibility on their children, and the children delivered.

全優(yōu)生使用的另一個(gè)技巧是超額完成規(guī)定的家庭作業(yè)。一位學(xué)生透露，老師若是布置五道題，她會(huì)做上十道。用她的話說，“練習(xí)是學(xué)習(xí)的一部分。練得越多，學(xué)到的也越多?！弊詈笠稽c(diǎn)同樣不容忽視：所有的專家和優(yōu)秀學(xué)生都認(rèn)為，全優(yōu)生們之所以成功，父母的功勞至關(guān)重要。從孩提時(shí)起，父母就給他們灌輸學(xué)習(xí)的重要性，為他們制定高標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，并且引導(dǎo)他們達(dá)到這些標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。在學(xué)習(xí)方面他們給孩子以鼓勵(lì)，而不是代勞。這些父母從不給孩子施加壓力，永遠(yuǎn)都溫柔慈愛，不厭其煩地解釋和激勵(lì)。他們使孩子們銘記肩負(fù)的責(zé)任，而孩子們則將其付諸實(shí)踐。

2

College Pressures

William Zinsser This text is excerpted and adapted from The Norton Reader, 11th Edition by Peterson, L.H., & Brereton, J.C. New York & London: W.W. Norton. 2004.

close1RT As master at Branford College , I see four kinds of pressure working on college students today: economic pressure, parental pressure, peer pressure, and self-induced pressure. It is easy to look around for villains (罪犯) — to blame the colleges for charging too much money, the professors for assigning too much work, the parents for pushing their children too far, the students for driving themselves too hard. But there are no villains; only victims.

象牙塔里的壓力

威廉·津瑟

身為布蘭福德學(xué)院的院長(zhǎng)，我發(fā)覺當(dāng)今的大學(xué)生面臨著四種壓力：經(jīng)濟(jì)壓力、來自父母的壓力、來自學(xué)伴的壓力、以及自己給自己的壓力。我們往往會(huì)去尋找"罪魁禍?zhǔn)?/span>"：學(xué)校收費(fèi)太高，老師布置太多作業(yè)，父母逼迫孩子太緊，學(xué)生對(duì)自己要求太嚴(yán)。但在壓力問題上，沒有惡人，只有受害者。 close2RT Students today live in a brutal (殘忍的) economy . Tuition , room, books and various kinds of fees have come to such a great sum that it is not unusual for a student, even if he works part time at college and full time during the summer, to accumulate $5,000 in loans after four years — loans that he must start to repay (償還) within one year after graduation.

當(dāng)今的學(xué)生生活在一個(gè)殘酷的經(jīng)濟(jì)現(xiàn)實(shí)中，學(xué)費(fèi)、住宿費(fèi)、書本費(fèi)及這樣那樣的費(fèi)用加起來數(shù)量不菲，即使一個(gè)學(xué)生在校期間做兼職，暑期做全職，四年內(nèi)還是會(huì)欠下5,000美元貸款，畢業(yè)后一年內(nèi)就要開始償還。close3RT For those lucky few who can get financial help from their parents, money may not be a tough problem, but they will suffer from the pressure that comes from their parents.

少數(shù)幸運(yùn)的學(xué)生能得到父母的經(jīng)濟(jì)援助，錢并不是一個(gè)棘手的問題，但是來自父母的壓力讓他們的日子也不好過。close4RT I see many students taking pre-medical courses with joyless determination . They go off to their labs as if they were going to the dentist . It saddens me because I know them in other corners of their life as cheerful people.

我看到很多學(xué)生一門心思修讀醫(yī)學(xué)院預(yù)科課程，但卻毫無快樂可言。他們?nèi)?shí)驗(yàn)室就像去看牙醫(yī)一樣痛苦。這讓我很傷心，因?yàn)槲抑涝谏畹钠渌矫嫠麄兪情_朗快樂的。close5RT "Do you want to go to medical school?" I ask them.

我問他們：“你想學(xué)醫(yī)嗎？”close6RT "Not really," they reply.

他們回答說：“其實(shí)并不想。”close7RT "Then why are you going?"

“那為什么還要進(jìn)醫(yī)學(xué)院呢？”close8RT "Well, my parents want me to be a doctor. They're paying all this money and ..."

“嗯，因?yàn)槲野謰屜Ｍ耶?dāng)醫(yī)生。他們一直在供我讀書，而且…。”close9RT Poor students, poor parents. They are caught in one of the oldest webs of love and duty and guilt (罪過). The parents mean well; they are trying to steer their sons and daughters toward a secure future. But the sons and daughters want to major in history or classics or philosophy (哲學(xué)) — subjects with no "practical" value. Where's the payoff (報(bào)償) on the humanities (人文學(xué)科）? It's not easy to persuade such loving parents that the humanities do indeed pay off. The intellectual faculties developed by studying subjects like history and classics are just the faculties that make creative leaders in business or almost any general field. Still, many parents would rather put their money on courses that point toward a specific profession — courses that are pre-law, pre-medical, pre-business, or, as I sometimes heard it put, "pre-rich."

可憐的學(xué)生，可憐的父母啊！他們被困在一張亙古以來由愛、責(zé)任和自責(zé)交織而成的網(wǎng)中，難以自拔。父母的出發(fā)點(diǎn)是好的，他們想引導(dǎo)自己的孩子走向無憂無慮的未來，但孩子們卻想攻讀歷史、古典文學(xué)或哲學(xué)，這些專業(yè)毫無“實(shí)用”價(jià)值。人文學(xué)科的專業(yè)有什么回報(bào)？要說服這些關(guān)愛子女的父母人文學(xué)科的專業(yè)確有回報(bào)并非易事。攻讀歷史、古典文學(xué)等專業(yè)而開發(fā)出來的智能，正是富有創(chuàng)造力的商界及其他領(lǐng)域的領(lǐng)袖人物所必備的。然而，許多家長(zhǎng)還是寧愿出錢供孩子讀一個(gè)能從事具體職業(yè)的專業(yè)，比如法律預(yù)科、醫(yī)學(xué)預(yù)科、商務(wù)預(yù)科，或者是我有時(shí)聽到的所謂“財(cái)富預(yù)科”。close10RT But the pressure on students is severe. They are truly torn. One part of them feels obligated to fulfill their parents' expectations ; after all, their parents are older and presumably (可能，大概) wiser. Another part tells them that the expectations that are right for their parents are not right for them.

可是，學(xué)生承受著太大的壓力，他們簡(jiǎn)直無所適從了。一方面，他們覺得有義務(wù)不辜負(fù)父母對(duì)自己的期望，畢竟父母比自己年長(zhǎng)，該更有智慧吧。但另一方面，他們又覺得，父母認(rèn)為合適的期望未必適合自己。close11RT Just like economic pressure and parental pressure, peer pressure and self-induced pressure are also closely intertwined (交織在一起), and they begin almost at the beginning of freshman year.

經(jīng)濟(jì)壓力和來自父母的壓力交織在一起，來自同學(xué)間的壓力和自己給自己的壓力也是如此，而且?guī)缀跏菑拇髮W(xué)一年級(jí)剛開學(xué)就開始存在了。close12RT "I had a freshman student I'll call Linda," one dean told me, "who came in and said she was under terrible pressure because her roommate, Barbara, was much brighter and studied all the time. I couldn't tell her that Barbra had come in two hours earlier to say the same thing about Linda."

有一位系主任告訴我：“我知道這么一個(gè)大一的學(xué)生，姑且叫她琳達(dá)吧，她來向我訴說她正承受著可怕的壓力，因?yàn)槭矣寻虐爬人斆鳎惶斓酵碓趯W(xué)習(xí)。我不好告訴她，就在兩小時(shí)前芭芭拉也來我這里說了類似的話，說琳達(dá)帶給她多大的壓力。”close13RT The story is almost funny — except that it's not. It's symptomatic (表明[某種]癥狀的) of all the pressures put together. When every student thinks every other student is working harder and doing better, the only solution is to study harder still. I see students going off to the library every night after dinner and coming back when it closes at midnight. I wish they would sometimes forget about their peers and go to a movie. I hear the clack (噠噠聲) of typewriters in the hours before dawn. I see the tension in their eyes when exams are approaching and papers are due: "Will I get everything done?"

這件事看來可笑，但實(shí)際上并不可笑，這表明所有壓力都匯集在一起了。當(dāng)每個(gè)學(xué)生都認(rèn)為別人更為勤奮、成績(jī)更好時(shí)，他唯一能做的就是更加努力地學(xué)習(xí)。我看到許多學(xué)生每天吃完晚飯就去圖書館，直到深更半夜圖書館關(guān)門才回來。我真希望他們有時(shí)能忘掉他們的學(xué)伴，去看場(chǎng)電影。我常常在拂曉時(shí)分還聽到打字機(jī)在噼噼啪啪地響，考試來臨或論文限期快到時(shí)，我能從學(xué)生的眼神中看到他們的緊張心理：“我能把所有的事情做完嗎？”close14RT Probably they won't. They will get sick. They will get " blocked." They will sleep. They will oversleep.

他們很可能完成不了。因?yàn)樗麄儠?huì)生病，腦袋會(huì)"僵硬"，無法正常思維。他們要睡覺，而且會(huì)睡過頭。close15RT Part of the problem is that they do more than they are expected to do. A professor will assign five-page papers. Several students will start writing ten-page papers, and a few will multiply it to fifteen. Pity the poor student who is still just doing the assignment.

出現(xiàn)這一問題的部分原因是：他們會(huì)遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超額完成任務(wù)。老師布置一篇5頁的論文，一些學(xué)生就會(huì)寫上10頁，而少數(shù)人甚至?xí)奄€注升到15頁。可憐那些僅僅寫了5頁的學(xué)生。close16RT "Once you have twenty or thirty percent of the student population deliberately overexerting (努力過度的)," one dean points out , "it's bad for everybody. When a teacher gets more and more effort from his class, the student who is doing normal work can be perceived as not doing well. The tactic (策略) works, psychologically."

一位系主任指出：“一旦20％或30％的學(xué)生刻意地去超量學(xué)習(xí)，對(duì)每個(gè)學(xué)生來說都不是好事。當(dāng)一位教師在班上看到越來越多的努力嘗試，那些只是正常完成作業(yè)的學(xué)生就會(huì)被看作是表現(xiàn)不夠好。就心理上而言，這個(gè)策略還是有效的。”close17RT People around, professors, parents, and friends can help, but ultimately it will be the student's own business to break the circles in which they are trapped. They are too young to be prisoners of their parents' dreams and their classmates' fears. They must be jolted （使震動(dòng)) into believing in themselves as unique men and women who have the power to shape their own future.

要打破這些“怪圈”，周圍的人們、老師、父母、朋友都能給予幫助，但歸根結(jié)底還是要靠學(xué)生自己。他們太年輕，不該成為父母的夢(mèng)想和懼怕同學(xué)心理的俘虜。我們必須喚醒他們，使他們相信自己是獨(dú)一無二的、有能力創(chuàng)造自己未來的人。