《新思维英语阅读Ⅲ》教学辅导(第3章)

《新思维英语阅读Ⅲ》教学辅导 (第3章)

CHAPTER 3

EDUCATIONAL REFORM

Theme Introduction:

As we head into the 21st century, many of us are wondering about the education systems of our country. Especially when we have children, we start to worry that their schooling is not preparing them for the new world of technology, diversity and change that awaits them in the future. What do we need to learn in school and university? Should university prepare us only for a job, or should it provide a deeper training in the matters of the heart? In this chapter you will read about American and Chinese views on this necessary education reform.

Reading Skill Practised: Reading Pace

"Reading pace" means how quickly and smoothly you read. You may think that in order to understand a passage, you need to have a large vocabulary, and read slowly and carefully. This is not true. In this chapter, you will learn techniques of pacing which will help you to read more quickly, smoothly, and successfully, with greater understanding.

Reading Skill: Improving Reading Pace by Grouping (1)

Being a good reader means reading quickly even though you don't understand every word. When you read one word at a time, it is harder to understand. Try reading this:

Language arts teachers are faced with teaching literacy to students from diverse backgrounds, students who do not value reading, and students who have diverse needs in an increasingly complex, technological society.

It is harder to understand because the separate words do not fit together to form ideas and by the time you get to the end of the sentence, you may have forgotten the beginning. It is better to read more quickly, in groups of words that are connected. For example:

Language arts teachers are faced/ with teaching literacy to students/ from diverse backgrounds' students who do not value reading/and students who have diverse needs/ in an increasingly complex, technological society.

None of the lines should need more than three eye movements. When you are reading well, your eyes will be taking in a group of words in one glance.

Practice

Read the following paragraph quickly. Make sure your eyes move smoothly over the sentence, in no more than 3 movements per line. In other words, read groups of words rather than one word at a time.

May I add something here?/ I have to agree./ In my high school in Detroit,/ the increasing number of students from non-English speaking homes/ continues to make language education

challenging./ For example, Shakespeare is on the curriculum/ for my 11th grade class this term,/ but many of them have problems with basic English communication skills. / I don't mean to throw out Shakespeare,/ but something is wrong here — / there is a gap between the curriculum/ and the reality of the students' skills and needs./ Keeping our students connected/ by giving them better tools of communication in a common language/ is essential.

Now go back to Reading One and practice reading it once through in this manner: quickly, smoothly, and in groups of words.

Reading Skill: Improving Reading Pace by Skipping Unknown Words (2)

It is not necessary to know every word, in order to understand a sentence or paragraph. There are many words which are not important to a general understanding of the passage. Good readers often skip over words they do not know, and words which are not important for

the general meaning. There are two techniques for this:

1. Skimming. It is a good idea to skim through the passage very quickly, just as you learned to do in Chapters One and Two, noticing the title, paragraph headings, underlined words, etc., in order to get a general first idea of the passage.

2. Skip unknown words. After skimming to get the general idea, go back and read more carefully, but still keeping up a fast pace. Read in groups of words, and skip unknown words. Don't break the reading flow by reaching for your dictionary. You can get the important ideas from a passage even with many unknown words.

Practice

1. Read the following paragraph. Every eighth word is missing. Do NOT try to guess the missing words. Simply skip over the blank. Read the passage and answer the T/F

questions which follow it.

I am writing to you on behalf ____ the International Montessori Society established in 1979 ______ support the effective application of Montessori principles ______ the world. The Society provides a range _______ support services for Montessori education, including teacher _______, publications, conferences, and counselling. Our membership program _______ interested schools and individuals into a world-wide _______ of communication for Dr Montessori's great vision ________ a "new education".

It is clear that some missing words (e.g. prepositions, nouns, conjunctions) sometimes do not influence the understanding of the paragraph.

Reading Skill: Improving Reading Pace by Timed Reading (3)

Technique # l: Timed Reading

Another way to increase your reading speed is to practice reading against the clock. Many students have a reading rate of only 50 words per minute. If you are reading at less than 200 words per minute, you are certainly reading word by word. As you learned in Readings One and Two, this

type of slow careful reading often results in less understanding, not more! For that reason, this textbook includes a "Timed Reading" task in the first reading of every chapter. In that reading, you are expected to read at 200 words per minute. As you complete the chapters in the textbook, you should notice that your comprehension is improving.

Technique # 2: Speed Training

When athletes try to improve their running speed, they "sprint" in training. You can use the same technique in reading to break your old reading speed. Try it from time to time. It is best to use a general interest (pleasure) book in English, but you can also practice by using some of the longer reading passages in this textbook, from Chapter 10 onwards.

In this textbook, the timed readings at the beginning of each chapter are based on 200 words per minute. This will feel uncomfortable, and you will not understand much, but the point is to raise your comfort level and train your eyes to move more quickly.

Practice

1. Title of book or chapter:___________________

2. Choose two pages of English (about 1000 words) to read. If necessary, mark in the margin with a pencil to indicate when to stop reading.

3. Try to read those pages in 4 minutes. If you can't do this, keep trying until you do. Force your eyes to move faster along the page.

4. Choose two new pages of English to read. Try to read it in 3 minutes.

5. Finally, try to read two new pages of English in 2 minutes. You may be able to catch only some of the meaning. That's OK. You are training your eyes and mind to move quickly.

6. Now, read "normally" again. Read for five minutes. Don't push but don't relax. Try to read quickly and smoothly.

'

How many pages did you read?___________________

Main Idea of Reading Materials:

Reading One:

本文是一篇采访报道。以问答的形式，就美国中小学教育所面临问题，美国教育界的一些专家浅谈了对中小学教育改革的一些看法。

Reading Two:

本文是一封学校给家长和教师的宣传信，信中介绍了意大利教育家蒙台梭利及其创办的可选择的学校。信中指出蒙台梭利所创立的“新教育”的特点是：培养创造能力。该信同时用于为蒙台梭利社团招募成员。

Reading Three:

本文是对21世纪教育的探讨，指出21世纪的教育应从谋生教育转变为智慧教育。作者认为：科学和技术知识的传授可以通过网络教育来实现，而大学应以人性教育为主要目的。

Reading Four:

本文针对中国高等教育存在的问题指出：中国高等教育的改革应实现应试教育向素质教育的转变。文章提出：应扩大大学课程所涵盖的内容，应使教材具有时代性，还应与当地的私企建立更密切的联系，使毕业生能够更好地为地方经济服务。

本文来源：https://www.bwwdw.com/article/eey4.html