夏天出生的孩子是不是由于英國(guó)入學(xué)年齡的規(guī)定而處于學(xué)習(xí)上的弱勢(shì)？政府已經(jīng)對(duì)很多家長(zhǎng)提出的擔(dān)心做出積極回應(yīng)。

課文內(nèi)容

詞匯:?Education?教育

The first year of school can be?stressful?– not for the kids, but for the parents!

開(kāi)學(xué)的第一年可能會(huì)很有壓力——不是對(duì)孩子，而是對(duì)父母!

They want their little ones to do well at school and some?pushy parents?will already be thinking about how they can get their child to?the?top of the class.

他們希望自己的孩子在學(xué)校表現(xiàn)出色，一些有進(jìn)取心的父母已經(jīng)在考慮如何讓他們的孩子成為班級(jí)的尖子生。

But some parents are?concerned?about the?rules?for when children should start school.

但是一些家長(zhǎng)對(duì)孩子應(yīng)該什么時(shí)候開(kāi)始上學(xué)的規(guī)定感到擔(dān)憂。

The School?Admissions?Code for England says that children must join the?reception?class the September after their fourth birthday.

《英格蘭學(xué)校招生條例》規(guī)定，孩子們必須在四歲生日后的9月份參加接待班。

But here is the problem: A four year old who is born in August could be in the same class as someone who was born in October of the previous year! Both of them were four years old in September.

但問(wèn)題來(lái)了:一個(gè)8月出生的4歲孩子可能和上一年10月出生的孩子在同一個(gè)班級(jí)!今年9月，他們倆都滿4歲了。

The older child will probably?do better?in class tests. He or she is almost a year older! This can affect the?confidence?of the younger child.

大一點(diǎn)的孩子在班級(jí)考試中可能會(huì)做得更好。他或她幾乎大一歲!這會(huì)影響年幼孩子的自信心。

Now England's schools minister, Nick Gibbs says that the rules should be changed. In an?open letter?to councils, schools and parents he says, "Parents know their children best".

And he said that some parents "feel?forced?to send their child to school before they are ready".

現(xiàn)在，英國(guó)教育部長(zhǎng)尼克·吉布斯表示，這些規(guī)定應(yīng)該改變。在一封致議會(huì)、學(xué)校和家長(zhǎng)的公開(kāi)信中，他說(shuō):“父母最了解他們的孩子?！彼€說(shuō)，一些家長(zhǎng)“在孩子還沒(méi)準(zhǔn)備好就被迫送他們?nèi)ド蠈W(xué)”。

He?proposes?that children that are born during the summer can join the class when they are four or wait until they are five.

他建議，夏天出生的孩子可以在四歲或五歲時(shí)加入這個(gè)班。

Dr. David Whitebread, an?educationalist?from Cambridge University says that the UK has a summer-born effect because children start school so young.

劍橋大學(xué)的教育學(xué)家大衛(wèi)·懷特布萊德博士說(shuō)，英國(guó)有一種“夏季出生效應(yīng)”，因?yàn)楹⒆觽兩蠈W(xué)太早了。

"In countries with these later starting ages, there is a very much?reduced?summer-born effect or none at all", he said.

他說(shuō):“在起步年齡較晚的國(guó)家，夏季出生的影響非常小，或者根本沒(méi)有影響?！?/p>

詞匯表

stressful 有壓力的，精神緊張的
pushy 爭(zhēng)強(qiáng)好勝的
the top of the class 班級(jí)的尖子
concerned 擔(dān)心，擔(dān)憂
rules 規(guī)定
admissions 招生
reception 小班，學(xué)前班
to do better 表現(xiàn)更好
confidence 自信
open letter 公開(kāi)信
forced 被迫
propose 提議
educationalist 教育學(xué)家
reduced 減少

測(cè)驗(yàn)與練習(xí)

1.?閱讀課文并回答問(wèn)題。

1. In England how old are children when they start school?
2. Are summer-born children usually the youngest in the class?
3. Why are some parents concerned about the age of their child?
4. How would you describe the "summer-born effect"?
5. Do kids in other countries start school later?
6. What is a name for a specialist in education?
7. Push is a verb. Make it an adjective.?

2.?請(qǐng)你在不參考課文的情況下完成下列練習(xí)。從每個(gè)表格中選擇一個(gè)意思合適的單詞填入句子的空格處。

1. I am interested __________learning other languages.

in ? ? ? ? with ? ? ? ? on ? ? ? ? for

2. Doing exams can be ______________.

stress ? ? ? ? stressed ? ? ? ? stressful ? ? ? ? unstressed

3. I study English __________.?

some day ? ? ? ? someday ? ? ? ? everyday ? ? ? ? every day

4. The university's _____________ policy is complicated.

admissions ? ? ? ? permissions ? ? ? ? commissions ? ? ? ? submissions

5. How will this __________my grades?

effect ? ? ? ? affect ? ? ? ? effective ? ? ? ? effects

答案

1.?閱讀課文并回答問(wèn)題。

1. In England how old are children when they start school?
Four years old.

2. Are summer-born children usually the youngest in the class?
Yes, because a child born in the other seasons will be turning five during the school year.

3. Why are parents concerned about the age of their child?
They are worried that the child might not be ready for school.

4. How would you describe the "summer-born effect"??
Summer-born children sometimes do worse on tests than older students.

5. Do kids in other countries start school later??
Yes, in some countries the starting age is much older?

6. What is a name for a specialist in education?
Educationalist

7. Push is a verb. Make it an adjective.
Pushy

2.?請(qǐng)你在不參考課文的情況下完成下列練習(xí)。從每個(gè)表格中選擇一個(gè)意思合適的單詞填入句子的空格處。

1. I am interested?in?learning other languages.

2. Doing exams can be?stressful.

3. I study English?every day.

4. The university's?admissions?policy is complicated.

5. How will this?affect?my grades??

文章來(lái)源BBC，侵權(quán)上，本文僅用于英語(yǔ)學(xué)習(xí)。