大学英语阅读部分第四册Unit4-1

英语自学网

　　Unit 4
        　　Honesty
        　　In-Class Reading
        　　Cheating: Alive and Flourishing
        　　1 Trying to get a handle on scholastic cheating is as frustrating as surveying American eating patterns. Everyone says he is watching his weight--yet the streets are full of overweight folk, and the snack-food industry reports record sales.
        　　2 Talk to students, and you get the same kind of contrasts. Most say that, yes, they cheated when they were younger, but no, they would not dream of cheating now, and no, cheating is not a big problem at their schools.
        　　3 But talk to their teachers, and a very different picture emerges, one that shatters the myths about who cheats and why. It is a picture of cheating among top students at top schools, of habits that take root in elementary school, bud in high school and flower in college, of parents who care more about their children's success than about their moral development, and of a problem that is more likely to get worse than to get better.
        　　4 Several schools are trying to cut down on the opportunity to cheat by giving more open-book exams. Others are holding seminars for their teachers to discuss the cheating phenomenon--often with students invited to attend. But psychologists say that the roots of the problem must be dealt with in the home. It is there, they say, that children must be helped to develop enough self-esteem to make occasional failure an unthreatening prospect and enough of a sense of right and wrong to overcome the urge to cheat.
        　　5 Unfortunately, teachers say, too many parents are abdicating that responsibility. "Students just aren't brought up to see cheating as dishonest," said Patrick L. Daly, who taught high school in the Detroit area for 30 years before retiring last year. "To them, shoplifting is dishonest; writing a couple of math formulas on their hand is not."
        　　6 "A child cheats on an exam and his parents get outraged," said Young Jay Mulkey, president of the American Institute for Character Education, a San Antonio-based foundation that helps teachers develop students' self-esteem. "Yet he keeps hearing his folks talk about cheating on expense accounts or income taxes. The inconsistency drives children crazy."
        　　7 Perhaps most troubling, teachers and psychologists say, is that it is often the most gifted students, the ones who presumably could get good grades without cheating, who are the worst offenders. They are the ones who believe that getting into a top college--or later, a top graduate school--is the most important goal, and will do anything they must to attain it. At first, the pressure is from their parents; eventually, those values become their own.
        　　8 Poll after poll shows that college students, not just high schoolers, are making cheating a way of life. Campus newspapers are full of articles dealing with the subject. Last fall Dartmouth College, for one, devoted almost an entire issue of Common Sense, its new student paper, to the growing problem of cheating on campus. Universities are holding special seminars at which professors and students discuss the problem. At least one school, the University of Illinois, issues a pamphlet for its faculty that describes some of the more ingenious methods students may use to cheat (written crib sheets attached to cap visors, oral ones playing on a Sony Walkman) and ways to stop them. Several others are tightening their computer security, after having discovered that computer hackers were breaking into electronic college files in order to alter their grades.
        　　9 Yet despite the precautions, students still offer papers written by term-paper companies--or by other students--as their own. And they still seem to find peeking at each other's tests to be irresistible.
        　　10 Is cheating human nature, or do parents and teachers encourage it by their own attitudes?
        　　11 No one seems much bothered about cheating in youngsters, anyway. "My little boy doesn't like to lose when he plays games, so he cheats," said a mother of a nursery schooler. "I did the same when I was his age." What if the cheating on games turns into cheating on tests? "If I thought he wasn't studying, I might get concerned," she said. "But I can't lay a guilt trip on a child for cheating--it is too tempting, too common and too much a part of human nature."
        　　12 Even the most outspoken opponents of cheating are less critical of youngsters who cheat. "I wouldn't be comfortable with an honor code like ours in grammar school or even high school," said Mr. James R. Socas, chairman of the honor committee at the University of Virginia. "Our system really says, 'You are on the threshold of being an adult, of taking responsibility for your actions.' Young people must be allowed to make mistakes." Did he cheat when he was younger? "Sure."
        　　13 Increasingly, professors are turning to open-book exams that test students more on how well they have learned to apply concepts than on how well they have memorized unimportant facts or formulas. The approach serves a dual purpose: it fosters conceptual thinking and makes crib sheets and peeking useless.
        　　14 "I give open-book problems without unique solutions," said Stanley R. Liberty, dean of the engineering school at the University of Nebraska. "Students know there's an unbelievably low probability of two people coming up with the same approach."
        　　15 Cornell University, meanwhile, has set up a faculty sub-committee to create a campus-wide dialogue on the "pedagogical" goals of exams. "Talking about cheating would cause trouble," said Larry Walker, vice president of academic programs. "I want professors and students to discuss ways that exams can be used as a learning device, not an evaluation tool."
        　　16 For the most part, academicians seem optimistic that changes in teaching methods and in exams will cut down on academic dishonesty. But teachers and child psychologists say that the only way to stop students from cheating in college is to keep them from developing the habit in high school. They are worried whether, in a society where two-income families and high-pressure jobs are prevalent, that is an ever more elusive goal.
        　　17 Said Beverly Betz, who teaches at New York City High School, "Parents have got to make their children feel that if they don't do well on a test it's not the end of the world, but just an indication that more work needs to be done. " (1040 words)
        　　Time taken: ________ minutes
        　　Proper Names
        　　American Institute for Character Education
        　　美国品德教育协会
        　　Beverly Betz
        　　(女子名)贝弗莉.贝兹
        　　Cornell University
        　　康奈尔大学
        　　Common Sense
        　　《常识报》
        　　Dartmouth College
        　　达特茅斯学院
        　　Larry Walker
        　　(男子名)拉里·沃克
        　　New York City High School
        　　纽约市立中学
        　　Patrick L. Daly
        　　(男子名)帕特里克.L.戴利
        　　San Antonio
        　　圣安东尼奥(美国得克萨斯州南部城市)
        　　James R. Socas
        　　(男子名)詹姆斯.R.索克斯
        　　Sony
        　　索尼(一种日本电子产品的品牌)
        　　Stanley R. Liberty
        　　(男子名)斯坦利.R.利伯蒂
        　　University of Illinois
        　　(美国)伊利诺斯大学
        　　University of Nebraska
        　　(美国)内布拉斯加大学
        　　University of Virginia
        　　(美国)弗吉尼亚大学
        　　Young Jay Mulkey
        　　(男子名)扬.杰伊.穆尔凯
        　　New Words
        　　abdicate
        　　v. (formal) fail to fulfil or undertake ( a responsibility or duty) 放弃(责任、义务)
        　　e.g. He abdicated all responsibility for the care of the child.
        　　academician
        　　n. a scholar or teacher in a university or institute of higher education, an intellectual 学者，大学教师，知识分子
        　　bud
        　　1) v. grow or develop from a small swelling containing an undeveloped flower or leaf 萌发
        　　e.g. Businesses using new research are budding near the university.
        　　2) v. form or produce small swellings containing undeveloped flowers or leaves 发芽，长出花蕾
        　　e.g. Tulips (郁金香) bud in the very early spring.
        　　3) n. a young tightly rolled-up leaf or flower before it opens 芽，苞，蓓蕾
        　　e.g. In the garden most of the plants are in bud.
        　　code
        　　n.
        　　1) a set of moral principles and standards adhered to by a society, class, or individual 准则，规范
        　　e.g. I) That school has a dress code requiring boys to wear shirts and ties, no jeans.
        　　II) Under the new code of discipline, Young was criticized by the referee but not sent off.
        　　2) a system of words, letters, figures, or symbols used to represent others, especially for the purposes of secrecy 密码，代码
        　　e.g. I) The area code for Hangzhou is 571.
            
            

entwo

        　　II) Imagine that you're using a kind of Morse code-a whole lot of dots and dashes.
        　　conceptual
        　　adj. of, relating to, or based on mental concepts 概念的，观念的
        　　e.g. Philosophy deals with conceptual difficulties.
        　　dishonest*
        　　adj. not honest 不诚实的
        　　e.g. He's been dishonest about his past.
        　　dual
        　　adj. (before noun) consisting of two parts, elements or aspects 双重的，两重的
        　　e.g. I) This room has a dual purpose, serving as both a study and a dining room.
        　　II) Someone with dual nationality has the nationality of two countries at the same time.
        　　flourishing*
        　　adj. being successful, active, or widespread, and developing quickly and strongly 繁荣的，盛行的
        　　e.g. I) There's a flourishing trade in second-hand video machines.
        　　II) The Blue Moon is flourishing again, and the dining-room is full every evening.
        　　frustrating *
        　　adj. annoying or discouraging 使人沮丧的，令人泄气的
        　　e.g. I) It was frustrating to work for such a demanding boss.
        　　II) I found talking to him very frustrating because he never listens to anything I say.
        　　gifted *
        　　adj. having exceptional talent or natural ability 有天才的，有才华的
        　　e.g. She's very gifted-she's a wonderful athlete, she writes beautifully and she plays the guitar and so on.
        　　hacker
        　　n. (informal) a person skilled in the use of a computer, especially one who gains access to computer systems to steal information or money 利用电脑系统窃取资料或存款者，黑客
        　　e.g. The FBI (联邦调查局) arrested a group of hackers for getting into university records.
        　　inconsistency*
        　　n. failure to keep the same principles, course of action, etc. 不一致，前后矛盾
        　　e.g. Inconsistency in management creates unnecessary anxieties.
        　　ingenious
        　　adj. cleverly or originally devised and well suited to its purpose (设计)巧妙的，有独创性的
        　　e.g. The campers thought of an ingenious way to cross the river without a bridge.
        　　irresistible*
        　　adj. impossible to refuse, oppose or avoid because too pleasant, attractive or strong 非常诱人的，无法拒绝的，无法抗拒的
        　　e.g. I was overcome by an almost irresistible desire to break into song.
        　　outspoken
        　　adj. expressing strong opinions directly without worrying if other people are offended 坦率的，直言不讳的
        　　e.g. Davis has earned a reputation as an outspoken opponent of any kind of nuclear waste dumping at sea.
        　　pamphlet
        　　n. a very thin book, with a paper cover, which gives information about something 小册子
        　　e.g. I picked up a free pamphlet on places to visit in the region.
        　　pedagogical
        　　adj. of or concerning teaching methods 教学(法)的
        　　e.g. They show great pedagogical skills.
        　　peek
        　　v. look quickly at something, especially something you are not supposed to see 偷看，窥视
        　　e.g. He couldn't resist peeking inside the box that had been left on the table.
        　　precaution
        　　n. something you do in order to prevent something dangerous or unpleasant from happening 预防，防备，预防措施
        　　e.g. I) You should save your work often as a precaution against computer failure.
        　　II) As a security precaution, most locations can be visited only by pre-booked groups.
        　　presumably
        　　adv. probably, by reasonable assumption 大概，可能，据推测
        　　e.g. I) They can presumably afford to buy a bigger apartment.
        　　II) My brother who studied molecular science would presumably know about bees.
        　　prevalent
        　　adj. common, observed frequently 普遍的，流行的
        　　e.g. The habit of travelling by aircraft is becoming more prevalent each year.
        　　prospect
        　　n. something that is possible or is likely to happen in the future 前景，前途
        　　e.g. I) There is not much prospect that this war will be over soon.
        　　II) He was cheerful about the prospect of engineers retraining as accountants.
        　　seminar
        　　n. a meeting or short course on a specific topic 研讨会，研究班
        　　e.g. I) I attended a two-day seminar on Native American art at the University of Arizona.
        　　II) The next infotech (信息技术) seminar will be held on Friday, 8 February.
        　　shoplifting
        　　n. the action of stealing goods from a shop while pretending to be a customer (装做顾客进行)商店货物扒窃
        　　e.g. Robbery, shoplifting and car theft were the most common juvenile (少年的) offences.
        　　sub-committee
        　　n. a smaller committee made up of members chosen from a main committee
        　　e.g. The education committee formed a sub-committee to study high-school safety.
        　　tempting *
        　　adj. appealing to or attracting someone, even if wrong or inadvisable 诱人的，吸引的
        　　e.g. It was very tempting to stay at home with the kids.
        　　troubling *
        　　adj. causing worry, pain or disturbance 令人不安的，令人烦恼的
        　　e.g. I) Some troubling questions remain about the legal status of frozen embryos (胚胎).
        　　II) But most troubling of all was the simple fact that nobody knew what was going on.
        　　visor
        　　n. the front of a hat or helmet that sticks out over the eyes 帽舌
        　　e.g. A baseball cap has a long visor.
        　　Walkman
        　　n. a type of personal stereo 随身听
        　　e.g. I noticed that the person in front of me had a Walkman on top of his holdall (大旅行包)
        　　Phrases and Expressions
        　　cut down on
        　　reduce the amount of something that you eat, buy, use, etc. 减少，削减
        　　e.g. I) He cut down on coffee and cigarettes, and ate a balanced diet.
        　　II) The miners agreed to cut down on strikes and absenteeism (旷工).
        　　for one
        　　as one example 举个例子说
        　　e.g. I for one am not the least bit interested in that film.
        　　for the most part
        　　mainly, to a large extent 多半，在很大程度上
        　　e.g. We spent the day for the most part looking round the museum.
        　　get a handle on (informal)
        　　gain understanding or control of something 理解，控制
        　　e.g. It's difficult to get a handle on exactly how this law will affect us.
        　　lay/put a guilt trip
        　　on make someone feel guilty 使......有负罪感
        　　e.g. She did not break the dish on purpose, so there is no point laying a guilt trip on her.
        　　on the threshold of
        　　at the beginning of a new and important event or development 在......的开始(或初期)
        　　e.g. Scientists are now on the threshold of a better understanding of how the human brain works.
        　　take root
        　　(of an idea, belief, or custom) become established 确立，建立，根深蒂固
        　　e.g. I) How did these strange ideas take root?
        　　II) The concepts of democracy and free trade are finally beginning to take root.