給孩子手機，是福還是禍？

如今，中小學校園“有機族”越來越多。這些小機主們喜歡用手機發短信、照相、聽音樂以及與朋友分享娛樂。然而，手機給中小學生帶來的負面影響也隨之而來：短信語言泛濫、手機作弊和盜竊案件層出不窮，還有手機攀比成風等等。到底中小學生應不應該有自己的手機呢？Come and join our discussion.

November Topic

Clip 1

Most families get their kids cell phones to keep in touch and to know that they are safe， but most of us know that kids use their cell phones to keep in touch with their friends. You don’t have to look much further than your local middle school to see evidence of that.

Ever since the 1)Anchorage district give the OK for cell phones at school， these 2)roaming middle school students have been happily talking and texting their lunch hours away. 13-year-old John Eyrich is one of them. He says it took a while to 3)convince his mom he just had to have a cell phone.

John Eyrich: I needed one. I wanted one. And I finally got one.

And it turns out John is not alone.

Susan LaGrande: The number one way in surveys that…kids that they get their cell phones begging them from their parents.

Susan LaGrande is a child 4)psychologist who says cell phones are 5)a fact of life. But that doesn’t mean kids or their parents should 6)take that fact for granted.

LaGrande: Parents need to know this is just the same kind of setting limits as anything else like 7)curfews or when you can drive the car or anything like that. You still have to set limits.

LaGrande gives simply advice on when you give your kids a cell phone. Make the rules very clear and if they break the rules let them know the 8)consequences. Parents should keep in mind the age of their child—the very young may need a lesson on how to call for help.

LaGrande: One of the concerns is that the safety， we found. Here is…you know， in your phone is a helpful friend’s number beyond our number in case you can’t reach us. This is how you call 911注. This is when you call 911. You don’t call them because we’re…we’re late picking you up. You call them because someone’s trying to harm you.

And for older kids， safety counts too. LaGrande says parents shouldn’t hesitate to keep an eye on who their children are talking to.

LaGrande: Sit down with them and tell them that you are going to check who they have phone calls with; and you are gonna go over the monthly bill with them. And if there are unfamiliar numbers that are frequently used， you wanna know what those…whose… those numbers are too.

LaGrande says cell phones are a great way to give parents peace of mind but the phones can also be a teaching tool， allowing children to learn about taking responsibility and showing they can handle it.

Clip 2

And if you think we’re kidding， when we say “thousands of times a month”， listen to what some teens are telling us. The numbers will surprise you.

Student A: I text a lot but not as much as some.

Reporter: So what’s “a lot”?

Student B: Uh…in the past two weeks， in my outbox now I’ve sent 3，000.

Student C: Well， last month was about 6，000 but this month there are probably like 2-3 maybe.

Student D: I have unlimited. So， last month there was 7，000.

And then there is Andrew Carrao. Listen to this—

Andrew Carrao: Yes， in last month I sent 11，263.

That’s 11，263 text messages in one month on that phone.

Carrao: So if I’m just saying something to someone and I’m joking， I’ll just say “JK”—just kidding; and if I’m about to leave or to go to the bathroom or something and I’m gonna come back， I’ll say “BRB” which means “be right back.”

Christina Gaebhart: I think a lot of it is just generational thing.

Teacher Christina Gaebhart has followed the trend and how a whole new language has developed， a sort of text messages shorthand.

9)Abbreviations like OMG， and PAW， and TMI， mean “Oh My God”， “Parents Are Watching” and “Too Much Information”. And there’s dozens more just like them. But when these codes show up in actual classroom work—

Derek Noll: It’s a little 10)frustrating.

Derek Noll is an Oak Park English teacher.

Noll: Well you know， you see the number “2” instead of the “to” or “too” or “two” even， in just inappropriate places.

Teachers also watch for cheating by text message.

Gaebhart: I know a lot of teachers are worried about cheating. And how easy it is for one kid who can be taking a quiz right now to text to the kid who is gonna take that quiz next 11)block.

Reporter: And what do you do about that?

Gaebhart: Uh…for me I make sure that there is nothing on the tables when they’re doing it.

In this school， and others， it’s a “use it and lose it” policy—get caught using a cell phone during class， and teachers will take them away.

11月話題

片斷一

對于大多數家庭來說，給他們的孩子買手機是為了保持聯絡和知道他們是否安全，但我們很多人都知道孩子們使用手機是為了跟他們的朋友聯絡。您不用到很遠的地方去找例子，在您附近的中學便可見一斑了。

自從安克雷奇地區允許學生攜帶手機上學以來，這群在校園內游蕩的中學生一直很開心地打電話聊天和發短信，就此打發午飯時間。13歲的約翰·艾瑞奇便是代表之一。他說他花了好一段時間才說服他媽媽自己必須有一部手機。

約翰·艾瑞奇：我需要一個（手機）。我想要一個（手機）。然后最終我都得到了一個（手機）。

看來約翰的例子并不在少數。

蘇珊·拉戈蘭德：調查顯示，排行第一的方式就是……孩子們乞求父母給自己買手機。

蘇珊·拉戈蘭德是一位兒童心理學家。她說，擁有手機是個不可改變的生活現實，但這并不是說孩子或是他們的父母就得把這個現實看作理所當然的。

拉戈蘭德：家長們必須明白這（指使用手機）跟其它活動，比如宵禁或者子女什么時候可以開車等等，一樣要有限度。您仍然必須要設定限度。

拉戈蘭德對什么時候給孩子使用手機提出了簡單的建議。做一些非常清楚的規定；如果他們違規了，要讓他們知道其后果。家長們要牢記自己孩子的年齡——可能需要指導年紀很小的孩子如何打電話求助。

拉戈蘭德：我們發現，考慮因素之一就是安全問題。這里就是……你知道，在你（指子女）的手機里除了我們（指父母）的號碼外還要有一個得力的朋友的電話號碼，以防你聯系不上我們。這就是你如何撥打緊急求助號碼911。這就是你何時應該撥打911。你不能因為我

們……我們沒按時接你放學就打緊急電話號碼。而應該是有人要傷害你時才打緊急電話。

對于年紀大一點的孩子來說，安全同樣重要。拉戈蘭德說，家長們不應該猶豫，要時刻留意他們的孩子在跟誰通

電話。

拉戈蘭德：跟他們坐下來，告訴他們您將要檢查他們跟誰通電話了，并且您會清查他們每月的電話單。如果有一些陌生號碼經常被使用，您也要弄清楚那些……那些號碼到底是誰的。

拉戈蘭德說，手機能很好地讓家長們安心，但它們也能成為一種教育工具，能讓孩子們學會負責任并且展示他們的處理能力。

片斷二

我們說“每個月有數千遍”，如果您覺得我們在開玩笑的話，聽聽一些青少年是怎么說的。那些數字將會讓您

吃驚。

學生甲：我發很多短信，但還沒有一些人那么多。

記者：那么什么才算“很多”呢？

學生乙：呃……過去兩個星期，現在我的發件箱里已經有約3000條信息。

學生丙：嗯，上個月大約發出了6000條，可是這個月也許只發了2000－3000條吧。

學生丁：我有無數條呢。所以，上個月我發出了7000條。

接著，是安德魯·卡里奧。聽聽這個——

安德魯·卡里奧：對，上個月我發出了11263條。

就是在那個手機里一個月內發出了11263條短信。

卡里奧：如果我在跟某人說著什么，而且是說笑的，我會說“JK”——只是開玩笑的意思；或者如果我想離開或者要上洗手間做什么的，我很快便回來的，我就會說“BRB”，意思是“很快

回來”。

克里斯汀娜·伽柏霍特：我認為很多這樣的現象都只是新一代的特色。

克里斯汀娜·伽柏霍特老師追蹤了這股潮流以及一種嶄新的語言——就是所謂的短信速記法怎樣形成了。譬如，OMG、PAW、TMI這樣的縮寫意為“噢，我的天”，“父母在監視中”以及“信息過多”等等，還有數十個像這樣的英文縮寫。可是當這些代碼出現在現實課堂作業中的時候——

德瑞克·諾爾：這挺讓人懊惱的。

德瑞克·諾爾是奧克帕克中學的一位英語老師。

諾爾：嗯，你知道，你會看見數字“2”取代了“to”或“too”，還有“two”，反正就在不恰當的位置出現。

老師們也監視著用手機短信作弊的

行為。

伽柏霍特：我知道很多老師都擔心學生作弊。一個現在可能在考試的學生可以輕而易舉地發短信給一個下節課將要考同樣試題的學生。

記者：對于那種情況你會怎么辦呢？

伽柏霍特：嗯……對于我來說，我要保證當他們考試時桌子上什么都沒有。

這所學校以及其它的學校都有一條“發現使用立即沒收”的校規，就是如果老師發現學生在上課期間使用手機便會沒收手機。

中小學生真的需要手機嗎？

Discussion Forum 七嘴八舌討論區

Opinion 1

I am definitely not against it. It’s so cool to give my best friends a buzz with my latest super hot iPhone.

Opinion 2

I gotta say my cell has helped me to kill time without effort. Since we can get so much fun from our cell phones， it’s no big deal that school kids have them.

Opinion 3

Of course not. Who pays for my children’s gigantic phone bills as they like chatting very long on the phone? In fact， I struggle to make ends meet for my family every month.

Opinion 4

The cell phone is a good escape from boring classes. Not until our teachers make some belly laughs should we play with our cell phones in class.

Opinion 5

Well it’s hard to say. In my case， I can track down my kids if they have the cell phones and they won’t be able to play hide and seek with me. But the cell phones can be quite distracting to their studies.

Opinion 6

I don’t suggest my students have cell phones. It’s like opening a Pandora’s box—the cell phone can be a tool for cheating and the sudden ringtones in class are just annoying.

Opinion 7

This is how bad news travels fast. The campus is now full of gossip because everyone is texting SMS or chatting with their big mouths on the phones. If you don’t want your kids to speak ill of you， think twice before you get them a cell phone.

Tips 1: 蘋果iPhone是目前市場上最炙手可熱的手機。說話者擁有最新款式的iPhone，難怪他不但不反對中小學生擁有手機，還把給好友打電話（give someone a buzz）看作是超酷（cool）的體驗。“cool”為常用美式口語，跟中文“酷”的意思相同。

Tips 2: 美語中的gotta相當于have to/got to（不得不，必須），cell在這里是口語簡化，即cell phone（手機）。說話者認為手機有不少娛樂功能，能毫不費勁地幫他打發時間（kill time），所以中小學生擁有手機并沒什么大不了的（it’s no big deal）。

Tips 3: 如果你有張巨額電話單，便可以用gigantic phone bill來表達了，gigantic一詞的確能很形象地描繪出你所指示的物體之“巨大”。詞組make (both) ends meet意為“勉強維持生計”。

Tips 4: 看得出這位說話者是個學生，他覺得上課時玩弄手機能解悶。要注意not until的倒裝句式（not until…should we…），這里指如果老師在課堂上枯燥地講課，而不能讓學生們捧腹大笑（belly laughs），學生就會在課堂上玩弄手機。

Tips 5: 這是一位家長的苦衷。in one’s case意為“以……為例”。孩子們有了手機，家長便可以跟蹤（track down）他們的去向，但手機讓孩子們學習不專心。hide and seek就是小時候玩的捉迷藏游戲。在這里，家長當然就是找的那個，孩子就是躲的那個了。

Tips 6: 在老師看來，中小學生不適宜擁有手機。那就像潘多拉魔盒（Pandora’s box），指邪惡之源——手機可以成為作弊工具，而且上課時突如其來的鈴聲（ringtones）很令人討厭。

Tips 7: 所謂“好事不出門，壞事傳千里”。英語諺語中的bad news travels fast（壞消息傳得快）也有這個意思。SMS是Short Message Service（簡稱短信）的首字母縮寫。說話者認為校園里到處是流言蜚語，因為大家都在以發短信或打電話的方式來說長道短。big mouth字面意思是“大嘴巴”，喻指健談的人，愛聊八卦的人。如果家長們不想被孩子說壞話（speak ill of sb.），就要再三考慮是否給他們買手機了。

Know More

Common Text Messaging Abbreviations

常見短信縮寫

AKA: Also Known As

ASAP: As Soon As Possible

BBT: Be Back Tomorrow

BBS: Be Back Soon

B4: Before

BIB: Boss Is Back

BFF: Best Friend Forever

BRB: Be Right Back

BTW: By The Way

CM: Call Me

CYE: Check Your Email

DIKU: Do I know you?

DIY: Do It Yourself

FAQ: Frequently Asked Question

F2F: Face To Face

FYI: For Your Information

GTG: Got To Go

HAND: Have A Nice Day

HB: Hurry Back

IDK: I Don’t Know

JFF: Just For Fun

KOTC: Kiss On The Cheek

LOL: Laughing Out Loud

NBD: No Big Deal

OIC: Oh， I See

OMG: Oh My God

OOTO: Out Of The Office

PSOS: Parents Standing Over Shoulder

SLAP: Sounds Like A Plan

SPAM: Stupid Person’s AdvertiseMent

SWAK: Sealed With A Kiss

TMB: Text Me Back

TTFN: Ta-Ta For Now

TTYL: Talk To You Later

UGTBK: You’ve Got To Be Kidding

想了解更多的短信縮寫，請訪問我們口語版的BLOG：http://csblogs.163.com