“完形填空”是現代英語考試中非常流行的測試方法,在歷年高考題中都占有重要位置。但學生反映,完形填空題是高考題中最難的題型。
據調查,它難,固然是由于測試要求較高所致,但另一個重要因素我們不能不注意,即與試題卷面結構排列不當,明顯導致學生精力的大量非智力消耗有很大關系。
一篇完形填空三、四百字,留出20個空白處,80個供選擇項長長地排在文章后面,卷面排版往往出現短文與選擇項分開來印在兩頁紙上,或選擇項大部分在另一頁紙上的現象。作完形填空題,要求學生通篇考慮、仔細推敲、反復琢磨,選出正確答案,使補足空白后的短文的意思和結構恢復完整。這就迫使學生把試卷翻來覆去近百次,以確定填入空白處的最佳選項。這樣,把大量寶貴的考場時間,浪費在無效的非智力活動中。這時再碰上難點,學生生理上和心理上會有明顯的累的感覺,情緒上往往表現出不耐煩。美國教育學家哈伯德(L. Ron Hubbard) 在關于有效理解的闡述中說:這種學習者生理上的不適反應,表現為煩躁、混亂、愁眉苦臉,最后導致放棄、逃避,甚至對抗行為。
筆者多年教畢業班,常常接觸這類題,了解學生在這方面的苦楚。他們最頭痛作完形填空題。為此,筆者平日出題考試時,曾嘗試對這類題作過排列形式的調整cWS09JpF+pDyIfdOBbJTrQ==,目的是為了減輕考生的心理和生理負擔,避免產生煩躁和焦慮,測試表明,效果較好。這種調整是否也可用于高考題,在這里提出來與同行磋商并請教于專家。
調整主要分兩種類型,下面舉例分別說明其特點。
一、短文與選項左右對應排列
I grew up knowing I was different, and I hated it. I was born with a cleft palate(裂唇),and when I started school my classmates made__36___clear to me how funny I look__37___others: a little girl with an ugly lip, crooked(歪的)nose and unclear__38___.
When schoolmates would ask, “What happened to your lip?” I’d tell them I’d fallen and cut it on a piece of glass. Somehow it seemed more__39___to have suffered an accident than to have been__40___ different.I was sure that no one outside my family
would love me,or__41___like me.
36. A.thisB.thatC.the factD.it
37. A.atB.for C.to D.up
38. A.sayingB.speechC.faceD.mouth
39. A.reasonableB.possible C.acceptableD.believable
40. A.bornB.growingC.woundedD.diseased
41. A.hardlyB.evenC.moreD.else
二、選項排進短文空格處,下面劃線
I grew up knowing I was different, and I hated it. I was born with a cleft palate(裂唇), and when I started school my classmates made 36(A. thisB. thatC. the factD. it)clear to me how funny I look37(A. atB. forC. toD. up)others: a little girl with an ugly lip, crooked(歪的)nose and unclear 38(A. sayingB. speechC. faceD. mouth).
When schoolmates would ask, “what happened to your lip?”I’d tell them I’d fallen and cut it on a piece of glass. Somehow it seemed more 39 (A. reasonableB. possibleC. acceptableD. believable)to have suffered an accident than to have been 40 (A. bornB. growingC. woundedD. diseased) different. I was sure that no one outside my family would love me, or 41(A. hardlyB. evenC. moreD. else)like me.
這兩種結構都能大大減少學生翻來翻去查看短文和選項的麻煩,降低了學生精力的非智力損耗,有助于提高考場效率。
這兩種編排結構各有優、缺點。
第一種結構的特點是視讀方便,但制題過程比較麻煩,常出現左右兩欄上下長短不齊的現象。這要通過掌握左邊短文的每行長度來調節。
第二種似乎使短文顯得臃腫,但是這種結構便于查看選項,通讀全文,掌握大意。
除此,還可以有第三種方式,即把選項分別插在短文每自然段下面。這種方式制題方便,考生答題順手,但缺點是如果所選短文不分段,層次界限也不清楚,則無法分開把選項放入。
(責任編輯郭振玲)