高三學生：新冠病毒給我的最重要的一課

孝文豪

As a second semester high school senior， I was expecting a season of milestones， but not quite like this. A few weeks ago， I turned 18—and celebrated my entrance into adulthood with friends and family on Zoom. A few days later， I got into my first choice college—and videoed my reaction as I opened my virtual acceptance letter. And a few days after that， I heard New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announce that all New York schools will remain closed for the rest of the academic year.

作為高三第二學期的學生，我期待著畢業季作為我人生的里程碑，但事情并非如此。幾周前，我滿18歲了，朋友和家人通過視頻網站Zoom慶祝我成年。幾天后，我進入了我的第一志愿大學，我拍下了當我打開虛擬錄取通知書時的反應。幾天后，我聽到紐約州長安德魯·庫莫宣布，所有紐約的學校將在本學年的剩余時間停課。

So， I guess Ill be spending my last weeks of high school in bed with my laptop， and I wont be shaking my principals hand as he presents me with the diploma that symbolizes 13 years of my life.

我想我高中最后幾個星期，都要和我的筆記本電腦在床上度過了，而且我不能在校長給我象征著我13年生命的畢業證書的時候和他握手。

These past few months of staying home and social distancing have been unusual， but also eye-opening. The people I am used to seeing in person every day are suddenly on my screens instead. People of all ages have been feeling a sense of dislocation and dependence on technology during this time， but my generation is in a unique position.

過去幾個月待在家里，是不同尋常的疏遠社會關系，但也讓人大開眼界。我之前每天親眼能見到的人突然出現在我的屏幕上。在這段時間里，各個年齡段的人們都感受到了混亂和對科技的依賴，但是我們這一代處于一個獨特的位置。

Many people assume Gen Zers prefer everyday interactions mediated by screens—we have been using modern technology since before we could walk， so naturally we would not be as affected by social distancing. Whether it be Snapchat， Facetime or TikTok， my age group had been actively choosing to communicate digitally long before Covid-19 forced us to. But even if we are digital natives， the assumption that we are comfortable living a fully digital life is wrong. We value in-person interactions more than many may think. And now that this privilege has been taken from us， its just plain obvious.

許多人認為Z時代（20世紀90年代末或者是21世紀初的一代人）出生的人更喜歡通過屏幕進行日常互動——我們在會走路之前就開始使用現代科技產品，所以我們自然不會受到社交距離的影響。無論是Snapchat、Facetime還是Tiktok，我這個年齡段的人在新型冠狀病毒肺炎強迫我們進行數字交流之前就已經積極地選擇了數字交流。但即使我們是“數字原住民”，認為我們過著完全數字化的生活會很舒服的假設也是錯誤的。我們比很多人想象的更重視面對面的交流。但很明顯，現在這項特權已經被剝奪了。

Studies have shown that social interaction is beneficial to our physical and mental health， and that relationships are particularly important in adolescence. Social isolation， by contrast， has a negative impact on brain development and behavioral patterns—and can weaken communities and even our democracy.

研究表明，社交有益于我們的身心健康，而人際關系在青春期尤其重要。相比之下，社交隔離對大腦發育和行為模式有負面影響，并且會削弱社區的作用甚至我們的民主。

These are not surprising facts. However， before this pandemic， many people my age thought we could fulfill this need for human connection by communicating with others online.Clearly， we were mistaken. Being quarantined has affected the way I am feeling， behaving and sleeping， and my friends have told me they feel the same—more anxious， lonely and unhappy. Facetime， Zoom， iMessage and other forms of digital communication do not have the same effect as being with our friends and loved ones in person， or in a classroom with our teachers and classmates.

這些事實并不讓人驚訝。然而，在這次流行病爆發之前，許多我這個年紀的人認為，我們可以通過網絡溝通來滿足人際交往的需要。很明顯，我們錯了。我被隔離影響了我的感覺，行為和睡眠;我的朋友們告訴我他們也有同樣的感覺：更焦慮、孤獨和不快樂。Facetime，Zoom，iMessage以及其他形式的數字通信不會產生與親朋好友交流時，或者與老師和同學一起上課時相同的效果。

Going to school is hardly something we thought we would miss， having just gone through some key years of pressure and stress. But remote learning takes away much of what makes high school enjoyable and special. Although I am able to stay in touch with my close friends through technology， I dont get the spontaneous， unplanned interactions that occur in real life.

上學幾乎不是我們認為會錯過的事情，因為我們剛剛經歷了一段關鍵時期的壓力。但是遠程學習剝奪了高中生活的樂趣和特別的東西。雖然我可以通過科技與親密的朋友保持聯系，但是我卻無法在現實生活中有那種自發的、無計劃的互動。

In fact， one of the paradoxes of remote learning is how limiting it can be. In some ways， it makes it harder for me to get out of my comfort zone. There are people I might never have occasion to reach out to remotely， but still appreciate seeing on a daily basis —my favorite middle school teacher; a girl in my math class who helps me when Im struggling; the friendly security guard who always gives me a high five.

事實上，遠程學習的悖論之一就是它的局限性。某種程度上，這讓我更難走出自己的舒適區。有些人我可能永遠都沒有機會遠程聯系，但我仍然感激每天都能見到——我最喜歡的中學老師;在我困難的時候幫助我學數學的一個女孩;友好的保安，總是和我擊掌。

It is this sense of serendipity that I miss， and which I now recognize is key to making kids my age feel noticed， supported and happy. School is about more than just learning in the classroom， and it seems impossible to get this feeling of community and sense of belonging online. Close your laptop and you're alone again. This experience has made many of us realize how much we need school， not just an education.

我懷念這種意外收獲的感覺，現在我意識到這種感覺是讓我這個年紀的孩子感到被關注、被支持和快樂的關鍵。學校不僅僅是在課堂上學習，還有似乎不可能在網上獲得的這種社區感和歸屬感。關上你的筆記本電腦，你又是一個人了。這次經歷讓我們很多人意識到，我們多么需要學校，而不僅僅是教育。

As teenagers， we are going through pivotal life changes and learning how to form healthy relationships. We are figuring out who we are and who we want to surround ourselves with. Many high school seniors like me are going to college in the fall—we hope—and want to forge new friendships there to shape the next four years of our lives.

作為青少年，我們正在經歷重要的生活變化，并學習如何建立健康的人際關系。我們要弄清楚我們是誰，我們想和誰在一起。許多像我這樣的高中畢業班學生希望能在秋天進入大學，并希望在那里結交新的朋友，從而塑造我們未來四年的生活。

Many of us planned on meeting our new college peers at accepted students events， but those arent happening. Unfortunately， this means well be more reliant on social media to make friends before we arrive at campus. Getting to know someone will consist of looking at their Facebook profile or having a quick text exchange—not exactly deep engagement or even all that spontaneous.

我們中的許多人都計劃在迎新會上和新的大學同學見面，但是那些都沒有發生。不幸的是，這意味著在我們到達校園之前，我們將更加依賴社交媒體來交朋友。了解一個人的過程包括觀察他的 Facebook 或者進行一次快速的短信交流——不是深度的接觸，甚至不是自發的。

Not only might this make it harder for us to find our place， it may make us increasingly dependent on， and even consumed with， how we appear online. This is something we should steer away from， as over-reliance on social media has been shown to take a toll on a persons happiness.

這不僅可能讓我們更難找到自己的位置，還可能讓我們越來越依賴，甚至消耗我們在網上的形象。這是我們應該避免的，因為對社交媒體的過度依賴已經被證明會對一個人的幸福產生負面影響。

If what we take away from this experience is that in-person interaction is less necessary now that we are more comfortable with remote communication， we are learning the wrong lesson.

如果我們從這種經歷中學到的是：面對面的交流不再那么必要，因為我們現在更適應遠程交流了，那么我們就學錯了。

Although many of us can have school on video chat， and can have meetings over the phone and can binge-watch an entire Netflix series instead of talking to our friends， we shouldnt.

雖然我們中的許多人可以上視頻聊天課;可以通過電話開會;可以連續看一整部 netflix 電視劇，而不是和朋友聊天，但我們不應該這樣做。

We must not only return to our previous way of living， but place an even greater emphasis on community， real life engagement and the now rare pleasure of human interaction off a screen.

我們不僅要回到以前的生活方式，而且要更加重視社區，真實生活的參與，以及屏幕之外罕見的人際交往的樂趣。

（文章摘自美國有線電視新聞網：https：//edition.cnn.com/2020/05/13/opinions/high-school-biggest-lesson-covid-19-shapiro/index.html ）

閱讀文章后，也嘗試找找以下問題的答案吧！

1. How did the author celebrate his 18th birthday？

A. He videoed his school life.

B. He held a party at home.

C. He accepted congratulations online.

D. He spent that day with his laptop in bed.

2. We can learn from the fourth paragraph that ________.

A. young generations feel good living a fully digital life.

B. teenagers are not affected by social distancing at all.

C. young people would not like to communicate face-to-face.

D. young generations adapt more to online communication.

3. In the authors opinion， remote learning ________.

A. has more benefits than disadvantages.

B. can make people a sense of belonging.

C. makes school life more colorful.

D. lacks pleasure of human interaction.

4. From the article， it can be inferred that _________.

A. we should not heavily depend on social media.

B. it is very difficult to form a healthy relationship.

C. kids feel supported and happy in a community online.

D. it is no use looking at a persons Facebook if you want to know someone.

5. What does the author feel about social distancing？

A. stressed. B. uncomfortable.

C. annoyed. D. indifferent.

【答案】

1. C。細節理解題。根據第一段“A few weeks ago， I turned 18—and celebrated my entrance into adulthood with friends and family on Zoom.”可知，作者的家人朋友是通過Zoom給他祝賀生日的，后文也提到了Zoom是一個視頻網站。

2. D。細節理解題。根據第二段作者的敘述，可知這一代人更適應網上的交流。選項A和本段第一句矛盾，選項B和C是作者否認的。

3. D。推理判斷題。根據文章的最后一句“...the now rare pleasure of human interaction off a screen.”可以推斷，作者認為遠程學習是沒有樂趣的。

4. A。推理判斷題。根據文中的“This is something we should steer away from， as over-reliance on social media has been shown to take a toll on a persons happiness.”可知，作者認為我們不應該過于依賴社交媒體。

5. B。態度意圖題。文章中比較社交媒體或網上交流和現實生活中的交流，很明顯作者更喜歡的是前者，而且也有很多類似“In some ways， it makes it harder for me to get out of my comfort zone.”這樣的句子，因此作者對于因新冠引起的社交隔離是不舒服的。

【長難句分析】

1. If what we take away from this experience is that in-person interaction is less necessary now that we are more comfortable with remote communication， we are learning the wrong lesson.

譯文：如果我們從這種經歷中學到的是，面對面的交流不再那么必要，因為我們現在更適應遠程交流了，那么我們就學錯了。

分析：這是一個主從復合句，主句是we are learning the wrong lesson，從句是if引導的條件狀語從句，其中又包含著what引導的主語從句;that in-person is less necessary now that...communication是表語從句，此表語從句中又含有now that引導的原因狀語從句。