Reducing arts classes destroys chances of success

浙江寧波市鄞州高級中學 溫宏娟

難詞探意

uproar/??pr??(r)/n.騷動

Children are introduced to the arts in many different ways.Participation in the arts improves personal confidence,problem solving skills,and even memorization and social skills.As young brains develop,it is vital that the creative side of the brain receive equal attention to the logical side of the brain to ensure maximum education.Unfortunately,there are those who believe creativity holds little or no value.However,they could never be farther from the truth.

According to a National Education Association research report,“Teenagers and young adults of low socioeconomic status(SES),who have a history of in-depth arts involvement,show better academic outcomes than low-SES youth with less arts involvement.”This research report shows that the arts strengthen the academic hemisphere of the brain.According to recent studies,as the brain focuses on math problems or reading,only certain areas of their brain are activated.However,when teenagers and young adults are listening to music,drawing a picture or engaging the mind creatively,multiple areas of the brain are working at the same time.As a result,more areas of the brain are strengthened,resulting in stronger overall brain activity.

With all the benefits of arts education,it is shocking that some educational boards still believe sufficient education can be reached without the benefits of the arts.In January 2017,the Utah State Board of Education released an official command that added two classes to the school curriculum,requiring all students between sixth and eighth grades to take those courses.This in turn limited the opportunity for the students to take elective arts courses.This command created an uproar among parents and teachers in Canyon School District and—thanks to protests—was not put into effect.

Participation in the arts is one of the most precious gifts we can give our children.It brings them joy,creativity and helps them excel academically.Our education system is weakening the critical role the arts have in education.If we limit the arts within school systems,we take away our children's chances of present and future accomplishments.We cannot do that.Our children need to have every opportunity to expand their minds through the means of the arts.We must give our youth the opportunities and advantages to reach their highest goals and dreams if we are to secure a bright future for generations to come.

Language

Study

Ⅰ.Useful words in scientific articles

vital至關重要的

in-depth深入的；徹底的

involvement參與

academic outcome學業結果；學習成績

engage吸引；使參加

sufficient足夠的；充足的

release公開；發布

put into effect實施

excel擅長；突出

accomplishment成就；成績

Ⅱ.Difficult sentence

Unfortunately,there are those who believe creativity holds little or no value.However,they could never be farther from the truth.

翻譯：不幸的是，有些人認為創造力不是很重要，或一點都不重要，然而，這些人都是非常不對的。

分析：此句包含了兩個英語中常用的詞組，分別是hold little/no value“不重要”和far from the truth“遠非事實的”。其中，句中的far from the truth是以比較級的形式出現，和否定詞never連用，比較級和否定詞連用表示最高級，在此處，字面意義是他們離事實最遠，即強調這些人非常不對。

Reading

Check

閱讀短文，根據其內容寫一篇60詞左右的內容概要。

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寫作導引

Summarizing skills

概要寫作中的一大難點是如何做到不遺漏要點，尤其是要點里的重要支撐信息，或者說是次要點。學生基本上能做到一段一要點，但是在每個要點里不知道如何把握次重要信息。解決此難點的一個重要方法就是在段落里繼續分層。

比如第一段，可以在Unfortunately,there are...這里將這一段分為兩層，前面一層講述了藝術的重要性，后一層引出有不同想法的人。第三段，可以在This command created...這里分層，前一層講述了猶他州教育委員會出臺的一條增加課程的條例，后一層講述部分家長和教師表示反抗。第四段可以在We cannot do that...這里分層，前一層再次重申藝術的重要性，后一層大聲疾呼不可減少藝術課程。這樣分層之后，學生就能較為準確地把握段落里的信息，從而在概要寫作過程中不會遺漏重要的次要點。