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大学英语精读第二册 Unit Eight:Honesty:Is It Going out of St

时间:2005-04-20 16:00来源:互联网 提供网友:鱼尾巴   字体: [ ]
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TEXT

Ever thought about cheating on a test? Of course not. But some students are not quite so honest …

Honesty: Is It Going Out of Style?

Stacia Robbins

According to a recent poll, 61 percent of American high school students have admitted to cheating on exams at least once. It can be argued such a response my not mean much. After all, most students have been faced with the temptation to peek1 at a neighbor's test paper. And students can be hard on themselves in judging such behavior. However, there are other indications that high school cheating may be on the rise.
More and more states are requiring students to pass competency tests in order to receive their high school diplomas. And many educators fear that an increase in the use of state exams will lead to a corresponding rise in cheating. A case in point is students in New York State who faced criminal misdemeanor charges for possessing and selling advance copies of state Regents examinations.
Cheating is considered to be a major problem in colleges and universities. Several professors say they've dropped the traditional term paper requirement because many students buy prewritten term papers, and they can't track down all the cheaters anymore.
Colleges and universities across the nation have decided2 to do more than talk about the rise in student cheating. For instance, the Department of Psychology3 at the University of Maryland launched a campaign to stop one form of cheating. As 409 students filed out of their exam, they found all but one exit blocked. Proctors asked each student to produce an ID card with an attached photo. Students who said they'd left theirs in the dorm or at home had a mug shot taken. The purpose of the campaign was to catch "ringers," students who take tests for other students.
The majority of students at the University of Maryland applauded the campaign. The campus newspaper editorial said, "Like police arresting speeders, the intent is not to catch everyone but rather to catch enough to spread the word."
We frequently hear about "the good old days", when Americans were better, happier, and more honest. But were they more honest? Maybe yes, a long time ago when life was very different from what it is today.
School children used to know the story of how Abraham Lincoln walked five miles to return a penny he'd overcharged a customer. It's the kind of story we think of as myth. But in the case of Lincoln, the story is true … unlike the story of George Washington and the cherry tree. Washington's first biographer invented the tale of little George saying to his father, "I cannot tell a lie. I did it with my ax." What is important in both stories, however, is that honesty was seen as an important part of the American character.
And these are just two stories out of many. Students in the last century usually didn't read "fun" stories. They read stories that taught moral values. Such stories pointed4 out quite clearly that children who lied, cheated, or stole came to bad ends.
Parents may have further reinforced those values. It's difficult to know. We do know that children didn't hear their parents talk of cheating the government on income taxes - there weren't any.
A clue as to why Americans may have been more honest in the past lies in the Abe Lincoln story. Lincoln knew his customer. They both lived in a small town. Would a check-out person at a large supermarket return money a customer? It's less likely. On the other hand, would overnight guests at an inn run by a husband and wife, steal towels? It's less likely.
Perhaps this tells us that people need to know one another to be at their honest best.
The vast majority of Americans still believe that honesty as an important part of the American Character. For that reason, there are numerous watch-dog committees at all levels of society. Although signs of dishonesty in school, business, and government seem much more numerous in recent years than in the past, could it be that we are getting better at revealing such dishonesty?
There is some evidence that dishonesty may ebb5 and flow. When times are hard, incidents of theft and cheating usually go up. And when times get better such incidents tend to go down.
Cheating in school also tends to ebb and flow. But it doesn't seem linked to the economy.
Many educators feel that as students gain confidence in themselves and their abilities, they are less likely to cheat. Surprisingly, some efforts to prevent cheating may actually encourage cheating - a person may feel "they don't trust me anyway," and be tempted6 to "beat the system." Distrust can be contagious7. But, so can trust!

NEW WORDS

honesty
n. freedom from deceit, cheating, etc. 诚实
style
n. fashion 时髦
poll
n. survey of public opinion by putting questions to a representative selection of persons 民意测验
admit
v. state or agree to the truth of; confess 承认,供认
admission
n.
temptation
n. the act of tempting8 or being tempted 引诱;诱惑
peek
vi. look (at sth.) quickly, esp. when one should not 偷看
behavio(u)r
n. way of behaving 行为
behave
v.
indication
n. sign or suggestion 迹象

competency
n. ability; being competent 能力;胜任
diploma
n. official paper showing that a person has successfully finished a course of study or passed an examination 文凭
corresponding
a. matching 相应的
criminal
a. of crime
misdemeano(u)r
n. crime that is less serious than, for example, stealing of murder 轻罪
charge
n. accusation9 指控
possess
n. have, own 占有,拥有
advance
a. made available before the date of general publication or release 预先的
regent
n. member of a governing board (学校董事会的)董事
drop
vt. give up; discontinue 放弃;革除
traditional
a. of or according to tradition 传统的
tradition
n.
requirement
n. sth. required; sth. demanded as a condition 要求;必要条件
prewritten
a. written beforehand; written in advance
psychology
n. science of the mind 心理学
psychological
a.
launch
vt. start, set going 发起;发动
campaign
n. series of planned activities for some special purpose 运动
file
vi. march or move in a line 排成纵队行进
exit
n. way out of a place 出口(处)
proctor
n. 临考人
ID card
n. identity card 身份证
dorm
n. (short for) dormitory 宿舍
mug
n. the face or mouth
shot
n. a single photograph
mug shot
n. (sl.) photograph of a person's face, used for purposes of identification 面部照片
ringer
n. any person who pretends to be another 冒名顶替者
applaud
vt. praise esp. by striking one's hands to gether 拍手称赞
campus
n. university; the grounds of a university, college, or school 大学;校园
editorial
n. leading article 社论
arrest
vt. seize (sb.) in the name of the law 逮捕
speeder
n. person who drives an automobile10 at a higher speed than is lawful11 违法超速驾驶者
intent
n. purpose; intention
frequently
ad. at short intervals12, often 频繁地
overcharge
vt. charge too much 对...要价太高
customer
n. person who buys goods from a shop, esp. regularly 顾客
myth
n. 神话
unlike
prep. not like, different from
cherry
n. 樱桃
biographer
n. person who writes about another person's life 传记作家
ax(e)
n. 斧子
character
n. mental or moral qualities that make one person, race, etc. different from others 性格,品质
moral
a. concerning principles of right of wrong 道德的
reinforce
vt. encourage of strengthen 加强
tax
n. 税,税款
clue
n. sth. that helps to find an answer to a question 线索
check-out
n. desk where one pays the bill of the goods one has chosen 结帐处
supermarket
n. large shop where one serves oneself with food and goods 超级市场
overnight
a. for or during the night 住一夜的;一整夜的
inn
n. small hotel 小旅馆,客栈
towel
n. 毛巾
vast
a. very big
numerous
a. many
watch-dog
a. organized or acting13 as a watchful14 guardian15, esp. against unlawful practice 起监督作用的
dishonesty
n. the quality of being dishonest
reveal
vt. make known 揭露
evidence
n. sign or proof 证据
ebb
vi. (of the tide) flow back from the land to the sea; grow less; become weak or faint 落潮;低落,衰退
flow
vi. (of the tide) come in; rise; run or spread smoothly16 (潮)涨;上升;流
incident
n. event; happening 事件
theft
n. (the act of, an instance of) stealing
tend
vi. have a tendency 易于,往往会
link
vt. join or connect 连接;联系
economy
n. 经济
anyway
ad. at all; in any case 究竟;无论如何
tempt
vt. attract (sb.) to do sth. wrong or foolish 引诱
system
n. 体制;制度
systematic
a.
distrust
n. lack of trust; mistrust 不信任,怀疑
contagious
a. tending to spread easily from person to person 传染的

PHEASES & EXPRESSIONS

out of style
no longer fashionable 过时的,不再流行
according to
as stated or shown by; in a way that agrees with 按照,根据
(be) faced with
面对
be hard on
对...过分严厉
on the rise
increasing steadily17 在增长;在加剧
a case in point
a very good example 恰当的例子
all but
all except 除了...都
(be) different from
unlike, not the same as 与...不同
think of ... as
regard as
in the case of
就...来说,至于
come to
arrive at a particular state or position 变成(某种状态)
lie in
exist in 在于
on the other hand
from the opposed point of view 另一方面,反过来说
at one's best
in as good a state as possible 处于最佳状态
go up
rise; increase 上升;增加
go down
fall; decrease 下降;减少

PROPER NAMES

Stacia Robbins
斯泰茜娅.罗宾斯
Maryland
马里兰(美国州名)
Abe
艾贝(Abraham的昵称)
Abe


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 peek ULZxW     
vi.偷看,窥视;n.偷偷的一看,一瞥
参考例句:
  • Larry takes a peek out of the window.赖瑞往窗外偷看了一下。
  • Cover your eyes and don't peek.捂上眼睛,别偷看。
2 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
3 psychology U0Wze     
n.心理,心理学,心理状态
参考例句:
  • She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
  • He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。
4 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
5 ebb ebb     
vi.衰退,减退;n.处于低潮,处于衰退状态
参考例句:
  • The flood and ebb tides alternates with each other.涨潮和落潮交替更迭。
  • They swam till the tide began to ebb.他们一直游到开始退潮。
6 tempted b0182e969d369add1b9ce2353d3c6ad6     
v.怂恿(某人)干不正当的事;冒…的险(tempt的过去分词)
参考例句:
  • I was sorely tempted to complain, but I didn't. 我极想发牢骚,但还是没开口。
  • I was tempted by the dessert menu. 甜食菜单馋得我垂涎欲滴。
7 contagious TZ0yl     
adj.传染性的,有感染力的
参考例句:
  • It's a highly contagious infection.这种病极易传染。
  • He's got a contagious laugh.他的笑富有感染力。
8 tempting wgAzd4     
a.诱人的, 吸引人的
参考例句:
  • It is tempting to idealize the past. 人都爱把过去的日子说得那么美好。
  • It was a tempting offer. 这是个诱人的提议。
9 accusation GJpyf     
n.控告,指责,谴责
参考例句:
  • I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
  • She knew that no one would believe her accusation.她知道没人会相信她的指控。
10 automobile rP1yv     
n.汽车,机动车
参考例句:
  • He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
  • The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。
11 lawful ipKzCt     
adj.法律许可的,守法的,合法的
参考例句:
  • It is not lawful to park in front of a hydrant.在消火栓前停车是不合法的。
  • We don't recognised him to be the lawful heir.我们不承认他为合法继承人。
12 intervals f46c9d8b430e8c86dea610ec56b7cbef     
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 );间隔时间;[数学]区间;(戏剧、电影或音乐会的)幕间休息
参考例句:
  • The forecast said there would be sunny intervals and showers. 预报间晴,有阵雨。
  • Meetings take place at fortnightly intervals. 每两周开一次会。
13 acting czRzoc     
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的
参考例句:
  • Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她,她只是假装的。
  • During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代,她的表演生涯黯然失色。
14 watchful tH9yX     
adj.注意的,警惕的
参考例句:
  • The children played under the watchful eye of their father.孩子们在父亲的小心照看下玩耍。
  • It is important that health organizations remain watchful.卫生组织保持警惕是极为重要的。
15 guardian 8ekxv     
n.监护人;守卫者,保护者
参考例句:
  • The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
  • The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。
16 smoothly iiUzLG     
adv.平滑地,顺利地,流利地,流畅地
参考例句:
  • The workmen are very cooperative,so the work goes on smoothly.工人们十分合作,所以工作进展顺利。
  • Just change one or two words and the sentence will read smoothly.这句话只要动一两个字就顺了。
17 steadily Qukw6     
adv.稳定地;不变地;持续地
参考例句:
  • The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
  • Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。
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