VOA慢速英语--德国学生抗议英语考试不公平

German Students Protest ‘Unfair’ English Exam

Thousands of German students are accusing school officials of creating an English exam that was “unfairly” difficult.

The exam is important because it is part of Germany’s Abitur system. The Abitur test is given to students who are completing high school and preparing to enter college.

More than 35,000 people have signed a petition to voice their concerns about the test which was recently held in the state of Baden-Württemberg.

The students say the English part of the 2018 Abitur was clearly more difficult than tests given in recent years. They are calling on school officials to consider their criticisms while judging student performance and giving test results. School officials have defended the test. The said the questions were “appropriate” for the students.

The exam is designed to test a student’s understanding and skill level in English. Part of the test requires students to read examples of English writing and then answer questions to measure how much they comprehend.

Test unfairly difficult?

The petition says some of the English examples were very difficult to understand, even for students who usually perform well in English classes. It said some examples were written a long time ago and contained old words.

The petition also noted¹ that “metaphorical²” language was a problem.

One of the most criticized examples was a description of New York City’s Statue of Liberty.

This is part of the example on the test--it contains many words not usually used in VOA Learning English.

"Against the luminous³ sky the rays of her halo were spikes⁴ of darkness roweling the air; shadow flattened⁵ the torch she bore to a black cross against flawless light—the blackened hilt of a broken sword. Liberty."

The students were required to answer questions about that example.

The petition says such language should not have been used to measure reading and comprehension. Students said it contains too many “unknown words” and “symbolic⁶ meanings,” making it difficult to understand and analyze⁷.

Even some native English speakers pointed⁸ out on social media that they too would have difficulties with the writing in the example. One of those was a British Twitter user living in Frankfurt, Germany.

“I'm a native English speaker and ‘roweling’ is a new word to me, too. I'm pretty sure you can get by without it,” the user tweeted.

The petition noted another English example from the 1934 book “Call It Sleep” by Henry Roth. The students said many of the words used in the example are so outdated⁹ that some modern dictionaries do not even include them.

The petition said some examples dealt with character development. The students said this meant the comprehension questions required them to “interpret feelings and relationships.”

They said this meant the right answers were not necessarily provable and required a lot of time to try to “read between the lines.”

The BBC reported that the English exam also asked the students to compare two cartoons. They both dealt with the issue of Britain leaving the European Union, or Brexit.

One image was called “Project Fantasy,” the other “The Realities.” The cartoons required some current affairs knowledge and also English skills, BBC noted.

For all of these reasons, the petitioners¹⁰ declared, “The Abitur 2018 in Subject English was unfair!”

Officials: judges will take a balanced corrections

The local official in charge of the testing process in Baden-Württemberg is the area’s minister of culture, Susanne Eisenmann.

In a statement, she said officials had carried out a full review of the exam and decided¹¹ it was “appropriate” for the students being tested. She said the review included experts in charge of graduation requirements and outside English experts.

Eisenmann said she does not think the students should worry too much about their exam results. "I have full confidence in the teachers that they will use their discretion¹² to make responsible and balanced corrections,” she said.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

appropriate – adj. suitable or right for a particular situation or person

comprehend – v. to understand the meaning of

metaphorical – adj. an idea that is used as a symbol for something else

symbolic – adj. representing something

analyze – v. to study something closely and carefully

character – n. a person included in a story

cartoon – n. a picture that looks at people or objects in a funny way

assess – v. make a judgement about something

review – n. the act of carefully looking at or examining something

confidence – n. feeling of being certain of your ability to do something well

discretion – n. right to choose what should be done in a particular situation

1 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

2 metaphorical   

a.隐喻的，比喻的

参考例句：

• Here, then, we have a metaphorical substitution on a metonymic axis. 这样，我们在换喻（者翻译为转喻，一种以部分代替整体的修辞方法）上就有了一个隐喻的替代。
• So, in a metaphorical sense, entropy is arrow of time. 所以说，我们可以这样作个比喻：熵像是时间之矢。

3 luminous   

adj.发光的，发亮的；光明的；明白易懂的；有启发的

参考例句：

• There are luminous knobs on all the doors in my house.我家所有门上都安有夜光把手。
• Most clocks and watches in this shop are in luminous paint.这家商店出售的大多数钟表都涂了发光漆。

4 spikes   

n.穗( spike的名词复数 )；跑鞋；（防滑）鞋钉；尖状物v.加烈酒于( spike的第三人称单数 )；偷偷地给某人的饮料加入（更多）酒精（ 或药物）；把尖状物钉入；打乱某人的计划

参考例句：

• a row of iron spikes on a wall 墙头的一排尖铁
• There is a row of spikes on top of the prison wall to prevent the prisoners escaping. 监狱墙头装有一排尖钉，以防犯人逃跑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 flattened   

[医]（水）平扁的，弄平的

参考例句：

• She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
• I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。

6 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

7 analyze   

vt.分析，解析 (=analyse)

参考例句：

• We should analyze the cause and effect of this event.我们应该分析这场事变的因果。
• The teacher tried to analyze the cause of our failure.老师设法分析我们失败的原因。

8 pointed   

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。

9 outdated   

adj.旧式的，落伍的，过时的；v.使过时

参考例句：

• That list of addresses is outdated,many have changed.那个通讯录已经没用了，许多地址已经改了。
• Many of us conform to the outdated customs laid down by our forebears.我们许多人都遵循祖先立下的过时习俗。

10 petitioners   

n.请求人，请愿人( petitioner的名词复数 )；离婚案原告

参考例句：

• Petitioners suggest that anything less than certainty, that any speculation, is irresponsible. 申诉者认为不准确的事或推断都是不负责任的。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• The judge awarded the costs of the case to the petitioners. 法官判定由这起案件的上诉人支付诉讼费用。 来自辞典例句

11 decided   

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。

12 discretion   

n.谨慎；随意处理

参考例句：

• You must show discretion in choosing your friend.你择友时必须慎重。
• Please use your best discretion to handle the matter.请慎重处理此事。