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Mind Your Manners 礼貌讲堂

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Are college students behaving badly in the classrooms?   大学生在课堂上的行为是否已经变得恶劣无礼？

Lee Shumow doesn’t want to text her students, or be their friend on Facebook. To their chagrin, she prefers an old-fashioned way to communicate: e-mail.

李．舒牟不想传手机简讯给学生，也不要加入他们的Facebook好友群组；不过，令学生大失所望的是，她偏爱透过老式的沟通管道和学生联系：也就是电子邮件。

The educational psychology professor appreciates when students take the time to reply. It’s an extra treat when they don’t begin their message with, “Hey, Lee.”

如果学生愿意花点时间来回复她的电子邮件，这位教育心理学教授就会感到很欣慰；而如果学生在信的开头没有写着：「喂，老李」的话，那么对她而言就更是额外的惊喜了。

She and many of her colleagues believe such informality has seeped into the college classroom environment, citing student behavior that’s best described as rude or oblivious. Instructors blame technology for creating a disengaged generation whose attention is constantly diverted by laptops, phones and iPods.

她和很多同僚都认为，行为随便的问题已经渗入了大学殿堂，而学生这种行为的最贴切形容，就是粗鲁或视而不见。老师们指责，现代科技养出了一批疏离的世代，他们的注意力随时都可能被笔记本电脑、手机和iPod所转移。

“I literally cannot imagine having addressed any teacher I had in my career as ‘Hey’ and then their first name,” said Shumow, who has a doctoral degree and has taught 15 years at Northern Illinois University. “I love them. I won an award forundergraduate teaching in 2005. But man, the world has really changed from when I was a student.”

「就以我自己在生涯中遇过的所有师长来说，如果要我想象自己用『喂』来叫老师，还直呼老师的名，而非他们的称谓，那么我真的无法想象那种情况，」舒牟如此透露，拥有博士学位的她，在北伊利诺伊州大学教了十五年的书。「我爱我的学生们，甚至还在二００五年获颁大学教学奖。唉，但世界已经变样了，和我当年读书的时候完全不一样了。」

To their credit, most students are respectful and more inquisitive than ever, faculty members say.

不过，大学教职员表示，大多数学生的行为仍然相当值得赞赏（译注:to one’s credit指某人值得赞扬、认可），因为他们不但尊师重道，而且比过去的学生更好学不倦。

Yet professors also find they must devote space in the syllabus to ask students to refrain from surfing the web, texting or answering cell phones during a lecture.

只不过，教授们也发现，如今他们不得不在课程大纲上挪出一点空间来加入注明，好要求学生不要在上课时上网、发手机简讯或接听电话，以免影响上课。

For their part, students are irked by others who slurp and chew food, doze off or dominate discussion.

对学生来说，他们在上课时最讨厌的情况，就是有人出声地吃喝和咀嚼食物、打瞌睡，或是在大家讨论时，肆无忌惮地发表高见，企图主导整个讨论。

Some blame high schools for lowering the bar on classroom conduct, while others say the problems begin at home, when families fail to instill in children basic skills such as how to say “please” or “thank you.”

有些人则怪罪中学对于约束学生在课堂上的言行降低了标准，疏于管教学生；而其他人则认为，问题的根源其实出在家庭没有尽到责任，是家长没有灌输子女如何适时说「请」或「谢谢」等礼仪的基本技巧。

In some cases, parents are more obnoxious than their offspring. One professor reported hearing from an irate father whose child had failed a class. The father insisted he had paid enough tuition for “at least a D.”

有些情况则是，家长本身甚至比子女更面目可憎。一位教授透露，他听到有位气冲冲的家长，在发现孩子有门课被当之后，居然坚称自己学费没有少缴，所以孩子的成绩「至少也该有六十分才对」（译注：美国一般成绩的换算标准是，A为90分，B为80分，C为70分，而D为60分）。

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treat [trit] n. 难得的乐事

informality [ɪnfɔrˋmælətɪ] n. 不拘礼节

seep [sip] v. (+into) 渗出；漏 to trickle or leak out of something

cite [saɪt] v. 引用；引……为证；举出

disengaged [͵dɪsɪnˋgedʒd] adj. 漫不经心的

divert [daɪˋvɝt] v. 转移；使分心[（+from）]

address [əˋdrɛs] v. 称呼[（+as）]

doctoral [ˋdɑktərəl] adj. 博士的；博士学位的

to one’s credit 使某人增光, 是某人的荣誉, 值得赞扬 deserving of one’s praise or recognition; admirable

respectful [rɪˋspɛktfəl] adj. 恭敬的；尊敬人的，尊重人的; 礼貌的

inquisitive [ɪnˋkwɪzətɪv] adj. 好问的；好奇的

faculty [ˋfæk!tɪ] n.【主美】（大学或院，系的）全体教职员

devote [dɪˋvot] v. 投入(时间、精力等)

syllabus [ˋsɪləbəs] n. 教学大纲，课程大纲 a written plan showing the subjects or books to be studied in a particular course

refrain [rɪˋfren] v. 忍住；抑制，节制；戒除[（+from）]

for (one's) part 至于某人; 对某人来说 so far as one is concerned

slurp [slɝp] v. 出声地吃（或喝）

doze off 打(起)瞌睡(来); 打(起)盹儿(来) to fall into a light sleep

doze [doz] v. 打瞌睡，打盹；半睡

instill [ɪnˋstɔl] v. <美>逐渐使某人获得（某种可取的品质），逐步灌输

obnoxious [əbˋnɑkʃəs] adj.【文】令人非常不快的，讨厌的，可憎的

irate [ˋaɪret] adj. 发怒的；生气的

课文朗读

课文讲解

Professor or service provider?  是传道授业，还是只提供了服务？

Experts believe there is more to collegiate rudeness than perhaps a feeling of entitlement.

不过，专家认为，大学生粗鲁无礼的行径，也许不仅是出于自认有权如此做。

“The attitude often is: “I don’t need you. I have the Net,” said P.M. Forni, director of the Civility Initiative at Johns Hopkins University. These are students for whom the computers are the training wheels of their knowledge since early childhood. Many of them will think nothing of starting to text as you convey a commentary on Dante’s Divine Comedy.”

「学生常见的态度往往是：『我才不需要老师呢，我有网络就万事OK了，』」约翰霍金斯大学礼仪方案主任P.M.福尼如此表示，「这个世代的学生，往往打从幼年起，就一直依赖计算机作为吸收知识的辅助工具，所以当老师开始在课堂上教授有关但丁《神曲》的评论文章时，很多学生就会马上开始打简讯，而且认为这样根本没什么好大惊小怪的。」（译注：think nothing of指把某事视为稀松平常，认为不足为奇。）

There is a sense, Forni said, that the relationship between student and teacher is now likened to one between a client and service provider. “The prestige of the teacher and the professors as providers of knowledge and wisdom has decreased as the importance of the information technology has increased,” he said.

福尼指出，感觉上，传统的师生关系，如今似乎变成了客户和服务提供商的关系。「随着信息科技的重要性与日俱增，老师和教授作为知识与智能的供应者的权威，却反而与日递减，」他如此透露。

Setting clear boundaries  设定明确的底线

Professors should set a tone of relaxed formality and define boundaries from day one, Forni said. For instance, he begins his classes by explaining that he grew up in Italy during a different generation, where wearing caps in a classroom was considered rude. He considers it a distraction.

福尼指出，打从第一天上课起，教授们就应该设定课堂应轻松但不随便的基调，同时也要明确界定自己能接受的底线。举例来说，他在第一堂课时，都会先解释自己当年在意大利成长的背景，而那是个完全不同的世代，就当时来说，在课堂上戴帽会被视为粗鲁无礼，所以他现在也会觉得，课堂上如果有这种行为，很容易令人分心。

“I say, ‘Listen, I cannot enforce this. I am just asking you as a favor not to wear a cap in class for this reason,’” Forni said. “Nobody from that moment on wears his cap in class.”

「我会说，『大家听好，我不强制执行这个规定，而只是请大家帮个忙，看在上述理由的份上，尽量不要在课堂上戴帽，』」福尼透露，「从此之后，就不会有人在课堂上戴帽了。」

Students usually respond well, teachers say, when they understand what is expected of them and what they can expect from the professor – including respect. The very nature of some class subjects can provoke discussion – or arguments that offend.

老师们也表示，当学生充分了解到，老师期望他们能有的行为，以及他们能期望老师有的行为──其中包括互敬互重，之后他们的响应通常都很好。不过，某些课堂上的主题的确可能引发讨论──或甚至是言语冒犯的争辩。

“I think it’s all in the way the instructor approaches the particular situation and addresses students,” said Kerry Lane, a professor who assigns reading on topics such as race and faith that can be delicate. “When we are 18, we may not be aware of how different our views are from others’.”

「我认为，最重要的是在于，授课教师如何着手处理特定的情况，以及如何向学生传达出来，」凯莉．兰恩表示，身为教授的她，有时会要求学生阅读如种族和宗教信仰等需要小心处理的敏感主题，「我们自己当年十八岁的时候，可能会觉得自己的观点和其他人没什么两样。」（译注：指时代不同了，从前学生们的观点大同小异，但如今思想变得多样化，不同学生的想法也可能大相径庭，所以讨论敏感议题就可能引发争辩。）

−by Lisa Black

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service provider 服务提供商 someone who meets the needs of others by providing something

collegiate [kəˋlidʒɪɪt] adj. 大学生的

civility [sɪˋvɪlətɪ] n. 礼貌，文明态度举止

initiative [ɪˋnɪʃətɪv] n. 倡议

training wheels (帮助脚踏车初学者保持平衡的)辅助措施 small wheels fixed to each side of the back wheel of a bicycle to prevent it from falling over when a child is learning to ride it

think nothing of doing something 把...视为平常; 看轻 to do something unusual or dangerous without worrying about it

Dante [ˋdɑnte] n. 但丁（意大利诗人）

divine [dəˋvaɪn] adj. 天赐的; 神的; 神圣的

liken [ˋlaɪkən] v. 把……比作[（+to）] to see, mention, or show as similar; compare

set a/the tone 定下基调 to establish the way that event or activity will continue, especially the mood of the people involved

formality [fɔrˋmælətɪ] n. 礼节；俗套; 形式; 仪式

distraction [dɪˋstrækʃən] n. 分散注意的事物

favor [ˋfevɚ] n. 善意的行为；恩惠

offend [əˋfɛnd] v. 冒犯；触怒；伤害……的感情

approach [əˋprotʃ] v. 着手处理，开始对付

delicate [ˋdɛləkət] adj. 需要小心处理的；微妙的；棘手的

单词发音

Vocabulary Focus

chagrin [ʃəˋgrɪn] n. 失望; 苦恼; 悔恨 disappointment or anger, especially when caused by a failure or mistake

oblivious [əˋblɪvɪəs] adj. 不以为意的; 不知道的；未注意的; 未觉察的 not aware of or not noticing something, especially what is happening around you

irk [ɝk] v. 使厌倦；使苦恼; 激怒 to annoy someone

lower the bar 降低标准 to lower certain standards or expectation

entitlement [ɪnˋtaɪt!mənt] n. 应得的权利 when you have the right to do or have something

prestige [prɛsˋtiʒ] n. 名望，声望，威望 respect and admiration given to someone or something, usually because of a reputation for high quality, success, or social influence

provoke [prəˋvok] v. 诱导，导致; 激起  to elicit a response or cause a particular reaction