雅思阅读模拟题NewWaysofTeachingHistoryWord文件下载.docx

1、challenges to the educational table. Whereas youth are easily enraptured byhigh-definition television, computers, iPods, video games and cell phones, theyare less than enthralled by what to them are obsolete textbooks and boringclassroom lectures. The question of how to teach history in a digital ag

2、e isoften contentious. On the one side, the old guard thinks the professionalstandards history is in mortal danger from flash-in-the-pan challenges by thedistal that are all show and no substance. On the other Side, the self-styled“disruptors ” offer over -blown rhetoric about how digital technology

3、 has changedeverything while the moribund profession obstructs all progress in the name ofoutdated ideals. At least, thats a parody （maybe not much of one） of how thedebate proceeds. Both supporters and opponents of the digital share moredisciplinary common ground than either admits.When provided wi

4、th merely a textbook as a supplemental learning tool, testresults have revealed that most students fail to pinpoint the significance ofhistorical events and individuals. Fewer still are able to cite and substantiateprimary historical sources. What does this say about the way our educators arepresent

5、ing information? The quotation comes from a report of a 1917 test of 668Texas students. Less than 10 percent of school-age children attended high schoolin 1917; today, enrollments are nearly universal. The whole world has turned onits head during the last century but one thing has stayed the same： Y

6、oung peopleremain woefully ignorant about history reflected from their history tests. Guesswhat? Historians are ignorant too, especially when we equate historicalknowledge with the Jeopardy Daily Double. In a test, those specializing inAmerican history did just fine. But those with specialties in me

7、dieval, Europeanand African history failed miserably when confronted by items about FortTiconderoga, the Olive Branch Petition, or the Quebec Act all taken from atypical textbook. According to the testers, the results from the recent NationalAssessment in History, like scores from earlier tests, sho

8、w that young peopleare abysmally ignorant of their own history. Invoking the tragedy of lastSeptember, historian Diane Ravitch hitched her worries about our future to theidea that our nations strength is endangered by youth who do poorly on suchtests. But if she were correct, we could have gone down

9、 the tubes in 1917!There is a huge difference between saying Kids don tknow the history wewant then to know and saying Kids dont know history at all. Historicalknowledge burrows itself into our cultural pores even if young people canmarshal it when faced by a multiple choice test. If we werent such

10、hypocrites（or maybe if we were better historians） wed have to admit that todays studentsfollow in our own footsteps. For too long weve fantasized that by rewritingtextbooks we could change how history is learned. The problem, however, is notthe content of textbooks but the very idea of them. No huma

11、n mind could retainthe information crammed into these books in 1917, and it can do no better now.If we have learned anything from history that can be applied to every timeperiod, it is that the only constant is change. The teaching of history, or anysubject for that matter, is no exception. The ques

12、tion is no longer whether tobring new technologies into everyday education; now, the question is which Thereis a huge difference between saying t know thehistory we want then toknow Historical knowledge burrowsitself into our cultural pores even if young people cant marshal it when facedby a multipl

13、e choice test. If we weren t such hypocrites （ormaybe if we werebetter historians） wes students follow in our ownfootsteps. For too long weve fantasized that by rewriting textbooks we couldchange how history is learned. The problem, however, is not the content oftextbooks but the very idea of them.

14、No human mind could retain the informationcrammed into these books in 1917, and it can do no better now. If we havelearned anything from history that can be applied to every time period, it isthat the only constant is change. The teaching of history, or any subject forthat matter, is no exception. The question is no longer whether to bring newtechnologies into everyday education; now, the question is which technologiesare most suitable for the range of topics covered in junior high and high schoolhistory classrooms. Fortunately, technology has provided us with o