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简单的英语写作句型【优秀20篇】

作文是中考作文中的重中之重,甚至可以说,写作能力几近了中考的半壁江山。下面是小编整理的六点技巧,欢迎大家阅读!总结经验。

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英语四级考试作文写作技巧

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想要在20xx年英语四级考试中作文拿高分,遵循以下技巧就行。

20xx年英语四级考试作文技巧一:

总体原则:六个字:先结构后表达。

总体做法:三步法

1. 审题:两项内容:1)英文标题+2)汉语提纲 (如果汉语提纲不是三条,则将其转化为三条提纲)

2. 将三个汉语提纲转化为一个英文表达,充当该段主题句。(首尾段可无主题句,但中间段落最好有)

3. 将主题句扩展成一个英文段落。(方法:举例、数据、对比、列举、补充说明、因果法等)

20xx年英语四级考试作文技巧二:实例及具体时间分配

第1、2步为准备工作 时间控制在三分钟以内:

(注:建议考生带上手表,以便掌握写作时间分配,超过三分钟按照已经列出的关键词的内容展开文章的开头部分)

如一道六级的写作考题为:

directions: for this part, you are allowed thirty minutes to write a composition on the topic college students" part-time jobs. you should write at least 150 words, and base your composition on the outline (given in chinese) below:

1. 有些人赞成大学生做兼职, 有人反对

2. 我的看法

审题:1. 题目:college students" part-time jobs

2. 提纲:1. 有些人赞成大学生做兼职, 有人反对;2. 我的看法

题目关键词为: part-time jobs

3. 提纲转化为三条:

1. 有些人持相反意见

2. 有些人赞成大学生做兼职

3. 我的看法 (无需写出)

20xx年英语四级考试作文技巧三:先结构:

联想课堂所讲:三段或四段式结构,且每段只写一项内容。

以“三段式”为例:

后表达:(三方面:句、词、衔接)关键词罗列

1. 联想开篇句式:when it comes to …, people" opinions differ/vary. 或者it is a common phenomenon for … to do sth, 或者 it can be noticed that an increasing number of …

将这些表达以关键词的形式列出:如: when… 或者 it is …

2. 转化主题句:

1) 有些人持反对意见- others hold the opposite view.

理由:1. main task- academic study, 2. society complex- cheated

2) 有些人赞成大学生做兼职- hold the positive view

理由:1. ease financial burden 2. enrich experience

3) 我的看法- both right …….

3. 扩展成文

最后,请检查基本语音错误:1, 单词拼写 2, 时态, 3, 单复数,4,关联词

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更多相似作文

篇1:2024关于初一英语写作技巧

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一、充分准备,打好基础。

为了提高初一英语作文写作水平,平时应加强阅读,多背诵一些句形、段落甚至短文。俗话说:“读书破万卷,下笔如有神”,只有多读,多记,多背诵,才能出口成章,下笔成文。此外,写好初一英语作文还要掌握一些应用文体的写作方法,如书信、日记、通知等,它们大多有固定的格式。

二、认真审题,明确要求

在写初一英语作文的时候仔细看清写作要求和提示,分清材料的主次,接着确定体裁、格式和人物、地点等要素;最后确定时态,同时考虑相关的语态搭配用法。

三、遣词造句、表达规范

初一英语作文用词要恰当,不可逐句把提示翻译成英语。写作时,应尽量选用你最熟悉、最有把握的词和句型来表达思想。如果有些单词不会些,有些句型不会表达,可以设法绕开,用熟悉的同义词、同义短语或同义句来代替。要学会善于运用适当的关联词,如and, or, but, so,because, since等,以使初一英语作文行文逻辑紧密,自然流畅。

四、认真撰写,卷面整洁

初一英语考试中也会有初一英语作文题,如果时间允许,书面表达一定要先写草稿。在抄写入答题卷前,要先进行检查修改。首先检查所写内容是否切题;之后检查主题是否明确,表达方式是否恰当;最后检查所用时态、语态、人称是否符合要求,前后是否一致。

中考复习研讨会指导课件,极具价值。

关联词

1.表示并列或递进: and, as well as, both…and,

not only…but also, neither…nor;

2.表示选择: or, either…or;

3.表示转折: but, however, although, though, after all,

4.表示因果: because, so, therefore

5.表示条件: if , unless

6.表示对比: instead, not…but,

on the one hand…on the other hand;

7.表示解释: for example, for instance, such as,

that is to say, in other words;

8.表示顺序: to begin with, firstly, first (of all), second(ly), next,

later, since then, from then on, finally, in the end;

9.表示强调: also, besides, what’s more, actually,

in fact,

10.表示结论: all in all, altogether, in a word,generally speaking。

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篇2:2024年中考看图英语作文写作指导

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最近几年的中考英语当中,很多省市已经摆脱了单一作文模式,采用一大一小两个作文相结合的模式。例如,去年辽宁沈阳中考英语作文就是一个小作文,应用文-写假条,加上一个大作文,汉语提示作文构成。今年,北京中考英语作文也将是两个,一个看图作文在加上一个提示作文构成。这一讲,我们先来学习一下看图作文的写法。

看图作文要求考生按照所给图画,通过合理的联想将一组画面的内容正确地表达出来。看图作文与其他类型作文的不同之处在于,它除了要求考生有英语语言表达能力,还要求考生有观察能力、分析能力和想象能力。

写好看图作文应注意的事项1、结合文字提示,正确理解图意。一般情况下,看图作文在提供图画的同时也附带有简要的文字提示,我们可以利用文字提示去正确地理解图意,得到要点。切忌孤立地看图而忽视文字提示。

写作从图画的细节出发。所谓细节,就是指图画中的人物、事件、地点、环境、时间、动作等。依据图画细节,就可以把图画的内容用英语具体而生动地表达出来了。

(三)例题分析(例题)

同学们,看到下面的四幅图片及相应的报道后,你感到最担忧的是哪两种情形?请简述你担忧的理由并提出建议或希望。

要求:

⒈ 从所给素材中任选两种情形进行阐述,不可多选或少选。

⒉ 条理清楚,意思连贯,语句通顺,标点正确;

⒊ 词数 80 ~ 100。

参考词汇: 建议 suggest v. suggestion n.

气体 gas n. 污染 pollution n.

THE POLLUTIONS

① One third of the worlds people dont have enough clean water.

② More and more diseases are caused by polluted air.

③ People are disturbed quite often by kinds of noises.

④ Every person in our city makes about 1.8 kilos of rubbish every day.

这道看图作文题,主题和图片连接得不是很紧密。从考查的形式上来说,虽是看图,实质上却属于提示性的作文。这个作文应该结合个人的观点,选择的余地还是很大的。做这个题应该注意几个方面:

1、认真读题。注意,题目虽然给了四幅图,但是却只要求写其中的两个就行。

2、题意要求的是阐述个人的观点-最担忧的两种情形。而不是对图片进行描述。

3、结合所给的提示。提示中,对每种污染都进行了阐述,考生可以这些描述进行写作。

4、注意字数,语法,拼写等,避免错误。

下面是两个例文,大家可以参考一下。

One possible version:

The environment is becoming worse and worse. There are many kinds of pollution I worry about. The most serious two are water pollution and air pollution, because people cant live healthily with dirty water and polluted air, nor can animals. More and more diseases are caused by polluted air.

I think factories should not pour dirty water into the river directly or produce more waste gas. Wed better go on foot or by like instead of by car, because more cars mean more waste gas. We should make our world more and more beautiful.

Another possible version:

The first fact I worry about is noise pollution. People cant sleep well if there is too much noise. Thats why so many people prefer to live in the countryside rather than live in the noisy city. I suggest all the factories and cars shouldnt make terrible noises. If they make terrible noise that isnt allowed, they will be fined, and we can also produce the cars which cant make terrible noise.

The other pollution is rubbish pollution. If everyone makes so much rubbish, one day we may live in a world filled with rubbish. Some people throw the waste paper about. I suggest rubbish should be put into different kinds of dustbins or paper bags.

下面,我们来看看这道题的评分标准。一般来说,各地的评分标准都和下面的这个标准差不多。这个最高的标准,实际上也就是我们写作的目标。

评分标准:

1. 内容完整,语句流畅,无语法错误,书写规范,给9-10分;

2. 内容较完整,语句较流畅,基本无语法错误,书写较规范,给6-8分;

3. 内容不完整,语句欠流畅,语法错误较多,书写较规范,给3-5分;

4. 只写出个别要点,语法错误较多,书写欠规范,只有个别句子可读或不知所云,给0-2分。

看图作文不可小视。希望大家掌握答好这种题型的要点,并积累词汇。

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篇3:简单英语作文我的朋友

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My good friend is XX.She’s a girl(or boy).She is my classmate.

Mei is tall and thin.She has two big eyes and long hair.She likes listening to music and reading books.Sometimes we listen to music together.She likes summer.Because she can swim in the summer holiday.She likes pink and white.She is in Class Four,Grade Six with me.She usually goes to school by motor cycle.Sometimes she goes to school on foot.We often go shopping together on the weekend.

We will be good friends forever.

我的好朋友

我的好朋友是XX。她是一个女孩(或男孩)。她是我的同学。

梅是又高又瘦。她有一双大眼睛和长长的头发。她喜欢听音乐和看书。有时我们一起听音乐。她喜欢夏天。因为她可以在暑假游泳。她喜欢粉红色和白色的。她在四班,六年级的我。她通常是骑摩托车上学。有时她步行上学。我们经常在周末一起去购物。

我们永远是好朋友。

[简单英语作文我的朋友

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篇4:中考英语作文的写作技巧

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要写好英语作文,还要带着敏锐的目光细心地观察,注意英语中一些表达上的习惯。小编收集了中考英语作文的写作技巧,欢迎阅读。

一、要善于模仿

对大多数学习英语的同学来说,英语的词汇量、句式的积累还极其有限,远不能达到用英文流畅表达,挥洒自如的境地。在这一阶段进行创作是不合时宜的,如果非要创造,只能写出“long time no see”这样的文字来。因此,模仿是这一阶段的必经途径。

谈到模仿,一些同学的办法就是背一堆范文,然后再到考场上进行一个“剪切”、“粘贴”的工作,效果可想而知。这不是真正意义上的模仿,充其量算是默写课文。如何模仿呢?

首先,模仿的目标要明确。模仿的重点永远要放在一定的句式结构上,而非个别的词汇。道理很简单:一个词,随着文章内容的变换,可能就不能用了;而句式结构是放置四海而皆准的东西,适用的范围广,学来对写作的帮助也就明显。

其次,模仿的材料要地道。像新概念英语这样的教材就提供了很多原汁原味的英语表达法。盲目选择文章学习,记一些不中不洋的句子,以讹传讹,浪费时间。

最后,模仿要体现在实际动笔上。比如说,新概念第三册有一个句式说:“…for the simple reason that…”表示某种现象的原因是什么,用在大学英语考试中,我们就可以拿来解释为什么自行车在中国如此的流行,表达为:“the bicycle is very popular in china for the simple reason that…”。然而,很多同学经常背了这些句式不用,一谈到原因仍然是“…because…”,等等。

二、要灵活变通

在批改英语作文的过程中,经常能发现一些将中文生硬地翻译成英文的表达法。由于中英文之间的差异和词汇量、表达法积累的不足,出现难于表达的情况是十分正常的。关键问题在于如何处理。有一句话叫做“立志如山,行道如水”,套用在这个问题上就很合适。写英文作文,一定要有决心把它写好,有信心把意思表达清楚,这是“立志如山”;但关键是遇到问题时要有个灵活的态度,能像流水一样变通解决问题。

有个翻译界的故事说:在某大型国际会议的招待会上,一道菜是用鸡蛋做的。与会的客人问翻译:“what is it made of?”本来是非常简单的一个问题,结果翻译太紧张,忘了“egg”这个词,但是他急中生智,回答:“it is made of miss hen’s son.”这里,就是一个灵活变通的范例。绕道表达,是写作中应该常常运用的一种方法。

三、要细心观察

要写好英语作文,还要带着敏锐的目光细心地观察,注意英语中一些表达上的习惯。

比如说,在正式文体的写作中,很少用 “it isn"t”这样的略缩形式,而往往是一板一眼地写作 “it is not”。同理,在正式文体中的日期一般不缩写,阿拉伯数字一般会用英文表达(特别长的数字除外)。

再比如说,翻翻新概念第三册所有的课文,会发现凡是一段文章的段首句出现转折时,转折词however都放在句子结构中的第二部分,以插入语的形式出现。分析原因,是因为段落一开始就用转折词,会时转折显得较生硬、突兀。

最后,许多同学在写作文时,习惯于把 “since” “because” “for”这样的词放在句首引导原因状语从句。事实上,在我们见到的英语报刊杂志文章中,这样的从句一般都是放在主句之后的。另外, “and”也常常被误放在一句话的开头,表示两个句子之间的并列或递进关系。其实,经常留心地道的英语文章能发现,如果是并列关系,完全可以不用连词;如果是递进关系,用 “furthermore” “what is more”更为普遍。

四、要心有全局

英文写作十分强调形式上的严谨性,特别是全局的丝丝入扣。如果写作时结构意识良好,应试写作就简化成为一个填空的过程了。框架万变不离其宗,适当地填如观点、素材,文章就自然而然地立起来了。

掌握了这些英文写作中的练习技巧,会使提高英文写作水平的努力有更大的收益。

下面智康教育跟大家分享写作的“五项基本原则” :

1、 长短句原则

工作还得一张一驰呢,老让读者读长句,累死人!写一个短小精辟的句子,相反,却可以起到画龙点睛的作用。而且如果我们把短句放在段首或者段末,也可以揭示主题:

as a creature, i eat; as a man, i read. although one action is to meet the primary need of my body and the other is to satisfy the intellectual need of mind, they are in a way quite similar.

如此可见,长短句结合,抑扬顿挫,岂不爽哉?牢记!

强烈建议:在文章第一段(开头)用一长一短,且先长后短;在文章主体部分,要先用一个短句解释主要意思,然后在阐述几个要点的时候采用先短后长的句群形式,定会让主体部分妙笔生辉!文章结尾一般用一长一短就可以了。

2、 主题句原则

国有其君,家有其主,文章也要有其主。否则会给人造成“群龙无首”之感!相信各位读过一些破烂文学,故意把主体隐藏在文章之内,结果造成我们稀里糊涂!不知所云!所以奉劝各位一定要写一个主题句,放在文章的开头(保险型)或者结尾,让读者一目了然,必会平安无事!

特别提示:隐藏主体句可是要冒险的!

to begin with, you must work hard at your lessons and be fully prepared before the exam(主题句). without sufficient preparation, you can hardly expect to answer all the questions correctly.

3、 一二三原则

领导讲话总是第一部分、第一点、第二点、第三点、第二部分、第一点… 如此罗嗦。可毕竟还是条理清楚。考官们看文章也必然要通过这些关键性的“标签”来判定你的文章是否结构清楚,条理自然。破解方法很简单,只要把下面任何一组的词汇加入到你的几个要点前就清楚了。

1)first, second, third, last(不推荐,原因:俗)

2)firstly, secondly, thirdly, finally(不推荐,原因:俗)

3)the first, the second, the third, the last(不推荐,原因:俗)

4)in the first place, in the second place, in the third place, lastly(不推荐,原因:俗)

5)to begin with, then, furthermore, finally(强烈推荐)

6)to start with, next, in addition, finally(强烈推荐)

7)first and foremost, besides, last but not least(强烈推荐)

8)most important of all, moreover, finally

9)on the one hand, on the other hand(适用于两点的情况)

10)for one thing, for another thing(适用于两点的情况)

4、 短语优先原则

写作时,尤其是在考试时,如果使用短语,有两个好处:其一、用短语会使文章增加亮点,如果老师们看到你的文章太简单,看不到一个自己不认识的短语,必然会看你低一等。相反,如果发现亮点—精彩的短语,那么你的文章定会得高分了。其二、关键时刻思维短路,只有凑字数,怎么办?用短语是一个办法!比如:

i cannot bear it.

可以用短语表达:i cannot put up with it.

i want it.

可以用短语表达:i am looking forward to it.

这样字数明显增加,表达也更准确。

5、 多变句式原则

1)加法(串联)

都希望写下很长的句子,像个老外似的,可就是怕写错,怎么办,最保险的写长句的方法就是这些,可以在任何句子之间加and, 但最好是前后的句子又先后关系或者并列关系。比如说:

i enjor music and he is fond of playing guitar.

如果是二者并列的,我们可以用一个超级句式:

not only the fur coat is soft, but it is also warm.

其它的短语可以用:

besides, furthermore, likewise, moreover

2)转折(拐弯抹角)

批评某人缺点的时候,我们总习惯先拐弯抹角说说他的优点,然后转入正题,再说缺点,这种方式虽然阴险了点,可毕竟还比较容易让人接受。所以呢,我们说话的时候,只要在要点之前先来点废话,注意二者之间用个专这次就够了。

the car was quite old, yet it was in excellent condition.

the coat was thin, but it was warm.

更多的短语:

despite that, still, however, nevertheless, in spite of, despite, notwithstanding

3)因果(so, so, so)

昨天在街上我看到了一个女孩,然后我主动搭讪,然后我们去咖啡厅,然后我们认识了,然后我们成为了朋友…可见,讲故事的时候我们总要追求先后顺序,先什么,后什么,所以然后这个词就变得很常见了。其实这个词表示的是先后或因果关系!

the snow began to fall, so we went home.

更多短语:

then, therefore, consequently, accordingly, hence, as a result, for this reason, so that

4)失衡句(头重脚轻,或者头轻脚重)

有些人脑袋大,身体小,或者有些人脑袋小,身体大,虽然我们不希望长成这个样子,可如果真的是这样了,也就必然会吸引别人的注意力。文章中如果出现这样的句子,就更会让考官看到你的句子与众不同。其实就是主语从句,表语从句,宾语从句的变形。

举例:this is what i can do.

whether he can go with us or not is not sure.

同样主语、宾语、表语可以改成如下的复杂成分:

when to go, why he goes away…

5)附加(多此一举)

如果有了老婆,总会遇到这样的情况,当你再讲某个人的时候,她会插一句说,我昨天见过他;或者说,就是某某某,如果把老婆的话插入到我们的话里面,那就是定语从句和同位语从句或者是插入语。

the man whom you met yesterday is a friend of mine.

i don’t enjoy that book you are reading.

mr liu, our oral english teacher, is easy-going.

其实很简单,同位语--要解释的东西删除后不影响整个句子的构成;定语从句—借用之前的关键词并且用其重新组成一个句子插入其中,但是whom or that 关键词必须要紧跟在先行词之前。

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篇5:英语作文简单句的九大基本句型

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你知道英语写作的常用的九大句型是哪些吗?下面语文迷网整理了相关的句型及例句,大家一起来阅读吧。

1. “主语 + 谓语”(即“主谓”句型)

这一句型英汉语言结构形式完全相同,说明“某人或某物如何动作”,或者说“某人或某物自身怎样运动”。

例:They arrived in Harbin yesterday morning.

分析:“他们”(主语)“到了”(谓语动作)。

The earth turns around the sun.地球围绕太阳转。

The sun rises in the east, and sets in the west.太阳东升西落。

2. “主语 + 谓语 + 宾语”(即“主谓宾”句型)

这一句型英汉语言的结构形式完全相同,用以说明“某人或某物做什么事情”,或者说“某人或某物发出了动作,并且其动作涉及到另一个人或物”。

例:I study English.

分析:“我”(主语)“学习”(谓语动作)“英语”(宾语即动作涉及的对象)。

I like swimming.我喜欢游泳。

3. “主语 + 谓语 + 间接宾语 + 直接宾语”(即“主谓双宾”句型)

这一句型英汉语序结构相同,说明“某人为谁(间接宾语为人)做某事”,或者说“某人或物的运动涉及到两个对象,其中一个间接对象为人,另一个为物”。

例:Our teacher taught us English.

分析:“我们的老师”(主语)“教”(谓语动作)“我们”(间接宾语)“英语”(直接宾语)。

4. “主语 + 谓语 + 宾语 + 宾语补足语”(即“主谓宾补”句型)

这一句型说明“某人或某物要求(使、让)某人做什么”或“某人感觉某人或物怎么样”。

例: He asked her to go there.

分析:“他”(主语)“要求”(谓语动作)“她”(宾语即动作涉及的对象)“去那里”(补语—补充说明宾语应做什么)。

5. “主语 + have + 宾语”(即“拥有”句型)

这一句型主要用于说明“某人或某物拥有什么(宾语,即有形或无形的资源)”。

例: You have a nice watch. 你有一块漂亮的手表

分析:“你”拥有一块漂亮的手表,即你拥有一个可以及时且漂亮的器具。

6. “There + be + 主语+ …”(即“存在”句型)

这一句型用以说明“在某地或某时存在某人或物”。

例:There is a bird in the tree. 在树上有一只鸟。

分析:“在树上”(地点)“有一只鸟”(存在物)。

7. “主语 + 系动词+ 表语”(即“主系表”句型)

这一句型用以说明“某人(某物、某事、某种概念)具有什么特征或处于什么状态”。汉语的“是”字结构属于这一英语句型的形式之一。常用的联系动词有be, keep,lie, remain, stand, become, fall, get, go, grow, turn, look, feel, seem, smell, sound, taste, 等。

例: I am a teacher. 我是一名老师

分析:“我”(主语)“是”(系动词)“一名老师”(表语—即表明主语的身份)。

She felt very tired. 她感觉到很累。

He became an engineer.他成为了一名工程师。

You look pale today, are you ill? 你今天脸色看起来苍白,病了吗?

8. 比较句型

这一句型用以比较物质甲与乙之间的异同。

1) 相等比较: …as + 形容词/副词原级 + as…;

…as + 形容词+名词 + as…

例:He is as rich as John.他和约翰一样富有。

例:He has as much money as she does.他和她的钱一样多

2) 劣等比较: …less + 形容词/副词原级 + than …

例:He is less careful than she. 他没她细心。

3) 优等比较:…+ 形容词/副词比较级 + than… ;

…the + 形容词/副词比较级 + of the two…

例:She is more careful than he.她比他细心多了。

例: He is the cleverer of the two boys.两个男孩中他更聪明些。

4)最高级:the + 形容词/副词最高级(单数名词或one)+ {of(among) + 人或物}

{in + 场所}

例: He is the tallest in the class.他是班上最高的。

9. “it + is/was + 形容词 + to do/从句”(即评价句型)

这一句型用于说明“某一动作或事情属于什么性质或具有什么特征”。即对某一动作或事情进行评价。(这里it 是形式主语,真正的主语是 to do 结构或 that 从句)

例:It is important to learn a foreign language.学习一门外语很重要。

分析:本句重在说明“学习一门外语”(to learn a foreign language)这一动作的性质是“重要的”。

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篇6:简单英语作文翻译:关于运动会的谈话

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以下是英文写作翻译频道为大家整理的《简单英语作文翻译:关于运动会谈话》,供大家参考。

Hi,Jack,we’re going to have our school sports meeting on the playground next week.It will last three days from Thursday to Saturday.We have many competitions in running,such as 100-metre race,200-metre race,400-metre race and the .Please be on time,wear your sports shoes and take a bottle of water. Good luck to you!

嗨,杰克,我们要有我们学校的运动会在操场上下周。它将从星期四持续到星期六三天。我们在跑步比赛,如100米跑,200米跑,400米跑和接力赛。我们也有跳远,跳高等等。我知道你很擅长跑步。请参加男子400米的比赛, 星期五上午10:30,请准时,穿上你的运动鞋,带上一瓶水。祝你好运!

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篇7:英语四级作文写作技巧大全

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一、审题

我们拿到作文后第一件要做的事就是审题。审题的作用在于使你写作不跑题(如果跑题,条理和语言再好,也得不到及格分,甚至0分。)那末审题要审什麽呢?

1.体裁(议论文,说明文,描述文)

审题就是要审作文的题材和体裁。因为什末样的体裁就会用什末样的题材去写。那末体裁包括那些呢?它包括议论文,说明文和描述文。从近些年看,四级作文不是单一的体裁,而是几种体裁的杂合体。例如: Directions: For this part ,your are allowed 30 minutes to write a composition on the topicTrying to Be A Good University Student .You should write at least 100 words and you shouldbase your composition on the outline (given in Chinese ) below :

1.做合格大学生的必要性

2.做合格大学生的必备条件(可以从德智体方面谈)

3.我计划这样做

很多人说这种类型的作文是议论文。这是片面的,因为,第一段要求写"...必要性",这说明本段体裁是议论文;第二段要求写"

...必备条件",这说明本段要求写说明文;儿地三段要求写"...这样做",这说明本段要求写描述文。所以在大多数情形下,四级作文是三种体裁的杂合体。

2.根据不同体裁确定写作方法

我们审题的目的就是根据不同体裁确定不同的写作方法。通过审题,我们可以看出四级作文大都是三段式。如上例第一段为议论体,第二段为说明体,地三段为描述体。而各种文体又不同的写作方式: 议论文;要有论点和论据,而且往往从正反两方面来论述。例如上面第一段的思路是:做合格大学生,会怎末样(这是从正面论述);不能做合格的大学生,会怎末样(从反面论述);所以我们要做合格的大学生(结了论)。

说明文:可以从几方面或几条来说明一个问题,就上作文而言,可以从方面(德智体)来说明合格大学生的必要性。

描述文:一"人"为中心描述一个"做"的过程。与上两段相比,本段的主语多为人称代词,他要与第二段相互应进行描述。 二 确定主题句

通过审题,我们知道该如何确定正确的写作思路。下边我们就谈如何些。第一部就是要写主题句。主题句是确保不跑题的前提,只有不跑题才有可得及格分。写主题句嘴保险的方法就是把中文提纲的各句译成英语。例如上述三段主题句分别为:

1.It is very necessary to be a good university student . (议论体的主题句)

2.There are several respects of necessities to be a good university student .(说明体的主题句)

3.What I will do in the future is the following .(描述体主题句)

如果要求句是英语就可以把它变成主题句,例如这样一篇作文:

Good Health

1.Importance of good health

2.Ways to keep fit

3.My own practice

这样的作文的要求句就可以扩充成主题句。扩充后三段的主题句分别为:

1.It is very important to have good health .(将名词 importance变成形容词important)

2.There are four ways to keep fit for me .(用 there be 句型)

3.My own practices are the following .(采用原词)

二、条理清楚

保证不跑提示写作当中第一任务,第二个重要任务就是要做到条理清楚。对于议论文来说,正反面要清楚,对于说明文来说条理要清楚,对于描述文来说,谁干什么要清楚。就拿上例Good health 来说,第一段保持正反面要清楚救应这样写:正面(With good health ,we can...),反面(Without good health ,we cando nothing .We cant do...)

为了使文章更具有条理性,我们可以用first(ly) second(ly) third(ly)等副词,他们可以是文章的条例性更加突出。作文是主观题,想得告分就必须引起老师的主意,老师的时间很短(每篇作文只有一两分钟就要阅完),所以我们在列调试最好不用: To be with,... after that ,...And then, ... The next , ... Thefollowing , ... As last ... 。因为用这样的词语不利于老师看出你作文的条理性。

三、保证作文符合字数要求的十二句作文法

考生一般都希望作文达到字数而又不至于写得太多,因为写得太多一方面暴露自己语言上的弱点,另一方面又会占用过多的时间。写得太多还易跑题,一个有效的方法就是十二句作文法。

我们知道,四级作文都是三段式。我们算一下,如果我们在每一段中写上四句,即主题句加两三句扩展句和一个结论句就可以了。这样全片在十二句左右,每一句十多个词,就又120-150个字。大家可以试图找一些作文题练一练。

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篇8:2024年SAT英语写作素材—山姆·沃顿

全文共 2580 字

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Sam Walton(1918-)

Contrary to popular belief, Sam Walton (the founder of Wal-Mart) was not from Arkansas. He was actually born in Kingfish, Oklahoma on March 29, 1918. He was raised in Missouri where he worked in his fathers store while attending school. This was his first retailing experience and he really enjoyed it. After graduating from the University of Missouri in 1940, he began his own career as a retail merchant when he opened the first of several franchises of the Ben Franklin five-and-dime franchises in Arkansas.

This would lead to bigger and better things and he soon opened his first Wal-Mart store in 1962 in Rogers, Arkansas. Wal-Mart specialized in name-brands at low prices and Sam Walton was surprised at the success. Soon a chain of Wal-Mart stores sprang up across rural America. Waltons management style was popular with employees and he founded some of the basic concepts of management that are still in use today. After taking the company public in 1970, Walton introduced his "profit sharing plan". The profit sharing plan was a plan for Wal-Mart employees to improve their income dependent on the profitability of the store. Sam Walton believed that "individuals dont win, teams do". Employees at Wal-Mart stores were offered stock options and store discounts. These benefits are commonplace today, but Walton was among the first to implement them. Walton believed that a happy employee meant happy customers and more sales.

Walton believed that by giving employees a part of the company and making their success dependent on the companys success, they would care about the company.

By the 1980s, Wal-Mart had sales of over one billion dollars and over three hundred stores across North America. Wal-Marts unique decentralized distribution system, also Waltons idea, created the edge needed to further spur growth in the 1980s amidst growing complaints that the "superstore" was squelching smaller, traditional Mom and Pop stores. By 1991, Wal-Mart was the largest U.S. retailer with 1,700 stores. Walton remained active in managing the company, as president and CEO until 1988 and chairman until his death. He was awarded the Medal of Freedom shortly before his death.

Walton died in 1992, being the worlds second richest man, behind Bill Gates. He passed his company down to his three sons, daughter and wife. Wal-Mart Stores Incorporated (located in Bentonville, Arkansas) is also in charge of "Sams Club". Wal-Mart stores now operate in Mexico, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, South Korea, China and Puerto Rico. Sam Waltons visions were indeed successful.

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篇9:英语四级画图作文写作步骤

全文共 788 字

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图画作文是近年大学英语四级写作中出现频率较高的一类文体,考生要特别加以重视。众所周知,题目所给出的图画必然反映了一定的社会现实或者揭露出某种社会现象。相比其他的文体而言,这类作文难度较大,既要求考生通过文字形式分析出图画内容,又要将图中所包含的的思想内容准确地表达出来。为此,应届毕业生网就此类作文写作步骤予以如下几方面的指导和点拨。

一、审题立意

四级作文写作过程中最关键的步骤就是审题,不仔细审题就会很容易使作文跑题,因此这是必不可少的第一步。此步骤要注意两点:一是分析题目和图画,确定文章的命题类型,抓住中心思想,联想此作文要求的写作主题。二是进一步确定给定的题材及此作文要考查的重点内容。也就是说,通过审题,考生要对作文谈论的主要话题心中有数。

二、组织结构

审题之后,根据分析的结果草拟提纲并组织安排段落,确定文章的整体结构。一般而言,考生可将图画作文转化为三段式提纲作文。开始段描述图画内容;中间段解释图画所反映出来的深层意义;结尾段引出结论,总结全文。各段的主题句要条理清晰,以使自己要表达的内容有更好的把握。每段的重点都应集中于描述图画规定的内容。选用的词句应紧扣图画主题、突出重点、前后连贯、表达清楚。

三、检查修改

考试过程中,很多考生由于紧张、仓促等原因,很容易犯一些简单的错误。因此,最后留出几分钟时间来修改所写内容是很有必要的。然而,切忌大幅度地对作文惊醒修改,因为这样会破坏卷面整洁,影响阅卷老师对试卷的印象。修改时可以从两点着手:

语法方面。包括时态是正确、名词单复数是否对应、被动主动语态是否正确、主谓是否一致等。

词汇方面。包括连接上下句或段落的关联词、固定搭配、及物不及物动词的使用、习惯用语是否使用正确等。同时,单词拼写错误和标点误用都是扣分点,考生应尽量避免此类错误。

综上所述,四级写作需要遵循上述步骤,即审题立意、组织结构、检查修改。祝考生顺利通关!

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篇10:2024年6月英语四级作文写作技巧口诀

全文共 1690 字

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卷面整洁 书写清楚

构思简单 少犯错误

中心突出 层次分明

借助经典 名句俗谚

重在变化 避免重复

卷面整洁,书写清楚

1、打好腹稿再动笔,减少涂改。

2、书写漂亮的当然更好,达不到的最起码也要工整。

3、使用黑色水笔作答,白纸黑字,这样能够有效提高整洁度。

构思简单 少犯错误

根据阅卷经验,四级作文的主要错误集中在思路、标点、时态、单复数、结构等五个方面。

英语四级错误十错十察

1.句子成分残缺

We always working till late at night before taking exams.(误)

We are always working till late at night before taking exams(正)

2.句子成分多余

This test is end, but there is another test is waiting forus. (误)

One test ends, but another is waiting for you. (正)

3.主谓不一致

Someone/Somebody think that reading should be selective. (误)

Someone/Somebody thinks that reading should be selective. (正)

4.动词时态误用

I was walking along the road, and there are not so many cars on the street. (误)

I was walking along the road and there were not so many vehicles on the street. (正)

5.动词语态误用

The driver of the red car was died in the accident. (误)

The driver of the red car died in the accident. (正)

6.词类混淆

It is my point that reading must be selectively. (误)

In my opinion, reading must be selective. (正)

Honest is so important for every person. (误)

Honesty is so important for everyone. (正)

7.名词可数与不可数的误用

In modern society, people are under various pressures(误)

In modern society, people are under various kinds of pressure. (正)

8.动词及物与不及物的误用

Because of his excellent performance, the boss rose his salary. (误)

Because of his excellent performance, the boss raised his salary. (正)

9.动宾搭配不当

We must make solutions to the problem. (误)

We must find a solution to the problem. (正)

It also may help you to make success. (误)

It may also help you succeed/obtain your goal. (正)

10.根据中文逐字硬译

Let us touch the outside world of campus.

Let’s keep in touch with the world outside of the campus.

Don’t forget to keep a good body health.(误)

Don’t forget to keep fit/healthy.(正)

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篇11:2024考研英语写作素材:拿破仑英语名言

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"I like honest men of all colors."我喜欢所有诚实的人。

"I start out by believing the worst."我凡事先做好最坏的打算。

"It requires more courage to suffer than to die."茍活比牺牲需要更多的勇气。 。

"I have made all the calculations; fate will do the rest."我已做了所有的打算,其余就交给上帝了。

"Our hour is marked, and no one can claim a moment of life beyond what fate has predestined."生死有命,没有人能要求多活一秒钟。

"If I had not been born Napoleon, I would have liked to have been born Alexander."如果今天我不是拿破仑的话,我想成为亚历山大。

"The great proof of madness is the disproportion of ones designs to ones means."一个人的计划与实践存在太大的落差即是疯狂的表现。

"The stupid speak of the past, the wise of the present, and fools of the future."聪明的人谈现在,愚蠢的人谈过去,傻子才谈未来。

"We must laugh at man to avoid crying for him. "与其后来替一个人婉惜,不如先嘲笑他算了。

"When you set out to take Vienna, take Vienna."一旦你着手要攻下维也纳,就把她拿下吧﹗

"What I did is immense. What I had decided to do, and what I had projected werestill more so"我所做的是大事业,而我当初的决定与计划亦是如此。

"The word impossible is not in my dictionary."在我的字典里找不到「不可能」这个字。

"I wished to found a European system, a European Code of Laws, a European judiciary; there would be but one people in Europe."我想建立一个整合的欧洲体系,包含了法律,法庭,与人种。

"The French complain of everything, and always."法国人终其一生都在抱怨所有的事。

"He who fears being conquered is sure of defeat."害怕被征服的人,注定要失败。

"Victory belongs to the most persevering."坚持必将成功。

"Adversity is the midwife of genius." 逆境造就天才。

"Circumstances? I make circumstances!" 英雄造时势。

"Men take only their needs into consideration, never their abilities."人们常只想到自己的需要,而没考虑自己的能力。

"Men are moved by only two levers: fear and self interest."恐惧和兴趣能激励人。

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篇12:简单介绍自己英语

全文共 564 字

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Hi, good morning everyone.my name is xxx and xxx is my English name.Im from China and I was born in xxx.Im an 18-year-old boy/girl.my hobbies are reading books like novels or comics and listening to music.chotolate `fruit is my favorite foods.There are four members in my family.my sister is very lovely.I often play with she and we had a good time.

I like making friends. Do you want to making friends with me ?

大家早上好,我的名字是XXX,XXX是我的英语名字.我来自中国.我出生于XXX.我是一个18岁的男孩/女孩.我的兴趣爱好是看书,像小说或连环画之类.和听音乐.巧克力和水果是我最喜欢的食物.(当然楼主你可以换成其他东西,不一定照搬)我家有四个成员,我的妹妹很可爱,我经常和她玩得很开心.

[简单介绍自己英语作文

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篇13:英语写作中的常用谚语

全文共 2083 字

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1、Practice makes perfect.

熟能生巧。

2、Take care of the pence/pennies,and the pounds will take care of themselves.

积少成多。/小事谨慎,大事自成。

3、Swift to hear,slow to speak.

多听少讲。

4、Procrastination is the thief of time.

拖延就是偷走时间。

5、Tomorrow is another day.

明天又是新的一天。/明天还有指望。

6、Exploit to the full one’S favorable conditions and avoid unfavorableones.

扬长避短。

7、Promise little,but do much.

少许愿,多做事。

8、cripples learns to limp.

近朱者赤,近墨者黑。

9、Bend the willow while it is still youn.

修树要趁早,育人要趁小。

10、Knowledge is power.

知识就是力量。

11、Passion,though a bad regulator,is a powerful sprin.

激情虽难驾驭,却是强大动力。

12、Learn from other’S strong points to offset one’S weaknesses.

取长补短。

13、He than run fast gets the rin.

捷足先登。

14、We never know the worth of water till the well is dry.

井干方知水宝贵。

15、Our greatest glory consists not in never failin9,but in rising every time we fall.

人生最大的光荣,不在于永不失败,而在失败还能站起。

16、Ideals are like stars-we never reach them,but like marlners,we chart our courses by them.

人之需要理想,如水手之需星辰;星辰虽不可及,但可指引我们航程。

17、Youth’s stuff will not endure.

青春易逝。

18、A pet lamb makes a cross ralTl.

宠坏的羊羔会变成恶羊。

19、Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

做最坏的准备,怀最好的希望。

20、Do not throw the baby with the bath water.

别把小孩和洗澡水一起泼掉。

21、Wisdom is only found in truth.

惟有在真理中才能找到智慧。

22、A stitch in time saves nine.

小洞不补,大洞吃苦。

23、An hour in the morning is worth two in the evenin9./The morning hour has gold in its mouth.

一天之计在于晨。

24、Where there is a will,there is a way.

有志者事竟成。

25、Broaden one’S scope ofknowledge and widen one’S horizon.

拓宽知识,开拓视野。

26、He that can have patience can have what he will.

惟坚韧者始能遂其志。

27、Thought is the seed of action.

思想是行动的种子。

28、As you give,as you receive./As you sow,you shall mow.

种瓜得瓜,种豆得豆。

29、Every man is the master ofhis own fogune.

每人都是自己命运的主人。

30、Good health is the best treasure a person can procure.

健康是一个人最宝贵的财富。

31、Disappointment is the nurse of wisdom.

失败是成功之母。

32、The first step to knowledge is to know that we are ignorant.

走向知识的第一步是知道自己无知。

33、Home-keeping youth have ever homely wits.

孩子不见世面,知识少的可怜。

34、People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.

自己有缺点,勿揭他人短。

35、Give me where to stand,and l will move the world.

给我一个支点,我可以跷起整个地球。

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篇14:简单英语日记带翻译课余生活

全文共 477 字

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My after-school life colorful, you can play the zither, painting, gardening ......

One of my favorite painting, a painting because I have brought joy and love, he may be arranged in the room, the room was dolled up neatly. Painting can bring happiness, as long as you like to be able to learn to be happy. If you can spare so, I would feel happy.

我的课余生活丰富多彩,可以弹古筝,画画,种花……

其中我最喜欢画画 ,因为画画个我带来了乐趣和喜爱,他可以布置房间,把房间布置得漂漂亮亮,整整齐齐。画画还能给人带来快乐,只要你喜欢就能从中得到快乐。如果你的课余能这样的话,我就会感到高兴。

[简单英语日记翻译课余生活

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篇15:高考英语写作错误分析:否定模糊

全文共 1314 字

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导语:高考英语书面表达想拿高分并不容易,首先你要避免一些在学生中比较常见的几种错误才行。下面小编为大家整理了高考英语写作常见的错误,希望大家在考试中能够避免。

有的同学对于否定的概念模糊,不知如何否定,有时会写出不合规则或有异义的句子。

1. 我认为没有必要买大的。

误:I think its not necessary to buy the bigger one.

正:I don’t think it is necessary to buy the bigger one.

析:有些动词如think, believe, expect, suppose, imagine, guess, fancy等的主语是第一人称单数且一般现在时,表示否定的观点应用I don’t think…,而I think… not则属于汉语式表达习惯。

2. 我们直到天全黑了才到家。

误:We arrived home until it became completely dark.

正:We didn’t arrive home until it became completely dark.

析:此汉语句子里面尽管没有否定词,但until用于肯定句时意为“直到…为止”;用于否定句时,其意为“在…以前”。因此,表示“直到…才”用not…until。

3. 如果没有受到邀请的话,我是不会去参加舞会的。

误:I’ll not go to the party unless I’m not invited.

正:I’ll not go to the party unless I’m invited.

正:I’ll not go to the party if I’m not invited.

析:unless“除非”、“如果不”,常可用if…not来替换。误句中的条件状语从句双重否定表示肯定,结果与原句意思相反。

4. 那孩子不够大不能去上学。

误:The child is not old enough not to go to school.

正:The child is not old enough to go to school.

正:The child is too young to go to school.

析:这是学生最容易写错的句子。enough to“足以、足够”。原句中“不够大不能去上学”意思是“不够上学的年龄”,故应译为not old enough to go to school。

5. 他们两个都不说英语。

误:Both of them don’t speak English.

正:Neither of them speaks English.

析:中国学生特别对于all…not 和both…not等这种部分否定结构,很容易理解成全部否定。两者全部否定用neither, 三者以上用none。

6. 开车时再小心也不过分。

误:You can be too careful in driving a car.

正:You can not be too careful in driving a car.

析:cannot…too“无论作…也不过分”。

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篇16:2024年高考英语写作素材:世界读书日的由来

全文共 2109 字

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世界各地来看,读书节已成为当代社会的文化景观,而且是最近20年的新风潮。不过,现代意义上的第一个“读书节”,最早可追溯到1926年西班牙国王首次设立的“西班牙自由节”,并把伟大作家塞万提斯的生日10月7日作为这个节日的庆祝日。

From all over the world, Reading Festival has become the cultural landscape of contemporary society, and it is a new trend in recent 20 years. However, the first "Reading Festival" in the modern sense, the earliest can be traced back to 1926, the king of Spain for the first time to set up a "Spanish freedom festival", and the great writer Cervantess birthday in October 7th as a celebration of the holiday.

1930年庆祝活动移到4月23日――塞万提斯的忌日,碰巧这一天也是加泰罗尼亚地区大众节日“圣乔治节”。传说中勇士乔治屠龙救公主,并获得了公主回赠的礼物――一本书,象征着知识与力量。每到这一天,加泰罗尼亚的妇女们就给丈夫或男朋友赠送一本书,男人们则会回赠一枝玫瑰花。由此相沿成习,如今每到这一天,书籍减价10%,玫瑰花的价格则陡然上涨。

Celebration on 1930 to April 23rd -- the anniversary of the death of Cervantes, to this day is also the Catalonia area public holiday "St. Georges day". The legend goes that the knight George slew a dragon and saved a princess, and was granted a gift in return: a book, representing knowledge and power. Every year on this day, Catalonia women will give a book to their husband or boyfriend, the men will give a rose. Thus become a custom through long time usage, and now every day, the book price by 10%, prices rose sharply rise.

世界读书日就来源于此。巧合的是,这天是著名作家塞万提斯、莎士比亚、维加3位著名文学大师的辞世纪念日,又是美国作家纳博科夫、法国作家莫里斯・德鲁昂、冰岛诺贝尔文学奖得主拉克斯内斯等多位文学家的生日。巧合之外,则是人们对书籍的热爱和对阅读重要性的深层认识。主旋律都是一样的:无论是年老还是年轻,无论是贫穷还是富有,无论是患病还是健康,都能享受阅读的乐趣,都能尊重和感谢为人类文明作出巨大贡献的文学、文化、科学思想大师们,都能保护知识产权。

World Book Day comes from this. Coincidentally, this is the famous writer Cervantes died, Shakespeare Vega, 3 famous literary masters of the day, and Nabokov, French writer USA writer Maurice de Rouen, Iceland Nobel prize winner Laks Ness and many other writers day. Coincidentally, is that people love of books and a deep understanding of the importance of reading. The main theme is the same: whether old or young, whether rich or poor, whether it is sick or healthy, can enjoy the pleasure of reading, respect and gratitude can make great contributions to human civilization, literature, culture, scientific thinking gurus, can protect the intellectual property rights.

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篇17:高考英语写作必背句式90个

全文共 14441 字

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一个句子必须按照一定的模式来组织,这个模式称为句式。下面是语文迷为大家提供的高考英语写作优秀句式,供大家参考。

1) on the other hand, the contribution of day schools cant be ignored.

2) due to high tuition fee, most of ordinary families cannot afford to send their children to boarding schools.

3) since it is unnecessary to consider students routinelife, day school can lay stress on teaching instead of other aspects, such as management of dormitory and cafeteria.

4) furthermore, students living in their own home would have access to a comfortable life and have more opportunities to communicate with their parents, which have beneficial impact on development of their personal character.

5) from what has been discussed above, we may safely draw the conclusion that both of day schools and boarding schools are important to train young students for our society.

6) there is much discussion over science and technology. one of the questions under debate is whether traditional technology and methods are bound to die out when a country begins to develop modern science and technology.

7) According to a recent survey, four million people die each year from diseases linked to smoking.

8) The latest surveys show that quite a few children have unpleasant associations with homework.

9) No invention has received more praise and abuse than Internet.

10) People seem to fail to take into account the fact that education does not end with graduation.

11) An increasing number of people are beginning to realize that education is not complete with graduation.

12) When it comes to education, the majority of people believe that education is a lifetime study.

13) Many experts point out that physical exercise contributes directly to a persons physical fitness.

14) Proper measures must be taken to limit the number of foreign tourists and the great efforts should be made to protect local environment and history from the harmful

15) An increasing number of experts believe that migrants will exert positive effects on construction of city. However, this opinion is now being questioned by more and more city residents, who complain that the migrants have brought many serious problems like crime and prostitution.

16) Many city residents complain that it is so few buses in their city that they have to spend much more time waiting for a bus, which is usually crowded with a large number of passengers.

17) There is no denying the fact that air pollution is an extremely serious problem: the city authorities should take strong measures to deal with it.

18) An investigation shows that female workers tend to have a favorable attitude toward retirement.

19) A proper part-time job does not occupy students too much time. In fact, it is unhealthy for them to spend all of time on their study. As an old saying goes: All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

20) Any government, which is blind to this point, may pay a heavy price.

21) Nowadays, many students always go into raptures at the mere mention of the coming life of high school or college they will begin. Unfortunately, for most young people, it is not pleasant experience on their first day on campus.

22) In view of the seriousness of this problem, effective measures should be taken before things get worse.

23) The majority of students believe that part-time job will provide them with more opportunities to develop their interpersonal skills, which may put them in a favorable position in the future job markets.

24) It is indisputable that there are millions of people who still have a miserable life and have to face the dangers of starvation and exposure.

25) Although this view is wildly held, this is little evidence that education can be obtained at any age and at any place.

26) No one can deny the fact that a persons education is the most important aspect of his life.

27) People equate success in life with the ability of operating computer.

28) In the last decades, advances in medical technology have made it possible for people to live longer than in the past.

29) In fact, we have to admit the fact that the quality of life is as important as life itself.

30) We should spare no effort to beautify our environment.

31) People believe that computer skills will enhance their job opportunities or promotion opportunities.

32) The information Ive collected over last few years leads me to believe that this knowledge may be less useful than most people think.

33) Now, it is generally accepted that no college or university can educate its students by the time they graduation.

34) This is a matter of life and death--a matter no country can afford to ignore.

35) For my part, I agree with the latter opinion for the following reasons:

36) Before giving my opinion, I think it is important to look at the arguments on both sides.

37) This view is now being questioned by more and more people.

38) Although many people claim that, along with the rapidly economic development, the number of people who use bicycle are decreasing and bicycle is bound to die out. The information Ive collected over the recent years leads me to believe that bicycle will continue to play extremely important roles in modern society.

39) Environmental experts point out that increasing pollution not only causes serious problems such as global warming but also could threaten to end human life on our planet.

40) In view of such serious situation, environmental tools of transportation like bicycle are more important than any time before.

41) Using bicycle contributes greatly to peoples physical fitness as well as easing traffic jams.

42) Despite many obvious advantages of bicycle, it is not without its problem.

43) Bicycle cant be compared with other means of transportation like car and train for speed and comfort.

44) From what has been discussed above, we may safely draw the conclusion that advantages of bicycle far outweigh its disadvantages and it will still play essential roles in modern society.

45) There is a general discussion these days over education in many colleges and institutes. One of the questions under debate is whether education is a lifetime study.

46) This issue has caused wide public concern.

47) It must be noted that learning must be done by a person himself.

48) A large number of people tend to live under the illusion that they had completed their education when they finished their schooling. Obviously, they seem to fail to take into account the basic fact that a persons education is a most important aspect of his life.

49) As for me, Im in favor of the opinion that education is not complete with graduation, for the following reasons:

50) It is commonly accepted that no college or university can educate its students by the time they graduate.

51) Even the best possible graduate needs to continue learning before she or he becomes an educated person.

52) It is commonly thought that our society had dramatically changed by modern science and technology, and human had made extraordinary progress in knowledge and technology over the recent decades.

53) For lack of distinct culture, some places will not attract tourists any more. Consequently, the fast rise in number of foreign tourists may eventually lead to the decline of local tourism.

54) There is a growing tendency for parents to ask their children to accept extra educational programs over the recent years.

55) This phenomenon has caused wide public concern in many places of world.

56) Many parents believe that additional educational activities enjoy obvious advantage. By extra studies, they maintain, their children are able to obtain many kinds of practical skills and useful knowledge, which will put them in a beneficial position in the future job markets when they grow up.

57) In the first place, extra studies bring about unhealthy impacts on physical growth of children. Educational experts point out that, it is equally important to take some sport activities instead of extra studies when children have spent the whole day in a boring classroom.

58) Children are undergoing fast physical development; lack of physical exercise may produce disastrous influence on their later life.

59) In the second place, from psychological aspect, the majority of children seem to tend to have an unfavorable attitude toward additional educational activities.

60) It is hard to imagine a student focusing their energy on textbook while other children are playing.

61) Moreover, children will have less time to play and communicate with their peers due to extra studies, consequently, it is difficult to develop and cultivate their character and interpersonal skills. They may become more solitary and even suffer from certain mental illness.

62) From what has been discussed above, we may safely draw the conclusion that, although extra studies indeed enjoy many obvious advantages, its disadvantages shouldnt be ignored and far outweigh its advantages. It is absurd to force children to take extra studies after school.

63) Any parents should place considerable emphasis on their children to keep the balance between play and study. As an old saying goes: All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

64) There is a growing tendency for parent these days to stay at home to look after their children instead of returning to work earlier.

65) Parents are firmly convinced that, to send their child to kindergartens or nursery schools will have an unfavorable influence on the growth of children.

66) However, this idea is now being questioned by more and more experts, who point out that it is unhealthy for children who always stay with their parents at home.

67) Although parent would be able to devote much more time and energy to their children, it must be admitted that, parent has less experience and knowledge about how to educate and supervise children, when compared with professional teachers working in kindergartens or nursery schools.

68) From what has been discussed above, we may safely draw a conclusion that, although the parents desire to look after children by themselves is understandable, its disadvantages far outweigh the advantages.

69) Parents should be encouraged to send their children to nursery schools, which will bring about profound impacts on children and families, and even the society as a whole.

70) Many leaders of government always go into raptures at the mere mention of artistic and cultural projects. They are forever talking about the nice parks, the smart sculptures in central city and the art galleries with various valuable rarities. Nothing, they maintain, is more essential than such projects in the economic growth.

71) But is it really the case? The information Ive collected over last few years leads me to believe that artistic and cultural projects may be less useful than many governments think. In fact, basic infrastructure projects are playing extremely important role and should be given priority.

72) Those who are in favor of artistic and cultural projects advocate that cultural environment will attract more tourists, which will bring huge profits to local residents. Some people even equate the build of such projects with the improving of economic construction.

73) Unfortunately, there is very few evidence that big companies are willing to invest a huge sums of money in a place without sufficient basic projects, such as supplies of electricity and water.

74) From what has been discussed above, it would be reasonable to believe that basic projects play far more important role than artistic and cultural projects in peoples life and economic growth.

75) Those urban planners who are blind to this point will pay a heavy price, which they cannot afford it.

76) There is a growing tendency these days for many people who live in rural areas to come into and work in city. This problem has caused wide public concern in most cities all over the world.

77) An investigation shows that many emigrants think that working at city provide them with not only a higher salary but also the opportunity of learning new skills.

78) It must be noted that improvement in agriculture seems to not be able to catch up with the increase in population of rural areas and there are millions of peasants who still live a miserable life and have to face the dangers of exposure and starvation.

79) Although rural emigrants contribute greatly to the economic growth of the cities, they may inevitably bring about many negative impacts.

80) Many sociologists point out that rural emigrants are putting pressure on population control and social order; that they are threatening to take already scarce city jobs; and that they have worsened traffic and public health problems.

81) Now people in growing numbers are beginning to believe that learning new skills and knowledge contributes directly to enhancing their job opportunities or promotion opportunities.

82) An investigation shows that many older people express a strong desire to continue studying in university or college.

83) For the majority of people, reading or learning a new skill has become the focus of their lives and the source of their happiness and contentment after their retirement.

84) For people who want to adopt a healthy and meaningful life style, it is important to find time to learn certain new knowledge. Just as an old saying goes: it is never too late to learn.

85) There is a general debate on the campus today over the phenomenon of college or high school students doing a part-time job.

86) By taking a major-related part-job, students can not only improve their academic studies, but gain much experience, experience they will never be able to get from the textbooks.

87) Although peoples lives have been dramatically changed over the last decades, it must be admitted that, shortage of funds is still the one of the biggest questions that students nowadays have to face because that tuition fees and prices of books are soaring by the day

88) Consequently, the extra money obtained from part-time job will strongly support students to continue to their study life.

89) From what has been discussed above, we may safely draw a conclusion that part-time job can produce a far-reaching impact on students and they should be encouraged to take part-time job, which will benefit students and their family, even the society as a whole.

90) These days, people in growing numbers are beginning to complain that work is more stressful and less leisurely than in past. Many experts point out that, along with the development of modern society, it is an inevitable result and there is no way to avoid it.

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篇18:初二英语作文写作技巧

全文共 1111 字

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一、充分准备,打好基础。

为了提高初一英语作文写作水平,平时应加强阅读,多背诵一些句形、段落甚至短文。俗话说:读书破万卷,下笔如有神,只有多读,多记,多背诵,才能出口成章,下笔成文。此外,写好初一英语作文还要掌握一些应用文体的写作方法,如书信、日记、通知等,它们大多有固定的格式。

二、认真审题,明确要求

在写初一英语作文的时候仔细看清写作要求和提示,分清材料的主次,接着确定体裁、格式和人物、地点等要素;最后确定时态,同时考虑相关的语态搭配用法。 三、遣词造句、表达规范

初一英语作文用词要恰当,不可逐句把提示翻译成英语。写作时,应尽量选用你最熟悉、最有把握的词和句型来表达思想。如果有些单词不会些,有些句型不会表达,可以设法绕开,用熟悉的同义词、同义短语或同义句来代替。要学会善于运用适当的关联词,如and, or, but, so,because, since等,以使初一英语作文行文逻辑紧密,自然流畅。 四、认真撰写,卷面整洁

初一英语考试中也会有初一英语作文题,如果时间允许,书面表达一定要先写草稿。在抄写入答题卷前,要先进行检查修改。首先检查所写内容是否切题;之后检查主题是否明确,表达方式是否恰当;最后检查所用时态、语态、人称是否符合要求,前后是否一致。 中考复习研讨会指导课件,极具价值。 关联词

1.表示并列或递进: and, as well as, both&and, not only&but also, neither&nor;2.表示选择: or, either∨3.表示转折: but, however, although, though, after all, 4.表示因果: because, so, therefore5.表示条件: if , unless6.表示对比: instead, not&but, on the one hand&on the other hand;7.表示解释: for example, for instance, such as, that is to say, in other words;8.表示顺序: to begin with, firstly, first (of all), second(ly), next, later, since then, from then on, finally, in the end;9.表示强调: also, besides, what’s more, actually, in fact, 10.表示结论: all in all, altogether, in a word, generally speaking,

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篇19:2024浅谈提高中考英语写作指导

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导语:听说读写是构成英语语言交际能力的重要组成部分,其中要求较高的是“写”的能力。下面是yjbys作文网小编为您收集整理的资料,希望对您有所帮助。

一、学生写作过程中出现的现状

1.词汇量太少

词汇是英语写作必不可少的基本要素,要写好一篇作文以表达自己的思想,必须以足够的词汇量为基础,但实际上大多数学生掌握的词汇量都达不到规定的要求,因而在写作时也就不能随心所欲地表达自己的思想。出现的问题往往有拼写错误,影响理解;词语误用,表达不准确;某一词语反复使用,语言表达缺乏变式,文章显得单调乏味;文章中出现大量“造词”,让人看了啼笑皆非等。

语法规则和句型句式是英语写作涉及的另一基本要素。学生英语写作中出现的“大错”又多半是由语法错误引起的,学生在写作中语法不规范、句子结构混乱、含义不清等情况屡见不鲜,Chinese English现象更是不乏其中,所以词汇量和语法问题是中学生英语写作时首先要解决的问题。

2.词汇错误较多

学生在写作的时候,中式英语Chinglish :如There are many people would like to go on a vacation. I by bike to school every day. 2、词汇错误:错别字、近义词混淆、词性误用3、词组、句型使用不正确,缺乏重点句型的使用:如I spent one hour to read the book yesterday. 4、时态、语态、人称把握不正确(审题不正确)。思维模式总是先汉语,后转化为英语,可能他想到了句子该怎样写,句型也知道的,但却有个别单词不会。如:“对我来说学英语是困难的”这个句子可能他想到了,句子结构“it is+adj for sb to do sth”也知道,但里面的形容词difficult不会写,导致句子表达含糊,以至于整篇文章错词百出,面目全非。

3.写出的长句达不到表达效果

一般的英语应试作文,总会给出汉语提示,学生写作也是从提示上入手,有的提示意思较长,所以学生写的时候会直接翻译,但对太长的句子又没有驾驭的能力,导致整个句子错误。

4.听力较弱影响写作能力

我们所面临的是一群农村学生,他们没有特别好的条件练习听力,每次的练习时间仅仅是每节英语课上,听听力的时间是在太少。有位作家说过:“不写没有读过的语言,不读没有说

的语言,不说没有听过的语言”。很明显,通过听的渠道获得语言信息及语言感受在英语学习中基础的基础。听不来也就写不上。

5.单词书写不规范,卷面书写较乱

对于大多数学生来说,格式、大小写、标点,书写不规范:句首字母大写不注意,使用从句时不会使用标点、大小写等)。如:After he went back home. He cooked supper.,考试时把单词写整齐的很少,学生普遍认为只要把单词写正确就可以得分,虽然觉得自己写的作文还可以,但卷子发下之后却没有得到期望的分数,而有的同学写作能力较差但书写整齐,写作得分也不是很低。

二、提高写作的方法

1.词汇的积累

初中学生在阅读理方面最大的障碍就是词汇量的缺乏,而扩大词汇量绝非死记硬背就能做到。最有效的方法就是大量接触各种不同体裁的英语文章,利用“在句中记,在文中记”的方法来积累词汇。因此我们指导学生依据英语报刊的特点,按栏目、话题、题材、体裁归类收集常用词,将出现频率较高的常用词汇积累到单词本子上,查字典写例句,初步学会这些单词的运用,放在身边,利用零散时间反复记忆,加强印象。

同时拟定时以单选、完型、阅读等形式考察学生对这些单词的掌握情况,通过测试和竞赛的方式进一步激发大家学习词汇的热情。不过,由于课程的时间安排问题,测试的工作开展较少,这也是实验工作中的一个不足。

2.熟练记住单词

( 1.) 巩固单词拼写,培养组句能力。 词汇匮乏是妨碍英语写作的最大障碍之一,有话想说,无词可写是大部分学生的苦恼。因此,我要求学生坚持每天听写、默写、循环记忆单词,掌握巩固词汇。还要求学生给出与单词有关的同义、近义、反义和词形相似的词,使词汇量得到最大限度的复现。如:反义词appear/disappear, crowded/uncrowded, polite/impolite/rude. 词形相似的词except/expect, chance/change/challenge. 还以某一词为中心,写出该词的不同形式或词性,组成典型的句型,从而不断丰富词汇和句型。如拼写单词die 时,不但要写出其过去式过去分词died,而且要写出其他词性(death, dead, dying), 再分别组句,如:The old man died two years ago. He has been dead for two years. His death made his dog very sad. It is dying.又如写到易混淆的词pay, spend, cost, take 时,可以多种方式表达句意。He paid 20 yuan for the book. He spent 20 yuan on the book. He spent 20 yuan buying the book. The book cost him 20 yuan. It takes him 20 minutes to read the book every day.等等。这样,通过大量的词汇练习不仅仅能有效地积累词汇,还为组句打下了基础,同时还能训练学生的发散性思维和总结、归纳、比较的能力,为学生正确使用词句奠定了良好的基础。以上这些机械操练虽然枯燥,但很有必要,它是能力培养的基础。在词句落实的基础上,可向学生提出稍高的要求,如写出高质量的句子: What a happy family I have ! (I have a happy family.) The story is so interesting that everyone likes it.( The story is very interesting. Everyone likes it. ) He didn’t come to school, because he was ill. (He was ill. He didn’t come to school.) I am good at not only English but also math.(I am good at English and I am good at math ,too. )( 2、) 阅读背诵精彩段落,围绕单元话题设计书面表达。 阅读是写作的 熟练记住每一话题的单词。熟记单词后让他们能够熟练的运用,能够把重点单词用来造句。然后熟记词组,特别是能够熟练的运用词组,能够用词组熟练造句。用词组和单词连成简单句,只要学生将句子表达清楚,语意连贯,就是一篇好的英语文章。

3.熟练使用简单句

简单句对学生来说相对好掌握些,可以要求学生们能够熟练划分主语、谓语、宾语。 正确掌握并列连词andbutor等词。在写作中要求学生不能随意发挥,也不能逐字逐句的翻译所给的文章,要求学生能抓住题中所给的条件,只要考生能将题中所给的要点全部表达清楚,而没有遗漏,在写作中并且注意到语言的连贯,那么就是一篇很好的英语文章。

4.加强听力训练,促进写作

目前英语听力教材使用的具体做法是:事先提出每课生词,教师领读几遍。排除生词障碍后,第一遍学生主让学生在课后反复听课文内容,并逐字逐句写下。每周星期五布置,星期一用课堂时间,教师将该文念一、二遍,让学生听写,教师收上来查阅,加以评讲。通过这种训练,提高学生的听力水平和表达能力。

5.书写规范,促进写作

关于书写的卷面整洁与否,字体如何,是老生常谈话题。可是由于印象分数的一分半分之差,很可能影响一生。在此处丢分纯属不值得,这也是笔者把它放在第一位的原因。在教学过程中,应坚持要求学生书写规范,写好匀笔斜体行书,注意连写,以及文面美观。可以采用出专刊的形式,让全班同学都参加英语书法评比,从而激发学生练习英语书写的兴趣,养成良好的书写习惯。

综上所述,在英语写作中听、说、读、写应同步发展。写作是一种语言输出形式,只有语言输入大于语言输出,语言输出才有可能。英语写作训练作为英语综合能力训练之一,是与英语的听说读是不可分割的,它们是相互影响、相互作用的有机统一体,必须注重听、说、读、写能力的同步发展。

比如笔者实施多年的“五分钟课前训练”:在上正课前五分钟里,要学生用英语讲述一个故事(积累素材);或者课前朗读一篇短小精悍的文章,让大家课后模仿;或者就大家平时关心的话题写一个发言稿或演讲稿进行课前发言;或者让学生自立主题,围绕自己喜欢的主题写一段话。这种课前训练取得了很好的效果。

美国作家舒伯特指出:“Reading is writing”,即:阅读能够促进写作,因为对学生而言,他们对生活的体验、对人生的认识大多是从书本上获得,从大量的阅读中获取的,阅读不仅能帮助学生积累思想,也能帮助他们积累语言素材。“You ought to read very carefully. Not only very carefully,but also aloud,and that again and again till you know the passage by heart and write it as if it were your own.” 这就清楚地说明了熟读成诵对写作是多么重要。所以要想写出好文章,就必须大量读书,它是写作的基础。

阅读对写作固然重要,但其它形式写作训练同样不可忽视,英语写作实践是英语写作理论转化为写作能力的“中介”。英语写作要突出实践,正如学习游泳一样,写作的能力是练出来的。课外练笔是课堂写作训练最有益的补充,因为课堂时间有限,仅靠课堂写作训练培养学生的写作能力是不够的。作文不是“学”出来的,而是“写”出来的。学生必须进行大量的写作练习才能掌握并且灵活运用各种写作技能,而且写作技能只有在不断写作的过程中才能逐步得到提高和完善。

此外,学生的英语语言意识和英语思维能力的培养也需要大量的练习。可见,课外练笔非常必要,应该给予重视。课外练笔的形式多种多样,可采用让学生写英语日记、写英语周记,教师也可有意识地给学生提供一些尽量贴近生活的时尚话题,如奥运会、环境保护等,让学生在课外习作。

总之,学生要提高写作能力应在教师有计划、有组织的引导下进行,开展多种形式的写作实践,努力扩大学生的生活面和知识面,以提高学生的写作能力。

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篇20:英语作文写作的需要背诵的部分

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下面的材料旨在丰富学生在是非问题写作方面的思想和语言,考生在复习时可以先分类阅读这些篇章,然后尝试写相关方面的作文题。

对于素材中用黑体字的部分,特别建议你熟读,背诵,因为它们在语言和观点上都值得吸收。学习语言的人应该明白,表达能力和思想深度都靠日积月累,潜移默化。从某种意义上说,提高英语写作能力无捷径可走,你必须大段背诵英语文章才能逐渐形成语感和用英语进行表达的能力。这一关,没有任何人能代替你过。

因此,建议你下点苦功夫,把背单词的精神拿出来背诵文章。何况,并不是要求你背了之后永远牢记在心:你可以这个星期背,下个星期忘。这没有关系,相信你的大脑具有神奇的能力。背了工具箱里的文章后,你会惊讶的发现:I can think in English now!

1.?????? Proverbs

1. A graduation ceremony is an event where the commencement speaker tells thousands of students dressed in identical caps and gowns that individuality is the key to success.

2. The primary purpose of a liberal education is to make one’s mind a pleasant place in which to spend one’s time.

3. Next in importance to freedom and justice is popular education, without which neither freedom nor justice can be permanently maintained.

4. The classroom--not the trench--is the frontier of freedom now and forevermore.

5. Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one.

6. It is the purpose of education to help us become autonomous, creative, inquiring people who have the will and intelligence to create our own destiny.

7. You see, real ongoing, lifelong education doesn’t answer questions; it provokes them.

8. People will pay more to be entertained than educated.

9.the most important function of education at any level is to develop the personality of the individual and the significance of his life to himself and to others. This is the basic architecture of a life; the rest is ornamentation and decoration of the structure.

10. The essence of our efforts to see that every child has a chance must be to assure each as equal opportunity, not to become equal, but to become different-to realize whatever unique potential of body, mind, and spirit he or she possesses.

11. A great teacher never strives to explain his vision-he simply invites you to stand beside him and see for yourself.

12. If you can read and don’, you are an illiterate by choice.

2. Damaging Research

A study by National Parent-Teacher Organization revealed that in the average American school, eighteen negatives are identified for every positive that is pointed out. The Wisconsin study revealed that when children enter the first grade, 80 percent of them feel pretty good themselves, but by the time they get to the sixth grade, only 10 percent of them have good self-images.

3. Education and Citizenship

An important aspect of education in the United States is the relationship between education and citizenship. Throughout its history this nation has emphasized public education as a means of transmitting democratic values, creating equality of opportunity, and preparing new generations of citizens to function in society. In addition, the schools have been expected to help shape society itself. During the 1950s, for example, efforts to combat racial segregation focused on the schools. Later, when the Soviet Union launched the first orbiting satellite, American schools and colleges came under intense pressure and were offered many incentives to improve their science and mathematics programs so that the nations would not fall behind the Soviet Union in scientific and technological capabilities.

Education is often viewed as a tool for solving social problems, especially social inequality. The schools, t is thought, can transform young people from vastly different backgrounds into competent, upwardly mobile adults. Yet these goals seem almost impossible to attain. In recent years, in fact, public education has been at the center of numerous controversies arising from the gap between the ideal and the reality. Part of the problem is that different groups in society have different have different expectations. Some feel that children should be taught basic job-related skills; still others believe education should not only prepare children to compete in society but also help them maintain their cultural identity (and, in the case of Hispanic children, their language). On the other hand, policymakers concerned with education emphasize the need to increase the level of student achievement and to improve parents in their children’s education.

Some reformers and critics have called attention to the need to link formal schooling with programs designed to address social problems. Sociologist Charles Moscos, for example, is a leader in the movement to expand programs like the Peace Corps, Vista, and Outward Bound into a system of voluntary national service. National service, as Moscos defines it, would entail “the full-time undertaking of public duties by young people whether as citizen soldiers or civilian servers-who are paid subsistence wages” and serve for at least one year. In return for this period of service, the volunteers would receive assistance in paying for college or other educational expenses.

Advocates of national service and school-to-work programs believe that education does not have to be confined to formal schooling. In devising strategies to provide opportunities for young people to serve their society, they emphasize the educational value of citizenship experiences gained outside the classroom. At this writing there is little indication that national service will become a new educational institution in the United States, although the concept is steadily gaining support among educators and social critics.

4. The Teacher’s Role

Given the undeniable importance of classroom experience, sociologists have done a considerable amount of research on what goes on in the classroom. Often they start from the premise that, along with the influence of peers, students’ experiences in the classroom are of central importance to their later development. One study examined the impact of a single first-grade teacher on her students’ subsequent adult status. The surprising results of this study have important implications. It is evident that good teachers can make a big difference in children’s lives, a fact that gives increased urgency to the need to improve the quality of primary-school teaching. The reforms carried out by educational leaders like James Comer suggest that when good teaching is combined with high levels of parental involvement the results can be even more dramatic.

Because the role of the teacher is to change the learner in some way, the teacher-student relationship is an important part of education. Sociologists have pointed out that this relationship is asymmetrical or unbalanced, with the teacher being in a position of authority and the student having little choice but to passively absorb the information provided by the teacher. In other words, in conventional classrooms there is little opportunity for the students to become actively involved in the learning process. On the other hand, students often develop strategies for undercutting the teacher’s authority: mentally withdrawing, interrupting, and the like. Hence, much current research assumes that students and teachers influence each other instead of assuming that the influence is always in a single direction.

5. Education Philosophy

For the past fifty years our schools have operated on the theories of John Dewey (1859-1953), an American educator and writer. Dewey believed hat the school’s job was to enhance the natural development of the growing child, rather than to pour information, for which the child had no context, into him or her. In the Dewey system, the child becomes the active agent in his own education, rather than a passive receptacle for facts.

Consequently, American schools are very enthusiastic about teaching “life skills” –logical thinking, analysis, creative problem--solving. The actual content of the lessons is secondary to the process, which is supposed to train the child to be able to handle whatever life may present, including all the unknowns of the future. Students and teachers both regard pure memorization as an uncreative and somewhat vulgar.

In addition to “life skills”, schools are assigned to solve the ever growing stoke of social problems. Racism, teenage pregnancy, alcoholism, drug use, reckless driving, and are just a few of the modern problems that have appeared on the school curriculum.

This all contributes to a high degree of social awareness in American youngsters.

6. Student Life

To the students, the most notable difference between elementary school and the higher levels is that in junior high they start “changing classes”. This means that rather than spending the day in one classroom, they switch classrooms to meet their different teachers. This gives them three or four minutes between classes in the hallways, where a great deal of the important social action of high school traditionally takes place. Students have lockers in these hallways, around which thy congregate.

Society in general does not take the business of studying very seriously. Schoolchildren have a great deal of free time, which they are encouraged to fill with extracurricular activities—sports, clubs, cheerleading, scouts—supposed to inculcate such qualities as leadership, sportsmanship, ability to organize, etc. those who don’t become engaged in such activities or have afterschool jobs have plenty of opportunity to “hang out”, listen to teenager music, and watch television.

Compared to other nations, American students do not have much homework. Studies also show that American parents have lower expectations for their children’s success in school than other nationalities do. (Historically, there has not been much correlation between American school success and success in later life.) “He’s just not a scholar”, the American parents might say, content that their son is on the swim team and doesn’t take drugs. (Some of the young do choose to study hard, for reason of their own, such as determining that the road to riches lies through Harvard Business School.)

What American schools do effectively teach is the competitive method. In innumerable ways children are pitted against each other—whether in classroom discussion, spelling bees, reading groups, or tests. Every classroom is expected to produce a scattering of A’s and F’s (teachers often grade A=excellent; B=good; C=average; D=poor; and F=failed). A teacher who gives all A’s looks too soft—so students are aware that they are competing for the limited number of top marks.

Foreign students sometimes don’t understand that copying from other people’s papers or from books is considered wrong and taken seriously. Here, it is important to show that you have done your own work and are displaying your own knowledge. It is more important than helping your friends to pass, whom we think do not deserve to pass unless they can provide their own answers. Group effort goes against the competitive grain, and American students do not study together as many Asians do. Many Asians in this country consider their group study habits a large contributor to their school success.

7. Adult Education

After complaining about many aspects of American life, a 40-year-old woman from Hong Kong concluded, “But where else could someone my age go back to school and get a degree in social work? Here you can change your whole life, start a new business, do what you really want to do.”

So at least to this person, school requirements weren’t inhibiting. And to millions of others, adult education is the path to a new career, or if not to a new career, to a new outlook. Schools generally encourage the older person who wants to start anew, and besides regular classes, schedule evening classes in special programs. Today there are so many people of retirement age in college that it is no longer remarkable.

8. Moral Relativism in American

Improving American education requires not doing new things but doing (and remembering) some good old things. At the time of our nation’s founding, Thomas Jefferson listed the requirements for a sound education in the Report of the Commissioners for the University of Virginia. In this landmark statement on American education, Jefferson wrote of the importance of education and writing, and of reading history, and geography. But he also emphasized the need “to instruct the mass of our citizens in these, their rights, interests, and duties, as men and citizens.” Jefferson believed education should aim at the improvement of both one’s “morals” and “faculties”. That has been the dominant view of the aims of American education for over two centuries. But a number of changes, most of them unsound, have diverted schools from these great pursuits. And the story of the loss of the school’s original moral mission explains a great deal.

Starting in the early seventies, “values clarification” programs started turning up in schools all over America. According to this philosophy, the schools were not to take part in their time-honored task of transmitting sound moral values; rather, they were to allow the child to “clarify” his own values (which adults, including parents, had no “rights” to criticize). The “values clarification” movement didn’t clarify values; it clarified wants and desires. This form of moral relativism said, in effect, that no set of values was right or wrong; everybody had an equal right to his own values; and all values were subjective, relative, and personal. This destructive view took hold with a vengeance.

In 1985 The York Times published an article quoting New York area educators, in slavish devotion to this new view, proclaiming, “They deliberately avoid trying to tell students what is ethically right and wrong.” The article told of one counseling session involving fifteen high school juniors and seniors. In the course of that session a student concluded that a fellow student had been foolish to return one thousand dollars she found in a purse at school. According to the article, when the youngsters asked the counselor’s opinion, “He told them he believed the girl had done the right thing, but that, of course, he would not try to force his values on them. ‘If I come from the position of what is wrong,’ he explained, ‘then I’m not their counselor.’”

Once upon a time, a counselor offered counselor, and he knew that an adult does not form character in the young by taking a stance of neutrality toward questions of right and wrong or by merely offering “choices” or “options”.

In response to the belief that adults and educators should teach children sound morals, one can expect from some quarters indignant objections (I’ve heard one version of it expressed countless times over the years): “Who are you to say what’s important?” or “Whose standards and judgments do we use?”

The correct response, it seems to me, is, is we ready to do away with standards and judgments? Is anyone going to argue seriously that a life of cheating and swindling is as worthy as a life of honest, hard work? Is anyone (with the exception of some literature professors at our elite universities) going to argue seriously the intellectual corollary, that a Marvel comic book is as good as Macbeth? Unless we are willing to embrace some pretty silly position, we’ve got to admit the need for moral and intellectual standards. The problem is that some people tend to regard anyone who would pronounce a definitive judgment as an unsophisticated Philistine or a closed-minded “elitist” trying to impose his view on everybody else.

The truth of the real world is that without standards and judgments, there can be no progress. Unless we are prepared to say irrational things—that nothing can be proven more valuable than anything else or that everything is equally worthless—we must ask the normative question. It may come, as a surprise to those who fell that to be “progressive” is to be value-neutral. But as Matthew Amold said, “the world is forwarded by having its attention fixed on the best things” and if the world can’t decide what the best things are, at least to some degree, then it follows that progress, and character, is in trouble. We shouldn’t be reluctant to declare that some things, some lives, books, ideas, and values are better than others. It is the responsibility of the schools to teach these better things.

At one time, we weren’t so reluctant to teach them. In the mid-nineteenth century, a diverse, widespread group of crusaders began to work for the public support of what was then called the “common school”, the forerunner of the public school. They were to be charged with the mission of school felt that the nation could fulfill its destiny only if every new generation was taught these values together in a common institution.

The leaders of the common school movement were mainly citizens who were prominent in their communities—businessmen, ministers, local civic and government officials. These people saw the schools as upholders of standards of individual morality and small incubators of civic and personal virtue; the founders of the public schools had faith that public education could teach good moral and civic character from a common ground of American values.

But in the past quarter century or so, some of the so-called experts became experts of value neutrality, and moral education was increasingly left in their hands. The commonsense view of parents and the publicthat schools should reinforce rather than undermine the values of home, family, and country, was increasingly rejected.

There are those today still that claim we are now too diverse a nation, that we consist of too many competing convictions and interests to instill common values. They are wrong. Of course we are a diverse people. We have always been a diverse people. And as Madison wrote in FederalistNo.10, the competing, balancing interests of a diverse people can help ensure the survival of liberty. But there are values that all American citizens share and that we should want all American students to know and to make their own: honesty, fairness, self-discipline, fidelity to task, friends, and family, personal responsibility, love of country, and belief in the principles of liberty, equality, and the freedom to practice one’s faith. The explicit teaching of these values is the legacy of the common schools, and it is a legacy to which we must return.

9. Schools Should Teach Values

People often said, “Yes, we should teach these values, but how do we teach them?” this question deserves a candid response, one that isn’t given often enough. It is by exposing our children to good character and inviting its imitation that we will transmit to them a moral foundation. This happens when teachers and principals, by their words and actions, embody sound convictions. As Oxford’s Mary Warnock has written, “You cannot teach morality without being committed to morality yourself; and you cannot be committed to morality yourself without holding that some things are right and others wrong.” The theologian Martin Buber wrote that the educator is distinguished from all other influences “by his will to take part in the stamping of character and by his consciousness that he represents in the eyes of the growing person a certain selection of what is, the selection of what is ‘right’, of what should be.” It is in this will, Buber says, in this clear standing for something, that the “vocation as an educator finds its fundamental expression.”

There is no escaping the fact that young people need as example principals and teachers who know the difference between right and wrong, good and bad, and who themselves exemplify high moral purpose.

As Education Secretary, I visited a class at Waterbury Elementary School in Waterbury, Vermont, and asked the students, “Is this a good school?” They answered, “Yes, this is a good school.” I asked them, “Why?” Among other things, one eight-year-old said, “The principal Mr. Riegel, makes good rules and everybody obeys them.” So I said, “Give me an example.” And another answered, “You can’t climb on the pipes in the bathroom. We don’t climb on the pipes and the principal doesn’t either.”

This example is probably too simple to please a lot of people who want to make the topic of moral education difficult, but there is something profound in the answer of those children, something education should pay more attention to. You can’t expect children to take messages about rules or morality seriously unless they see adults taking those rules seriously in their day-to-day affairs. Certain must be said, certain limits lay down, and certain examples set. There is no other way.

We should also do a better job at curriculum selection. The research shows that most “values education” exercises and separate courses in “moral reasoning” tend not to affect children’s behavior; if anything, they may leave children morally adrift. Where to turn? I believe our literature and our history are a rich quarry of moral literacy. We should mine that quarry. Children should have at their disposal a stock of examples illustrating what we believe to be right and wrong, good and bad—examples illustrating what are morally right and wrong can indeed be known and that there is a difference.

What kind of stories, historical events, and famous lives am I talking about? If we want our children to know about honesty, we should teach them about Abe Lincoln walking three miles to return six cents and conversely, about Aesop’s shepherd boy who cried wolf if we want them to know about courage, we should teach them about Joan of Arc, Horatius at the bridge, and Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. If we want them to know about persistence in the face of adversity, they should know about the voyages of Columbus and the character of Washington during the Civil War. And our youngest should be told about the Little Engine That Could. If we want them to know about respect for the law, they should understand why Socrates told Crito: “No, I must submit to the decree of Athens.” If we want our children to respect the rights of others, they should read the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the Gettysburg Address, and Martin Luther King, Jr.’ “Letter from Birmingham jail.” From the Bible they should know about Ruth’s loyalty to Naomi, Joseph’s forgiveness of his brothers, Jonathan’s friendship with David, the Good Samaritan’s kindness toward a stranger, and David’s cleverness and courage in facing Goliath.

These are only a few of the hundreds of examples we can call on. And we need not get into issues like nuclear war, abortion, creationism, or euthanasia. This may come as a disappointment to some people, but the fact is that the formation of character in young people is educationally a task different from, and prior to, the discussion of the great, difficult controversies of the day. First things come first. We should teach values the same way we teach other things: one step at a time. We should not use the fact that there are many difficult and controversial moral questions as an argument against basic instruction in the subject.

After all, we do not argue against teaching physics because laser physics is difficult, against teaching American history because there are heated disputes about the Founders’ intent. Every field has its complexities and its controversies. And every field has its basics, its fundamentals. So they are too with forming character and achieving moral literacy. As any parent knows, teaching character is a difficult task. But it is a crucial task, because we want our children to be healthy, happy, and successful but decent, strong, and good. None of this happens automatically; there is no genetic transmission of virtue. It takes the conscious, committed efforts of adults. It takes careful attention.

10. College Pressures

Mainly I try to remind that the road ahead is a long one and that it will have more unexpected turns than they think. There will be plenty of time to change jobs, change careers, change whole attitudes and approaches. They don not want to hear such liberating news. They want a map—right now – that they can follow unswervingly to career security, financial security, Social Security and, presumably, a prepaid grave.

What I wish for all students is some release from the clammy grip of the future. I wish them a chance to savor each segment of their education as an experience in itself and not as a grim preparation for the next step. I wish them the right to experiment, to trip and fall, to learn that defeat is as instructive as victory and is not the end of the world.

My wish, of course, is na?ve. One of the national gods venerated in our media—the million-dollar athlete, the wealthy executive—and glorified in our praise of possessions. In the presence of such a potent state religion, the young are growing up old.

I see four kinds of pressure working on college students today: economic pressure, parental pressure, peer pressure, and self-induced pressure. It is easy to look around for villains—to blame the colleges for charging too much money, the professors for assigning too much work, the parents for pushing their children too far, and the students for driving themselves too hard. But there are no villains: only victims.

“In the late 1960s.” one dean told me. “The typical question that I got from students was ‘Why is there so much suffering in the world’ or ‘how I can make a contribution?’ Today it’s ‘Do you think it would look better for getting into law school if I did a double major in history and political science, or just majored in one of them?’” many other deans confirmed this pattern. One said: “They are trying to find an edge—the intangible something that will look better on paper if two students are about equal.”

Note the emphasis on looking better. The transcript has become a sacred document, the passport to security. How one appears on paper is more important than how one appears in person. A is for Admirable and B is for Borderline, even though, in Yale’s official system of grading, A means “excellent” and B means “very good.” Today, looking very good is no longer good enough, especially for students who hope to go on to law school or medical school. They know that entrance into the better schools will be an entrance into the better law firms and better medical practices where they will make a lot of money. They also know that the odds are harsh. Yale Law School, for instance, matriculates 170students from an applicant pool of 3,700; Harvard enrolls 550 from a pool of 7,000.

It’s all very well for those of us who write letters of recommendation for our students to stress the qualities of humanity that will make them good lawyers or doctors. And it’s nice to think that admission officers are ready reading our letters and looking for the extra dimension of commitment or concern. Still, it would be hard for a student not to visualize these officers shuffling so many transcripts studded with As that they regard a B as positively shameful.

The pressure is almost as heavy on students who just want to graduate and get a job. Long gone are the days of the “gentleman’s C.” when students journeyed through college with a certain relaxation, sampling a wide variety of courses-music, art, philosophy, classics, anthropology, poetry, religion—that would send them out as liberally educated men and women. If I were an employer I would rather employ graduates who have this range and curiosity than those who narrowly pursued safe subjects and high grades. I know countless students whose inquiring minds exhilarate me. I like to hear the play of their ideas. I do not know if they are getting As or Cs, and I do not care. I also like them as people. The country needs them, and they will find satisfying jobs. I tell them to relax. They cannot.

Nor can I blame them. They live in a brutal economy. Tuition, room, and board at most private colleges now come to at least $7,000, not counting books and fees. This might seem to suggest that the colleges are getting rich. But they are equally battered by inflation. Tuition covers only 60 percent of what it costs to educate a student, and ordinarily the remainder comes from what college receives in endowments, grants, and gifts. Now, the remainder keeps being swallowed by the cruel costs—higher every year—of just opening the doors. Heating oil is up. Insurance is up. Postage is up. Health-premium costs are up. Everything is up. Deficits are up. We are witnessing in American the creation of a brotherhood of paupers—colleges, parents, and students, joined by the common bond of debt.

Today it is not unusual for a student, even if he works part time at college and full time during the summer, to accrue $5,000 in loans after four years—loans that he must start to repay within one year after graduation. Exhorted at commencement to go forth into the world, he is already behind as he goes forth. How could he not feel under pressure throughout college to prepare for this day of reckoning? I have used “he,” incidentally, only for brevity. Women at Yale are under no less pressure to justify their expensive education to themselves, their parents, and society. In fact, they are probably under more pressure. For although they leave college superbly equipped to bring fresh leadership to traditionally male jobs, society has not yet caught up with this fact.

Along with economic pressure goes parental pressure. Inevitably, the two are deeply intertwined.

I see many students taking pre-medical courses with joyless tenacity. They go off to their labs as if they were going to the dentist. It saddens me because I know tem in other corners of their life as cheerful people.

“Do you want to medical school?” I asked them.

“I guess so,” they say, without conviction, or “Not really.”

“Then why are you going?”

“Well, my parents want me to be a doctor. They are paying all this money and …”

Poor students, poor parents, they are caught in one of the oldest webs of love and duty and guilt. The parents mean will; they are trying to steer their sons and draughts toward a secure future. But the sons and daughter want to major in history or classics or philosophy—subjects with no “practical” value. Where’s the payoff on the humanities? It’s not easy to persuade such loving parents that the humanities do indeed pay off. The intellectual faculties developed by studying subjects like history and classics—an ability to synthesize and relate, to weigh cause and effect, to see events in perspective—are just the faculties that make creative leaders in business or almost any general field. Still, many fathers would rather put their money on courses that point toward specific profession—courses that are pre-law, pre-medical, pre-business, or, as I sometimes heard it put, “pre-rich.”

But the pressure on students is severe. They are truly torn. One part of them feels obliged to fulfill their parents’ expectations; after all, their parents are older and presumably wiser. Another part tells them that the expectations that are right for their parents are not right for them.

I know a student who wants to be an artist. She is very obviously an artist and will be a good one—she has already had several modest local exhibits. Meanwhile she is growing as a well-round person and taking humanistic subjects that will enrich the inner resources out of which her art will grow. But her father is strongly opposed. He thinks that an artist is a “dumb” thing to be. The student vacillates and tries to please everybody. She keeps up with her art somewhat furtively and takes some of the “dumb” courses her father wants her to take—at least they are dumb courses for her. She is a free spirit on a campus of tense students—no small achievement in it—and she deserves to follow her muse.

Peer pressure and self-induced pressure are also intertwined, and they begin almost at the beginning of freshman year.

“I had a freshman student I’ll call Linda,” one dean told me, “who came in and said she was under terrible pressure because her roommate, Barbara, was much brighter and studied all the time. I could not tell her that Barbara had come in two hours earlier to say the same thing about Linda.”

The story is almost funny—except that it is not. It is symptomatic of all the pressure put together. When every student thinks every other student is working harder and doing better, the only solution is to study harder still. I see students going off to the library every night after dinner and coming back when it closes at midnight. I wish they would sometimes forget about their peers and go to a movie. I hear the clacking of typewriters in the hours before dawn. I see the tension in their eyes when exams are approaching and papers are due: “Will I get everything done?”

Probably they won’t. They will get blocked. They will sleep. They will oversleep. They will bug out.

Part of the problem is that they are expected to do. A professor will assign five page papers. Several students will start writing ten page papers to impress him. Then more students will write ten page papers, and a few will raise the ante to fifteen. Pity the poor student who is still just doing the assignment.

“Once you have twenty or thirty percent of the student population deliberately overexerting,” one dean points out, “It’s bad for everybody. When a teacher gets more and more effort from his class, the student who is doing normal work can be perceived as not doing well. The tactic work, psychologically.”

Why cannot the professor just cut back and not accept longer papers? He can, and he probably will. But by then the term will be half over and the damage done. Grade fever is highly contagious and not easily reversed. Besides, the professor’s main concern is with his course. He knows his students only in relation to the course and does not know that they are also overexerting in their other courses. Nor is it really his business. He did not sign up for dealing with the student as a whole person and with all the emotional baggage the student brought along from home. That’s what deans, masters, chaplains, and psychiatrists are for.

To some extent this is nothing new: a certain number of professors have always been self-contained islands of scholarship and shyness, more comfortable with books than with people. But the new pauperism has widened the gap still further, for professors who actually like to spend time with students do not have as much time to spend. They are also overexerting. If they are young, they are busy trying to publish in order not to perish, hanging by their figure nails onto a shrinking profession.

If they are old and tenured, they are buried under the duties of administering departments—as departmental chairmen or members of committees—that have been thinned out by the budgetary axe.

Ultimately it will be the students’ own business to break the circles in which they are trapped. They are too young to be prisoners of their parents’ dreams and their classmates’ fears. They must be jolted into believing into themselves as unique men and women who have the power to shape their own future.

“Violence is being done to the undergraduate experience,” says Carlos Hortas. “College should be open-ended: at the end it should open many, many roads. Instead, students are choosing their goal in advance, and their choices narrow as they go along. It’s almost as if they think that the country has been codified in the type of jobs that exist-that they’ve got to fit into certain slots. Therefore, fit into the best paying slot.”

“They ought to take chances. Not taking chances will lead to life of colorless mediocrity. They’ll be comfortable. But something in the spirit will be missing.”

I have painted too drab a portrait of today’s students, making them seem a solemn lot. That is only half of their story; if they were so dreary I wouldn’t so thoroughly enjoy their company. The other half is that they are easy to like. They are quick to laugh and to offer friendship. They are not introverts. They are usually kind and are more considerate of one another than any student generation I have known.

Nor are they so obsessed with their studies that they avoid sports and extracurricular activities. On the contrary, they juggle their crowded hours to play on a variety of teams, perform with musical and dramatic groups, and write for campus publications. But this in turn is one more cause of anxiety. There are too many choices. Academically, they have 1,300 courses to select from; outside class they have to decide how much spare time they can spare and how to spend it.

This means that they engage in fewer extracurricular pursuits than their predecessors did. If they want to row on the crew and play in the symphony they will eliminate one; in the ‘60s they would have done both. They also tend to choose activities that are self-limiting. Drama, for instance, is flourishing in all twelve of Yale’s residential colleges, as it never has before. Students hurl themselves into these productions—as actors, directors, carpenters, and technicians—with a dedication to create the best possible play, knowing that the day will come when the run will end and they can get back to their studies.

They also cannot afford to be the willing slave of organizations like the Yale Daily News. Last spring at the one-hundredth anniversary banquet of that paper—who’s past chairmen include such once and future kings as Potter Stewart, Kingman Brewster, and William F. Buckley, Jr.—much was made of the fact that the editorial staff used to be small and totally committed and that “newsies” routinely worked fifty hours a week. In effect they belonged to a club; Newsies is how they defined themselves at Yale. Today’s students will one or two articles a week, when he can, and he defines himself as a student. I’ve never heard the word Newsie except at the banquet.

If I have described the modern undergraduate primarily as a driven creature who is largely ignoring the blithe spirit inside who keeps trying to come out and play, it’s because that’s where the crunch is, not only at Yale but throughout American education. It’s why I think we should all be worried about the values that are nurturing a generation so fearful of risk and so goal-obsessed at such an early age.

I tell students that there is no one “right” way to get ahead—that each of them is a different person, starting from a different point and bound for a different destination. I tell neither them that change is a tonic and that all the slots are not codified nor the frontiers closed. One of my ways of telling them is to invite men and women who have achieved success outside the academic world to come and talk informally with my students during the year. They are heads of companies or ad agencies, editors of magazines, politicians, public officials, television magnates, labor leaders, business executives, Broadway products, artists, writers, economists, photographers, scientists, historians—a mixed bag of achievers.

I asked them to say a few words about how they got started. The students assume that they started in their present profession and knew all along that it was what they wanted to do. Luckily for me, most of them got into their field by a circuitous route, to their surprise, after many detours. The students are startled. They can hardly conceive of a career that was not pre-planned. They can hardly imagine allowing the hand of God or chance to nudge them down some unforeseen trail.

11. To Err Is Wrong

In the summer of 1979, Boston Red Sox first baseman Carl Yastrzemski became the fifteenth player in baseball history to reach the three thousand hit plateaus. This event drew a lot of media attention, and for about a week prior to the attainment of this goal, hundreds of reports covered Yaz’s every more. Finally, one reporter asked, “Hey Yaz, aren’t you afraid all of this attention will go to your head?” Yastrzemski replied, “I look at this way: in my career I’ve been up to bat over ten thousand times. That means I’ve been unsuccessful at the plate over seven thousand times. That fact alone keeps me from getting a swollen head.”?

Most people consider success and failure as opposites, but they are actually both products of the same process. As Yaz suggest, an activity that produces a hit may also produce a miss. It is the same with creative thinking; the same energy that generates good creative ideas also produces errors.

Many people, however, are not comfortable with errors. Our educational system, based on “the right answer” belief, cultivates our thinking in another, more conservative way. From an early age, we are taught that right answers are good and incorrect answers are bad. This value is deeply embedded in the incentive system used in most schools:

Right over 90% of the time = “A”

Right over 80% of the time = “B~”

Right over 70% of the time = “C~” Right over 60% of the time = “D~” Less than 60% correct, you fail.

From this we learn to be right as often as possible and to keep our mistakes to a minimum. We learn, in other words, that “to err is wrong.

Playing It Safe

With this kind of attitude, you aren’t going to be taking too many chances. If you learn that failing even a litter penalizes you (e.g., being wrong only 15% of the time garners you only a “B” performance), you learn not to make mistakes. And more important, you learn not to put yourself to situation where you might fall. This leads to conservative thought pattern designed to avoid the stigma our society puts on “failure”.

I have a friend who recently graduated from college with a Master’s degree in Journalism. For the last six month, she has been trying to find a job, but to no avail. I talked with her about situation, and realized that her problem is that she doesn’t know how to fail. She went through eighteen years of schooling to try any approaches where she might fail. She has been conditioned to believe that failure is bad in and of itself, rather than a potential stepping-stone to new ideas.

Look around. How many middle managers, housewives, administrators, teachers, and other people do you see who are to try anything new because of this failure? Most of us have learned not to make mistakes in public. As a result, we remove ourselves from many learning experience except for those occurring in the most private of circumstances.

Different Logic

From a practical point of view, “to err is wrong” makes sense. Our survival in the everyday world requires us to perform thousand of small tasks without failure. Think about it: you wouldn’t last very long if you were to step out in front of traffic or stick your hand a pot of boiling water. In addition, engineers whose bridges collapse, stock brokers who lose money for their clients, and copywriters whose ad campaigns decrease sales won’t keep their jobs very long.

Nevertheless, too great an adherence to the belief “to err is wrong” can greatly undermine your attempts to generate new ideas. If you are more concerned with producing right answers than generating original ideas, you’ll probably make uncritical use of the rules, formulae, and procedures used to obtain these right answers. By doing this, you’ll by-pass the germinal phase of the creative process, and thus spend litter time testing assumptions, challenging the rules, asking what-if questions, or just playing around with the problem. All of these techniques will produce some incorrect answers, but in the germinal phase errors are viewed as a necessary by-product of creative thinking. As Yaz would put it, “if you want the hits, be prepared for the misses.” That’s the way the game of life goes.

Errors as Stepping Stones

Whenever an error pops up, the usual response is “Jeez, another screw up, what went wrong this time?” the creative thinker, on the other hand, will realize the potential value of errors, and perhaps say something like, “Would you look at that! Where can it lead our thinking?” and then he or she will go on to use the error as a stepping stone to a new idea. As a matter of fact, the whole history of discovery is filed with people who used erroneous assumptions and failed ideas as stepping-stones to new ideas. Columbus thought he was finding a shorter route to India. Johannes Kepler stumbled on to the idea of interplanetary gravity because of assumptions that were right for the wrong reasons. And, Thomas Edison knew 1800 ways not to build a light bulb.

The following story about the automotive genius Charles Kettering exemplifies the spirit of working through erroneous assumptions to good ideas. In 1912, when the automobile industry was just beginning to grow, Kettering was interested in improving gasoline engine efficiency. The problem he faced was“knockthe phenomenon in which gasoline takes too long to burn in the cylinder-thereby reducing efficiency.

Kettering began searching for ways to eliminate the “knock.” He thought to him, “How can I get the gasoline to combust in the cylinder at an earlier time?” the key concept here is “early”. Searching for analogous situations, he looked around for models of “things that happen early.” He thought of historical models, physical models, and biological models. Finally, he remembered a particular plant, the trailing arbutus, which “happens early,” i.e., it blooms in the snow (“earlier” than other plants). One of this plant’s chief characteristics is its’ red leaves, which help the plant retain light at certain wavelengths. Kettering figured that it must be the red color, which made the trailing arbutus bloom earlier.

Now came the critical step in Kettering’s chain of thought. He asked himself, “How can I make the gasoline red?” perhaps I’ll put red dye in the gasoline—maybe that’ll make it combust earlier.” He looked around his workshop, and found that he didn’t have any red dye. But he did happen to have some iodine—perhaps that would do. He added the iodine to the gasoline and, lo and behold, the engine didn’t “knock”.

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