With regard to children education, most parents choose to have their children educated with other kids in public and private schools to receive traditional education while some other parents may prefer to homeschool their own kids. Which kind of education is more preferable? The following article is about this issue. Read it carefully and write an article of NO LESS THAN 300 words, in which you should:
Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.
Write your article on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.
When considering the options for educating their children, parents have few choices. They can opt to send their child to public schools, which are operated with federal and state money and thus teach federal and state-approved curricula; private schools, which are privately owned and have varying standards for teachers, curricula, etc.; or they can choose to homeschool, the practice of which is governed by different laws depending on where they live. While the educational standards are fairly consistent with public and private schools, homeschooling can be done in any number of ways, ranging from traditional curricula to unlearning, and everything in-between.
Much like the ongoing debate regarding government-run healthcare versus private insurance, there are benefits to each of these educational choices. Backbiters of government-run insurance accuse programs of offering one-size-fits-all coverage with participants often having to wait for important procedures and more impersonal relationship with doctors, whereas private health insurance allows the insured to choose their doctors and tailor their healthcare to their personal needs. Similarly, opponents of public education fear that their child will be shuffled into a classroom and given an education that does not take into account the child’s unique learning styles and individual needs.
On the flip side of this coin, however, is what some perceive to be a lack of oversight and consistency. Backbiters of homeschooling worry that the laws governing parents are too lax, and that there is no guarantee that children will receive a quality education. Requirements for homeschoolers vary by state: some states insist on annual testing to ensure that homeschooled children are keeping up with their counterparts; other states only require that these students be tested if and when they decide to enter the public school system. There is no set curriculum for homeschooling parents and students. Homeschooling parents argue that, since their primary concern is that their child’s education surpasses what they would have otherwise received, such worries are unnecessary, but this does little to relieve the worries of well-meaning educators and citizens.
Another concern for homeschooled children is that they are not being taught necessary socialization skills. Those who present this argument worry that, by being taught in their home, these students are ill-equipped to integrate themselves into society upon graduation, and are not as prepared as their contemporaries for college or the workplace. However, homeschooling has gained in popularity over the years and there are more opportunities available to parents and students, including opportunities for physical education “classes” at participating gyms and various extracurricular activities.
Conversely, homeschoolers argue that public school offers too much socialization, and not enough focus on what is important, namely receiving a quality education. These parents argue that a typical classroom setting is not conducive to learning, as it provides too many distractions, and that socialization is not, and should never be a reason for sending your child to a public school.
Since the foundation of the Capital Library Alliance in Beijing, 34 university libraries, including libraries of the prestigious Peking University and Tsinghua University, will be gradually open to the public. Some applaud the decision while others express their worries. The fallowings are opinions on whether university libraries should be open to the public. Read them carefully and write an article of NO LESS THAN 300 words, in which you should:
Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.
Write your article on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.
Zheng Xinrong (Beijing Morning Post):
If resources in university libraries are not fully utilized, it will be a big waste. Some people worry that free entry to these libraries will lead to overcrowded libraries on campus, but this is not certain. Maybe not a single outsider would visit university libraries.
Nowadays, fewer and fewer people in China are interested in reading books. For example, you can always see many people playing games on their cellphones, instead of reading. Thus, opening university libraries to the public is actually a way to encourage more people to pick up books.
Generally speaking, outside readers usually choose libraries near their home and seldom go to a distant university library unless they have special need. Based on this fact, I believe university libraries will not necessarily become overcrowded even if they offer free access. Mostly, the beneficiaries of the free entry policy will be nearby residents.
Libraries should first meet students’ and teachers’ demand for books. If a book is already preordered by some student or teacher, it should not be lent to outsiders. Books that are not borrowed frequently by students and teachers should be brought into circulation. Doors can be closed to outsiders during the period when students are preparing for exams.
Xiong Bingqi (The Beijing News):
It’s great for university libraries to offer free entry to the public. But at the same time, it will make the management work more difficult and the limited book and space resources in university libraries might be further squeezed. Only depending on universities and the government will not ensure the sustainable development of the free entry policy. Therefore, it’s necessary to absorb some social institutions and welfare organizations. For example, it’s a good idea to set up a community club that brings together resources of nearby universities and even middle schools. Local residents can use these resources as long as they pay a small sum of money to be members of this club. Conimunity residents should also have the opportunity to serve as volunteers in university libraries.
Gao Dali (www.enorth.com.cn):
To offer the public free entry into university libraries is now a mainstream idea. The question now is how to realize the openness. Nowadays, libraries’ resources are kept in the form of databases. The traditional way of borrowing and lending books needs manpower and capital input. I think the most effective way is to open these databases to the public.
Jia Ximing (www.enorth.com.cn):
Although universities’ opening their libraries to the public is a trend, the target readers of these libraries are students and teachers on the campus. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Xi’an University in Shaanxi Province once adopted the practice of opening to the public and even tried very hard to persuade nearby residents to come to read. But the practice was later suspended, because the library was unable to meet readers’ demands as the university’s books were mostly prepared for teaching and academic research. In addition, the library was unable to receive too many visits. After all, school library’s priority is to meet students’ and teachers’ demand and ensure the order of campus.
In recent years, it is not uncommon that a college degree can not earn a college graduate a decent job while skilled workers from vocational schools are gaining in popularity with employers. The following is an article about this issue. Read it carefully and write an article of NO LESS THAN 300 words, in which you should:
Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.
Write your article on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.
I saw an interview with Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz where he announced that the company would pay for most employees to get a degree online from Arizona State University. This seems like a benefit few of the company’s employees would need. Aren’t most of their baristas (咖啡师) already people with worthless degrees?
The type I’ve described as Generation U (unemployed and underemployed). But it seems that Mr. Schultz is just echoing a sentiment that suggests that a college degree is required for most people to have a good career. This starts at the very top in America — the White House’s education imperative states that “Earning a post-secondary degree or credential is a prerequisite for 21st century jobs.”
But the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimates that only 27 percent of jobs in the U.S. economy currently require a college degree. By comparison, the U.S. Census Bureau reports that 47 percent of workers today have an associate degree or higher. But the BLS projects that the proportion of jobs requiring a college degree will barely change — increasing to only 27.1 percent by 2022. Even the most optimistic projection — a study from Georgetown University, projects that at most 35 percent of jobs will require a college degree by 2020.
While we’re pushing more people to get college degrees, we’re also facing a worsening shortage of skilled workers in many categories that don’t require a college degree. In manufacturing, as many as 600,000 U.S. manufacturing jobs remained vacant across the U.S. due to shortages of skilled workers, according to the Manufacturing Institute’s most recent “skills gap” report.
This situation exists across all categories of trades. A study by Manpower Group shows that the hardest segment of the workforce for employers to staff with skilled talent are the skilled trades — the welders, electricians, etc. who are so prevalent in manufacturing and construction. The hourly pay for a manufacturing worker is almost $24, compared to about $9 for a barista at Starbucks. Given that spread, one would think more people would seek work in manufacturing than settle for a job making coffee. But we’ve managed to create a culture where a college degree is supposedly a magical ticket to the good life, while vocational education is something to be sneered at. Consequently we now have the average college grad carrying a debt of almost $30,000 upon graduation and outstanding student loans of over a trillion dollars.
Even among those opting for college about a third pick majors that have very poor job prospects, including social sciences (11 percent), education (6 percent), psychology (7 percent), and visual and performing arts (6 percent). By contrast, only 2.4 percent pick computer science, 5 percent choose engineering, and 1.4 percent graduate with degrees in the physical sciences.
Yet, we do everything possible to encourage people to go to college. The federal Pell Grant program in the U.S. intended to help low and moderate-income students finance college — costs over $35 billion annually, though almost 40 percent of Pell Grant recipients never graduate.
It is generally accepted that people should visit their aged parents regularly if they live separately. But whether this requirement should be written into law has always been a controversial matter. And then not quite long ago, China issued a decree that requires children to pay regular visit to their parents. The following is an excerpt on this decree. Read it carefully and write an article of NO LESS THAN 300 words, in which you should:
Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.
Write your article on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.
Not long ago, China issued a decree. According to the new legislation, parents have the legal right to request government mediation or even file a lawsuit against children who fail to regularly drop by for a visit or give them a phone call. The core intent of the law is “to protect the lawful rights and interests of parents aged 60 and older, and to carry on the Chinese virtue of filial piety.”
Unsurprisingly, the law has strong voices speaking for and against.
“It is a great policy and I am very happy to see the government release such a policy to encourage children to fulfill their obligations to their parents,” said Huang Kesheng, a 20-year-old student at Beying’s University of International Business and Economics.
However, Bei Zhong, a late-20s white collar professional from Chongqing who works and lives in Shanghai, sees it differently. “I do not think there should be a law that requires people to visit their parents,” she told a paper. “It gives the impression to other countries that Chinese people need a law to tell them they should visit their elders. It’s quite embarrassing.”
Perhaps the controversial — some say silly — law should come as no surprise. After all, China gave the world Confucius — perhaps the most family-oriented philosopher in human history. Given the nation’s Confucian foundations, the rift between its elderly and the post-1980s “me generation” has been especially felt when compared with similar changes that have taken place in other countries.
Alongside the generational divide and deterioration of old-fashioned values, a major driving force behind China’s Confucian fallout is urbanization, which often means moving far from home. This is especially true for young professionals like Zhong who are leaving the far flung corners of the country to congregate in economic hubs like Beying or Shanghai. Simply put, this makes those filial visits both logistically difficult and often expensive.
“How often I visit my parents depends on my schedule,” Zhong said. “Last year I spent two months with them. But so far this year, I haven’t even had the time to visit my parents yet. Flights are also very expensive.” Zhong said that she, along with her friends, often resort to squeezing trips to their hometowns into the brief national holiday of Chinese New Year. It’s worth noting that any travel at this time is no leisurely trips for pleasure. During this time China sees the world’s largest human migration, with hundreds of millions of people crisscrossing the country and completely blocking its transportation networks.
While some will wage a war against these trends, it is highly unlikely that they will stop the forces as powerful as China’s urbanization and its growing generation gap. Thankfully for Chinese youth, some parents understand.
“My mom and dad would never dream of demanding for me to visit,” Zhong said. “They just want me to be happy.”
Until what age do you think people should be encouraged to remain in paid employment? In some countries the average worker is obliged to retire at the age of 50, while in others people can work until they are 65 or 70. The following are opinions on whether there should be a mandatory retirement age. Read them carefully and write an article of NO LESS THAN 300 words, in which you should:
Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.
Write your article on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.
Saying Yes
Saying No