USA Education Reader. High School and college culture. Книга для чтения

After school, I went to the locker room and changed at the very back for basketball practice. I heard giggling up front but couldn’t be bothered. There were more important­ subjects to deal with, like the biology test.

After practice, I quickly changed and walked home. The air felt nippy, my nose was frozen, and even with gloves on, I felt the cold air freeze my fingers. I shivered, wishing the sun were out. I disliked the short days and long nights of winter. It made my time feel compressed. Especially now, with basketball, my life seemed like a nonstop race. I awoke at six the next morning for school. Practices started at three thirty and I wasn’t back home until eight.

That night after dinner I sat down to finish The Great Gatsby, which was due the next Friday. I thought “Great American Novels” would be the appropriately challenging English class for the semester. Unfortunately, with overly idealistic characters like Gatsby, the book truly felt like a waste of my time. Yet the fact remained I was afraid to open my biology text and check the answers, although I refused to believe I might have done poorly on the test. The worst grade I could receive is a B. That would just about keep in balance with my brother’s perfect high school record. How I wished my brother wasn’t so perfect. It made me work twice as hard to prove myself to others. On the other hand it was a challenge, and I liked challenges.

Soon it was eleven-thirty. Finishing the book I pressed back into the chair. Do I have anything else? I asked myself glancing at the table. Outside, thunder rumbled and interrupted my thoughts. Staring at the window, I watched drops of water slide down the glass pane. “It’s the middle of January, and it’s raining’I said aloud. “How profound.”

The next day in biology I got my test back. I stared dumbfounded at the red marked: 76. Not even a В minus, my mind screamed. Just average. It’s over. No perfect record.

When I reached home that night, I couldn’t concentrate on my homework. I felt like a failure. Now I wouldn’t reach my brother’s standards. My brother was so smart that he got a scholarship to Harvard. How could I prove myself with a 76?

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I sat at my desk, stuck on the same math problem for an hour. Sighing, I laid down the pencil. Outside the thunder clamored. I jumped at the unexpected sound and stared at the window. It was raining again. This was the third night. I reached over abruptly, unfastened the storm window and pulled it open. Sticking my head out, I yelled, «Stop it! I’m trying to concentrate!» I got sprayed with the sudden force of water. I retreated and closed the window. Laying my head on the cold glass I glanced down at the empty street. There was only one dim streetlight, whichhighlightedeachdropofwater.ItremindedmeofthewayGatsby had stood outside Daisy’s house after the accident, waiting forthe perfect life. It had never happened. “Hmm,” I solemnly grinned. “Now, here I am, trying to make my life perfect, I said to my reflection. Sighing, I realized it would probably rain tomorrow and that I would probably be starting the new chapter on photosynthesis. Yet unlike a great Americanclassic,mystorywouldcontinue,becauseIdidhaveasecond chance. “Wow,” I smiled, “school can teach me a few lessons in life.” It wasn’t the most profound moment in my life, but turning the lights off I got under my bedcovers and thought, “Maybe tomorrow I’ll have lunch with Susan”. The fact is, one test is not my life.Taking the time to build a friendship that will last all the exams of life and believing in myself and in doing my best will always be the ultimate best score.

Lalanthica V. Yogendran

[From Chicken soup for the teenage soul IV: stories of life, love, learning [compiled by] Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen (2004). – p. 288–291]

WHILE-READINGACTIVITIES

Decide if the statements are true (T) or false (F).

1.Lara is absorbed in her studies paying very little attention to other sides of life. ___

2.The biology test was so important for Lara because it could help her enter Harvard, like her brother. ___

3.Lara did not have enough time to prepare for the biology test.

___

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4.Lara enjoyed the non-stop race her life became. ___

5.Lara failed the biology test completely. ___

6.Lara understood that she had another chance to achieve a perfect score. ___

Choose the correct variant.

1.Lara was so absorbed in her studies because …

a.she wanted to finish the quarter with perfect grades.

b.she wanted to prove herself to her brother and her family.

c.she wanted to go to Harvard.

d.her parents wanted her to be as perfect as her brother.

2.Lara’s life can be best described as …

a.busy, but challenging and interesting.

b.dull and depressing.

c.busy and tiring.

d.busy and tiring, but challenging.

3.Lara was so upset to get the average grade in biology test because …

a.it was a really low grade and she was ashamed.

b.biology was important to her.

c.she was afraid to disappoint her brother.

d.it influenced her final grades.

4.Lara can be best described as …

a.a perfect student.

b.an average student.

c.a crammer.

d.a very diligent and hard-working student.

5.After getting an average grade in the biology test, Lara decided …

a.to double her efforts in studies.

b.to pay more attention to other sides of life.

c.to have lunch with Susan.

d.to take the course “GreatAmerican Novels”.

Provide English equivalents to the following words and phrases from the text.

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Отчаянно, зубрить,

хорошо усвоить материал, наугад написать названия, с неохотой, конечный.

Translate into Russian.

1.My mind went blank.

2.My mind wavered.

3.The 15 minutes evaporated into 3.

4.I heard giggling up front, but I couldn’t be bothered.

5.It made my time feel compressed.

Paraphrase the underlined parts of the following sentences:

1.It made me work twice as hard to prove myself to others.

2.The air felt nippy.

3.How profound!

4.I was dumbfounded.

5.“Hmm,” I solemnly grinned.

Match the columns to define the cultural lacunas on the left after you have done some search in the Internet.

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ENHANCING COMPREHENSION

Find in the text the phrases that help to describe:

–Lara’s state during the bio test,

–Lara’s life in general,

–Lara’s feelings after she learnt her grade for the biology test.

Explain:

–why it was so important for Lara to do well on the biology test.

–why Lara’s life felt like a nonstop race.

–how her biology test score could influence her life.

–what kind of role The Great Gatsby played in her life.

–what kind of lesson she learnt at school.

CULTURE PERSPECTIVE

1.CommentontheUSAsystemofgradingA,B,C,D,E,F.Which Russian grades correspond to them?What about the 100% scale? How do the two systems correspond? The glossary will be of great help. You are also encouraged to look for some additional information in the Internet.

2.Giveaculturalcommentarytohonorroll.WhatisitshappiestRussian equivalent? Is there anything similar in schools in this country?

4.Comment on the cultural background of the word combinations school record, scholarship using the Glossary. How would you translate them for a non-English-speaking person from Russia?

5.Share the information you have found about the italicized realia with your group mates: The Great Gatsby, Great American Novels.

Why do you think the author of this story turns to the novel The Great Gatsby describing Lara’s state of mind after she learnt about the results of the test?

Name some greatAmerican novels you have read and explain why they are considered worth getting into the list and studying in a high school English class.

SUMMARIZING

Pretend to be Lara’s friend Susan/Lara’s brother. Give a short account of what happened to the story-teller from your viewpoint.

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LEADS TO DISCUSSION

Do you ever happen to feel like Lara about your school life? How much do grades matter to you? How can they influence your

life?

Do you think Lara learnt the right lesson from her experience? What would you do if you found yourself in her shoes?

The chief motive behind Lara’s diligence was the desire to prove that she was no worse than her brother. What are the motives that determine your diligence (or lack of diligence) at school?

Among Lara’s problems was the failure to achieve a balance between her studies and other sides of life. Do you face such a problem? Can you say that your life is well-balanced? How do you manage to keep the balance?

Express your opinion on the system of grading in Russia. Do you think it is objective? The problem is being discussed in the educational community at present. Some educationalists, students and teachers suggest that we turn to 100% scale. What is your attitude to the problem of integrating the system into schools in Russia? Comment on its pros and cons.

CULTURALWEB

Having read and discussed the story, you can add some new culturally marked words to the Web regarding school organization and management framework, learning, school social activities and relationship.

PROJECT WORK

Arrange in groups of 2–3 and make a presentation on any of the GreatAmerican Novels you have read.

STORY 4.

BE COOL… STAY IN SCHOOL!

PRE-READING TALK

What does a student’s success at school depend on? Does it depend on teachers and their teaching skills, parents and their support

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or the management and organization? Can fellow-students have any effect on one’s success or failure at school?An answer to this question can be found in the following story. How does the title of the story help predict its content?

INTERACTIVE READING

Read the story and say why the student body president’s challenge got such an enthusiastic support on behalf of the students, teachers and parents. After reading the story, do a test and some other exercises to enhance your comprehension and build your vocabulary.

While reading, you will come across a number of culturally marked words. Most of them can be found in the Glossary at the end of the book.As for the culturally marked words in italics, they are not included into the Glossary, so be sure to consult the Internet sources, dictionaries or encyclopedias to find out what they mean.

BE COOL ... STAY IN SCHOOL!

In the eighth grade, I was student-body president of Erwin Middle School in Asheville, North Carolina. I considered­ this quite an honor since there were over 1,000 students in the school. At the end of the year, I was asked to make a speech at the ceremony where my class was promoted to high school. I knew this had to be more than just the brief comments a student might normally give. We’re the class of 2000, so I wanted my speech to be as special as we were.

I spent several nights lying in bed, thinking about what to say. Many things crossed my mind, but none of them involved all my classmates. Then one night, it hit me. Erwin High School has the highest dropout rate of any high school in our county. What better goal could we have than for every single one of us to graduate? What if I could getmyclasstobecomethefirstclassinthehistoryofourpublicschool system to enter high school as freshmen­ and all graduate? Wouldn’t that be awesome?

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The speech I gave on graduation day was only 12 minutes­ long, but what it started is unbelievable. When I issued the challenge to my classmates to become the first class in history to enter high school as freshmen and all graduate, the entire audience, including the parents, grandparents and teachers, erupted in applause. As I showed the personalized certificates and signs each student­ would get, I could tell they were really enthused.At the end of my speech the whole audience jumped to its feet with a standing ovation. It was all I could do to keep my composure and not break down and cry. I’d had no idea my challenge would bring this kind of response.

Throughout the summer, I worked on developing a program to carry our commitment into high school. I gave speeches to civic clubs and groups, and talked with several­ of my classmates. I told our high school principal that I wanted to start a “Dropout Patrol,” made up of students who would be willing to help and support other students during bad times. I told him I wanted to design a special shirt to identify members of our class and would like to sell these to make money to publish a class directory. Then I told him I thought it would be good if we could have some type of party to celebrate if we made it through a whole semester without losing anyone.

“I’ll go you one better than that,” he told me. I’ll throw your class a party at the end of each grading period if you don’t lose anyone.” That was really exciting because a grading period was only six weeks: just 30 school days. The plan was beginning to come together.

Throughout the summer, word began to spread about our challenge. I appeared on local television and radio, the newspaper asked me to write a guest column, and calls started coming in from everywhere. One day I received a call from CBS News in New York. One of their researchers had found my newspaper article and they were interested in featuring our class on their 48 Hours program. Ken Hamblin, the Black Avenger on national talk radio, featured­ us in his August 1996 publication, Ken Hamblin Talks with America. He invited me to appear on his show and tell the country about our commitment. All this was amazing, because I had told our class we could become the most famous class in America if we all made it to

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graduation. We were just beginning, and we were already drawing national attention.

As I write this story, our journey is just beginning. We have the first 12 weeks of school behind us. Our pledges are hanging in the school lobby across from the principal’s­ office.Across from them is a large glass case where we mounted a piece of sheet metal with a huge hourglass painted on it. In the top of the hourglass there is a round magnetic dot for each day we have remaining in high school. We have appointed a committee of “Dropout Patrol” members to monitor the hourglass. Each day they move a dot from the top to the bottom. This lets us track our progress in a way the entire class can watch. We began with 720 dots in the top, but now 60 of them have been moved to the bottom and we have earned our second­ party. It’s fun to watch the dots move.

We are just starting a difficult four-year journey, but we have already made a significant impact. Last year, by the end of the second grading period, 13 kids had dropped out of the freshman class. So far this year, not a single person­ who signed the pledge has quit, and the “Dropout Patrol” has become the largest organized group in the school.

Businesses are seeing what a program run completely by kids can do, and they are throwing their support behind us. We have banks, car dealers, furniture stores, restaurants and more where we can get discounts for our entire family when we show our “Dropout Patrol” ID cards. Others are donating U.S. Savings Bonds and merchandise­ that we use to reward kids for supporting our program.

The Erwin High “Committed Class of 2000” would like to encourage your class to start a program like ours. Wouldn’t it be awesome if the entire class of 2000, nation wide, had a 100 percent graduation rate? Who knows? Maybe it can!

Jason Summe, 15

[From Chicken soup for the teenage soul: 101 stories of life, love, learning / Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Rimderly Kirberger (1997). – p. 249–252].

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WHILE-READINGACTIVITIES

Decide if the statements are true (T) or false (F).

1. Erwin High School had a great problem with getting its students to finish school. ___

3.Jason decided to help everyone from his class to graduate. ___

4.The school administration did not think Jason could do much to help his fellow – students. ___

5.The program is managed by Jason and the school principal.

___

6.The program drew great attention from the nation. ___

7.The program was a success. ___

Choose the correct variant.

1.The main idea of Jason’s project was …

a.giving a party at the end of every grading period.

b.writing newspaper articles and giving talks on the radio to attract people’s attention to the problem of student dropout.

c.attracting support for students from parents, the school administration and local businesses.

d.providing peer support to every student in his class and helping everyone to graduate.

2.Jason suggested this project because …

a.he wanted to remain popular at high school.

b.he did not have any better idea.

c.they were a class of 2000.

d.this project involved all his classmates and could really have an effect on the school system.

3.When Jason told people about his project …

a.everybody was very enthusiastic.

b.everybody was skeptical.

c.people decided to start a ‘Dropout Patrol’.

d.the high school principal decided to give the students a party.

4.As the author is writing the story, the class …

a.has achieved its goal.

b.is just beginning to work on the project.

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