Unit 8 : College Life Unit 8: College Life Before Reading Detailed Reading After Reading

Unit Unit 88 : :

College Life

Unit Unit 88: : College LifeCollege Life

Before Reading

Detailed Reading

After Reading


Word Web

Chinese Quotes and Proverbs on Education

Warm-up Questions


Campus Equipment

dining-room lecture roomlibrary

auditoriumgymnasiumlaboratory

self-study centerplayground dormitory

storeclinic

Social Activities

students’ clubcampus love

outingdance/ball

performancepart-time job

tutorsalesperson


1. What are the differences between college life and

middle school life?

2. Were you accustomed to college life in the first

month after you entered the college? How did you feel

then?

3. Do you think a student who is only good at study is a

good student? Why or why not?

4. To be a straight-A student, what should a student

do?

Having spent almost one term in college, do you have

any different opinions on college life from the ones you

had at the beginning? What are they?


1. I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.2. Exploring the old and deducing the new makes a teacher.3.To learn without thinking is labour in vain; to think without learning is desolation.4. Knowledge is not equal to devotion. Devotion is not equal to joy.5. Real knowledge is to know the extent of one’s ignorance.6.When you know a thing, to hold that you know it; and when you do not know a thing, to allow that you do not know it —this is knowledge.


Working towards academic excellence

constitutes one of the most important parts of

college life and is the goal of most college

students. Straight-A students, in this respect, can

be of great help by sharing their secrets in

achieving academic excellence. Read the following

text to find out what some of these secrets are.


Secrets of Straight-A Students

A professor of education who has conducted major studies of super-achieving students revealed that top grades do not always go to the brightest students. According to him, other education experts and top students themselves, it is far more important for a student to know how to make the most of his or her innate abilities.


The students at the top of the class attain academic excellence by mastering a few basic principles that others can easily learn. To begin with, top students know how to set their priorities right. [s1]Study time is never compromised for phone calls, television programmes or snacks. In other words, it is always placed above recreation. In addition, top students make a point of studying anywhere or everywhere. A top student who is also a top athlete memorises biology terms as he works out every day. Another student learns a new word every morning while brushing his teeth. Among all the students interviewed,


everyone agreed that study times are strictly a matter of personal preference. Some thrive at night when all is silent. Others prefer to study as soon as they come home from school when the lessons are fresh in their minds. However, all agreed that consistency is a main factor if one is to perform well at all times.


A student must also learn to be organised. For example, a top student who is actively involved in his school band, track and field, rugby association and debate team disclosed that he keeps his things in their proper places because he simply cannot afford time-wasting searches. Another student immediately files the day’s notes in colour-coded folders so that they are available for review nearing examination time. Another technique advocated by top students is to read effectively. This includes speed-reading, improving one’s memory or retention ability, and actively asking questions that will lead to a full understanding of the author’s message.


It is also important for students to know how to schedule their time. [s2]They must know how to pace each assignment or project according to their daily timetable and work ability so that they might not be overwhelmed by the tasks at hand. Being able to set timetables not only allows students more time to review and polish their work, it also prevents them from procrastinating. Top students believe that a secret of their success is the taking down of good notes during lessons and using them for revision. One student revealed that she writes notes from the text on one side of her notebook and those from her teachers’ lectures on the other side. This allows her to review both aspects of each


lesson at once. The student also revealed that instead of wasting time whispering to friends and getting ready to rush out of the class just before the bell rings, she uses those few minutes to jot down a two or three-sentence summary of the lesson’s principal points. She then scans the notes to refresh her memory before the next day’s class.


[s3]Another winning formula which teachers promote lies in a student’s ability to hand in neat work. According to one professor, the student who turns in neat work is already on the way to scoring an A. In the classroom context, it is equally important for students to speak up and ask questions. This is perhaps the best way for a student to clarify any doubts. Classroom participation also demonstrates a student’s intellectual curiosity. As a student concisely puts it, “Better grades come from better understanding.”


The value of studying together was demonstrated in an experiment conducted at one top university. The study revealed that students who discussed homework and problems together, tried different approaches and explained their solutions to one another scored higher than those who laboured on their own. The experiment also illuminated the value of hypothetical tests conducted among the students and on their own. This means that students frame tentative test questions based on their notes and give each other or themselves written examinations the day before a test. [s4]Experts confirmed that students who devise possible test questions often find many of the same questions during the real examination and thus score higher.


Another technique employed by top students is to do more than the assigned homework. A student revealed that if her teacher gives five problems, she will undertake ten. In the student’s words, “Part of learning is practising. The more you practise, the more you learn.” Last but not least, all experts and top students agree that the most important “secret” of super-achievers lies in the crucial contribution by parents. From infancy, super-achievers were taught the importance of learning by their parents. The latter


set high standards for their children and held them to those standards. They encouraged their children in their studies but did not undertake the work for them. Instead of pressuring their children, these parents were always loving, gentle and took pains to explain and motivate. They impressed the lessons of responsibility on their children, and the children delivered.


1. Study time is never compromised for phone calls, television programmes or snacks. In other words, it is always placed above recreation.

What kind of study habit does the author describe? Talk about it in your own words.

Never make phone calls, watch television or have snacks when it’s time to study. Study is forever the first choice.


2. They must know how to pace each assignment or project according to their daily timetable and work ability so that they might not be overwhelmed by the tasks at hand.

What can you infer from the expression “to pace each assignment or project according to their daily timetable and work ability”?

Our time and energy are limited, so we have to organize our assignments and activities skillfully so that we do not have too much to do and still have energy left near the end.


3. Another winning formula which teachers promote lies in a student’s ability to hand in neat work.

What does “formula” originally mean? What does it refer to here?

Formula means a list of the substances used to make a medicine, drink, etc. Here winning formula refers to a method that leads to success.


4. Experts confirmed that students who devise possible test questions often find many of the same questions during the real examination and thus score higher.

What is the benefit of devising possible test questions?

By devising questions that might possibly appear in the test, the students undertake a thorough review of what they’ve learned and become better prepared for the real test.

conduct: vt. carry out or direct; go with and guide or lead

We are conducting a survey of consumer attitudes towards organic food.

Is it really necessary to conduct experiments on animals?

conduct a meeting 主持会议conduct an investigation 进行调查

Collocation:

attain: vt. gain or arrive at, esp. after long effort; reach

India attained independence in 1947.

I would tell them that they could attain levels of quality and customer satisfaction greater than they had ever imagined.

academic: adj.

Her name is well known in academic circles.

麦克没有工作而且毫无学术成就。

Mike was unemployed, and had no academic achievement.

academic research an academic degree an academic discussion an academic year

Collocation:

学术研究学位学术讨论学年

principle: n.

against somebody’s principles 违背原则It’s against my principles to accept gifts from clients. 从客户那里接受礼物有违我的原则。

in principle 原则上

In principle, the new software should make the accounting system a lot simpler.

原则上，这个新的软件应当使会计系统简便很多。

priority: n. something that needs attention, consideration, service, etc. before others

a first/top/main priority 优先考虑的问题

Collocation:

priority over ……比优先

Road building is a top priority.

道路建设是应最优先考虑的事情。

This project has priority over others.

这个项目应放在其他一切项目之上。

Vancouver is a city more in tune with outdoor recreation than cultural institutions.

他唯一的消遣方式就是喝啤酒和看足球。

recreation: n. [C; U] (a form of) amusement and enjoyment; way of spending free time

His only recreations are drinking beer and watching football.

They see the outdoors as a recreation activity, not a job opportunity.

thrive: v. develop well and be healthy, strong, or successful

The IT explosion means that telecommunications companies are thriving.

Most herbs need direct sun all day in order to thrive.

NB: 注意该词的词性变化，它的形容词形式为 thriving 。例如： a thriving company a thriving tourist industry

disclose: vt. make known (esp. something that has been kept secret) publicly

The Security Service is unlikely to disclose any information.

他没有透露协定的细节。

He did not disclose details of the agreement.

polish: vt. improve by practicing; make smooth, bright, and shiny by continual rubbing

He polished the piano until the wood shone.

Edward’s essay is good, but he needs to polish it a little bit.

After she had polished the furniture, she cleaned the windows.

illuminate: vt. cause to understand; explain; make clear; give light to; fill (esp. a room) with light

这个报告阐明了难点。

The report illuminated the difficult points.

A small path was illuminated by low orange lamps in the flower beds.

Newly discovered facts may help illuminate the culture of the Aztecs (阿兹特克人 ).

The room was illuminated by candles.

confirm: vt. give support or certainty to (a fact, belief, statement, etc.), e.g. by providing more proof or by stating that something is true or correct

I’ll call the hotel and confirm our reservations.

The discovery seems to confirm that people lived here over 10,000 years ago.

Have you called to confirm your flight yet?

assign: vt. give as a share or duty

After her promotion took effect, she was assigned a research job.

I’ve been assigned the task of looking after the new students.

Pattern:

assign somebody to something 分配某人到某岗位

assign somebody to do something 分派某人做某事

assign somebody something 分配……给某人

Assign each student a partner.

Jan’s been assigned to the Asian Affairs Bureau.

Madison was assigned to investigate a balloon accident.

undertake: v. take up or accept (a duty or piece of work, esp. one that is difficult or needs effort)

Two new studies have been undertaken to determine the effects of the chemicals.

Pattern:

undertake to do something 承担做某事的任务

undertake a task/a project/research 承担一项任务 /工程 /研究

Collocation:

Dr White undertook the task of writing a comprehensive English dictionary.

怀特博士承担了撰写综合英语辞典的任务。


Useful Expressions

Proverbs and Quotations


1. 全优生 straight-A students

2. 充分发挥

make the most of

3. 学习优秀 attain academic excellence

4. 首先 begin with

5. 决定轻重缓急

set the priorities right

6. 换言之 in other words

7. 另外 in addition

8. 个人偏好 personal preference

9. 任何时候都表现优秀 perform well at all times

10. 活跃参与…… be actively involved in

11. 整理笔记 file the notes

12. 安排时间 schedule one’s time


13. 安排做作业的速度

pace each assignment

14. 手头的工作 the tasks at hand

15. 被……压得喘不过气 be overwhelmed by ...

16. 复习和完善功课 review and polish one’s work

17. 写下 jot down

18. 在于…… lie in

19. 同样重要 it is equally important ...

20. 澄清疑问 clarify any doubts

21. 进行实验 conduct an experiment

22. 单独用功 labour on one’s own

23. 最后一点同样不容忽视 last but not least

24. 制定高标准 set high standards

25. 不辞辛劳地…… take pains to do sth.


1. If a man empties his purse into his head, no one can take it from him. 如果一个人倾其所有以求学问，那么这些学问是没有人能拿走的。

2. Life is short and art is long.

人生短暂，学术无涯。

3. Reading makes a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an exact man. — Francis Bacon, British philosopher

阅读使人充实，交谈使人机智，写作使人精确。 —— 英国哲学

家 F. 培根


4. Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors; and the most patient of teachers. — C. W. Eliot, former president of Harvard University

书籍是人类最宁静最永恒的朋友，也是最易接近和最具智慧的顾问，还是最有耐心的老师。 —— 美国前哈佛大学校长 C. W. 艾略特

5. What we want is to see the child in pursuit of knowledge, and not knowledge in pursuit of the child. — George Bernard Shaw, British dramatist

我们希望看到孩子们追求知识，而不是知识追求孩子们。 —— 英国剧作家 G. 肖伯纳

Documents

Unit 8 : College Life Unit 8: College Life Before Reading Detailed Reading After Reading