大學英語精讀第二冊第8課內容詳解

導語：風格是指具有獨特於其他人的表現，打扮，行事作風等行為和觀念。 下面YJBYS小編分享一篇有關風格的英語課文，歡迎參考!

　　TEXT

Ever thought about cheating on a test? Of course not. But some students are not quite so honest …

Honesty: Is It Going Out of Style?

Stacia Robbins

According to a recent poll, 61 percent of American high school students have admitted to cheating on exams at least once. It can be argued such a response my not mean much. After all, most students have been faced with the temptation to peek at a neighbor's test paper. And students can be hard on themselves in judging such behavior. However, there are other indications that high school cheating may be on the rise.

More and more states are requiring students to pass competency tests in order to receive their high school diplomas. And many educators fear that an increase in the use of state exams will lead to a corresponding rise in cheating. A case in point is students in New York State who faced criminal misdemeanor charges for possessing and selling advance copies of state Regents examinations.

Cheating is considered to be a major problem in colleges and universities. Several professors say they've dropped the traditional term paper requirement because many students buy prewritten term papers, and they can't track down all the cheaters anymore.

Colleges and universities across the nation have decided to do more than talk about the rise in student cheating. For instance, the Department of Psychology at the University of Maryland launched a campaign to stop one form of cheating. As 409 students filed out of their exam, they found all but one exit blocked. Proctors asked each student to produce an ID card with an attached photo. Students who said they'd left theirs in the dorm or at home had a mug shot taken. The purpose of the campaign was to catch "ringers," students who take tests for other students.

The majority of students at the University of Maryland applauded the campaign. The campus newspaper editorial said, "Like police arresting speeders, the intent is not to catch everyone but rather to catch enough to spread the word."

We frequently hear about "the good old days", when Americans were better, happier, and more honest. But were they more honest? Maybe yes, a long time ago when life was very different from what it is today.

School children used to know the story of how Abraham Lincoln walked five miles to return a penny he'd overcharged a customer. It's the kind of story we think of as myth. But in the case of Lincoln, the story is true … unlike the story of George Washington and the cherry tree. Washington's first biographer invented the tale of little George saying to his father, "I cannot tell a lie. I did it with my ax." What is important in both stories, however, is that honesty was seen as an important part of the American character.

And these are just two stories out of many. Students in the last century usually didn't read "fun" stories. They read stories that taught moral values. Such stories pointed out quite clearly that children who lied, cheated, or stole came to bad ends.

Parents may have further reinforced those values. It's difficult to know. We do know that children didn't hear their parents talk of cheating the government on income taxes - there weren't any.

A clue as to why Americans may have been more honest in the past lies in the Abe Lincoln story. Lincoln knew his customer. They both lived in a small town. Would a check-out person at a large supermarket return money a customer? It's less likely. On the other hand, would overnight guests at an inn run by a husband and wife, steal towels? It's less likely.

Perhaps this tells us that people need to know one another to be at their honest best.

The vast majority of Americans still believe that honesty as an important part of the American Character. For that reason, there are numerous watch-dog committees at all levels of society. Although signs of dishonesty in school, business, and government seem much more numerous in recent years than in the past, could it be that we are getting better at revealing such dishonesty?

There is some evidence that dishonesty may ebb and flow. When times are hard, incidents of theft and cheating usually go up. And when times get better such incidents tend to go down.

Cheating in school also tends to ebb and flow. But it doesn't seem linked to the economy.

Many educators feel that as students gain confidence in themselves and their abilities, they are less likely to cheat. Surprisingly, some efforts to prevent cheating may actually encourage cheating - a person may feel "they don't trust me anyway," and be tempted to "beat the system." Distrust can be contagious. But, so can trust!

　　NEW WORDS

honesty

n. freedom from deceit, cheating, etc. 誠實

style

n. fashion 時髦

poll

n. survey of public opinion by putting questions to a representative selection of persons 民意測驗

admit

v. state or agree to the truth of; confess 承認，供認

admission

n.

temptation

n. the act of tempting or being tempted 引誘;誘惑

peek

vi. look (at sth.) quickly, esp. when one should not 偷看

behavio(u)r

n. way of behaving 行為

behave

v.

indication

n. sign or suggestion 跡象

competency

n. ability; being competent 能力;勝任

diploma

n. official paper showing that a person has successfully finished a course of study or passed an examination 文憑

corresponding

a. matching 相應的

criminal

a. of crime

misdemeano(u)r

n. crime that is less serious than, for example, stealing of murder 輕罪

charge

n. accusation 指控

possess

n. have, own 佔有，擁有

advance

a. made available before the date of general publication or release 預先的

regent

n. member of a governing board (學校董事會的`)董事

drop

vt. give up; discontinue 放棄;革除

traditional

a. of or according to tradition 傳統的

tradition

n.

requirement

n. sth. required; sth. demanded as a condition 要求;必要條件

prewritten

a. written beforehand; written in advance

psychology

n. science of the mind 心理學

psychological

a.

launch

vt. start, set going 發起;發動

campaign

n. series of planned activities for some special purpose 運動

file

vi. march or move in a line 排成縱隊行進

exit

n. way out of a place 出口(處)

proctor

n. 臨考人

ID card

n. identity card 身份證

dorm

n. (short for) dormitory 宿舍

mug

n. the face or mouth

shot

n. a single photograph

mug shot

n. (sl.) photograph of a person's face, used for purposes of identification 面部照片

ringer

n. any person who pretends to be another 冒名頂替者

applaud

vt. praise esp. by striking one's hands to gether 拍手稱讚

campus

n. university; the grounds of a university, college, or school 大學;校園

editorial

n. leading article 社論

arrest

vt. seize (sb.) in the name of the law 逮捕

speeder

n. person who drives an automobile at a higher speed than is lawful 違法超速駕駛者

intent

n. purpose; intention