2016年CRI China Gears up for Gaokao

 

The 9.4 million Chinese students preparing to sit the exams were cheered on Monday by a good-luck message from legendary¹ British physicist² Stephen Hawking³.

In a message tweeted through his social media account, Hawking wished the next generation of scientific minds a success in their academic endeavors.

The test is set to start on Tuesday and lasts for two or three days in different regions.

The Chinese version of the SAT is a make-or-break challenge for Chinese high school students, especially those from poor families.

To ensure more outstanding students from poor rural regions can be enrolled⁴ into elite⁵ universities, the Ministry⁶ of Education has kicked off a national plan.

Under this plan, high school graduates should submit their portfolios⁷ to universities, and take written tests and individual interviews before participating in the national college entrance exam, or gaokao. Those elite universities will then consider students' backgrounds and academic performances, and lower the minimum requirement for their gaokao scores.

Chen Meng grew up in a small town in southwest China where teaching resources and methods are less advanced than in big cities in the east.

She secured a spot at the prestigious⁸ Fudan University in Shanghai through the take-off plan.

"The education resource distribution between east and west, rural areas and cities is unbalanced in China. I have benefited from social support to conquer this gap, and I want to make an effort to pass on the goodwill⁹, and change this situation."

Chen, who has been taking part in volunteer activities like this since entering Fudan University, is raising funds to help a primary school in Inner Mongolia Autonomous¹⁰ Region this summer.

"The gap in educational facilities is quite big between rural areas and cities, not only in the teaching quality, but also peoples' attitudes and the atmosphere in schools. Many people think study is useless, and I saw some of my classmates dropping out even after middle school."

About 60,000 outstanding students from rural areas will benefit from the program this year. New recruits will also receive financial aid and study support from schools to help them overcome any obstacles in their way.

Guo Juan is deputy director of the Office of Student Affairs at Fudan University.

"Our principle is once these students enter the universities through lower requirements, we will help them cross the gap and make sure they are as good as any other student upon graduation."

The universities will also offer help in terms of psychological support, development planning as well as overseas exchange programs to broaden the students' views and brighten their futures¹¹.

Gaokao is widely believed the fairest platform currently for young Chinese seeking a promising¹² future.

Many parents deem the exam to be a fate-changer for their families if their children can be enrolled by top universities.

But at the same time, debates over the exam have persisted.

One of the top concerns is that the exam only shows students' test skills, but doesn't prove their quality.

It's also blamed for contributing to disparities in education levels and resources among high schools as prestigious schools can attract students while the rest can't.

1 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。

2 physicist   

n.物理学家，研究物理学的人

参考例句：

• He is a physicist of the first rank.他是一流的物理学家。
• The successful physicist never puts on airs.这位卓有成就的物理学家从不摆架子。

3 hawking   

利用鹰行猎

参考例句：

• He is hawking his goods everywhere. 他在到处兜售他的货物。
• We obtain the event horizon and the Hawking spectrumformula. 得到了黑洞的局部事件视界位置和Hawking温度以及Klein—Gordon粒子的Hawking辐射谱。

4 enrolled   

adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 )；登记，招收，使入伍（或入会、入学等），参加，成为成员；记入名册；卷起，包起

参考例句：

• They have been studying hard from the moment they enrolled. 从入学时起，他们就一直努力学习。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He enrolled with an employment agency for a teaching position. 他在职业介绍所登了记以谋求一个教师的职位。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

6 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

7 portfolios   

n.投资组合( portfolio的名词复数 )；（保险）业务量；（公司或机构提供的）系列产品；纸夹

参考例句：

• Price risk arises in non-trading portfolios, as well as in trading portfolios. 价格风险中出现的非贸易投资，以及在贸易投资组合。 来自互联网
• How do we fatten our portfolios and stay financially healthy? 我们怎样育肥我们的投资结构和维持财政健康呢？ 来自互联网

8 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

9 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

10 autonomous   

adj.自治的；独立的

参考例句：

• They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province.他们自豪地宣布成为新自治省的一部分。
• This is a matter that comes within the jurisdiction of the autonomous region.这件事是属于自治区权限以内的事务。

11 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

12 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。