VOA慢速英语20060518a

EDUCATION REPORT - Blogs Help Teachers Learn From Each OtherBy Brianna Blake

Broadcast: Thursday, May 18, 2006

I'm Bob Doughty¹ with the VOA Special English Education Report.

Blogs are being used more and more by teachers. Many Internet services now offer free and easy ways to create personal Web pages.

Through comments on blogs, or Web logs, teachers can share their classroom experiences. They can exchange ideas and discuss successes and failures. They can debate educational policies. Or they can just sympathize with each other.


Close up of woman's hand on computer mouse

A teacher in the American state of North Carolina recently wrote on her blog: Apparently² the teachers at my school use too much paper. So my principal yelled at everyone at the last staff meeting for, like, ten minutes. Now, I've just been told, we are not getting anymore paper for the rest of the year.

This unidentified blogger is now in her third year of teaching, but still calls her site firstyearteacher.blogspot.com.

Chris Lehmann is principal of the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His blog is practicaltheory.org. On a recent day, Mister Lehmann wrote about a project he had just learned about. The aim is to put a human face on the scientists who furthered the knowledge of chemistry.

Mister Lehmann noted³ that there is a lot of talk now about teaching as story telling. He wonders if this is moving into the idea of telling the story of science.

What would it do for students to learn about the people involved in these discoveries? he wrote in his blog. Does it make a difference if we see these 'facts' as discovered? If we see science as ever-evolving, does it help us to help our kids see their own role as scientists themselves?

A blogger who calls himself Mister Lawrence works as a substitute teacher. In April he wrote about a disputed plan to split the Omaha, Nebraska, public schools into separate systems for black, Latino and white students. Supporters say minority parents do not have enough power over their children's education.

But Mister Lawrence wrote at teachersparadise.blogspot.com: I'm afraid that what this 'says' to a lot of people is that blacks, whites and Hispanics are not equal, and 'reinforces' racist⁴ beliefs among people.

Educators did not become involved with blogging right away. Many were concerned with privacy issues and security. But now, thousands of teacher blogs can be found on the Internet. Many teachers do not identify themselves, and they change the names of students and co-workers.

This VOA Special English Education Report was written by Brianna Blake. Read and listen to our reports at www.unsv.com. I'm Bob Doughty.

1 doughty   

adj.勇猛的，坚强的

参考例句：

• Most of successful men have the characteristics of contumacy and doughty.绝大多数成功人士都有共同的特质：脾气倔强，性格刚强。
• The doughty old man battled his illness with fierce determination.坚强的老人用巨大毅力与疾病作斗争。

2 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。