实战口语情景对话 第802期:Classroom Ups and Downs 教学喜与恶

Tom: We're both English teachers. Is there anything you hate about teaching English?
汤姆：我们都是英语老师。在教英语方面你有没有不喜欢的地方？

Jess: There's actually not much that I hate about teaching English but there is one thing which drives me balmy, and annoys me more than anything else and that's correcting the same mistake over, and over, and over again, and it seems that every country in which I've worked, every nationality in English learners have one mistake that they always make over and over again. In Hungary, when you say how are you to a Hungarian student, they'll reply in English, I'm feeling myself well, which is a direct translation from Hungarian but sounds rather strange and a little bit rude in English, and I must have corrected that mistake millions of times while I was there. The same students again and again and again and again, so the repetition of making the same correction really gets my goat. How about you? What do you hate about teaching?
杰西：实际上在教英语上我没有太多不满意的地方，不过有一件事真的会让我抓狂，让我很生气，那就是反复纠正同一个错误，在我工作过的每个国家，各国学习英语的人都会反复犯同一个错误。在匈牙利，如果你问匈牙利学生“你好吗”，他们会用英语回答“我感觉自己很好”，这其实是从匈牙利语直接翻译过来的，不过用英语说的话听起来很奇怪，我在匈牙利的时候纠正了这个错误无数次。同一个学生会反复犯这个错误，所以重复纠正同一个错误让我很生气。你呢？在教学方面你有不喜欢的吗？

Tom: I really wouldn't say I hate something about teaching, but I definitely think there are things that waste my time when I'm teaching. After every lesson, I very carefully write up a lesson plan, bring all those materials together, put it in a little plastic wallet and store it away in a folder, and I know full well I will never open that folder to read about that lesson again. I kind of approach every lesson as fresh and new and try and come up with something different and every time I'm writing them all up, doing all this paperwork and I really don't need to. I need to get in control of myself and stop doing that. You told me what you most dislike about teaching, but I'm sure you love this job. What are some things you like about English teaching?
汤姆：我不会说我讨厌教学，不过我认为教学时会有浪费时间的情况发生。每节课之后，我要仔细整理课程计划，把所有材料放在一起，装进塑料文件袋中，然后放在档案夹里保存起来，我清楚地知道我不会再打开那个档案夹，不会再浏览那份课程计划。我每节课都会想些新计划，想出不同的教学方法，每次我都会整理这些资料，可是其实我不必这么做。我要控制我自己，不要再这么做了。你之前说过你最不喜欢教学的哪个方面，不过我确定你很爱这份工作。那你喜欢教学的哪些方面？

Jess: I think the thing I like the most about teaching is what I call the "Ah-hah" moment when you're studying a language point with a class or a student and you can almost see physically the moment they understand, the moment they're able to make sense of the language of they can do the task that you've asked them to do, and you can almost see a light bulb go off above their head, "Ah-hah! Now I understand." and I love that. I love the surge of confidence that gives the students and also makes me feel really good that I helped them to reach that point. What do you love about teaching Tom?
杰西：我最喜欢教学的地方是我称之为“啊哈”的时刻，就是和学生一起研究语言点的时候，那个时候你几乎可以看到他们用身体表达出他们理解了，他们明白那个语言点、能完成你布置的任务以后，你几乎可以看到他们头上的灯亮了起来，“啊哈，现在我明白了。”我非常喜欢这点。我喜欢帮助学生们提升信心，这让我感觉很好，因为我帮助他们做到了这一点。汤姆，你喜欢教学的哪方面？

Tom: The thing I really love is right at the end of the course, when the students come up to you after a long time of haranguing about homework and about being late and about correction and drilling and the students come up and say, "Teacher, we're all going to dinner at the end of the course. Do you want to come with us?" and that must makes me smile. Now, I know I saying this to you Jess, but I know there's a lot of people out there listening to this. It really makes my heart warm to go and have some social time with the students at the end of a long course.
汤姆：我喜欢的是课程快结束那个阶段，在长时间抱怨作业、迟到、纠正和训练以后，学生们会过来问你：“老师，课程结束后我们要一起去吃晚饭。你想和我们一起吗？”那一定会让我微笑。杰西，我知道我现在只是在对你说，可是我也知道有很多人会听这个节目。在长期课程结束以后和学生们一起度过社交时间，真的让我感觉很温暖。

Jess: So the thing you like most about teaching is when the teaching is finished?
杰西：所以你最喜欢教学的地方是教学结束时？

Tom: Oh, you've got me on that one, yes.
汤姆：哦，我也说不清楚，应该是吧。