课文翻译 课后翻译在最后
1.A teacher from Canada recently visited an elementary school in Japan. In one class, she watched sixty young children as they learned to draw a cat. The class teacher drew a big circle on the blackboard, and sixty children copied it on their papers. The teacher drew a smaller circle on top of the first and then put two triangles on top of it; the children continued their cats in exactly the same way. The lesson continued until there were sixty-one identical cats in the classroom. 一位来自加拿大的老师最近参观了一所日本的小学。 在一堂课上， 她观看了60个小孩子在学习画猫。 任课老师在黑板上画了一个大圆圈，60个孩子就模仿着画在纸上。老师在第一个圆圈上面画了一个小些的圆圈，然后又在小圆圈上面画了两个三角形；孩子们也以完全相同的方式继续画着他们的猫。这堂课就这么继续着，直到教室里有了61只一模一样的猫。
2.The Canadian teacher was startled by the lesson. The teaching methods — and their effects — were very different from those in her own country. An art lesson in a Canadian school would lead to a room full of unique pictures, not a series of identical cats. Why? What causes this difference in educational methods? 这节课让那位加拿大老师大为吃惊。 这类教学方法--以及它们的效果--同她自己国家的迥然不同。 加拿大学校里的一节美术课会产生满满一屋子独一无二的图画，而不是一张又一张完全相同的猫。 为什么呢? 是什么造成了这种教学方法上的不同呢?
3.In any classroom in any country, the instructor teaches more than just art or history or language. Part of what's going on — consciously or not — is the teaching of culture: the attitudes, values and beliefs of the society. Every education system is inevitably a mirror that reflects the culture of the society it is a part of.在任何国家的任何一个教室里，老师教的都不仅仅是艺术、历史或语言。课堂活动的一部分--有意识或无意识地--是在传授文化：社会的观念、价值观和信仰。每一种教育制度都不可避免地是一面反映其所在社会的文化的镜子。
4.In many Western societies, such as the United States or Canada, which are made up of many different nationalities, religious groups and cultural orientations, individualism and independent thinking are highly valued. And these values are reflected by the education systems in these countries. Teachers emphasize the qualities that make each student special. Students are seldom expected to memorize information; instead, they are encouraged to think for themselves, find answers on their own and come up with individual solutions. At an early age, students learn to form their own ideas and opinions, and to express their ideas in class discussion. 在像美国或加拿大这样由许多不同的民族、宗教团体和文化取向构成的西方社会中，个性和独立思考受到高度重视。这些价值观通过这些国家的教育制度反映出来。老师们强调那些使每个学生都与众不同的品质。他们很少要求学生熟记信息；却鼓励他们独立思考，独自寻找答案，并提出各自的解决方法。学生们从小就学着形成自己的意见和看法，并在课堂讨论中各抒己见。
5.In Japan, by contrast, the vast majority of people share the same language, history, and culture. Perhaps for this reason, the education system there reflects a belief in group goals and traditions rather than individualism. Japanese schoolchildren often work together and help one another on assignments. In the classroom, the teacher is the main source of knowledge: He or she lectures, and the students listen. There is not much discussion; instead, the students recite rules or
information that they have memorized. 在日本则截然不同，绝大多数人有着同样的语言、历史和文化。也许是由于这个缘故，那儿的教育制度反映了一种对集体目标和传统而不是对个性的信念。日本的学童经常在一起学习，做作业时相互帮助。在教室里，教师是主要的知识来源：教师讲，学生听。没有很多的讨论；学生们却要背诵他们已经记住的规则或信息。
6.The advantage of the education system in Japan is that students there learn the social skill of cooperation. Another advantage is that they learn much more math and science than most
American students. They also study more hours each day and more days each year than their North American counterparts do. The system is demanding, but it prepares children for a society that values discipline and self-control. There are, however, disadvantages. For one thing, many students say that after an exam, they forget much of the information they memorized. For another,
