为什么美国STEM专业,挤破头也要进?
双语原文
ENGLISH-CHINESE TEXT
Today's classroom is a far cry from the traditional image of locker desks, chalkboards and pencils. With education expected to prepare children for a fast-changing digital workplace, technology-led learning is becoming the norm and kids may be coding before they can read and write.
过去传统教室的标配是物品存放柜、黑板和铅笔,和过去相比,如今的教室已今非昔比。面对瞬息万变的数字化工作环境,教育也被赋予了培养孩子适应这种工作环境的责任,学习内容逐渐变成以技术为导向,孩子在掌握读写能力之前,可能就已经学会编程了。
As a result, global spending on educational technology is booming. It's expected to double to $341 billion between 2018 and 2025, according to data and research firm HolonIq. "We're asking young people what they want to be when they grow up, when maybe more than half of the job's tasks and industries they may work in have not been invented yet," says Heather McGowan, a future work strategist who helps to prepare people and organizations for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which will see the world reshaped by artificial intelligence, robotics and other technological breakthroughs. A report by the World Economic Forum notes that 65% of the children entering primary school in 2017 will have jobs that do not yet exist and for which their education will fail to prepare them.
基于此,世界各地都大幅提高了对教育技术设备的资金支持。有关数据和HolonIq公司研究显示,2018年至2025年,全球对技术教育设备的投资将有望翻倍,达到3410亿美元。希瑟·麦高文是未来就业环境方面的分析专家,他向有关人员和组织在应对第四次工业革命上提供指导,第四次工业革命中,人工智能、机器人和其他科学技术将重塑整个世界,他表示,“我们采访了年轻人,问他们长大后想要做什么,可能有超过一半的未来工作行业至今都还未被开发出来。”世界经济论坛(World Economic Forum)的一份报告显示,2017年升小学的学生中,有65%的学生在未来做的工作目前甚至还不存在,目前所受的教育自然也无法培养他们应对这些工作的能力。
Education must adapt accordingly. McGowan thinks this means less focus on transferring knowledge, and more on the ability to learn for yourself. "The foundational knowledge of the future is your own ability to learn and adapt, because if you don't your career will come to a screeching halt after a couple of years," she says.
教育需要相应做出改变。麦高文表示,这意味着教育应该减少对知识变化的关注,更多关注学生自主学习的能力。她说:“未来,自主学习能力和适应能力是基本技能,如果缺乏这种技能,职业生涯注定无法长久维持。”
Tools for the future
应对未来的学习工具
This new era of education also demands a fresh set of tools. Take Cubetto, a small wooden robot that moves on a board when a child inserts blocks with commands such as left, right or forward into a connected base. The Cubetto kit, costing $225, is being used by schools and parents to teach children as young as three to code. "It's a skill that you can apply to anything: you basically learn to think in a very logical and rational manner," says Filippo Yacob, founder and CEO of Primo, the toy maker that developed Cubetto. "For us, it's about making children future proof," he adds.
教育新时代也需要一些新的学习工具。以Cubetto为例,Cubetto是一个小型木制机器人,当孩子将带有左、右或向前等指令的方块插入连接的基座时,它就会接收指令在一块游戏板上立即启动。这套工具售价225美元,目前被学校和家长用来教三岁的孩子学习编程。开发Cubetto的玩具设计者菲利波·雅科布(Filippo Yacob)是Primo公司的首席执行官,他说,“这套玩具培养了一种通用技能,它教你学会用逻辑和理性的方式思考问题。”他补充道,“对我们来说,这是为了让孩子们更好地应对未来。”
However, the effectiveness of such tools depends on maintaining the attention span of a young child. "It needs to be something fun and adventurous, not just homework," says Alex Klein, CEO and founder of Kano, an educational technology company. Kano's signature product — the Kano computer kit — is a build-your-own computer or tablet. Students follow a step-by-step guide to connect the parts, and once it's up and running they can play on several apps, from learning to code to creating music and games.
但是,这些工具的功效取决于对儿童注意力的吸引时间。教育科技公司Kano的首席执行官兼创始人亚历克斯•克莱因(Alex Klein)表示:“和家庭作业不一样,这些工具需要充满趣味性和刺激性。”Kano的标志性产品——Kano电脑套件——是一款支持用户自己组装的电脑产品。学生按照操作指南将各部分进行组装,组装完成并成功启动电脑后,他们可以对多个简单的应用程序进行开发,整个环节涵盖了自主学习、编程和音乐及游戏的创作过程。
"Kano offers paradigm game-changing opportunities for teaching computer science," says
Allen Tsui, a teacher at a school in London that uses the device. "(It) also enables project based learning opportunities to extend collaboration, creativity, communication and critical thinking skills.” In the United Kingdom, educators are welcoming the use of technology. According to a survey by Promethean, 54% of teachers are using educational technology this year, and 94% acknowledge that it can improve engagement among students.
“Kano为计算机科学教学提供了自定义游戏规则的范例,”伦敦的Allen Tsui表示,他所在的学校就使用了Kano电脑套件,“这些工具以提供学习机会为基础,进一步发展了学生的协作能力、创新能力、交流能力和批判性思维能力。在英国,教育工作者支持应用科学技术进行教学。英国Promethean公司的一项调查显示,今年54%的教师都应用了技术设备进行教学,94%的教师认为技术工具可以提高学生的参与度。
本新闻解读首发于2019年08月08日,新闻来源: CNN
新闻链接:
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/07/30/business/future-education-technology/index.html
作者:Emiko Jozuka
文本难度:★★★★☆
话题难度:★★★☆☆
重点词汇
KEY VOCABULARY
1.manga
n. 日本漫画
2.depict
v. 描述;描画
3.mundane
adj. 世俗的,平凡的
4.anime
n. 日本动漫;芳香树脂
5.overshadow
v. 使失色;使蒙上阴影
6.burgeoning
adj. 迅速发展的,快速生长的,繁荣的
7.pirate
n. 海盗;盗版 v. 掠夺;翻印
8.void
adj. 无效的;空的 n. 空间;空白
9.blitz
n. 闪电战 v. 以闪电战攻击
10.bust
v. 打破;猛烈打击 n.半身像;经济萧条
11.pivot
n. 中心点;中心 v. 以……为中心旋转;
句型解析
SENTENCE ANALYSIS
(1)"We're asking young people what they want to be when they grow up, when maybe more than half of the job's tasks and industries they may work in have not been invented yet," says Heather McGowan, (2)a future work strategist who helps to prepare people and organizations for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, (3)which will see the world reshaped by artificial intelligence, robotics and other technological breakthroughs.
1."We're ...McGowan:主句,主语为Heather McGowan,谓语says,宾语为说话的内容。
2.a future ...strategist:修饰Heather McGowan的非限制性定语从句,省略who is,起补充说明作用,在句子中不充当成分,它与主句往往用逗号隔开。
3.which ...breakthroughs:修饰the Fourth Industrial Revolution的非限制性定语从句,其中see the world reshaped by中“reshaped ”宾语补足语,表示被动。
拓展阅读
EXTENDED READING
萌萌的STEAM机器人,Cubetto带你来一场冒险之旅
Cubetto是由Primo Toys研发的一款木质机器人,帮助3-6岁的儿童通过讲故事、冒险和协作中探索编程,为家长和教育工作者鼓励孩子去探索数字世界的品牌。在现在的数字世界中,越来越多的设备之间相互连接,编程技能被赋予了新的意义,编程应该和读、写、算数等能力同时被掌握。Cubetto专为学龄前儿童设计动手操作的编码语言,通过寓教于乐的体验满足好奇心和丰富的想象力,让计算机技能和编程逻辑真正被儿童所接受。Cubetto是没有数字界面和屏幕的编程玩具,能够孩子在学会读写之前就可以学习编程。
Cubetto ,由耐用的木头制成,Cubetto是微笑的编码伴侣。告诉他去哪里以及如何到达那里,跟着他一起去冒险!
这款玩具还能创造更加美好的记忆,你可以通过编码带他打高尔夫球,翻转世界地图又可以设计一个迷宫,在Cubetto身上绑上画笔,设定他的轨迹,又可以让他画画。这样一个玩具,可以充分发掘孩子的创造力和想象力,是不是很奇妙呢?
课后思考
READING REFLECTION
从职业规划网站Zippia发布的“2019年薪资最高的大学专业”排行榜的结果来看,STEM专业几乎包揽了榜单的前十。学工程专业的小伙伴们真的有傲娇的资本,像化学工程、通用工程、机械工程、电子工程等专业毕业生的年薪都让其他专业的毕业生望尘莫及。因此,读STEM专业还是很明智的选择,技术岗位对STEM人才需求多,往往愿意支付更高的薪水。
STEM的精髓是将其作为自然科学的一个整体,强调学生在学习和实践过程中要像科学家一样进行研究。但要把科学、技术、工程和数学纳入一个体系,解决实际生活中的问题,这不是简单的一门课就能够解决的。学校要构建STEM课程体系,不仅要关注硬件建设,更要在内容建设方面下大力气,将科学、信息技术、劳动技术等学科内容以项目化的方式进行整合,最终构建适应地方、学校的STEM教育资源。
美国教育注重思维培养,这种体系下培养的学生很快就能辨析一个问题,容易找到解决问题的途径,这是对我国教育的一个启示。STEM教育若要在中国兴起,一是注重对教师的培养,二是加强内容体系的建设。STEM教育对教师的综合素质要求比较高,教师不仅要具备科学素养,还要有一定的理论支撑。教师若具备很强的好奇心和探索精神,则更容易成为优秀的STEM教师。而且,内容体系需要系统性的框架,正如美国的STEM教育是自上而下的,需要什么样的人才,则教育全过程的目标就是培养这样的人才,我们可以结合中国特点、地区特色和学生年龄特点构建中国的STEM教育体系。
教育有“高与低”两个结构,高结构化的教育以结果为导向,把知识灌输给下一代;低结构化的教育以过程为导向,培养学生解决问题的能力,得到的结果是多元的,没有特定答案,这就是STEM教育。
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