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Read carefully the following excerpt and then write your response in NO LESS THAN 200 WORDS, in which you should:
1. summarize the main message of the excerpt, and then
2. comment on the topic of the primary mission of colleges and universities.
You can support yourself with information from the excerpt.
Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.
Excerpt
Many Americans have begun to ask whether college is worth it. And who’s to blame? With college tuition rising at astronomical levels, it’s reasonable to think prospective consumers will do a more careful “return on investment” calculation. But instead of asking whether it’s worth it, we’d be better off asking a different question: what’s the purpose of college? Without nailing this answer, it’s impossible to discern whether it will be or was worth it. Even more importantly, being clear about the purpose of college also helps us make the most of it.
The problem is that our national narrative about “college” has created a decidedly false dichotomy between the two primarily professed purposes of college. There is the camp that says college is about preparing a person for work—to help them get a good or better job. In fact, this is by far the most commonly cited reason for why Americans value higher education—to get a good job. The other camp says college is about more broadly preparing a person for success in life—to be an engaged and enlightened citizen capable of thinking critically and communicating clearly, ultimately able to thrive in their environment. Make no mistake; many of us see the purpose of college as both a job-driven and a life-driven purpose. But our dialogue is horribly stuck in the muck of an either/or debate on these two fronts.
It’s time to end the either/or debate and embrace the reality that college’s purpose is both. College is about both preparing people for a job (and helping them advance their careers and earnings) and to thrive in their overall lives.
审题立意
作文要求考生先阅读一则英文材料，然后就“大学的主要任务”这一话题发表自己的看法。材料介绍了许多美国人存在的一个质疑，那就是大学教育的目的是什么。一种观点认为大学的主要任务是帮助学生获得一份体面的工作，而另一种观点则认为，大学应当从更宽广的角度培养学生，使其成为生活中的成功者。作者认为，大学应该服务于这两个目的。关于大学的主要任务，不同的人有不同的见解，考生可以结合材料并根据实际情况发表自己的看法。
写作框架
1 简述材料内容，然后发表自己的看法：完全赞同材料中作者的观点，即大学应同时服务于这两个目标。
2 从两方面加以阐述：一方面，学生读大学的一个主要目的是希望毕业后能获得一份体面的工作，因此大学有责任帮助他们获得更好的工作；另外一方面，大学还应帮助学生成为自主的学习者，使其拥有自信心、独立的精神、出世及入世的情怀、以及贡献社会的信念。
3 得出结论：大学里的教育者应当既帮助学生准备就业，又帮助他们获得技能和能力，使其成为积极影响他人的公民。
精彩范文
The above excerpt poses a question: what is the primary mission of colleges and universities? Although the question is raised in the USA and is concerned about American education, understandably the same question lingers in the minds of numerous Chinese people. As is mentioned in the excerpt, some believe that college is about preparing a person for work while others argue that college is about more broadly preparing a person for success in life. I totally agree with the author’s answer that colleges and universities should serve both purposes. (Viewpoint)
For one thing, one major purpose for which students choose to enter a college is that they hope to find a decent job after graduation and therefore colleges and universities have the duty to prepare them for a better career. (Topic sentence) Work is an important building block on which a satisfying life is built. They are the arenas in which we experience our greatest opportunities for satisfaction, growth and challenge. As human beings, we each have a deep-seated desire to accomplish something and to be productive members of our community. Therefore, colleges and universities should attach great importance to helping students acquire enough knowledge and skills for them to land a suitable job after graduation.
For another, colleges and universities should also try to help their students become able, self-directed learners that are independent and confident, and will go out into society and give back to society through leadership or through civic duties. (Topic sentence) That is to say, aside from equipping students with advanced knowledge and expertise required for jobs, colleges and universities are also supposed to instill such crucial skills as adaptive thinking, leadership, communication, self-discipline, time management, critical thinking and problem solving skills into their students.
To sum up, educators in colleges and universities should both prepare their students for a challenging and rewarding career and help them gain the skills and ability to become able, independent and confident citizens who have a positive influence on others. (Conclusion)
主题词汇
pose a question 提出问题
primary mission 主要任务
understandably adv. 可以理解地
linger vi. 萦绕；徘徊
decent adj. 体面的；令人满意的
arena n. 竞技场；舞台
deep-seated adj. 根深蒂固的
attach importance to 重视
land a job 谋得一份工作
civic duties 公民义务
aside from除……以外
instill...into... 将……灌输给……
have a positive influence on 对……有积极影响
亮点句式
1 Although the question is raised in the USA and is concerned about American education, understandably the same question lingers in the minds of numerous Chinese people.
译文 尽管这一问题是在美国提出的，是关于美国教育的，但可以理解的是，同样的问题也萦绕于许多中国人的脑海中。
分析 句中采用了although引导的让步状语从句，其主句采用了比喻的修辞手法，linger in the minds of sb.意为“萦绕于某人的脑海中”，比喻某人反复思考某个问题或被某个问题所困扰。
2 For another, colleges and universities should also try to help their students become able, self-directed learners that are independent and confident, and will go out into society and give back to society through leadership or through civic duties.
译文 另一方面，学院和大学也应该努力帮助学生成为有能力的、自主的学习者，他们独立而自信，将步入社会，并通过发挥领导才能或尽公民义务来贡献社会。
分析 for another表示“另一方面”，常与for one thing（一方面）连用，用于引出要探讨的问题的两方面。go out into society表示“步入社会”，而give back to society表示“回馈社会，贡献社会”。