英文自修125：教育人人有责

本系列内容英文原文取自BBC Thought for the Day节目网站，朋友们也可以下载节目录音收听。

译者：王宥轩

审读：武太白

------------------------

Thought for the Day 20140619 - Rev Professor David Wilkinson

The report of the Commons Education Select Committee, Underachievement in Education by White Working Class Children, attempts in its own words to hold up a mirror to a real and persistent problem. It comes just after Sir Michael Wilshaw, the chief inspector of schools, suggested that parents should be fined if they don’t read with their children or support their homework.

英国议会下院教育特别委员会发布了报道《白人工人阶级孩子成绩不良》，称其试图反映一直都真实存在的这一问题。就在此前，英国总督学麦克•威尔肖爵士曾表示，如果家长没有辅导孩子读书或完成作业，他们就应该被罚款。

麦克•威尔肖爵士，英国标准教育办公室首席督学

The report itself suggests incentives to attract high-quality teachers to schools and longer days to allow pupils to do their homework. But how much should we expect of parents and how best should society deal with this?

该报道建议学校采取激励措施，吸引高素质的老师，并且延长学生的在校时间，以便他们完成作业。但父母应该做什么，社会又应当如何处理好这一问题呢？

As a parent, with my daughter doing an exam this morning, it seems to me that Sir Michael is entirely right to remind parents of our responsibility, even if I’m not convinced that, fines are the way forward. From my own Christian perspective, all children are a gift reflecting the image of God, to be nurtured in wisdom, creativity and knowledge. Parents are the key focus for this, yet often we fall short - sometimes because of selfishness and sometimes simply because of circumstances of life. Christian faith sees the reality of this, and therefore the need for support, recognising that parents can’t do everything. An outstanding example, here in the North East, is Safe Families for Children, a collaboration between faith groups, volunteers and childcare professionals designed to support parents. It works with families who may be isolated and coping with crises, providing through volunteers, friendship and practical support to both children and parents.

我也是个家长，我女儿今早就在考试，我认为麦克爵士提醒我们家长应承担的责任是非常正确的，尽管我并不相信罚款就能起到推动作用。作为一名基督徒，我认为所有孩子都是上帝的礼物，他们身上有上帝的影子，所以我们应该教给他们智慧、创造力和知识。在这一点上，父母是关键的角色，而我们却往往没有做到这些——有时候是因为自私，而有时候只是因为生活环境。基督教信仰就看出了这一事实，父母不是无所不能的，他们需要帮助。在本地方，英格兰的东北，就有一个杰出的榜样：各宗教团体、志愿者和育儿专家们通力合作，打造了“儿童的安好之家”，帮助父母教育孩子。该组织帮助那些孤立的、面临危机的家庭，为父母和孩子贡献志愿服务、友谊和切实有用的支持。

Of course, it’s not just faith groups who give of themselves in such support. I find it amazing that over eighteen hundred volunteers through Durham University’s Student Community Action go out into projects across the region, with many mentoring and tutoring children.

当然，提供这类支持的还不止宗教团体。令我感到惊讶的是，1800多名志愿者通过杜伦大学的学生社区行动加入了遍及该地区的项目，其中有很多人指导和教育孩子。

I grew up in this region in a white working class former mining village with parents who did value education. Yet in the pressures of life, even they needed help. This is where my Auntie Hilda came in. She would often give my mother a break and give me tea. However before the world’s best steak pie, we would do homework and in addition she would have neatly written out a number of sums for me to do. When I eventually came to work on the mathematics of galaxy evolution, I owed of course a lot to outstanding physics teachers, but I couldn’t have done it without her. Not everyone has an aunt like mine, but this all reminds me that underachievement in children is not just the responsibility of parents, schools or government - it's the responsibility of us all.

我就是在当地长大的，我所在的村子以前是采矿的，现在的村民都是白人劳工阶层，并且非常重视教育。然而在生活的压力下，他们也需要帮助。所以，以前我的阿姨希尔达就会前来帮忙，她常常会让妈妈休息一会，让我喝杯茶。但是，在享用世上最美味的牛肉馅饼之前，我们要先完成作业，并且完成她事先写好的几道算术题。当我最终研究星系演化数学时，固然这要感谢我杰出的物理老师，但如果没有希尔达阿姨，就没有后来的我。不是所有人都能有这样的阿姨，这也提醒我，孩子的成绩不好不仅仅是父母、学校或政府的责任——我们所有人都有责任。