(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
From VOA Learning English, this is the Education Report in Special English.
Teachers say the digital age has had a good influence -- and a not-so-good influence -- on this generation of American teenagers. More than 2,000 middle and high school teachers took an online survey. Researchers also spoke with teachers in focus groups.
Three-quarters of the teachers said the Internet and digital search tools have had a "mostly positive" effect on their students' research habits and skills. But 87 percent agreed that these technologies are creating an "easily distracted generation with short attention spans." And 64 percent said the technologies "do more to distract students than to help them academically." Many students think "doing research" now means just doing a quick search on Google.
A survey of U.S. middle and high school teachers highlights the need for digital literacy
The Pew Internet Project did the survey with the College Board and the National Writing Project. A majority of the teachers came from Advanced Placement classes, which provide college-level work for high school students.
Judy Buchanan is deputy director of the National Writing Project and a co-author of the report. Ms. Buchanan says digital research tools are helping students learn more, and learn faster.
"Teachers really embrace these tools because they are ways to make some of learning exciting and engaging. Young people embrace these tools. And the goal is to really help them become creators of content, and meaningful content, and not just sort of consumers."
But one problem the survey found is that many students are lacking in digital literacy. In other words, they trust too much of the information they find on the Internet. Judy Buchanan says these students have not developed the skills they need to judge the quality of online information.
"It's just a lot to learn about how to discern credible sources. And it's something that really has to be taught and paid attention to. It's like everything else -- in a world in which things can happen quickly, you really do need to have a way to step back, reflect and analyze the information you have. And teachers can do a lot to teach that."
Another problem the survey found is blamed on something that might not seem like a problem at all: being able to quickly find information online. Teachers say the result is a reduction in the desire and ability of their students to work hard to find answers. They say students are overly dependent on search engines and do not make enough use of printed books or research librarians.
Many teachers are also concerned that the Internet makes it easy for students to copy work done by others instead of using their own abilities.
词汇解释
1.distracted adj. 心烦意乱的；思想不集中的
He was distracted by anxiety.
他因忧虑而心烦意乱。
2.discern vt. 识别；领悟，认识
We should learn to discern and analyze the essentials of complicated questions.
我们应该学会认识和分析复杂问题的本质。
参考译文
这里是美国之音慢速英语教育报道。
老师们说对美国青少年一代来说，数字时代的影响喜忧兼备。2000多所中学和高中的教师参加了网络调查，研究者还与重点小组的教师们谈了话。
四分之三的教师称网络和数字研究工具在很多情况下对学生的研究习惯和技能有帮助，但87%的教师称这些技术使得青少年容易被干扰，注意力转瞬即逝。64%的教师称这些技术与其说帮助学习，还不如说影响了学习。许多学生认为做研究就是在谷歌上快速搜索一番。
皮尤互联网项目同大学委员会和国家写作项目合作完成了这项调查，大多数教师来自学业快班，该班为高中学生传授大学水平的课程。
朱迪·布坎南是国家写作项目副主任，也是这份报告的合作作者，她说数字研究工具帮助学生更快地学更多东西。
“老师们喜欢这些工具，因为它们使得一些课程更有趣，参与性更强。年轻人喜欢这些工具，我们的目标是帮助学生创造出实质、有意义的东西来，而不仅仅是其消费者。”
但调查中发现了一个问题，许多学生缺少数字素养，也就是说，他们过于相信在网络上找到的信息。朱迪·布坎南说这些学生不具备评价网络信息质量的技能。
“要会识别可靠信息来源，还需要学习很多。这才是真正需要教给他们的，也是值得注意的。这跟其他东西一样，在这个瞬息万变的世界里，我们必须能够后退一步，反思并分析所得的信息。老师们也下了功夫教学生这方面的技能。”
调查发现的另一个问题可能看起来并不像是问题，也就是，学生们能够快速在网络上寻找到信息。教师们称这样就造成学生的求知欲下降，努力学习找到答案的能力也下降。他们说学生过于依赖搜索引擎，没有很好地利用印刷书籍和图书馆。
许多教师还担心，互联网让学生们更容易拷贝他人的成果，而不是发挥自身的能力。
