笔者在日常教学中,多以阅读写作为主,尽管一项为输入,一项为输出,一项是许多学生的得分机会,一向让考生头痛不已,但两者在雅思教学点上却有着相辅相成的密切关系。在教授阅读时,笔者常引导学生利用写作框架观察阅读文章结构,更好地把握定位方向;而在写作课上,分析真题题目也少不了阅读能力的帮助。
许多学生认为,动辄900-1000字的阅读文章对于只有150和250字的雅思作文借鉴意义不大,事实上,两者在主题、构思、句式、用词等方面有着很大的相似性。本文中,专家将就此一一说明:
1. 主题性
阅读文章和雅思写作题目涵盖的范围比较广,具有极强的主题性,其重合话题有:环境、社会、教育三大方面。阅读文章的内容能帮助考生更好地理解题目的文化背景,积累观点素材,在备考过程中,考生可以将这两项结合起来。
剑四test 2的reading passage 1“Lost for Words”极好的回答了雅思一道较难的文化类考题:what are the reasons for the loss of many cultures and languages? How to solve this problem?”
许多学生因为缺少对这一背景的了解而无从下手,我们完全可以看看这篇阅读文章提供了哪些素材:
1 “What makes a language endangered is not just the number of speakers, but how old they are. If it is spoken by children, it is relatively safe.”
2 “…people reject the language of their parents… It begins with a crisis of confidence, when a small community finds itself alongside a larger, wealthier society…”
3 “Quite often, governments try to kill off a minority language by banning its use in public or discouraging its use in schools, all to promote national unity.”
4 “… They cannot refuse to speak English if most commercial activity is in English…”
这些都是十分准确而又全面的回答,说明了许多语言丧失的原因,甚至连语言丧失对于文化的连带影响也有所涉及:“Language is also intimately bound with culture, so it may be difficult to preserve one without the other.”
这篇文章在后文也对如何解决这一问题做出了回答:
“ …a growing interest in cultural identity may prevent the direst prediction from coming true….’apprentice’ programs have provided life support t several indigenous languages.”
值得注意的是,这篇阅读文章的结构是遵循“背景—原因—解决方式”的架构来安排的,对于写作结构也有很好的架构作用。
2. 段落结构的句式
1). 分析解决型文章
分析解决型文章常常要求考生对题目所述现象进行讨论,说明原因、影响或解决方式。这类题目要求比较直接,段落多是以“总——分”方式架构即“主题句——细节”。
剑六Test 4的Reading Passage3就提供了一个很好的范例。该文对校园中恃强凌弱的暴力行为进行了说明,文章段落分布主要是:摆事实(校园暴力的表现形式及现状)——说影响(校园暴力对受害者的心理危害)——查原因(导致学校对校园暴力关注提升的原因)——提办法(四个解决校园暴力的方法)——做呼吁。不难看出,这一布局跟分析解决型文章有着惊人的相似,是极好的借鉴范本。其中值得参考的句式如下:
摆事实:“… can take a variety of forms, from…to…as well as… . A survey …found that…”。我们可以利用这个结构尝试给青少年犯罪这一话题开个头:In some countries, the rate of teenagers criminal acts is increasing. What are the reasons and give your measures to reduce it.(09.11.07)
具体如下:Juvenile delinquency can take a variety of forms, from theft to robbery as well as drug-related offences. Some surveys in recent years find that the rate of youth crimes is on a dramatic rise, even at an increasingly early age.
查原因:“… factors are involved in … . First is…. . Second, …. . For example,…. . Third, there is evidence that…. .”当然,考生也可以根据具体情况对于其中三个原因所对应的序数词进行替换。仍然是青少年犯罪的题目,我们也可以代入现成的句式:
Several factors are involved in the alarming trend. First is teenagers’ curiosity about and ignorance of laws… . Furthermore, some reasons are associated closely with the family background. For example, some young criminals imitate their parents after witnessing the domestic violence. Finally, there is evidence that society exerts some influence on young people.
最精彩的莫过于提办法,考生可以仔细琢磨一下文章中的句式和结构:
“Evidence suggests that a key step is to… . Other actions can be taken to …. . There are also ways of ….…, too.”
就连文章背后的summary题目也有很好的借鉴句式,“The most important step is for… to … . In addition, actions can be taken through… . Effective work can also be done with…will be more effective.”
我们可以根据自己的需要选择一些句型来回答青少年犯罪的解决方式:
“The most important step is for school authorities to offer young students knowledge of laws and regulations, so that they can be prevented from crimes due to ignorance. Other actions can be taken to reverse the increase in the youth criminal rate, such as parental love and proper guidance. In addition, the society should attach enough importance to this phenomenon…”
总之,建议考生们可以对阅读文章进行模写,学习英文的布局习惯,另外,词汇的丰富和语法的多样性也是值得注意的。反过来,如果能够很好地构建好写作结构,对于阅读技巧也是不无裨益的。