Well-to-do parents are increasingly opting to send their children to single-sex prep schools, reversing the trend of recent year

admin2014-03-22  33

问题     Well-to-do parents are increasingly opting to send their children to single-sex prep schools, reversing the trend of recent years. Last week, Michael Gove told us that we needed to promote a Dangerous Book for Boys culture so that boys could be boys again. At the beginning of this month, it(re-)emerged that there were far fewer male teachers in primary schools to act as role models.
    Underlying this is anxiety about achievement: recent Department for Education figures show that nearly double the number of boys failed to reach expected standards at seven. The gender gap is more than 10 points in English at 11. Behaviour is a worry too. Boys are three and a half times more likely to be excluded, and the figure is worse still if you are a working-class or black boy.
    Today’s answer to the problem seems to be single-sex schools. Yet debates about their value are both age-old and decidedly unresolved. Proponents(倡导者)argue that keeping boys together allows them to expel their "boyish" energy more freely — ensuring they are in line and on task. Girls are said to benefit too, with more support to build self-confidence.
    But there is also evidence in the other direction. A report commissioned by the Headmasters and Headmistresses conference, which represents top private schools, shows that single-sex schools make little difference to outcomes. What’s more, arguing that Eton is a good school because it only admits boys is like saying Wayne Rooney is a good footballer because he wears a nice kit — one does not necessarily lead to the other.
    In practice, the single-sex question is a distraction from what really matters. It sounds obvious, but boys(and girls)will do better if they are taught better by teachers who understand their individual needs. That means skilled practitioners(从业者)using the curriculum creatively to engage and excite every single child in front of them — regardless of their gender. And, incidentally, male and female teachers have equal capacity to get this right.
    Of course this is hard, and I can say I fell short many times. But just by introducing a gender control on the group isn’t going to make it any easier. What about the girl who likes active learning or the boy who is shy? I am not sure they would get a fair deal if our teaching is framed by gender behaviours. In any case, we want kids to be able to excel in response to all learning environments — not just the ones they are comfortable in. So let girls be boisterous(活跃的), and boys self-reflect. And let them learn together, taught by the best teachers we can find.
What’s supporters’ argument for single-sex schools?

选项 A、There exists no gender gap in these schools.
B、They are beneficial to both boys and girls.
C、Boys gain more confidence in boy schools.
D、They help girls achieve their full potential.

答案B

解析 根据题干中的supporters’argument将本题出处定位于第3段最后两句。这两句提到,支持者争辩说,把男孩子们放在一起可以让他们更加自由地释放出“男孩子气的”能量——确保他们既行为得体,又能完成学业。女孩子们也会受益匪浅,能获得更多支持,建立自信。由此可知,支持者认为单一性别学校对男孩和女孩都有益,故答案为B)。A)在文中未提及。该段末句提到,女孩子可以建立更多自信,故排除C)。文中提到让男孩子们自由地释放出自己的能量,而不是让女孩充分发挥潜能,故排除D)。
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