邓布利多当选最佳模范教师

 　　This academic year students will be motivated by inspirational teachers. But which teacher characters from fiction and popular culture inspire real life teachers?

　　新学年开始了，循循善诱的老师将给学生带来鼓舞。那么，小说和流行文化塑造的哪些教师角色能给现实中的老师带来启发呢？

　　According to a Times Education Supplement survey of 1,200 educators, two characters from the Harry¹ Potter series grabbed prominent places in education's 50 favourite fictional² teachers.

　　《泰晤士报教育增刊》调查了1200名教育工作者后发现，50个最受教育界欢迎的虚构教师角色中，哈利波特(Harry Potter)系列中的两个人物名列前茅。

　　Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft³ and Wizardry, topped the poll. "Albus Dumbledore was never proud or vain; he could find something to value in anyone, however apparently⁴ insignificant⁵ or wretched. That he was the most inspiring and the best loved of all Hogwarts headmasters cannot be in question," Elphias Doge said of Dumbledore in his obituary⁶.

　　霍格沃茨魔法学校的校长阿不思·邓布利多在投票中名列榜首。埃菲亚斯·多吉在邓布利多的讣告中写道：“阿不思·邓布利多从不骄傲自负，他能发现每个人身上的闪光点，无论那个人看上去多么渺小卑微。他是霍格沃茨有史以来最鼓舞人心和受人爱戴的校长，这一点毋庸质疑。”

　　邓布利多当选最佳模范教师

　　In second place was beloved Miss Jennifer Honey from the Roald Dahl classic Matilda. "She was a mild and quiet person who never raised her voice and was seldom seen to smile, but there is no doubt she possessed⁷ that rare gift for being adored by every small child under her care," wrote Dahl.

　　位列第二的是罗尔德·达尔的经典之作《玛蒂尔达》中深受人们喜爱的詹妮弗·亨尼小姐。达尔写道：“她性情温和，平时不大讲话，即使说话也从不提高声音，也不常笑，但毫无疑问的是，任何一个在她的爱护下成长起来的小孩都会非常喜欢她，她就是拥有这样罕见的天赋。”

　　And the students' adoration⁸ of her transforms them into willing learners. On the first day of school, only a few of students could spell "cat". With Miss Honey's exceptional teaching prowess, by Thursday of the first week, even one of the classes' weaker students, Prudence⁹, could spell "difficulty" without any difficulty.

　　孩子们都很喜欢她，自然也有了学习的动力。开学第一天，只有几个学生能拼出“猫”这个单词，但亨尼小姐教学水平高超，到了第四天，连普鲁登斯这个班里学得较慢的学生也能毫不费力地拼出“困难”这个单词。

　　And in complete contrast, tough-but-fair Professor Minerva McGonagall, head of Gryffindor House and deputy headmistress also at Hogwarts, placed third on the list.

　　与上述两位截然相反的是严厉却不偏心的米勒娃·麦格教授，她是格兰芬多学院的院长和霍格沃茨代理校长，在票选中位列第三。

　　Fourth was John Keating, played by the late Robin¹⁰ Williams in the film Dead Poets Society, who inspired students through poetry. In direct contrast to the school goal of preparing students for college, Keating taught his students that occupations were noble pursuits to sustain life, but passion is the reason to live. He encouraged his students to look at things differently when they thought they knew something. "Even though it may seem silly, or wrong, you must try," he advised.

　　排名第四的是在电影《死亡诗社》中的约翰·基廷，由已故罗宾·威廉姆斯扮演，他以诗歌鼓舞学生。与校方让学生们备战考试、进入大学的目标截然相反，基廷教育学生们，工作固然是维持生活的崇高追求，但激情才是生而为人的根本原因。他鼓励学生们以另一种眼光看待熟悉的事物。他建议道：“尽管这样可能让你看起来很蠢，或者根本就是错的，但你必须得尝试。”

　　In the book Keeping Good Teachers, Mark Goldberg offers observations about the key characteristics of great teachers. These fictional teachers who have endeared all exemplified the qualities of "willingness to put in the necessary time", a "love for the age group they teach" and an "in-depth content knowledge".

　　马克·高柏格在他的《留住好老师》一书中提出了优秀教师的几个重要特质。这些深受欢迎的教师角色都展示出了几个特质：“愿意投入必要的时间”、“喜爱自己的学生”，以及“学科知识渊博”。

　　Now, whom do I consider the most inspirational of all fictional teachers? Without a doubt, Yoda, the Jedi master from Star Wars. Great teachers are unique. They transcend¹¹ race, nationality and species.

　　那么，在我看来，在所有虚构的教师角色中，哪一个才是最循循善诱的呢？当然非尤达莫属了，他是《星球大战》中的绝地大师。优秀的教师是独一无二的，他们早就超越了种族、国籍和物种的局限。

　　Yoda's key teachings are lessons for a lifetime: "A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defence, never for attack"; "Adventure, excitement - a Jedi craves¹² not these things"; and "Unlearn what you have learned", because old habits preclude¹³ new learning.

　　尤达最重要的教义让人终生受益。“一个绝地武士要利用原力获取知识、自我防卫，而不是主动进攻”、“冒险、刺激——这些都不是绝地武士所渴望的”、“忘掉以前所学的吧，”因为老习惯总会妨碍你学习新知识。

　　However, Yoda's most memorable¹⁴ quote is one of the last he gives to the young Luke Skywalker. It is especially invaluable¹⁵ to students as they begin this academic year. If they want to succeed, they need to give their best. "Do. Or do not. There is no try."

　　而尤达流传最广的名言是他留给年轻的卢克·天行者(Luke Skywalker)的最后几句话。这对开启新学年的学生们来说尤为珍贵。要想成功，就要拼尽全力。“要么做，要么不做。没有尝试这一说。”

　　Vocabulary

　　obituary: 讣告

　　prowess: 杰出才能

　　endear: 使……受欢迎

1 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

2 fictional   

adj.小说的，虚构的

参考例句：

• The names of the shops are entirely fictional.那些商店的名字完全是虚构的。
• The two authors represent the opposite poles of fictional genius.这两位作者代表了天才小说家两个极端。

3 witchcraft   

n.魔法，巫术

参考例句：

• The woman practising witchcraft claimed that she could conjure up the spirits of the dead.那个女巫说她能用魔法召唤亡灵。
• All these things that you call witchcraft are capable of a natural explanation.被你们统统叫做巫术的那些东西都可以得到合情合理的解释。

4 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

5 insignificant   

adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的

参考例句：

• In winter the effect was found to be insignificant.在冬季，这种作用是不明显的。
• This problem was insignificant compared to others she faced.这一问题与她面临的其他问题比较起来算不得什么。

6 obituary   

n.讣告，死亡公告；adj.死亡的

参考例句：

• The obituary records the whole life of the deceased.讣文记述了这位死者的生平。
• Five days after the letter came,he found Andersen s obituary in the morning paper.收到那封信五天后，他在早报上发现了安德森的讣告。

7 possessed   

adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的

参考例句：

• He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。
• He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

8 adoration   

n.爱慕，崇拜

参考例句：

• He gazed at her with pure adoration.他一往情深地注视着她。
• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。

9 prudence   

n.谨慎，精明，节俭

参考例句：

• A lack of prudence may lead to financial problems.不够谨慎可能会导致财政上出现问题。
• The happy impute all their success to prudence or merit.幸运者都把他们的成功归因于谨慎或功德。

10 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

11 transcend   

vt.超出，超越(理性等)的范围

参考例句：

• We can't transcend the limitations of the ego.我们无法超越自我的局限性。
• Everyone knows that the speed of airplanes transcend that of ships.人人都知道飞机的速度快于轮船的速度。

12 craves   

渴望，热望( crave的第三人称单数 )； 恳求，请求

参考例句：

• The tree craves calm but the wind will not drop. 树欲静而风不止。
• Victory would give him a passport to the riches he craves. 胜利将使他有机会获得自己梦寐以求的财富。

13 preclude   

vt.阻止，排除，防止；妨碍

参考例句：

• We try to preclude any possibility of misunderstanding.我们努力排除任何误解的可能性。
• My present finances preclude the possibility of buying a car.按我目前的财务状况我是不可能买车的。

14 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。

15 invaluable   

adj.无价的，非常宝贵的，极为贵重的

参考例句：

• A computer would have been invaluable for this job.一台计算机对这个工作的作用会是无法估计的。
• This information was invaluable to him.这个消息对他来说是非常宝贵的。