词汇大师-- Handling Sensitive Topics in the Classroom

　　AA:    I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on WORDMASTER: how should a teacher handle controversial topics in the classroom? Rutgers University professor Barbara Lee gets asked that question all the time, as she recently did through an online forum¹ of the Chronicle of Higher Education. Her specialty² is employment law and higher education law.
BARBARA LEE: "I think there's a heightened sensitivity now, in all sorts of way. For example, several universities not too long after Nine-Eleven decided³ that all their incoming first-year students should read a book about -- most of them were about Islam. And there were some lawsuits⁴ about that, saying that that was a violation⁵ of, for example, Christian⁶ students' religious freedom rights. And the courts have said no it isn't, this is a valid⁷ educational assignment and it's not any kind of problem in exercising your rights to follow your own religious beliefs."
AA: "And so now seven years later, actually, after Nine-Eleven, the attacks of September eleventh, two thousand one, are you still getting questions about topics like that?"
BARBARA LEE: "Yes, we are. I think in some respects, at least at some colleges, students are becoming more conservative. If you look at the national surveys of college students, they are more conservative, certainly than my generation was, which is the baby boomers. And each generation has gotten a little bit more politically conservative and somewhat more religious."
RS: "You said that you'd gotten some e-mails. What were some of the questions that you've been asked?"
BARBARA LEE: "This was one of my favorites. A professor of art apparently⁸ teaches a drawing class where he has nude⁹ models, and he wanted to know what should he do if a student objects to drawing a human figure in the nude because she or he feels it's indecent and a violation of their religious principles."
RS: "And what did you answer?"
BARBARA LEE: "Lawyers always answer 'it depends.' But what I did say is, well, is it a required course? What's your purpose in having the nude figure? If you're interested in sort of the framework of a body, could you use an animal instead of a person? On the other hand, if pedagogically they really need to learn how to draw the human figure, and it has to be unclothed, then it seems to me that you could insist that they do it."
RS: "And other e-mails you've gotten?"
BARBARA LEE: "Oh, questions about how to deal with students who insist on arguing either with other students or the instructor¹⁰ about issues that are really not relevant to the subject of the course. That's an easy one. You just tell them that you'll be happy to talk to them after class, but enough is enough and you need to move on."
RS: "What are some of the strategies that you use -- not you use, or perhaps you do ... "
BARBARA LEE: "Well, I've been teaching for twenty-six years a course that includes affirmative action and sex discrimination. So I have some pretty opinionated students about those things."
RS: "So what are some of the strategies you'd recommend to teachers going into the classroom -- be it an English as a Foreign Language classroom or any other classroom?"
BARBARA LEE: "Well, I'd be very careful to make sure that the discussion and the assignments are really closely linked to the topic. There are some writing assignments, for example, that teachers may be quite certain are going to ruffle¹¹ students' feathers, and it may not be necessary to do that.
"For example, I guess if you were teaching an English as a Second Language course in a Middle Eastern country and you ask them to write about why women shouldn't be allowed to drive -- or should be allowed to drive. That might be an issue that they get upset about. You might, depending on the point of view or the purpose of the assignment, you may want to get them to defend or take a position or argue something, but you could do it about a subject that isn't going to create fireworks in the classroom."
AA: "Now, in general, do you think teachers should avoid expressing personal opinions, especially on controversial issues?"
BARBARA LEE: "I think they can if they're asked, but I don't think a teacher should ever impose his or her personal beliefs or opinions on students. And students, because of the power differential between teachers and students, students may assume that they are expected to agree with the teacher."
AA: "And what happens when one student in class expresses a personal opinion that maybe offends other students in the class -- what do you suggest that the teacher do at that point?"
BARBARA LEE: "Well, I mean that's happened in my class. And what I say is, I say right up at the beginning of the course, 'We're going to be discussing some controversial issues. You may say what you like as long as it's professional and as long as you are respectful of other people's right to have differing opinions.'"
AA:    Professor Barbara Lee teaches employment law and higher education law at Rutgers University in New Jersey¹². And that's WORDMASTER for this week. With Rosanne Skirble, I'm Avi Arditti.

1 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

2 specialty   

n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长

参考例句：

• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town.贝雕是该城的特产。
• His specialty is English literature.他的专业是英国文学。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

5 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

6 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

7 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

8 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。

9 nude   

adj.裸体的；n.裸体者，裸体艺术品

参考例句：

• It's a painting of the Duchess of Alba in the nude.这是一幅阿尔巴公爵夫人的裸体肖像画。
• She doesn't like nude swimming.她不喜欢裸泳。

10 instructor   

n.指导者，教员，教练

参考例句：

• The college jumped him from instructor to full professor.大学突然把他从讲师提升为正教授。
• The skiing instructor was a tall,sunburnt man.滑雪教练是一个高高个子晒得黑黑的男子。

11 ruffle   

v.弄皱，弄乱；激怒，扰乱；n.褶裥饰边

参考例句：

• Don't ruffle my hair.I've just combed it.别把我的头发弄乱了。我刚刚梳好了的。
• You shouldn't ruffle so easily.你不该那么容易发脾气。

12 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。