The following appeared in an article in a college departmental newsletter
Professor Taylor of Jones University is promoting a model of foreign language instruction in which students receive ten weeks of intensive training, then go abroad to live with families for ten weeks. The superiority of the model, Professor Taylor contends, is proved by the results of a study in which foreign language tests given to students at 25 other colleges show that first-year foreign language students at Jones speak more fluently after only ten to twenty weeks in the program than do nine out of ten foreign language majors elsewhere at the time of their graduation.
Discuss how well reasoned... etc.
This newsletter article claims that Professor Taylors foreign-language program at Jones University is a model of foreign language instruction. This conclusion is based on a study in which foreign language tests were given to students at 25 other universities. The study shows that first-year language students at Jones speak more fluently after just 10 to 20 weeks in the program than do 90 percent of foreign-language majors at other colleges at graduation. Despite these impressive statistics, I am unconvinced by this argument for two reasons.
To begin with, the assumption here is that students from Professor Taylors program have learned more than foreign language students at other universities. However, we are not given enough information about the study to be sure that this comparison is reliable. For example, the article does not tell us whether the foreign language students at Jones were given the tests; it only reports that the tests in question were given to students at 25 other colleges. If Jones students were not tested, then no basis exists for comparing them to students at the other universities. In addition, the article does not indicate whether students at all the universities, including Jones, were given the same tests. If not, then again no basis exists for the comparison.
Furthermore, we cannot tell from this article whether the universities in the study, or their students, are comparable in other ways. For instance, Jones might be a prestigious university that draws its students from the top echelon of high school graduates, while the other universities are lower-ranked schools with more lenient admission requirements. In this event, the study wouldnt tell us much about Professor Taylors program, for the proficiency of his students might be a function of their superior talent and intelligence.
In conclusion, the statistics cited in the article offer little support for the claim about Taylors program. To strengthen the argument, the author must show that the universities in the study, including Jones, were comparable in other ways, that their foreign language students were tested identically, and that Taylors program was the only important difference between students tested at Jones and those tested at the other universities.
上一篇: 精选GMAT写作范文50篇(17)
下一篇: 精选GMAT写作范文50篇(6)
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:选修8 Unit 5《Meeting your ancestors》(新人教版含答案)
与资讯界决裂?特朗普宣布不出席白宫记者协会晚宴
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:选修8 Units 1、2(新人教版含答案)
2017届高考英语一轮复习学案:必修3 module 1《Europe》(外研版)
2017届高考英语一轮复习学案:必修1 module 6《The Internet and Telecommunications》(外研版)
2017年高考英语得分精练精选题:第5周试题18
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:必修5 Unit 3《Life in the future》(新人教版含答案)
2017年高考英语得分精练精选题:第二周试题7
如何度过没有手机的一天?
2017年高考英语得分精练精选题:第4周试题15
2017年高考英语得分精练精选题:第二周试题8
2017年高考英语得分精练精选题:第4周试题14
2017年高考英语得分精练精选题:第5周试题20
妈妈的笑容 Mothers Smile
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:必修5 Unit 2《The United Kingdom》(新人教版含答案)
2017届广东省广州市高考英语一轮复习试题精选:单项填空(动词的时态与语态)(含解析)
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:选修6 Unit 1《Art》(新人教版含答案)
2017高考英语听力素材VOA:Go English(MP3音频)ge010a
奥斯卡颁奖礼果然不忘怼特朗普!
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:必修5 Unit 5《First aid》(新人教版含答案)
2017届高考英语一轮复习学案:必修1 module 5《A Lesson in a Lab》(外研版)
2017届高考英语一轮复习学案:必修1 module 2《My New Teachers》(外研版)
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:选修6 Unit 5《The power of nature》(新人教版含答案)
美国发现3个新地球!全都在水瓶座!
2017届高考英语一轮复习学案:必修1 module 4《Social Survey—My Neighbourhood》(外研版)
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:选修6 Unit 4《Global warming》(新人教版含答案)
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:必修5 Unit 1《Great Scientists》(新人教版含答案)
2017年高考英语得分精练精选题:第5周试题19
2017奥斯卡大乌龙背后的真相!原来是这样!
2017届高考英语一轮复习强化作业:选修7 Units 3、4(新人教版含答案)