35.
The financial-planning office at Fern Valley University concludes that it is necessary to initiate a fund-raising campaign among alumni that will enable the university to expand the range of subjects it offers and increase the size of its library facilities. It: argument is based on a five-year decline in enrollments and admission applications together with the claim that students cite poor teaching and inadequate library resources as their chief sources of dissatisfaction with Fern Valley. The conclusion of the financial-planning office is not strongly supported by the reasons given.
To begin with, this argument depends on the assumption that providing a greater range of subjects and a larger library will alleviate the students chief sources of dissatisfaction. However, the students have not complained about inadequate course offerings or about the size of the library; their complaint is that the existing courses are poorly taught and that library resources are inadequate. Offering more kinds of classes does not improve teaching quality, and increasing a librarys size does nothing to enhance its holdings, or resources. Accordingly, the recommendation does not bear directly on the problem as stated.
Secondly, the proposal unfairly assumes that the recent enrollment and application decline was caused by poor teaching and inadequate library resources. It is equally possible that all colleges, regardless of teaching quality and library resources, have experienced similar declines. These declines may have been due to unrelated factors, such as unfavorable economic conditions, or an increase in high-paying computer jobs not requiring a college education.
Thirdly, the author provides no support for the claim that students are dissatisfied with the teaching and library resources at Fern Valley. It is possible that the claim is based on hearsay or on scant anecdotal evidence. Without more information about the basis of the claim, we cannot be sure that the financial-planning office is addressing the real problems.
In conclusion, the advice of the financial planning office is not well supported. To strengthen the argument, the planning office must provide evidence that students are dissatisfied with the range of subjects and with the librarys size, and that this dissatisfaction is the cause of the recent decline in enrollment and the number of admission applications. To better assess the argument as it stands, we would need to know whether the students attitudes were measured in a reliable, scientific manner.
36.
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.
心灵鸡汤:感恩节上一颗被感动的心
英语短文欣赏:父亲节你是否有把爱说出来?
情人节美文欣赏:爱如清晨的阳光
英语阅读:A Hand to Hold
英语美文:谁是我的梦中情人?
双语散文:我会多采些雏菊花
情人节英文诗背诵:你是我心中最美
英语标准美文78
世界上最美丽英文26
英文短篇小说欣赏:A Goodbye Kiss
英语美文欣赏:家=爸爸妈妈
双语散文:一种特别的思绪
英语名篇名段背诵精华18
美文赏析:给生命定价
精美英文欣赏:人生之笔
双语美文:如果我今天死去
英语短篇小说欣赏-Heart
世界上最美丽的英文18
双语诗歌欣赏:生活和歌唱
优秀散文赏析:孩子的守护天使
情人节:爱情只在那天存在吗?(双语)
双语散文:不,我爱的人是你!
英语晨读:美德
精选英语散文欣赏:母亲的手
双语散文:What is Love?
英语美文:Plan For Success
心灵鸡汤:爱:能够创造奇迹的力量
英语美文欣赏:论爱情(培根)
☆英语诗歌欣赏☆ 勿忘我-Forget Me Not
英语美文欣赏:眼里有心
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