时间:2018-12-07 作者:英语课 分类:VOA慢速英语2009年(八)月


英语课

This is the VOA Special English Education Report.


California has a new program called the Digital Textbook Initiative.


ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER: "Starting this fall with high school math and science, we will be the first state in the nation -- the first state in the nation -- to provide schools with a state-approved list of digital textbooks."


That was Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in June, talking about his effort to get schools to use materials available free online. He listed reasons why he thinks digital textbooks make sense.
 
About 2,000 California school employees march in San Jose on August 5 to protest state budget cuts, in a California School Employees Association photo


California approves traditional textbooks in six-year cycles. Digital ones can offer the latest information. They lighten the load of school bags. They save paper and trees, and make learning more fun and interactive 1. And lastly he said they help schools with their finances.


The state has had to make severe cuts in school spending because of deep financial problems. More than six million students attend California public schools.


Earlier this year, California invited content developers to offer digital math and science materials for high schools. These had to meet at least ninety percent of the state's learning requirements. Specially 2 trained teachers examined sixteen textbooks and approved ten of them.


Six of the ten were published by the CK12 Foundation. Co-founder Neeru Khosla says the nonprofit group had been developing digital science and math books for about two years. The foundation paid teachers and other education professionals to write and edit them. The money came from a group financed by the Khosla family. The AMAR Foundation also supports projects in India.


California cannot require schools to use the digital textbooks. Individual school districts will have to decide for themselves.


Susan Martimo, a California Department of Education official, says she does not expect widespread use right away. Her best guess is that some schools with a lot of technology will be the first to use them, but only in addition to their traditional books.


School administrators 3 point out that the texts may be free online, but students need a way to access them. Not everyone has a computer or electronic reader. Schools could print out copies, but that would not help the environment. Also, there is the cost to train teachers to use digital textbooks effectively.


Next week: a look at digital textbooks in college. And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. You can find transcripts 4 and podcasts of our reports at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.



1 interactive
adj.相互作用的,互相影响的,(电脑)交互的
  • The psychotherapy is carried out in small interactive groups.这种心理治疗是在互动的小组之间进行的。
  • This will make videogames more interactive than ever.这将使电子游戏的互动性更胜以往。
2 specially
adv.特定地;特殊地;明确地
  • They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
  • The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。
3 administrators
n.管理者( administrator的名词复数 );有管理(或行政)才能的人;(由遗嘱检验法庭指定的)遗产管理人;奉派暂管主教教区的牧师
  • He had administrators under him but took the crucial decisions himself. 他手下有管理人员,但重要的决策仍由他自己来做。 来自辞典例句
  • Administrators have their own methods of social intercourse. 办行政的人有他们的社交方式。 来自汉英文学 - 围城
4 transcripts
n.抄本( transcript的名词复数 );转写本;文字本;副本
  • Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样,都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
  • You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书,你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句
学英语单词
accuracy limit
adenomatous polyposis coli
automatic egg breaking and separating machine
autorefractive
Bacillus diphtheriae columbarum
ball-and-socket hinge
barsimmon
berkshiress
bird-leg
boom towns
broadside on berthing
bucket arm pivot
child-sex-tourism
chlroacetophenone
cisacting element
clinical neurophysiology
coal-mining machinery
compound compression
Daussois
detection of neutrons
di(p-chlorophenyl)-methylcarbinol
dipleura
diploid heterozygote
disk golf
dispersed-powder magnetic tape
Dyscural
edge feature
electrokinetic ultrafiltration analysis
enimicitious
enridged
erythruloses
Ex-drinker
face reinforcement
financial category
flow cooler
foredoing
forhows
fuel low heating value
full-wave bridges
glycine methyl ester
grandmother-in-law
gullified
Guthriesville
Hippophae rhamnoides
house-breakers
i-conned
integrated network architecture
isoeugenol acetate
it's all relative
Jatiluhur, Waduk
L. O. A.
lower atmosphere layer
machining robot
maximum machined hole diameter
membrane cisterna
naked-handed
needle point spark gap
Niflheim
nostalgy
over-greed
parapales sturmioides
performance variable
portable foam applicator
power spectrum
power supply module
pre-recessions
preisser
program reader
quasi associated signaling
radiusing
relubrication
robot application
scaringly
semi-transparent cover
Shawell
shearing rupture
Simili
single-crank press
space division multiplexing (sdm)
speed/attitude control system
spring return button
squareflipper
steel puller
sumi-gaeshi
super-ascoloy
Theropogon pallidus
tnk-bp
unattempting
unipolar depressions
usage time
Velyka Bahachka
Vevey
vibration ability
wedge spring
witbank
word-forms
working ocular
yellow stunt of rice
yester-day
Zambales Mountains