Unit 6: Text A

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Unit 6 Text A
21st Century College English Book 1
Nerds and Geeks
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Unit 6 Text A

• Lead-in Activities
• Text Organization
• Reading Writing Skills
• Language Points
• Guided Practice
• Assignment

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Lead-in Activities
Questions for Discussion
1. In China, how are the most hardworking and
intelligent students seen by the rest of society?
Has this view changed over time?
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Lead-in Activities
2. Are there any negative terms or phrases in
Chinese that are used in connection with a fellow
student? What are they? What values do they
express? Are they used for hard working students?
Why do you think they are used?
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Text Organization
The Structure of Text A
Explanation of the prevailing anti-intellectualism
in American society.
Authors view on anti-intellectualism and why the
problem should be solved.
Cause of the anti-intellectual value and
restatement of the necessity to do away with it.
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Reading Writing Skills
1) Reading skill As a piece of argumentative
writing (???), Fridmans essay is organized to
explain a problem that he sees in American
society and to convince people that the problem
should be solved somehow. With a partner, match
each section of the essay with the function it
fulfills in the structure of Fridmans argument.
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Reading Writing Skills

para. 1
para. 2
para. 3-4
para. 5-6
para. 7-8
para. 9-10
para. 10-13
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Reading Writing Skills
2) Writing skill A) the variety of using words
While writing, Ss should keep it in their mind
that they are required to use various words to
write about the same thing or the same meaning.
Take this text as a good example. prestigious
institution, best university learn, acquire
average (professional ballplayers), typical
(parents) tease, laugh at the bright
kids, hardworking pupils B) Ss are taught to
write a summary after reading a passage in
details. Students can paraphrase the topic
sentences and write some sentences in their own
expressing the author's ideas.
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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• Nerds and Geeks
• by Leonid Fridman
• 1 There is something very wrong with the system
  of values in a society that has only unkind terms
  like nerd and geek for the intellectually curious
  and academically serious.

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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• 2 We all know what a nerd is someone who wears
  thick glasses and ugly clothes someone who knows
  all the answers to the chemistry or math homework
  but can never get a date on a Saturday night. And
  a geek, according to Websters New World
  Dictionary, is a street performer who shocks the
  public by biting off heads of live chickens. It
  is a revealing fact about our language and our
  culture that someone dedicated to the pursuit of
  knowledge is compared to such a freak.

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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• 3 Even at a prestigious educational institution
  like Harvard, anti-intellectualism is widespread
  Many students are ashamed to admit, even to their
  friends, how much they study. Although most
  students try to keep up their grades, there is
  but a small group of undergraduates for whom
  pursuing knowledge is the most important thing
  during their years at Harvard. Nerds are looked
  down upon while athletes are made heroes of.

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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• 4 The same thing happens in U.S. elementary and
  high schools. Children who prefer to read books
  rather than play football, prefer to build model
  airplanes rather than idle away this time at
  parties with their classmates, become social
  outcasts. Because of their intelligence and
  refusal to conform to societys anti-intellectual
  values, many are deprived of a chance to learn
  adequate social skills and acquire good
  communication tools.

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Text A Nerds and Geeks
5 Enough is enough.    6 Nerds and geeks must
stop being ashamed of what they are. Those who
dont study hard must stop teasing those who do,
the bright kids with thick glasses. The
anti-intellectual values that have spread
throughout American society must be fought.
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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• 7 There are very few countries in the world where
  anti-intellectualism runs as high in popular
  culture as it does in the U.S. In most
  industrialized nations, not least of all our
  economic rivals in East Asia , a kid who studies
  hard is praised and held up as an example to
  other students.
• 8 In many parts of the world, university
  professorships are the most prestigious and
  materially rewarding positions. But not in
  America, where average professional ballplayers
  are much more respected and better paid than
  professors of the best universities.

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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• 9 How can a country where typical parents are
  ashamed of their daughter studying mathematics
  instead of going dancing, or of their son reading
  Weber while his friends play baseball be expected
  to compete in the technology race with Japan or
  remain a leading political and cultural force in
  Europe? How long can America remain a world-class
  power if we constantly put social skills and
  physical strength over academic achievement and
  intellectual ability?

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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• 10 Do we really expect to stay afloat largely by
  importing our scientists and intellectuals from
  abroad, as we have done for a major portion of
  this century without making an effort to also
  cultivate a pro-intellectual culture at home?
  Even if we have the political will to spend a lot
  more money on education than we do now, do we
  think we can improve our schools if we laugh at
  our hard-working pupils and fail to respect their
  impoverished teachers?

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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• 11 Our fault lies not so much with our economy or
  with our politics as within ourselves, our values
  and our image of a good life. Americas culture
  has not adapted to the demands of our times, to
  the economic realities that demand a highly
  educated workforce and innovative intelligent
  leadership.

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Text A Nerds and Geeks

• 12 If we are to succeed as a society in the 21st
  century, we had better do away with our
  anti-intellectualism and teach our children that
  a good life depends on exercising ones mind and
  pursuing knowledge to the full extent of ones
  abilities.
• 13 Not until the words nerd and geek become
  terms of praise rather than insults do we stand a
  chance.

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a society that has only unkind terms like nerd
and geek for the intellectually curious and
academically serious.
Paraphrase ?
those students who have genuine curiosity for
academic knowledge and who regard study as a
serious business.
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dedicate to devote (esp. oneself) to a special
task or purpose

• e.g.
• Mother Teresa dedicated her whole life to helping
  the poor.
• Martin Luther King, Jr. dedicated his
  life/himself to Civil Rights Movement.

dedicated very interested in and working
wholeheartedly for

• e.g.
• The medical student is dedicated to finding a
  cure for AIDS.
• The elderly gentleman was a dedicated teacher.

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pursuit n. the act of pursuing someone or
something

• e.g.
• His main interest in life is the pursuit of fame.

Translate ??????????,????????.
Cf pursue make continued efforts to
gain e.g. He wants to pursue his studies in
Britain after graduation.
Key He has pursued fame and fortune all his life
but has achieved neither.
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deprive of to take away from, prevent from
using
Translate ????????????

• e.g.
• The young man was deprived of his bachelors
  degree.
• The fire deprived him of his factory.

Key It is illegal to deprive him of his
citizens right.
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Enough is enough.
Translate ?
Key ??????
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least of all especially not (used after a
negative statement)
Typical pattern no one/nothing , least of
all

• e.g.
• The food is barely enough for one family, least
  of all the whole village.

• e.g.
• No one seemed to pay any attention to the
  teacher, least of all the kids.

Translate I told a funny story, but nobody
laughed, least of all my father.
Key ??????,????,???????
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hold up v. to show with respect as an example

• e.g.
• The old man often holds up his youngest daughter
  as an example of hard work.
• Michael Jordan is held up by many American
  blacks as an example to follow.

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stay afloat/keep afloat v. (of a ship) float
instead of sinking (figuratively)
free of debt or get over difficulties
Translate Do we really expect to stay afloat
largely by importing our scientists and
intellectuals from abroad, ?

• e.g.
• The company managed to stay afloat during the
  crisis.

Key ???????????????????????????????
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lie with v. be the responsibility of, to
rest with

• e.g.
• The report said that Diannas accident lies
  with the drunk driver.
• It lies with you to accept or reject the
  suggestion.

Practice Make a sentence with lie with. ?
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adapt to v. make fit (as for a specific or
new use or situation), change so as to be
suitable

• e.g.
• Some freshmen find it difficult to adapt to
  Sichuans hot food.
• Dont worry. You will soon adapt to college life.

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do away with v. put an end to, get rid of

• e.g.
• That school did away with uniforms years ago.
• Its important for government officials to do
  away with those outdated notions.

Practice Make a sentence with do away with. ?
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a good life depends on exercising ones mind
and pursuing knowledge to the full extent of
ones abilities.
Paraphrasing ?
making all possible efforts to gain knowledge.
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stand a chance v. to have the possibility
of achieving something

• e.g.
• If you get straight As, you will stand a good
  chance of winning the scholarship.
• Unskilled workers will stand almost no chance of
  being reemployed.

Translate ??????????
Key Our team still stands a chance of winning
the game.
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not so much as With a noun or a phrase, we use
this phrase to express quantity
Translate The professor is not so much a
scholar as a businessman.

• e.g.
• She works very hard not so much for money as for
  pleasure.
• His success lies not so much with his
  intelligence as with his connections.

Key ???????????????????
More to learn
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Exercises

???? I Ex. X, p. 164
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Exercises

X. Combine the following pairs of sentences,
using as as or not so much as after the
model.

• There are very few countries in the world where
  anti-intellectualism runs so high in popular
  culture as it does in the U.S.
• The fault lies not so much with our economy or
  with our policies as within ourselves, our values
  and images of a good life.

1. a) His teacher is able to make the point clear
and convincing. b) He is also able to make the
point clear and convincing.
? He is able to make the point as clear and
convincing as his teacher
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Exercises

X. Combine the following pairs of sentences,
using as as or not so much as after the
model.

• There are very few countries in the world where
  anti-intellectualism runs so high in popular
  culture as it does in the U.S.
• The fault lies not so much with our economy or
  with our policies as within ourselves, our values
  and images of a good life.

2. a) This is not a matter of putting more money
into education. b) This is a matter of changing
our anti-intellectualism values.
? This is not so much a matter of putting more
money into education as a matter of changing our
anti-intellectual values.
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Exercises

X. Combine the following pairs of sentences,
using as as or not so much as after the
model.

• There are very few countries in the world where
  anti-intellectualism runs so high in popular
  culture as it does in the U.S.
• The fault lies not so much with our economy or
  with our policies as within ourselves, our values
  and images of a good life.

3. a) They think that academic achievement is
important to a student. b) They also think
that social skills are important to a student.
? They think that social skills are as important
as academic achievement to a student.
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Exercises

X. Combine the following pairs of sentences,
using as as or not so much as after the
model.

• There are very few countries in the world where
  anti-intellectualism runs so high in popular
  culture as it does in the U.S.
• The fault lies not so much with our economy or
  with our policies as within ourselves, our values
  and images of a good life.

4. a) The purpose of this article is not to
answer the question. b) The purpose of this
article is to discuss the question.
? The purpose of this article is not so much to
answer the question as to discuss the question.
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Exercises

X. Combine the following pairs of sentences,
using as as or not so much as after the
model.

• There are very few countries in the world where
  anti-intellectualism runs so high in popular
  culture as it does in the U.S.
• The fault lies not so much with our economy or
  with our policies as within ourselves, our values
  and images of a good life.

5. a) Professors are respected and well paid in
this country. b) Professional ballplayers are
also respected and well paid in this country
? Professional ballplayers are as respected and
well paid as professors in this country.
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Text-related information
Websters New World Dictionary
Websters New World Dictionary (College Edition)
is a well-known dictionary of the American
language intended for college students. Its
definition of geek is somewhat out-of-date as
this word is currently used as a slang term
referring to anyone lacking social grace or
popularity.
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Text-related information
Harvard
Harvard University (????) is the oldest American
university, founded in 1636 at Cambridge,
Massachusetts. It is generally considered the
most prestigious university in the U.S., perhaps
analogous to Beijing Universitys status in
China. The main university campus lies along the
Charles River a few miles west of Boston.
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Text-related information
Max Weber, 1864-1920
Weber was a German sociologist and political
economist, one of the founders of sociology. His
ideas, which spanned subjects from economic
history to the sociology of music, continue to be
extremely influential. For a young person in the
U.S. to be reading Weber would be a marker of a
strong intellect.
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Guided Practice

• Vocabulary
• Cloze
• Translation
• Structure Writing

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Vocabulary

???? I Ex. IV, p. 160
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Vocabulary

• IV. Fill in the blanks with the words given
  below. Change the form where necessary.
• prestigious import pursue acquire
  average prefer shock
  pursuit compete bite extent
  admit

1. People are really _______ to learn that the
intellectually curious and hard-working are
called names, such as nerds and geeks, in some
parts of the U.S.
? shocked
2. When questioned, the children ___________
that their homework remained untouched, as they
had idled away their time doing nothing.
? admitted
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Vocabulary

• IV. Fill in the blanks with the words given
  below. Change the form where necessary.
• prestigious import pursue acquire
  average prefer shock
  pursuit compete bite extent
  admit

3. He has made up his mind to _______ his studies
abroad.
? pursue
4. Its a pleasant surprise to me that my
daughter should ______ to read English at home
rather than go shopping with her mother this
evening.
? prefer
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Vocabulary

• IV. Fill in the blanks with the words given
  below. Change the form where necessary.
• prestigious import pursue acquire
  average prefer shock
  pursuit compete bite extent
  admit

5. He is so ___________ that he is not only
interested in the whats, whys and hows, but also
knows where to find the answers to all of these
questions.
? intelligent
6. If you need further qualifications(??) for the
job, check out how and where you can ___________
them.
? acquire
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Vocabulary

• IV. Fill in the blanks with the words given
  below. Change the form where necessary.
• prestigious import pursue acquire
  average prefer shock
  pursuit compete bite extent
  admit

7. His intelligence is not even up to the
__________ level therefore, his success is
largely due to his hard work.
? average
8. He is keen to ____________ relations with this
company because of its good reputation.
? cultivate
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Vocabulary

• IV. Fill in the blanks with the words given
  below. Change the form where necessary.
• prestigious import pursue acquire
  average prefer shock
  pursuit compete bite extent
  admit

9. Spicy (???) food is ____________ of Sichuan
cooking.
? typical
10. We have never seen anyone with such a strong
dedication to the ______________ of success.
? pursuit
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Vocabulary

• IV. Fill in the blanks with the words given
  below. Change the form where necessary.
• prestigious import pursue acquire
  average prefer shock
  pursuit compete bite extent
  admit

11. This wine is ___________ from France, and it
is rather expensive.
? imported
12. The guard dog has been trained to ___________
without barking.
? bite
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Vocabulary

• IV. Fill in the blanks with the words given
  below. Change the form where necessary.
• prestigious import pursue acquire
  average prefer shock
  pursuit compete bite extent
  admit

13. The American economy, and its ability to
__________ abroad, was slowing down according to
the report.
? compete
14. Students attention will not be drawn to
their studies if we ____________ put social
skills and physical strength over academic
achievement and intellectual ability.
? constantly
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Vocabulary

• IV. Fill in the blanks with the words given
  below. Change the form where necessary.
• prestigious import pursue acquire
  average prefer shock
  pursuit compete bite extent
  admit

15. How can we continue to produce first-class
engineers if the most ______________
universities are unable to offer decent salaries
to attract the best professors?
? prestigious
16. In my opinion, high-IQ students are usually
intellectually curious and very good at making
use of their time to the fullest ____________.
? extent
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Cloze

???? I Ex. XI, p. 164
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Cloze

XI. Fill in each of the blanks with an
appropriate word.

• In the U.S. today, not enough respect is given
  to people who are truly dedicated to the
  _____________ of knowledge. This is true through
  out the educational ______________. Parents of
  elementary school pupils are unhappy if their
  child wants to spend too much time reading, or
  doing other ____________ activities. At a
  university, the brightest and most
  _______________ undergraduates are not the most
  _____________. In fact, the top students are
  often looked _____________ upon as nerds and
  geeks.

pursuit
system
intellectual
hardworking
popular
down
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Cloze

XI. Fill in each of the blanks with an
appropriate word.

• The ___________ thing is true in the world of
  work. ______________ athletes receive huge
  salaries and are held up as role models. On the
  other _________, professors, even at the top
  academic _____________, are not highly paid or
  well-known. This anti-intellectualism is sure to
  have a ___________ effect on America in the
  future. ___________ nations will develop better
  technologies and the U.S. will not be able to
  _________. America must do _______ with words
  such as nerds and geek and start giving more
  respect to the people who are ____________ to
  learning and teaching.

same
Professional
hand
institutions
negative
Rival
compete
away
dedicated
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Translation

XII. Translate the following sentences into
English.
???? I Ex. XII, p. 165
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Translation

1. ??????????????????????
be dedicated to the pursuit of
look at
lie in
The problem lies in how people look at those
students dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge.
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Translation

2. ?????????????????????
put into education
a lot more
than before
Our government has decided to put a lot more
money into education than before .
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Translation

3. ????????????????????????
technology race
first-class

• We have to train more first-class engineers to
  compete
• in the technology race with Japan.

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Translation

4. ???????????????????????????????
the intellectually curious
be held up as examples
The intellectually curious and hard-working
students should be praised and held up as
examples to other students.
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Translation

5. ?????????????, ?????????????????
anti-intellectualism
Not until
do away with
stand a chance
Not until we do away with our anti-intellectualism
do we stand a chance to remain a world-class
power.
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Translation

6. ??????????????,???????????????????
the demands of our times
adapt ourselves to
fall behind
We must adapt ourselves to the demands of our
times, otherwise well fall behind the
other industrialized nations of the world.
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Translation

7. ????????, ???????????, ???????????
while
be proud of
The parents are proud of their son who is
studying English while the other children are
playing football
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Translation

8. ??????????????????????????
expect
improve your English
without spending
Do you really expect to improve your English
without spending more time studying it?
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Structured Writing

Learn to write a piece of argumentative writing
Write a paragraph of about 100 to 150 words in
which to summarize the essay, expressing each of
Fridmans essential idea in your own words.
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Structured Writing

Sample Essay
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Structured Writing

In his essay, Nerds and Geeks, Leonid Fridman
criticizes a serious problem he sees in American
society people who are smart, the best students
in schools and universities, the professors and
researchers in the adult world, are not given the
respect that they deserve. Instead, American
society respects and praises people who achieve
popularity through more superficial means, such
as athletes and entertainers. This prejudice is
shown in the use of insulting words such as
nerd and geek to describe the best, most
hardworking students even at a university like
Harvard. Fridman says that in order to remain a
successful, competitive nation, the U. S. must
change its attitude and start respecting the
smartest, hard-working citizens. Only when people
are proud of being a nerd or a geek will this
important problem be solved.
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Assignment

• Revision of Text A
• Vocabulary
• Ex. IV, p. 160
• Ex. V, p. 161
• Word Building
• Ex. XI, p. 164
• Ex. XII, p. 165