英语网独家专访 剑桥英语国际专家米捷 包宁


    7月1日，剑桥大学考试委员会、ESOL考试中心亚洲及澳洲地区总负责人Michey Bonin先生(米捷 包宁)，协同ESOL考试中心中国地区代表何梅子小姐，应邀来到学而思教育交流访问。我们有幸采访了这位剑桥英语国际专家，这里将采访内容刊出，以飨读者。

　　中国学生的英语口语水平比较高

　　英语网：　　What do you think of the English standard of students in China?

　　Bonin先生：　I have been to many other countries in Asia such as Japan and Korea, and I must say that China's standard of English is much higher as compared those other countries. Chinese students' spoken English is much more understandable than in other countries.

　　英语网：　　对于中国学生的英语水平，您有什么看法？

　　Bonin先生：　我去过非常多的亚洲国家，例如日本、韩国等，我必须说中国学生的英语水平与其他亚洲国家相比较起来，较高于其他国家学生的英语水平。中国学生的英语口语比其他亚洲国家学生的容易理解一些。

　　英语网：　　Why do you think this is so?

　　Bonin先生：　　It probably has to do with the methodology of the exams that they take. Most English exams held in Korea and Japan are based a lot on multiple choice questions, whereas in China the exams imitate real life situations.

　　英语网：　为什么您有这样的看法呢？

　　Bonin先生：　　这可能是由于中国学生参加的英语考试的考试形式与其他国家不同的原因。在韩国和日本，大多数英语考试卷子都是由大量的多项选择题组成的，然而中国的英语考试都是基于模拟生活中的真实情景。

      考试的方式与学生的英语实践技能关系密切

　　英语网：　　How is the methodology of an exam related to the practical English skills of a student?

　　英语网：　　您认为考试的方式与学生的英语实践技能之有什么样的联系？

　　Bonin先生：　　It is related to students' preparations for the exams. Students should learn the English language as they prepare for an exam. For example, if an exam is largely based on multiple-choice questions, then in preparation of the exam, students might spend more time learning how to tackle multiple-choice questions instead of learning the language. Therefore if a student does well in such an exam, there is a high possibility that the student is only good at doing multiple-choice questions instead of actually being good at the language.

　　　　这与学生如何备考有关系。学生在备考的过程也应该是学习英语的过程。例如，如果一种考试由大量的多项选择题组成，为了备考，学生肯定会在对付大量的多项选择题上花费大量的时间，而不是去学习语言。因此，在这类考试中获得好成绩的学生，他擅长做多项选择题的可能性比擅长会英语这门语言的可能性要大。

　　　　On the contrary, if an exam is based on a more practical usage of English such as writing an essay or speaking to an examiner, students will actually learn the language and hone their skills in using the language as they prepare for an exam. So if a student performs well in such an exam, there is a high possibility that the student has a good command of English in real life situations instead of just knowing to tick  A,B,C or D.

　　　　相反，如果一项考试是基于英语的实际运用上的，如写一篇短文或者是与考官对话的话，学生不仅会真正的掌握英语，还能在准备考试、运用语言的过程中，磨练自己的英语实践能力。所以，能够在这类英语考试中出类拔萃的学生，他在真实生活情景中拥有很好的英语实践水平的可能性会更大，而非仅仅知道如何选择A,B,C或者 D.。

     剑桥考试是真正测试学生英语水平的考试

　　英语网：　　How close do the methodologies of Cambridge exams test a student's practical skills in English?

　　英语网：　　剑桥考试的一套方法检测出的水平与学生的英语实际运用水平有多接近？

　　Bonin先生：　　Very close. We have been conducting ESOL (English as a Second Language) exams since 1996, and our exams taken by students now have gone through 12 years of thorough research in English-testing methodologies. Our exams have also gone through 12 years of constant revision and improvements.  

　　Bonin先生：　　非常接近。我们从1996年就开始举办ESOL（英语作为第二语言）考试，学生参加的这个考试，是经历了12年的英语测试系统方法研究的。12年来，剑桥考试也在不断地改进和提高。

　　　　Another point is that as a non-profit organization, we don't create exams for the purpose of quick and easy assessment so that we can grade more examinees faster and generate more revenue. We create exams that truly test a student's command of English in real life situations and in turn, encouraging them to learn the language as opposed to merely learning examination techniques.

　　　　另外一点就是，作为一个非盈利性机构，我们不会举办一个迅速简单评估学生英语水平的考试，虽然那类的考试能够让我们快速的评价较多的考生英语水平，获得更多的收入。我们举办的考试，是真正能够测试学生在真实生活情景中英语水平的考试。反之，剑桥考试能够鼓励学生去学习语言，而不只是让学生掌握应试技巧。

[ 本帖最后由 vet 于 2008-8-29 21:04 编辑 ].

英语网：　　You mean examinations are created not just to test students but also for convenience of assessment?  

　　英语网：　　你的意思是说，剑桥考试的出现，不仅能够测试学生的水平，还能够方便考官评估学生的英语水平么？

　　Bonin先生：　　All exams are to test a student's skill and understanding of a subject. However, the creators of an exam also have to take into account how examiners are going to mark the paper and whether grading it will take too long. If each paper takes an hour to grade, imagine how much time it takes to grade 3000 papers!  

　　Bonin先生：　　所有的考试都能测试学生的技能及学生对该课程的理解。然而，考试出题人，还必须考虑到两个因素：参加考试的人会怎样答卷？评卷时间是否会很长？如果一份卷子的评分需要一个小时的话，那么想象一下，评3000份试卷将需要多久的时间！！

　　　　Therefore, exams should achieve a balance in testing a student's true understanding of the subject and giving as little difficulty as possible to examiners when they grade a paper. A profit driven organization might emphasize more on the convenience of marking the papers more than assessing students' knowledge so that they can take in more examinees in a single session. Take multiple-choice questions for example. All they have to do is put it into a machine and the computer will automatically grade the paper, which is obviously much harder and much cheaper to grade than an essay.

　　　　因此，考试应该在测试学生真正理解学科的水平和尽量给考官的评卷减少麻烦，这两者之间取得平衡。为了让更多的应试者参加到单一的一项考试中，一个盈利的组织可能会更加强调评卷的方便性，而非评估学生所学的知识。例如，由多项选择题构成考卷的考试，需要考官们做的事情仅仅是将答案纸放进机器里面，让电脑自动的给卷子评分，这种方式显然比评判一篇英语作文更加的苛刻和便宜。.