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The historian Lisa Hilton is dismayed by the government's latest proposals for the teaching of history in which the understanding of complex narrative will be marginalized.

Like any self-respecting adolescent，I spent most of my teenage years referring to my parents as fascists.What exactly that meant I had little idea，thanks to a state education in which world history consisted of Romans，mediaeval monasteries，the Industrial Revolution and the first world war，in a repetitious carousel of unrelated events.

Presumably today's stroppy brats can malign their parents with impunity，as practically all they learn about is Hitler，yet what of those other much used critical terms—“imperialist，”“colonialist，”or the ever more reified“democracy”?This matters.It's not just pedantic peevishness.These are the terms around which political judgments are based，and they are hurled right and left with little concern for the historical implication of their use.They form the basis of a political discourse which is increasingly divorced from meaningful knowledge.How is it possible to make decisions if we don't really know what we are talking about?Before he had to worry about saving the world，Gordon Brown spent much of last year drivelling on about Britishness and the values of citizenship，yet current government thinking on history teaching seems to deny students the opportunity to consider what those values consist of.

In a curriculum which currently devotes less than 4 per cent of its time to history，the suggestions of the recent Rose report seem intent on further severing the essential bond between knowledge and meaningful political participation.We don't need Orwell to remind us that control of the future is predicated on possession of the past.In the absence of historical certainty，that past beComes a palimpsest upon which convenient“truths”can be reinscribed with impunity.Without history we are vulnerable，atomised，denied identity.How can you vote for what you want to be when you don't know who you are?

In direct contrast to 1992's“Curriculum Organisation and Classroom Practice in Primary Schools，”which called for more specialised subjectrelatedteaching，SirJimRosenowadvocatesthathistorical understanding only be taught in relation to“human social and environmental characteristics.”Cause，effect and consequence are to be shelved in favourofanapproachwhichcherry-picks historical“scenario”as part of an interdisciplinary approach.Read against the sinister platitudes of the Early Years guidelines，which emphasize the unique qualities of the“individual learning journey，”the report is a blueprint for depriving children of any coherent understanding of the forces which made the world they inhabit.In a vocabulary awash with entitlement，this is the one thing which students apparently no longer deserve.

Critics of the 1992 report suggested that government philosophy treated children as“units”to be prepared for the world of work.Oliver James，the author of Affluenza and campaigner against“selfish capitalism”recently suggested that the principal problem with modern education was the view that schools are extensions of corporate human resources departments.

David Kynaston's research into mass observation responses to postwar history teaching suggests that many students felt alienated by its insistence on dead monarchs，whilst progressives have long and rightly been suspicious of Gradgrindish adherence to facts.Yet the language of low expectation in both the latest Rose report and Early Years disguises precisely such a philosophy in insidious doublethink.Not quite electrocuting the Gammas of the brave new world should they summon the audacity to approach a book，but something close.Don't challenge，don't provoke，endorse and praise and all they'll have to do is pin the name badge to the cheerful school sweatshirt to be ready for the call centre.

Suggesting that children are incapable of dealing with complex narrative is intensely patronizing.They manage fine with Harry Potter.Like it or not，our island story is a rollicking good read，with as many battles and murders as Grand Theft Auto.Certainly，much British history is of necessity concerned with the activities of elites，but is it not worth understanding why this is so?One doesn't need to be a Whig to see the value of a story which explains how we got to where we are.Why assume that children's understanding of issues such as multiCulturalism or Europe might not be enhanced by learning about Commonwealth initiatives post-1945 or the Angevin empire?The study of British history does not need to be unquestioningly patriotic—the Peasants'Revolt or the Irish Famine are as righteous subjects as one could wish for，yet it is pointless to teach them without context.The rights and wrongs of imperialism are shown to be as complex when considered in terms of Suez as they are simplistic in view of the rapaciousness of the East India Company.

Rose's suggestions also seem blind to the reality of how history will be increasingly absorbed.Is it not irresponsible to deny children the capacity to assess information for bias，distortion and inaccuracy in a world of unsupervised，unfiltered internet access?Good history teaching provides a confident perspective from which to dismiss，as much as absorb，the massive amounts of information with which children will be daily bombarded on the web.Huxley's Bernard Marx claims that 62，400 repetitions equal one truth；not an implausible figure in the age of Google.The extent to which consensus is capable of creating reality is alarmingly suggested in a recent text poll of 50 million predominantly young Russians asked to name their greatest national figure.The 13thcentury warrior Alexandr Nevsky Come first，but Stalin was only pushed into third place by a last-minute television rally.

The oral epics of pre-literate cultures，from Homeric Greece to the Siberia of Maadai-Kara，saw poets revered as the guardians of national consciousness.In denying children the thrill of our own epic historical narrative we also deny them the option to compare，to judge，above all to refuse.Surely the point of all humanities teaching is not the regurgitation of whichever facts the government deems appropriate，but the ability，quite simply，to think?Orthodoxy is the absence of thought.At least，given the current curriculum's obsession with fascism，that is a truth which every schoolchild knows.

1.What is the author's main argument with regard to history education in Britain?

2.“In the absence of historical certainty，that past beComes a palimpsest upon which convenient“truths”can be reinscribed with impunity.”Discuss the meaning of this sentence.

3.How do“all they'll have to do is pin the name badge to the cheerful school sweatshirt to be ready for the call centre”relate to“view that schools are extensions of corporate human resources departments”?

4.“Orthodoxy is the absence of thought.”Discuss the meaning of this sentence.

5.What do you think are possible problems with British history teaching?How do you think history should be taught at school?

Aldous Huxley's Gammas:英国作家赫胥黎(1894—1963)最具影响的作品就是其《美丽的新世界》。书中科幻国度的人从高贵到低贱依次分为五等:阿尔法、贝塔、伽玛、德尔塔和埃普西隆。伽玛类的人智商低。参见书中描述:“Alpha children wear grey.They work much harder than we do，because they're so frightfully clever.I'm really awfully glad I'm a Beta，because I don't work so hard.And then we are much better than the Gammas and Deltas.Gammas are stupid.They all wear green，and Delta children wear khaki.Oh no，I don't want to play with Delta children.And Epsilons are still worse.They're too stupid to be able…”更多请阅读随后的“文化导读”部分。

Self-respecting:Having pride in yourself because you believe that what you do is right and good.

Carousel:就是小孩游乐园玩的旋转木马(也叫merry-go-round或roundabout)；也指机场取行李处的圆盘传输带。这里显然转指年年一成不变的单调教育。

Reified democracy:将原本抽象的“民主”概念视为具体化的实体。所以democracy有时指民主国家。

Political discourse:政治话语。discourse即指为某一交际目的而形成的口头、书面以及手势语。语言学中就有话语分析discourse analysis这一研究领域，也叫text linguistics。

Curriculum:本文中是指作为教学纲领性文件的教学纲要，而不是单一的课程。即指英国National Curriculum。The National Curriculum was introduced into England，Wales and Northern Ireland as a nationwide curriculum for primary and secondary state schools following the Education Reform Act 1988.Notwithstanding its name，it does not apply to Independent Schools，which by definition are free to set their own curriculum，but it ensures that state schools of all Local Education Authorities have a common curriculum.The purpose of the National Curriculum was to standardize the content taught across schools in order to enable assessment，which in turn enabled the compilation of league tables detailing the assessment statistics for each school.These league tables，together with the provision to parents of some degree of choice in assignment of the school for their child(also legislated in the same act) were intended to encourage a“free market”by allowing parents to choose schools based on their measured ability to teach the National Curriculum.其官方网站是http://curriculum.qca.org.uk/。

Rose report:Sir Jim Rose是英国政府教育督察、教育评估专家。其在2006年和2009年分别为英国政府完成全国初等教育评估报告。本文是指2008年12月发布的《中期报告》，见http://publications.teachernet.gov.uk/eOrderingDownload/IPRC_Report.pdf。终期完整报告于2009年4月完成，见http://publications.teachernet.gov.uk/eOrderingDownload/Primary_curriculum_Report.pdf。

Orwell:此处是指英国作家George Orwell。他最著名的传世之作就是《一九八四》(其中的名句“Big Brother Is Watching You”)和《动物庄园》(其中的名句“All Animals Are Equal But Some Animals Are More Equal Than Others”)。本文中出现的“doublethink”一词就是奥威尔在其《一九八四》中创造的。

Convenient“truths”:So call truths that are suited to a particular situation.很容易让人联想到美国前副总统戈尔(Al Gore)2006年的“An Inconvenient Truth”。

Curriculum Organisation and Classroom Practice in Primary Schools:这是1992年英国教育部门组织Robin Alexander，Jim Rose和Chris Woodhead三人完成的英国初等教育评估报告。全文见http://www.dg.dial.pipex.com/doComents/docs1/des1992.shtml。

Early Years:本文特指Early Years Foundation Stage。The Early Years Foundation Stage(EYFS)is a term defined in Section 39 of the British government's Childcare Act 2006.The EYFS comprises a set of Welfare Requirements and a set of Learning and Development Requirements，which must be followed by providers of care for children below 5 years old—the age of compulsory education in the United Kingdom.EYFS也叫Key Stage 0。A Key Stage is a stage of the state education system in the UK and Gibraltar setting the educational knowledge expected of students at various ages.The stages are as follows:Key Stage 0:Nursery and reception years(3-5 years old)，now included as part of the Early Years Foundation Stage.Key Stage 1:Years 1 to 2(5-7 years old).Key Stage 2:Years 3 to 6(7-11 years old).Key Stage 3:Years 7 to 9(11-14 years old).Key Stage 4:Years 10 to 11(14-16 years old).The exams at the end are typically of the GCSE level.Key Stage 5(more commonly referred to as Sixth Form):Years 12 to 13(16-18 years old).

The National Curriculum sets out targets to be achieved in various subject areas at each of the Key Stages.

Oliver James:(Born 1953)He is a British clinical psychologist，writer and television doComentary producer.He also frequently broadcasts on radio and acts as a pundit on television.2007年出书Affluenza，2008年出书Selfish Capitalist.Affluenza，a portmanteau of affluence and influenza，is a term used by critics of consumerism.James defines affluenza as“placing a high value on money，possessions，appearances(physical and social)and fame，”and this beComes the rationale behind the increasing mental illness in English-speaking societies.He asserts that there is a correlation between the increasing nature of affluenza and the resulting increase in material inequality:the more unequal a society，the greater the unhappiness of its citizens.Referring to Vance Packard's thesis(The Hidden Persuaders)on the manipulative methods used by the advertising industry，James relates the stimulation of artificial needs to the rise in affluenza.To highlight the spread of affluenza in societies with varied levels of inequality，James interviewed people in several cities includingSydney，Singapore，Auckland，Moscow，Shanghai，Copenhagen and New York.He explains the greater incidence of affluenza as the result of“Selfish Capitalism，”the market liberal political governance found in English-speaking nations as compared to the less selfish capitalism pursued in mainland Europe.James asserts that societies can remove the negative consumerist effects by pursuing real needs over perceived wants，and by defining themselves as having value independent of their material possessions.

Gradgrindish adherence to facts:源自狄更斯的《艰难时世》中的人物Thomas Gradgrind。Mr Thomas Gradgrind is the notorious headmaster in Dickens's novel Hard Times.His name is now used generically to refer to someone who is hard and only concerned with cold facts and numbers.

Doublethink:It is a Newspeak term from George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four，and is the act of holding two contradictory beliefs simultaneously，fervently believing both.The language of Orwell's NineteenEighty-FourisNewspeak:athoroughlypoliticizedand obfuscatory language designed to make independent thought impossible by limiting acceptable word choices.

Call centre:客户服务中心A business location where a person can call for such things as customer service，to place an order，etc.A business location where large numbers of telemarketing calls are placed.

Harry Potter:Harry James Potter is the title character and the main protagonist of J.K.Rowling's Harry Potter fantasy series.The books cover seven years in the life of the lonely orphan who，on his eleventh birthday，learns he is a wizard.He attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to learn magic.Under the guidance of the kindly headmaster Albus Dumbledore，Harry discovers that he is already famous throughout the wizarding world，and that his fate is tied with that of Lord Voldemort，the universally feared Dark wizard who killed Harry's father and mother.哈利·波特是英国女作家J.K.罗琳的著名系列小说《哈利·波特》中的主人公。《哈利·波特》系列被翻译成近七十多种语言，在全世界两百多个国家累计销量达三亿五千万多册。《哈利·波特》系列共有七本，其中前六部以霍格沃茨魔法学校为主要舞台，描写的是主人公哈利·波特在霍格沃茨魔法学校六年的学习生活冒险故事；第七部为哈利逃亡在外寻找并消灭伏地魔的魂器，不过最后他又回到了《哈利·波特》故事的“老战场”——霍格沃茨，并在那儿消灭了伏地魔。《哈利·波特》系列风靡全球，被评为最畅销的四部儿童小说之一，成为继米老鼠、史努比、加菲猫等卡通形象以来最成功的儿童偶像。

Grand Theft Auto:Grand Theft Auto为一系列单机游戏，也译作侠盗猎车、横行霸道、侠盗车手、侠盗飞车等。GTA is an award-winning video game series.The game-play consists of a mixture of action，adventure，driving，and occasional role-playing，stealth and racing elements and has gained controversy for its adult nature and violent themes.The series focuses around many different protagonists who attempt to rise through the criminal underworld，although their motives for doing so vary in each game.The antagonists are commonly characters who have betrayed the protagonist or their organization，or who has the most impact impeding their progress.

Whig:辉格党人A member of an 18th-and 19th-century British political party that was opposed to the Tories.

Commonwealth:英联邦。全称为British Commonwealth of Nations，简称British Commonwealth或Commonwealth of Nations。It is an association comprising the United Kingdom，its dependencies，and many former British colonies that are now sovereign states with a common allegiance to the British Crown，including Canada，Australia，India，and many countries in the West Indies and Africa.It was formally established by the Statute of Westminster in 1931.

Angevin empire:安茹王朝(1154-1214)The term Angevin Empire describes a collection of states ruled by the Angevin Plantagenet dynasty.The Plantagenets ruled over an area stretching from the Pyrenees to Ireland during the 12th and early 13th centuries.Their“empire”was roughly half of medieval France as well as all of England and Ireland.The term“Angevin Empire”is a modern construction as the empire had no such collective term at the time.However，despite the extent of the Plantagenets'rule，they were defeated by the King of France，Philip II Augustus，of the House of Capet which left their empire split in two，losing the provinces Normandy and Anjou.This defeat，which left the ruling Plantagenets with their English territories and Gascony in France，set the scene for the Saintonge and the Hundred Years'War.

Peasants'Revolt:First great popular rebellion in English history.It was triggered by the poll tax of 1381，which angered labourers and artisans already resentful of the limits on wages fixed by the Statute of Labourers(1351).Centred in southeastern England and East Anglia，the revolt was led by Wat Tyler(d.1381)，who marched into London with a band of Kentish rebels.They captured the Tower of London and beheaded officials responsible for the poll tax.Richard II promised reforms，but Tyler was killed in his presence by the mayor of London.The last of the rebels were subdued in East Anglia two weeks later.

Irish Famine:The Great Famine，also known as the Irish Potato Famine and the Great Hunger was a famine in Ireland which started in 1845，lasted—depending on the region—until 1849 or even 1852 and which led to the death of approximately one million people through starvation and disease；a further million are thought to have emigrated as a result of the famine.

East India Company:东印度公司English chartered company formed for trade with East and Southeast Asia and India，incorporated in 1600.It began as a monopolistic trading body，establishing early trading stations at Surat，Madras(now Chennai)，Bombay(Mumbai)，and Calcutta(Kolkata).Trade in spices was its original focus；this broadened to include cotton，silk，and other goods.In 1708 it merged with a rival and was renamed the United Co.of Merchants of England Trading to the East Indies.Becoming involved in politics，it acted as the chief agent of British imperialism in India in the 18th-19th century，exercising substantial power over much of the subcontinent.The company's activities in China in the 19th century served as a catalyst for the expansion of British influence there；its financing of the tea trade with illegal opium exports led to the first Opium War(1839-1842).From the late 18th century it gradually lost both commercial and political control； its autonomy diminished after two acts of Parliament(1773，1774) established a regulatory board responsible to Parliament，though the act gave the company supreme authority in its domains.It ceased to exist as a legal entity in 1873.

Bernard Marx:赫胥黎小说《美丽的新世界》中重量级人物。It's an Alpha-Plus，psychologist specializing in hypnopaedia，a process in which members of every class are indoctrinated by recorded voices repeating slogans while they sleep.

Maadai-Kara:西伯利亚阿尔泰地区流传的史诗。The epics of Southern Siberia are Maadai-Kara and Ochy Bala，the former of which is better-known.The best-known Altai heroic epic，Maadai-Kara，is a full description of mythical time.For instance，the holy tree is a symbol of eternal life.

Regurgitation:(disapproving)Repetition of something you have heard or read without really thinking about it or understanding it.

Aldous Huxley:(1894-1963)Aldous Huxley is an English writer，his most famous work for his 1932 novel Brave New World.Educated at Eton and Oxford，he traveled widely and during the 1920s lived in Italy.He Come to the United States in the 1937 and settled in California.Brave New World(1932)，the most popular of his novels，presents a nightmarish，dystopian civilization in the 25th century.Marked by an exuberance of ideas and comic invention，his novels reflect，with increasing cynicism，his disgust and disillusionment with the modern world.His later writings，however，reveal a strong interest in mysticism and Eastern philosophy.His fascination with mind-expansion and experimentation with LSD prompted the writing of The Doors of Perception(1954)，a long essay extremely popular in the drug-oriented 1960s and still one of his most-read books.Huxley's famous ancestors included，on his mother's side，poet Matthew Arnold，and，on his father's side，Thomas Henry Huxley，famous champion of Charles Darwin.He died on the same day as John F.Kennedy and C.S.Lewis.In the late'30s he beCome a Hollywood screenwriter，staying through the mid-1940s and collaborating on numerous scripts such as Pride and Prejudice and Jane Eyre.

Brave New World:The novel opens in London in the“year of our Ford 632”(AD 2540 in the Gregorian calendar).In this world，the vast majority of the population is unified under The World State，an eternally peaceful，stable global society，in which goods are plentiful and everyone is happy.In this society，natural reproduction has been done away with and children are decanted and raised in Hatcheries and Conditioning Centres.Society is divided into five castes，created in these centres.The highest caste is allowed to develop naturally while it matures in its“decanting bottle.”The lower castes are treated to chemical interference to arrest intelligence or physical growth.The castes are Alphas，Betas，Gammas，Deltas，and Epsilons，with each caste further split into Plus and Minus members，from the intelligent Alphas，who run the factories，to the mentally challenged Epsilons，who do the most menial jobs.Each Alpha or Beta is the product of one fertilized egg developing into one fetus.Members of other castes are not unique but are instead created using the Bokanovsky process which enables a single egg to spawn(at the point of the story being told)up to 96 children and one ovary to produce thousands of children.《美丽的新世界》以美国梦的实践为基础，矛头主要指向所谓的科学主义，描绘了科学主义的乌托邦。具体地说，《美丽的新世界》预测了600年后的世界。书中描写美国汽车大亨亨利·福特代替了上帝，因为福特发明了生产汽车的流水线，使生产飞速发展，这种生产方法终于统治了整个世界，公元也因此变成了“福元”。在新世界里，处于“幸福”状态的人们安于自己的“等级”，热爱自己的工作，每天享用定量配给的“索麻”(soma)——一种让人忘掉七情六欲、“有鸦片之益而无鸦片之害”的药品。作者描写了一个保留区内的“野人”，他来到了盼望已久的“新世界”，开始时为物质环境的改变而涕零，欢呼到达了——美丽新世界，随后终因他还有血性，无法适应在流水生产的社会中的白蚁式的生活，加上他认为自己的心上人放荡而无法忍受(新世界的名言:每一个人属于每一个人。故无所谓“放荡”可言)，使他最后的精神寄托破灭，终于在孤独、绝望中自尽身亡。在这个“新世界”里，社会安定就是一切，影响安定的思想、艺术、宗教、家庭、情绪及各种差异荡然无存。“野人”的形象就是今天人类的化身，他的处境和悲剧结局令人不寒而栗。赫胥黎的《美丽的新世界》很容易让人联想到同期乔治·奥威尔的反乌托邦作品《一九八四》。What Orwell feared were those who would ban books.What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book，for there would be no one who wanted to read one.Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information.Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism.Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us.Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance.Orwell feared we would beCome a captive culture.Huxley feared we would beCome a trivial culture，preoccupied with some equivalent of the feelies，the orgy porgy，and the centrifugal bumblepuppy.As Huxley remarked in Brave New World revisited，the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny“failed to take into account man's almost infinite appetite for distractions.”In 1984，Orwell added，people are controlled by inflicting pain.In Brave New World，they are controlled by inflicting pleasure.In short，Orwell feared that what we fear will ruin us.Huxley feared that what we desire will ruin us.

http://publications.teachernet.gov.uk/eOrderingDownload/Primary_curriculum_Report.pdf

Rose Calls for Review of Primary SatsResearch Needs to Cover Tests，Says Government's Chief Adviser

Sir Jim Rose Is Trying to Lift the Rigid Constraints on Primary Schools and Give Greater Freedom for Imaginative Teaching

1.头韵(alliteration)和尾韵(rhyme)

●Starts with S，Ends with Ex(头韵，将Sex拆开)

●For Glory or Gold?A Golfer's Year-End Dilemma为荣誉?为金钱?高尔夫球手的年终窘境

●After the Booms Everything Is Gloom繁荣不再，萧条即来

2.比喻(metaphor)

●At APEC，A Lame-duck Gathering with Few Results APEC峰会，卸任者的聚会，成果甚微(当中的lame-duck)

●Enron Accused Wait for Whistleblower in Court安然控诉内幕揭发者(当中的whistelblower)

3.双关(pun)

●Sweeter Days at Cadbury Schweppes(当中的sweeter days)

●The Sun Sets for Last Time《太阳的陨落》(当中的sun)

●Climbers Hold Summit Talks登山运动员会师峰顶(summit talks原意是“首脑会议”)

4.对比(antithesis)

●Can Hollywood Make A Bollywood Movie?好莱坞电影，宝莱坞风格

●The Rise and Fall of the Swiss Miss瑞士公主的盛与衰

5.仿拟(parody)

英语新闻标题套用典故、俗语、经典台词和文学著作，形成生动幽默效果。

●Don't Cry for Me，America美国，别为我哭泣(语出歌曲Don't cry for me，Argentina)

●To aid or not to aid，that is the question.(源于哈姆雷特的To be or not to be，that is the question)

1.Lisa Hilton thinks history teaching in Britain is inadequate.

2.The 1992 report called for more specialized teaching.

3.British history may not be a good read.

4.In the age of Google，truth could be fabricated by sheer number or repetitions.

5.Lisa Hilton thinks the Rose report has lower expectations(than it should)of history teaching and children's capacity of dealing with complex narrative.

1.Which of the following best describes the author's attitude toward political discourse today?

A.It's pedantic.

B.It's progressively severed from meaningful knowledge.

C.It forms the basis for political judgments.

D.It is a repetitious carousel of unrelated events.

2.Which of the following best implies the author's attitude toward Gordon Brown?

A.“Drivelling”.

B.“Saving the world”.

C.“Deny students the opportunity”.

D.“Hurled right and left with little concern”.

3.According to the author，the study of British history should be________.

A.multi-Cultural

B.unquestioningly patriotic

C.consensus-based

D.none of the above

4.Which of the following parts of British history is NOT mentionedin the article?

A.Maadai-Kara.

B.East India Company.

C.Irish Famine.

D.Whig.

5.Good history teaching，according to the author，_______.

A.should neither be complex nor simplistic

B.offers a proper perspective from which children can both absorb and dismiss massive information bombarding them

C.should cultivate the ability to think

D.both B and C