Talk to any parent of a student who took an adventurous gap year (a year between school and university when some students earn money, travel, etc.) and a misty look will come into their eyes. There are some disasters and even the most motivated, organised gap student does require family back-up, financial, emotional and physical. The parental mistiness is not just about the brilliant experience that has matured their offspring; it is vicarious living. We all wish pre-university gap years had been the fashion in our day. We can see how much tougher our kids become; how much more prepared to benefit from university or to decide positively that they are going to do something other than a degree.

Gap years are fashionable, as is reflected in the huge growth in the number of charities and private companies offering them. Pictures of Prince William toiling in Chile have helped, but the trend has been gathering steam for a decade. The range of gap packages starts with backpacking, includes working with charities, building hospitals and schools and, very commonly, working as a language assistant, teaching English. With this trend, however, comes a danger. Once parents feel that a well-structured year is essential to their would-be undergraduate’s progress to a better university, a good degree, an impressive CV and well paid employment, as the gap companies’ blurbs suggest it might be, then parents will start organising—and paying for—the gaps.

Where there are disasters, according to Richard Oliver, director of the gap companies’ umbrella organisation, the Year Out Group, it is usually because of poor planning. That can be the fault of the company or of the student, he says, but the best insurance is thoughtful preparation. “When people get it wrong, it is usually medical or, especially among girls, it is that they have not been away from home before or because expectation does not match reality.”

The point of a gap year is that it should be the time when the school leaver gets to do the thing that he or she fancies. Kids don’t mature if mum and dad decide how they are going to mature. If the 18-year-old’s way of maturing is to slob out on Hampstead Heath soaking up sunshine or spending a year working with fishermen in Cornwall, then that’s what will be productive for that person. The consensus, however, is that some structure is an advantage and that the prime mover needs to be the student.

The 18-year-old who was dispatched by his parents at two weeks’ notice to Canada to learn to be a snowboarding instructor at a cost of ￡5,800, probably came back with little more than a hangover. The 18-year-old on the same package who worked for his fare and spent the rest of his year instructing in resorts from New Zealand to Switzerland, and came back to apply for university, is the positive counterbalance.

1. It can be inferred from the first paragraph that parents of gap students may_____.

[A] help children to be prepared for disasters [B] receive all kinds of support from their children

[C] have rich experience in bringing up their offspring [D] experience watching children grow up

2. According to the text, which of the following is true?

[A] the popularity of gap years results from an increasing number of charities.

[B] Prince William was working hard during his gap year.

[C] gap years are not as fashionable as they were ten years ago.

[D] a well-structured gap year is a guarantee of university success.

3. The word “packages” (Line 3, Paragraph 2) means_____.

[A] parcels carried in travelling [B] a comprehensive set of activities

[C] something presented in a particular way [D] charity actions

4. What can cause the disasters of gap years?

[A] Intervention of parents. [B] Careful planning. [C] Good health. [D] Realistic expectation.

5. An 18-year-old is believed to take a meaningful gap year when he/she_____.

[A] lives up to his/her parents’ expectations [B] spends time being lazy and doing nothing

[C] learns skills by spending parents’ money [D] earns his or her living and gains working experience

答案：1.D 2.B 3.B 4.A 5.D

核心词汇和超纲词汇

(1)a gap year(中学和大学之间)学业间断的一年，间断年

(2)vicarious(a.)间接感受到的，如He got a ~ thrill out of watching his son score the winning goal(他看到儿子射入获胜的一球，也同样感到欣喜若狂)

(3)package(n.)包，盒，袋;(必须整体接受的)一套东西，一套建议，一揽子交易，如a benefits ~一套福利措施an aid ~综合援助计划

(4)backpack(v.)背包旅行 go ~ing

(5)umbrella(n.)综合体，总体，整体，如an ~ group/fund综合团体/基金

(6)fork out(for sth.)(尤指不情愿地)大量花钱，大把掏钱

(7)slob(n.)懒惰而邋遢的人(v.)slob out/around游手好闲，无所事事

(8)structure(n.)结构，构造;精心组织，周密安排，体系

(9)dispatch(v./n.)派遣，调遣，派出;发出，发送

(10)at short notice随时，没有提前很长时间通知，at two week’s notice提前两周通知

(11)hangover(from sth.)(n.)遗留的感觉(或风俗、习惯等)，如the insecure feeling that was a ~ from her childhood(她儿时留下的不安全感)

(12)counterbalance(v.)抗衡，抵消;对……起平衡作用;(n.)(to sth.)平衡抵消物，抗衡

全文翻译

与度过了新奇的学业间断年的孩子的父母交谈，他们的眼神中会有一种含糊不清的东西。这一年中有一些危机，即使是目的明确、很有条理的学生，在间断年期间也需要家庭从经济上、情感上和体力上给予帮助。父母眼中的含糊不仅仅是因为让他们的孩子成熟起来的美好经历，也是因为他们自己间接感受到的生活方式。我们都希望在我们那个时代大学前的间断年就已经很时兴了。我们能看着孩子们变得更坚强，更好地准备从上大学中有所收获或者积极地决定他们将做一些除了获得学历之外的事情。

学业间断年现在很时兴，这反映在提供它们的慈善团体和私人公司的数目呈巨额增长。威廉王子在智利吃苦的事情发挥了作用，但这种趋势十年来一直在加强。学业间断年期间的一整套活动从背包旅行开始，包括和慈善团体一起工作，修建医院和学校，以及常见的做语言助教、教英语。然而，随着这种趋势而来的也有危险。一旦父母相信那些学业间断年公司介绍的内容，认为精心安排的一个间断年对于想成为本科生的孩子进入更好的大学，获得高学历，得到令人印象深刻的简历和待遇良好的工作是至关重要的，那么他们就会开始组织并资助间断年期间的活动。

按照学业间断年公司综合机构“走出学业间断年团体”的负责人理查德·奥利弗埃的观点，出现问题往往是因为计划不周。他说，“这可能是公司或学生的责任，但是最保险的方法是作好审慎的准备。当人们把它搞砸时，往往是因为健康问题，尤其是女孩，因为她们从未离开过家，或者期望与现实不符”。

学业间断年的意义在于它应该是离校生开始做自己喜欢做的事情的时候。如果由父母来决定孩子怎样成熟，那么他们不会真地变成熟。如果18岁时变成熟的方式是在伦敦汉普斯泰德石南园中无所事事地晒太阳，或者花上一年时间和康沃尔郡的渔夫一起工作，那么对于另外一个人来说将是有所收获的。然而，多数人却认为进行某种安排是有利的，而且行动的安排者应是学生自己。

如果18岁的年轻人两周前得到父母的通知，被派去加拿大花5,800英镑学习成为一名滑雪教练，回来后可能只会留下很少的感觉。同样的18岁的年轻人，先通过工作赚钱，再用一年中剩下的时间在从新西兰到瑞士的多个避暑胜地执教，回来后申请大学，这样的经历则是完全不同的积极的做法。