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PearlArredondo_2013S-_我的故事_从黑帮女到明星老师_
So I grew up in East Los Angeles, not even realizing I was poor. 我在東洛杉磯長大, 根本沒意識到我很窮。
My dad was a high-ranking gang member who ran the streets. 我爸曾是叱吒街頭的幫派角頭。
high-ranking:adj.职位高的;阶级高的; gang:n.一群; v.(英)去;
Everyone knew who I was, so I thought I was a pretty big deal, and I was protected, and even though my dad spent most of my life in and out of jail , 沒人不知道我是誰, 所以我自認為是個大人物,而且有人罩, 儘管我爸在我一生中 多次進出監獄,
jail:n.监狱;监牢;拘留所;v.监禁;下狱;
I had an amazing mom who was just fiercely independent . 我有個堅強獨立的媽媽。
fiercely:adv.猛烈地;厉害地; independent:adj.独立的; n.无党派议员(或候选人等);
She worked at the local high school as a secretary in the dean's office, so she got to see all the kids that got thrown out of class, for whatever reason, who were waiting to be disciplined . 她在當地高中工作, 擔任教務處的秘書, 所以她看到因為種種因素 而遭趕出教室,準備接受處罰的小孩。
disciplined:adj.遵守纪律的; v.训练; (discipline的过去式和过去分词)
Man, her office was packed. 各位,她的辦公室被擠得水洩不通。
So, see, kids like us, we have a lot of things to deal with outside of school, and sometimes we're just not ready to focus. 所以,像我們這樣的孩子, 在校外有很多事等著我們面對 有時我們只是沒辦法集中精神。
But that doesn't mean that we can't. 這並不代表我們不行。
It just takes a little bit more. 只是需多費點功夫而已。
Like, I remember one day I found my dad convulsing , foaming at the mouth, 有一天,我記得我發現我爸 因為過度注射藥物而倒臥浴室,
convulsing:v.使痉挛(或抽筋);(身体)震动(或抖动);(convulse的现在分词) foaming:n.发泡,泡沫形成;v.起泡沫(foam的ing形式);
OD-ing on the bathroom floor. 身體抽搐、口吐白沫。
Really, do you think that doing my homework that night was at the top of my priority list? 你們真的以為那天晚上做作業 還會是我的頭等大事嗎？
priority:n.优先;优先权;[数]优先次序;优先考虑的事;
Not so much. 當然不會。
But I really needed a support network, a group of people who were going to help me make sure that I wasn't going to be a victim of my own circumstance , that they were going to push me beyond what I even thought I could do. 但我確實需要一個支撐團體, 一群可以幫助我的人, 確保我不會 淪為自身處境的受害者, 確保他們會促使我 超越自己。
victim:n.受害人;牺牲品;牺牲者; circumstance:n.环境,情况;事件;境遇;
I needed teachers, in the classroom, every day, who were going to say, "You can move beyond that." 我需要老師能每天在教室裡, 說,“你可以更好的。”
And unfortunately , the local junior high was not going to offer that. 可惜的是,當地的國中 並沒有這個條件。
unfortunately:adv.不幸地; junior:n.青少年;职位较低者;adj.青少年的;地位低下的;
It was gang-infested, huge teacher turnover rate . 那裡幫派林立,導致了教師流動率過高。
turnover rate:换手率;
So my mom said, "You're going on a bus an hour and a half away from where we live every day." 所以媽媽就對我說, “你以後每天要到一小時半車程以外的學校上學。”
So for the next two years, that's what I did. 因此接下來兩年,我都是這麼做的。
I took a school bus to the fancy side of town. 我搭乘校車到城市上等的那一頭。
fancy:n.幻想; adj.想象的; v.想象;
And eventually , I ended up at a school where there was a mixture . 最後到達了一所 魚龍混雜的學校。
eventually:adv.最后,终于; mixture:n.混合;结合体;混合物;集合体;
There were some people who were really gang-affiliated, and then there were those of us really trying to make it to high school. 裡面有很的多幫派份子, 也有些人像我們一樣 是真的想要上高中。
Well, trying to stay out of trouble was a little unavoidable . 想要遠離麻煩是不太可能的。
unavoidable:adj.不可避免的;不能废除的;
You had to survive. 你必須要存活下來。
You just had to do things sometimes. 有時候你只需採取一些動作。
So there were a lot of teachers who were like, "She's never going to make it. 所以很多老師會說, “她不行的。
She has an issue with authority . 她不受學校管教。
issue:n.重要议题;争论的问题;v.宣布;公布;发出;发行; authority:n.权威;权力;当局;
She's not going to go anywhere." 她不會有出息的。”
Some teachers completely wrote me off as a lost cause . 有些老師徹底放棄認為我註定失敗。
lost cause:n.业已失败的事情;没有希望的事情;
But then, they were very surprised when I graduated from high school. 但是,後來我從國中畢業時 他們非常訝異。
I was accepted to Pepperdine University, and I came back to the same school that I attended to be a special ed assistant. 因為我申請上了佩柏戴恩大學, 然後回到以前讀的學校 擔任特教助理。
And then I told them, "I want to be a teacher." 然後我跟他們說,“我要當老師。”
And boy, they were like, "What? Why? 他們就驚訝的說,“什麼?為什麼?
Why would you want to do that?" 為什麼你會想當老師?“
So I began my teaching career at the exact same middle school that I attended, and I really wanted to try to save more kids who were just like me. 所以我就在我以前讀過的中學 展開我的教學生涯, 真心地想要幫助更多的孩子 像我這樣的孩子。
career:n.职业;事业;生涯;经历; middle school:n.初中;(英国为9到13岁儿童所设的)中间学校;
And so every year, I share my background with my kids, because they need to know that everyone has a story, everyone has a struggle, and everyone needs help along the way. 所以每年,我都跟學生分享我的經歷, 因為他們需要知道,每個人都有個故事, 每個人都有奮鬥史, 再奮鬥的過程中,每個人都需要幫助。
And I am going to be their help along the way. 我會在他們奮鬥的過程中伸出援手。
I am going to be:我将成为什么(样的人)
So as a rookie teacher, I created opportunity. 所以,身為新手老師的我,創造了機會。
rookie:n.新手;新人;
I had a kid one day come into my class having been stabbed the night before. 有天,一位學生跑到我班上, 他前晚遭刺傷。
stabbed:v.刺,戳,捅;(stab的过去分词和过去式)
I was like, "You need to go to a hospital, the school nurse, something." 我說,“你需要去醫院, 或是學校保健室之類的。”
He's like, "No, Miss, I'm not going. 他回說,“不用了老師,我不會去。
I need to be in class because I need to graduate." 因為我想畢業,所以我一定要來上課。”
So he knew that I was not going to let him be a victim of his circumstance, but we were going to push forward and keep moving on. 所以他知道,我不會讓他 淪為自身處境的受害者, 反而我們會勇往直前,繼續努力下去。
push forward:推进;抓紧进行;
And this idea of creating a safe haven for our kids and getting to know exactly what they're going through, getting to know their families -- I wanted that, but I couldn't do it in a school with 1,600 kids, and teachers turning over year after year after year. 為孩子們創造一個安全庇護所的想法 並且準確了解他們的經歷, 以及了解他們的家庭,都是我想做的, 但是,我無法在1,600個孩子的學校這麼做, 老師們一年接著一年不斷地更換。
safe haven:n.安全的地方;避难所; year after year:年复一年地;每年;
How do you get to build those relationships? 要如何跟學生們建立感情呢?
So we created a new school. 因此我們創辦了一所新學校。
And we created the San Fernando Institute for Applied Media . 而且,我們設立了 聖佛南度媒體應用學院。
Institute:v.开始(调查);制定;创立;提起(诉讼);n.学会,协会;学院; Applied:adj.应用的;实用的;v.应用;使用;申请,请求;(apply的过去分词和过去式) Media:n.媒体;媒质(medium的复数);血管中层;浊塞音;中脉;
And we made sure that we were still attached to our school district for funding , for support. 確定的是,我們仍然依賴 我們校區的資助與支持。
attached:adj.依恋;v.重视;把…固定;(attach的过去分词和过去式) school district:n.学区; funding:n.基金;资金;提供资金;v.为…提供资金;拨款给;(fund的现在分词)
But with that, we were going to gain freedom: freedom to hire the teachers that we knew were going to be effective; freedom to control the curriculum so that we're not doing lesson 1.2 on page five, no; and freedom to control a budget , to spend money where it matters, not how a district or a state says you have to do it. 如此一來,我們就能更加獨立: 獨立招聘我們認為 會更加有效的老師; 獨立設計課程 如此一來,教學就不在受限於課本; 加上獨力控制預算, 把錢花在刀口上, 而不是讓政府指手畫腳。
curriculum:n.课程;总课程; budget:n.预算,预算费;v.安排,预定;把…编入预算;adj.廉价的;
We wanted those freedoms. 我們想要這些獨立自主權。
But now, shifting an entire paradigm , it hasn't been an easy journey , nor is it even complete. 但是,要完全改變架構, 這不是一條簡單的路,也不是終點。
shifting:adj.不断移动的;流动的;v.转移;赶快;快速移动;变换;(shift的现在分词) paradigm:n.范例;词形变化表; journey:n.旅行;行程;vi.旅行;
But we had to do it. 但是,我們還是得做。
Our community deserved a new way of doing things. 我們的社會需要有新的處事方法。
community:n.社区;[生态]群落;共同体;团体; deserved:adj.值得的;该奖[罚]的;v.值得;应得;应受;(deserve的过去分词和过去式)
And as the very first pilot middle school in all of Los Angeles Unified School District, you better believe there was some opposition . 作為洛杉磯所有聯合學區裡 首批試辦的中學, 一定會有反對的聲音。
Unified:adj.统一的;一致标准的;v.统一;使一致(unify的过去分词); opposition:n.反对党;对立;在野党;对抗;
And it was out of fear -- fear of, well, what if they get it wrong? 這是因為出於恐懼- 害怕他們要是弄錯該怎麼辦?
what if:如果…怎么办?
Yeah, what if we get it wrong? 對啊,要是我們弄錯了怎麼辦?
But what if we get it right? 但要是我們成功了呢?
And we did. 我們做到了。
So even though teachers were against it because we employ one-year contracts -- you can't teach, or you don't want to teach, you don't get to be at my school with my kids. 所以儘管有些老師反對, 因為我們約聘的老師為一年, 要是你不會教,或者不想教, 你就不該留在我的學校教我的孩子們。
employ:vt.使用,采用;雇用;使忙于,使从事于;n.使用;雇用; contracts:n.[经]合同; v.使收缩;
(Applause) (鼓掌)
So in our third year, how did we do it? 所以在第三年,我們是怎麼做的呢?
Well, we're making school worth coming to every day. 我們讓每天來學校變成值得。
We make our kids feel like they matter to us. 我們讓學生覺得他們對我們來說是重要的。
We make our curriculum rigorous and relevant to them, and they use all the technology that they're used to. 我們讓課程更嚴謹、更貼近他們, 而且他們使用所有慣用的科技設備。
rigorous:adj.严格的,严厉的;严密的;严酷的; relevant:adj.相关的;切题的;中肯的;有重大关系的;有意义的,目的明确的; technology:n.技术;工艺;术语;
Laptops , computers, tablets -- you name it, they have it. 筆電、桌電、平板 -- 你想的到的都有。
Laptops:n.便携式电脑;笔记本电脑;(laptop的复数) tablets:n.药片;片剂;(固定于墙上作纪念的)牌,碑,匾;(tablet的第三人称单数和复数)
Animation , software, moviemaking software, they have it all. 動畫製作、軟體、電影製作軟體,他們都有。
Animation:n.活泼,生气;激励;卡通片绘制; moviemaking:n.制片;
And because we connect it to what they're doing ?? 因為我們讓他們所做的更有關聯-
For example, they made public service announcements for the Cancer Society. 例如,他們替癌症協會做公益, 在公眾信息服務節目上發聲。
public service:n.公共事业;公营事业;公益事业(或服务);政府; Cancer:n.癌症;恶性肿瘤;
These were played in the local trolley system. 這些都在當地的電車系統上撥出。
trolley:n.手推车;(美)有轨电车;vi.乘电车;vt.用手推车运;
Teaching elements of persuasion , it doesn't get any more real than that. 有說服力的教導要素, 是最實際不過了。
elements:n.要素;基本部分;少量;一群;(element的复数) persuasion:n.说服;说服力;信念;派别;
Our state test scores have gone up more than 80 points since we've become our own school. 自從我們創校以來, 我們州的考試成績已經突破80分了。
But it's taken all stakeholders , working together -- teachers and principals on one-year contracts, working over and above and beyond their contract hours without compensation . 不過這需要所有利益相關者共同合作- 老師們和校長在約聘的一年裡, 能夠花更多的、額外的時間在工作上, 而且不計酬勞。
stakeholders:n.利益相关者;赌款保存人(stakeholder的复数); principals:n.校长;负责人(principal的复数); over and above:除…之外;在…之上; compensation:n.补偿;报酬;赔偿金;
And it takes a school board member who is going to lobby for you and say, "Know, the district is trying to impose this, but you have the freedom to do otherwise." 多虧有幫你遊說的校董, 並且他會跟你說, “要知道,地方政府要實施這項措施, 但你有權決定要不要照做。”
lobby:n.大堂;门厅;民众接待厅;游说;v.游说(从政者或政府); impose:v.推行;迫使;强制实行;把…强加于;
And it takes an active parent center who is not only there, showing a presence every day, but who is part of our governance , making decisions for their kids, our kids. 這也多虧家長會長 不但會每天出席, 也會是我們管理的一份子, 為我們大家都孩子做決定。
presence:n.存在;出席;参加;风度;仪态; governance:n.管理;统治;支配;
Because why should our students have to go so far away from where they live? 為什麼我們的學生 要千里迢迢的來這?
They deserve a quality school in their neighborhood , a school that they can be proud to say they attend, and a school that the community can be proud of as well, and they need teachers to fight for them every day and empower them to move beyond their circumstances . 在社區內,他們應該要有間優質的學校, 能讓他們為在這所學校就讀而驕傲, 一間也讓社區引以為傲的學校, 而且需要老師們為他們奮鬥, 讓他們能夠越發強大並走出現在的處境。
neighborhood:n.附近;地区;街坊;adj.附近的; empower:vt.授权,允许;使能够; circumstances:n.情况;环境;情形;(circumstance的复数)
Because it's time that kids like me stop being the exception , and we become the norm . 因為現在是時候讓像我一樣的孩子們 不再是例外,而是常態。
exception:n.例外;异议; norm:n.规范;标准;定额;常态;v.规范;规定;
Thank you. 謝謝。
(Applause) (鼓掌)