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[交流] [美文]challenges and opportunities for the students

这是第九届“21世纪　外教社杯”全国英语演讲比赛的一篇文章
　　山东大学　苗婧
原文如下：
　　Good afternoon, ladies and gentleman. One of professors once told me, “The longer I teach, the farther I am driven from my students.” I asked him “Why? How could such a thing happen? ” He replied, “Well, you see, about ten years ago I had twenty students in my class. I could remember all of their names; in fact, I knew them personally. But today, with each class enrollment over a hundred students, I can’t name half of them. Actually I am lucky if I can call ten of them by name.”
　　His words still ring in my ears. Because his comments made me ponder the opportunities and challenges for college students brought on by enrollment expansion.
　　On the one hand, the increased enrollment is beneficial to both our young people and our nation. Thanks to the expanded enrollment, we can say goodbye to those days when going to college was like passing over a narrow bridge, with only few, a very few, able to make it to the other side. Now an increasing number of students are gaining access to college, and they are embracing equal opportunity of freedom from the shackles of ignorance. Far more of us can fulfill the dreams of our former generation. According to same statistics, the enrollment has expanded into five times the number enrolled ten to fifteen years ago. Never before in the history of China have we had such precious opportunities for higher education.
　　But on the other hand, this enormous undertaking continuously crates challenges. As class size increase, it is becoming a common phenomenon that students and teachers do not really know each other. Students find it difficult to get personal instruction from their teachers, and teachers feel they can’t afford the time and energy to provide guidance to all their students.
　　What’s more, confronted with the skyrocketing number of enrollment, job-hunting markets become gloomier, and students are under increasing pressure to find a job. In the city where I live, three years ago, it was possible for an undergraduate to obtain employment in a certain college, but now it’s even more difficult for a postgraduate to find a job in the same college.
　　In the face of such fierce competition, college students respond differently. Some try to study extra hard; in fact, they study so intensely that whenever they spend some time out, they feel guilt afterward. They study for scholarships, for certificates, and for postgraduate exams.
　　But at the other extreme, some students choose escape from the competition. To them, the precious opportunity has come to mean nothing. They spend most of their time doodling, watching movies, and chatting on the Internet. They seem to enjoy themselves, but inside, they are not happy.
　　While the students are confused and frustrated, the competition world cries out for qualified response. So what should we do? To me, the most important thing is that we should carry out all-around self-improvement; that is, we should try to make ourselves better people. We should find a balance between our academic study and social roles. We need to know that scholarships and certificates are important; relationships with other people are also important; but our health, both mental and physical, is even more important. Only in this manner can we respond positively to the challenges that lie before us, and grasp, once and for all, this wonderful educational opportunity.
　　We should not be afraid of challenges, for opportunities and challenges are twins; they don’t seem to have a natural boundary. It all depends on the way we view them. The celebrated historian, Toynbee, once declared, “All progress comes from correspondent response to challenges.”
　　We cherish the opportunities we have today, and we shall not let them go quietly into the night; and we shall not shrink before the challenges of severe competition without a fight. Thank you very much.

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