英文欣赏之人生感悟 （113）送孩子上学 Sending Children to School
Sending Children to School
送孩子上学
Sending a child to school in England is a step which many parents do not find easy to take.
在英格兰，送孩子上学对于家长来说并不容易。
In theory, at least, the problem is that there are very many choices to make.
至少从理论上讲，问题在于有很多选择。
Let us try to list some of the alternatives between which parents are forced to decide.
让我们罗列一些父母们不得不做出的选择。
To begin with, they may ask themselves whether they would like their child to go to a single-sex school or a co-educational school.
首先，他们会自问是想让孩子去男女分校还是男女合校。
They may also consider whether he should go to a school which is connected to a particular church or religious group,or whether the school should have no such connections.
他们也会考虑是去一所与某类教会或宗教社团有关联的学校。
Another decision is whether the school should be one of the vast majority financed by the State or one of the very small but influential minority of private schools,though this choice is, of course,only available to the small number of those who can pay.
另一项要做的决定是，应该从政府资助的大批学校中选择一所就读，还是从那些规模很小但有影响力的少数几个私立学校中择校，当然，这种选择仅限于少数能付起学费的人。
Also connected with the question of money is whether the child should go to a boarding school or live at home.
与钱的问题有联系的还有孩子是应该到寄宿学校还是住在家里。
Then there is the question of what the child should do at school.
接下来的问题还有孩子在学校该学什么。
Should it be a school whose curriculum lays emphasis,for instance, on necessary skills,such as reading, writing and mathematics,or one which pays more attention to developing the child’s personality,morally, emotionally and socially.
应该选把课程重点放在必需的技能，例如阅读，写作和数学上的学校，还是应选注重从道德，情感和社会性方面培养孩子的个性的学校。
Finally, with dissatisfaction with conventional education as great as it is in some circles in England and certainly in the USA,the question might even arise in the parents’ minds as to whether the child should be compelled to go to school at all.
最后，在英格兰的一些圈子里，当然在美国也是，人们对传统教育方式是如此不满，以至在家长的脑海里产生了这样的疑问，就是到底应不应该强迫孩子去上学。
Although in practice,some parents may not think twice about any of these choices and send their child to the only school available in the immediate neighbourhood,any parent who is interested enough can insist that as many choices as possible be made open to him,and the system is theoretically supposed to provide them.
尽管从实践上看，一些家长不会对这些选择深思熟虑，而是直接把孩子送到邻近的学校中，但是，有足够兴趣的家长仍可以坚持有尽可能多的选择机会，而且理论上来讲教育系统也应该提供给他们多种选择。
1.single-sex school 单性别学校
My daughter goes to a single-sex school.
我的女儿进一所女校读书。
For many parents, the rationale for placing their child in a single-sex school is the belief that academic performance will be improved.
对于大多数父母来说，把孩子放进单性别学校就学的初衷无非是他们认为单性别学校有助于提高学习成绩。
2.religious group 宗教团体
She was elected as leader of the religious group.
她被推选为这个宗教团体的领导者。
Are you with a religious group?
你是宗教组织的吗？
3.available to 对…可获得的
Mr. weingarten wasn’t immediately available to comment.
无法立即获得温加藤的相关评论。
This powerful scientific instrument will be available to scientists all over the world.
这台功能强大的科学仪器将提供给世界各地的科学家使用。
4.for instance 例如，比如；拿…来说
For instance, they tend to have high unemployment rates.
比如说，这个群体的失业率往往较高。
For instance, which assets should the fed buy?
例如，美联储应购买哪类资产？