节目资讯
刊物:空中英語教室
日期:2012-02-04
难易度:Low
关键字:commit, reveal, stand up for somebody, concentrate, suicide, behavior
(Music).
Hi, everybody.
Welcome to Studio Classroom Worldwide.
Thanks for taking time out of your busy day to study English with us.
My name is Steve.
And my name is Ryan.
Our SOCIAL ISSUE topic this month is bullying,
an ugly, dangerous behavior that is displayed in offices, homes, playgrounds,
military bases, nursing homes and of course, in schools all over the world.
It seems wherever people are, there are bullies.
So why do people bully others?
Experts point to things like an unhealthy home environment and uncontrolled
feelings of jealousy and envy.
People also become bullies because they need attention or because they
mistakenly think that they can become powerful through violence.
OK. Let's begin today's lesson on page 17 and learn more specifically why
bullying is so dangerous.
The Dangers of Bullying.
Bullying causes serious damage.
Victim's grades often drop because they skip classes or cannot concentrate.
Bullying also leads to stress and depression and can even cause victims to
commit suicide.
If you notice bullying occurring, tell the bullies to stop.
Few students realize this, but more than half the time, speaking out ends
incidents of bullying.
Are you a bully?
Consider your behavior toward people you don't like.
So today we're talking about bullying.
So Ryan, we're here in the studio, we know outside in the world that people are
being bullied all of the time.
This is a big problem, and we need to talk about it.
We need to know what to do in these kinds of situations.
That's right.
We've already seen how often bullying happens in schools.
And so now we want to try and learn, first of all, how it affects students, and
then how we can stop it.
That's right. Now yesterday we did talk about being beaten up.
When you get beat up, you're hit.
And we talked about the lying and the making fun of people, but we didn't talk
about what that can actually cause in someone's life.
Right. And "that can cause some serious damage," we see here.
That means that it is very bad for people who are bullied and even, Kaylah, for
the bullies themselves.
That's right.
Now we learned yesterday when you are beaten up, you can end up with broken
bones or worse.
But that's not the only damage that can be caused.
If we see... we see here that victim's grades often drop because they start to
skip school and they can't concentrate because they're just so scared.
That's right. Now remember, victim is the person who is being hurt.
And they're not able to "concentrate." That means they can't pay attention and
learn, which is why you go to school in the first place.
But Kaylah, we see some of them aren't even going to school.
I have seen this a lot, actually.
If you're in a school and you're walking around the hallways maybe during a
class time,
you'll see that there are kids hanging out in the hallways or standing in the
bathrooms just trying to avoid being in the same room as someone who might be
trying to hurt them.
Now Kaylah, I have done this before.
I have missed a class because I didn't want to meet up with another boy that I
knew was bullying me.
Wow! That... that's a great example.
See, friends, it affects all of us all over the world.
So this is a big problem.
It's not just in your school, which is why we need to address it so we can each
take a part, be a part of fixing this problem.
Yeah. But it's not just missing school; it can also lead to things like...
stress, depression and can even cause victims to commit suicide.
OK. So these are emotional effects it can have.
We saw physical effects.
We see how it affects your grades.
Now we see how it affects your emotions.
You can end up depressed, which is what we've... we've talked about that before;
we are very sad.
You can also... it can even drive them to commit suicide.
Now those are two words that often go together.
Ryan, let's break them up and define those.
OK. Well, this is very sad.
The first word "commit" means to do something.
That simply means you're going to do and you cannot undo, you can't take it
back.
But what is it when you do suicide or when you commit suicide?
Well, "suicide" is the act of killing yourself intentionally.
You do it on purpose.
You mean to kill yourself.
So when you commit suicide, that means you are... intentionally killing
yourself.
Now that should come as a surprise to most of you.
And I hope it is something that can help you realize just how big of deal
bullying really is.
If people are willing to kill themselves, Ryan, this is something we need to be
addressing.
Yes. And I just can't understand why a bully would continue to make fun of
someone if they knew that that person might commit suicide.
Friends, if you think you are a bully, stop.
That's right. And if you are being bullied, speak up, speak out, make a
difference.
But the people that are being bullied and the bullies are not the only ones in
this situation.
If you even notice bullying happening, tell the bullies to stop.
Yeah. Now few students actually realize this or know this, but actually, more
than half of the time, speaking out ends incidents of bullying.
That is something we should all take notice of because even if you are not being
bullied,
if you see it, speak up because over half of the time you can make a difference
in someone life, a huge difference.
So speak out, be the difference.
Right. Now an incident here is an event.
When someone is bullying or being bullied, that would be one incident.
So we say you can actually stop that just by speaking out.
I have a question for all of you.
Are you a bully?
Have you considered your behavior toward people you don't like?
Now this is something you should do.
Consider, think about your behavior.
And your "behavior" is the way you behave or what you do toward people that you
don't like.
That's right. And your behavior is the way you are acting.
So how are you acting with people interacting, being around people that you
don't like.
I know, Ryan, it's easy for us to think, "Oh, I'm not a bully. I would never
hurt someone like that." But think about it.
How are you treating the people around you?
And friends, you've... of course, don't have to like everyone.
We're not saying you always have to like people, but think about how you are
acting around them.
Are you a bully?
Are you hurting them or making fun of them?
You should definitely stop.
That's right. Take the time to think about the way you interact and be... be
professional about it.
Be kind to people.
You can't change the way they treat you, but you can change the way that you
treat them.
Absolutely. Now Kaylah, I have one more question: Do you think you were ever a
bully?
I think if I'm very honest, I think probably at some point in time, I did bully
some people.
Now that's sad to admit.
But I hope that all of us can take a look at our lives and realize that this
could be a problem for us as well.
We're going to talk more about this, but let's visit the Chat Room.
I told you already.
I'll help you find books, but I can't write your paper for you.
If I were you, I'd just drop it.
Hey, what was that about?
You sounded upset.
This high school student wanted me to write a research paper for him.
He kept complain that if I didn't, his grades would drop.
Wow. I can't believe he actually ask you to help him cheat.
Hey, when he said his grades would drop, that means they would get worse, right?
Yes. When a grade drops, it gets lower.
Just like when a physical object drops, it goes down.
OK. That makes sense.
By the way, when you were on the phone, I heard you used the phrase "drop it."
But I couldn't figure out what "it" was referring to.
What did you want him to drop?
It wasn't referring to anything.
"Drop it" is an idiom that means stop talking about this topic.
So you were telling him to stop asking you to write his paper for him?
Exactly. I can't believe he tried to blame me for his bad grades.
Yeah. If he is doing badly, it's only because he dropped the ball.
That's right.
And I noticed you use another idiom that uses the word drop.
Hey, did I use it correctly?
Yes, Ken. Good job.
"To drop the ball" means to make a mistake or fail at something.
And it usually suggests that the person who did this was not being responsible.
Well, that's definitely true of this student.
I'm glad you didn't help him cheat.
Yeah, me too.