一个多月没更新了.

这段闷在学校写论文的日子虽然过的很HIGH,但是其实我觉得我还算努力.虽然作息不一样,虽然大吃大喝,虽然半点没耽误看动画.但是这段日子才真的有感觉是在英国读书而不是度假，结果发现自己已经度了一年多的假，现在才觉悟，实在够迟钝。

前一阵一直再想,导师很严且很认真负责到底是福是祸。用着比任何一篇ASSIGNMENT都多的心，却一次一次在导师面前碰钉子，搞的有点心情不好，在紧凑的时间面前弄的很狼狈。以前觉得自己只是懒，只是喜欢拖而已，虽然总是保持着最低限度的学习和最高限度的旅行与休息，擦边球一个接一个，但还没有怀疑过自己的能力问题。觉得假如偶尔勤快一点，做好一些事情应该没有那么困难。不过现在开始严重怀疑我这一年多是不是吃太多睡太多玩太多而变猪脑了。

导师要我EXTENSION，她觉得我现在即使写完了也没办法交，至少需要3-4周的时间去修改加工才勉强能看。虽然基本上决定答应她EXTENSION了，可是有些方面我自己真的已经无奈了。不过，给自己多一点时间毕竟不是坏事，其实我也想看看自己到底能做到什么程度。OK，9月26日之前，还是需要要拼一下的。

哦，对了，今天9月1日，该开始学习了呢。

PS，不好意思，蓓蓓，你来这么久我都一直都没去找你玩。希望回北京以后一切顺利，现在就开始想我们回头到哪里聚。

Foundation research methods

 

Child development in educational context

 

Creating and sustaining learning cultures

 

Early childhood education

 

Foreign language teaching pedagogy and methodology

 

天啊，为什么我从幼儿园读到现在研究生，我所在的班全都是女生多！！！

幼儿园，小学，初中以及高一还凑合，毕竟不会多太多，印象中初中时候好像女生就比男生多一个的样子吧，但毕竟没有那种抬眼看去都是男生的感觉。然后自从高二开始上文科班，然后大学中文系，我就不说了。本以为到了国外会有所改观，结论是，教育这个专业不论国内国外，都几乎是女士的天下，即使读到PHD也一样。。。。。。

算了，想想以后，如果去学校，出版社杂志社，哪怕以前工作过的那个部门，估摸着结果还是一样。我认栽，这辈子活在女儿国里算了。

The fascination with children’s literature

Introduction

Recently, children’s literature especially children’s fiction has become more and more popular. In fact, children’s literature could be seen at every bestseller list for more than one hundred years. It proves that children’s books are not only children’s favourite, but also adults’. Many studies have been done in order to find out the reasons why children love children’s literature. However, experts and scholars have not pointed out the reasons why adults love it as well. This essay tries to sum up some of the views about why children’s literature is welcomed by both children and adults.

 

The first part of this project will discuss the particularity of children’s literature, and what kind of pleasure children can gain when they read children’s literature. The second part will discuss some common points when adults read children’s literature and other books. In the third part, comparisons between children and adults reading children’s literature will be made. At last, the conclusions will be given.

 Part one: Literature for children—Their world.

Why do children love children’s literature? The answer might be simpler than most people think: just because there is “children” before “literature”. Perhaps this answer is not very scientific, but the fact is that the children’s literature is very different from adult’s literature. It is special. The books are special for children and the audiences are special—children.

 

However, not all the text or literal material that children read can be called children’s literature. Although there are still some debates on the definition of children’s literature, people tend to agree on one point: children’s literature is writings specifically intended for children (Children’s literature, 2005, “Basic Characteristics”). It is true that there is large quantity of children’s literature derived from adult’s books. They were changed deliberately when they became children’s literature so that they are more suitable for children and easier to be understood by them. Though some of the adult’s contents are still maintained. From children’s point of view, maybe they are not as serious as some people think.

 

The first reason why children are willing to read children’s books is because the world in children’s literature, which authors construct for them, is children’s favourite. From the old fairy tale to children’s story and the contemporary voluminous children’s fiction, even rhyme or poem, most of them are fantasy. The percentage is much higher than adult’s literature. That means children’s curiosity and imagination can be satisfied with that. They can enjoy the changeable world and never feel bored. The most important thing is that the fantasy world of children’s literature is bright and hopeful. In that world, dead people can be revived and broken limbs can grow again. Justice always wins in the end. Children can always reside in an idealistic and idyllic world (Griswold, 1992:10). But adult’s fantasy is different. Endless horror and desperation may accompany the reader from beginning to the end.

 

On the other hand, the existence of realism in children’s literature, which may be true, cannot be ignored (Nodelman and Reimer, 2003:89). Some of the contents directly touch or imply the dark side of social life. Recently, more and more grey content that is considered unsuitable for children has appeared in children’s literature. However, over anxiety is unnecessary. Firstly, the dark side in children’s literature is far less complicated than in the real world. Secondly, hope, the last thing in Pandora’s box, which not often appears in adult’s literature, always accompanies children’s books. Thirdly, the educational function of children’s literature is still an important function although it obviously becomes less important and even be ignored as the time goes by. Children’s desire of learning is underestimated as well. Actually they are willing to know the truth and grow in reading.

 

Despite the particularity of content in children’s literature, it is still literature. It shares the common characteristics of literature. From reading, children can enjoy the texts themselves. For a child who just learnt to read, the pleasure of understanding the meaning of words may be greater than understanding the story itself. The rhyme in a poem can also give them some fun. Moreover, the proportion of vivid descriptions and aesthetical words in children’s literature is normally much more than other literature. So, it is easier to recall their emotion and imagine the attractive views they read (Nodelman and Reimer, 2003:25). Thereby, the pleasure of reading can increase.

 

Part two: Literature for Adult—Further thinking.

  Children’s literature is not children’s exclusive right. It attracts a large number of adult audiences. Not only young adults, parents, teachers or educationists—who are related to children, but also the ordinary public are fans of children’s literature. According to research by Griswold (1992:Preface, vii), more than half of the positions on the bestseller lists were occupied by children’s literature more than one hundred years. That is a piece of powerful evidence, which shows that children’s books are welcomed by adults. Although is seems not so much special research about the reason of why adults enjoy children’s books had been done. There are some views in previous studies that could explain the reason why adults prefer children’s book can be found.

 

The first point is the childishness of adults, which could explain why adults do not want to abandon the books that normally are thought immature and too easy. One reason is due to the authors of children’s book. They would rather pretend to be children when they were writing books for children (Lurie, 2003:Foreword, ix). At the same time, just because they are adults and they have the similar experiences as other adults. Thereby, they just did what other adults did not do or could not do—write children’s books with their own dreams. It certainly could arouse adults’ response. The second reason is that most adults refuse to subconsciously grow up just like Peter Pan. One of the reason adults read children’s literature is to escape. They can temporarily put themselves outside the complicated and disturbing world of adult and experience the different lives in the wonderful world of children’s literature (Nodelman and Reimer, 2003:25). The other purpose of adults’ reading is to discover a mirror in them. To find similar characters from roles or to find some heroes who they wanted to be when they were children (Nodelman and Reimer, 2003:25). That feeling make them pleased.

 

The second point is the further thinking which children’s literature brings to readers. Children’s books are different from philosophical books or advanced theoretical books. But they can lead adults to think more just as reading adult’s books. Actually they are not so simple and childish as some people think. A successful children’s book must consider the need of all age groups. As it has been mentioned   before, children’s literature contains some reality, and educational function as well, especially contemporary teenager’s fictions. Authors of this kind of fiction usually want their teenage readers to think further, some topic even very heavy, for instance, the meaning of existence. That is also meaningful for adults. From the adult’s point of view, they have the ability to think more and are willing to find something new which is different from children. For some intellectual readers, they could even explore the folk sources and study the cultural background of children’s book (Lurie, 2003:119).

 

Last but not least, as it has been said before, children’s literature still belongs to literature. It is much easier for adults to acquire the experience of aesthetics either the pleasure of the text themselves or the imaginations that texts wake up (Nodelman and Reimer, 2003:25). The pleasure of well understanding and fully enjoyment of the plots and feelings of the happy or sad emotions with characters are also precious for adults. 

Part three: Comparison.

In the first two parts, the discussion is around children and adults respectively. Indeed, there are common points between children and adults read children’s literature, and the interactive relationship as well. But differences exist because children and adults are different after all.

The first point is, no matter how specific children’s literature is and what the readers think about it, children’s literature is still literature. That is the unarguable fact. Part of the attraction of children’s literature comes from that--the pleasure of the text itself. Children and adults can share the same kind of pleasure that authors want them to experience based on the same text (Nodelman and Reimer, 2003:22). But pleasure when children and adults read the books are at different levels. While children enjoy the exciting plots, adults can appreciate the gorgeous words; while children dream to join the adventures in books, adults may think further about their lives. Different levels of pleasures are due to the different levels of comprehension. It does not mean the pleasure children gain is fewer than adults. In fact, when they love a book, they totally devote their feelings to the book. The true emotions all come from the deep side of their mind at that time. So the different levels of pleasures cannot be distinguished by higher or lower (Nodelman and Reimer, 2003:23). 

 

The other point is, children and adult read children’s literature is a process of interaction. Adults used to be children and used to read children’s literature when they were young. The influence of the old memory is so strong that can motivate them to re-read children’s classics (Griswold 1992:Preface, viii). After becoming parents, when they want to recommend new published children’s books to their children, they must enjoy those books first. At that time, reading children’s literature will become family activity (Meek and Watson, 2003:11). As for young adults—they are just “older” children and gather both characters of children and adults. Actually they are the biggest market of children’s literature.

 

Conclusion.

To sum up, the reason why both children and adult love children’s literature can be concluded to two point. One point is that the particularities of children’s literature make them suitable for children’s taste especially. The other point is that children’s literature has the entire characteristic as common literature that can attract audiences from all age groups. People who love children’s literature, age is not a barrier, can gain pleasure from reading. The two sides combine together, which form the unique the fascination of children’s literature. 

 

References.

 

Children's literature.  (2005).  Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved 2005, September 7, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children%27s_literature  

Griswold, J. (1992). Audacious kids. New York: Oxford University Press.

Meek, M., & Watson, V. (2003). Coming of age in children’s literature. London: Continuum.

Nodelman, P., & Reimer, M. (2003). The pleasures of children’s literature (3^rd ed.). Boston:  Allyn and Bacan.

Lurie, A. (2003). Boys and girls for ever.  London: Vintage.

 

昨天，房东借了朋友的车送我去火车站，还最后给我带了一顿午饭，告别的时候我竟然哭了，本来以为我会很高兴结束语言学校的生活，进到大学，到现在还真是不舍得离开呆了19周的canterbury。

同学送我到伦敦的euston，然后开始我一个人的旅程，虽然早已经习惯在英国一个人坐火车旅行，也不是第一次去大学了，但这次却还是很忐忑。不停的回头看我的行李，仔细看经过的每一站的站名。但我没想到的是这次又赶上周日出门，周日没有从london到coventry的直达车，竟然要到rugby转coach，要死了，我可是带着总重量比我体重还重的行李啊。rugby那破站竟然连个行李车都没有，走到coach站我都已经几乎气绝。等到学校，终于有工作人员帮我搬东西的时候，最大那个箱子的把手已经不堪重负的掉了下来。而5周之后我还要搬一次家。。。。。。

到房间之后的第一件事情是找网口－连线－开电脑，发现能上的时候幸福到不能行，唯一可惜的是BT不太灵光，天啊，没有BT我可怎么活。后来才顾得上看我自己的房间，很大，大概有15－16平米的样子，比之间住的房间大了两倍有余，还有自己的水池，就算隔出一个卫生间，房间都还不小。但是，一层楼十几二十几口子男男女女却只有两个厕所，三个浴室，到早上估计会挤的不能行。

coventry是个无聊到似乎只有学习一件事情可以做的地方。半新不旧，半大不小。往后的日子如何，且看着吧。

I am going to study teacher's development course for two weeks from next monday. It's difficult because all the classmates had taught english for at lest 10 years. I chose this course just thought it would be helpful for my major in the future.