Child Consultants

These days, "what do you want to do when you grow up" is the wrong question to ask children in the USA. The (1) should be: "what job are you doing now" American companies are employing more and more young people as consultants to evaluate products for child (2) . The 12-to-19 (3) group spends more than $100 billion a year in the USA. Specialist agencies have been created to help manufacturers ask kids about all the latest trends in clothes, food and (4) markets. One (5) , Teenage Research Unlimited, has panels (评判小组) of teenagers who give their verdict (裁决) on products (6) jeans (牛仔裤). Another company, Doyle Research Associated, holds two-hour sessions in a room (7) the "imaginarium (想象室)." Children are encouraged to play games to get (8) a creative mood. They have to write down any ideas that (9) into their heads.
Some manufacturers prefer to do their own (10) research. The software company Microsoft runs a weekly " Kid’s Council" at its headquarters in Seattle, (11) a panel of school children give their verdict on the (12) products and suggest new ones. One 11-year-old, Andrew Cooledge, told them that they should make more computer games which would appeal equally (13) boys and girls. Payments for the work are increasingly attractive. Andrew Cooledge was paid $250 and given some software. (14) , even if their ideas are valuable, the children will never make a fortune. They cannot have the copyright to their ideas. These are not jobs they can hold for long. (15) their mid-teens they can be told that they are too old.

14（）

American public education has changed in recent years. One change is that increasing numbers of American parents and teachers are starting independent public schools (1) charter schools (特许学校).
In 1991, there were no charter schools in the United States. Today, more than 2,300 charter schools (2) in 34 states and the District of Columbia. 575,000 students (3) these schools. The students are from 5 years of age through 18 or older.A charter school is (4) by groups of parents, teachers and community (社区) members. It is similar in some ways (5) a traditional public school. It receives tax money to operate just as other public schools do. The (6) it receives depends on the number of students. The charter school must prove to local or state governments that its students are learning. These governments (7) the school with the agreement, or charter that permits it to operate.
Unlike a traditional public school, (8) , the charter school does not have to obey most laws governing public schools. Local, state or federal governments cannot tell it what to (9) .
Each school can choose its own goals and decide the ways it wants to (10) those goals. Class sizes usually are smaller than in many traditional public schools. Many students and parents say (11) in charter schools can be more creative.
However, state education agencies, local education-governing committees and unions often (12) charter schools. They say these schools may receive money badly (13) by traditional public schools. Experts say some charter schools are doing well while others are struggling.
Congress provided 200 million dollars for (14) charter schools in the 2002 federal budget (预算). But, often the schools say they lack enough money for their (15) . Many also lack needed space.

A few years ago, I asked the same question about hitchhiking in a column on a newspaper. (5) of people from all over the world responded with their view on the state of hitchhiking.
"If there is a hitchhiker’s (6) it must be Iran," came one reply. Rural Ireland was recommended as a friendly place for hitchhiking, (7) was Quebec, Canada-"if you don’t mind being berated (严厉指责) for not speaking French.
But while hitchhiking was clearly still alive and well in many parts of the world, the (8) feeling was that throughout much of the west it was doomed (消亡).
With so much news about crime in the media, people assumed that anyone on the open road without the money for even a bus ticket must present a danger. But do we (9) to be so wary both to hitchhike and to give a lift
In Poland in the 1960s, (10) a Polish woman who e-mailed me, "the authorities introduced the Hitchhiker’s Booklet. The booklet contained coupons for drivers, so each time a driver (11) somebody, he or she received a coupon. At the end of the season, (12) who had picked up the most hikers were rewarded with various prizes. Everybody was hitchhiking then. "
Surely this is a good idea for society. Hitchhiking would increase respect by breaking down (13) between strangers. It would help fight (14) warming by cutting down on fuel consumption as hitchhikers would be using existing fuels. It would also improve educational standards by delivering instant (15) in geography, history, politics and sociology.