Art classes like painting and drawing are important to students’ development and should be made compulsory in high school. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
2017年雅思开山之“作”就是一道旧题重现，原题出现在2014年12月20日，似乎预示着2017年雅思写作即将开始2014、2015年原题的重现之旅!
本题问：艺术课程(比如绘画)对学生的发展非常重要，那么是否应该在高中成为必修课?
这个问题可能真的见仁见智。赞同者会认为，艺术课程可以帮助高中生走出自我天地(go out of their shell)交到更多朋友，帮助他们锻炼智力从而提到其学业成绩，甚至还可以帮助学生锻炼性格等;反对者则会认为，艺术课程不能帮助学生找工作，因此是浪费时间，而且很多学生不喜欢艺术，强迫他们学习不会有任何好处。
那么，就这个问题，我们的观点似乎可以采取折中路线：艺术课程应该成为高中必修课，但应该限制课时数，同时大力发展艺术方面的俱乐部，让那些对艺术真正感兴趣的学生能够得到发展，同时又不过多浪费那些的确没有艺术天分学生的时间和精力。
7分范文
When the news came that art classes such as music, painting and drawing would be made mandatory in my high school, it was met with both approvals and objections. This mixed responses reflect the different attitudes towards the role of art in the education of high school students.
Those who stand up for art classes argue that art is so important to the students’ development that it should be made compulsory. By taking art classes, students may come out of their shell socially and make friends with those with similar interests. Furthermore, rather than a waste of time, taking art classes can actually help students with other subjects such as maths and physics. The theory is that art can help exercise our mental power (imagination, for example) and make us smarter. More importantly, art calls for persistent practice and unyielding stamina, which are also important qualities that we expect our students to possess.
Objections of art classes as required mainly come from those who think art classes are a waste of time because they are not useful to students. Except for the very few who may take art as their lifelong career, the great majority of students will not get a job in relation to art when they finish their high school. Besides, what is the point of compelling a student who has no interest in art to spend many hours restlessly in the art classes?
To my mind, art classes should become compulsory in high school. The objective of education is not just to let students acquire the basic practical survival skills, but to prepare them for the future life, both physically and mentally. With this in mind, we can safely conclude that the time spent on art will be rewarding in the long run. Of course, the schools should be very careful when deciding on the required hours that should be spent on art classes.
(317 words)
老师笔记
01
When the news came that art classes such as music, painting and drawing would be mademandatory in my high school, it was met with both approvals and objections. This mixed responses reflect the different attitudes towards the role of art in the education of high school students.
当消息传来，我所在的高中里，诸如音乐、绘画等的艺术课程将被列为必修课，赞同和反对皆有。这种混杂的反应表明，关于高中教育中艺术的作用，人们的态度不一致。
解析
(1) 本次唐老师使用了一个具体事件来作为话题的引入。7分作文需要避免使用已经被过度使用的模板开头法，比如with the development of...; when it comes to...; nowadays there is a heated discussion about...
(2) 本文的“必修课”是一个关键词，英语里有三个词可以表达这个意思：
mandatory, required, compulsory
(3) approval 赞同
(4) objection 反对
02
Those who stand up for art classes argue that art is so important to the students’ development that it should be made compulsory. By taking art classes, students may come out of their shell socially and make friends with those with similar interests. Furthermore, rather than a waste of time, taking art classes can actually help students with other subjects such as maths and physics. The theory is that art can help exercise our mental power (imagination, for example) and make us smarter. More importantly, art calls for persistent practice and unyielding stamina, which are also important qualities that we expect our students to possess.
赞同艺术课程的人认为，艺术对学生的成长非常重要，因此应该成为必修课。通过学习艺术课，学生可以走出自我束缚，与具有相同兴趣的人交朋友。而且，上艺术课不仅不是浪费时间，更能帮助学生学习数学和物理等其他课程，其理论是艺术能帮助我们锻炼心智力(比如，想象力)，让我们变得更聪明。更重要的是，艺术需要坚持不懈的练习和永不放弃的耐力，而这些也正是我们期待学生拥有的重要素质。
解析
(1)本段论述艺术课应该成为必修课的理由。请注意观察唐老师如何排列这三个理由的顺序，以及对每一个理由的论述。
(2)stand up for 赞同;支持
(3)come out of one’s shell 走出自我束缚
(4)persistent 坚持不懈的
(5)unyielding 不放弃的
(6)stamina 毅力
03
Objections of art classes as required mainly come from those who think art classes are a waste of time because they are not useful to students. Except for the very few who may take art as their lifelong career, the great majority of students will not get a job in relation to art when they finish their high school. Besides, what is the point of compelling a student who has no interest in art to spend many hours restlessly in the art classes?
反对将艺术课程列为必修的声音主要来自那些人，他们认为艺术课程是浪费时间，因为它们对学生没有用处。除了极少数学生会将艺术作为终身事业，绝大多数学生高中毕业后都不会从事任何与艺术相关的工作。此外，如果一个学生对艺术不感兴趣，那么强迫他在艺术课上心神不宁地坐几个小时有什么意义?
解析
(1) 本段相反的观点，即艺术课程不能作为必修课：首先，艺术课对大多数同学没有实际用处;其次，很多同学对艺术不感兴趣。
(2) except for 除了......之外
(3)in relation to 与......相关
(4) compel 强迫;迫使
(5) restlessly 心神不安地
04
To my mind, art classes should become compulsory in high school. The objective of education is not just to let students acquire the basic practical survival skills, but to prepare them for the future life, both physically and mentally. With this in mind, we can safely conclude that the time spent on art will be rewarding in the long run. Of course, the schools should be very careful when deciding on the required hours that should be spent on art classes.
在我看来，艺术课应该成为高中的必修课。教育的目的不仅是让学生获得基本实用的生活技能，而且是从身体上和精神上为他们的未来生活做好准备。理解这一点后，我们就可自信的作出结论，花在艺术上的时间从长远看会有回报的。当然，到底要求学生在艺术上花多少时间，学校在做这个决定时应该非常小心。
解析
(1) to my mind 在我看来
(2) survival skills 求生技能;生活技能
(3) rewarding 有回报的
(4) in the long run 从长远看
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