教师简介：英国爱丁堡大学应用语言学硕士。曾在英国孔子学院任教一年，深受学生好评，对中英教育的异同有着独到的见解。热爱旅游，足迹遍布欧洲。教学风格亲切、严谨，深信每个学生都潜力无限。主授科目：雅思写作、雅思听力。

文/刘靓

题目：

In some countries, secondary schools aim to provide a general education across a range of subjects. In others, children focus on a narrow range of subjects related to a particular career. which is appropriate in today's world?

范文：

Secondary education takes place after primary education and may be followed by higher education. This is generally believed to be a crucial age in life, so the secondary education never fails to attract public attention. In the discussion of whether secondary schools should offer a general or narrow range of subjects, I would argue that a wider range is more beneficial in this day and age.

The first and foremost reason is that today’s society, with the fast development of technology, increasingly requires its members to have a comprehensive educational background. When a field demands an interdisciplinary approach, its advancement is more likely to come to a bottleneck when most of its practitioners lack appropriate general education.

Moreover, a general education also maximizes the opportunity for teenagers to re-choose their careers. Supposing teenagers are enrolled in specialized schools and are trained for a certain profession, it would be difficult for them to change minds if they later find out that this job is not suitable. With knowledge across a range of subjects, the young people could switch their careers more easily.

However, it should not be neglected that for some adolescents who have a very clear career object or who are in urgent need of money, a well-focused vocational training would lead them to a particular profession quickly. It is also acknowledged that some kinds of job certainly do not request a profound education. Therefore, the establishment of a certain number of vocational secondary schools is justified in the society.

To summarise, although students should have the freedom to choose whether to attend a general school or a vocational one, I would still contend that for the fast developing society as a whole, secondary schools with a wider range of subjects are more beneficial and should be encouraged.