托福阅读--如何解决读了记不住的问题

很多最初接触托福考试的同学，在阅读上最大的障碍是读了记不住。一篇700字的英文文章，充满了专业名词和陌生的概念，很多句子长达三行以上，每个段落都有新的概念出来，概念错综复杂，越读越晕，坚持读到底的已经是少数，能记住读了什么的，更是少之又少了。

读了记不住的状况，其实是很多因素综合作用的结果。 

首先，我们现在的阅读习惯已经在图文信息泛滥的时代，发生了很大的改变。在母语环境中，我们已经习惯了微博微信的短篇章，看新闻也多是看一眼图看几句标题，就拉到最后看网友评论寻找笑点，这些习惯对我们大脑的器质性改变，虽然还没有定论，但是改变不容否认。对今天的大脑来说，通过长篇阅读吸收错综复杂的知识信息，和拿着一张纸质地图在大脑中规划和记住详细的行车路线，一样困难。 

其次，大多数人现存的英文阅读习惯，说句不客气的，还停留在中学阶段。一篇文章200字，字大行稀，做完形填空只需要看空格的前后几个字，做阅读理解可以直接看选项猜答案。必须得读的时候，是一个字一个字扣的，一行一行用手指着读的，一句一句在脑子里翻译的。 这种读法耗时极长，长到读完句尾已经忘记了句头，读完段尾已经忘了段头，读完下段早忘了上段了。

我们在中文阅读中的草上飞，和英文阅读中的蚂蚁爬，反差大得令人害羞脸红不敢说。

要解决读完记不住的问题，需要回到这个问题的原点，你需要记住什么？如果你需要逐句复述全文内容，那么蚂蚁爬式逐句翻译，甚至借助速记符号做详细笔记的阅读过程是必要的。可是在考场上你只需要做对一篇文章中的14道题目。不同的阅读有不同的目的，考试阅读的目的是为了做题。如果以这14道题为目标，需要记住什么呢？

当我们能够熟稔托福阅读考试的题目考察点，就能明确自己的阅读目的，缩小记忆范围，从而破除读完记不住的困境。我们以TPO32阅读第一篇Colonization第一段为例，示例一下考试阅读中，读什么，记什么。

Colonization is one way in which plants can change the ecology of a site. 【引入概念colonization】Colonization is a process with two components: invasion and survival. 【定义概念colonization】The rate at which a site is colonized by plants depends on both the rate at which individual organisms (seeds, spores, immature or mature individuals) arrive at the site and their success at becoming established and surviving. 【介绍Colonization的细分方面--速度】Success in colonization depends to a great extent on there being a site available for colonization – a safe site where disturbance by fire or by cutting down of trees has either removed competing species or reduced levels of competition and other negative interactions to a level at which the invading species can become established. 【引入colonization中的重要因素--Site】For a given rate of invasion, colonization of a moist, fertile site is likely to be much more rapid than that of a dry, infertile site because of poor survival on the latter. A fertile, plowed field is rapidly invaded by a large variety of weeds, whereas a neighboring construction site from which the soil has been compacted or removed to expose a coarse, infertile parent material may remain virtually free of vegetation for many months or even years despite receiving the same input of seeds as the plowed field. 【解释+例证site对colonization的影响】

托福阅读中的通读全文，目的在于把握文章主旨和论证脉络，为了这个目的，读完以后记住括号中的内容就足够了。在博智的所有阅读课堂上，对句子和段落功能的本能反应，是学生必须训练出来的能力。这种高屋建瓴的思考方式，可以帮你轻松应对入学北美院校之后海量的阅读任务。

阅读的最终目的还是为了做题。上面记住的括号中的内容，可以帮助你永远做对托福阅读中的最后一题，主旨题。那么细节题呢？

细节题可以用快餐式的阅读记忆方法，即快找--快做--快忘。

我们看一下这个段落中出现的细节题

1. According to paragraph 1, how does disturbance of a site influence its colonization by a plant species?

A) Disturbance reduces or eliminates competition by other species.

B) Disturbance increases negative interactions with other organisms on the site.

C) Disturbance prevents a plant species from colonizing a new site.

D) Disturbance reduces the fertility of a site.

这道题目适用培训市场各大机构的经典讲法，即用Disturbance作为关键词定位到句子：Success in colonization depends to a great extent on there being a site available for colonization – a safe site where disturbance by fire or by cutting down of trees has either removed competing species or reduced levels of competition and other negative interactions to a level at which the invading species can become established.

把这个又长又臭的句子掰扯明白，disturbance指的是森林火灾或者砍伐，降低其他物种的竞争性，从而使得入侵物种可以在此地存活。选A.

这个段落中除了词汇题，还有一道细节题

3. Why does the author mention a plowed field and a construction site in the passage?

A) To argue that sites that have been affected by human activity tend to be colonized slowly

B) To illustrate the kind of sites that may be invaded by weeds

C) To contrast sites in terms of their suitability for colonization

D) To explain that exposing or compacting the soil results in successful colonization

托福阅读考试中经典的“为什么提到这些例子”题，答案也是经典的一致--为了说明例子前面讲的道理。

例子前面讲道理的一句话是：For a given rate of invasion, colonization of a moist, fertile site is likely to be much more rapid than that of a dry, infertile site because of poor survival on the latter.

这个句子从功能上来说，建立的是一个比较关系，比较两种site之间colonization成功率的差异。选C.

细节题的好处是，做完了就可以忘了，腾空记忆空间，所以读完以后你依然可以只记得原文中方括号里面的内容。 【引入概念colonization-->定义概念colonization-->介绍Colonization的细分方面--速度-->引入colonization中的重要因素--Site-->解释+例证site对colonization的影响】

如果你一定要求自己记住【colonization是什么，包括两个过程，成功取决于物种到达的速度和在此立足的速度，有disturbance为colonization清除出合适的场地很重要，潮湿肥沃的场地比干燥贫瘠的场地更适合colonization，比如耕种过的沃土比建筑工地在同等条件下更适合colonization...】，那我也没有办法帮助你了。祝你在求精求全的道路上成为前无古人后无来者的一代宗师。

为了防止你放弃治疗，再劝你一句。你周围那些比你学得好、混得好的同学，本质上是因为人家的抽象思维能力、总结归纳能力比你强。用你的托福阅读练练吧，别到了美国，总结归纳能力还不如别人，光剩下会心算这个优点了。

Colonization is one way in which plants can change the ecology of a site. Colonization is a process with two components: invasion and survival. The rate at which a site is colonized by plants depends on both the rate at which individual organisms (seeds, spores, immature or mature individuals) arrive at the site and their success at becoming established and surviving. Success in colonization depends to a great extent on there being a site available for colonization – a safe site where disturbance by fire or by cutting down of trees has either removed competing species or reduced levels of competition and other negative interactions to a level at which the invading species can become established. For a given rate of invasion, colonization of a moist, fertile site is likely to be much more rapid than that of a dry, infertile site because of poor survival on the latter. A fertile, plowed field is rapidly invaded by a large variety of weeds, whereas a neighboring construction site from which the soil has been compacted or removed to expose a coarse, infertile parent material may remain virtually free of vegetation for many months or even years despite receiving the same input of seeds as the plowed field.

 各种北美留学入学考试都有相当高的难度，决定了仅仅用关键词搜索和句子定位，无法做对所有的题目 

 Plant Colonization

great extent on there being a site available for colonization – a safe site where disturbance by fire or by cutting down of trees has either removed competing species or reduced levels of competition and other negative interactions to a level at which the invading species can become established. For a given rate of invasion, colonization of a moist, fertile site is likely to be much more rapid than that of a dry, infertile site because of poor survival on the latter. A fertile, plowed field is rapidly invaded by a large variety of weeds, whereas a neighboring construction site from which the soil has been compacted or removed to expose a coarse, infertile parent material may remain virtually free of vegetation for many months or even years despite receiving the same input of seeds as the plowed field.

Both the rate of invasion and the rate of extinction vary greatly among different plant species. Pioneer species – those that occur only in the earliest stages of colonization – tend to have high rates of invasion because they produce very large numbers of reproductive propagules (seeds, spores, and so on) and because they have an efficient means of dispersal (normally, wind)

If colonizers produce short-lived reproductive propagules, then they must produce very large numbers unless they have an efficient means of dispersal to suitable new habitats. Many plants depend on wind for dispersal and produce abundant quantities of small, relatively short-lived seeds to compensate for the fact that wind is not always a reliable means of reaching the appropriate type of habitat. Alternative strategies have evolved in some plants, such as those that produce fewer but larger seeds that are dispersed to suitable sites by birds or small mammals or those that produce long-lived seeds. Many forest plants seem to exhibit the latter adaptation, and viable seeds of pioneer species can be found in large numbers on some forest floors. For example, as many as 1,125 viable seeds per square meter were found in a 100-year-old Douglas fir/western hemlock forest in coastal British Columbia. Nearly all the seeds that had germinated from this seed bank were from pioneer species. The rapid colonization of such sites after disturbance is undoubtedly in part a reflection of the large seed bank on the forest floor.

An adaptation that is well developed in colonizing species is a high degree of variation in germination (the beginning of a seed’s growth). Seeds of a given species exhibit a wide range of germination dates, increasing the probability that at least some of the seeds will germinate during a period of favorable environmental conditions. This is particularly important for species that colonize an environment where there is no existing vegetation to ameliorate climatic extremes and in which there maybe great

climatic diversity.