单选题 According to psychology professor Carol Dweck of Stanford University, "Praising children for being smart can backfire." If this doesn't get the attention of Millennium parents, I'm not sure what will.
It is my observation that so many parents today believe that if their child appears to be the least bit "advanced" for his age, he's destined to be the next Albert Einstein, Tiger Woods, or Bill Gates. It's human nature for room and dad to show much admiration for their child and dish out praise for accomplishments achieved. The problem is, according to this study, parents may not be doing the best thing by praising their child for his intelligence.
Dweck's research involved junior high students in New York and concluded that "classroom performance improved when her study subjects believed the brain is like a muscle that can grow." Students who "focused on the learning process (effort, concentration or strategies used) asked for feedback and did better in all subjects." Feedback such as, "You did well because you worked so hard" or "You used so many descriptive words to make this story interesting" can encourage children to try new things, as they are being rewarded for their effort. When the "time and effort" strategy is being positively reinforced, the child will probably use the same strategy next time they are learning something. Over time new strategies can be introduced, so the child's repertoire of strategies is broadened.
Dweck goes on to say that "they (students who improved) performed better because their success was being measured by effort, not by test scores or grades." Parents should praise effort, not just results. Children who received praise about their innate abilities (talents or strengths) had less chance of trying new things and became anxious and under-performed as things became more difficult. That is one of the greatest dangers to continually praising children for whatever they do in order to falsely raise a child's self-esteem.
What are mom and dad to do? Offer genuine praise and encouragement for efforts and successes, but balance this with setting appropriate expectations and following up with consequences when the child falls short due to laziness. Don't make excuses. Your child will better face the challenges life has to offer in the future when you as a parent recognize the efforts he is making today.

单选题 The underlined word "backfire" in the first paragraph probably means ______.
A. create some miracles
B. produce an undesirable result
C. be negligible to some extent
D. be motivating and inspiring

单选题 Which of the following can be considered proper feedback?
A. You did really well on this spelling test, you must have spent hour practising your words.
B. Oh, honey, you're so smart--that failing grade won't matter anyway.
C. This is a wonderful painting. What a great artist you are!
D. You did really well on this spelling test. You are very clever.

单选题 A child who is praised for his effort and strategy is likely to ______.
A. have his learning strategies increased
B. feel inferior to the smart children
C. have falsely high self-esteem
D. expect more praise and encouragement

单选题 Praising a child for his talent may ______.
A. encourage him to try new things
B. motivate him to make greater efforts
C. leave him less prepared for challenges
D. put his life at risk in case of failure

单选题 The author's advice to parents is
A. to expose the child to greater challenges
B. not to expect too much of a child
C. to forbid the child to make any excuses
D. to combine praise with constructive criticism

单选题 Which of the following can be a proper title for this passage?
A. Never Praise Your Child for Any of His Achievements
B. Praise Your Child, But Not for Being Smart
C. How to Reward a Child for His Effort
D. Praise—A Must for the Child's Future