New Horizon College English 4 (Reading and Writing Course)

Author: Zheng Shutang
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-06-01
Features: This textbook is one of the key projects under the "21st Century Revitalization Plan" approved by the State Council, specifically the "New Century Network Curriculum Construction Project" initiated by the Ministry of Education. Professor Zheng Shutang served as the overall project director and chief editor of the textbook. Experts and professors from more than ten key universities across the country participated in its writing, with Hu Wenzhong and other domestic and international experts serving as consultants. The textbook is developed with a human-centered approach, centered on teaching, guided by the "Teaching Requirements for College English Courses (Trial)," and focuses on reforming teaching methods. It guarantees quality, seeks development through distinct features, and aims to reach new heights to actively respond to the new challenges brought by the rapid development of higher education and the internationalization of education. The textbook is meticulously compiled, reflecting a high degree of scientific rigor, rationality, and practicality. It fully considers the needs of both the subjects and objects of foreign language teaching, actively promotes reforms in teaching methods, and aligns with the global trend of informatization. The selection of materials emphasizes informativeness, interest, and forward-thinking, covering a wide range of topics such as cultural customs, ethics, information technology, scientific education, and social issues. It is provided in three different formats—textbook (Textbook), CD-ROM (CD-ROM), and online course (Online Course)—to serve the teaching and learning of college English in multiple layers and channels. A question bank and testing tools are also provided for each level of the textbook, offering functions for selecting and editing questions, supporting both traditional classroom testing and paperless testing. The online course features a large-scale corpus, which not only provides a foundation for the sustainable development of discipline construction but also offers convenience for college English teachers engaged in theoretical learning and research.
New Horizon College English: Reading and Writing Course 4 emphasizes interest, informativeness, thought-provoking content, timeliness, and forward-thinking in its material selection, covering a broad range of topics such as language, culture, customs, ethics, information, science, and social issues. Each unit focuses on a specific topic, but the three passages within each unit vary in genre, reflecting the diversity of writing styles. Most of the passages are selected from English-language newspapers and books published in the 1980s and 1990s, with some newly published works from the 21st century. Each passage in New Horizon College English: Reading and Writing Course 4 is approximately 900 words long, with the primary goal of cultivating students' reading, writing, and translation skills.
At the beginning of each unit in New Horizon College English: Reading and Writing Course 4, there is a Preview. The Preview is concise, consisting of about 100 words, and succinctly highlights the central theme of the unit, serving as a guide. It can be used for previewing the unit or as a reference when writing the unit summary.