High 3 · Reading series
Lesson 14 · The Story behind a Silence
Audio track 14
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During our group project, Yui rarely objected to a plan. We interpreted her silence as agreement and assigned her the final presentation. The day before rehearsal, she said she did not want to speak for conclusions she had never accepted.
At first I felt unfairly accused. We had asked, “Is everyone okay?” after each meeting. But the question had come just as people packed their bags, and an answer would have delayed the whole group. Yui explained that she needed time to read the notes before forming a view.
We changed the process. After meetings, members could leave comments by the next evening. At the following meeting, we discussed those comments before dividing tasks. Yui wrote a strong section questioning our evidence and chose to present it herself.
Her silence had not been a hidden yes or a hidden no. It was a pause we had filled with our own interpretation. Making room for a later answer helped the entire project become more honest.
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After reading, state the main idea in one sentence and find a line that supports it.
Chinese translation
小组项目中，结衣很少反对计划。我们把沉默理解成同意，还安排她作最后的汇报。彩排前一天，她说自己不想替从未认可的结论发言。
起初，我觉得被不公平地指责。毕竟每次开完会，我们都问过‘大家可以吗？’但那总是在众人收拾书包时问，谁若回答就得让整个小组晚走。结衣解释，她要先读会议记录，才能形成看法。
我们改了流程：成员可在会后到次日晚间留言；下次开会先讨论留言，再分配任务。结衣写出一段有力的证据质疑，也自愿亲自呈现。
她的沉默既不是藏着的‘好’，也不是藏着的‘不’。那是一个停顿，却被我们填进了自己的解释。给稍后的答复留空间，让整个项目更诚实。
Key words and expressions
Key terms have Chinese explanations. Hover over dotted words in the English passage for word help and pronunciation when available.
- objected
- 反对；结衣当场很少如此。
- interpreted
- 解读；小组把沉默当同意。
- agreement
- 同意；其实尚未确认。
- assigned
- 分配；她被安排做结论汇报。
- conclusions
- 结论；她并未认可。
- unfairly
- 不公平地；主人公最初的感受。
- delayed
- 拖延；发言会使人晚走。
- forming
- 形成；需要时间思考意见。
- questioning
- 质疑；结衣审视证据。
- interpretation
- 解释；小组自己填补沉默。
Background notes (Chinese)
临散会时的‘有意见吗’可能使成员难以充分思考和发言。小组增加异步留言环节，避免把沉默当作默认同意。