作为“别人家孩子”是种什么样的体验？
比利时的9岁小神童Laurent Simons可能要说声“谢邀”了！
因为现在，他正面临拿不到大学毕业证的问题……
今年9岁的Laurent在11月的时候就成为各大媒体的头条焦点，当时有消息称他会在12月完成荷兰埃因霍芬理工大学电气工程专业的学业。
Laurent Simons, 9, made world headlines in November when news emerged that he was due to finish his studies in electrical engineering at the Eindhoven University of Technology (TUE) in the Netherlands in December.
CNN：9岁天才儿童将要从大学毕业
《纽约时报》网站：9岁孩子将要拿到大学学位，他有宏图远志
比利时的Laurent Simons想制造出人工心脏。他还喜欢玩儿堡垒之夜，在Ins上有成千上万的粉丝
《华盛顿邮报》网站：9岁儿童仅用9个月就完成了大学学业
比利时男孩12月将从大学毕业，并且计划“学一点医药学”
然而一个月后，当Laurent再度登上头条时，却没有拿到大学毕业证。而在这背后，还有家庭跟校方之间的分歧。
CNN：9岁神童Laurent Simons没有毕业就离开了大学
据CNN报道，在一波有关毕业日期的争论后，神童Laurent Simons还是离开了大学。由于校方跟Laurent家产生了分歧，所以最终小神童没能顺利毕业。
Child prodigy Laurent Simons has left his university course, following a dispute over his graduation date. Now, a dispute between TUE and the Simons family has seen Laurent terminate his studies without graduating.
埃因霍芬理工大学建议Laurent在2020年年中完成学业，而非今年12月底，因为他还有多门考试要参加。校方给CNN的声明显示，“从各个方面讲，（2020年年中毕业）都是一个相当快的安排。”
TUE said it had recommended Laurent finish his studies by mid-2020, rather than at the end of December, because of the number of exams he still has to pass. "This would still be, in every way, a phenomenally fast schedule," the university said in a statement sent to CNN.
在《纽约时报》的报道中，其父亲介绍，Laurent4岁上小学，6岁就上了高中。
He started primary school when he was 4, and went to high school at 6, according to his father.
父母Alexander和Lydia起初认为Laurent的祖父母夸大了孩子的天赋，不过老师也很快表达了赞同。“他们注意到Laurent有所不同。”
His parents, Lydia and Alexander Simons, said they thought Laurent's grandparents were exaggerating when they said he had a gift, but his teachers soon concurred. "They noticed something very special about Laurent," said Lydia.
（Laurent与父母）
“Laurent接受了一个接一个测试，来衡量他的才能，他们告诉我，这孩子就像是一块海绵。”Laurent来自医生家庭，不过父母并不知道为何孩子可以学得这么快。母亲Lydia开玩笑地说，“我在怀孕的时候吃了很多鱼。”
Laurent was given test after test as teachers tried to work out the extent of his talents. "They told us he is like a sponge," said Alexander. While Laurent comes from a family of doctors, his parents have so far not received any explanation as to why their child prodigy is capable of learning so quickly. But Lydia has her own theory."I ate a lot of fish during the pregnancy," she joked.
TUE电子工程学专业的本科教育主任Sjoerd Hulshof说：“能做到这样的特殊学生，可以安排调整课程计划，这很正常。就像我们帮助学生参加顶级体育项目一样。”Hulsof说Laurent“就是不同寻常”，还夸他“是学校里学得最快的学生”。
"That is not unusual," said Sjoerd Hulshof, education director of the TUE bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, in a statement."Special students that have good reasons for doing so can arrange an adjusted schedule. In much the same way we help students who participate in top sport." Hulshof said Laurent is "simply extraordinary" and praised the youngster. "Laurent is the fastest student we have ever had here," he said.
而Laurent接受CNN采访时表示，自己喜欢的科目就是电气工程，同时“也要学一点医药学。”
Laurent told CNN his favorite subject is electrical engineering and he's also "going to study a bit of medicine."
尽管Laurent学得很快，父母也注意让他享受自己的乐趣。“我们不想让他太紧张，他也做自己喜欢的事情，我们要找到儿童和天才之间的平衡点。”
While Laurent is evidently able to learn faster than most, his parents are being careful to let him enjoy himself too. "We don't want him to get too serious. He does whatever he likes," said Alexander. "We need to find a balance between being a child and his talents."
Laurent说自己最喜欢和狗狗Sammy一起玩，当然也和很多年轻人一样，他喜欢玩手机。
Laurent said he enjoys playing with his dog Sammy and playing on his phone, like many young people.
在双方发生纠纷后，校方表示Laurent的父亲Alexander“反复明确地表示，他的儿子应该在9岁获得学士学位。这意味着Laurent必须在10个月内顺利完成本科学习，而一般而言这个过程要三年的时间。”
TUE said Laurent's father, Alexander Simons, had "repeated his explicit wish that his son should obtain his bachelor degree at the age of 9, which means that Laurent must successfully complete his bachelor within ten months for a study that normally lasts three years."
不过，父亲却告诉CNN，双方此前对于加快课程安排进度并没有问题。他们已经拿到了美国大学的博士课程offer，所以决定离开埃因霍芬理工大学，Laurent也无法把时间分配给两家学校。“有时候你就是要作出选择，”父亲Alexander表示。
However, Alexander told CNN that there had previously been no issue with the accelerated timetable. Ultimately, he said, the family decided Laurent would leave TUE as he had received an offer to study for a doctorate at a university in the United States, and wouldn't be able to split his time between the two institutions. "Sometimes you have to make choices," Alexander told CNN in reference to the decision.
“如果Laurent放过这次机会，你永远不知道他还会不会再有机会。”
"If he lets it go, you never know if he will get that opportunity again."
父亲还暗示，校方延缓Laurent的学业进程，可能与他去别的学校读博有关系。“他们对待事情的方式并不正确，Laurent不是他们的附属品。”
Alexander suggested that TUE's move to delay Laurent's studies is linked to the family's decision to move to a different university to study for his PhD. "The way they treat things, it's not correct," he said. "Laurent is not their belonging."
不过，作为回应，校方发言人Ivo Jongsma对CNN表示：“我们从来都不会强求留下学生。这也从来不应该是让某人感到沮丧的理由。”校方在声明中表示，“很遗憾”Simons家拒绝了新的时间安排。“他的导师很乐意和他一同工作，并不仅仅因为他天资卓越，他同时也是热心好学的小男孩。因此，条件允许的情况下，他继续在校学习的大门仍然是敞开的。”
In response, Ivo Jongsma, a spokesman for TUE, told CNN: "We never try to keep our students to ourselves. It would never be a motivation to frustrate somebody." TUE said in its statement that it was "regrettable" that the Simons had rejected the new timetable. "His supervisors enjoyed working with him, not only because of his enormous talent, but also because he is a very kindhearted and inquisitive boy," the university said, "The door is therefore still open for him to resume the study as long as the conditions remain realistic."
目前Simons一家并没有确定在美国大学开始学习的日期，Laurent在那里仍然选择攻读电气工程的博士学位。父亲并没有公布新学校的名称，“我们不希望给他施加压力。”
The family has not yet fixed a start date at the US university, where Laurent will study for a PhD in electrical engineering. Alexander declined to name the institution."We don't want to have pressure on him," he said.
据新华网报道，世界上年龄最小的大学毕业生吉尼斯世界纪录目前由美国人迈克尔•克尼保持。克尼8岁进入南亚拉巴马大学学习，1994年6月，在他10岁4个月时，获得人类学学士学位。
The youngest person to obtain a college degree is American Michael Kearney, who achieved the feat in June 1994 at the age of 10 years 4 months, according to Guinness World Records.
综合来源：新华网，CNN，BBC，New York Times，Washington Post
（作者：蟹蟹）
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