The United States is trying to improve an edueation system that produces million
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The United States is trying to improve an edueation system that produces millions of citizens who cannot read, write, or add—let alone finding their country on a map.
In his first State of Union message since taking office a year ago, President George Bush promised to wipe out illiteracy(文盲) in the next decade and declared that“by the year 2008, U.S students must be first in the world in math and science achievements. ” They have a long way to go. American students were placed 14th in a recent general science test conducted in 16 countries. In a separate survey of chemistry students, the United States came 12 out of 14. In a mathematics test, they were last. According to Bush, there are 17 million illiterates in this country of 245 million people. Other estimates put the number as high as 23 million. In percentage terms, that ranks the United States alongside Niearague and below Cuba. “This nation,”Bush said in his State of the Union address, “will not accept anything but excellent in education.” Bush, who has declared himself “Education president”, and senior officals of his administration are warning that the United States will be unable to compete in the world without an educated workforce.
How to increase educational standards is a matter of debate in a country whose schools have no uniform national curriculum and are subject to a confusing variety of state and local controls. Most experts think that the problem lies at the elementary and high school"levels rather than with universities-but even their graduates show huge gaps in general knowledge. Among the root causes most frequently mentioned in education debates is the low respect in which U.S. society holds teachers-in contrast to Japan and Germany. In Japan teaching is a profession of high prestige(威望) and high pay. In the United States teachers are near the bottom of the society.
5.By“the United States came 12 out of 14”(Para. 2), the author means .
A.the United States ranked 12th not 14th in the chemistry test
B.the United States ranked 12th in the chemistry test conducted by 14 countries
C.the United States progressed from 14th to 12th in the chemistry test
D.the United States ranked 12th in chemistry test and 14th in general science test
6.The cause of low educational level in America include the following EXCEPT that .
A.some problems exist in primary and secondary education
B.society keeps teachers in low respect
C.America pays more attention to economy instead of education
D.America has no uniform national courses
7.Which of the following statements can be inferred from the passage?
A.President Bush carried out his promise made in his first State of Union message.
B.The education in Japan and Germany is in higher level.
C.According to Bush, the number of illiterates accounts for 9% of the total.
D.Teachers in the United States enjoy good treatment and great respect.
8.Which of the following is the right order of the least-first of the percent of illiterates?
A.Germany, Cuba, Nicaragua. B.Germany, Nicaragua, Cuba.
C.Nicaragua, Japan, Cuba. D.Cuba, Japan, Nicaragua. |
答案
| 5-8 BCBA |
解析
5.B 此处“12 out of 14”是指“在多少里面排名第几，占第几位”，所以在此处意思应为:在14个国家的学生进行的化学测试中，美国学生的成绩排第12位，由此可知B为正确答案。
6.C 文章第三段提到“whose schools have no uniform national curriculum”，“the problem lies at the elementary and high school levels...”以及“Among the root causes most frequently mentioned... the low respect in which U.S. society holds teachers”。由此可知A、B和D三项均是教育水平低的原因，选项C未在文中提及，故为正确答案。
7.B 第二段开头指出，布什总统曾许诺要在接下来的十年里消除文盲，文章后面指出“According to Bush，there are l7 million illiterates in this country of 245million people...They have a long way to go”，由此可知，布什并没有实现诺言，故选项A不对，根据布什的统计，文盲比例应为17／245约为7％，而不是9％，故排除C，根据文章最后一句话可知：在美国，老师的地位几乎在最底层，由此可排除D;根据文章最后一段倒数第三句可推断出B为正确答案。
8.A 题目要求按文盲比率由低到高的顺序排列。根据文章倒数第三句话可知：在德国，教师地位比较高，由此可推断出其教育水平高，文盲也较少，以及第二段中间部分的“in percentage terms，that rank the United States alongside Nicaragua and below Cuba.”，也就是说，美国和尼加拉瓜并列，位于古巴之后，由此可判断出：德国的文盲率最低，其次是古巴，然后是尼加拉瓜，故A为正确选项。 |
举一反三
It is over 40 years since first atomic bomb was dropped on a major city in Japan. Yet even now its effects are showing themselves and may continue to do so for years to come. Much effort and human energy have been used to try to prevent such a terrifying thing from happening again. So far there is no guarantee that it will not. Countries which already possess nuclear knowledge and resources have bombs stored away which are powerful enough to wipe out all life on earth. But this is not all. Other countries, which previously were not so advanced in technology, are gradually buying materials that can be used for making atomic devices. This nuclear energy will naturally be of great value in helping the economy of poorer nations.
The generation of electricity through nuclear power came directly from the original work on the atom bomb. Because of the increase in demand for energy and the possibility of decreasing supplies of oil and natural gas, the interest in electricity has increased. One of the by-products of nuclear power stations is plutonium (钸) produced from unclear fuel: plutonium is ingredient (成分) in bomb-making. It means that there are far more opportunities for the manufacture of bombs.
This brings the problem to a full circle again. How can something so valuable and useful be controlled so that it works for the benefit and not the destruction of man?
9. The effects of dropping the first atomic bomb ________.
A. are not over B. may go on forever
C. could last much longer D. will not be over in the near future
10. The writer says that enough atomic bombs have already been manufactured to ________.
A. wipe out Japan B. last forever
C. act as a peace-keeping device D. destroy all living things
11. The advantage of less developed countries being able to make atomic devices is that it ______.
A. gives them more opportunities for work B. will help poor countries to become richer
C. will enable them to make better explosives D. will be of great value to them
12. The second paragraph tells us that the increased demand for electricity today ________.
A. has led to the decrease in supplies of oil
B. means that more countries are interested in nuclear power
C. has increased the risk of accidental explosions
D. has increased the very means of producing more atomic bombs |
In a time of low academic (学术的) achievement by children in the United States, many Americans are turning to Japan, a country of high academic achievement and economic success, for possible answers. However, the answers provided by Japanese preschools are not the ones Americans expected to find. In most Japanese preschools, surprisingly little emphasis is put on academic instruction. In one investigation, 300 Japanese and 210 American preschool teachers, child development specialists, and parents were asked about various aspects of early childhood education. Only 2 percent of the Japanese respondents (答问卷者) listed "to give children a good start academically" as one of their top three reasons for a society to have preschools. In contrast, over half the American respondents chose this as one of their top three choices. To prepare children for successful careers in first grade and beyond, Japanese schools do not teach reading, writing, and mathematics, but rather skills such as persistence, concentration, and the ability to function as a member of a group. The majority of young Japanese children are taught to read at home by their parents.
In the recent comparison of Japanese and American preschool education, 91 percent of Japanese respondents chose providing children with a group experience as one of their top three reasons for a society to have preschools. 62 percent of the more individually oriented (强调个性发展的) Americans listed group experience as one of their top three choices. An emphasis on the importance of the group seen in Japanese early childhood education continues into elementary school education.
Like in America, there is diversity (多样性) in Japanese early childhood education. Some Japanese kindergartens have specific aims, such as early musical training or potential (潜力) development. In large cities, some kindergartens are attached to universities that have elementary and secondary schools.
Some Japanese parents believe that if their young children attend a university-based program, it will increase the children’s chances of eventually being admitted to top-rated schools and universities. Several more progressive programs have introduced free play as a way out for the heavy intellectualizing in some Japanese kindergartens.
5. We learn from the first paragraph that many Americans believe ________.
A. Japanese parents pay more attention to preschool education than American parents
B. Japan’s economic success is a result of its scientific achievements
C. Japanese preschool education emphasizes academic instruction
D. Japan’s higher education is better than theirs
6. Most American respondents believe that preschools should also attach
importance to ________.
A. problem solvingw。 B. group experience
C. parental guidancew。 D. individually oriented development
7. In Japan’s preschool education, the focus is on ________.
A. preparing children academically B. developing children’s artistic interests
C. tapping children’s potentialw。 D. shaping children’s character
8. Why do some Japanese parents send their children to university-based kindergartens?
A. They can do better in their future studies.
B. They can gain more group experience there.
C. They can be individually oriented when they grow up.
D. They can have better chances of getting a first-rate education. |
How to eat healthfully can be espeically complex for working women who often have neither the desire nor the time to cook for themselves (or for anyone else). Registered dietitian(营养专家)Barhara Morrissey suggests that a few simple rules can help.
“Go for nutrientdense foods,”she suggests, “foods that contain a multiple of nutrients. For example, select whole wheat bread as a breakfast food, rather than coffee cake. Or drink orange juice rather than orange drink, which contains only a small percentage of real juice-the rest is largely colored sugar water. You just can’t compare the value of these foods, the nutrientdense ones are so superior, ”she emphasizes.
Morrissey believes that variety is not only the spice of life—it’s the foundation of a healthful diet. Diets which are based on one or two foods are not only virtually impossible to keep up the strength, they can be very harmful, she says, because nutrients aren’t supplied in sufficient amounts or balance.
According to Morrissey, trying to find a diet that can cure your illnesses, or make you superwoman is a fruitless search. As women, many of us are too concerned with staying thin, she says, and we believe that vitamins are some kind of magic cure to replace food.
“We need carbohydrates, protein and fat—they are like the wood in the fireplace. The vitamins and minerals are like the match, the spark, for the fuel,”she explains. “We need them all, but in a very different proportions. And if the fuel isn’t there, the spark is useless.”
12.From the paragraph we know that working women .
think cooking is especially complicated
do not share the same views with registered dietitians
are busy and not interested in cooking
D. are likely to eat healthfully
13.Orange juice is different from orange drink in that .
A.it contains only a small percentage of real juice
B.it is natural, nutritious and prepared from real oranges
C.it is largely orangecolored sugar water
D.it produces nothing but calories
14.In Paragraph 4, “a fruitless search”means .
A.an effort with no results
B.a search for a diet without fruits
C.a research on fruitless diet
D.a diet serving as medicine
15.Many women take it for granted, according to passage that .
A.a balanced diet can result in being fat
B.staying thin and healthy are both possible
C.lack of variety in diets leads to staying thin
D.vitamins are some kind of subsitutions for food
16.By “if the fuel isn’t there, the spark is useless”,the author means .
A.carbohydrates, protein and fat are enough to support a human life
B.vitamins and minerals are virtually of no valuew.
C.carbohydrates, protein and fat are as important as vitamins and minerals
D.without carbohydrates, protein and fat, vitamins and minerals are of no use |
"Time is a problem for children," states a news report for a new Swiss watch. Children in some countries" learn time slowly" because" they don’t wear watches" and " parents don’t really know how to teach them time. " The children grow up with this handicap and become adults (成人) —and then can’t get to work on time. Is there an answer to this problem? Of course — it’s the Flik Flak, made by a famous Swiss watch company.
The Flik Flak is being marketed as something teaching watch for children aged 4 to 10. The watch itself does not teach children how to tell time, of course; it merely " takes their imagination" by presenting the " hour" hand as a beautiful red girl named Flak and the " minute" hand as a tall blue boy named Flik. Flik points to related" blue" minutes on the dial, while Flak points to " red" hour numbers. The characters and colors combined with parental help, are supposed to teach young children how to tell time.
The watch comes equipped with a standard battery (电池) and a nylon band (尼龙表带). Peter Lipkin, the United States sales manager for the Flik Flak, calls it " childproof if it gets dirty you can throw the whole watch in the washing machine. " The product is being sold in select department stores in Europe, Asia and the United States for a suggested price of $25. Parents who buy the watch may discover that it is one thing to tell time; it’s quite another for them to be on time.
1. From the news report we know that ______.
A. parents are patient when teaching children time
B. parents have little idea of how to teach children time
C. children are likely to learn time quickly
D. children enjoy wearing the Flik Flak watch
2. The author doesn’t seem to believe ______.
A. children will be on time if they have learnt how to tell time
B. a Flik Flak can help parents teach their children how to tell time
C. the Flik Flak can take children’s imagination
D. children usually have trouble telling time if they don’t wear watches
3. The underlined word handicap in Para. 1 means
A. displeasure B. discouragement C. disappointment D. disadvantage
4. The United State sales manager calls the new watch " childproof" because ______.
A. it is designed to teach children to be on time
B. it proves to be effective in teaching children time
C. it is made so as not to be easily damaged by children
D. it is the children’s favorite watch |
On September 22, 1986, Jay Brunkella, a police-officer in the Rogers Park district in Chicago, was shot during a drug arrest and died. Shortly af terwards, fellow officer Ken Knapcik, a 20-year veteran (老警官) of the force, returned home after work to find a note from his 15-year-old daughter on the dining table.
Dad-This poem came directly from my heart. I love you so much! It scares and amazes me that you go out every day and risk everything to provide us with all that we have. I wrote this to express how much I love you and how much lost I’d be without you-Laura. P.S.: Hey, let’s be careful out there.
Titled “The Ultimate Cop”, Laura’s poem was dedicated “To all the cops in the world who have daughters who love them with all their hearts. And especially to my dad.” It was about a police-officer’s daughter who sees on the night time news that her father has been shot. Part of poem: “Daddy, my Daddy, can you hear me cry? Oh, God, I need my Daddy, please don’t let him die.”
Ken Knapcik stood alone as he read the poem. “It took me several minutes,”he said.“I’d get through part of it and have to stop before I could go on. I was weeping. She had never told me she was scared.” He took the poem to work the next day and showed it to his fellow officers. “I’ve never seen so many grown men cry. Some couldn’t finish it.”
Knapcik keeps Laura’s poem in the pocket of his police jacket. He takes it with him every time he leaves the house for a new shift. “I don’t want to be out there without it.” he said, “I’ll probably carry it with me forever.”
1.Laura wrote the poem ______.
A.in memory of her father who was shot in the drug arrest
B.to show her great sorrow in losing her father
C.to show her respect to all the cops who lost their lives
D.to tell officer Ken Knapcik how much she loved him
2.All the officers cried because ______
A.Jay Brunkella was shot and died
B.they were greatly touched by the poem
C.the poem was so sad that they couldn’t hold back their tears
D.they thought of their dangerous life
3.Knapcik keeps Laura’s poem in his pocket ______.
A.to treasure her daughter’s love and to value his own life B.to keep it from missing
C.because he can’t go out without it D.to mourn over the death of officer Jay Brunkella
4.Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A.Poem for a cop B.An offier’s death
C.Daughter’s love D.Love my job, love my daughter |
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