There is a common belief among parents that schools are no longer interested in spelling. No school I have taught in has ever considered spelling unimportant as a basic skill. There are, however, quite different ideas about how to teach it, or how much priority (優(yōu)先) it must be given over general language development and writing ability. The problem is, how to en­courage a child to express himself freely in writing without holding him back with spelling.

If spelling becomes the only point of his teacher’s interest, clearly a bright child will be likely to “play safe”. He will write only words within his spelling range (范圍). That’s why teachers often encourage the early use of dictionaries and pay attention to content rather than technical ability.

I was once shocked to read on the bottom of a sensitive piece of writing about a personal experience: “This work is terrible! There are far too many spelling mistakes.” It may have been a sharp criticism(批評(píng)) of the pupils technical abilities in writing, but it was also a sad thing for the teacher who had omitted (略過) to read the composition, which contained some beautiful expressions of the child’s deep feelings. The teacher was not wrong to draw atten­tion to the mistakes, but if his priority had centered on the child's ideas, an expression of his disappointment with the presentation would have given the pupil more hope to seek improve­ment.

61. Teachers differ in their opinions about ____, `

A. the difficulties in teaching spelling

B. the role of spelling in general language development

C. the importance of the basic writing skills

D.the necessity of teaching spelling

62. The expression “play safe” probably means ____.

A. to write carefully              B. to do as teachers say

C. to use dictionaries frequently     D. to avoid using words one is not sure of

63. Teachers encourage the use of dictionaries so that____.

A. students will be able to express their ideas more freely

B. teachers will have less trouble in correcting mistakes

C. students will have more trust in writing

D. students will learn to spell words correctly

64. The writer seems to think that the teacher’s judgement on that sensitive piece of writing is____.

A. reasonable     B. unfair         C. foolish        D. careless

65. The major point discussed in the passage is _______.

A. the importance of developing writing skills

B. the importance of spelling

C. the correct way of marking composition

D. the relationship between spelling and the content of a composition

In Denmark, parents are allowed to set up a new school if they are dissatisfied with the school in the area where they are living.  Although these schools have to follow the national courses, they are allowed a lot of choices in deciding what to teach.  Some of these new schools are called “small schools” because usually the number of pupils in them is only sixty, but a school has to have at least twenty-seven pupils. 

Cooleenbridge School in Ireland, is a small school similar to the ones in Denmark, it was set up by parents who came from Holland, Germany, Czechoslovakia, England and other parts of Ireland.  They came because they wanted to live in the countryside and to grow their own food.  In June 1986, they decided to start a school.  They managed to get an old, disused primary-school building and started with twenty-four children aged from four to twelve. 

The teachers say, “The important thing in school is doing, not sitting. ”And so the courses includes yoga, cooking, knitting, kite-making, music, fishing, drama and environmental river studies, as well as reading, writing, maths and science. 

41. What are the rules for setting up a new school in Denmark?

A. Parents are allowed to set up their own school. 

B. The school has to follow the national courses. 

C. The school has to have at least 27 pupils. 

D. All of the above. 

42. The writer tells about the Cooleenbridge School in Ireland because ____ . 

A. it was set up by parents who are not people of Denmark

B. it was taken as an example of this kind of “small school”

C. there were only twenty-four children

D. the pupils there were aged from 4 to 12

43. What makes this kind of school special?

A. It is set up by parents not by government. 

B. It is free to decide what to teach. 

C. The number of pupils in it is only sixty. 

D. It has to have at least 27 pupils. 

44. “The important thing in school is doing not sitting. ” What the teachers say actually means ____. 

A. What we should do is teaching in the classroom, not sitting in the office. 

B. Children should do more homework at home, not just sit in class to listen to the teachers. 

C. Children should learn by themselves not rely on teachers. 

D. Children should learn through practice not just from books. 

45.  The courses include ____. 

A. yoga, cooking, knitting, kite-making, music, fishing, drama and environmental river studies, except reading, writing, maths and science

B. either yoga, cooking, knitting, kite-making, music, fishing, drama and environmental river studies, or reading, writing, maths and science

C. not only reading, writing, maths and science, but also yoga, cooking knitting, kitemaking, music, fishing, drama and environmental river studies

D. mainly yoga, cooking, knitting, kite-making, music, fishing, drama and environmental river studies, and supplemental（補(bǔ)充的）reading writing, maths and science

  “I promise.” “ I swear to you it’ll never happen again.” “I give you my word.” “Honestly. Believe me.” Sure, I trust. Why not? I teach English composition at a private college. With a certain excitement and intensity, I read my students’ essays, hoping to find the person behind the pen. As each semester progresses, plagiarism（剽竊）appears. Not only is my intelligence insulted as one assumes I won’t detect a polished piece of prose from an otherwise-average writer, but I feel a sadness that a student has resorted to buying a paper from a peer. Writers have styles like fingerprints and after several assignments, I can match a student’s work with his or her name.

   Why is learning less important than a higher grade-point average（GPA）? When we’re threatened or sick, we make conditional promises. “If you let me pass math I will …” “Lord, if you get me over this before the big homecoming game I’ll…” Once the situation is behind us, so are the promises. Human nature? Perhaps, but we do use that cliché（陳詞濫調(diào)）to get us out of uncomfortable bargains.

   Six years ago, I took a student before the dean. He had turned in an essay with the vocabulary and sentence structure of PhD thesis. Up until that time, both his out-of-class and in-class work were borderline passing.

  I questioned the person regarding his essay and he swore it that it was the consequence of his hardwork, but he had already had a given sheet of paper so he understood what was asked. He sat one hour, then turned in part of a page of unskilled writing and faulty logic. I confronted him with both the essays. “I promise…, I’m not lying. I swear to you that I wrote the essay. I’m just nervous today.”

   The head of the English department agreed with my finding, and the meeting with the dean had the boy’s parents present. After an hour of discussion, touching on eight of the boy’s previous essays and his grade-point average, which indicated he was already on academic probation（留校察看）, the dean agreed that the student had plagiarized. His parents protested, “He’s only a child” and we instructors are wiser and should be compassionate. College people are not really children and most times would resent being labeled as such… except in this uncomfortable circumstance.

61.According to the author, students commit plagiarism mainly for_____.

  A. money                B. degree               C. higher GPA                D. reputation

62.The sentence “ Once the situation is behind us , so are the promises” implies    

that_________.

A. students usually keep their promises       

B. some students tend to break their promises

C. the promises are always behind the situation

D. we cannot judge the situation in advance, as we do to the promises

63.The “borderline passing”（Line 3,Para.3）probably means____________.

   A. fairly good          B. extremely poor     C. above average      D. below average

64.The boy’s parents thought their son should be excused mainly  

because_______________.

   A. teachers should be compassionate         B. instructors were wiser

   C. he was only a child                     D. he was threatened

65.Which of the following might serve as the title of this passage?

   A. Human Nature                                 B. Conditional Promises

   C. How to Detect Cheating                      D. The Sadness of Plagiarism

Good nutrition and a balanced diet will help your children grow up healthily．No matter how old your kids are，you can take steps to improve nutrition and to encourage smart eating habits．Here are some suggestions．

Family Meals

Family meals are comforting for both parents and kids．Children like to guess what they are going to have and parents get the chance to introduce new foods to children and to find out which foods they like and which ones they don’t．

Teens may turn up their noses at your plan of a family meal．It is not surprising because they’re trying to establish independence．Yet studies find that teens still want their parents’ advice，so they use the mealtime as a chance to reconnect．

Stocking Up on Healthy Foods

Kids，especially younger ones，will eat mostly what they can get at home．That’s why it’s important to control the supply lines—the foods which you serve for meals and have on hand for snacks．You should have enough fruits，vegetables，lean meat and other good sources of protein，such as eggs and nuts，and healthy snacks，such as yogurt，peanut butter and whole—grain biscuits．

Being a Good Example

The best way for you to encourage healthy eating is to eat well yourself．Kids will follow the lead of the adults they see every day．By eating fruits and vegetables and avoiding fast food and sugary drinks，you’ll be sending the right message．

No Conflicts over Foods

Parents might find themselves shouting at children to get them to have healthy foods in front of them．This in fact can make children dislike what they are asked to eat．

Get Kids Included

Most kids will enjoy making the decision about what to make for dinner．Talk to them about making choices and planning a balanced meal．It can help prepare them to make good decisions on their own about the foods the)want to eat．

68．Family meals provide the chances for parents to do the following things EXCEPT        ．

A．guessing what kids are going to have

B．finding what kids like and dislike    ，

C．introducing new foods to kids

D．reconnecting with kids

69．The underlined sentence in the third paragraph probably means         ．

A．teenagers may be interested in your plan of a family meal

B．teenagers may help you to make a plan of a family meal

C．teenagers may show no interest in your plan of a family meal

D．teenagers may refuse to help you to make a plan of a family meal

70．According to the article，which should NOT be done by parents?

A．Forming a healthful eating habit themselves．                              

B．Forcing kids to have vegetables．

C．Stocking up on some fruits at home．

D．Making meal plans with kids．

71．What’s the best title for the passage?

A．How to eat healthily

B．How to grow up healthily

C．Help kids form healthful eating habits

D．Help kids know what a healthful meal is

For the most part, schools are designed to produce people who fit into society, not people who set out to change it. However, schools, particularly universities, may not only spread culture; they may add to the cultural heritage（遺產(chǎn)）. Today American society places a good deal of emphasis on the development of new knowledge, especially in the physical and biological sciences, medicine, and engineering. In recent years, the nation’s leading universities have increasingly become research centres.

An emphasis on research has led universities to judge professors not by abilities as teachers, but as researchers. Promotions, salary increases, and other benefits have long been dependent on research and publication（出版物）. However, the most important is no longer publishing. To be successful these days, professors have to bring in money provided by government and private industry. Critics claim that academic success is most likely to come to those who have learned to “ignore” their teaching duties to pursue research activities. Defenders say that even when students themselves are not involved in research projects they benefit from such an emphasis on research.

Major research universities like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have also cooperated with industrial companies to develop technology and products with commercial potential. With university-industry ties continuing to grow, debate has increased about the consequences for basic science, academic openness, the control of information, the direction of research, and the influence on students.

64. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT emphasized by today’s American society?

A. Physical science.                                   B. Biological sciences.

C. Engineering.                                  D. Computer science.

65. In the present standard, a successful professor is one who can ______.

A. teach well                                B. get financial support for research

C. get the highest salary                            D. have many publications

66. Supporters of the present emphasis on research argue that ______.

A. it involves more students in it

B. it does good to students anyway

C. it has a direct good effect on teaching

D. it earns a lot of money for a university

67. The author seems to be _______ the move of emphasis to research.

A. totally against                               B. sorry to see

C. in favor of                             D. neutral（中立）about

Anne Whitney, a student at Colorado State University, first had a problem taking tests when she began college. “I was always well prepared for my tests. Sometimes I studied for weeks before a test. Yet I would go in to take the test, only to find I could not answer the questions correctly. I would blank out because of nervousness and fear. I couldn’t think of the answer. My low grades on the tests did not show what I knew to the teacher. ” Another student had similar experiences. He said, “My first chemistry test was very difficult. Then, on the second test, I sat down to take it, and I was so nervous that I was shaking. My hands were moving up and down so quickly that it was hard to hold my pencil .I knew the material and I knew the answers. Yet I couldn’t even write them down.”

These two young students were experiencing something called “test anxiety”. Because a student worries and is uneasy about a test, his or her mind does not work as well as it usually does. The student cannot write or think clearly because of the extreme nervousness. Although poor grades are often a result of poor study habits, sometimes test anxiety causes the low grades. Recently, test anxiety has been recognized as a real problem, not just an excuse or a false explanation of lazy students.

Special university counseling（輔導(dǎo)）courses try to help students. In these courses, counselors try to help students by teaching them how to manage test anxiety. At some universities, students take tests to measure their anxiety. If the tests show their anxiety is high, the students can take short courses to help them deal with their nervousness. Students are trained to become calm in very tense situations. By controlling their nervousness, they can let their minds work at ease. Learned information then comes out without difficulty on a test.

An expert at the University of California explains , “With almost all students , relaxation（輕松）and less stress（壓力）are felt after taking our program . Most of them experience better control during their tests . Almost all have some improvement . With some , the improvement is very great .”

58. To “blank out” is probably _____________.

A. to be like a blanket

B. to be unable to think clearly

C. to be sure of an answer

D. to show knowledge to the teacher

59. Test anxiety has been recognized as _____________.

A. an excuse for laziness

B. the result of poor study habits

C. a real problem

D. something that cannot be changed

60. To deal with this problem, students had better _____________ .

A. takes a short course on anxiety

B. read about anxiety

C. understand their anxiety

D. takes tests to prove they are not anxious

61. A University of California counselor said ______________.

A. all students could get rid of their anxiety after taking a special test anxiety program

B. almost all students felt less stress after taking a University of California counseling course

C. students found it difficult to improve even though they had taken a special test anxiety course

D. students found it easy to relax as soon as they entered a University of California counseling course

A student is learning to speak British English. He wonders（想知道）: Can I communicate with Americans? Can they understand me? Learners of English often ask: What are the differences between British and American English? How important are these differences?

Certainly! there are some differences between British and American English. ‘There are a few differences in grammar. For example, speakers of British English say “in hospital” and “Have you a pen?” Americans say “in the hospital!” and “Do you have a pen?” Pronunciation is sometimes different. Americans usually sound theirs in words like “bird” and “hurt”. Speakers of British English do not sound theirs in these words. There are differences between British and American English in spelling and vocabulary. For example, “colour” and “honour” are British, “color” and honor” are American.

These differences in grammar, pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary are not important, however. For the most part, British and American English are the same language.

70. American English and British English are different in ________.
       A. spelling              B. pronunciation         C. grammar            D. all of the above

71. What is not mentioned（提及）in the passage?

A. Whether there are differences between British English and American English.

B. Whether British English and American English are one language or two.

C. How the differences between British Eng­lish and American English came about.

D. How important the differences are.

72. According to this passage, British people and Americans have _________ difficulty in understanding each other.

A. little                B. much             C. some               D. great

The word “death” is a word many Chinese friends tell me I should not say aloud. They advise me to avoid the word because only speaking of it may bring ill fortune. I deeply believe, however, that to know how to live, we must also know how to die. The problem is how do we talk about death?      

    Like everyone in Taiwan this week, I have had “Tomb Sweeping Day”. I am proud to be part of a people whose culture sends millions of families to cemeteries on this special day to share memories and endless love.

    Today, eight days after the death of Pope John Paul II, millions of people of all backgrounds still grieve(悲痛) his passing away. He was a deeply human person who knew how to laugh and show emotions, a writer with a gift for words a leader who appealed to us by the sheer light of his love for life.

    On the same day and only hours before the Holy Father left us, a friend of mine named Veronica McBride died of cancer in a small Wisconsin city. My friend Veronica was 52 years old. She was an attractive, humorous young woman who, as the saying goes, “never married”. She published several humor books with her mother, Mary McBride. She enjoyed traveling, and for years sent Christmas card photos of herself standing beside monuments or odd animals. She fought cancer for five years. She joked about her treatment keeping her pretty because it kept her thin, and told me she didn’t mind losing her hair because of chemo therapy. “I get to wear nice wigs!”

    The last time I saw Veronica was when I visited her family on a sunny day in August in 2003. When she burst into the front door later and saw me in the living room, she ignored me completely in her hurry to hug her newest baby nephew, leaving me shaking my head in laughter at her.

    As we look to the significance of the Holy Father and his life, surely we must also keep our eyes open to see the wonder and goodness in ordinary people who show us how to live and how to die.

68. The purpose of the article is ___________.

   A. to memorize his friend Veronica

   B. to talk about the significance of life and death

   C. to teach us how to face life and death

   D. to compare his friend and the Holy Father Pope John Paul II

69. The underlined phrase “chemo therapy” in Paragraph 4 probably means __________.

   A. a medical treatment              B. a kind of cancer

   C. a kind of medicine               D. the newest machine

70. Why does the writer compare the Holly Father with his friend?

   A. Because they are both the persons he admires.

   B. Because they have a lot in common.

   C. Because he wants to show that ordinary people can be great as well.

   D. Because he wants to memorize them both.

71. From the phrase “burst into”, we can see that Veronica is ____________.

 A. brave       B. sportive        C. humorous        D. energetic

It’s hardly surprising that weather is a favorite topic for so many people around the world---it affects where we choose to live, what we wear, our moods, and perhaps even our national characteristics. Studies have shown that changeable weather can make it difficult to concentrate, cloudy skies slow down reaction, and high humidity with hot, dry winds makes many people bad-tempered.

If you live in a place like Britain, where the weather seems to change daily if not hourly, you could be forgiven for thinking that the weather is random. In fact, the weather is controlled by systems which move around areas of the globe. In the UK the weather depends on depressions, often called lows, and anticyclones, also known as highs. These systems start in the Atlantic Ocean, and make their way across the British Isles from the west to the east. Highs bring sunny weather, while lows bring rain and wind. In modern times, human activities seem to be altering weather patterns. Gases produced by heavy industry change the temperature of the Earth’s surface, and affect cloud formation. Some researchers say that factories in Europe and North America may have been one of the causes of the droughts in Africa in the 1980s.

The human race has always tried to guess the weather, especially in areas of the world where there are frequent changes. Traditional rhymes point to early attempts to identify weather patterns, popular poems include:

Red sky at night, shepherds’ delight; red sky in the morning, shepherds’ warning.

Flies will swarm before a storm.

Rain before 7, clear by 11.

While folk wisdom can still provide a guide to help forecast weather, today’s methods of prediction increasingly rely on technology. Satellites, balloons, ships, aircrafts and weather centers with sensitive monitoring equipment, send data to computers. The data is then processed, and the weather is predicted. However, even this system cannot predict weather for longer than about a week.

51. When weather keeps changing, ______________________.

A. people become bad-tempered

B. people’s reaction slows down

C. people find it hard to focus on their work

D. people become hungrier

52. What is mainly talked about in the second paragraph?

A. Changes in weather.                              B. Weather in Britain.

C. African droughts. D. Research on weather.

53. The weather in Britain is ____________________________.

A. random                 B. moist                    C. depressing            D. satisfying

54. According to a traditional rhyme, if there is a red sky at night, the next day will be _______.

A. windy                   B. rainy                     C. fine                      D. snowy

55. Which of the following statements is true?

A. Anticyclones often bring rain and wind.

B. Weather forecasting has been done for a long time.

C. Weather could never be predicted.

D. Modern methods of weather prediction are developed from folk wisdom.

In a book called Magnificent Obsession, by Lloyd C. Douglas, a description is given of people helping others but doing it secretly. When difficult problems worried an individual, friends nearby would meet to discuss possible solution without the individual knowing their actions. When a solution was agreed upon, one or two of the friends would carry out the plan and solve the problem secretly , to the great delight of the worried individual. The helpers would stand by privately, content with their success. No reward was given to the problem solvers, not even a sincere “thank you”, because they were never known.

This concept is popular today but in a different way. The phrase “pay it forward” is now used when one person helps another. However, the person helped may not be able to repay the person or group that helped them. So rather than return the favor to their helpers, they are supposed to help someone else in the future, which means they pay it forward. It is a sense of responsibility which makes us want to give back in equal measure to the one who has helped us. But , in this case, the responsibility turns to helping someone in the future.

Suppose your elderly grandmother pays part of your schooling. She may tell you there is no need to repay her because it is a gift from someone who loves you very much. Nothing would please her more than to have you use her money to get a good education.

You may never be able to repay her for such a gift. However, she not only gave you some money , but she provided you with an example that you should also help other people who need it.

People with serious needs are everywhere. Many are children who need better clothes, more books and even better schools. Some are elderly people who can’t afford their medicine or a doctor’s care. Consider how you can “pay it forward” rather than pay money back to your grandmother.

41. The helpers in the book “Magnificent Obsession” were not rewarded because ______________.

   A. they hadn’t solved the problems thoroughly

   B. they had solved the problems secretly

   C. they were friends of the worried individual

   D. they expected to be paid back in the future

42. The underlined word “pay it forward” means ____________________.

   A. to repay someone who has helped you

   B. to pay someone else who needs help

   C. to help someone who has helped you

   D. to help someone else who needs help

43. What does the writer suggest with the example of “your elderly grandmother”?

   A. We should learn to respect our grandparents.

   B. We should work hard to get a good education.

   C. We should also lend a hand to other people in need of help.

   D. We should never forget to repay people for their help.

44. From the passage we know_________________.

   A. everybody needs help

   B. more children need help than elderly people

   C. it costs a lot of money to “pay it forward”

   D. nowadays many people help others without being repaid

45. By writing the passage, the author wishes people in the world to be _____________.

   A. unselfish      B. mysterious     C. honest    D. unforgettable