We live in a digital world now, and a student's technology needs have changed. For the early years, say when you are in primary school, you can get by with no technology at all. Even if you have a computer, it's a good idea to get children familiar with libraries. At this age, trips to the library are like family outings.
As you get closer to middle school, a computer with Internet access becomes more of a necessity. Teachers will often give assignments that require a student to use the Internet for research. After a computer, technology choices for students become more difficult to make – especially when it comes to cell-phones. Kids will beg their parents for a cell-phone, especially in middle school. For many parents, it's a safety issue: They want to know that their kids can reach them quickly if necessary. For teachers, cell phones can be used to record lessons when students are absent. But many teachers dislike cell-phones. Some kids send messages or have talks in the class. Sending messages also raises the problem of cheating on exams. More and more schools are now forbidding the use of cell-phones.
Many kids see iPods as necessary things to have. iPods are great for music, but do they do anything good for your children’s education? Maybe they do. That’s the opinion of Doug Johnson, an educator for 30 years. Johnson says that educators should accept all new forms of technology in the classroom, including iPods. “Some do more with their cell- phones than we can do with our laptops,” he jokes. “I don’t think we should be afraid. The truth is that it’s easier to change the way we teach than to change the technology habits of an entire generation.”
71. According to author, primary school children should___.
A. use the computer and the Internet regularly
B. ask their parents to buy them cell-phones
C. buy iPods to listen to music
D. go to libraries to read more books
72. Why do parents agree to buy their children cell-phones?
A. They want their children to be cool.
B. They think cell-phones be helpful to their study.
C. They want to keep in touch with their children.
D. They want their children to keep up to date.
73. The following are all reasons why many teachers dislike cell-phones EXCEPT ____.
A. cell-phones can be used to cheat on exams
B. schoolchildren will send messages during class
C. cell-phones can be used to record lessons
D. schoolchildren might talk on them during class
74. What does the underlined word “that” refers to?
A. iPods can be used to listen to music.
B. iPods can be helpful for children’s education.
C. iPods can be used to play games.
D. iPods are necessary for children’s lives.
75. We can infer from what Doug Johnson said that _____.
A. cell-phones are not useful to students
B. teachers should let students use cell-phones
C. it’s better for teachers to change their teaching methods
D. schoolchildren should follow the trends(潮流) of fashion
If humans were truly at home under the light of the moon and stars，we would go in darkness happily，the midnight world as visible to us as it is to the vast number of nocturnal(夜间活动的) species on this planet. Instead，we are diurnal(白天的) creatures, with eyes adapted to living in the sun’s light. This is a basic evolutionary fact, even though most of us don’t think of ourselves as diurnal beings. Yet it’s the only way to explain what we’ve done to the night: We’ve engineered it to receive us by filling it with light.
The benefits of this kind of engineering come with consequences 一 called light pollution 一 whose effects scientists are only now beginning to study. Light pollution is largely the result of bad lighting design，which allows artificial light to shine outward and upward into the sky. III-designed lighting washes out the darkness of night and completely changes the light levels 一 and light rhythms — to which many forms of life, including, ourselves, have adapted. Wherever human light spills into the natural world, some aspect or life is affected .
In most cities the sky looks as though it has been emptied of stars, leaving behind a vacant haze(霾) that mirrors our fear of the dark. We’ve grown so used to this orange haze that the original glory of an unlit night, - dark enough for the planet Venus to throw shadow on Earth, is wholly beyond our experience, beyond memory almost.
We’ve lit up the night as if it were an unoccupied country, when nothing could be further form the truth. Among mammals alone, the number of nocturnal species is astonishing, Light is a powerful biological force, and on many species it acts as a magnet(磁铁). The effect is so powerful that scientists speak of songbirds and seabirds being “captured” by searchlights on land or by the light from gas flares on marine oil platforms. Migrating at night, birds tend to collide with brightly lit tall buildings.
Frogs living near brightly lit highways suffer nocturnal light levels that are as much as a million times righter than normal, throwing nearly every aspect of their behavior out of joint including most other creatures ,we do need darkness .Darkness is as essential to our biological welfare, to our internal clockwork, as light itself.
Living in a glare of our making,we have cut ourselves off from our evolutionary and cultural heritage—the light of the stars and the rhythms of day and night .In a very real sense light pollution causes us to lose sight of our true place in the universe, to forget the scale of our being, which is best measured against the dimensions of a deep night with the Milky Way—the edge of our galaxy arching overhead.According to the passage, human being .
| A．prefer to live in the darkness |
| B．are used to living in the day light |
| C．were curious about the midnight world |
| D．had to stay at home with the light of the moon |
What does “it”(Paragraph 1) most probably refer to?
| A．The night. | B．The moon |
| C．The sky | D．The planet |
The writer mentions birds and frogs to .
| A．provide examples of animal protection |
| B．show how light pollution affects animals |
| C．compare the living habits of both species |
| D．explain why the number of certain species has declined |
It is implied in the last paragraph that
| A．light pollution dose harm to the eyesight of animals |
| B．light pollution has destroyed some of the world heritages |
| C．human beings cannot go to the outer space |
| D．human beings should reflect on their position in the universe |
Determined to make school more related to the workplace, Roosevelt High School in Portland, Oregon, developed a school-to-work program. In their first year, students are offered some job pathways in natural resources, human services, health care, business, arts and communication. The following year, each student chooses one of the pathways and examines it in depth, spending three hours a week watching someone on the job. Such a program is also in practice in some other states.
The school-to-work program is built around a partnership. For example, Eastman Kodak, a major employer in Colorado, introduces students to business by helping them construct a model city using small pieces of wood. “The children use the models to decide on the best place to set up schools,” says Lucille Mantelli, director for Eastman Kodak in Colorado. Kodak introduces math by teaching fifth graders to use their pocket money properly. They also provide one-on-one job watching experiences and offer chances of practice for high school juniors and seniors. “Students come to the workplace two or three hours a week,” explains Mantelli. “They do the job for us. We pay them and they get school credits (学分). We also give them our views on their performance and developmental opportunities.”
In these partnerships, everybody wins. The students tend to take more difficult courses than students in schools that don’t offer such programs. Business benefits by having a better prepared workforce needed in future years. “It’s a way for us to work with the school systems to develop the type of workforce we’ll need in future years,” Mantelli continued. “We need employees who understand the basics of reading and writing. We need them to be good at math and to be comfortable working on a team.”
“Our theory is that they can learn as much outside the classroom as in. All students have the ability to change the world, not just to live in it. To do that, they have to know how to solve problems and use critical thinking skills. We need to encourage them to dream about jobs that go beyond what they see today,” concludes a school-to-work program organizer.Using the example of Eastman Kodak in Colorado, the writer shows us ____.
| A．what role the business plays in the program |
| B．why the students get paid for their jobs |
| C．where the students have their math class |
| D．what the school decides to do |
The main purpose of the school-to-work program is to _____.
| A．make what students learn in school related to the workplace |
| B．introduce new job opportunities to schools |
| C．improve relations between students and teachers |
| D．offer students more difficult courses |
According to the text, Lucille Mantelli is ____.
| A．a math teacher |
| B．a company manager |
| C．a school designer |
| D．a program organizer |
Eleven-year-old Evan Green doesn’t want to save just one tree－he wants to save a whole rainforest!
In the Redwood City, Calif, a boy started a group called the Red Dragon Conservation Team four years ago to do just that. So far, the team’s members have raised $4,500. That’s enough to purchase and protect more than 16 acres of rainforest in Costa Rica through the Center for Ecosystem survival.
Every year, thousands of square miles of rainforest are destroyed worldwide. Logging and farming are mostly likely to blame, scientists say. The loss is terrible news for animals and people. Even though rainforests cover less than 2 percent of the earth, they are home to half the world’s plants and animals. Rainforests also provide water and help control the earth’s climate.
Evan’s work to save the rainforests recently earned him a Barron prize for Young Heroes. The prizes are given to children or teenagers who have made a positive difference in the world. Evan’s goal is “to save enough rainforests to last forever”. He won’t have to do it alone. His actions have already inspired other kids to chip in. One girl asked for donations instead of presents on her birthday. She raised $850. Other kids are starting their own conservation teams.
Evan says everyone can help the planet－even by taking small steps such as recycling. He and his family try to make a difference every day. “We recycle, we try to limit our garbage… we’ve been walking a little more, and we buy local food,” Evan said.Evan started the group _______.
| A．to help the poor | B．to make himself well-known |
| C．to win the Barron prize | D．to save the rainforest |
How much does it cost to buy and protect an acre of rainforest in Costa Rica?
| A．About $4,500. | B．About $850. |
| C．About $1,000. | D．About $280. |
What Evan said in the last paragraph suggests that _________.
| A．actions speak louder than words |
| B．we can all do something to protect the earth |
| C．we should learn to recycle from now on |
| D．a good beginning makes a good ending |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Evan Green－a famous teenager |
| B．The Red Dragon Conservation Team |
| C．Boy gathers support for rainforests |
| D．Rainforests are being destroyed |
阅读理解
How to Be a Winner
Sir Steven Redgrave
Winner of 5 Olympic Gold Medals
“In 1997 I was found to have developed diabetes(糖尿病) . Believing my career was over, I felt extremely low. Then one of the specialists said there was no reason why I should stop training and competing. That was it—the encouragement I needed. I could still be a winner if I believe in myself. I am not saying that it isn’t difficult sometimes. But I wanted to prove to myself that I wasn’t finished yet. Nothing is to stand in my way.”
Karen Pickering
Swimming World Champion
“I swim 4 hours a day, 6 days a week. I manage that sort of workload by putting it on top of my diary. This is the key to success—you can’t follow a career in any field without being well-organized. List what you believe you can achieve. Trust yourself, write down your goals for the day, however small they are, and you’ll be a step closer to achieving them.”
Kirsten Best
Poet & Writer
“When things are getting hard, a voice inside my head tells me that I can’t achieve something. Then, there are other distractions, such as family or hobbies. The key is to concentrate. When I feel tense, it helps a lot to repeat words such as ‘calm’, ‘peace’ or ‘focus’, either out loud or silently in my mind. It makes me feel more in control and increases my confidence. This is a habit that can become second nature quite easily and is a powerful psychological tool.”What does Sir Steven Redgrave mainly talk about?
| A．Difficulties influenced his career. |
| B．Specialists offered him medical advice. |
| C．Training helped him defeat his disease. |
| D．He overcame the shadow of illness to win. |
What does Karen Pickering put on top of her diary?
| A．Her achievements | B．Her daily happenings |
| C．Her training schedule | D．Her sports career |
What does the underlined word “distractions” probably refer to?
| A．Ways that help one to focus. |
| B．Activities that turn one’s attention away. |
| C．Words that help one to feel less tense. |
| D．Habits that make it hard for one to relax. |
According to the passage, what do the three people have in common?
| A．Hard work. | B．Devotion |
| C．Courage | D．Self-confidence |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
Many of us mistakenly believe that it's wrong to think we have any good qualities. We may spend a lot of time blaming ourselves for our negative qualities, thinking that self criticism is the key to improving our performance. However, a constant focus on our supposed shortcomings can stop our efforts to make friends with other people. How can we believe that others could like us if we believe our inner being is flawed（有缺陷）?
If someone seems to dislike you, the reason for that dislike might have little or nothing to do with you. The person who doesn't like you might be fearful, or shallow, or busy or shy. Perhaps you and that person are simply a mismatch for each other at this particular time.
Don't take yourself out of the game by deciding that your flaws are bigger than your good qualities. In fact, some of the very qualities you consider to be flaws may be irresistible to someone else. For all the factors that might cause one person to reject you, there are at least as many factors that will work in your favor with someone else.
You might be thirty pounds over your ideal weight, but you may have a wonderful laugh and a real enthusiasm for life. There are many people who don’t mind your extra pounds. You may drive a shabby car, but you might be a great dancer and a loyal friend. There are people out there looking for loyalty, or fun, or sweetness, or wisdom, and the package it comes in is not important. If you are worried that you are not beautiful enough to attract friends, keep in mind that not everyone is looking for physical beauty in their friends. You can decide to feel inferior（自卑） because you don't have much money and you don't drive a nice car. You can believe that this is the reason that you don't have many friends in your life. On the other hand, if you are very wealthy you may be suspicious that everyone is after your money and that nobody really likes you as a person.
The point is that you can focus on just about anything and believe it's the reason you do not have friends and cannot make any.According to the author ___________ plays an important role in making friends.
| A．admitting your shortcomings | B．self criticism |
| C．modesty | D．confidence |
If you are not liked by a person, _________ .
| A．you should find the reason in yourself |
| B．you’d better talk with the person face to face |
| C．you may not be the one to be blamed |
| D．you and that person misunderstand each other |
We can learn from the third paragraph that ____________ .
| A．your good qualities may turn out to be your flaws |
| B．your weakness may also be your strengths in some way |
| C．your negative qualities cause a person to reject you |
| D．you’ll have few friends if your flaws a re bigger than your good qualities |
Which of the following is true according to the author?
| A．It is important to lose weight. |
| B．It is easier for a wealthy person to make friends. |
| C．Inner qualities are more important than physical appearance. |
| D．If you are not beautiful enough, try to improve your physical beauty. |