Forty-two of the fifty American states offered some kind of public online learning this past school year.One state,Michigan,now requires all students to have an online learning experience before they finish high school.Even the idea of a school has changed since the rise ofthe Internet in the 1990s.
A new report from the Center for Evaluation and Education Policy at Indiana University says eighteen states have full-time virtual schools.There are no buildings.All classes are online.
Florida started the first statewide public virtual school in the United States in 1997.Today,the Florida Virtual School offers more man ninety courses.56,000 students were enrolled as of December.Almost sixty percent were female.The school's website says each student was enrolled in an average of two classes.
Florida Virtual School has now opened the Florida Virtual Global School.Students in other countries pay for classes.Janet Heiking teaches an English class.She lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.Her students live as far away as Africa and Japan.She says they are taking her Advanced Placement class to prepare for attending an American college.They can earn college credits by passing the AP test.
So how good are virtual schools? Studies have shown mixed results, as a new report from Indiana University notes.For example, students at Florida Virtual School earned higher grades than those taking the same courses the traditional way.And they scored higher on a statewide
test.But virtual school students in Kansas and Colorado had lower test scores or performed at a lower level than traditional learners.Studies also find that virtual schools may not save much in operating costs.
Education experts say the mixed results suggest the need for more research to find the best ways to teach in virtual schools.A1so, they say schools of education need to train more teachers to work in both real and virtual classrooms.A virtual school is one that___________.
A.is set up after the rise of the Internet |
B.uses textbooks as a main teaching resource |
C.uses computer-based resources and has no teachers |
D.has online classes and no real classrooms |
The first statewide public virtual school in the USA was started in ________ .
A.Florida | B.Indiana | C.Michigan | D.Colorado |
Florida Virtual School is open to ________.
A.students in Indiana |
B.students only around the USA |
C.students across the world |
D.only foreign students |
Foreign students take Advanced Placement classes for the eventual purpose of __________ .
A.earning college credits |
B.entering an American college |
C.learning advanced science |
D.passin![]() |
From the passage we learn that________.
A.the majority of virtual school students in Florida are male |
B.all senior students m Michigan have an online learning experience |
C.virtual schools are better than traditional schools |
D.both real and virtual classrooms need more trained teachers |
Vitamin D helps bones and muscles grow strong and healthy. Low levels of vitamin D can lead to diseases such as rickets (佝偻病), mainly found in children. The thinning of bone is a common problem as people, especially women, get older.
But more and more research is suggesting that vitamin D might also help prevent many diseases. The easiest way to get vitamin D is from sunlight. The sun’s ultraviolet (紫外线的) rays react with skin cells to produce vitamin D. But many people worry about getting skin cancer and skin damage from the sun. As a result they stay out of the sun. Also, darker-skinned people produce less vitamin D than lighter-skinned people. The amount also decreases in older people and those living in northern areas that get less sunlight.
Not many foods naturally contain vitamin D. Foods high in this vitamin include oily fish and fish liveroils (鱼肝油). Farmed fish have only about one-fourth as much vitamin D as wild fish. Small amounts of vitamin D are found in beef liver, cheese and egg yolks. But most of the vitamin D in the American diet comes from foods such as milk.
Research in the last several years has shown that low levels of vitamin D may increase the risk of heart attacks in men and deaths from some cancers. More doctors are now having their patients tested for their vitamin D levels. But as research continues, some experts worry that if people take too much vitamin D, it might act as a poison. Also, skin doctors warn people to be careful with sun exposure because of the risk of skin cancer.The first paragraph is mainly about .
A.the muscle diseases | B.the sources of vitamins |
C.the importance of health | D.the functions of vitamin D |
Which of the following people produce the least amount of vitamin D?______
A.Elderly darker-skinned people. | B.Young lighter-skinned people. |
C.Elderly lighter-skinned people. | D.Young darker-skinned people. |
People can get the most vitamin D from .
A.beef liver | B.cheese | C.wild fish | D.farmed fish |
What can we infer from the text?_________
A. Being exposed to sunlight is the safest way to get vitamin D.
B. Lack of vitamin D can make people age quickly.
C. Proper vitamin D levels people need are still not determined now.
D. The vitamin D level is higher in men than in women.
Poetry is an interesting form of writing. It is very free, has few restrictions and can be a great way to express feelings. Writing a poem is all about observing the world within you or around you.
To write a poem, first you should begin with an idea or inspiration. Inspiration may come at any time unexpectedly. It may be a specific person, place or thing that causes some sort of strong emotion. It may be more of an abstract idea or release of emotion.
After getting the idea, you can write down everything that comes to mind. Don’t think much and let all feelings pour out. Remember everything can be thrown out later.
Then, you can think about its form and begin to organize thoughts. Poetry comes in many forms, from epic poetry that has a story to dramatic poetry intended to be performed. Try them all out. One will come naturally. Maybe different poems fit different forms. When you write a poem, think about both meter (韵律) and rhythm carefully, which are equally important in poetry. Meter is the fixed pattern of the poem, while rhythm refers to the sound when it is spoken. It is also important to use a lot of descriptive words. Create imagery (意象) with words, trying to make them attractive to all the senses. For auditory (听觉的) interest, try repeating of similar sounds in a sentence or phrase. All of this adds life and interest to a poem.
After you finish your work, don’t be afraid to share your work with others. When others point out your weakness, accept and grow from it.What does the underlined word “restriction” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?_______
A.Change. | B.Order. | C.Limitation. | D.Organization. |
When you begin to write a poem, you should first .
A.begin with some specific persons | B.come up with an idea |
C.describe a famous place | D.organize your thoughts |
We can infer from the text that .
A.writing poems needs imagination and the ability to use language well |
B.people can get more ideas if they often share their poems with others |
C.people should first learn to write epic poetry, then dramatic poetry |
D.people need to write down every feeling they want to release at a time |
What’s the purpose of the text?_________
A.To tell readers how to write a poem. |
B.To encourage more people to write poems. |
C.To show what quality a good poem should have. |
D.To teach people how to appreciate poems. |
The history of modern art begins with Impressionism, a movement started in Paris in the mid-1800’s. At that time many artists painted in a very traditional way that involved spending hours in a studio, painstakingly (辛苦地) creating paintings that were extremely detailed. These paintings were sometimes of people or landscapes or historical events. In 1863, Edouard Manet exhibited his painting “Dejeuner sur l’erbe” at the Salon des Refuses. The painting caused a commotion (骚动), thus starting the Impressionist movement. Although Edouard Manet is the declared leader and founder of the group, he was not present at the first group exhibition or any of the other eight collective Impressionist shows. The movement gained more attention in the April of 1874 when Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Alfred Sisley, and Jean-Frédéric Bazille formed Society of Artists, Painters, Sculptors, Engravers and began exhibiting outside of the official salon. The same year, the term Impressionism was invented by criticizing (批评的) journalist Louis Leroy to describe their paintings, who worked for the magazine Le Charivari.
The Impressionists often paint out of doors and want to show how light and shadow fall on objects at particular times of the day. Their works are sometimes described as “captured moments” and are characterized by short quick brushstrokes (笔) of colour which, when viewed up close looks quite messy and unreal. If we step back from the Impressionist paintings, the colours are blended together by our eyes and we are able to see the painters’ subjects which often show colourful landscapes, sunlight on water as well as people busy with outdoor activities.Before Impressionism, the works of artists were .
A.quite abstract | B.very confusing |
C.very detailed | D.quite controversial |
Who first started Impressionism? ___________
A.Claude Monet. | B.Edouard Manet. |
C.Auguste Renoir. | D.Alfred Sisley. |
The works of the Impressionists are best viewed .
A.with imagination | B.at a distance |
C.outdoors | D.in a studio |
The second paragraph is mainly about ______.
A.the painting style of the Impressionists |
B.how to describe the Impressionist paintings |
C.the influences of the Impressionist paintings |
D.the subjects of the Impressionist paintings |
We are all busy talking about and using the Internet but how many of us know the history of the Internet?
Many people are surprised when they find that the Internet was set up in the 1960s. At that time, computers were large and expensive. Computer networks didn’t work well. If one computer in the network broke down, the whole network stopped. So a new network system had to be set up. It should be good enough to be used by many different computers. If part of the network was not working, information could be sent through another part. In this way computer network system would keep on working all the time.
At first the Internet was only used by the government, but in the early 1970s, universities, hospitals, and banks were allowed to use it, too. However, computers were still very expensive and the Internet was difficult to use. By the start of 1990s, computers became cheaper and easier to use. Scientists had also developed software that made “surfing” the Internet easier.
Today it is easy to get on-line and it is said that millions of people use the Internet every day. Sending e-mails is more and more popular among young people.
The Internet has now become one of the most important parts of people’s life.
回答下面问题,在答题卡相应题号后的横线上写下相关信息。When was the Internet set up?(不多于3个单词)
___________________________________________________________________________Why did a new network system have to be set up?(不多于6个单词)
___________________________________________________________________________What is the writer’s purpose of this passage?(不多于11个单词)
___________________________________________________________________________
The Coalition for the Homeless is an organization that seeks to address the needs of the homeless population in the United States. It is a network of offices, some of which provide food and houses for the homeless population, and some of which fight for the passing of laws that would give every American the right to a place to call home. According to the Coalition’s studies, of over two hundred million people living in the United States, up to three million are homeless—and the number is still growing. Since the late 1970s, fast-rising house prices, large cuts in government supported housing programs, and economic recession(经济衰退) have make it impossible for many Americans to meet housing costs. Sadly, this has resulted in a number of persons being forced to leave their homes and/or unable to find new affordable homes. According to another research, families with children appear to be the fastest-growing part of the homeless population, making up 39% of it. The old idea of a homeless person, that of the single man who gets drunk all the time, is no longer true. A much larger part of the population now finds itself homeless. Even worse, once a person becomes homeless, he often finds it impossible to find a job, since most employers require anyone who wants a job from them to provide a home address on a job application.The word “ address” in the first line probably means “ ________”.
A.talk about | B.write to | C.fight for | D.deal with |
How many people are homeless in the U.S according to the Coalition studies?
A.About 3 million people | B.200 million people |
C.39% of the population | D.About one-fifth of the population |
Homeless people often have difficulty finding a job because_______.
A.they often don’t have enough work experience |
B.they mostly have a drinking problem |
C.they aren’t supported by government programs |
D.they have no home address |
What’s the main cause of the rising number of the homeless in the U.S.?
A.The passing of new housing laws. |
B.The ever-rising price of housing. |
C.The slow construction of houses. |
D.The fast growth of family size |