Egypt: Bridging the Gap between School English and Real English
Teaching English in Egypt in general and in my town Damietta in particular, is mainly directed towards helping students to pass their final exams. Unfortunately, most teachers do not adopt a long -term approach that guarantees that their students will be able to use English outside the classroom. So students only concentrate on one skill which is writing. Thus their listening and speaking skills are disabled. What is important to them is to pass the exam which is primarily based on writing .Teachers are not only concentrated with providing their students with questions that are similar to those of the final exam, particularly General Secondary Education Certificate (GSEC) Examination, so students spend most of their time answering typical exam questions.
Most students' scores are high; a lot of students get full marks. However, few students are able to communicate in English because their role plays. As a result, a lot of students complain that they are unable to understand and talk fluently with native speakers of English.
To enable students to communicate freely and spontaneously(自然地) in English, I bring features of real communication into language practice, I always ask students about their own experiences, and suggest groups of students practice what they have learned outside the classroom. This helps lower-achieving students absorb language. Furthermore, role play is a very effective way to improve speaking skills particularly if it is connected to the experience of the students.Who probably write this passage?
| A．a teacher | B．a governor | C．a student | D．a reporter |
In Egypt, the students only concentrate on ------
| A．listening skill | B．speaking skill | C．reading skill | D．writing skill |
The teachers question their students based on -------
| A．what they learn in the class |
| B．What their parents expect |
| C．The questions that are similar to those of GSEC |
| D．The ability that will be used outside the classroom |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．Most of the students can't get high marks but can communicate with the native speakers of English. |
| B． Communicating skill is more important than writing skill. |
| C．Role play connected to the speaker's experience is more effective in improving his skill. |
| D．The lower--achieving students can do better in speaking skill than the upper achieving students. |
Who will responsible for the gap between school English and real English?
| A．Their parents | B．The students | C．The school | D．The education sys tem |
High school students have always spread gossip(传言) in the halls, on the walls and on the phone. Now it’s on the Internet, too. On various message boards, kids write about whom they hate, whom they think have fallen in love with each other and record other often hurtful things that may or may not be true.
Sixteen- year-old Jessica remembers once when some kids at her school wrote cruel things about her on the web. “ They were just making fun of me,” she says. They said she’s really ugly, she’s this, she’s that, blah-blah-blah.
Jessica’s 11-yea
r-old sister, Emma, admits she’s used the web to write bad things about another girl, though she regrets it now. “After a while, you may feel like, how could I have been so mean? Or, why did I do that?” she says.
Experts say gossip on the Inernet can be more harmful than the old fashioned kind. It lasts longer and is taken more seriously. And, unlike ugly words on the bathroom wall, there’s no way to get rid of it.
If your kids are victims of online gossip, Dr. Commanday suggests putting the gossip into perspective(正确看待). “Point out to them how what’s being said on the screen differs from what everyone knows about you as a person,” Dr. Commanday says.
You can also try what worked for Emma: Keep your kids off the offensive website! “ When she was using it all the time, her name was there all the time. People were writing things about her,” explains Patti Thrift, Emma’s mother, “ Since she has no longer had access to that, she’ s no longer a topic of conversation.”
Experts say that any time your child is on the Internet , you should know what he or she is doing there. Online gossip is just another reason why.From the examp
les of Jessica and her sister, we can learn that ________.
| A．ugly girls like to spread gossip online |
| B．ugly girls easily become victims of online gossip |
| C．gossip-makers can regret what they do |
| D．online gossip is mailny some jokes on others |
According to the passage, why is online gossip more hurtful?
| A．It can not be removed. |
| B．It is written words. |
| C．It is much uglier. |
| D．It is easier to believe. |
If you are a victim of online gossip, you’d better_______
A．ask your parents to stop it |
| B．try to stay away from there |
| C．make it known to the police |
| D．speak ill of the gossip-maker |
The purpose of the passage is to _____
| A．introduce different kinds of hurt students might meet with |
| B．advise students to keep away from the Internet |
| C．list the bad influence gossip on the Internet brings |
| D．give some tips on how to prevent hurt of gossip on the Internet |
The passage is mainly written for____
A. experts B teachers C. parents D. students
An animal activist is someone who has love for all kinds of animals. They fight for the right of animals because animals cannot speak for themselves.
Animal activists must love animals and fight against the mistreatment of animals. Becoming an animal activist will allow you to fight against cruelty.
If you are interested in forming a group or helping other organizations, you should know the rights that animals already have and what rights those organizations are working to get for animals. Knowing this will prepare you to help the organizations in their journey or even help you to set a new law yourself.
There are a lot of things you need to learn about being an animal activist. One of the key things is to always fight for what you believe is right.
You can attend hearings (听证会) at city halls and other important meetings. Through these you can learn what is going on and how people present their cases in front of a judge. In addition, some organizations have newsletters (时事通讯) that will let you know all the latest information on animal rights.
As an animal activist you can also attend protests (抗议). Protests are a great way of making your point understood by companies and the media. Protesters often carry signs to show what they are trying to do. They also go on marches, telling people that they all have the same aim and that they will continue to protest until their aims are achieved.What would be the best title for this text?
| A．What Is a Hearing |
| B．Animal Activists and Animal Right |
| C．The Role an Animal Activist Plays |
| D．How to Attend Protests |
If you want to become an animal activist, you should do all of the following EXCEPT ______
| A．getting the latest information on animal rights |
| B．knowing the rights that animals have |
| C．attending protests against animal rights |
| D．having great love for animals |
We can get information on animal rights from all of the following sources EXCEPT ________
| A．animal protection organizations |
| B．hearings in city halls |
| C．meetings about animal rights |
| D．some companies and the media |
Special trees that grow faster, fight pollution, produce better wood, and even sense chemical attacks are being planted by scientists in the US.
When 40 per cent of Hawaii's US$14 million-a-year papaya (木瓜)industry was destroyed by a virus five years ago, work began on creating genetically engineered (转基因的) trees.
Researchers successfully introduced seeds that were designed to resist the virus. Since then, more and more people have been testing genetically engineered trees.
Some researchers put special bacteria into trees to help them grow faster and produce better wood. Others are trying to create trees that can clean polluted soil.
Meanwhile fruit farmers are looking for trees that are strong enough to resist worms, and paper companies want trees that produce more wood and therefore more paper.
The Pentagon (五角大楼) even gave the researchers US$500,000 this year after they developed a pine tree that changes its colours if it senses a chemical attack.
So far, the poplar, eucalyptus (杨树与桉树), apple and coffee trees are among those being engineered. All this can be done today because we have a better understanding of tree genom
es (基因组).
However, some people fear that the genetically engineered trees will cause dangerous results. They are worried that the new trees will breed with natural species and change the balance of the forest environment.
"It could be destructive," said Jim Diamond, an environmentalist. "Trees are what is left of our natural environment and home to many endangered species."
But researchers insist that science could give nature a fighting chance against both natural and man-made dangers.
They hope to answer the critics by stopping the new trees from breeding, so their effect on the environment can be controlled.Which kind of tree is not the ones that scientists are planting in the US?
| A．Trees that worms can't hurt. |
| B．Trees that can protect themselves at a chemical attack. |
| C．Trees that can resist wind better. |
| D．Genetically engineered trees. |
What caused the American scientists to work on special trees?
| A．They think science could give nature a fighting chance against both natural and man-made dangers. |
B．Gre at numbers of trees have been lost due to attacks by viruses. |
| C．Researchers successfully introduced seeds designed to resist the virus. |
| D．Tree genomes are mapped out so scientists know how to improve trees. |
Which of the following was probably the first kind of trees being engineered?
| A．Papaya. | B．Pine. | C．Apple. | D．Poplar. |
Why did critics think engineered trees dangerous? Because _______.
| A．these trees can destroy the balance of nature |
| B．everything except trees has been genetically engineered |
| C．trees are home to many endangered species |
| D．these trees may affect normal trees |
“Up until about five years ago, students at this school could have worn anything they wanted on Halloween,” said Rosemarie Nielson, a sixth-grade teacher at St. Theresa School, a Roman Catholic elementary school in the Pelham Bay section of the Bronx where there is a prohibition on toy weapons.
“When you consider all the horrific things that have happened in recent years, including 9/11, I can’t blame any school for wanting to stay away from anything that might promote violence,” Ms. Nielson said.
Mary Ellen Manniello, whose daughter, Courtney, 9, is a fourth grader at St. Gabriel School, a Roman Catholic elementary school in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, said she unde
rstood why officials had banned weapons with costumes. “They’re learning more about
guns from issues in the street than educational issues.”
This year, the school has gone one step further and is prohibiting all costumes at its Halloween festivities. Ms. Manniello said it had become “a chaotic scene,” with parents helping their children change into their costumes at school.
Some parents said the no-weapons policy for Halloween costumes went too far and denied children a chance to express themselves.
“Halloween has always been the one day when it was acceptable for our children to be dressed like somebody they are not, like a cowboy or a pirate or a person from outer space, and now we’re taking that away from them,” said Laura Santoro, a nurse from New Milford, Conn., whose 7-year-old son, Johnny, is a second grader at Northville Elementary School there.
Ms. Santoro said that her son would dress as Capt. Jack Sparrow, the character played by Johnny Depp in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies, at the school’s Halloween party, but that he would not be allowed to take a sword — part of a policy that caught her by surprise last Halloween.
“I sent my son to school last year dressed as a special force Power Ranger, and he was told that he couldn’t take along his red laser blaster, which really surprised me, because the laser is red and made of plastic and lights up, and it could never, ever be mistaken for a real gun,” Ms. Santoro said. “I mean, come on, the whole thing is getting really sad.”What do you think is the writer’s purpose of writing the passage?
| A．To introduce to the public the no-weapons policy for Halloween costumes. |
| B．To state parents’ attitudes towards the no-weapons policy for Halloween costumes. |
| C．To tell the public that children should bring any weapons for Halloween costumes. |
| D．To analyse the fact that the no-weapons policy for Halloween costumes goes too far. |
According to the passage, some parents understand the no-weapon policy for Halloween costumes because ____________.
| A．schools should take a cautious approach to Halloween to prevent violence. |
| B．children are buying real guns in the street and there is always violence now. |
| C．those parents like to help their children change into their costumes at school. |
| D．children are learning more about guns from educational issues. |
Which of the following is probably right according to the passage?
| A．Children could bring any weapons into school five or six years ago. |
| B．The parents surveyed are those whose children are in elementary schools. |
| C．Guns are necessary on Halloween for children to express themselves. |
| D．Jack Sparrow is an actor who at one time acted as a pirate in a movie. |
What do the underlined words “laser blaster” in the last paragraph refer to?
| A．A kind of costume. | B．A real gun. |
| C．A toy weapon. | D．A kind of plastic. |
Play is the basic business of childhood, and in recent years research has shown the great importance of play in the development of a human being. From earliest infancy (婴儿), every child needs opportunity and right materials for play, and the main tools of play are toys. The main function of toys is to suggest, encourage and play. To succeed in this, they must be good toys, which children will play with often, and will come back again and again. Therefore, it is important to choose suitable toys for different stages of a child’s development.
In recent years research on infant development has shown that the standard a child is likely to reach, within the range of his inherited abilities, is largely determined in the first three years of his life. So a baby’s ability to benefit from the right play materials should not be underestimated. A baby who is encouraged, talked to and shown things and played with, has the best chance of growing up successfully.
In the next stage, from three to five years old, curiosity knows no bounds. Every type of suitable toys should be made available to the child, for trying out, experimenting and learning, for discovering his own particular ability: Bricks and jigsaws and construction toys; painting, scribbling and making things; sand and water play; toys for imaginative and pretending play—the first social games for learning to play and get on with others.
But at the third stage of play development—from five to seven or eight years old— the child is at school. But for a few more years play is still the best way of learning, at home or at school. It is easier to see which type of toys the child most enjoys.
Until the age of seven or eight, play and work mean much the same to a child. But once reading has been mastered, then books become the main source of learning. Toys are still interesting and valuable, which lead up to new hobbies, but their significance has changed to a child of nine or ten years old, toys and games mean, as to adults, relaxation and fun.According to the first passage we know that as a child grows up ______.
| A．he should be allowed to choose his own toys. |
| B．he should be given the same toys. |
| C．he should be given fewer and fewer toys. |
| D．he should be given different toys. |
According to the passage, the abilities a child has inherited from his parents ______.
| A．determine his character |
| B．will not change after the age of three. |
| C．partly determined the standard he is likely to reach |
| D．to a large extent determine the choice of toys |
We learn from the passage that a child has boundless curiosity ______.
| A．when he is two | B．when he is around four |
| C．when he is six | D．when he is eight |
The passage is mainly about _______.
| A．the role of play in a child’s development |
| B．the importance of schooling |
| C．the importance of pre-school education |
| D．the choice of toys for youngster |