Why does a large education nation like China have so few world renowned scientists as the US? Educationists from China and the US try to find out the answer to questions like this at a forum on the basic education strategy.
The forum, held recently, was jointly organized by the Education Development Research Center of the Ministry of Education in China and the Postgraduate School of the University of Pennsylvania in the US. It aims to find out similarities and differences that exist between two countries in their educational system.
While some educationists in China keep a doubtful eye to the country’s educational system in recent years. Their American counterparts give a positive answer to the basic education in China, saying that it is still one of the best in the world.
An American educationist told reporters that the basic education in the US was criticized in recent years due to its political tendency. On the contrary, Chinese government’s stress on basic education and qualified teachers has set a good example.
At primary and middle school, pupils in China did better in math and science lessons than the US pupils. However, few grow to be world “masters”. Why? Educationists attributed this to China’s stress on examination rather than students’ interest.
Deputy Director of the postgraduate school of Pennsylvania University said American teachers encouraged students to focus on their strong points. In China, students are driven to study to pass the entrance examination test and they do not pay much attention to their own interest.
At the forum, director of the Education Development Research Center Mr. Zhang said in the future, the research center would make its middle and long-term basic education strategy by taking some references from other countries including the US.
He also revealed that for a long time in the future, China would make a breakthrough in setting the policy for quality education.This passage is mainly about _________.
| A．quality education development in the future |
| B．why China’s education cultivates few world masters |
| C．China’s good basic education |
| D．genius education at the primary stage |
The underlined word “renowned” in the first paragraph probably means ________
| A．famous | B．active | C．qualified | D．experienced |
The following statements are true EXCEPT that _________
| A．basic education in the US is associated with the government’s political interest. |
| B．the forum aims to find out the reason why there few world masters in China. |
| C．all the educationists in China cast doubts in the country’s educational system. |
| D．Chinese government’s stress on basic education is spoken highly of. |
China’s educational system will _______ in the future.
| A．help students to study even harder to pass the examination |
| B．apply more attention to quality education referring to systems of other countries |
| C．allow students to pay more attention to their own interest without their test results |
| D．copy the educational system in the US |
I was waiting for a phone call from my agent. He had left a message the night before, telling me that my show was to be cancelled. I called him several times, but each time his secretary told me that he was in a meeting and that he would call me later. So I waited, but there was still no call. Three hours passing by, I became more and more impatient. I was certain that my agent didn’t care about my work, and he didn’t care about me. I was overcome with that thought. I started to shout at the phone, “Let me wait, will you? Who do you think you are?”At that time I didn’t realize my wife was looking on. Without showing her surprise, she rushed in, seized the phone, tore off the wires, and shouted at the phone, “Yeah! Who do you think you are? Bad telephone! Bad telephone!” And she swept it into the wastebasket.
I stood watching her, speechless. What on earth…?
She stepped to the doorway and shouted at the rest of the house, “Now hear this! All objects in this room – if you do anything to upset my husband, out you go!” Then she turned to me, kissed me and said calmly, “Honey, you just have to learn how to take control.” With that, she left the room.
After watching a crazy woman rushing in and out, shouting at everything in sight, I noticed that something in my mood(情绪) had changed. I was laughing. How would I have trouble with that phone? Her antics helped me realize I had been driven crazy by small things. Twenty minutes later my agent did call. I was able to listen to him and talk to him calmly.Why did the author shout at the telephone?
| A．He was mad at the telephone. |
| B．He was angry with his agent. |
| C．He was anxious about his wife |
| D．He was impatient with the secretary. |
What did the author’s wife do after she heard his shouting?
| A．She said nothing | B．She shouted at him. |
| C．She called the agent | D．She threw the phone away |
What made the author laugh?
| A．His own behavior. | B．His wife’s suggestion |
| C．His changeable feelings | D．His wife’s sweet kiss. |
What does the underlined word “antics” refer to?
| A．Smart words | B．Unusual actions |
| C．Surprising Looks | D．Anxious feelings |
You feel happiest when you create a healthy balance between giving and receiving. If you give and give without making time to fill your own needs， then it’s likely you will burn out， or feel upset. When you take and take without giving anything back， you never feel a sense of achievement，so you are always searching for ways to fill the void in your life.
The way to create a healthy balance between giving and receiving so as to achieve real happiness is to know and then live by your values. I break values up into two groups which I call “being” and “having” values. Your “being” values are the character traits(特征)of the ideal person you would like to be. An example of some “being” values are： kind， loving， generous， inspirational， peaceful， wise and even powerful. By acting on these values， you give to others through your actions and you inspire others by “being” a positive role model. Mastering “being” these character traits becomes your life purpose.
Your “having” values are the feelings you need to create in order to be happy. These could be companionship， achievement， support， “being” valued or financial security. This is what you receive. You take responsibility for filling your own needs by taking steps to create these feelings and conditions in your life.
When you make a commitment to live by your “being” values， it becomes easier to make conscious choices rather than reactionary(保守的) ones. If your usual habit is to complain about your problems， you could choose to think and act like a calm person. A calm person might go for a walk， meditate(沉思)， or set a time limit before responding. If your usual pattern is to worry， you could choose to act like a responsible or wise person. In other words， you would act like the person you choose to be—this is the key to personal power.
When you choose to act on your values， you not only feel good about yourself， but you reinforce(增强)your chosen beliefs. Over time acting in this way changes how you see the world， and in turn the way other people think of you.The underlined word “void” in Paragraph 1 probably means .
| A．a feeling of emptiness |
| B．a loss of power |
| C．a lack of energy |
| D．a state of being confused |
According to the text， by acting on your own “being” values， you will .
| A．gain a lot of power |
| B．fill your own needs |
| C．seek all human virtues |
| D．form positive personality |
Which of the following does NOT belong to your “having” values？
| A．Your success in the competition. |
| B．The support from your friends. |
| C．Your own peaceful mind. |
| D．The friendship with others. |
What can be inferred from the text？
| A．“Having” values are better than “being” values. |
| B．The way other people think of you decides who you are. |
| C．A calm person does not choose to complain easily. |
| D．A responsible person does not care about financial security. |
The main purpose of this passage is to .
| A．persuade the readers to make a commitment |
| B．inform the readers how to be truly happy |
| C．explain to the readers what personal values are |
| D．instruct the readers how to make wise choices |
Tim Berners-Lee is the man who wrote the software program that led to the foundation of the World Wide Web. Britain played an important part in developing the first generation of computers. The parents of Tim Berners-Lee both worked on one of the earliest commercial (商业的) computers and talked about their work at home. As a child he would build models of computers from packing material. After graduating from Oxford University he went on to the real thing. In the 1980s， scientists were already communicating using a primitive version of e-mail. While working at a laboratory in Switzerland， Tim Berners-Lee wrote a program， which let him store these messages. This gave him another idea： write a program that will let academics(学术界人士) from across the world share information on a single place. In 1990 he wrote the HTTP and HTML programs which form the basis of the World Wide Web.
The next year his programs were placed on to the Internet. Everyone was welcome to use them and improve them if they could. Programmers used this codes(密码) to work with different operating systems. New things like web browsers(浏览器) and search engines were developed. Between 1991 and 1994 the number of web pages rose from 10 to 100,000.
In 1994 Tim Berners-Lee formed the newly formed World Wide Web consortium(协会)， or W3C. More than 200 leading companies and laboratories are represented by W3C. Together they make sure that everyone can share equally on the web. “The Web can help people to understand the way that others live and love. It helps us understand the humanity of people.” he says.From the passage， we can infer that Tim Berners-Lee is .
| A．British | B．American |
| C．Swiss | D．French |
Scientists began to communicate using e-mail .
| A．in 1980 | B．after the 1980s |
| C．before 1990 | D．in the 1960s |
Tim Berners-Lee decided to write a program that would let academics from across the world share information on a single place when .
| A．he was a child |
| B．he studied in Oxford University |
| C．he formed W3C |
| D．he worked at a lab in Switzerland |
Which of the following is NOT true？
| A．The number of web pages rose rapidly in the 1990s. |
| B．Tim’s programs were placed on to the Internet in 1990. |
| C．The World Wide Web will have an effect on the social development. |
| D．Tim Berners-Lee made a great contribution to the computer science. |
The passage is mainly about .
| A．when the Internet came into being |
| B．who Tim Berners-Lee is |
| C．why computers develop so rapidly |
| D．how the World Wide Web started |
Part Ⅲ Reading Comprehension (30 marks)
Directions： Read the following three passages. Each passages is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked with A， B， C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage.
A
As we all know， the Dragon Boat Festival is our country’s traditional festival， but do you know there is also a Dragon Boat Festival in South Korea， which also falls on May 5 of the lunar calendar(阴历)？ It has been reported that South Korea will apply to United Nations Educational， Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO 联合国教科文组织) to make the celebration of the Dragon Boat Festival its own intangible cultural heritage (非物质的文化遗产). If successful， people from other countries may see the Dragon Festival as a Korean creation.
As the birthplace of the yearly event more than 2,000 years ago， China is not happy with the situation. “It would be a shame if another country successfully made a traditional Chinese festival part of its own cultural heritage ahead of China，” said Zhou Heping， deputy(副) culture minister. The Chinese Ministry of Culture is even thinking of making its own application(申请) to UNESCO， covering all traditional Chinese festivals， including the Dragon Boat event. It is thought that the festival is held in memory of the great poet Qu Yuan (340－278 BC)， who lived in the State of Chu during the Warring States Period. Qu was known to be a patriot (爱国者) and admired by ordinary people.
He is said to have jumped into Miluo River， because he had lost hope in his country’s future. When people heard about Qu’s death， they sailed up and down the river searching for his body. They also beat the drums to frighten away the fish and threw Zongzi into the water to stop the fish touching Qu. Dragon boat racing is said to come from this search for the poet’s body.
Over the years， the Dragon Boat Festival has spread throughout the world. In Japan and Vietnam， as well as South Korea， the festival has mixed with and become part of the local culture.The Dragon Boat Festival .
| A．is also kept by South Korea |
| B．comes from South Korea |
| C．was created by South Korea |
| D．is South Korea’s cultural heritage |
What is the reaction(反应) of the Chinese Ministry of Culture to South Korea’s planning to make the Dragon Boat Festival its own cultural heritage？
| A．Fighting against South Korea. |
| B．Telling South Korea it’s not right to do so. |
| C．Considering to do the similar thing. |
| D．Asking South Korea not to do so. |
What is the purpose of holding the Dragon Boat Festival？
| A．In memory of Qu Yuan. |
| B．In memory of all the patriots of China. |
| C．To frighten away the fish. |
| D．In honor of QuYuan’s birthday. |
After Qu Yuan’s death， Zongzi was thrown into the water to .
| A．feed him |
| B．protect his body from going bad |
| C．prevent the fish biting his body |
| D．attract his soul |
Now， the Dragon Boat Festival has become activity.
| A．a nationwide | B．a worldwide |
| C．an Asian | D．a foreign |
A scientist turns out to be able to see the future by offering each of some four-year-olds a piece of candy and watching how he or she deals with it. Some children reach eagerly for the treat they see. Some last a few minutes before they give in. But others are determined to wait until the last moment.
By the time the children reach high school, something remarkable has happened. A survey found that those who as four-year-olds had enough self-control to hold out generally grew up to be more popular, adventurous, confident and dependable. The children who gave in to temptation(诱惑) early were more likely to be lonely, easily frustrated and inflexible(顽固的)．
Actually, the ability to delay reward is a sign of emotional intelligence which doesn't show up on an IQ test.
The hardware of the brain and the software of the mind have long been scientists' concerns. But brain theory can't explain what we wonder about most, like the question why some people remain upbeat in the face of troubles that would sink a less resistant soul.
Here comes the theory of Daniel Goleman, writer of Emotional Intelligence: when it comes to predicting people's success, brain ability measured by IQ may actually matter less than the qualities of mind once thought of as “character”．
EQ is not the opposite of IQ. What researchers have been trying to understand is how they work together; how one's ability to handle stress, for instance, affects the ability to concentrate and put intelligence to use. Among the ingredients (要素) for success, researchers now generally agree that IQ counts for about 20%; the rest depends on everything from social class to luck.
While many researchers in this relatively new field are glad to see emotional issues finally taken seriously, some few fear EQ causes misuse.The experiment with the four-year-olds makes it clear that ________.
| A．the age of 4 is a proper time for scientific experiment |
| B．emotional intelligence won't show up until adolescence |
| C．the ability of self-control plays a role in personal success |
| D．candy can be used to measure a person's emotional intelligence |
Which of the following is TRUE of EQ and IQ according to the text?
| A．There is no link between EQ and IQ. |
| B．The higher a person's IQ is, the higher his or her EQ is. |
| C．Some people can be blessed with lots of both, but some with little of either. |
| D．Scientists are trying to discover the way in which EQ and IQ work together. |
The underlined word “upbeat” in Paragraph 4 probably means “________”.
| A．kind | B．floating |
| C．excited | D．optimistic |
Why does the author mention the experiment at the beginning of the text?
| A．To amuse both the children and readers. |
| B．To prove the scientist’s wisdom. |
| C．To introduce the topic of the text. |
| D．To show us how to do an IQ test. |
What is most likely to be written in the paragraph that follows?
| A．Information about famous people with high EQ. |
| B．Examples showing the opposite voice about EQ. |
| C．Some reasons why EQ is relatively new field. |
| D．Strong demands for basic emotional education. |