Some students get so nervous before a test; they do poorly even if they know the material. Sian Beilock has studied these highly anxious testtakers.
Sian Beilock: “They start worrying about the consequences. They might even start worrying about whether this exam is going to prevent them from getting into the college they want. And when we worry,it actually uses up attention and memory resources. I talk about it as your cognitive horsepower that you could otherwise be using to focus on the exam.”
Professor Beilock and another researcher,Gerardo Ramirez,have developed a possible solution. Just before an exam,highly anxious testtakers spend ten minutes writing about their worries about the test.
Sian Beilock: “What we think happens is when students put it down on paper,they think about the worst that could happen and they reappraise the situation. They might realize it's not as bad as they might think it was before and,in essence(本质上),it prevents these thoughts from popping up when they're actually taking a test.”
The researchers tested the idea on a group of twenty anxious college students. They gave them two short math tests. After the first one, they asked the students to either sit quietly or write about their feelings about the upcoming second test.
The researchers added to the pressure. They told the students that those who did well on the second test would get money. They also told them that their performance would affect other students as part of a team effort.
Professor Beilock says those who sat quietly scored an average of twelve percent worse on the second test. But the students who had written about their fears improved their performance by an average of five percent.
Next, the researchers used younger students in a biology class. They told them before final exams either to write about their feelings or to think about things unrelated to the test.
Prefessor Beilock says highly anxious students who did the writing got an average grade of B+,compared to a B- for those who did not.
Sian Beilock: “What we showed is that for students who are highly testanxious,who'd done our writing intervention(排解),all of a sudden there was no relationship between test anxiety and performance. Those students most likely to worry were performing just as well as their classmates who don't normally get nervous in these testing situations.”
But what if students do not have a chance to write about their fears immediately before an exam or presentation? Professor Beilock says students can try it themselves at home or in the library and still improve their performance.Which of the following is TRUE?
A.The result in the math test agrees with that in the biology test. |
B.In the first math test, students who sat quietly performed better. |
C.In the second math test, students who wrote about their feelings did worse. |
D.Some college students are highly anxious testtakers while others are not in the tests. |
What may happen if students have the problem of test anxiety?
A.Test anxiety is sure to cause students to fail the test. |
B.Test anxiety can improve students' performance to some degree. |
C.Students' attention and memory resources run out when worried. |
D.Students may not be admitted into their favorite college if worried. |
The result of the research suggests that ________.
A.proper amount of burden may turn out to be a good thing |
B.facing the fears bravely may help one to achieve more |
C.avoiding facing the problem may contribute to relaxation |
D.taking no action before difficulty may result in success |
What is the main idea of the passage?
A.It is important for students to overcome test anxiety. |
B.Anxious students overcome test anxiety by writing down fears. |
C.It is a common practice for students being worried before a test. |
D.Being worried before tests does harm to students' performance. |
A young man went to a town and worked there. He did not have a wife and a servant did the work in his house.
The young man liked laughing a lot. He nailed the servant’s shoes to the floor on Monday, and then laughed, because he put his feet in them and fell down.
The servant was not angry, but smiled. Then the young man put brushes in his bed on Tuesday. The servant got into bed and hit the brushes with his feet. He was afraid. The young man laughed loudly again. Again the servant was not angry, but smiled.
Then on Wednesday the young man said to his servant, “You’re a nice, kind man. I am not going to be unkind to you again.”
The servant smiled and said, “And I’m not going to put any more mud from the street in your coffee.” The young man went to a town ___.
A.to study | B.to work | C.to see his relative | D.to spend his holiday |
He played a joke on the servant because ___.
A.he hated him |
B.he was not satisfied with the food the servant prepared for him |
C.he wanted to get pleasure |
D.he liked to show off himself |
When the young man played a joke on him, the servant was not angry but smiled because ___.
A.he liked the young man’ s action |
B.making the young man laugh is his job |
C.he was afraid to be fired |
D.he thought he shouldn’t be angry with a child |
What did the servant do in return to the young man?
A.He stole something from the house. |
B.He gave a smile to the young man. |
C.He had a fight with him. |
D.He put mud into the young man’s coffee. |
Why did the young man stop playing jokes on the servant?
A.Because the servant showed kind and nice behaviour to him |
B.Because the servant told him the truth |
C.Because he wanted to be a good man |
D.Because his father told him to do so |
Dorothea Dix left home at an early age — of her own free will — to live with her grandmother.
At fourteen, Dorothea was teaching school at Worcester, Massachusetts. A short time after she had begun teaching, she set up a school for young girls in her grandparents’ home, which she conducted until she was thirty-three.
She was forced to give up teaching at her grand-parents’ home, however, when she became ill, a few years of inactivity followed.
In 1841 Dorothea began to teach again, accepting a Sunday school class in the East Cambridge, Massachusetts prison. Here she first came upon insane people (精神病人) locked up together with prisoners.
In those days insane people were treated even worse than prisoners. There were only a few madhouses in the entire country. Therefore prisons, poor houses, and houses of correction were used to keep the insane.
Dorothea Dix made a careful investigation(调查) of the inhuman treatment of the insane. It was considered unusual for a woman to devote herself to such work at that time. But this did not stop Dorothea Dix from providing proper medical care for the insane.
Gradually, because of her investigations, conditions were improved. More than thirty mental institutions were founded or rebuilt in the United States because of her hard work. Dorothea also spread her investigations to England and to other parts of Europe.
During the Civil War, Dorothea served as superintendent(负责人) of women hospital nurses in the Union army. When the war was over, she returned to her work of improving conditions for insane people. What kind of school was Dorothea’s school at Worcester, Massachusetts?
How did Dorothea Dix first realize the mistreatment of insane people?
Why was Dorothea Dix’s work with the insane interrupted(中断)?
How are the events of Dorothea Dix’s life presented in the passage?
What does this article mainly tell us about?
A large number of women in Western European countries wish that they were born men. The number is said as high as 60% in West Germany.
“Women often wish that they had the same chance as men have, and believe it is still men’s world,” said Dr James Holden, one of the scientists who did the study.
Anne Harper has a very good job for an international oil company. She also believes in “Women’ s Liberation(解放)”.
“I don’t wish that I were a man,” she says, “and I don’t think many women do. But I do wish that people would stop looking down upon us women. At work, for example, we often do the work that men do but get paid less. There are still a lot of jobs that are usually the best ones and open only to men. If you’re a man, you have a much better chance of leading an exciting life. How many women pilots are there ... or engineers or scientists?”What can we learn from the first paragraph?
A.60% Western European women wish that they were born men. |
B.Most women in Western European countries wish that their babies were all boys. |
C.60% women in West Germany wish that they were born men. |
D.60% Western European women who wish that they were born men are from West Germany. |
“It is still men’s world.” means “______.”
A.There’re more men than women in the world |
B.There’re more men scientists or engineers than women scientists or engineers in the world |
C.Women cannot live without men |
D.Women have not been given the same chance as men |
Anne Harper considers that women should ______.
A.be really liberated |
B.live a better life than men |
C.be well paid |
D.get better jobs than men |
Anne Harper doesn’t wish that she were a man because she ______.
A.has got a very good job |
B.believes in “Women’s Liberation” |
C.does the work that a man can’t do |
D.isn’t looked down upon by anyone |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A.Usually the best jobs are not open to women. |
B.Women are less paid than men for the same job. |
C.There’re more men pilots, engineers and scientists than women ones. |
D.Women are looked down upon because they’re the second-class citizens. |
As a music teacher for twenty-seven years, I have always known that music touches the soul. It can break through all kinds of barriers(障碍) to reach students in a very special way. It can be the means for each child to find their light.
A few years ago, I was blessed with the opportunity to teach pre-school students one afternoon a week. One of my most memorable students was Vanessa. She was five years old, had difficulty walking, and could not speak. We mostly sat on the floor for our music lessons and Vanessa liked to sit on my lap. One of her favorite songs was John the Rabbit. It was a call and response song where I sang the call and the students clapped two times while singing the repeating phrase, “Oh, yes!” Vanessa liked to put her hands together with mine and clap with me. We performed that song during every class, Vanessa and I clapping together. She never said or sang a word.
One day late in the school year, when the song was finished, Vanessa turned around, looked me in the eye, clapped her tiny hands two times and said the words “Oh, yes!” I opened my mouth and could not speak. Through music, we had made a connection.
Several years later, I came across Vanessa on the street in town. I stopped my car and waved to say hello. She waved back with a big smile on her face and then clapped her hands two times, mimicking(模仿) the song we had performed in our music class. This precious little girl, through her connection with music, left an impression on me that will last forever.
Every child has the ability to learn and grow. It is up to us educators to discover the way to reach each and every one of our students. We all must find each child’s light.The author thinks music________.
A.can make children calm down |
B.Can connect heart to heart |
C.Is difficult for pre-school students |
D.Is a good means to find a job |
According to the second paragraph, Vanessa________.
A.Got used to singing songs |
B.Was too shy to speak |
C.Was the youngest in the class |
D.Enjoyed the author’s classes |
When Vanessa spoke the words “Oh, yes!”, the author felt________.
A.Surprised | B.Happy | C.Frightened | D.Satisfied |
What can we infer from the last two paragraphs?
A.The author has been in touch with Vanessa for several years. |
B.Vanessa became as healthy as other children. |
C.The song made a deep impression on Vanessa. |
D.Being a good educator became Vanessa’s dream. |
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 (职业生涯)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 believed 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 (心理的) 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 training schedule. |
B.Her daily happenings. |
C.Her achievements. |
D.Her sports career. |
What does the underlined word “distractions” probably refer to?
A.Ways that help one to focus. |
B.Words that help one to feel less tense. |
C.Activities that turn one’s attention away. |
D.Habits that make it hard for one to relax. |
According to the passage, what do the three people have in common?
A.Courage. |
B.Devotion. |
C.Hard work. |
D.Self-confidence. |