The New York Times’ Room for Debate blog has a panel (专门小组) considering the pluses and minuses of summer homework. This has been the subject of debate in our house. Our 11th-grade daughter’s summer assignments were very challenging, to the point where I sometimes wondered if more of her time would have been better spent just riding a bicycle or swimming around a pool.
Here are some opinions from the panel:
Harris Cooper, psychologist, Duke University: “The long summer vacation disrupts(打乱) the rhythm of instruction, leads to forgetting and requires time be spent reviewing old material when students return to school in the fall. My advice? Teachers, you need to be careful about what and how much summer homework you assign. Summer homework shouldn’t be expected to overcome a student’s learning deficits(不足); that’s what summer school is for. Parents, if the assignments are clear and reasonable, support the teachers. ”
Nancy Kalish, co-author of the Case Against Homework: “Schools should rethink summer homework, and not just because it stresses out kids (and parents). The truth is, homework doesn’t accomplish what we assume it does. According to a Duke University review of more than 175 studies, there is little or no connection between homework and standardized test score or long-term achievement in primary school.”
Mark Bauerlein, professor of English at Emory University: “To the general question of whether or not schools should assign summer homework, the answer is ‘Yes.’ The reason comes not only from the brain drain(脑力消耗) of summer. It relates also to an attitude young people take toward education. They tie knowledge to the syllabus(教学大纲), not to themselves. They read and study to write the paper and score highly in the test, not to furnish their minds. In a word, they regard learning as a classroom thing. That’s all.”
It seems to me that summer homework is a good idea to keep the brain cells moving, but like everything else it should be given in moderation. Harris Cooper seems to believe that_________.
| A．more summer homework causes students’ learning difficulties |
| B．students should go to summer school if they have no homework |
| C．teachers should give careful consideration to summer homework |
| D．parents should tell teachers how much homework their kids need |
In the 4th paragraph, Nancy Kalish explains her idea by_________.
| A．making comparisons | B．giving research findings |
| C．raising questions | D．telling stories |
Mark Bauerlein might agree that summer homework_________.
| A．should be based on the school’s teaching program |
| B．has no direct connection to students’ higher grades |
| C．brings more pressure to both students and their parents |
| D．helps students develop the right attitude toward learning |
Three Japanese tourists taking a holiday in Australia got stuck when their GPS told them they could drive from the mainland to an island, failing to mention the 15 kilometres of water and mud in between.
As they drove their hired car from Moreton Bay to nearby North Stradbroke Island, they started to notice the firm surface they were driving on giving way to the well-known bay mud. However, being confident that their GPS would direct them to a road soon, they decided to drive on, managing to travel around 500 metres before their car was up to its tires in mud. To make matters worse, the tide(潮汐) started to come in and soon forced them to seek help and abandon the vehicle. Just four hours later the car was trapped in two metres of water — to the great amusement of onlookers on the shore and passengers on passing boats and ferries.
Yuzu Noda, 21, said she was listening to the GPS and “it told us we could drive down there. It kept saying it would navigate(导航) us to a road. But we got stuck…there’s lots of mud.” She and her travel companions Tomonari Saeki, 22, and Keita Osada, 21, instead had to give up their plans for a day trip to the island and headed back to the Gold Coast of a lift from the RACQ tow truck(吊车) driver who was called to the trapped car. No such luck for the hired car though – after assessing the situation, no attempt was made to recover it. The students from Tokyo, who are due to return home tomorrow, said the experience would not put them off returning to Australia for another visit. Mr. Tomonari said, “It has rained every day on our six day holiday. Hopefully next time we come back it will be sunny.”
The car was covered by insurance, but the tourists will have to pay up to about $1500 in extra charges.The three Japanese tourists got stuck because .
| A．there was no way to the island |
| B．their GPS was broken during their journey |
| C．their GPS had given the wrong information |
| D．their car was not made in Japan |
They didn’t abandon their car until .
| A．some onlookers went to save them |
| B．they got stuck in the mud |
| C．there came the tide |
| D．they managed to travel around 500 metres |
How did these Japanese students get back?
| A．They had to walk back to their living place. |
| B．They had to take a lift from the tow truck driver. |
| C．They had to repair their GPS and drove back. |
| D．They had to turn to passengers on boats and ferries. |
According to the passage, which of the following is true?
| A．The passengers saved these students in the end. |
| B．Mr. Tomonari got very down after the journey. |
| C．No money has to be paid thanks to insurance. |
| D．The car was left where it was trapped. |
If a sitcom(情景喜剧) that lasts for l0 years is considered popular, then surely one that still arouses emotions after 20 must be considered a classic. Friends first aired in the US in 1994, telling about six young men and women in New York．Since then, it’s become one of the most famous titles in the sitcom style, aired in over 100 countries and regions in the world.
The show is typical among those who grew up in the 1990s because it explores basic yet important themes like friendship, struggling to survive in a big city, and finding independence and identity, all of which are still relevant to young audiences today.
Against the background of the Internet age, IT staff who were once marginalized(排斥) and laughed at have been brought back to life due to the popularity of hit show The Big Bang Theory, in which four talents lacking normal social skills make an attempt at living on a college campus.
At the same time, Gossip Girl, describing a young cast of New Yorkers born with silver spoons in their mouths, showing the difficulties upper-class adolescents experience. The play’s fashion and mature subject matter allowed it to draw the interest of both teenagers and adults.
Although these typical TV shows cover a wide timeline and a variety of themes, they all have a universal topic. Why are they still appealing? It remains to be found out.Why is the sitcom Friends typical among young people in the 1990s?
| A．Because it is a breakthrough in the producing style. |
| B．Because it is the most influential sitcom of all time. |
| C．Because it predicts the future of the young at that time. |
| D．Because it addresses the subjects faced by the youth. |
What can we learn about The Big Bang Theory?
| A．It improves the conditions of the people in IT. |
| B．It arouses people’s enthusiasm for computers. |
| C．It is about four talents who are good at everything. |
| D．It is set in the time before the Internet came into being. |
According to the passage, Gossip Girl .
| A．describes the hardships of upper-class people |
| B．attracts people of all ages |
| C．shows eye-catching style and adult subject |
| D．describes the life of ordinary girls |
What will the author most probably talk about next?
| A．The introduction to other hit sitcoms. |
| B．The further information about the plot. |
| C．The analysis of the reasons for the appeal. |
| D．The emotional response among audience. |
Jerry was a unique manager because he had several waiters who had followed him around from restaurant to restaurant. The reason the waiters followed Jerry was because of his attitude. He was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Jerry was there telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the situation.
Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Jerry and asked him, “I don’t get it! You can’t be a positive person all of the time. How do you do it?” Jerry replied, “Each morning I wake up and say to myself, ‘Jerry, you have two choices today. You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.’ I choose to be in a good mood. Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can choose to learn from it. I choose to learn from it. Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the positive side of life. The bottom line: It’s your choice how you live your life.” I reflected on what Jerry said. Later, I left the restaurant industry to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him when I made a choice about life.
Several years later, I heard that Jerry did something you are never supposed to do in a restaurant business: he left the back door open one morning and was stopped at gun point by three armed robbers. While trying to open the safe(保险箱), he forgot the password, nervous. The robbers shot him. Luckily, Jerry was found rather quickly and rushed to the local hospital. After 18 hours of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Jerry left hospital with fragments（碎片）of the bullets(子弹) still in his body.
I saw Jerry about six months after the accident. When I asked him how he was, he replied, “The first thing that went through my mind was that I should have locked the back door,” Jerry replied. “Then, as I lay on the floor, I remembered that I had two choices: I could choose to live, or I could choose to die. I chose to live.” “Weren’t you frightened? Did you lose consciousness(知觉)?” I asked. Jerry continued, “The doctors and nurses were great. They kept telling me I was going to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the emergency room and I saw the expressions on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really frightened. I knew I needed to take action.”
“What did you do?” I asked. “Well, there was a big, strong nurse shouting questions at me,” said Jerry. “She asked if I was allergic (过敏的)to anything. ‘Yes,’ I replied. The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took a deep breath and shouted, ‘Bullets!’ Over their laughter, I told them. ‘I am choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead.’”
Jerry lived thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to live fully.The author left Jerry’s restaurant industry because he________.
| A．wanted to start business on his own |
| B．was afraid of another robbery later |
| C．was not equal to the job any longer |
| D．didn’t get along well with others |
Why was Jerry shot? ________.
| A．Because he left the back door open |
| B．Because he refused to open the safe |
| C．Because he didn’t open the safe in time |
| D．Because he pretended to forget the password |
What was Jerry really afraid of in the emergency room? ________.
| A．The doctors and nurses gave him up. |
| B．He decided to take action to live again. |
| C．He saw many doctors and nurses waiting there. |
| D．He might not be saved by doctors and nurses. |
From the passage we can learn that Jerry was ________.
| A．no longer positive to his life after the operation |
| B．optimistic even when things were at their worst |
| C．influenced by all his colleagues in many ways |
| D．badly injured and stayed in hospital for six months |
Which of the following is conveyed in this article?
| A．Where there is life, there is hope. |
| B．Everything comes to him who waits. |
| C．Attitude determines everything. |
| D．Humor is the best medicine that creates miracle(奇迹). |
Will you be playing some music at work?
Music is particularly popular in the medical profession, especially among surgeons（外科医生）. A recent survey shows that 90% of surgeons in the UK put music on the sound system in the theatre during operations. Plastic surgeons（整形外科医生）play the most music; it appears that ear, nose, and throat specialists the least.
But it isn’t only in surgeries(外科手术) where music is popular. In another recent survey, one-third of the 1,613 people said they listen to music while working. And 79% of them said that humming（哼歌）along improves their job satisfaction or productivity.
Is listening to music at work a good idea? Yes, say the experts. Many surgeons say that music helps to create a “calm atmosphere”, and a third of them added that it avoids getting bored! Also, listening to music raises the levels of a brain chemical that can help people focus. Office workers say it improves job satisfaction. Several studies suggest that it’s also good for hospital patients. Those listening to music through headphones during surgery require less anesthetic（麻醉剂）, up to 50% less in some cases, and recover more quickly afterwards. “Sure, music reduces anxiety before surgery,” says Zeev Kain, an anesthetist at Yale University.
So, what type of music should we be listening to? Surgeons from the previous survey preferred rock, pop music and classical. And hip-hop is popular too. However, whatever the kind, it appears that self-selected music is the best choice. Pennsylvania State University research showed that when people chose their own music there was more stress reduction(下降). And other researchers found that when listening to self-selected music, surgeons did the maths faster and more accurately than when they were listening to music chosen for them.The underlined word “theatre” in Paragraph 2 probably means ________.
| A．an operating room |
| B．a rest room for surgeons |
| C．a waiting room in a hospital |
| D．a building where shows are performed |
The surveys mentioned in the passage show ________.
| A．music is popular in some professions |
| B．most surgeons in the UK are fond of singing |
| C．office workers learn a lot from listening to music |
| D．fewer than half of the people listen to music at work |
What are the advantages of listening to music at work? ________.
①improving memory
②keeping people relaxed
③improving job satisfaction
④improving eyesight
| A．①④ | B．①② | C．②③ | D．②④ |
How should you choose music for work time according to the passage? ________.
| A．Turn to the surgeons for help |
| B．Make your selection by yourself |
| C．Rock, pop music and classical are always good choices |
| D．The most popular music should be taken into consideration |
The passage is mainly about ________.
| A．how to choose music wisely |
| B．where to find the best music |
| C．the popularity of music in hospitals |
| D．the benefits of listening to music at work |
Barack Obama, Lady Gaga and Steve Jobs—what do they have in common? They are, of course, all Americans. And according to a survey by social networking site badoo. com, they all best illustrate(举例说明) the word “cool”.
But just what does it mean to say someone is “cool”? Most would answer that it is something to do with being independent-minded and not following the crowd.
Yale University art professor Robert Farris Thompson says that the term “cool” goes back to 15th century West African philosophy(哲学). “Cool” relates to ideas of grace(优雅) under pressure.
“In Africa, ” he writes, “coolness is a positive quality which combines calmness, silence, and life. ”
The modern idea of “cool” developed largely in the US in the period after World War Ⅱ. “Post-war ‘cool’ was in part an expression of war-weariness (厌战情绪) . . . it went against the strict social rules of the time, ” write sociologists Dick Pountain and David Robins in Cool Rules: Anatomy of an Attitude.
But it was the American actor James Dean who became the symbol for “cool” in the hugely successful 1955 movie Rebel without a Cause. Dean plays a tough guy who disobeys his parents and the authorities(权威). He always gets the girl, smokes cigarettes, wears a leather jacket and beats up bullies(欺凌弱小者). In the movie, Dean showed what “cool” would mean to American young people for the next 60 years.
Today the focus of “cool” has changed to athletics (体育运动) stars. Often in movies about schools, students gain popularity on the athletics field more than in the classroom. This can be seen quite clearly in movies like Varsity Blues and John Tucker Must Die.
But many teenagers also think being smart is cool. Chess and other thinking games have been becoming more popular in schools.
“Call it the Harry Potterization of America —a time when being smart is the new cool, ” writes journalist Joe Sunnen.Barack Obama, Lady Gaga and Steve Jobs are mentioned in the first paragraph to ________.
| A．introduce the topic |
| B．draw our attention |
| C．tell us what they have in common |
| D．tell us what is “cool” |
If you were considered “cool” in Africa in the 15th century, you ________.
| A．thought and acted differently from the majority |
| B．had a calm and quiet attitude towards life |
| C．didn’t observe rules and authorities |
| D．had all kinds of “bad” manners |
The heroes in Varsity Blues and John Tucker Must Die are likely to be those who ________.
| A．do very well in their studies |
| B．are very skilled at sports |
| C．are good at chess and other thinking games. |
| D．have supernatural powers like Harry Potter |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the article？
| A．It is generally considered “cool” to be independent-minded and not to follow the crowd. |
| B．“Cool” was used as early as the 15th century. |
| C．Disobeying one’s parents and the authorities is considered “cool” among American young people nowadays. |
| D．Getting the first place in an exam can also be considered “cool”. |
What does the article mainly talk about?
| A．The origin of the word “cool”. |
| B．The kinds of people who are “cool”. |
| C．The changing meaning of the word “cool”. |
| D．How to be a “ cool” person. |