An Ofsted (英国教育标准办公室）study reports that teachers are discouraging students who want to leave school and work as apprentices (学徒）in beauty salons (美容中心）or hair dressers.
Inspectors questioned 105 young people for a report on apprenticeships published on Wednesday. They found several examples of young people who felt they had been laughed at by their teachers for wanting to progress to work-based learning, particularly in care or hairdressing, rather than stay on at school.
Right or wrong, is it any surprise that this is happening? From 2014，the government will measure schools according to the rate of their pupils who go to university. Brian Lightman , general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, says the government has already put teachers under “very great pressure to focus on academic subjects”
On the other hand, the Education Act 2011，which came into force in November, places schools under a duty to give fair career advice to pupils. This advice must include information on all post-16 education and training choices, including apprenticeships. This doesn’t appear to be happening in several schools, according to Ofsted9S report. Many of the young people the inspectors talked to said the advice they had received on apprenticeships was “unsatisfactory”.
Schools were also blamed for lack of work experience courses, which are particularly important for teenagers considering an apprenticeship. They help students decide whether they enjoy a line of work and enable employers to see whether those on work experience have the potential to be hired as apprentices in future years.
But there is a good reason why they can’t do this: they’d be unable to adapt to GCSE (英国齊通中等教育证书）exams if they did. Sometimes, it seems, schools just can’t win.Why do teachers oppose the students’ leaving school and working as apprentices?
| A．The government urges teachers to concentrate on academic subjects. |
| B．The students are only wasting time working as apprentices. |
| C．Employers are under great pressure of taking GCSE exams. |
| D．Employers don’t give students chances to work as apprentices |
Pressure for schools to provide pupils with career advice comes from ______.
| A．Association of School and College Leaders |
| B．Education Act 2011 |
| C．GCSE exams |
| D．OFSTED |
The underlined word “They” in Paragraph 5 refers to _____.
| A．schools |
| B．employers |
| C．work experience courses |
| D．teenagers considering an apprenticeship |
What does the author think of teachers’ discouraging students working as apprentices?
| A．Surprising | B．Understandable |
| C．Wrong | D．Right |
Informal conversation is an important part of any business relationship. Before you start a discussion, however, make sure you understand which topics are suitable and which are considered taboos (禁忌) in a particular culture. Latin Americans enjoy sharing information about their local history, art, and customs. They expect questions about their family and are sure to show pictures of their children. Yon may feel free to ask similar questions of your Latin American friends. The French think of conversation as an art form, and they enjoy the value of lively discussions as well as disagreements. For them, arguments can be interesting—and they can cover pretty much or any topic—as long as they occur in a respectful and intelligent (智慧的) manner.
In the United States, business people like to discuss a wide range of topics, including opinions about work, family, hobbies, and politics. In Japan, China, and Korea, however, people are much more private. They do not share much about their thoughts, feelings, or emotions because they feel that doing so might take away from the harmonious (和谐的) business relationship they're trying to build. Middle Easterners are also private about their personal lives and family matters. It is considered rude, for example, to ask a businessman from Saudi Arabia about his wife or children.
As general rule, it's best not to talk about politics or religion (宗教) with your business friends. This can get you into trouble, even in the United States, where people hold different views. In addition, discussing one's salary is usually considered unsuitable. Sports is typically a friendly subject in most parts of the world, but be careful not to criticize a national sport. Instead, be friendly and praise your host's team. Which is typically a friendly topic in most places according to the author?
| A．Sports. |
| B．Children. |
| C．Personal feelings. |
| D．Families. |
Why are people from Asia more private in their conversation with others?
| A．They don't want to talk with others much. |
| B．They don't want to have their good relationship with others harmed by informal conversation. |
| C．They are afraid to argue with their colleagues. |
| D．They want to keep their feelings to themselves. |
What shouldn't you do when talking about sports with colleagues from another country?
| A．Praising your own country's sports. |
| B．Criticizing your own country's sports. |
| C．Praising the sports of your colleagues'country. |
| D．Criticizing the sports of your colleagues'country. |
Kataria is the founder of the worldwide laughter movement. The celebration of World Laughter Day is a positive activity for world peace and is intended to build up a global sense of brotherhood and friendship through laughter. The first "World Laughter Day" gathering took place in Mumbai, India, on 11th January, 1998. 12, 000 members from India and international Laughter Clubs attended it. Now there are over 5, 000 Laughter Clubs worldwide on all 5 continents.
"HAPPY-DEMIC" was the first World Laughter Day gathering outside India. It took place on 9th January, two years after the Mumbai gathering. In Copenhagen, Denmark, more than 10, 000 people gathered at Town Hall Square. The event went into Guinness Book of World Records. "World Laughter Day" is now organized on the first Sunday of May every year. Hundreds of people gather worldwide on that day to laugh together.
Today, many people fear widespread international terrorism. The world has never faced so much unrest before. People are at war within themselves. Laughter is a universal language, which has the ability to unite humanity without religion. Laughter can build a common connection between various religions and create a new world order. The idea may sound over-ambitious (野心太大的), and maybe it is. But maybe it is not. It is our deep belief that laughter and only laughter can unite the world, building up a global sense of brotherhood and friendship.
Studies also say that laughter helps your body do the following: lower blood pressure; lighten depression; reduce stress; work out the heart, especially for those who are unable to perform physical exercise. So in life, when you can laugh, you should laugh loudly and with your entire body—because it's good for you. The first World Laughter Day gathering outside India took place __________.
| A．on 11th January, 1998 |
| B．on the first Sunday of May |
| C．on 9th January, 1996 |
| D．on 9th January, 2000 |
The author's attitude towards laughter movement is __________.
| A．positive |
| B．negative |
| C．uninterested |
| D．objective |
The passage is mainly about __________.
| A．World Laughter Day and its significance |
| B．the worldwide laughter movement |
| C．a universal language |
| D．laughter |
Yasuda is 95 years old. He and his colleagues, looking for easier ways to search the Web and send e-mail, represent a potential market for Apple (AAPL)'s iPad. The company has sold 3. 27 million iPads since its launch in April, but doesn't break down sales figures by customer age, making it impossible to know with certainty how many old people are buying them. However, evidence suggests it's popular with the old.
The iPad's intuitive interface (直观界面) makes it attractive to old citizens around the world, says Takahiro Miura, a researcher at the University of Tokyo: "The iPad is a good tool for the elderly because it's very forgiving of mistakes." Miura's team uses computers to help train senior citizens to rejoin the workforce. "Unlike the PC, it doesn't require previous (先前的) knowledge," he says.
James Cordwell, a technology analyst at Atlantic-Equities in London, says the iPad's popularity with the elderly is helping Apple reach beyond its traditional base of younger customer. "The world's population, especially in developed markets, is getting older, and it's probably a market where Apple has least entered," Cordwell says. Elderly users are "a key source of growth for them in the future."
The elderly in Japan, who make up an estimated 22 percent of the population, may prove particularly quick to accept the iPad. They spend more than any other group in the country except for those under 30, according to a report by Japan's Cabinet Office. Mo-too Kitamura, 78, a former gas salesman, bought an iPad to help him communicate with his 2-year-old grandson and prevent against dementia (痴呆). "Trying new things like that is a good mental exercise," he says. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．The iPad was only intended for elderly people. |
| B．The use of iPad requires previous knowledge. |
| C．The use of iPad is mentally useful to the old. |
| D．Only the elderly in Japan can use iPad. |
What can we infer from Paragraph 1?
| A．The old get a bit strike from the iPad. |
| B．The iPad causes a heavy burden to the old. |
| C．The iPad is accepted by the old. |
| D．The old are very familiar with the iPad. |
Which of the following is NOT the advantage of the iPad over the PC?
| A．It has intuitive interface. |
| B．It is easier to operate. |
| C．It is more accessible to beginners. |
| D．It is a good mental exercise. |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．The old are the largest consumers in Japan. |
| B．The iPad is traditionally accepted by the young. |
| C．The old in Japan are fond of latest hi-tech products. |
| D．The old customers will soon replace the younger ones. |
What could be the best title for the passage?
| A．The iPad Leads Apple to the Elderly |
| B．IPad Hits Japan's Store Shelves |
| C．IPad's Arrival in Tokyo Causes Japanese to Excite |
| D．AAPL Tries to Balance the Old and the Yong |
It is difficult for doctors to help a person with a damaged brain. Without enough blood, the brain lives for only three to five minutes. More often the doctors can't fix the damage. Sometimes they are afraid to try something to help because it is dangerous to work on the brain. The doctors might make the person worse if they operate on the brain.
Dr. Robert White, a famous professor and doctor, thinks he knows a way to help. He thinks doctors should make the brain very cold. If it is very cold, the brain can live without blood for 30 minutes. This gives the doctor a longer time to do something for the brain.
Dr. White tried his idea on 13 monkeys. First he taught them to do different jobs, then he operated on them. He made the monkeys' blood back to the monkeys' brains. When the brain's temperature was 10℃, Dr. White stopped the blood to the brain. After 30 minutes he turned the blood back on. He warmed the blood again. After their operations the monkeys were like they had been before. They were healthy and busy. Each one could still do the jobs the doctor had taught them. The biggest difficulty in operating on the damaged brain is that __________.
| A．the time is too short for doctors |
| B．the patients are often too nervous |
| C．the damage is extremely hard to fix |
| D．the blood-cooling machine might break down |
The brain operation was made possible mainly by __________.
| A．taking the blood out of the brain |
| B．trying the operation on monkeys first |
| C．having the blood go through a machine |
| D．lowering the brain's temperature |
With Dr. White's new idea, the operation on the damaged brain __________.
| A．can last as long as 30 minutes |
| B．can keep the brain's blood warm |
| C．can keep the patient's brain healthy |
| D．can help monkeys do different jobs |
What is the right order of the steps in the operation?
a. make the blood back to the brain
b. stop the blood to the brain
c. have the blood cooled down
d. operate on the brain
| A．a, b, c, d | B．a, c, b, d |
| C．c, b, d, a | D．b, c, d, a |
Which of the following is not true?
| A．If there isn't enough blood, the brain can live for only three to five minutes. |
| B．If the brain is very cold, it can live without blood for half an hour. |
| C．Dr. White tried his idea for thirteen times. |
| D．After their operations, the monkeys were healthy and busy again. |
At the age of ten I could not figure out what this Elvis Presley guy had that the rest of us boys did not have. I mean, he had a head, two arms and two legs, just like the rest of us. About nine o'clock on Saturday morning I decided to ask Eugene Correthers, one of the older boys, what it was that made this Elvis guy so special. He told me that it was Elvis' wavy hair and the way he moved his body.
About half an hour later all the boys in the orphanage (孤儿院) were called to the main dining-room and told we were all going to downtown Jacksonville, Florida to get a new pair of Buster Brown shoes and a hair cut. That is when I got this big idea, which hit me like a ton of bricks. If the Elvis hair cut was the big secret, then that's what I was going to get.
All the way to town I told everybody, including the matron (女管家) from the orphanage who was taking us to town, that I was going to look just like Elvis Presley and that I would learn to move around just like he did and that I would be rich and famous one day, just like him.
When I got my new Buster Brown shoes, I could hardly wait for my new hair cut and now that I had my new Buster Brown shoes I would be very happy to go back to the orphanage and practice being like Elvis.
We finally arrived at the big barber shop, where they cut our hair for free because we were orphans (孤儿). I looked at the barber and said, "I want an Elvis hair cut. Can you make my hair like Elvis?" I asked him, with a big smile on my face. "Let's just see what we can do for you, little man," he said. I was so happy when he started to cut my hair. Just as he started to cut my hair, the matron signed for him to come over to where she was standing. She whispered something into his ear and then he shook his head, like he was telling her "No". Then he told me they were not allowed to give us Elvis hair cuts. Then I saw my hair falling onto the floor. In the author's eyes, Elvis Presley was __________.
| A．disgusting | B．admirable |
| C．ambitious | D．dynamic |
From the passage, we can know that __________.
| A．Buster Brown was more appealing than Elvis Presley |
| B．An Elvis hair cut cost the orphans a lot of money |
| C．The author was fascinated with the stars Buster and Elvis |
| D．The barber was unwilling to give the boy an Elvis hair cut |
We can learn from the underlined sentence that the boy was __________.
| A．excited to have an Elvis hair cut |
| B．worried to think about the secret |
| C．anxious to remove the ton of bricks |
| D．careful to seize the chance |
How would the boy probably feel when he walked out of the barber shop?
| A．Delighted. | B．Guilty. |
| C．Self-satisfied. | D．Depressed. |
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