When I first told people I was going to work in Cameroon, the most common reaction was: “Why?” The second was: “It’s in Africa; you’ll die!” The third: “Where is that?”
So let me give some answers. I was offered a job that looked interesting in a part of the world I’d never been to before. I’d also long had an interest in Africa, so I decided it was time to find out the reality.
A small amount of research showed that in more than 40 years since gaining independence, Cameroon has been a peaceful country with no wars. Not only are there no wars, but Cameroon is a food exporter to the region.
Now, after three years, I can say that these have been the healthiest years of my life! No malaria or any of the other frightening diseases you read about when Africa is mentioned. The worst thing that ever happened to me was a bout of food poisoning — once.
So what is it like to teach here? Well surprisingly not so different from teaching anywhere else.
Most students come to us with a bit of English in their heads. Cameroon is a bilingual country with French and English as official languages, while there are also close to 200 local ethnic languages in a country of 16 million people. French is the dominant language, spoken by about 80% of the population.
The local school system is very traditional and somewhat strict. Perhaps not surprisingly when there can be up to 150 students in the classroom (of which maybe 30 have the books, and there are probably seats for 70).
Like anywhere else, students appreciate it if you know a bit about their country, and not just Roger Milla (the top scorer of the 1990 World Cup, in case you’re wondering). It helps if you know the names of the ten provinces, know who the first president was, or can say a word in a local language.
So in conclusion: Cameroon isn’t just football. Not is it war, poverty and disease. It’s just life and people, like anywhere else. On hearing the writer’s decision, most people _____.
| A．didn’t understand him | B．considered it as a joke |
| C．admired him | D．laughed at him |
According to the passage, Cameroon is _____.
| A．a country full of diseases | B．peaceful after liberation |
| C．a poor country, especially lack of food | D．quite different from others in education |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．Food export may lead to many frightening diseases. |
| B．Most students in Cameroon do not need books |
| C．Cameroon is not as bad as people commonly believed |
| D．There must be a lot of people suffering from food poisoning. |
What does the underlined word in the sixth paragraph mean?
| A．leading | B．easy | C．only | D．wonderful |
Leo married my mother when I was 1l, two years later we moved into a house in a new suburban development. At first our lawn (草坪) was just a mud pile with a few untidy clumps of grass, but Leo saw bright possibilities. "Your mother wants flowers; she can plant them here, where there's lots of sun," he said, "We'll plant trees over there, to give us shade. And in the backyard, I'd like a barbecue.” Then he smiled. "After so many years of apartment living, now we can have cookouts (野餐)!”
Weekday mornings when the weather was bad, Leo often drove me to school. Having a father drop you off may have been taken for granted, but I always thought it was wonderful. During dinner, Leo would tell my brother and me stories about his job and we'd talk about our friendship and school-work.. "If you need any help, just ask me," he would say. "But I doubt that you need it. You two are so clever."
Some people might think that doing errands (差事) and eating meals together are nothing special, but , I , who had spent my childhood watching other families do these everyday activities before, enjoyed them now with great delight. Looking back, I realize that Leo gave me what I needed most--the experience of doing ordinary things together as a family.
One day, we learned that my "real" father -- who hadn't seen or supported my brother or me for more than five years --- wanted to see us again, on a regular basis. We remembered too well the early years we had spent with him. He had been angry and cruel, violent and unloving. Since my brother was then 17 years old, he didn't have to follow family-court rules. But because I was still a "minor", I had to meet with the judge.
When Leo, my mother, and I entered the courtroom, my "real" father was already present. I avoided his look and told the judge I was one of a new family now, and that Leo taught me how to make things, that he always listened to me and never raised his voice. I said I didn't want to see my "real" father any more because he had never shown any love for me or even much attention.
The judge looked at Leo. "How are things going?" he asked.
"They couldn't be better," Leo answered. "I'm a lucky man to have such a family."
Aren’t the best parents also good friends to their children, accepting them without reservation and telling them they can be counted on? Step families aren't bound by traditional ties, so the love and friendship they develop is extremely precious. Was Leo "perfect''? He'd deny it if I said so. And that's one reason why he was so "perfect" to me.
Soon after we moved to the suburb, one of our new neighbors introduced herself to me. She had already met my mother and Leo. "You know," she remarked, "you look just like your father."
I knew she was just making conversation---- but even so...
"Thank you," I said.
Why tell her anything different?
67. What is the best title for the story?
A. My childhood B. My “Real father”, My Enemy
C. My Stepfather, My Friend D. Precious Friendship
68. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. Leo had lived in a large house alone in the country before he married my mother.
B. Thanks to Leo, our lawn took on a new look.
C. Before Leo came. I was always picked up by my "real" father when the weather was bad.
D. Leo wouldn’t like to help my brother and me because we were very clever.
69. What was very important to step families according to the writer?
A. Love and friendship B. Care and respect
C. Wealth and understanding D. Politeness and kindness
70. It can be inferred from the passage that _____.
A. My "real" father’s request was refused and he was out of my life.
B. My mother and "real" father didn’t separate until my brother was 17.
C. Leo was no one special in my life.
D. Leo and I were so alike that my neighbors couldn’t tell us apart.
(C)
Some people say we need
to plant trees in places
where rock concerts or
conferences are held in
order to absorb the carbon
dioxide created by the
event. This picture shows
how trees can help.
Photosynthesis （光合作用）
①Photosynthesis takes place
when there is sunlight.
② Carbon dioxide in air enters
the leaves through tiny holes
called stomata ( 气孔).
③ Leaves contain chlorophyll
( 叶绿素 ) which traps the
sun's energy.
④ Plant's roots gather water
from the soil.
⑤ Leaves use chlorophyll and
sunlight to change the water
and carbon dioxide into food,
or sugar, for the plant.
⑥ Oxygen is released into the air.
63. According to the passage, which of the following plays an important part in catching the sun's energy?
A. Roots B. Branches C. Leaves D. Trunks
64. What is the best title of the diagram(图表)?
A. How trees absorb carbon dioxide?
B. How the air can be made cleaner?
C. Trees play an important part in our daily life.
D. How trees get food in the soil?
65. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. the food for trees is made from the water and sugar in the soil
B. photosynthesis can't take place at night
C. photosynthesis can take place at any time
D. trees help little in improving the air conditions
66. According to the passage, where should more trees be planted?
A. near the river B. near the cinema
C. along the highway D. on the mountain
“Helping survivors (生还者) of the earthquake and killer waves in the Indian Ocean last week is a race against time” says Kofi Annan , the United Nations secretary-general .
The concern about offers of international aid is based on history. Since we are social beings, the quality of our lives depends in large measure on our interpersonal relationships. One strength of the human condition is our aim to give and receive support from one another under stressful surroundings. Social support consists of the exchange of resources among people based on their interpersonal ties.
Those of us with strong support systems appear betterable to deal with major life changes and daily problems. People with strong social ties live longer and have better health than those without such ties. Studies over a range of illnesses, from depression to heart disease, show that the presence of social support helps people prevent illness, and the absence of such support makes poor health more likely.
Social support cushions stress in a number of ways. First, friends, relatives, and co-workers may let us know that they value us. Our self-respect is strengthened when we are popular with others despite our faults and difficulties. Second, other people often provide us with informational support. They help us to notice and understand our problems and find solutions to them. Third, we typically find social companionship supportive. Engaging in leisure-time activities with others helps us to meet our social needs while at the same time distracting(转移...注意力)us from our worries and troubles. Finally, other people may give us instrumental support: a financial aid, material resources, and needed services -- that reduces stress by helping us deal with our problems.
59. Research shows that people's physical and mental health _______.
A. depends on the social welfare (福利)systems which support them
B. has much to do with the amount of support they get from others
C. depends on their ability to deal with daily worries and troubles
D. is closely related to their strength for dealing with major changes in their lives
60. The underlined word" cushions" in Para.3 means _______.
A. adds up to B. does away with
C. reduce the effect of D. depends on
61. Helping a sick neighbor with some repair work is an example of _______.
A. instrumental support B. informational support
C. social companionship D. the strengthening of self-respect
62. Social companionship is very important because _______.
A. it helps strengthen our ties with relatives
B. it enables us to get rid of our faults and mistakes
C. it makes our leisure-time activities more enjoyable
D. it draws our attention away from our worries and troubles
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的 A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
GENEVA--- The use of stimulants (兴奋剂) or drugs is increasing and something must be done about it, the WHO (World Health Organization) said on Friday.
In the 1970s the international focus was on heroin. In the 1980s and the 1990s the focus was on cocaine. Now in the 21st century we are becoming frightened by the rapid increase in amphetamine--type stimulants, not only in the rich countries of the world but the whole world,” said the official of the WHO.
Amphetamines are often used by the workers, such as long-distance truck drivers, to increase endurance(耐久力) or delay sleep, the official said.
About 3 percent of the population of the world use amphetamine, experts said. In Britain, among young people between the ages of 16 and 19, fourteen percent of them have used amphetamine.
In Korea, Japan, Denmark, the Philippines and Australia , amphetamine are more widely used than heroin or cocaine, a reporter said. The problem is also widespread in the United States, Western and Eastern Europe.
56. How many kinds of drugs are mentioned in this passage ?
A. Four B. Three C. One D. Not clear
57. Why does the use of amphetamine-- type stimulants frighten us?
A. Because the use of it is rapidly increased in the whole world.
B. Because many teenagers in Britain have used it.
C. Because it is dangerous if drivers use it.
D. Because people nowadays don’t use heroin or cocaine but amphetamines.
58. What is the purpose of writing this article?
A. To introduce the problem of using amphetamine in America and Europe.
B. To explain why there are so many people in the world using amphetamine.
C. To tell the history of the use of amphetamine.
D. To pay much attention to the increasing problem of using drugs.
China may be the world's most populous country ,and it won the most gold medals at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. But its prowess at soccer is lamentable. China is ranked 84th in the sport's world standing.
Chinese are huge soccer fans, and hundreds of millions are expected to tune in to the World Cup, with all the matches broadcast live on public TV. But this time the Chinese don't have their own team to root for.
"Chinese have a reputation of being good at math, but they have trouble explaining why a population of 1.3 billion cannot produce a winning 11-member soccer team," said Xu Guoqi, a history professor at the University of Hong Kong. Journalists and soccer fans offer a number of reasons, most often money issues, politics, corruption（腐败）and culture, and sometimes a combination of the four.
Even though China now boasts wealthy companies and individuals who could sponsor（赞助） teams, there is little support as long as Chinese teams are perceived as perennial losers. "This is a very bad circle," Ma said. "No results, no money. No money, no results."
Few Chinese children are playing soccer. Some sports journalists and fans attribute the lack of interest partly to schools de-emphasizing sports in general and the lack of playing venues in the country's dense urban areas. "What can Chinese kids do?” said Fan Huiming, 61, a Chinese soccer fan who grew up watching matches at Beijing's Workers' Stadium, which was built in 1958 near his childhood home. "If they play soccer, the ball may fly directly into the glass of someone's home."
For young people, soccer has largely been eclipsed by basketball, thanks in part to Chinese NBA players who are treated like rock stars. Journalists and fans say NBA's aggressive campaign of marketing and merchandise in China has helped swell the popularity of basketball. By comparison, they noted that international soccer does not even have an office in China.
Rowan Simons, a Briton who came to China more than two decades ago and discovered he wasn't able to play weekend soccer, has been on a campaign to popularize the sport here. Simons said the main problem is that soccer elsewhere has traditionally started as a series of neighborhood clubs, but in China, "there's virtually no football at community level".
"Football in China can only succeed if it's a grass-roots activity organized by the people," he said. This time the Chinese don't have their own team to root for in the World Cup because__________.
| A．China is ranked 84th in soccer 's world standing. |
| B．they are angry about why China cannot produce a winning soccer team. |
| C．the Chinese huge soccer fans support other soccer teams. |
| D．the Chinese soccer team is not capable to go as far as the final part of the World Cup. |
Why are few Chinese children playing soccer?
A.No results, no money. No money, no results.
B.If the footballs fly directly into the glass of someone's home,they’ll be criticised.
C there is little support from wealthy companies and individuals sponsoring teams.
D.schools don’t pay much attention on sports and they lack playing venues in dense urban areas.The underlined word“eclipsed”in the six paragraph can be replaced by .
| A．occupied. | B．beaten. | C．led. | D．compared. |
According to Rowan,what can be inferred ?
| A．NBA players are more popular than soccer players in China. |
| B．The future of Chinese football is rather promising. |
| C．Chinese football should get into the life of ordinary people to survive. |
| D．Grass-roots Chinese football players can be popular . |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号