（2014届湖北省天门市高中毕业生四月调研测试英语试卷）
As a professor I have grown accustomed to the opinion regarding American education. We are repeatedly told that American schools are failing, that colleges are not teaching, and that the students of today are not as good as the students of the past.
There are, of course, problems with the education system. Because of economic inequality some schools are significantly better than others and the ideas of equality of education and equality of opportunity are cruel jokes. However, the mere fact that there are some serious problems does not mean that all the dire claims are true.
One stock (陈腐的) claim is that America has fallen behind the world in education in terms of performance on various tests. While the fact that America is behind other countries is a point of concern, there are at least three points worth considering here. The first is the above-mentioned economic inequality which will tend to result in poorer performance when taking the average for America. The second is that many countries have put considerable effort into improving their education systems and hence it is worth considering that America’s decline is also due to the improvement of others. The third is the matter of the measures— do they, in fact, present an accurate picture of the situation? I am not claiming that the data is bad. I am merely raising a reasonable concern about how accurate our picture of education is at this time.
Another stock claim is that American students are doing badly on standardized tests. While there is clearly value in assessment, it is reasonable to consider whether or not such tests are a proper and adequate measure of education. It is also worth considering whether the puzzle with these tests is itself causing damage to education. That is, as teachers teach for the test and students learn for the test, it might be the case that what is being taught is not what should be taught and what is being learned is not what should be learned.
According to the professor, many people’s attitude towards American colleges is .
| A．negative | B．positive | C．approving | D．indifferent |
What does the underlined word “dire” in the second paragraph mean?
| A．Exact or precise. | B．Extremely serious or terrible. |
| C．Fair or objective. | D．Long and boring. |
Judging by the text ,the claims are centered on .
| A．what should be taught in the American classroom |
| B．fair judgment of American education |
| C．American students’ performance on tests |
| D．an accurate picture of American colleges |
The passage is written mainly to .
| A．defend American education |
| B．show dissatisfaction with American education |
| C．explain why American students do badly on tests |
| D．offer advice on American education reform |
Brave Frenchman Found Half-way Around the World
(NEW YORK) A French tourist highly praised for rescuing a two-year-old girl in Manhattan said he didn’t think twice before diving into the freezing East River.
Tuesday’s Daily News said 29-year who left the spot quickly after the rescue last Saturday.
He lifted the little girl out of the water after she fell off the bank at the South Street Scaport museum. He handed the girl to her father, David Anderson, who had dived in after him.
“I didn’t think at all,” Duret told the Daily News. “It happened very fast. I reacted very fast. ”
Duret, an engineer on vacation ,was walking with his girlfriend along the pier(码头)when he saw something falling into the water . He thought it was a doll, but realized it was a child when he approached the river. In an instant ,he took off his coat and jumped into the water.
When he reached the girl, she appeared lifeless, he said . Fortunately, when she was out of the water, she opened her eyes.
Anderson said his daughter slipped off the bank when he was adjusting his camera. An ambulance came later for her, said Duret, who was handed dry clothes from cookers. Duret caught a train with his girlfriend shortly after.
The rescue happened on the day before he left for France. Duret said he didn’t realize his tale of heroism until he was leaving the next morning . “I don’t really think I’m a hero,” said Duret. “Anyone would do the same ting. ” Why was Duret in New York?
| A．To meet his girlfriend | B．To work as an engineer |
| C．To spend his holiday | D．To visit the Andersons. |
What did Duret do shortly after the ambulance came?
| A．He was interviewed by a newspaper |
| B．He asked his girlfriend for his dry clothes |
| C．He went to the hospital in the ambulance |
| D．He disappeared from the spot quickly |
Who dived after Duret into the river to save the little girl?
| A． David Anderson | B． A passer-by |
| C． His girlfriend | D． a taxi driver. |
When was duet most probably found to be the very hero?
| A．The day when he was leaving for home. |
| B．A couple of days after the girl was rescued |
| C．The first day when he was in New York |
| D．The same day when he was interviewed. |
Ted Shreds doesn’t like cars. He wants people to stop driving because cars make the air dirty. Ted had an idea. He said,“I’m going to cycle around North America. I want to show everyone that cycling is a fun way to get around. If more people ride bikes, the air will be cleaner.”
He left his hometown with $160 in his pocket. When he got to San Diego, he met another cyclist. The cyclist invited Ted to speak at a big meeting about the environment. He said,“We’ll pay your airfare to Texas and we’ll pay you to talk about your cycling trip.”Two hours late, Ted was on a plane to the environmental conference and to a big surprise!
While he was at the conference, he met Deanna, it was love at first sight! They talked for six hours straight.
The next day, Ted called Deanna and asked her to finish the trip with him. Deanna said yes, sold everything in her apartment, gave her notice at work, and was on the road with Ted 20 days later!
“It was difficult at first,”said Deanna.“Ted got up every morning at 6:00 a.m., but I wanted to sleep until noon.”After a few days, they started having fun. As they cycled from Florida to Montreal and then back to Vancouver, every day was an adventure. People paid for their food in restaurants and gave them extra money. Some people gave them $50 or $100.They slept in people’s backyards and drank beer with motorcycle gangs.
On their way back to Vancouver, they stopped in Edmonton to visit Ted’s relatives. During the stopover, they got married. People tied a “Just Married” sign and tin cans to the backs of their bikes. They got married. They now want to write a book about their trip.“We want people to know that you can be an environmentalist and still have fun,”Shreds said.Ted Shreds went cycling because_________.
| A．he loves adventure |
| B．cycling is a lot of fun |
| C．he wanted to find himself a wife |
| D．he supports environmental protection |
Ted got paid for_________.
| A．giving a talk about his cycling trip |
| B．cycling throughout North America |
| C．traveling around North America by air |
| D．attending conferences on cycling |
The “big surprise” he had at the conference was that _________.
| A．he met another cyclist who wanted to join him |
| B．he fell in love with a girl there |
| C．he gave a long talk lasting 6 hours |
| D．he had a lot of fun talking about his cycling trip |
During the trip, Ted and Deanna_________.
| A．found it hard to get up early |
| B．were attacked by motorcycle gangs |
| C．did not have to pay for their meals in restaurants |
| D．decided to get married |
Americans have contributed to many art forms, but jazz, a type of music, is one of the art forms that was started in the United States. Black Americans, who sang and played the music of their homeland, created jazz.
Jazz is a mixture of the music of Africa, the work songs the slaves sang, and religious（宗教）music. Improvisation is an important part of jazz. This means that the musicians make the music up as they go along, or create the music on the spot. This is why a jazz song might sound a little different each time it is played.
Jazz bands formed in the late 1800s.They played in bars and clubs in many towns and cities of the South, especially New Orleans. New Orleans is an international seaport, and people from all over the world come to New Orleans to hear jazz.
Jazz became more and more popular. By the 1920s,jazz was popular all over the United States. By the 1940s,you could hear jazz not only in clubs and bars, but in concert halls as well. Today, people from all over the world play jazz. Jazz musicians from the United States, Asia, Africa, South America, and Europe meet and share their music at festivals on every continent. In this way jazz continues to grow and change.What can be the best title of the passage?
| A．American Art Forms | B．The Development of Jazz |
| C．The Music of Black Americans | D．The Birthplace of Jazz |
From the text it can be inferred that_________.
| A．New Orleans is the place where jazz was first produced |
| B．the American people are all jazz lovers |
| C．jazz is merely sung by the black when working |
| D．jazz may become more popular as time goes on |
It took about _________ years to make jazz popular in the United States.
| A．200 | B．120 | C．80 | D．40 |
Doctors say anger can be an extremely damaging emotion, unless you learn how to deal with it. They warn that anger can lead to heart disease, stomach problems, headaches, emotional probems and possibly cancer.
Anger is a normal emotion that we all feel from time to time. Some people express anger openly in a calm reasonable way. Other burst with anger, and scream and yell(咆哮).But other people keep their anger inside. They can not or will not express it. This is called repressing anger.
For years many doctors thought that repressing anger was more dangerous to a person's health than expressing it. They said that when a person is angry,the brain releases the same hor-mones(荷尔蒙).They speed the heart rate, raise blood pressure, or sugar into the blood, etc. In general the person feels excited and ready to act.
Some doctors say that both repressing and expressing anger can be dangerous. They believe that those who express anger violently may be more likely to develop heart disease, and they believe that those who keep their anger inside may face a greater danger of high blood pressure.
Doctors say the solution(解决办法) is learning how to deal with anger. They say the first step is to admit that you are angry and to recognize the real cause of the anger, then decide if the cause is serious enough to get angry about. If it is, they say,“Do not express your anger while angry. Wait until your anger has cooled down and you are able to express yourself calmly and reasonably.”
Doctors say that a good way to deal with anger is to find humor in the situation that has made you angry. They said that laughter is much healthier than anger.“Damaging emotion” means that _________.
| A．the emotion is harmless |
| B．the emotion is harmful |
| C．the feeling is very strong |
| D．the feeling is hard |
What statement is right?
| A．Were you angry, you would be cancered(得癌症). |
| B．Once you are angry, you must be cancered. |
| C．Angry as you are often, you can't be cancered. |
| D．Anger may cause you a cancer. |
Expressing anger violently _________ repressing it according to some scientists.
| A．is just the same as |
| B．is more harmful than |
| C．is no better than |
| D．is much better than |
According to the author, you'd better _________.
| A．never be angry |
| B．cool it down before you express it |
| C．laugh and laugh when you get angry |
| D．admit you are wrong when you are angry |
Over a hundred years ago people in London were surprised to see a very unusual boat come sailing up the Thames River. The boat was eighty feet long flat-bottomed, with big wooden eyes on both sides in the front and was colorfully painted at the back.
People came to know that it was a sailing boat from Fuzhou in distant China. The boat had sailed round the Cape of Good Hope(好望角) up the western coast of Africa, and finally to England. It had covered fifteen thousand miles—more than half of the distance round the world.
Although it was unexpected, the Chinese were warmly welcomed. The boat carried goods such as silk and tea as well as a number of gifts from the Emperor of China for the Queen of England.
People had always mistakenly thought of the Chinese as a people not used to sea. However, from centuries of trading and sailing in dangerous seas, the Chinese had learned how to build good boats and sailed them well. The coming of this sailing boat to London proved once again that the Chinese could sail to distant countries in the world.The boat was considered unusual because _________.
| A．it was a small wooden boat |
| B．it carried Chinese silk and tea |
| C．it had traveled fifteen thousand miles |
| D．it looked strange in several ways |
According to this article, which of the following is TRUE?
| A．The distance round the earth measures less than thirty thousand miles. |
| B．The Chinese Emperor gave silk and tea to the English Queen as gifts. |
| C．The Chinese boat came to London by accident. |
| D．The Chinese people were not good at sailing in dangerous seas. |
The boat reached London by sailing _________.
| A．round the southern end of Africa |
| B．up the west coast of England |
| C．through the Arctic Ocean |
| D．round Asia and Europe |
The writer wants to prove that a long time ago the Chinese _________.
| A．carried silk, tea and other goods to England |
| B．could reach many parts of the world by sea |
| C．could sail along the Thames River |
| D．surprised Londoners with an unusual boat |
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