Frederick M. Hess is the director of education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, which is a nonprofit organization that conducts research on many public issues. He says that a long summer vacation doesn’t make sense in today’s world.
Can American students afford to take a summer vacation? In a summer vacation, millions of kids spend valuable time sending messages, watching TV, playing video games and doing shopping in the mall. They will also be putting their academic futures at risk.
Summer vacation once made sense in the past when you didn’t need an education to get a good job. But now things have changed. For today’s students, academic skills are important to students’future success, but such skills are affected in the summertime. Many nations don’t give kids an American-style summer vacation. They offer no more than seven consecutive（连续的） weeks of vacation. Most American school districts offer up to thirteen weeks. To compete in the global marketplace, Americans must be prepared to go up against international competitors.
Summer vacation also causes challenges for today’s families. In the 1960s, more than 60% of families had a stay-at-home Mom. Now two-thirds of American children live in households where every adult works. For these families, summer vacation can be more burden than break. Someone must watch the kids.
But the biggest problem may be how summer vacation hurts academic achievement. Researchers have found that disadvantaged students lose significant ground in the summertime.
A longer school year does not have to be an invitation to hard boring work. Rather, it should allow time-pressed teachers to conduct richer and more imaginative lessons. Schools would have more time to devote to athletics, languages, music and the arts. Summer vacation can be a grand thing. But in the 21st century, it may also be outdated.
Title: Summer Vacation
| Theme |
A long summer vacation isn’t |
|
| Basic Information |
13 weeks in most American schools |
|
| Students’ |
·Sending messages and watching TV ·Playing video games ·Doing shopping |
|
| Disadvantages |
· ·Being a ·Hurting students’ academic achievement and resulting in |
|
| Suggestion |
A longer school year does not have to |
|
| Though being a ground thing, summer vacation might be out of |
任务型阅读(共10小题,每题1分，满分10分)
请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。
注意：每个空格填1个单词。
China’s Tianhe-1 has a computing speed of 2,507 trillion（万亿）calculations a second, making it the fastest computer in the world. It is also 40 percent faster than the world’s second fastest supercomputer, Cray XT5 Jaguar, in the US, kept at a national laboratory in Tennessee, according to the New York Times. Jack Dongarra, a University of Tennessee computer scientist, told NYT that the Chinese supercomputer is faster than the existing Number One machine.
Building the fastest supercomputer has become a source of national pride, as these machines are valued for their ability to solve problems in areas like defense, energy and science. These problems are related to national interests. Supercomputing technology is also found in business. Oil and gas companies use supercomputers to find oil and gas.
Obviously, research centers with large supercomputers attract top scientific talents. This adds extra importance to the machines—they’re more than just huge computers.
China’s new supercomputer will be used to speed up greatly scientific calculations, such as hurricane and tsunami modeling, cancer research, car design and even studying stars.
In 2008, two US scientists put together a step-by-step guide on how to build a supercomputer using PlayStation 3 video-game consoles（控制台）. Modern supercomputers are built by combining thousands of small computer servers（服务器）and using software to turn them into one large computer. Really, any organization with enough material and technology can create a fast machine.
The Chinese system follows that model by linking thousands upon thousands of computer servers. But the secret behind the system—and the technological achievement—is China’s own networking technology. “That technology was built by them,” Dongarra said. “They are taking supercomputing very seriously and using a lot of time and money.”
“China is still a developing country,” said Sha Chaoqun, manager at Dawning Company which is the leading supercomputer maker in China. “Maybe one day, China’s total computing power can be greater than that of the US, but there is still a long way to go before we get there.”
| Paragraph outline |
Supporting details |
| China has developed the world’s fastest supercomputer. |
◇Tianhe-1 has a high computing speed, which (1)__________ it the fastest computer in the world. ◇Tianhe-1 is 40 percent faster than the (2)__________ fastest supercomputer in the world. ◇(3)__________ Jack Dongarra, we learn that the Chinese supercomputer is faster than the existing Number One machine. |
| Many countries see the fastest supercomputer as a source of national (4)__________ and are making efforts to develop it. |
◇The high-speed computer is (5)__________ to solve problems related to national interests. ◇Besides (6)__________, supercomputing technology can also be found in areas of defence, energy and science. ◇It’s obvious that top scientific talents are (7)__________ to research centers with large supercomputers. |
| The secret behind supercomputers is networking technology. |
◇By using the technology built by Chinese people, taking it (8)__________ and devoting lots of time and money, China has achieved a lot. |
| Mr. Sha showed a conservative（保守的） (9)__________ toward the development of computing power. |
◇(10)__________ the greater computing power China may have in the future, there is still a long way to go. |
认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文后图标中的空格里填入最恰当的一个单词。
White-collar workers going to great lengths for stress relief
A soldier of the South Korean special attack corps paints his eyes during a friendly Taekwondo match at a South Korean Army Base in Pochon, north of Seoul.
Stressed out white-collar workers are scaling（攀登） skyscrapers, camping out on rooftops, smashing up restaurants, pretending to be children and even visiting cemeteries in a bid to relieve the pressure of modern life.
As the country’s economy continues to steam ahead, once popular forms of entertainment, such as karaoke, card games and even boxing bars, appear to be losing their appeal.
Consider the members of Shanghai’s Cat Rain club. By day, this group of young women works executive jobs, but by night they climb buildings so they can spend the night on the roof. "It’s a good way to release our pressure. You feel relaxed when you’re sitting on the roof, looking up to the sky and chatting with intimate（亲密的）friends," said Gong Ying, 25.
The stress of work is not just limited to people in Shanghai. A recently-opened restaurant in Beijing encourages customers to smash plates - as long as they are willing to pay to replace them.
Though there has been some debate about the extravagance（奢侈）of such services, some psychologists say the activity reflects the desire of some white-collar workers to vent their angst.
Some workers even appear eager to return to their childhoods. This May, hundreds of people took part in a festival in which adults pretended to be children. It was an adults-only event, and participants could read comics and eat sweets all day.
Scenic places such as parks and rivers can also help people relax and put things in perspective. But a cemetery? Cemetery companies in Shanghai organized visits to local graveyards for stressed-out workers in March. The participants were taken to quiet spots in the cemetery where they could contemplate （考虑 ）life and their futures.
Roof-camper Chen Bin, an IT marketing professional, said she had camped out on a rooftop about 30 times. When she’s not sleeping out under the stars, she also has several other adrenalin-fueled interests, such as downhill racing and paragliding.
"Pressure may bring us distress, but it doesn’t mean we can’t find ways out," Chen says. "Life should be imaginative."
阅读下面的短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。
注意：每空一词，注意所填的词开头的大小写。
It is interesting to know what people of different nations like to do best.
In France, when a woman enters a cafe or restaurant, she is freely discussed, not only about her appearance but about her past and future as well. She invites looks in the street whether she is beautiful or plain. There is no better way for a woman to get back her self-confidence than a walk in the streets of Paris or Marseilles, and women really like that.
In Italy, people love talking. They sit about in cafes, exchanging news and discussing politics. They do not hesitate to ask questions about the family, income and private life of anybody who happens to be there.
The Swiss eat as a pastime. Ladies walk into a teashop, eat a couple of ice creams and a large piece of chocolate cake, and then leave, complaining about their weight.
For the Americans, the greatest fondness is said to be the push of buttons. You push a button in the lift, you push a button for cigarette, chewing gums, stamps, even for a life insurance. You can even push a button to get married and another button to get divorced.
In England, waiting in a line is national passion. The English will form a line whether they have the opportunities when the train is practically empty and everybody can have a seat
| In different (1)__▲___ |
What people like to do best |
| In France |
People love to discuss how a woman (2)___▲____, what she did in the past and what she will be in the future. Women like to (3)___▲___ in the street to get back confidence. |
| In Italy |
People sit in café, (4)___▲___ with each other, and sometimes they even ask about some (5)___▲___ information. |
| In Swiss |
Ladies eat a lot of fatty (6)___▲____ but they often (7)___▲___ having done so. |
| In the (8)__▲__ |
It seems that you can do almost everything (9)__▲___ pushing buttons. |
| In England |
The whole nation love to (10)___▲___in a line almost anywhere and anytime. |
任务型读写. 请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入恰当的单词。注意：每个空格只填一个单词。（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）
If you are asked to chair a meeting, remember the following six golden rules for meeting management.
1. Always start the meeting on time
If you begin on time, group members who show up late will realize the value of time. Beginning on time reflects the skill as an effective time manager and sets an example for others to follow.
2. Select a note-taker or arrange to have the meeting audio-taped
You may need to refer back to an issue that was discussed during the meeting at a later date. Good record-keeping is a sign of a good meeting manager as well.
3. Learn to listen
So many times we think we are going to say and, in the process, block out important points that other group members may be contributing. Additionally, we often hear only what we want to hear, rather than really listen to other people. Meetings that are characterized by effective listening are successful meetings.
4. Keep the discussion on track
Many times important issues can get sidetracked in a meeting, especially when everyone has a different opinion about the topic. If an unexpected conflict develops once the meeting is in progress, either appoint a subcommittee to look into the problem, or ask the participants involved in the conflict to meet with you after the meeting. Doing so will help keep the discussion on track and minimize (减少) the chances of wasting participants’ time of great value.
5. Give everyone an opportunity to be heard
Some people tend to control meetings, whereas others wait to be asked their opinions. As the leader of the meeting, you need to keep an open mind and make sure everyone feels welcome to contribute and express ideas without criticism.
6. End on time
If you said the meeting would last no longer than one hour, make sure the meeting lasts for only one hour. Running late with a meeting makes members late for other appointments, increases the chances that the members will mentally leave the meeting and reduces your reliability as an effective meeting manager.
Advice on how to a meeting
| Rules |
Reasons |
| Start the meeting on time. |
|
| Select a note-taker or |
Need to refer to an issue |
| Learn to listen. |
Listen |
| Keep the |
Minimize the chances of wasting participants’ |
| Give everyone an |
Make everyone feel |
| End on time. |
阅读下面短文,根据所读内容在文后小题的空格里填上适当的单词或短语，并将答案转写到答题卡上。注意：每空不超过3个单词。
Bicycles are very popular around the world today. People ride their bicycles for exercise and enjoyment. In some places, people use a bicycle to get to work. In other places, bicycle riding is a very popular exercise to people who live in cities. But who invented the first bicycle?
In 1791, a Frenchman named Comte de Siverac invented and owned the first bicycle. Mrs. Sivrac rode the bicycle in Paris. The handles(把手) and the seat were wooden. This bicycle was very difficult to move. A rider even had to pick up the front wheel to change direction. Finally, the bicycle had no brakes for stopping or pedals for the feet! Riding a bicycle was a great risk!
In 1817, a German named Baron von Draus de Sauerbrun made the first bicycle better. The seat became more comfortable. The wheel could now change direction. His ride in the forest took only one hour instead of three hours on foot, which surprised people at that time.
Sauerbrun brought this kind of bicycle from Germany to France. Then Denis Johnson, an Englishman, made a bicycle for women. It had spaces for their dresses to hang down. But these bicycles still had no brakes or pedals, and riders often got hurt. These bicycles and the people who rode them were not very popular.
It took another forty-five years for the bicycle to become popular. More than 100 years later, bicycle riding is more popular than ever. In fact, in India and China, there are still many more bicycles than cars.
The Great Invention
| Time |
Names |
Items |
Features |
| In 1791 |
|
|
|
| |
Baron von Daris de Sauerbrun |
Made the first bicycle better |
Easier to ride |
| Unknown |
|
A |
Having space for dresses to hang down |
| Functions of riding bicycles —for exercise, |
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