1 . Absence of evidence is not the same thing as evidence of absence. But if you try to find the difference and keep failing to get it, you can be forgiven. And so it is with the complicated subject of explicit(明确的) grammar teaching in schools, and its link with improved writing ability.
A recent study, like nearly all previous studies on this subject, found that teaching kids how to label(标注) the bits and pieces in a sentence does not make them better writers. Other observers may begin to wonder whether the National Curriculum, which since 2014 has made grammar such a central part of its English program, might have gone down a blind alley.
The promoter of the curriculum, a former secretary of education, Michael Gove, insisted on the insertion of personal preference into the grammar curriculum, notably the subjunctive form, “If I were”. Mention of his name alone wrinkles many teachers’noses—partly because some of them were hardly prepared to teach the new material themselves after decades in which grammar was largely absent from classrooms.
In reflection, it seems unsurprising that learning to underline a modal verb, such as “can”, “should” and “may”, does little to help students use them effectively in their own writing. These words are anyway grasped by tiny children without the need to know what they are called. This may lead to the conclusion that the teaching of grammar should be shelved(搁置) altogether. However, it shouldn’t be abandoned, though it should be reformed.
There are practical reasons for teaching and learning grammar. One is that an explicit knowledge of it will make learning a foreign language easier. If you did intuit(直觉上知道) how to make subordinate clauses in your mother tongue, getting to grasp them in a foreign language in later years is simpler if you know how to define and spot them.
For grammarians keen on the jobs of the future, the field of natural language processing is booming. Technological talents have invented programs for automated translation, speech recognition and other services that are actually usable, even if far from perfect. These tools may rely more on knowledge of AI than of grammar, but grammar still matters.
Grammar could still be taught better. One small study showed improvement in some students when concepts were linked concretely to writing tasks. Therefore, the science of how words combine to make meaning is fascinating as well as fundamental.
1. What do many teachers think of Michael Gove’s idea?| A．They are in support of his claim. |
| B．They show disagreement with his idea. |
| C．They have no comments on his philosophy. |
| D．They are prepared to teach the new materials. |
| A．Mother tongue grammar contributes to foreign language learning. |
| B．Grammar is taught better in writing than in other areas of teaching. |
| C．Natural language processing is strongly supported by grammarians. |
| D．Grammar knowledge is no longer needed with the development of AI. |
| A．Grammar—To Teach or Not to Teach |
| B．How Could Grammar Be Taught Better |
| C．Why Learn Foreign Language Grammar |
| D．Mother Tongue Grammar—Important or Not |
A 14-year-old boy from the USA was described as a hero yesterday. That’s because he saved the life of a girl in another country.
Dean Bluey from Dallas, Texas, was a schoolboy who has much interest in going online. One day, he sent an email to a friend on the Internet. Suddenly he received a
“I didn’t know what I should do,” Dean said to a reporter afterwards. “It was really
“I’m glad she’s OK,” Dean said. “It’s hard to believe, but the email saved her life.”
1.| A．note | B．message | C．call | D．letter |
| A．terrible | B．difficult | C．strange | D．amazing |
| A．nothing | B．something | C．anything | D．everything |
| A．telling lies | B．playing jokes | C．in a mess | D．in trouble |
| A．looking for | B．communicating with | C．playing with | D．preparing for |
| A．immediately | B．angrily | C．safely | D．seriously |
| A．pointed | B．rushed | C．went | D．walked |
| A．Hardly | B．Happily | C．Luckily | D．Carefully |
China has its first Nobel Prize in Science. And the winner, 84-year-old Chinese scientist Tu Youyou, also became the first Chinese woman to win the Nobel Prize.
She won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with William C. Campbell, an Irish-born researcher, and Satoshi Omura of Japan. The three winners will share the prize of 8 million Swedish crowns ($920,000).
Half of the Prize was given to William C. Campbell and Satoshi Omura for their new treatment against illness caused by roundworm parasites(寄生虫). Tu Youyou won the other half of the Prize for developing a medicine, Artemisinin(青蒿素), which can help people fight malaria(疟疾). More than 240 million people in Africa have benefited from the treatment, according to the WHO(World Health Organization), and more than 1.5 million lives have been saved since 2000, thanks to the medicine.
Tu Youyou started her research in 1969 when she was chosen as the director of a government project to find anti-malaria medicines. She and her workmates studied ancient Chinese medicine books and many different traditional treatments. They did nearly 200 experiments before they finally succeeded in getting the material Qinghaosu, later known as Artemisinin, in the 1970s. This medicine became the standard treatment for malaria in the WHO’s list of important medicines.
Premier Li Keqiang congratulated Tu for winning the Prize. He said, “Tu’s winning the prize shows China’s progress in scientific and technological field and marks a great contribution of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) to human health.”
Although it’s a late honor for Tu and the world’s recognition of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tu’s winning the first Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine makes Chinese scientists encouraged and confident to achieve more success in the future.
1. How many scientists won the 2015 Noble Prize in Physiology or Medicine?2. Why did Tu Youyou win the Nobel Prize?
3. How did Tu Youyou and her workmates do the research?
4. What do you think of Tu Youyou? Why?
4 . Last year, I learned from a newspaper that some sick kids needed help. I phoned the newspaper and I was asked to
A short time later, I went for a
Lisa never discussed how she felt about our friendship, even after we completed our first year together. However, she knew she could always depend on me.
Then one day I got a call from our volunteer group. “Mary, would you and Lisa like to be interviewed on a local TV news show?” Excited, I answered, “Wow! Let me discuss it with Lisa.” I didn’t think Lisa would be
At the interview, she said, “If I can help other people understand how important our
From then on, Lisa never
| A．take | B．help | C．tell | D．teach |
| A．way | B．trip | C．visit | D．swim |
| A．see | B．open | C．meet | D．rest |
| A．present | B．silent | C．polite | D．calm |
| A．buying | B．selling | C．sharing | D．offering |
| A．safe | B．sorry | C．nervous | D．comfortable |
| A．get-together | B．friendship | C．interview | D．talk |
| A．met | B．had | C．lost | D．missed |
5 . Do you know that humans aren’t the only species (物种) that use language? Bees communicate by dancing. Whales talk to each other by singing. And some apes (类人猿) talk to humans by using American Sign Language.
A female gorilla (大猩猩), Koko, was born at the San Francisco Zoo on July 4th, 1971. Koko learned sign language from her trainer, Dr. Penny Patterson. Patterson began teaching sign language to Koko in 1972, when Koko was one year old. Koko must have been a good student, because two years later she moved onto the Stanford University campus with Dr. Patterson. Koko continued to learn on the campus until 1976. That’s when she began living full-time with Patterson’s group, the Gorilla Foundation. Patterson and Koko’s relationship has blossomed ever since.
Dr. Patterson says that Koko has mastered sign language and known over 1,000 words, and that Koko makes up new words. For example, Koko didn’t know the sign for ring, so she signed the words finger and bracelet. Dr. Patterson thinks that this shows meaningful and constructive use of language.
Not everyone agrees with Dr. Patterson. Some argue that apes like Koko do not understand the meaning of what they are doing. Some people who don’t believe that say that these apes are just performing complex tricks（戏法）. For example, if Koko points to an apple and signs red or apple, Dr. Patterson will give her an apple. They argue that Koko does not really know what the sign apple means. She only knows that that if she makes the right motion, which Dr. Patterson has shown her, then she gets an apple. The debate is unresolved, but one thing is for certain: Koko is an extraordinary ape.
It seems like Patterson and Koko have a good relationship, but not everyone agrees with it. Some people believe that Patterson is humanizing the ape. They think that apes should be left in the most natural state possible. Even Dr. Patterson struggles with these feelings. When she was asked if her findings could be duplicated by another group of scientists, she said, “We don’t think that it would be ethical (道德的) to do again.” She went on to argue that animals should not be kept in such unnatural circumstances.
As for the future, Dr. Patterson and the Gorilla Foundation would love to get Koko to an ape preserve (保护区) in Maui, but they are having trouble getting the land. So unless you have a few million dollars to spare, Koko’s going to be spending her time in Woodland, California with Dr. Patterson. Koko probably doesn’t mind that. If she moved to Hawaii, she’d have to give up her Facebook page and Twitter feed, and she’s got like 50 thousand “likes”. Some may deny (否认) that she knows sign language, but nobody says that she doesn’t know social networking.
1. What is the writer’s main purpose in writing the second paragraph?| A．To describe the environment in which Koko lives. |
| B．To tell readers how Dr. Patterson developed Koko’s living skills. |
| C．To advise Patterson to free Koko after she learnt on the campus. |
| D．To make an introduction about Koko and Dr. Patterson’s background. |
| A．Koko has mastered sign language without a doubt. |
| B．Everybody likes how Dr. Patterson has raised Koko. |
| C．Some people think that Koko only signs to get food. |
| D．The Gorilla Foundation has got a land for Koko to stay naturally. |
| A．Bees, whales, and apes like Koko all use language to communicate. |
| B．Koko uses language but some think it’s just a trick. |
| C．It is natural for gorillas to learn sign language like humans. |
| D．If you want a lot of “likes” on Facebook, get a talking gorilla. |
All aboard! Let’s take a ride on the world’s highest railway——the Qinghai-Tibet Railway (青藏铁路). Sit back and enjoy the journey. Get ready for the trip of a lifetime.
We’re leaving Qinghai Station. The scenery along the way is some of the wildest in all of China.
Keep your eyes open as we race through this beautiful land. You might see some Tibetan antelopes (藏羚羊) from your window.
Before we begin our journey, let’s learn about this amazing railway. It’s truly one of the great engineering wonders of the 21st century. When people finished building it on July 1st, 2006, the Tibet Railway set nine world records, including the world’s highest railway at 5, 072 metres above sea level, the world’s highest tunnel (隧道) at 4, 905 meters, and the longest tunnel ever built on permafrost (冻土) .
As we travel higher, the air gets thinner and thinner. Soon there will only be 50 to 60 percent of the oxygen which we are used to breathing. But don’t be afraid. Each rail car has two separate (独立的) oxygen systems (系统). One system spreads oxygen throughout the train at all times. And each passenger can also get a personal oxygen mask just like those used in planes.
Here are a few more things to think about as our train leaves the station. The designers solved three main challenges (挑战) when building this great railway. First, the high altitude (海拔) made the task difficult because there was no enough oxygen. Second, much of the railway runs across permafrost, a type of ground that keeps changing as the weather warms and cools. Finally, the railway goes through some of the most sensitive ecology (敏感的生态环境) in China. Great care was necessary to make sure of the smallest possible influence (影响) on nature.
All three challenges were met, making our trip possible. All aboard! The train to Tibet is leaving in fifteen minutes.
1. What animal could you see out of the window on the way?2. When did people finish building it?
3. What’s the main idea of paragraph 3?
4. How many oxygen systems are there in each rail car?
5. How soon the train is leaving?
7 . Being Authoritative(权威的) Parents
Phrases like “tiger mom” and “helicopter parent” have made their way into everyday language.
Many of us find ourselves drawn to the idea that with just a bit more parental hard work and effort, we might turn out children with bright futures. But is there anything wrong with a kind of “overparenting style”?
Parental involvement has a long history of being studied. Many of the studies, carried out by Diana Baumrind, a famous psychologist at the University of California, Berkeley, have found that a good parent is the one who is involved and reacts to her child in a positive way, who sets high expectations but gives her child independence. These “authoritative parents” appear to hit the sweet spot of parental involvement and generally raise children who do better academically, psychologically and socially than children whose parents are not strict and less involved, or controlling and more involved.Why is this parenting style so successful?
Authoritative parents actually help improve motivation in their children Carol Daeck, a social phychologist at Stanford University, has done research that shows why authoritative parents raise mote motivated children. In a typical experiment, Dr. Dweck takes young children into a room and asks them to solve a simple puzzle. Most do so with little difficulty. But then Dr Dweck tells some, but not all, of the kids how clever they are. As it turns out, the children who are got told they’re smart are more motivated to solve increasingly difficulty puzzles. They also show higher levels of confidence and show greater progress in puzzle-solving.
As the experiment suggests, praising children’s talents and abilities seems to shake their confidence. Dealing with more difficult puzzles carries the risk of losing one’s status as “smart”. Dr. Dweck’s work strongly supports that of Dr. Baumrind, who also found that reasonably supporting a child’s independence and limiting interference(干涉) causes better academic(学术的) and emotional results.
The central task of growing up is to develop a sense of self that is independent and confident. If you treat your young child who is just learning to walk as if she can’t walk, you reduce her confidence. Allowing children to make mistakes is one of the greatest challenges of parenting. It is easier when they are young. The potential mistakes carry greater risks, and part of being a parent is reducing risk for our children.
1. According to the passage, a “tiger mom” ________.| A．helps her children realize their dreams | B．pays close attention to her children’s experiences |
| C．places reasonable expectations on her children | D．speaks her children’s everyday language |
| A．cause more problems in children | B．develop independence in children |
| C．face more challenges of children | D．lead to children’s academic success |
| A．a good game plays a big role in training young minds |
| B．bright children usually show less confidence in difficult games |
| C．puzzle-solving can give children the motivation they need |
| D．overpraising makes children less motivated and confident |
| A．children should not be given much freedom |
| B．parents should not increase the risk of challenging |
| C．children should correct mistakes with the help of their parents |
| D．parents should allow their children to learn from mistakes |
8 . Nowadays, the food that you buy comes from many different countries. Have a look in your fridge, cupboard, and fruit bowl and check the origins (来源) of the food. Perhaps there are apples from California, lamb from New Zealand, or potatoes from Egypt? You will probably be surprised how far food travels to get to your plate. This journey, from “field to plate”, is called “food miles”. A food mile is the distance that food travels from the farmer’s field to the person who buys the food. Nowadays, food often travels thousands of miles to get to the consumer (消费者). Why is this, and what is the influence of these long distances?
Traditionally, farmers sold their food in the local market, so the food didn’t have to travel very far. The consumers also did not travel very far because they went to their local market to buy the food. This was a good system for farmers and consumers. However, there were some disadvantages. For example, consumers could only buy food that farmers produced locally. Besides, they could only get food that was in season. Now, because of modern technology, food comes from all over the world. We do not have to wait for spring or summer to buy strawberries or tomatoes. They are available in winter if we want.
Some countries have to import (进口) most of their food. This is because they have difficult climates. The United Arab Emirates (UAE), for example, gets 85% of its food from other countries. Even food made in the UAE often uses imported materials.
What’s wrong with “food miles”? Is this not a good way of increasing international trade? I believe these miles are worrying for a number of reasons. First of all, because food travels such long distances, we need more planes, lorries, and ships to move the food. This means we use more oil or petrol, so there is more pollution and more global (全球的) warming. In addition, food that travels a long way is not fresh and usually not very tasty. Tomatoes, for example, are picked early and stored for their long journey. For this reason, they are usually tasteless when they get to the consumer. Local food has a better taste, and it also reduces the amount of global pollution. We need to buy more local food.
1. What is called “food miles” according to this passage?| A．The origins of the food. |
| B．The effects of long distances. |
| C．The journey from field to plate. |
| D．The disadvantages of imported food. |
| A．easy to get | B．not busy | C．willing to talk | D．impossible to get |
| A．long distances | B．difficult climates |
| C．fresh and tasty food | D．modern technology |
| A．how local food travels from field to plate |
| B．what “food miles” is and its effects |
| C．how some countries import their food |
| D．where different kinds of food come from |
Huihua, a Chinese girl, and Mary, an American student who was studying Chinese in China, were on their way to a bookstore. As they got to the bookstore, they saw a young man walking down the stairs. In his hurry, he missed the last two steps, and fell to the ground. He tried hard to get back to his feet while people around him laughed. Luckily, he seemed to be OK.
Mary was worried. She found Huihua smiling a little and was not comfortable about it. “Tell me, Huihua, how could people laugh when someone fell like that? Do they care at all? Shouldn’t they go up and ask the young man whether he was hurt?”
“They knew he wasn’t hurt too much.” Huihua said.
“But I still don’t understand. A fall is a fall. In my culture, people would do anything but laugh!”
Chinese Perspective (观点)
This is an example in which the Chinese and the westerners explain a smile differently. Very often, the Chinese people would also laugh or make a joke to ease the embarrassment (缓解尴尬) when they are caught in the embarrassing situation. However, if someone gets hurt seriously, it will not be a laughing matter any more. People will help him instead.
North American Perspective
A westerner would explain laughter in such a situation as a sign of either insensitivity (不关心) or, worse, pleasure that the person falling had hurt himself because that person was disliked. A westerner’s reaction would have been to rush over, help the person up, and to ask him, “Are you OK?” If a westerner fell, he, like a Chinese person, might probably make a joke out of the incident (事件) if he was not hurt. If two close friends are walking together, and one trips but clearly isn’t hurt, a common joke is to say “Have a nice trip”. However, this joke would be made only between two people who knew each other well.
1. Did Huihua help the young man after he fell down in the bookstore?2. How did Mary feel about Huihua’s attitude towards the young man?
3. In a westerner’s opinion, what does the laughter in an embarrassing situation show?
4. What does the underlined word “trip” mean?
5. What is the main idea of the passage?
10 . Different countries have different customs. When you travel to other countries, please follow their customs, just as the saying goes: “________”.
Very often people who travel to the United States forget to tip. It is usual to tip porters who help carry your bags, taxi drivers and waiters. Waiters expect to get a 15% tip on the cost of your meal. Taxi drivers expect about the same amount.
In England, make sure to stand in line even if there are only two of you. It’s important to respect lines there. It’s a good idea to talk about the weather. It’s a favorite subject of conversation with the British.
In Spain, it’s a good idea to have a light meal in the afternoon if someone invites you for dinner. People have dinner very late, and restaurants do not generally open until after 9 p.m.
In Arabic countries, men kiss one another on the cheek. Your host may welcome you with a kiss on both cheeks. It is polite for you to do the same.
In Japan, people usually give personal or business cards to each other when they meet for the first time. When a person gives you a card, don’t put it into your pocket right away. The person expects you to read it.
Don’t forget to be careful of your body language to express something in a conversation. A kind of body language that is acceptable (可接受的) in one culture may be impolite in another.
1. The missing sentences in the first paragraph should be “_________”.| A．Love me, love my dog. |
| B．He who laughs last laughs best. |
| C．When in Rome, do as the Romans do. |
| D．Where there is a will, there is a way. |
| A．In Spain, people usually have dinner very early. |
| B．In England, it’s not polite to talk about the weather. |
| C．In Arabic countries, men kiss one another on the cheek. |
| D．In Japan, you should not read the business card as you get it. |
| A．How to tip. | B．Different Countries. |
| C．When to Have Dinner. | D．Advice to International Travelers. |
