We think that life in Chinese high school is     1     adventure in which we have to survive mountains of homework and exams. Yet would it be     2     (surprise) if I tell you that high school life in the US is almost as stressful and demanding     3     it is in China?

In US high school, everything     4     (record) and graded, including your grades on quizzes, tests and final examinations. Failing     5     (turn) in your homework on time will directly affect your grade for a certain course. Perhaps contrary to what we used to think of the US high school students, they pay great attention to     6     (they) academic performance to try to get into a distinguished university. Otherwise, they’ll be disappointed after graduation     7     high school.

Like university students, US high school     8     (student) have the freedom to choose the courses     9     most interest them. Even the ninth-grader can sit in the same classroom as 12th-graders. But this also means he or she has to work very hard, because the teacher will not treat him or her     10     (different) just because he or she is a few years younger.

I haven't seen Mr Jenkins since I left school, but I often think about him. I wasn't very good     1    most school subjects before I met Mr Jenkins. I suppose I was a bit lazy, especially in maths. The only thing I can remember from school maths is    2    the angles of a triangle add up to 180 degrees! But when I was 15 and went into Mr Jenkins' class, I really became    3    (interest) in a subject for the first time.

Before Mr Jenkins taught me, science had    4    (simple) been a subject full of strange words to me. I had no idea what hydrogen was, and I didn't really want to know, either I found it all so    5    (bore) and difficult. But Mr Jenkins made everything interesting. He used to explain things which seemed difficult with lots of practical    6    (example) and in simple language. One day, he took us outside and we    7    (build) a rocket! I remember that he let me pour some fuel into the rocket, and then another student lit    8    match to set it off. It was great fun.

I know that I wasn’t a    9    (will) student, but I wasn't slow to learn new things, The problems was that I lacked    10    (confident) confident in myself. Mr. Jenkins made me feel that I had my own strengths.

The university of Birmingham, UK, announces that it will accept the Gaokao exam for high-flying Chinese students     1    (wish) to join its undergraduate courses in 2019. High school students     2     complete the National Higher Education Entrance Examination, or Gaokao, with top grades can apply for direct entry into Birmingham degree programmes     3     first completing a foundation year.

Gaokao, which     4    (hold) across China in early June, is     5    (increase) accepted by universities in Australia, the USA, Canada and mainland Europe Birmingham will only be considering high quality students who achieve a minimum 80% Gaokao score and meet additional academic and English language     6    (require).

Professor Jon Frampton, Director of the University of Birmingham’s China Institute said, “I am     7    (delight) that the University is now accepting the Gaokao. This gives the     8    (bright) and best Chinese students.     9     opportunity to move straight into the first year of our undergraduate programmes and experience the benefits of studying at a     10    (globe) Top 100 university.

In Canada, high school grades    1    (use) as the main standards for admission (准许进入) to college or university. However, a research    2    (do) by scientists shows that nearly 75% of student success is decided by other factors (因素). These factors are often described    3    21^st-century skills.

The important things that lead to    4    (successful) finishing post-secondary education at the student level are good study habits and stress management. While a good mix (结合，融合) of all the factors    5    (seem) to be the best factor of student success,    6    is likely that strengths in one area can make up for disadvantages (不足) in other areas. For example, a student    7    has lower grades in high school can be good in university if he has clear goals about    8    (he) future.

Although high school grades will be used to decide if a student is admitted into an academic (学业的，学术的) program, the student’s ability    9    (deal) with challenges of the post-secondary world will decide their success. Good high school grades do not guarantee (确保) success; secondary schools and parents can be key players in    10    (help) to support the development of Independent-thinking students who will be able to succeed at the post-secondary level.