1 . My 21-year-old niece, a second-year undergraduate, mentioned that she watches video lectures offline at twice the normal speed. Struck by this, I asked some other students I know. Many now routinely speed up their lectures when learning offline — often by 1.5 times, sometimes by even more. Speed learning is not for everyone, but there are websites where students discuss how odd it will be once they return to the lecture theatre. One contributor wrote: “Normal speed now sounds like drunk speed.”
Education was adapting to the digital world long before Covid-19 but, as with so many other human activities, the pandemic has given learning a huge push towards the virtual. Overnight, schools and universities closed and teachers and students had to find ways to do what they do only via the internet. “This is a time for schools and systems to reimagine education without schooling or classrooms,” says Professor Yong Zhao. Dr Jim Watterston in Australia thinks that, while the traditional classroom is still alive and well, education needs to be more adventurous and flexible. Earlier this year, Zhao and Watterston co-authored a paper in which they identified some major changes that should happen in education post-lockdown.
The first concerns the content, which should emphasize such things as creativity, critical thinking and leadership, rather than the collection and storage of information. “For humans to progress in the age of smart machines, it is essential that they do not compete with machines.”, they wrote, “Instead, they need to be more human.”
The second is that students should have more control over their learning, with the teacher’s role shifting from instructor to supervisor of learning resources, advisor and motivator. This is where so-called “active learning” comes in with a growing body of research suggesting that comprehension and memory are better when students learn in a hands-on way — through discussion and interactive technologies, for example. It’s also where the concept of “productive failure” applies. Professor Manu Kapurin argues that students learn better from their own or others’ failed attempts to solve a problem before or even instead of being told how to solve it.
If the progress of the times is unable to hold back the coming revolution in education, it seems unlikely that the traditional classroom is going to have any luck in its attempts trying to turn back the clock. As Laurillard puts it, “It took a global pandemic to drive home what we’ve been saying for 20 years.”
1. By giving examples of “speed learning” in the first paragraph, the author wants to show that _________.| A．digital world is dramatically reforming the way of learning. |
| B．speed learning completely replaces normal speed learning. |
| C．returning to the lecture theatre is strange after speed learning. |
| D．education begins to adapt to digital world after Covid-19. |
| A．It is essential for smart machines to be more human. |
| B．Students should possess more information about creativity. |
| C．Students value others’ failure over their own failure. |
| D．“Active learning” calls for diverse ways of involvement. |
①learning mode ②learning motive ③learning attitude ④learning focus
| A．①④ | B．②③ | C．①③ | D．②④ |
| A．Speed learning harms students’ learning efficiency. |
| B．The coming revolution in education is irreversible. |
| C．Teachers will play a less important role in the future. |
| D．The traditional classrooms will eventually disappear. |
2 . A baby born today will be thirty-something in 2050. If all goes well, that baby will still be around in 2100, and might even be an active citizen of the 22nd century. What should we teach that baby to help them survive and flourish in the world of 2050 and beyond? What kind of skills will they need in order to get a job, understand what is happening around them, and navigate their tough life?
At present, too many schools across the world focus on providing pupils with a set of predetermined skills, such as writing computer code in C++ and conversing in Chinese. Yet since we have no idea how the world and the job market will look in 2050, we don’t really know what particular skills people will need. We might invest a lot of effort in teaching kids how to write in C++ or to speak Chinese, only to discover sooner or later that AI will have been able to code software far better than humans, and that a new translation app will have enabled you to conduct a conversation in almost flawless Mandarin, Cantonese or Hakka, even though you only know how to say ni hao.
So what should we be teaching? Many experts argue that schools should downplay technical skills and emphasize general-purpose life skills: the ability to deal with change, to learn new things, and to preserve your mental balance in unfamiliar situations. In order to keep up with the world of 2050, you will above all need to reinvent yourself again and again.
To succeed in such a demanding task, you will need to work very hard on getting to know your operating system better—to know what you are and what you want from life. This is, of course, the oldest advice in the book: know thyself. This advice was never more urgent than in the mid-21st century, because unlike in the days of Laozi or Socrates, now you have serious competition. Coca-Cola, Amazon and Facebook are all racing to hack you.
Right now, the algorithms (算法) are watching where you go, what you buy, and who you meet. Soon they will monitor all your steps, breaths and heartbeats. They are relying on big data and machine learning to get to know you better and better. And once these algorithms know you better than you know yourself, they could control and manipulate (操纵) you. In the end, authority will shift to them.
Of course, you might be perfectly happy giving up all authority to the algorithms and trusting them to make decisions for you and for the rest of the world. If, however, you want to maintain some control over your personal existence and over the future of life in general, you have to run faster than the algorithms. To run fast, don’t take much luggage with you. Leave all your illusions (幻想) behind. They are very heavy.
1. What does the underlined word “downplay” in paragraph 3 most probably mean?| A．Give too much emphasis on something. |
| B．Make people think that something is less important. |
| C．Offer your reasons why something is right or wrong. |
| D．Decide something in advance so that it does not happen. |
| A．imagination | B．adaptability | C．self-discipline | D．a good sense of balance |
| A．if we don’t, algorithms will hack all our devices. |
| B．it is an essential skill for us to succeed in the world of 2050. |
| C．we need to learn how algorithms work and make full use of them. |
| D．we need to outrun algorithms to keep some control over our personal life. |
| A．the importance of knowing yourself |
| B．the threats and dangers of technology |
| C．what kind of skills we might need in the future |
| D．some potential benefits algorithms would bring to humankind |
3 . Parents and teachers worry about the loss of learning caused by the COVID-19 and want to catch up immediately. But it’s unrealistic to think that a few months will fully close the gaps.
Educators tend to underestimate the importance of knowledge, as though rote (死记硬背) teaching harms teaching higher-order thinking. But science shows otherwise. The processes that teachers care about most, like critical thinking, are closely interconnected with factual knowledge stored in long-term memory. Yet we continue to romanticize an impossible shortcut: teaching critical thinking as if it were a universally applicable skill.
Take the subject of reading, which schools see as thinking skills that can be taught directly: I will teach students what an inference is. Actually, students make inferences when they can read fluently and have the vocabulary and background knowledge to name what is unsaid.
Educators also often underestimate memory. Cognitive (认知的) scientist Paul Kirschner argues that building memory is “the aim of all teaching” and that “if nothing has changed in long-term memory, nothing has been learned”. At the end of a lesson, if students appear to understand an idea, their teacher may think, “Great, they really understand the point.” But if weeks later, the students forget it, learning has not really occurred.
Finally, we must consider students’ emotional needs. Belonging is one of the most profound (深切的) human emotions. Consider a classroom in which students are socialized to comment: “I agree with Cassidy and want to provide another example.” That conveys to Cassidy that her comments were meaningful. This would also be achieved if, when Cassidy is speaking, her classmates are looking at her, nodding and sending positive nonverbal social signals that they value her words. Only peers can provide this sense of belonging, but teachers can cultivate the environment.
All in all, if we want to benefit students, we must ground our teaching in the science that value knowledge and memory, and the role that belonging plays in students’ study.
1. What can we know about critical thinking according to the passage?| A．It can be taught directly. | B．It is gradually formed. |
| C．It is deeply rooted in reading. | D．It is universally applicable. |
| A．When students perform well in class activities. |
| B．When students understand what has been taught. |
| C．When students achieve changes in long-term memory. |
| D．When students start to forget unnecessary information. |
| A．Nonverbal social signals matters in class. |
| B．Being sociable in the classroom is important. |
| C．Students should support each other in class discussions. |
| D．Classrooms are where the feeling of belonging is developed. |
| A．To urge schools to teach more knowledge. |
| B．To show concern about the influence of COVID-19. |
| C．To promote higher-order thinking like critical thinking. |
| D．To suggest a scientific way to catch up the loss of learning. |
4 . One morning, my four-year-old daughter and I were getting ready to leave the house when she suddenly yelled “Idiot!” right at me. As I processed the word, I noticed she was upset. Tears streamed down her face as she half whispered and half yelled “you are an IDIOT Mama.” Total silence followed as we looked at each other. We were staring at each other for so long, and I nearly forgot to breathe out, and in again. Idiot. How could my daughter call me an idiot?
There are many behaviors that really push parents’ buttons. Disrespectful, rude words tend to top the list. The wrong response to such rude remarks is often a serious warning. But I didn’t offer any serious remarks.
I realized that my daughter’s intention wasn’t to disrespect me. She was expressing the disconnection. And punishment doesn’t solve disconnection. It creates more of it. Her choice of word said it all. She was annoyed. She sensed the stress. I needed to hear her. I was being careless. I was the one being rude to her.
So, why punish our children when they need guidance? We must know the words we use matter, and become our children’s words too. The words include those we use to handle emotional overload. Idiot is a word I regretfully must admit to using when I’m extremely annoyed. Not at my children, but yes, they have heard me say it. So, instead of punishing my daughter for misbehavior, I chose to focus on her real message: Idiot means that “Mom, you are stressing me out!”.
No blame. No punishment for honest feelings. No criticizing her choice of words. Just focus on our relationship. I admitted my ignoring her, and we hugged and kissed each other. I walked into her play school with interest and was ready to see all her current projects.
Don’t be afraid to focus on your relationship, to show kindness, and to model forgiveness. Don’t be afraid to look beyond misbehavior, find the true message and trust the power of connection.
1. After hearing her daughter’s words, the author ________.| A．lost her temper | B．gave her a warning |
| C．couldn’t believe it | D．had a talk with her |
| A．Cheer parents up. | B．Make parents annoyed. |
| C．Follow parents’ advice. | D．Distract parents’ attention. |
| A．calm and considerate | B．brave and tolerant |
| C．sensitive but overprotective | D．intelligent but bad-tempered |
| A．To settle conflicts between parents and children. |
| B．To explain why children disrespect their parents. |
| C．To encourage readers to express their true feelings. |
| D．To suggest a positive response to children’s misbehavior. |
5 . STEM vs. STEAM
STEM is short for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. The term was coined by Judith Ramaley while a director at National Science Foundation in 2001. Since then, STEM-focused education has been extended to many countries beyond the United States. However, education is a constantly evolving game.
The believers in STEM education want the focus to remain on the core STEM principles.
While they seem to be opposed, both sides of this argument may have the right idea.
| A．The STEAMers disagree. |
| B．Actually, science and arts are inseparable. |
| C．It consistently introduces new theories and practices. |
| D．Their idea is that there are already enough arts in their approach. |
| E．Thus, good teachers are always learning to keep pace with updated knowledge. |
| F．It also improves the probability of success in complicated tasks and challenges. |
| G．They believe adding art makes the STEM courses accessible to more students. |
6 . Researchers recently studied 3, 000 middle and high school students. Among them were 618 teenagers with one parent who lived away from home for long periods of time because of work. The researchers wanted to know how the work of these “fly-in, fly-out” parents might influence the health of their children.
A higher percentage of teenagers who experienced the long absence of a parent had emotional (情感的) or behavioral problems compared with those whose parents worked more traditional hours. This supports earlier research finding high percentages of emotional problems in teenagers who often returned to an empty house after school or whose parents were seldom at dinner.
Findings also suggest that parents don’t have to be home all the time to be present in their children’s lives, but it helps to be home at certain times. And the best parental presence for a teenager may sometimes be like a potted plant.
Many parents of teenagers have known this to be true and find ways to be present without trying to start a conversation. One friend of mine quietly does housework each evening in the sitting room where her teenagers watch TV. They enjoy one another’s company without the need to talk. Another friend usually accepts his daughter’s invitation to work or read nearby while she sits and does her homework. Perhaps, that, at least for some families, is the best way for teenagers and their parents to stay close.
In fact, many years of research suggest that children use their parents as a safe base from which to explore the world. Studies tell us that young children quietly follow their parents’ movements from room to room, even while carrying on with their own activities. Perhaps our teens, like babies, feel most at ease when their parents are still around. They don’t want to stay away from parents who allow them freedom. A new school year is at hand, so as parents we could offer our teenagers a “potted flower” as a gift, whose quiet and steady (稳定的) presence will give them a great day.
1. What’s the purpose of the recent research?| A．To show the necessity of parents’ company all the time. |
| B．To support earlier research on teenagers’ emotional problems. |
| C．To find connections between parents’ long absence and children’s health. |
| D．To compare “fly-in, fly-out” parents with those working traditional hours. |
| A．They got more used to being alone. |
| B．They were more likely to have trouble with their feelings. |
| C．They showed more dislike for traditional working hours. |
| D．They had dinners with their parents more often. |
| A．Giving children a great day. | B．Being present in children’s life. |
| C．Allowing children enough freedom. | D．Staying with children quietly and steadily. |
| A．To set examples for children to follow. | B．To guide children to explore the world. |
| C．To take good care of children as babies. | D．To give children a sense of safety and relaxation. |
7 . The end of a semester can be a challenging time for students. Kids from elementary school through high school are already stressed after more than a year of C0VID-19 disrupted learning. Pressing through the last few weeks of a semester can be discouraging, especially for older students with demanding final projects and exams.
“Parents’ fears about their kids are so often not about the present but the future — a fear that kids who are struggling will get stuck there. But kids rarely stay stuck, in part because they too want their lives to work out,” says Ned Johnson, a test preparation expert. When children show signs of stress, parents should respond by focusing on mental health, not achievement or grades.
Families can create a sense of safety for children by establishing routines for the day and week, especially those that emphasize connection, such as family dinnertime and a bedtime chat. Parents should meet kids with empathy and listening, instead of trying to solve their problems. For example, we can normalize family conversation about the ups and downs of the day. As Madeline Levine, a psychologist, put it: let your children “borrow your calm”.
In addition, peer support programs can also play an important role in teaching skills for stress management and wellness. “Teens will talk to other teens, especially when they feel they are in a brave space built on trust,” Katie Hurley, a psychotherapist says.
Some children may arrive at the finish line exhausted and needing sleep. Or perhaps they are eager to celebrate the holidays with all the usual fanfare. Honor your child’s wishes and plan to create the break that fits your family’s needs. McKenna Reitz, a mom from Toledo, Ohio, plans for her daughters Karsen, 9, and Maddox, 6, to enjoy time off with family and friends. Her holiday plan apparently reflects that. “It is the most important thing they need right now,” she says. “Our children need to know that they are not alone.”
1. What can we learn from Paragraph 2?| A．Children are struggling in study in the present situation. |
| B．Children’s focusing on grades makes them stay stuck in learning. |
| C．Parents stay stuck in making their children live to work out. |
| D．Parents’ fear about children getting stuck in study is unnecessary. |
| A．To ask parents to stay calm before their kids. |
| B．To show the necessity of talking to kids before tests. |
| C．To make parents let go of their kids during COVID-19. |
| D．To stress the importance of the help from the experts. |
| A．Staying with kids in holidays. | B．Respecting the needs of kids. |
| C．Helping kids celebrate holidays. | D．Keeping exhausted kids happy. |
| A．Parents should help kids to prepare their tests. |
| B．Parents should keep a closer eyes on kids study. |
| C．Parents should connect their kids more with nature. |
| D．Parents should let kids take a break from school stress. |
8 . An economist, Adam Smith, famously wrote that “it is not from the benevolence (慈善)of the butcher, the brewer or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own self-interest.” Like Smith, many economists today believe that one’s self-interest is what drives competition and growth in market economies. Yet, in an increasingly interconnected society, it is even more crucial to have collaborative skills. Thus we should encourage cooperation to better prepare children for the future.
Firstly, in the present age marked by the transformative potential of technology to facilitate interactions, cooperation is an especially prized soft skill to have. As a research study proves, soft skills such as good communication and empathy consist of qualitative indicators of outstanding employees as compared to technical skills or knowledge. In contrast, excessively (过分地)competitive and individualistic behaviour may fracture social relations in the community of co-workers and since no man is an island, even the most competent employee will not be able to pursue his goals effectively without the help of others who are able to share a common vision and understanding.
Moreover, encouraging cooperation increase a healthy sense of self-esteem in children that better prepares them for the competitive working world. Many modern societies today are consumed by an obsessive drive for success and the pressure to perform has infiltrated both classrooms and offices alike. The consequences of the fierce competitive culture include higher rates of anxiety and depression among university students and office workers, which are all counterproductive. Teamwork can help a maturing individual realise that each has his or her own unique set of abilities to bring to the table and that another person’s strengths do not in any way diminish (降低)the value of his or her talents. Thus, cooperation can affirm the self-worth of children by correcting the violent insight that winning or paper achievement is an exclusive (唯一)measure of success in life.
However, critics may claim that in a cutthroat world, adapting to competition should be of supreme priority in education and parenting. To achieve one’s deepest ambitions, such as to become a medical student, or to create a tech start-up, one has to adopt competition by actively fighting for opportunities and distinguishing oneself from others. Nevertheless, since passion can already stimulate children to work hard to fulfill their ambitions, the need to encourage competition may be at the end of the day. As much as external competition can drive people to pursue excellence, internal motivation is at least equally or arguably even more essential, and collaboration plays an instrumental role in helping one uncover one’s tendency and motivations.
1. What can be inferred from Adam Smith’s words?| A．Our society is increasingly interconnected. |
| B．Our dinner is made out of the regards to markets. |
| C．Self-interest pushes the development of economies. |
| D．The butcher, the brewer or the baker is not sympathy. |
| A．Deepen. | B．Establish. | C．Maintain. | D．Damage. |
| A．Paper achievement is an exclusive measure of success. |
| B．Confidence and ambitions can be achieved through cooperation. |
| C．Actively fighting for distinguishing oneself is a healthy competition. |
| D．Competition is not essential for people to pursue excellence. |
| A．To introduce parents the advantages of cooperation. |
| B．To inform parents to balance cooperation and competition. |
| C．To persuade parents to care about their children’s education. |
| D．To tell parents to encourage their children to learn to cooperate. |
9 . Few days ago the government closed the schools for the virus. You were effectively your children's teacher those days. That might seem a bit daunting (令人气馁的), but I'm here to tell you that it's possible. Here are my top tips.
Don't try and copy the school system.
Think about something to do with timetabling.
For many of us, a timetable is absolutely essential.
Have a breath of fresh air in your garden.
If you have your own garden, remember that playing in the garden, playing in the mud is education.
As a home educator, if there's a math problem that they're struggling with, I can sit down with them, explain the concept, and make sure they've understood it. This is something that not all children get in the school system. And this is something that you can really make the most of, so cherish the opportunity.
Take advantage of the massive wealth of online resources.
There're absolutely loads of things on the Internet. There are sites dedicated to home education. There's Twinkle, which is a really good teacher resource site. There's Conquer Math, which is a brilliant daily math programme.
Tutoring your children at home is a really good opportunity for you to get to know your children, and you might learn something about yourself in the process.
| A．Value the one-to-one time that this experience will give you. |
| B．Don't worry about what has been happening at school particularly. |
| C．You need to know what is suitable for them, and what excites them. |
| D．The way that teachers teach your children is very different from yours. |
| E．Draw up a plan that matches your working hours and their studying hours. |
| F．Your children don't have to sit at their desks all day, staring at math books. |
| G．Don't think of Internet as something that your children are going to be glued to all day. |
10 . “Don’t be a helicopter parent.” This message has been repeated frequently and others try to encourage parents to back off their kids and give them greater space and freedom to explore. But it doesn't actually tell parents how they should act. What kind of parenting style should be adopted in place of the overprotectiveness of helicoptering?
One possible answer is, “Be a lifeguard parent.” That means sitting apart from the action and keeping an eye on everything that’s going on, ready to jump in if needed. This was brought up by Dr. Mariana Brussoni, a developmental psychologist at the University of British Columbia and Richard Monette, editor-in-chief of Active for Life. They think life guarding should include three parts.
Open attention is the stage parents should be in most of the time, showing a caring interest in what kids are doing, but keeping their physical distance and remaining non — intrusive (不介入的). Focused attention is when a parent perceives (察觉) warning signs and becomes more alert. Maybe it’s time to check in with the child to see how they’re doing. It might be a good opportunity to help the child think through their actions, rather than directing them. Most of the time, play goes back to being safe and the parent can return to open attention. Active intervention is when a parent needs to step in to reduce immediate risk. A child might not realize they’re close to the edge of a busy road or deep water, so the parent has to ensure their safety.
Brussoni says most of a parent's time should be spent in open attention. Days could pass，without ever entering focused attention. Active intervention should be extremely rare. It’s crucial to avoid telling kids to be careful all the time. This sends a message that the child can’t do things without parental assistance.
No one said parenting was easy, but it can be less unbearable if you let go of some control, teach your kids to do things independently, and trust them to self — regulate. Everyone comes out happier in the end.
1. Why is helicopter parent mentioned in paragraph 1?| A．Warn parents not to overprotect kids. |
| B．Introduce another parenting approach. |
| C．Remind parents to give kids more freedom. |
| D．Make a comparison between two parenting styles. |
| A．Accompany kids as little as possible. |
| B．Tell kids to be aware whatever they are doing. |
| C．Direct kids when they are climbing a thin branch. |
| D．Urge kids to leave a heavy traffic road immediately. |
| A．Parenting has been the toughest job since ancient times. |
| B．Allowing parents to self-regulate may be of great benefit |
| C．Less control may lead to a harmonious parent-child relationship. |
| D．Child should be taught to things all by themselves to grow up. |
| A．Don’t Be a Helicopter Parent. | B．Teach Kids to Identify Risks. |
| C．How to Guarantee Kids’ Safety. | D．Strive to Be a Lifeguard Parent. |
