1. What is the main topic of the talk?
A.Different educational systems around the world. |
B.The disadvantages of much homework. |
C.Children’s mental health. |
A.2nd grade. | B.3rd grade. | C.4th grade. |
A.Canada. | B.Finland. | C.The US. |
A.The school should give children no homework. |
B.The school should improve kids’ performance. |
C.The school should work with parents. |
2 . As young children went back to school across Sweden last month, many of their teachers were putting a new emphasis on printed books, quiet reading time and handwriting practice and devoting less time to tablets, independent online research and keyboarding skills.
The return to more traditional ways of learning is a response to experts’ doubt on the country’s over-digitalized approach to education, which has even introduced tablets into kindergartens. They are worried that it has already led to a decline in basic skills.
The rapid adoption of digital learning tools has also drawn concern from a United Nations’ education agency. In a report published last month, the agency issued an urgent call for appropriate use of technology in education. The report urges countries to speed up Internet connections at schools, but at the same time warns that technology in education should be used in a way so that it never replaces in-person, teacher-led instruction and supports the shared objective of quality education for all.
However, online instruction is a hotly debated subject across Europe and other parts of the West. Germany has been famously slow in moving information of all kinds online, including education. Many students can complete their schooling without any kind of required digital instruction, such as coding. Most parents worry their children may not be able to compete in the job market with technologically better-trained young people from other countries. “If we don’t manage to make education digital, then we will no longer be a competitive country in 20 years,” said Sascha Lobo, one of the parents interviewed last year.
However, not all teachers are convinced that Sweden’s back-to-basics push is in the best interest for students. “Technology is just one part of a really complex network of factors in education,” said Catarina Branelius, a third grade teacher in the Swedish capital, Stockholm. “I use tablets in math, but I don’t use tablets for writing text. Students under age 10 need time and practice and exercise in handwriting… before you introduce them to write on a tablet.”
1. What did Sweden stress before this new school year?A.Printed books. | B.Handwriting practice. | C.Quiet reading time. | D.Independent online research. |
A.Textbook-centered. | B.Balanced. | C.Over-digitalized. | D.Traditional. |
A.Students in Germany do not heavily rely on computers. | B.The German government is pushing for online instruction. |
C.German parents are happy with their children’s education. | D.Teachers in Germany are ready to make education digital. |
A.Favorable. | B.Unclear. | C.Doubtful. | D.Unconcerned. |
3 . Tonight, our family was going out to play under the full moon.
My husband Todd and I first started going on full moon walks for ourselves, as we needed these little doses of moonlight to stay happy, though sometimes we had to hike through the forest to find a perfect spot. But after we became parents, we did this for our children. We wanted to show Sierra and Bryce that it was not necessary to travel far from home to have an adventure and learn something new, and that there was much magic in the natural world, available to all.
Once we arrived at our location, Sierra and I stood holding hands, waiting to cheer the full moon in its rising — a thin sliver of the moon emerged above the ridge of the mountain afar. Soon, more of the moon came out until it turned into a brilliant orange sphere (球体). Todd explained to Sierra and Bryce that the moon generates no light, but simply acts like a mirror, reflecting the sunlight back to us. “Does the moon’s face change?” Bryce asked. I told him that the moon moves around the earth, but does not spin (旋转) by itself, so the same side of the moon is always facing the earth. Sierra remarked that the moon looked larger when it was rising. I explained that it is a visual illusion (错觉) because it is so close to the horizon that the moon magically tricks our eyes into comparing it with nearby objects.
Much of the knowledge that I shared with the kids was learned from my parents. During my childhood, they would take me on educational adventures out in the woods, and as I later found, so did their parents. So every time I go for a full moon walk with my beloved family, I thank those wise educators who came before me.
To educate, sometimes all it takes is going outdoors and gazing up at the heavens.
1. What does the underlined word “this” in Paragraph 2 refer to?A.Traveling far from home. |
B.Learning something new. |
C.Hiking through the forest. |
D.Going on full moon walks. |
A.The children were unwilling to participate. |
B.Todd mentioned a mirror to explain the sunlight. |
C.The children showed great curiosity about the moon. |
D.The author used a magic trick to explain the larger moon. |
A.Proud and stubborn. |
B.Learned and inspiring. |
C.Confident and determined. |
D.Adventurous and ambitious. |
A.Nature is the best classroom. |
B.It takes a village to raise a child. |
C.It is good to learn at another man's cost. |
D.All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. |
4 . Waking up at the crack of dawn and going for a run might feel awful when you start trying to make it a habit. Weaving a significant new activity such as this into your regular routine obviously takes determination and time.
One popular idea suggests that it takes 21 days to solidify a habit. People tend to feel extra motivated to start a new habit or kick an old one.
Everyone has a unique habit-building timeline.
The researchers also suggested that habit formation depends on the effort that a person puts into practicing an activity and on the presence of environmental cues that would remind them to carry out the behavior.
A.The type of activity is also a factor. |
B.The strategies of activity impact the way. |
C.People want to form a habit of exercising regularly. |
D.But how much time is really needed to make that habit stick? |
E.It might sound easily reachable to make a resolution on New Year’s Day. |
F.By comparison, it took half a year for people to develop an exercise habit. |
G.However long it is for any individual, repetition is the key to making it work. |
5 . “What do you mean by this phrase? It’s incorrect and adds nothing to the sentence. Omit (省略).” Professor Jones’s critical feedback on my paper hurt me when I first read it. I scanned his comments for a “Good job!” or “I love this idea,” but they were nowhere to be found.
Everyone likes warmth and encouragement, but purely positive affirmations (肯定) don’t communicate what can be improved. Research conducted on Character Lab Research Network finds that direct, useful feedback requiring students to revise their own work is more effective. For Professor Jones, this looked like a note at the end of another paper: “I’m sure things will improve as the term and year wear on.” However, feedback that does the work for a student—correcting a misspelled word, rewriting a sentence—can signal a teacher’s low expectations.
When kids see comments that suggest what needs to be changed, they come to realize they can do things on their own and become more independent learners. As a bonus, this kind of feedback lets students know that their teacher believes in them.
As for me, I was benedictory for Professor Jones’s pointed criticism which let me know that he took me seriously. He was expecting me to do better, and the detailed comments scrawled (潦草地写) on every page gave me the tools to improve. Teachers can add affirmations to their feedback as long as it’s not the only thing they’re doing.
Don’t confuse warmth with promoting a growth mindset. Being nice isn’t the same as showing someone you believe they can improve. So give detailed feedback that sets young people up to take charge of their own learning. For example, instead of rewriting a sentence, say: “This is a run-on sentence. Try reading it out loud and add punctuation in places where you naturally take a breath.” Ask worth-exploring questions that inspire students to think about their approach, then let them revise on their own. When it comes to writing, the easiest path isn’t always the best one.
1. How did the author initially feel about Professor Jones’s feedback?A.Happy and motivated. | B.Upset and disappointed. |
C.Indifferent and unconcerned. | D.Confident and encouraged. |
A.It should be brief and to the point. | B.It should be warm and encouraging. |
C.It should be written at the end of the paper. | D.It should be up to students to fix their own work. |
A.Responsible. | B.Generous. | C.Regretful. | D.Grateful. |
A.Give students general praise. | B.Rewrite sentences for students. |
C.Provide students critical support. | D.Show students corrected assignments. |
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8 . Peru is prepared to approve new laws that would make it easier to investigate and punish researchers who engage in academic cheating, including paying to have their names added to a paper.
The move comes as Peru’s national science agency seeks to crack down on authorship buying and other dishonest practices. It recently removed two scientists accused of dishonest publications from a national registry that is key to receiving government sponsor, job promotions, and salary bonuses. And officials are investigating more than 170 other researchers at a Peruvian media report claimed were involved in academic misconduct, including 72 listed in the national registry who work at 14 universities in Peru.
The new laws will empower universities and government officials to punish such behavior. Dishonest publishing practices “ transcend mere moral misbehavior” because they enable researchers to obtain government and private funding without telling the truth, says Edward Málaga Trillo, a member of Congress who is the driving force, behind the bills, which lawmakers are expected to finalize early this year. “These individuals are operating academic cheating.” Peru’s academic community has been struggling with a rising tide of false authorship and related problems. One cause, some researchers say, is a 2014 law that aimed to stimulate research by rewarding researchers who boost their publishing output. For example, under a scoring system used by universities,researchers can earn five points for authorship in a high-impact journal, and two points when the journal is lower impact. A massing points can bring bonus payments and career promotion.
Signs of dishonest publishing can be obvious, notes Nahuel onteblanco,president of Cientificospe, a Peruvian group that investigates misconduct. Many of the papers cited by Punto Final have numerous co-authors from different nations with few prior publications on the same subject. “If your colleague consistently publishes 20 articles a year with co-authors from other countries, that’s highly suspect.” Monteblanco says.
1. What action did Peru take recently to address academic cheating?A.Disqualifying 2 scientists from a national registry. |
B.Fining 72 offenders for academic dishonesty. |
C.Punishing 170 researchers for academic misconduct. |
D.Withdrawing government fund from 14 universities. |
A.Opposed. | B.Concerned. | C.Approving. | D.Neutral. |
A.It advocated a fair scoring system. |
B.It applied to high-impact journals. |
C.It aimed to punish dishonest publishing. |
D.It led to an increase in false authorship. |
A.Career promotion. |
B.Consistent research focus. |
C.Co-authors from various countries. |
D.Few citations by Punto Final. |
9 . I often hear kids say, “I’m not a math person” or “I’m just not good at math.” These statements reflect what’s called a “fixed mindset”, which is often associated with a sense of discouragement, powerlessness and inability to improve one’s situation. A fixed mindset is extremely common in math classrooms, but with the help of teachers, students can adopt a “growth mindset”.
This means believing in their potential to acquire the skills and knowledge. In strong, productive teacher-student relationships, teachers nurture (培养) growth mindsets. And there are some key steps in building these relationships, starting with giving instruction that meets the skill levels of individual students. Besides, it’s important to give students social and emotional support, so they could develop social awareness self-management, decision-making and relationship skills.
How could teachers do these among class prep and grading duties? I believe in applying educational technologies. With the right tools, teachers can skillfully manage to individualize instruction and meet social-emotional needs.
Razzaq, a math teacher at Doherty High School, has students from different socioeconomic backgrounds, and some were still learning English alongside math. The school once placed a student in her class, who hadn’t been in formal school since third grade. Students have different levels and social-emotional needs that demand attention from teachers. Sometimes they’re not aware or communicative of the areas in which they need help. Razzaq gives tests with the help of some educational platforms, which generate reports that summarize individual weak points. Then Razzaq could give instructions suiting their academic situations, making productive use of class time. She also uses technologies that provide insights into social-emotional experiences such as attentiveness and time management. The data enables her to initiate conversations that make a difference in students’ education.
More importantly, we need to examine our approach to education. Are we creating an environment where children can develop healthily? How are we satisfying the needs of our future generations? Only by knowing our vision can we decide the technology to complete the picture.
1. Which of the following problems do students often have about learning math according to the text?A.Personal interest. | B.Low confidence. |
C.Poor self-control. | D.Poor learning ability. |
A.By giving an example. | B.By conducting research. |
C.By analyzing statistical data. | D.By making some comparisons. |
A.They encourage students to communicate. |
B.They provide suggestions on math teaching. |
C.They correct the mistakes students make in tests. |
D.They give information about students’ learning situation . |
A.A technician. | B.A psychologist. |
C.An educationist. | D.A mathematician. |
10 . Sleep is essential for our physical and mental health, but many people may experience sleep disturbances. Lying awake for hours before falling asleep is a common problem. Despite getting enough sleep, they may still feel worn out.
Although counting sheep is a common technique to aid sleep, some experts suggest engaging in mindless activities like folding laundry instead.
Eating habits can also affect sleep. Consuming certain foods and drinks before bedtime can improve the amount of REM sleep, which helps with memory consolidation and learning.
Snoring, while generally harmless, can be a sign of sleep apnoea, which can lead to serious health conditions such as strokes, irregular heartbeats, and high blood pressure.
Naps or power naps taken during the day can help us be more alert and focused. So, taking small breaks during the day to rest and recharge can boost productivity and energy levels.
In conclusion, improving sleep quality requires adopting healthy habits and dispelling harmful sleep-related myths and so on.Only by doing so can we prioritize our sleep and enhance our overall wellbeing.
A.Medical advice should be sought if this persists. |
B.Many sleep-related myths can be harmful to our health |
C.To improve sleep quality, it’s important to adopt healthy habits. |
D.People of all ages report better sleep quality after listening to music. |
E.Listening to music can reduce your stress and inspire positive feelings. |
F.So people having trouble falling asleep always wonder how they can sleep well. |
G.Walking is also recommended as a relaxing activity that may improve sleep quality. |