1 . As you read this, pause to reflect on your recent interactions. As a politician, husband, and father, I encounter various spoken language styles: analytical or chatty, formal or informal, pointed or gentle, cooperative or decisive. Talk is the currency of politics. It is our way of negotiating, debating, and persuading. Talk is also the currency of learning-how we develop our ideas, deepen our thinking and share our feelings.

That’s why I want speaking skills, sometimes called “oracy”, to play an important part in Labor’s plans for a reformed school curriculum (课程).

Employers value speaking skills equally with reading and writing. The ability to speak well and express yourself should be something every child should master. But the curriculum doesn’t allow us to provide this. This is short-sighted. An inability to express your thoughts fluently is a key barrier to getting on and doing well in life.

Oracy is in part about good public speaking and debating skills, but in reality, it’s about teaching young people to make strong arguments, choose wise words, understand their audience, form meaningful social connections, and use facial expressions and body language to convey their message. Above all else it’s about finding your voice. To work out who you are and what you believe. If reading opens up a world of imagination and possibility, then speaking and listening opens up a lifetime of empowerment-a chance for those who feel invisible in their own country to be heard. It is about the confidence to speak out, to call out injustice or harm.

And the other side of speaking is listening, which can also be taught. Listening, truly listening, develops tolerance and understanding. And as parents we can play our part. We’ve all been there, at mealtimes, silent as we all stare at our devices. Our job, all of ours, is to get off our screens and give young people, and adults, the gift of listening.

So, oracy―speaking and listening―needs to be placed firmly at the heart of school life.

1. How does talk help a politician?

A．It deepens his wishful thinking.

B．It enhances his analytical skills.

C．It strengthens persuasive power.

D．It provides emotional support.

2. Why does the author suggest a reform in the British school curriculum?

A．Employers underestimate the value of speaking.

B．Academic pressure makes students poor-sighted.

C．Spoken language is regarded as least important.

D．Oracy should deserve more attention at school.

3. How does the author illustrate his argument in paragraph 4?

A．By sharing different opinions.

B．By clarifying the definition.

C．By describing personal experiences.

D．By employing the concept.

4. What are parents advised to do?

A．Set a good example for their children.

B．Balance screen time and mealtime.

C．Have oral face-to-face communication.

D．Disconnect from the virtual world.

2 . “Looking good, feeling good” is a common phrase, but for many middle school students, it brings up the issue of appearance anxiety. In a world where social media often sets unrealistic beauty standards, teenagers can feel pressured to look a certain way. This pressure can lead to a lack of confidence and happiness.

Dressing in a style that reflects personal taste, rather than simply following fashion trends, can be a step towards overcoming this anxiety. Wearing clothes that make one feel comfortable and confident can help boost self-esteem. It’s important for students to understand that fashion is a way to express themselves, not a standard they must meet.

Healthy eating is also crucial. A balanced diet, rich in fruits, vegetables, and grains, helps maintain a healthy body and mind. Sometimes, teens worry too much about their weight, which can lead to unhealthy eating habits. Learning about nutrition and understanding that healthy bodies come in all shapes and sizes can help alleviate these concerns.

Physical activity plays a significant role in mental well-being. Regular exercise, like playing a sport or going for a walk, not only keeps the body fit but also releases endorphins, improving mood and reducing stress. It's a natural way to fight the anxiety that comes with appearance concerns.

Finally, it's essential for middle school students to focus on mental health. Engaging in hobbies, spending time with friends, and seeking support when needed can contribute to a more positive self-image. Understanding that everyone's unique and that real beauty comes from within is vital. Feeling good about oneself should come from personal achievements and qualities, not just from outward appearance.

1. What is the main concern addressed in the article regarding middle school students?

A．Choosing the right fashion trends.

B．Coping with appearance anxiety.

C．Learning about nutrition and exercise.

D．Finding comfortable clothing.

2. According to the article, how can personal style in clothing affect students?

A．It can lead to unrealistic beauty standards.

B．It can help in overcoming appearance anxiety.

C．It pressures students to follow fashion trends.

D．It results in a lack of interest in fashion.

3. What role does physical activity play in addressing appearance concerns?

A．It sets beauty standards for students.

B．It mainly helps in weight management.

C．It improves mood and reduces stress.

D．It has no significant impact on mental well-being.

4. Why is focusing on mental health important for middle school students?

A．It helps in achieving academic success.

B．It contributes to a more positive self-image.

C．It encourages following social media trends.

D．It increases interest in fashion and style.

3 . In Europe, nine out of ten students study a foreign language. In the United States, only one in five does. From 1997 to 2008, the number of American middle schools offering foreign languages dropped from 75percent to 58 percent. From 2009 to 2013, one American college closed its foreign language program; from 2013 to 2017, 651 others did the same.

At first glance, these statistics look like a tragedy (悲剧). But I am starting to accept the strange idea that maybe they are not. What is changing my mind is technology.

I was in Belgium not long ago, and I watched various tourists from different nations use speech translation apps to change their own languages into English and French. The newer ones can even reproduce the tone of the speaker’s voice.

I know a foreign language is a window into a new way of understanding the world. But even beyond the fact that this idea has been rather oversold, can we really say the low level of French or Spanish we and our classmates usually picked up in school really gave us a new look into the world and our lives in it? And if our goals are more limited and practical --- for instance, getting directions to the bus station in Rome-technology now makes that possible at the press of a button. With a smart phone and an app, foreign languages will no longer present most people with the challenge they once did. Learning to speak a new language well will be necessary for those who want to engage with (从事) literature or media in the original language, as well as those of us who find pleasure in it just because they are “there”. Strange as that is, it is in its way a kind of progress.

1. What is the author’s opinion about the drop in foreign language learning in the United States?

A．It is a tragedy that needs to be avoided.

B．It is an unacceptable situation that harms society.

C．It is a challenge that will be overcome in the future.

D．It is a positive development due to advanced technology.

2. What is the author’s attitude towards the idea that learning a foreign language gives us a new look into the world?

A．Unconcerned.

B．Doubtful.

C．Curious.

D．Supportive.

3. How does technology influence language learning for practical purposes?

A．It makes the process easier and within reach.

B．It provides an easy way to understand the world.

C．It removes the need for language learning altogether.

D．It improves the traditional methods of language learning.

4. Which of the following questions can be answered in the text?

A．What challenges do translation apps bring to language learning?

B．Why is it still necessary to learn foreign languages in the digital age?

C．Will translation apps make learning foreign languages old-fashioned?

D．How can technology help us learn foreign languages more efficiently?

4 . Yang Xingyu, 23, took a liking to fried insects the first time she ate them while touring Lijiang, Yunnan province. “I ate fried locusts (蝗虫) and silkworm chrysalises (蚕蛹). Although they looked a little strange, they were crisp. Due to the protein they provide, I now eat them for nutrition,” she said to China Daily.

Like Yang, about two billion people around the world have added eatable insects such as beetles, caterpillars and bees into their diets, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). They can be fried, baked, braised with soup, mixed with dessert, or even eaten raw.

The reason why the global interest in eatable insects has increased is that it is imperative to develop new food sources that are safe to eat, according to Huang Dawei, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Zoology. A UN report in July showed the global population is expected to rise to 8.5 billion by 2030, 9.7 billion by 2050, and about 10.4 billion by the 2080s. Huang said that the global population is rising much faster than the availability of food. As such, developing new food sources — especially sources of protein — is extremely urgent.

Insects are rich in protein, vitamins and minerals, which are all good for human bodies. In addition to their nutritional value, raising and eating insects is also friendly toward the environment and ecological conservation. Compared with traditional food sources such as farm animals, insect farming needs less land and water for production. Plus, insect farming releases less greenhouse gases. For example, pigs produce 10 to 100 times more greenhouse gases per kilogram than mealworms.

Even so, Guo Jianjun, professor at Guizhou University, warns that not all insects can be eaten, adding that some are poisonous, and that some people may even be allergic to insect protein. Knowing this, it would be best for would-be eaters of insects to first learn about the features of insects and make sure they are eatable before eating them.

1. What makes Yang want to eat insects?

A．Their taste.

B．Their appearance.

C．Their nutritional value.

D．Their cooking methods.

2. What does the underlined word “imperative” in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．General.

B．Potential.

C．Reduced.

D．Pressing.

3. What is a benefit of raising insects compared with farm animals?

A．It provides more jobs.

B．It produces less pollution.

C．It generates more profits.

D．It takes less space and time.

4. Which of the following would Guo most probably agree with?

A．Only a few insects are eatable.

B．It is never wise to eat insects.

C．Be cautious about eating insects.

D．Eating insects does more good than harm.

5 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. Who are the audiences probably?

A．College students.

B．News reporters.

C．Movie fans.

2. What is the speaker talking about?

A．Racism.

B．Heightism.

C．Sexism.

3. What is the advantage of the tall?

A．Get more attention.

B．Get more choices.

C．Get more income.

4. How do most people feel about being tall?

A．They can earn high income from it.

B．They can get satisfaction from it.

C．Nobody cares about their height.

6 . More often than not, people look at the phone screen to check for new messages or have a quick look a Meta. Researchers have now found why we often feel such a strong need to look at our phones. Using the mobile phone, according to them, is contagious (有传染性的).

The team said people were twice more likely to pull out their phones to check their text messages or e-mails if they were with someone who had just done the same. They also found that women were more likely to use their mobile phones than men. The team watched students in dining halls and coffee shops around the college, observing pairs of college students sitting at the tables for as long as 20 minutes and recording their cellphone use. “What we found most interesting was just how often people were using their mobile phones.” said Dr. Daniel Kruger, the study’s co-author. “Every person we studied used his or her phone at least once,while one woman was on hers about half of the time. People saw others checking their incoming messages and began to check their own.”

“Cellphones create another choice for one’s attention and may both support and disagree with live social activities,” the researchers wrote. Kruger believed this could be explained by the effects of social inclusion and exclusion. If one person in a pair starts a conversation through his phone, the other one may feel excluded and then feel the need to get in touch with others so as not to feel left out. The researchers noted that they might not get the same result in a study of different people for example, older adults might not have a habit of using cellphones so often.

1. What can we learn from the study?

A．People can affect each other by using mobile phones.

B．Using mobile phones has nothing to do with social activities.

C．Men are more likely to be affected by others’ using mobile phones.

D．The sound of mobile phones makes using mobile phones contagious.

2. If older adults are studied, the researchers_________.

A．will find that older adults don’t like to use mobile phones

B．will find that mobile phones are harmful to health

C．will no longer like using mobile phones

D．may reach a different conclusion

3. Which can best describe the author’s attitude toward using mobile phones?

A．Supportive.

B．Objective.

C．Indifferent.

D．Opposed.

4. Which can be the best title for the passage?

A．How to Use Mobile Phones Correctly

B．Why College Students Like Mobile Phones?

C．The Relation Between Mobile Phones and People’s Hobbies

D．Something Interesting About the Habit of Using Mobile Phones

7 . We all may know someone we consider to be a picky eater, who tends to dislike some common food regularly and causes social embarrassment when ordering at restaurants. But for some people picky eating can actually become a serious disorder, and clinical definitions of picky eating behaviors often include people who only consume around 20 different kinds of foods for a long period of time.

“Having restricted diets can lead to nutritional deficiencies (缺陷) as well as health problems like heart disease, poor bone health and dental issues,” explained Lorenzo Stafford, one of the authors on the latest study. “There is also a social cost because normally enjoyable moments between family members can easily turn into stressful, anxious, and conflict-causing situations when picky eaters feel ashamed or pressured to eat certain food.”

A new research homed in on the effect of plate color on food desirability for picky eaters. The experiment was based on a foundational study from 2018 which looked at the way different colored food bowls affected a person’s sense of taste.

Using a design similar to the 2018 research, the new experiments had participants rate the sweetness, saltiness and overall desirability of a snack food eaten from different colored bowls. In this instance the snack was salt and vinegar potato crisps consumed from either a red, blue or white bowl. Around 50 participants were recruited (招募) and classified as either picky or non-picky eaters based on a standard questionnaire.

The results revealed picky eaters considered the snack to be saltier when it was eaten from a red or blue bowl compared to the white bowl. And overall, picky eaters found the snack generally less desirable when eaten from a red bowl.

It is worth mentioning that a recent survey estimated nearly one in five American adults could be clinically classified as picky eaters. So exploring ways to help these people better engage with more types of food could result in valuable health outcomes.

1. Which of the following may be a picky eater?

A．Tom who ate only some bread this morning.	B．Lisa who only has vegetables for losing weight.
C．Peter who often orders little at restaurants.	D．Alex who likes only a small range of dishes.

2. What’s paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．Health problems caused by picky eating.

B．Moments that are ruined by picky eaters.

C．Potential consequences of picky eating.

D．Quotes of Lorenzo to support the research findings.

3. What is the finding of the new research?

A．Bowls of different colors directly affect appetite of eaters.

B．Blue color bowls can make the food in them saltier for eaters.

C．Food in red bowls seems less attractive to picky eaters.

D．The color of the bowl can change the taste of the dishes.

4. What’s the purpose of the last paragraph?

A．To show ways of enhancing people’s appetite effectively.

B．To stress the importance of reducing picky eaters’ anxiety and stress.

C．To encourage us to raise picky eaters’ awareness of healthy eating.

D．To call on researchers to help picky eaters try a wider variety of foods.

8 . Thousands of workers in the UK have a shortened week ahead of them as a large-scale four-day workweek pilot gets underway. Beginning this week, more than 3. 000 workers at 70 companies across diverse industries will get an extra day off every week. The six-month trial organized by 4 Day Week Global, is considered the largest experiment of its kind in the world.

“What is most exciting about the pilot is that we have a wide range of fields of economy participating.” said Joe Ryle, campaign director for the UK arm of 4 Day Week. “We’re hoping it will show that the four-day workweek is possible across the economy in the longer term. ”

Participating employers range from firms in the education sector to banking. IT. marketing, retail and hospitality businesses. The schedule is based on the 100-80-100 rule, which allows workers to earn 100%of their pay for 80%of their time for delivering 100% of output.

Employers have been eager to test programmes that offer workers more flexibility and a better work-life balance after workers quit their jobs at record rates. It has forced companies to find new ways to employ and retain(留住)talent, including bumping up pay and allowing more remote work. Cutting a full day off the workweek is yet another option companies can use to induce job seekers to work for them.

“We’ve seen a growing appetite for reduced work time,” said Joe O’Connor, CEO of 4 Day Week Global. “Employers are drawn to this idea as they see it providing them with a competitive advantage. Because of the pandemic(大流行病)，managers are more open-minded.”

For the workers’ part, expectations have also shifted dramatically since the start of the pandemic. “People’s expectations about what forms a reasonable life-work balance have changed,” O’Connor said.

“The four-day week is generally considered to be a triple-dividend policy-helping employees, companies, and the climate,” said Juliet Schor, a sociology professor at Boston College.

1. What is the purpose of the pilot according to Joe Ryle?

A．To test the effectiveness of the four-day workweek.

B．To help develop the economy during COVID-19.

C．To improve cooperation between different industries.

D．To increase employees'productivity within four days.

2. What are workers expected to do according to the schedule?

A．Work hard to get a pay raise.	B．Improve their productivity.
C．Keep a record of what they do.	D．Spend more time with their family.

3. What does the underlined word “induce” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．Expect.

B．Force.

C．Allow.

D．Persuade.

4. What is Juliet Schor’s attitude towards the four-day workweek trial?

A．Negative.

B．Unclear.

C．Favourable.

D．Doubtful.

9 . What are the limits of the human body? Is there a point at which it is physically impossible to do something?

“One thing we’ve all learned in the last 30 years or so is that just about anything is humanly possible,” says Dr. Jack Wilmore, author of Physiology of Sport and Exercise. “As time goes by, I think you’ll see more records continue to fall in every sport. The talent pool is better than ever. With more and better athletes involved and competing, records will fall and new standards will be set.”

Many believed it was physically impossible for a human to run a mile in under four minutes, but Roger Bannister proved that theory wrong with a three-minute, 59-second mile in 1954. Today, sub-four-minute miles are considered routine even in high school. And Bob Beamon stretched human performance in the 1968 Olympics with his historic long jump of 8.90 metres. In an event where a record is usually broken by mere inches, he broke the previous jump record by more than 21 inches, but even his record was broken in 1991.

One factor is now becoming more understood and heavily emphasized: sports psychology. Getting inside the athlete’s head can be as effective as training and long workouts. According to Wilmore, the psychological aspect of sports has become more and more esteemed. He points out that most professional teams have hired sports psychologists for their players.

In addition, every aspect of athletics --- training, nutrition, injury treatment --- is far better than it’s ever been. “Besides, children today tend to specialize in one or two sports instead of competing in several as was common twenty-five years ago,” Wilmore says. “That means they start concentrating on a sport much earlier and more intensely, and they become much better at it.”

“There’s a lot we don’t know yet about the human body,” he adds. “And one of those   things is the full range of human potential. It would be foolish to try and put limits on what the human body can do.”

1. Which statement will Wilmore probably agree with?

A．It is preferable to set universal standards for athletes.

B．Athletes will become the most sought-after celebrities.

C．It is necessary for athletes to learn the limits of the body.

D．Athletes will continue to surprise us with their achievements.

2. Why are Roger Bannister and Bob Beamon mentioned in paragraph 3?

A．To introduce two great athletes.

B．To show some of the latest world records.

C．To prove the limits of the body can be pushed.

D．To explain what athletes can achieve under stress.

3. What does the underlined word “esteemed” in paragraph 4 mean?

A．Similar.	B．Valued.
C．Complex.	D．Specialized.

4. How are today’s children different from those years ago according to Wilmore?

A．They participate in far more sports.

B．They are less likely to get injured in sports.

C．They begin playing sports at a much earlier age.

D．They become more skilful at one particular sport.

10 . Humanities departments(人文院系)in America are once again being cut down. Earlier this month, the State University of New York(SUNY)StonyBrook announced a plan to abandon several of the college’s well-known departments for lack of fund. The University of Pittsburgh has cut its German and classics.     1    In the UK, Middlesex University decided to gradually get rid of philosophy department. In June 2015, the Japanese minister of education sent a letter to the presidents of the national universities of Japan, suggesting they close their graduate and undergraduate departments in the humanities and social sciences and focus on something more practical.

These are hard times. Instead of Shakespeare or French, there will be(perhaps there already are)college classes in how to cut corporate spending.     2    But the only opportunity has been lost if they are denied the opportunity to study foreign languages, the classics, literature, philosophy, music, theater and art in the university. When else in their busy lives will they get that chance?

    3    . Essays explain why we need these subjects, and what their loss will mean. These areas of learning provide us with the ability to think critically and independently; to see both sides of an issue;to look beneath the surface of what we are being told; to appreciate the ways in which language can help us understand one another more clearly.

I don’t believe that the humanities can make you a decent person.     4    . Studying philosophy teaches us about those who have gone before us. A foreign language brings us closer to those with whom we share the planet. The humanities touch those aspects of awareness that we call intellect and heart.     5    

A．These subjects are under attack

B．Students need practical skills to find jobs

C．Defenses of the humanities have appeared

D．This problem has also arisen internationally

E．Therefore, courses in the humanities are beneficial

F．It helps us learn how to think and live in a harmonious society

G．But they can expand our sense of what humans can accomplish and create