1、国家公共英语四级（综合）练习试卷 26及答案与解析 Part B Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D . Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. 0 It is commonly believed in the United States that school is where people go to get an education. Nevertheless, it has bee
2、n said that today children interrupt their education to go to school. The distinction between schooling and education implied by this remark is important. Education is much more open-ended and all-inclusive than schooling. Education knows no bounds. It can take place anywhere, whether in the shower
3、or on the job, whether in a kitchen or on a tractor. It includes both the formal learning that takes place in schools and the whole universe of informal learning. The agents of education can range from a revered grandparent to the people debating politics on the radio, from a child to a distinguishe
4、d scientist. Whereas schooling has a certain predictability, education quite often produces surprises. A chance conversation with a stranger may lead a person to discover how little is known of other religions. People are engaged in education from infancy on. Education, then, is a very broad, inclus
5、ive term. It is a lifelong process, a process that starts long before the start of school, and one that should be an integral part of ones entire life. Schooling, on the other hand, is a specific, formalized process, whose general pattern varies little from one setting to the next. Throughout a coun
6、try, children arrive at school at approximately the same time, take assigned seats, are taught by an adult, use similar textbooks, do homework, take exams, and so on. The slices of reality that are to be learned, whether they are the alphabet or an understanding of the workings of government, have u
7、sually been limited by the boundaries of the subject being taught. For example, high school students know that they are not likely to find out in their classes the truth about political problems in their communities or what the newest filmmakers are experimenting with. There are definite conditions
8、surrounding the formalized process of schooling. 1 What is the main idea of the passage? （ A） The best schools teach a wide variety of subjects. （ B） Education and schooling are quite different experiences. （ C） Students benefit from schools, which require long hours and homework. （ D） The more year
9、s students go to schools the better their education is. 2 What does the author probably mean by using the expression “children interrupt their education to go to school“ in the first paragraph? （ A） Going to several different schools is educationally beneficial. （ B） School vacations interrupt the c
10、ontinuity of the school year. （ C） Summer school makes the school year too long. （ D） All of life is an education. 3 The phrase “For example,“ in the last paragraph, introduces a sentence that gives examples of which of the following? （ A） Similar textbooks. （ B） The results of schooling. （ C） The w
11、orkings of a government. （ D） The boundaries of classroom subjects. 4 The passage supports which of the following conclusion? （ A） Without formal education, people would remain ignorant. （ B） Education systems need to be radically reformed. （ C） Going to school is only part of how people become educ
12、ated. （ D） Education involves many years of professional training. 5 The passage is organized by _. （ A） listing and discussing several educational problems （ B） contrasting the meaning of two related words （ C） narrating a story about excellent teachers （ D） giving examples of different kinds of sc
13、hools 5 Popular education in England started as a social welfare as well as an educational service. Robert Raikes, who opened the first Sunday School in 1780, and the two bodies of religious and philanthropic people who provided all the day schools until 1870, were inspired to act by two motives-one
14、 was shame at the existence in a great country like England of children and many adults who could not read or write, and the other was concern at the conditions which the industrial revolution had provided for the swarms of children who inhabited the new towns. This approach to popular education was
15、 not the same in other countries. In Prussia, Switzerland, France and in the U. S. A. , the duty to see that future citizens were educated was recognized as that of the State, and public money was allotted to it much earlier than in England. Although the churches in some of these countries were asso
16、ciated with the State system-since religion was recognized to have an important share in the upbringing of the young-the prime motive force was education. The doctrines of the French Revolution were mainly responsible on the Continent for a first approach to educational opportunity, but these doctri
17、nes did not meet with the approval of the governing classes in this country. No statesman here at the beginning of the nineteenth century would have echoed Thomas Jeffersons famous saying of 1812 that “if a nation expects to be both free and ignorant it expects what never was and never can be in a s
18、tate of civilization“. The most our leaders achieved was the reluctant recognition, sixty years later, that “we must educate our masters“. But if we were later than other nations in realizing the importance of popular education, our system has gained something from its dual (double) origin. We have,
19、 sooner than other countries, realized that education is not merely instruction, that schools are places where the very young children can be cared for, and that all children have bodies as well as minds. 6 Popular education in England before 1870 was NOT funded by _. （ A） the government （ B） the ch
20、urches （ C） individuals （ D） social welfare organizations 7 What was the major educational difference between Britain and the U. S. in the 19th century? （ A） The U. S. government alone funded the popular education. （ B） In the U. S. public fund was given to education much earlier than in England. （
21、C） Only in England the churches supported popular education. （ D） Education in England was funded from two sources while it was funded from one in the U. S. 8 From his famous saying of 1812 we can see that Thomas Jefferson _. （ A） believed the doctrines of the French Revolution were irrelevant to hi
22、s country （ B） refused to believe popular education alone could win freedom for any nation （ C） believed no statesman in England would approve the doctrines of the French Revolution （ D） refused to believe freedom and ignorance could exist together 9 By “its dual origin“ the author means that _. （ A
23、） education in England began as a social welfare as well as an educational service （ B） there were both Sunday schools and day schools in England （ C） all children have bodies as well as minds （ D） originally schools in England were run by the religious and philanthropic bodies 10 Which of the follo
24、wing is NOT true according to the passage? （ A） In France education was mainly instruction. （ B） In a way the author is proud of the educational system of his country. （ C） The industrial revolution improved the conditions for many children living in the new towns. （ D） A great many people in Englan
25、d were illiterate at the beginning of the nineteenth century. 10 Almost daily, the gulf between education and employment widens. Careers officers complain about a system that presents them with school-leavers without ideas for employment. Employers deplore the fact that teenagers are unable to spell
26、 and write and calculate. Graduates discover that a knowledge of Ancient History or Zoology counts for nothing when they are looking for a job. With all our magnificent new colleges of further education, the super-polytechnical schools springing up like mushrooms, and our much-praised increase of st
27、udents in full-time education, one vital point is being left out of educational thinking. What will it earn? Because-sad as it may seem to those who believe in its mind-broadening, horizon-widening and strength-testing qualities-you cannot eat education. There are thirty-nine universities and colleg
28、es offering degree courses in Geography, but I have never seen any good jobs for Geography graduates advertised. Or am I alone in suspecting that they will return to teach Geography to another set of students, who in turn will teach more Geography undergraduates? On the other hand, hospital casualty
29、 departments throughout the country are having to close down because of the lack of doctors. The reason? University medical schools can find places for only half of those who apply. It seems to me that the time is ripe for the Department of Education and Productivity and the Department of Education
30、and Science to get together with the universities and produce a revised educational system which will make a more economic use of the wealth of talent, application and industry currently being wasted on certificates, diplomas and, degrees that no one wants to know about. They might make a start by r
31、eintroducing a genuine “General“ Certificate of Education. In the days when it meant something, this was called the School Certificate. Employers liked it, because it indicated proficiency in English, Arithmetic, Science and Humanities-in other words, that you had an all-round education. You could u
32、se it as a springboard to higher education, but it actually meant something in itself, in every industry from chemicals to clothing. From there on they might take a giant step forward by offering the alternative of sandwich courses or full-time training for every career. I can think of a good few me
33、dical students who would willingly “work their way through college“ by filling in as nursing auxiliaries at our understaffed hospitals. And it would be interesting to see just how many would-be Geography graduates pressed on with their courses when they discovered at an early stage the scarcity of j
34、obs available in their specialty. Given the option, I think the majority of those now taking full-time college courses would leap at the chance of combining theory and practice while earning their living. This would leave the full-time courses for the minority of our student population, who can affo
35、rd to love learning for its own sake, and not as a meal ticket. 11 Which of the following is NOT taken good care of by colleges? （ A） Widening the students horizon. （ B） Broadening the students mind. （ C） Providing the students with practical skills for employment. （ D） Providing the students with m
36、oral strength. 12 Judging from the passage, which of the following students stand a better chance of finding a job? （ A） History students. （ B） Geology students. （ C） Zoology students. （ D） Medical students. 13 The author is in favor of _. （ A） having more vocational schools （ B） having all-round ed
37、ucation （ C） having more colleges （ D） having a General Certificate of Education 14 The author believes that _. （ A） many students would like to work to pay for tuition （ B） few students would like to work to pay for tuition （ C） good medical students would like to work to pay for tuition （ D） a few
38、 students would like to work to pay for tuition 15 According to the author, full-time college courses should be taken by _. （ A） those who want to find a good job （ B） those who want to combine theory with practice （ C） those who want a meal ticket （ D） those who have the means to pursue learning fo
39、r the love of it 15 This year, Harvard turned down more than 200 high-school seniors who had perfect SAT scores. Penn rejected 400 valedictorians salutatorians. And its not just the Ivy League and other top universities that are besieged by well-qualified seniors. At Washington University in St. Lou
40、is, the number of applicants has doubled in the last five years. St. Johns University, a commuter college in the New York City borough of Queens, now has so many out-of-town applicants that it is building the first dorm in its 129-year history. Just your luck: you face the stiffest competition in th
41、e history college admissions. Your competitors are more numerous than eve about two thirds of all high-school graduates will go on to some form higher education next fall, compared with just over half in the late 1960s. And by most yardsticks, your fellow applicants have the best qualifications ever
42、. The class of 2004 will start freshman year with twice as many college credits-earned from advanced-placement courses and other special high-school work-as their counterparts had a decade before. Their SAT and ACT scores will be the highest in 15 years. “When we receive phone calls from students in
43、 April asking why they were not admitted, we sometimes have difficulty finding a reason,“ says Lee Stetson, dean of admissions at the University of Pennsylvania. But the tough competition isnt just your problem. Its also a huge challenge for the colleges. They are swamped with applicants, many of wh
44、om are applying to a dozen or more institutions-partly as a kind of failsafe, and partly because the students cant decide what they want. Admissions offices have to separate the serious prospects from the window shoppers and the multiple hookers. For you, the good news is that theres a place somewhe
45、re for just about everyone. The question is, how will you and your ideal college find each other? There are lots of choices out there. When Bob Kinnally, Stanfords director of admissions and financial aid, gets complaints from parents whose kids were rejected, he asks them where their offspring did
46、get in. “They rattle off this amazing list of choices,“ he says. “I tell them Congratulations, school so-and-so is an excellent match for your child. Its all about a good match.“ 16 Harvard has turned down more than 200 high-school seniors who had perfect SAT scores this year because _. （ A） good sc
47、ores dont secure good performance （ B） there are students with higher scores （ C） Harvard has changed its admission policy （ D） Harvard is unable to enroll all of them 17 The author says, “Just your luck. you face the stiffest competition in the history of college admissions, “because _. （ A） he is
48、just trying to be humorous （ B） he is jealous of your opportunity （ C） he thinks that you should be honored to compete with other worthy applicants （ D） he thinks this situation is favorable for universities 18 Which is NOT the reason for the stiff competition? （ A） More high-school graduates are se
49、eking higher education. （ B） More applicants are with better qualifications. （ C） Many students are valedictorians or salutatorians. （ D） Many applicants apply to more than one university. 19 What does “window shoppers“ in the third paragraph mean? （ A） Students who only ask for application materials. （ B） Students who apply without actual intention to enter the university. （ C） Students who apply to many universities and list this university as one of his choice. （ D） Students who apply to the university when refused b
