1、大学英语六级模拟试卷 817及答案与解析 一、 Part I Writing (30 minutes) 1 For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay entitled Putting Labels on Students. You should write at least 150 words following the outline given below: 1很多学校采取给学生 “贴标签 ”的方式区分差生和 优秀学生 2有人认为这有利于激励学生，有人则认为这会伤害学生的自尊心 3我认为 Putting
2、 Labels on Students 二、 Part II Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning) (15 minutes) Directions: In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the questions attached to the passage. For questions 1-4, mark： Y (for YES) if the statement agrees with the informat
3、ion given in the passage; N (for NO) if the statement contradicts the information given in the passage; NG (for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the passage. 1 The Only Child: Revealing the Myths According to the Guttmacher Institute, a leading reproductive-health research organization,
4、 64% of women polled said that with the economy the way it is, they couldnt afford to have a baby now. Forty-four percent said they plan to reduce or delay their childbearingagain, because of the economy. Meanwhile, friends and relatives continue to urge parents of only children to have another baby
5、. There are certain time-honored reasons for having that baby. And family size can be dictated by biology as much as by psychology. But the entrenched (根深蒂固的 )aversion to stopping at one mainly amounts to a century-old public-relations issue. Single children are perceived as spoiled, selfish, solita
6、ry misfits. No parents want that for their kid. Since the 1970s, however, studies devoted to understanding the personality characteristics of only children have debunked (揭穿 )that idea. A Stereotype Is Born The image of the lonely onlyor at least the legitimizing of that ideawas the work of one man,
7、 Granville Stanley Hall. About 120 years ago, Hall established one of the first American psychology-research labs and was a leader of the child-study movement. But what he is most known for today is supervising the 1896 study “Of Peculiar and Exceptional Children“, which described a series of only-c
8、hild oddballs as permanent misfits. For decades, academics and advice columnists alike spread his conclusion that an only child could not be expected to go through life with the same capacity for adjustment that children with siblings possessed. “Being an only child is a disease in itself,“ he claim
9、ed. Later generations of scholars tried to correct the record, but their findings never filtered into popular parenting discourse. Meanwhile, the “peculiar“ only children“overprivileged, royally autonomous .self-centred, indifferent and overly intellectual“, as sociologist Judith Blake describes the
10、m in her 1989 book Family Size and Achievement. No one has done more to disprove Halls stereotype than Toni Falbo, a professor of educational psychology and sociology at the University of Texas. An only child herself and the mother of one, Falbo began investigating the only-child experience in the 1
11、970s, drawing on the experience of tens of thousands of subjects. Generally, those studies showed that singletons arent measurably different from other kids except that they, along with firstborns and people who have only one sibling, score higher in measures of intelligence and achievement. No one,
12、 Falbo says, has published research that can demonstrate any truth behind the stereotype of the only child as lonely, selfish and maladjusted. Falbo later completed a second quantitative review of more than 200 personality studies. By and large, she found that the personalities of only children were
13、 indistinguishable from their peers with siblings. Undiluted (未稀释的 )Resources Part of the reason we assume only children are spoiled is that whatever parents have to give, the only child gets it all. The argument Blake makes in Family Size and Achievement as to why onlies are higher achievers across
14、 socioeconomic lines can be stated simply: theres no “dilution of resources“, as she terms it, between siblings. No matter their income or occupation, parents of only children have more time, energy and money to invest in their kid, who gets all the dance classes, piano lessons and prep courses, as
15、well as all their parents attention. That attention, researchers have noticed, leads to not just higher SAT scores but also higher self-esteem. But if only children do get it all, doesnt that mean theres truth to the stereotype that theyre overindulged? Psychologist Carl Pickhardt tells us human beh
16、avior cannot be entirely reduced to numbers on a questionnaire. “Theres no question that only children are highly indulged and highly protected, but that doesnt mean the stereotype is true,“ he says, at least not based on his four decades of seeing singletons both kids and adultsunburden themselves
17、in his office. “Youve been given more attention and nurturing to develop yourself. But thats not the same thing as being selfish. On balance, that level of parental involvement is a good thing. All that attention is the energy for your self-esteem and achievement.“ Researchers have analyzed the numb
18、ers from years of standardized tests like the National Merit Scholarship exam to measure verbal and mathematical abilities. In each category, only children performed better than children from larger families. Furthermore, theyre expected to. Falbo tells her class that parents have significantly high
19、er expectations of academic achievement and attainment when they have just one kid. But Pickhardt notes that parental expectations are merely part of the pressure only children can feel. Much of it is self-imposed, he says, because of their notions of themselves as performing at a peer level with th
20、eir parents. Will It Make Us Happier? As parents, we tend to ask ourselves two questions when we talk with our partners about having more children. First, will it make our kid happier? And then, will it make us happier? University of Pennsylvania demography professor Samuel Preston was conducting re
21、search to help him predict the future of fertility, and the discovery that surprised him most was that parents felt so madly in love with their first child, they wanted a second. Thats an unusual finding. Talk to parents and youll often hear that they opt to have another because they think it will b
22、e better for the child they already have. Not many say they do it for themselves, no matter how much they may love the experience of parenting. A 2007 survey found that at a rate of 3 to 1, people believe the main purpose of marriage is the “mutual happiness and fulfillment“ of adults rather than th
23、e “bearing and raising of children“. There must be some balance between the joy our kids give us and the sacrifices we make to care for them. Social scientists have speculated since the 1970s that singletons offer the rich experience of parenting without the consuming efforts that multiple children
24、add: all the wonder and giggles but with leftover energy for conversation, reading and so on. The research of Hans-Peter Kohler, a population sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania, gives weight to that idea. In his analysis of a survey of 35 000 Danish twins, women with one child said they w
25、ere more satisfied with their lives than women with none or more than one. As Kohler told me, “At face value, you should say that youll stop at one child to maximize your subjective well being.“ Ascent of the Onlies? A paper by Joshua Goldstein, a director of the Max Planck Institute for Demographic
26、 Research in Germany, represents one of many exacerbating anxiety about the current low-fertility “crisis“ that has European economists and policy wonks (用功而严肃的人 )in a panic. In the early 1960s, Europe represented 20% of the worlds population. About a century later, those numbers are projected to dr
27、op to about 7.5%, despite the rise in minority and immigrant birthrates. Between now and 2030, demographers forecast the EU will have lost 13 millionor almost 4%of people ages 15 to 64. Meanwhile, the number of people over 65 will increase by more than 40%. Questions arise: Who will make up the work
28、force? Who will care for the disproportionate number of elderly citizens? The latter is a question felt even more acutely on a personal levelparticularly in the microcosm of the single-child family. A 2001 study found that one of the most consistent self-perceived challenges for only children was co
29、ncern about being the sole caretaker for aging parents. Of course, having siblings is no guarantee that the burden of elder care will be shared equally or even shared at all. But imagining this emotionally loaded inevitability impels many people I know to have more kids, especially if they can affor
30、d them. 2 According to the Guttmacher Institute, what has the current economic situation resulted in? （ A） It has promoted the development of birth control industry. （ B） It has significantly propelled the rise of education costs. （ C） It has caused more than doubled single-child families in number.
31、 （ D） It has dramatically reshaped womens child-bearing desires. 3 What did Granville Stanley Hall do in the study of only children? （ A） He created the image of the only children as lonely misfits. （ B） He started a national network to legitimize his teachings. （ C） He knew close to nothing about c
32、redible research practices. （ D） He claimed the disease of the only child could be cured. 4 What conclusion did Toni Falbo come to in her studies of singletons? （ A） She found that only children were rather peculiar. （ B） She found no distinguishable personalities in singletons. （ C） She found singl
33、etons were more intelligent than firstborns. （ D） She observed that only children were socially retarded. 5 Why do singletons have higher achievements according to Blakes Family Size and Achievement? （ A） Because they make more efforts in academic study. （ B） Because they have no siblings to share f
34、amily resources. （ C） Because they try to fight against the prevalent stereotypes. （ D） Because they are non-negotiable in their future investment. 6 What does Carl Pickhardt say about parental involvement in the only child? （ A） It is hard to say since everything is double-edged. （ B） It is likely
35、to make the child feel overburdened. （ C） It helps the child build self-esteem and achieve success. （ D） It hinders the child from getting more education. 7 According to Carl Pickhardt, only children impose pressure on themselves because_. （ A） they feel the pressure and expectations from their pare
36、nts （ B） they tend to come from families of low social status （ C） they are deprived of a full and happy childhood （ D） they consider that they should outperform their peers 8 What surprised Samuel Preston most in his research of fertility? （ A） That both parents and the first child feel happy to ha
37、ve a large family. （ B） That parents want to have a second child because they love the first one so much. （ C） That parents opt to have another child for their love of parenting. （ D） That parents who choose to have a second child are doing harm to the first kid. 9 According to a 2007 survey, a grow
38、ing number of parents choose to have just one child to enjoy_. 10 Joshua Goldsteins paper represents one of many worsening worries about the current_ that makes European economists and policy wonks in panic. 11 According to a 2001 study, only children consistently perceive an immense challenge of_ S
39、ection A Directions: In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the end of each conversation, one or more questions will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After each question there will be a pause. D
40、uring the pause, you must read the four choices marked A, B, C and D, and decide which is the best answer. （ A） Father and daughter. （ B） Friends. （ C） Boss and secretary. （ D） Official and reporter. （ A） They are quite excellent. （ B） They cost her far too much. （ C） They are designed by herself. （
41、 D） They should be mended. （ A） She likes telling jokes. （ B） She isnt satisfied with her salary. （ C） She feels her job very tiring. （ D） She probably works at the bank. （ A） Go out to have a cup of coffee. （ B） Make a cup of coffee for him. （ C） Sit down and have a rest. （ D） Help him finish his p
42、rogram. （ A） The man is writing a paper. （ B） The woman borrowed a magazine from the man. （ C） The man lent the book to the woman. （ D） The woman has finished reading the book. （ A） Excellent. （ B） Hard to swallow. （ C） Better than before. （ D） Dirty. （ A） She doesnt want the man to resign. （ B） She
43、 likes the man very much. （ C） She wants to remind the man of her effort. （ D） She is eager to have the man leave. （ A） Accept a full-time job. （ B） Go to meet Laura at the restaurant. （ C） Go out of town with Laura. （ D） Substitute for Laura at work. （ A） 680 years ago. （ B） Hundreds of years ago.
44、（ C） In the 19th century. （ D） The day when England colonized. （ A） It was first used by a sports grouping in 1930. （ B） It was first used by a sports reporter. （ C） It was a kind of official usage. （ D） It appeared first in a school newspaper. （ A） The schools and their students think themselves to
45、o highly. （ B） The competition in the eight schools is limited to powerful people. （ C） 70 percent of the students cant be admitted into these universities. （ D） There are some terrible students in these universities. （ A） Social status. （ B） Income. （ C） Working conditions. （ D） Types of work. （ A）
46、 More and more people go into the college. （ B） The proportion of girl students is growing. （ C） Not everyone is suitable for college education. （ D） Some measures should be carried out. （ A） It can help students find good jobs. （ B） It is a symbol of the students skills. （ C） It can provide some as
47、sessment criteria. （ D） It reflects the employees attitude to work. （ A） His college degree. （ B） His willingness to work. （ C） The useful information about him. （ D） His flexible time. Section B Directions: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage, you will hear s
48、ome questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A, B, C and D. （ A） To avoid showering, washing and teeth cleaning that she hated. （ B） To find whether the daily cosmetics are useful o
49、r not. （ C） To seek how long people can hang on without money. （ D） To find the advantages of people not washing themselves. （ A） It was covered with dust. （ B） It was full of wrinkles. （ C） It became darker and drier. （ D） It looked fresher and brighter. （ A） She chose to work at home. （ B） She changed clothes often. （ C） She quit her job in advance. （ D） She asked for sick leave. （ A） It still can be used. （ B） It will break down. （ C） It should be thrown away. （ D） It will become bent. （ A） The gi
