1、大学英语四级模拟试卷 690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 Should Children Be Paid by Parents for Doing Housework? You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below. 1一些家长付钱给孩子做家务 2付钱给孩子做家务的利和弊 3在我看来 Should Chil
2、dren Be Paid by Parents for Doing Housework? 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 1-7, mark： Y (for YES) if the statement
3、 agrees with the information 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 Is Higher Education a Bubble? My colleague at Democracy in America draws attention to an ongoing debat
4、e over the nature of higher education, and, in particular, steady increases in the cost of getting one. The question of the hour is: is higher education a bubble? Consider: If you can only afford to go to a state university, dont be too annoyed. Except this: Kevin Drum went to a state university tha
5、t does not exist anymore. When he graduated from Cal State Long Beach in 1981, he paid $ 160 in fees. If he graduated from the same institution today, the tuition he would have paid for this year would be $ 4,335. They officially call it “tuition“ now, because its not meant to be a nominal (名义上的 ) “
6、fee“ anymore. Its simply the price you pay for your education, as a customer, and next year it will be higher, a lot higher. Unless the direction of things changes soon, it will be $6,450. And the year after that? It will be even higher. Fees/Tuition in the California State system have risen signifi
7、cantly every year since when Kevin Drum went there, and they have risen by around 400% since 2002. Given the complete intransigence (不妥协 ) of California republicans, tuition will most likely rise by another 32% next year. A diploma is a kind of investment. It is a guarantor of higher lifetime earnin
8、gs: The “ college wage premium“ for highly educated workers is in the tens of thousands of dollars per year. It is also an insurance policy against unemployment, a signaling device to employers and peers, a prestige line for your resume or New York Times wedding announcement, and a place to make fri
9、ends and connections. Most importantly, it is a way to learn new skills and information. It could be that college students are overpaying for their educations. But it seems more likely that some college students attending certain types of schools are overpaying. If you want to be an aerospace engine
10、er and have the chops to get into Caltech, the quality of the education, contacts, and fellow students on offer might really be worth $ 200, 000 to you. A diploma from the school practically guarantees a good salary. Its much harder to talk about a bubble in education than it was one in housing. In
11、housing, there was a clear metric: prices, in absolute terms and as a ratio of just about everything, were soaring. And there was a clear debate: are these increases justified by some real economic shift or are they a bubble associated with new mortgage products and loose credit. In higher education
12、, the questions are much more difficult. For one thing, its hard to agree on what price should be the focus. Advertised topline tuition? Few people pay that. Average tuition paid? Average student loan debt? Is the bubble in higher education present at all universities, or just top universities, or j
13、ust for-profit universities? And how is whatever rising price that is the focus connected to changes in the benefits of a higher education? Indeed, what are those benefits? The ultimate benefit seems to be a substantial wage premium, and comparisons of that premium to average levels of tuition or in
14、curred debt make college look like an incredibly good deal. The tricky thing is that there may well be an identification problem: it could simply be the case that students who go to college earn more, because the types of students that go to college are the types that have characteristics (intellige
15、nce, discipline) that translate into higher earnings. University degrees could simply be expensive signaling mechanisms at best, in this world, and massively wasteful cultural institutions at worst. Because we cant select high school seniors at random, send some to universities and some into the wor
16、kforce, and see what happens, were going to be limited in what we can say about the extent to which this is true. But let me tell you how I think about this. I think the gains from higher education are mostly, though not at all entirely, about actual learning, though I should say that a healthy port
17、ion of these learning gains arent academic in nature, but have to do with things like social capital. Given the cost of higher education, it seems unlikely that signaling can be the main value of a college degree. There are so many other available means to accomplish the same thing. Why wouldnt an e
18、mployer be as happy with a set of scores on the SAT and GRE and a letter of acceptance from Harvard? The potential market for a cheaper means to signal worth and to network seems so large that its absence is just very difficult to explain. There are highly successful firms that do opt to recruit lar
19、ge numbers of skilled young people away from universities and toward an early professional career: Americas professional sports teams. Why havent other companies followed suit? If college doesnt teach anything, how can we explain this enormous market failure? One potential explanation is that there
20、are multiple balances and at present we are stuck in a bad one. So long as the vast majority of talented youths get traditional college educations, it is too risky and costly for young people to defect from the higher-education strategy. Defection could, indeed, signal a lack of professional fitness
21、. But this is a very vulnerable equilibrium (平衡 ). If even a small number of those students accepted to top universities opt instead to strike out on their own, the bad record of missing out on college could quickly erode. One can even imagine a young student leaving to pursue an entrepreneurial vis
22、ion directly targeted at potential college dropouts setting up support networks, alternative signaling mechanisms, and so on. But why hasnt this already happened? My guess is that most people, including parents, students, and employers, consider a university education to be a good value. The full se
23、t of returns to the investment signaling and networking, yes, but also the actual investments in intellectual and social capital justifies the sticker price, and certainly the $20,000 or so in average student loan debt. What would we look for in a higher education bubble? College educations have lon
24、g been incredibly cheap given the (apparent) long-run benefit to the degree-holder. Students today are now paying for a larger share of the benefit they receive. And in some cases, universities appear to be getting better at gaining some of the surplus created by degree completion. Is this problemat
25、ic? There is a positive societal effect to higher education, and so students (many of them anyway) should continue to receive some subsidy. And it is in societys interest to ensure that deserving poor students have the same opportunities as richer ones. But broadly speaking, I dont know if we can sa
26、y that higher education has gotten too expensive or has become a bubble. 2 Which problem draws special attention of current debate? （ A） The nature of higher education. （ B） The rise of higher education cost. （ C） The steady decrease of college students. （ D） The significance of higher education. 3
27、What is the most important function of a diploma? （ A） An insurance policy against unemployment. （ B） A signaling device to employers and peers. （ C） A way to learn new skills and information. （ D） A place to make friends and connections. 4 College students going to certain types of schools seem to_
28、. （ A） become aerospace engineers （ B） pay much tuition than it is worth （ C） accept high-quality education （ D） receive better salary than others 5 What does the author say about the bubble in education? （ A） There is a clear metric to show the prices are soaring. （ B） The tuition increases are jus
29、tified by higher salary. （ C） It relates to new mortgage products and loose credit. （ D） It involves more difficult questions than one in housing. 6 Why will students receiving college education earn more? （ A） Because they have features that can turn into high income. （ B） Because their teachers ca
30、n introduce better jobs for them. （ C） Because they pay a lot of tuition for best teachers. （ D） Because they have diploma assurance through actual learning. 7 In authors opinion, what can we get mostly from higher education? （ A） High-salary guarantee. （ B） Academic achievement. （ C） Actual learnin
31、g. （ D） High score on SAT and GRE. 8 Why do most people think it is risky for young people to drop higher education? （ A） Because it is hard for them to strike out on their own. （ B） Because the bad record of missing college will last forever. （ C） Because college is a tradition that cannot be overt
32、urned. （ D） Because the defection signals a lack of professional fitness. 9 Most people support university education for they believe it is an actual investment in_. 10 In some occasions, universities seem to gain more surplus from_. 11 It is in the interest of society to ensure that some qualified
33、poor students enjoy the same chances as_. Section 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. A
34、fter each question there will be a pause. During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A, B, C and D, and decide which is the best answer. （ A） Borrow some money. （ B） Invest his money. （ C） Make a careful plan. （ D） Save his money. （ A） The secretary forgets his number. （ B） The number i
35、s the private information. （ C） Jason wont release his number. （ D） The man doesnt call the right person. （ A） It is annoying. （ B） It needs repairing. （ C） It is tolerable. （ D） It wastes his time. （ A） She seldom comes to the restaurant. （ B） She visits a couple in the restaurant. （ C） She doesnt
36、come to the restaurant regularly. （ D） She doesnt like the restaurant at all. （ A） He can treat the woman. （ B） He doesnt have money. （ C） He broke his ankle. （ D） He must find his check. （ A） The requirement of a class. （ B） The drop out of a class. （ C） The registration of a class. （ D） The schedu
37、le of a class. （ A） Receive his lawyer for him. （ B） Leave a message to his lawyer. （ C） Sign the contract for him. （ D） Handle a call from his lawyer. （ A） Making preparation for his report. （ B） Working at the company library. （ C） Studying for a psychology exam. （ D） Finding some books on investi
38、ng. （ A） Whether the large order is from a regular client. （ B） Whether they had the goods in stock. （ C） Whether the goods can be delivered in time. （ D） Whether the customer can get the special prices. （ A） Its more convenient to keep the details for each client. （ B） Its good for the environment.
39、 （ C） Its cleaner and safer than using paper files. （ D） Its easy to take on business trip. （ A） Finish writing a sales report for the boss. （ B） Solve the complaint from a client. （ C） Get ready for the work next morning. （ D） Check information on computer files. （ A） How to operate a smart investm
40、ent. （ B） Mr. Browns present investment. （ C） The risks of investment. （ D） The returns of investment. （ A） Knowing stock market. （ B） Having a definite aim. （ C） Having adequate money. （ D） Having realistic expectations. （ A） Types of products. （ B） Big surprises later. （ C） Law of stock market. （
41、D） Risks and potential rewards. （ A） It has averaged 30% annual returns. （ B） It has rise and fall irregularly. （ C） It gets returns all the time. （ D） Short-term investment will gain big returns. Section B Directions: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage, you
42、will hear some 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） Wednesday. （ B） Monday. （ C） Friday. （ D） Sunday. （ A） They become increasingly cheerful from Friday to S
43、aturday. （ B） They are as depressed on Wednesday as expected. （ C） Most of them thought they felt lowest on Monday. （ D） They thought they felt happiest on Sunday. （ A） Mondays are as depressing as they have feared. （ B） Fridays and Saturdays are as exciting as predicted. （ C） Their mood almost stay
44、s the same throughout the week. （ D） Their mood depends on how to spend their time. （ A） What to buy for Americans. （ B） How to make friends with Americans. （ C） How to be a guest in an Americans home. （ D） How to invite Americans to your home. （ A） It is expected by all the hosts. （ B） It is an obl
45、igation of the guests. （ C） It is up to the guests themselves. （ D） It should be flowers, candy or toys. （ A） Wear comfortable, casual clothes. （ B） Eat much of food she prepared. （ C） Bring your favorite food to her. （ D） Invite her to your house next time. （ A） People who fish for fun. （ B） People
46、 who live on fishing. （ C） People who fish with a fishing pole. （ D） People who fish in the salty sea water. （ A） To let them train young fishermen. （ B） To introduce the sport to them. （ C） To give them a chance of relaxation. （ D） To provide more communication between them. （ A） To increase their
47、revenue taxes. （ B） To encourage them to settle down. （ C） To encourage them to fish for a living. （ D） To save them trouble of getting a license. （ A） You dont need a license at all. （ B） You must be an America citizen. （ C） You need only one license from a state. （ D） You need licenses from all bo
48、rdering states. Section C Directions: In this section, you will hear a passage three times. When the passage is read for the first time, you should listen carefully for its general idea. When the passage is read for the second time, you are required to fill in the blanks numbered from 36 to 43 with
49、the exact words you have just heard. For blanks numbered from 44 to 46 you are required to fill in the missing information. For these blanks, you can either use the exact words you have just heard or write down the 36 Solar power is one kind of clean energies that are forms of energy which do not pollute the air, the ground, or the sea. It【 B1】 _a number of methods of producing energy from the light of the Sun. For example, solar power is produced by collecting sunlight and【 B2】 _it into elec
