The old saying that practice makes perfect seems to make no sense when it comes to schoolwork. Many educators today are looking for evidence to support the case for homework, but are coming up empty-handed. Mary Jane Cera is the academic administrator for the Kino School, and she maintains a no-homework policy across all grades. The purpose of the policy is to make sure learning remains a joy, not a thing that discourages social time and creative activity. At the Kino school, Cera says children often choose to take their favorite parts of school home. "A lot of what we see kids doing is practicing music with their friends, and taking experiments home to show their parents," she says. Surveys of Kino graduates suggest that the early control they are given over their education continues to serve them well into college. "One of the reasons that we continue to assign much homework is our obsession with tests, although we can agree on the importance of kids doing better on tests through proper homework to some degree,"says author Alfie Kohn. In his book The Homework Myth, Kohn points out that no study has ever found a relation between homework and academic achievement and that if kids have no choice in the matter of homework, they're not really exercising judgment, and are instead losing their sense of self-control. However, many supporters of homework argue that life is filled with things we don't like to do, and that homework teaches self-discipline, time management and other non-academic life skills. Wherever the homework debate goes next, it's worth taking a moment to examine if we're doing the right thing about our children's education. The good news is -- it's never too late to start. What is the author's attitude towards homework? A) Disapproved. B) Supportive. C) Objective. D) Uninterested.
C
(Question)
It was a very foggy day in London. The fog was so thick that it was impossible to see more than a foot or so. Buses, cars and taxis were not able to run and were standing by the side of the road. People were trying to find their way about on foot but were losing their way in the fog. Mr. Smith had a very important meeting at the House of Commons and had to get there but no one could take him. He tried to walk there but found he was quite lost. Suddenly he bumped into a stranger. The stranger asked if he could help him. Mr. Smith said he wanted to get to the Houses of Parliament. The stranger told him he would take him there. Mr. Smith thanked him and they started to walk there. The fog was getting thicker every minute but the stranger had no difficulty in finding the way. He went along one street, turned down another, crossed a square and at last after about half an hour's walk they arrived at the Houses of Parliament. Mr. Smith couldn't understand how the stranger found his way. "It is wonderful," he said. "How do you find the way in the fog?" "It is no trouble at all to me," said the stranger, "I am blind." This article mainly tells us that _ . A) London is a foggy city. B) Mr. Smith works for the government. C) A blind stranger led the way for Mr. Smith in a foggy day. D) Mr. Smith had a very important meeting and lost his way in the fog.
(Answer)
C
Ques: Going green seems to be fad for a lot of people these days. Whether that is good or bad, we can't really say, but for the tow of us, going green is not a fad but a lifestyle. On April22, 2011, we decided to go green every single day for an entire year. This meant doing 365 different green things, and it also meant challenging ourselves to go green beyond easy things. Rather than recycle and reduce our energy, we had to think of 365 different green things to do and this was no easy task. With the idea of going green every single day for a year, Our Green Year started. My life and I decided to educate people about how they could go green in their lives and hoped we could show people all the green things that could be done to help the environment. We wanted to push the message that every little bit helps. Over the course of Our Green Year, we completely changed our lifestyle. We now shop at organic stores. We consume less meat, choosing green food. We have greatly reduced our buying we don't need. We have given away half of what we owned through websites. Our home is kept clean by vinegar and lemon juice, with no chemical cleaners. We make our own butter, enjoying the smell of home-made fresh bread. In our home office anyone caught doing something ungreen might be punished. Our minds have been changed by Our Green Year. We are grateful for the chance to have been able to go green and educate others. We believe that we do have the power to change things and help our planet. What did the couple do over the course of Our Green Year? A) They tried to get out of their ungreen habits. B) They ignore others' ungreen behavior. C) They chose better chemical cleaners. D) They sold their home-made food.
Ans: A
(Q).
Petroleumis a very important mineral. It gives us heat and light. It gives us power for our cars, planes, and ships. Also, it gives us power for machines of all kinds. How is petroleum formed? Scientists believe petroleum comes from the remains of plants and animals (Remains are what is left after a plant or animal has died.) What exactly is petroleum? Petroleum is a mineral that is a mixture of hydrocarbons. It is an oily liquid, which may be brown, green, or black in colors. The word "petroleum" comes from Greek. It means "rock oil". Crude (, ) oil is petroleum that comes directly from deep in the ground. It is then taken to a refinery. a refinery is a kind of factory to refine oil. At a refinery the crude oil is separated into many parts. From the refined petroleum we get important things, such as gasoline, kerosene, fertilizer, detergents and a lot of other useful things. In fact, there are thousands of such things that we can get. Petroleum really is of great value! Which of the following might be the best title for the passage? A) An Important Source of Energy. B) Petroleum and Its Uses. C) Where Does Petroleum Come From? D) A Special Rock Oil.
(A).
A
On July 4,1986,Americans celebrated the Statue of Liberty's 100th birthday.Parades,speeches,fireworks,and other activities contributed to the great joy of the event.The celebration caused reporters and the 1ocal people to 1ook back a century to the similar great joy that marked the official opening of the statue.The Statue of Liberty was completed in 1886,but the story began earlier.The idea for a statue was first suggested at a dinner party by Edouard de Laboulaye, a French historian .A guest at the party was Frederic Bartholdi,a young sculptor. Most people who attended the dinner party soon forgot the idea,but Laboulaye and Bartholdi remembered it.In 187l, Bartholdi came to the United States to interest Americans in a statue that would link France and the United States in friendship.Many people in France had already been persuaded and contributed money to the project.Americans were also persuaded to build a fund for the statue.Much of the money came from school children. After the idea had been accepted,Bartholdi set to work. He worked hard for many years.His friend Laboulaye died before the statue was completed.At last,in 1885,the statue was sent to the United States.It had to be shipped in sections and then put together for its weight and size. Ever since then, 1886,the Statue of Liberty has stood as a symbol of freedom to millions of immigrants entering New York Harbor. Which of the following titles best summarizes the content of the passage? A) Labou1aye and Bartholdi:Makers of the Statue of the Liberty B) How People Made the Statue of Liberty Possible C) The l00th Birthday of the Statue of Liberty D) The True Story of the Statue of Liberty
D