Next autumn, studying for a degree in Britain will become more expensive, and the results are already clear. This week, figures from UCAS(the Universities and College Admissions service)show a 15-percent downturn in applications(申请) from this time last year. With fees having reached ￡9,000 a year, some students are beginning to consider other ways of getting higher education—including distance learning, which allows them to get a degree while still living, and earning money, at home.
That is important, because fees are only part of the picture. The National Union of Students says that UK students pay an average of ￡4,900 a year for basics such as rent, food, books, equipment, field trips and the like. If those costs can be reduced, the burden of fees will be lessened. Therefore, many people are thinking not only about what and where to study, but how—that is, whether they have to be on campus to get a degree.
Distance learning is best suited to certain subjects and to ultra-motivated(极有主动性的)student, according to Carrie-Anne Rice of Resource Development International(RDI).“The advantage is that the fee system is more flexible(灵活的), and you can have full-time work while studying, Rice says.”“You graduate three years ahead of possible competitors(竞争对手)— with the same degree, but with three years of work experience and without the debt.”
“I left school and went straight into work. But at the age of 23, I changed career and soon realized I needed a degree to advance. Because of lack of money ad time, full-time university wasn’t a good choice, but I discovered that distance learning was financially flexible and enabled me to work and gain skills from my workplace without affecting the quality of my life,” Andy Cain, a distance learning student says.
Although distance learning has many advantages, a campus-based university experience remains the dream of most school-leavers. There is no question that “being there” is not only fun, but rich in shared experience, pooled knowledge, and—perhaps most importantly—friendships that will go on long after the degrees have been awarded.
【小题1】The number of students applying to universities    compared to this time last year.

A．has increased greatly	B．has decreased
C．hasn’t shown any change	D．has become zero

【小题2】Students who study on campus spend      each year, on average.

A．￡9,000

B．￡4,900

C．￡13,900

D．￡4,100

【小题3】Which of the following is NOT the benefit of distance learning?

A．Lower debt levels	B．A head start on the job market.
C．Valuable friendships	D．A flexible fee system.

【小题4】Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．The change in fees has had no effect on school-leavers.

B．Distance learning has the same advantages as campus-based learning.

C．Distance learning is so attractive that nobody wants to go to university any more.

D．Distance learning doesn’t suit all subjects or all students.

(The Guardian)：              More UK universities should be profiting from ideas
　　A repeated criticism of the UK's university sector is its noticeable weakness in translating new knowledge into new products and services.
　　Recently, the UK National Stem Cell Network warned the UK could lose its place among the world leaders in stem cell research unless adequate funding and legislation could be assured, despite an annual £40m spent by the Department of Health on all kinds of research.
　　However, we do have to challenge the unthinking complaint that the sector does not do enough in taking ideas to market. The most recent comparative data on the performance of universities and research institutions in Australia, Canada, USA and UK shows that, from a relatively weak starting position, the UK now leads on many indicators of commercialization activity.
　　When viewed at the national level, the policy interventions (interference) of the past decade have helped transformed the performances of UK universities. Evidence suggests the UK's position is much stronger than in the recent past and is still showing improvement. But national data masks the very large variation in the performance of individual universities. The evidence shows that a large number of universities have fallen off the back of the pack, a few perform strongly and the rest chase the leaders.
　　This type of uneven distribution is not strange to the UK and is mirrored across other economies. In the UK, research is concentrated: less than 25% of universities are receiving 75% of the research funding. These same universities are also the institutions producing the greatest share of PhD graduates, science citations, patents and license income. The effect of policies generating long-term resource concentration has also created a distinctive set of universities which are research-led and commercially active. It seems clear that the concentration of research and commercialization work creates differences between universities.
　　The core objective for universities which are research-led must be to maximize the impact of their research efforts. Their purpose is not to generate funds to add to the bottom line of the university or to substitute other income streams. Rather, these universities should be generating the widest range of social, economic and environmental benefits. In return for the scale of investment, they should share their expertise (expert knowledge or skill) in order to build greater confidence in the sector.
　　Part of the economic recovery of the UK will be driven by the next generation of research commercialization spilling out of our universities. On the evidence presented in my report, there are three dozen universities in the UK which are actively engaged in advanced research training and commercialization work.
　　If there was a greater coordination（协调）of technology transfer offices within regions and a simultaneous (happening at the same time) investment in the scale and functions of our graduate schools, universities could, and should, play a key role in positioning the UK for the next growth cycle.
【小题1】What does the author think of UK universities in terms of commercialization?

A．They have lost their leading position in many ways.

B．They still have a place among the world leaders.

C．They do not regard it as their responsibility.

D．They fail to change knowledge into money.

【小题2】What does the author say about the national data on UK universities’ performance in commercialization?

A．It masks the fatal weaknesses of government policy.

B．It indicates their ineffective use of government resources.

C．It does not rank UK universities in a scientific way.

D．It does not reflect the differences among universities.

【小题3】We can infer from Paragraph 5 that “policy interventions (in Paragraph 4)” refers to _____.

A．concentration of resources in a limited number of universities

B．compulsory cooperation between universities and industries

C．government aid to non-research-oriented universities

D．fair distribution of funding for universities and research institutions

【小题4】What dose the author suggest research-led universities do?

A．Fully use their research to benefit all sectors of society.

B．Generously share their facilities with those short of funds.

C．Advertise their research to win international recognition.

D．Spread their influence among top research institutions.

Annalisee Brasil, a 14-year-old girl, is one of the brightest kids of her generation. When Annalisee was 3, her mother Angi noticed that she was stringing together word cards into correct sentences. After the girl turned 6, her mother took her for an IQ text. Her IQ is above 145, placing the girl in the top 0.1% of the population. Annalisee should be the star pupil at school. She is witty and pretty, and it’s easy to imagine she would get along well at school. But Annalisee’s parents couldn’t find a school willing to take their daughter. So her mother homeschooled Annalisee.
But Angi felt something was missing in her daughter’s life. Annalisee didn’t have a rich social network of other kids. She had trouble getting along with others. She described herself as a “perfectionist” and said other students sometimes were jealous of her.
What’s needed is a new model for gifted education. That’s the idea behind the Davidson Academy of Nevada. At the academy, all the kids are skipping ahead quickly. However, the academy’s most important gift to its students is social, not academic. One of the main functions of the school is to provide a good social setting for the highly gifted.
Last year the school enrolled Annalisee, which has been good for her. She has made friends at the academy. She has also developed an interest in calculus(微积分) and biochemistry(生物化学). Socially, Annalisee is finally learning to get along with others. “It’s been interesting having to deal with that and getting used to the judgments of other kinds,” she said. “We get into arguments a lot, because we’re all really smart people with opinions, and it doesn’t always turn out that great. Sometimes I take things a little too personally.”
What is the passage mainly about?
Annalisee Brasil——the star pupil at school.
A smart girl who entered a proper school and benefited from gifted education.
A smart girl who had trouble getting along with others.
A girl who was too smart to find a suitable school.
【小题1】The word “perfectionist” in paragraph two probably means a person who _________.

A．is smarter than others

B．is always favored by teachers

C．can do everything well and has strong demands

D．is accepted by others as a good leader

【小题2】According to the passage, which of the following is true?

A．At the age of 3, Annalisee took an IQ test, in which she scored above 145.

B．Finding no school willing to take Annalisee, her father had to homschool her.

C．The Davidson Academy of Nevada emphasizes social gift more than academic gift.

D．After being enrolled by the academy, Annalisee enjoyed her school life without ant argument with her classmates.

【小题3】What can you infer from the passage?

A．Annalisee has realized her problem and is gradually changing her attitude towards others.

B．One of the main functions of the gifted education is to provide a good social setting for the highly gifted.

C．Without the academy, Annalisee couldn’t have learnt so much.

D． Like Annalisee, many other smart kids also have the similar trouble.

When you practice reading with passages shorter than book length, do not try to take in each word separately, one after the other. It is much more difficult to grasp the broad theme of the passage this way, and you will also get the stuck on individual words which may not be absolutely essential to a general understanding of the passage. It is a good idea to skim through the passage very quickly first to get the general idea of each paragraph. Titles, paragraph headings and emphasized word can be a great help in getting this skeleton outline of the passage. It is surprising how many people do not read titles, introductions or paragraph headings. Can you, without looking back, remember the title of this passage and the heading of this paragraph?
Most paragraphs of a passage or chapter have a 'topic sentence' which expresses the central idea. The remaining sentence expand or support that idea. It has been estimated that between 60% and 90% of all expositive（说明的）paragraphs in English have the topic sentence first. Always pay special attention to the first sentence of a paragraph; it is most likely to give you the main idea.
Sometimes , though , the first sentence in the paragraph does not have the feel of 'main idea' sentence. It does not seem to give us enough new information to justify a paragraph. The next most likely place to look for the topic sentence is the last sentence of the paragraph.
Remember that the opening and closing paragraphs of a passage or chapter are particularly important . The opening paragraph suggests the general direction and content of the piece, while the closing paragraph often summarizes the very essence （精髓）.
【小题1】It is a good idea to skim through a passage quickly first ________.

A．at about 350 w. P.m.(words per minute)

B．to get the general idea of each paragraph

C．so that you can take in each word separately

D．to make sure you get to the end at least once

【小题2】The topic sentence of an expository paragraph in English_______.

A．usually comes in the middle

B．is most likely to be found at the end

C．is most often at the beginning

D．is usually left out in expository writing

【小题3】Most expository paragraphs in English have a clearly defined topic sentence. In such paragraphs the topic sentence comes first ________.

A．in about 40% of cases	B．in about 80% of cases
C．in about 20% cases	D．very rarely

【小题4】Some times we know the first sentence is not the topic sentence because ________.

A．it does not seem to give us enough new information

B．it is not long enough

C．it does not come at the beginning

D．it does not make complete sentence

If you find that your teacher is unfair to you, think about what is happening. Try to find out whether your teacher really dislikes you, or whether something else is going on. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
【小题1】  Ask your classmates if they are having trouble with the teacher, too. If they say yes, perhaps your teacher is to blame.
Are you working up to your ability? Maybe you got a C in your last test, and your teacher told you that you could do better. And the kid sitting beside you got a C, too.【小题2】  Isn’t this unfair? Well, it could be that your teacher knows that you could do better if you put more effort into it.  【小题3】
【小题4】 There’s nothing wrong with being sensitive (敏感的) ，but if you react to criticism quite differently from others, this could be a reason why you think your teacher doesn’t like you.
Does your teacher seem to act unfairly all the time, or just once in a while? Think about the harsh (苛刻的) things your teacher has done to you. Are these things happening every day, or just once or twice a month? If your teacher really hates you, you would probably be picked on all the time.【小题5】 

A．Are you the only person being treated badly, or is your teacher rough on the whole class?

B．Are you getting along well with your classmates?

C． Are you more sensitive than other students?

D． Are you interested in your lessons?

E . If your teacher has acted unfairly only a few times, then there’s probably something else going on.
F．Teachers often grade students by different standards.
G．But the teacher didn’t say anything to him！

Why should I teach my children history? That sounds like a stupid question to even ask. But, as I hear different home schooling teachers discuss history, I get the idea that there may be different reasons for teaching history. Let me briefly explain the three good reasons for studying history and two bad reasons for studying history.
The major reason I see for studying history is that we can learn from the past. I am convinced that the world would be a much better place if more people understood the successes and failures of the past and the things that made these successes and failures. However, as the unfortunately true statement goes "the one thing we seem to learn from history is that we don't seem to learn from history." Perhaps at least in teaching history, to my children I can do a small part in changing this.
A second major reason for studying history is that it is hard to understand the current political climate in the absence of an understanding of its historical context. We can not even understand why we are and where we are without history, much less (更不必说) try to figure out where we are going or how we should get where we want to be.
I teach my children history, for one more reason. I purchased a set of historical audio (录音机) tapes for our children. My seven-year-old son listened to them over and over. It was my hope that he would become inspired by the accomplishments of people like the Wright brothers to accomplish things by himself. I think that it is good that we celebrate the accomplishments of people like Martin Luther King Jr. if, in doing so, young people are called on to stand for the principles that he stood for and accomplish what he accomplished. I also think that by studying people like Adolph Hitler, people can learn to stand against the things that he stood for.
【小题1】The main purpose of this passage is to __________.

A．instruct the parents how to teach their children history

B．show the importance of history in politics

C．explain the reasons why children study history

D．introduce the writer’s own way of teaching history

【小题2】Which of the following is not the reason for studying history according to the author?

A．One can learn from history in order not to make the same mistakes.

B．It can help us to understand the current political climate.

C．Without history, one can be nothing but a fool in every aspect.

D．One can know the principle of doing something and not doing something.

【小题3】 Some positive historical figures are mentioned in the last paragraph to show __________.

A．people can be inspired to do good, while also learning to fight against evil

B．people may also learn from bad historical figures

C．more celebrations should be held to honor their achievements

D．today’s people can also achieve what they achieved

【小题4】 What would be talked about in the following paragraph?

A．How to teach history effectively.

B．Some negative reasons for studying history.

C．How to get more people to study history.

D．Some bad historical figures.

An increase in students applying to study economics at university is being attributed to （归因于）the global economic crisis awakening a public thirst for knowledge about how the financial system works.
Applications for degree courses beginning this autumn were up by 15% this January, according to UCAS, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service. A spokesman for the Royal Economic Society said applications to do economics at A-level were also up.
Professor john Beath, the president of the society and a leading lecture at St Andrews University, said his first-year lectures—which are open to students from all departments—were drawing crowds of 400, rather than the usual 250.
“There are a large number of students who are not economics majors, who would like to learn something about it. One of the things I have done this year is to relate my teaching to contemporary events in a way that one hasn’t traditionally done. ” He added.
University applications rose 7% last year. But there were rises above average in several subjects. Nursing saw a 15% jump, with people’s renewed interest in careers in the pubic sector（部门）, which are seen as more secure in economic crisis.
A recent study showed almost two thirds of parents believed schools should do more to teach pupils about financial matters, and almost half said their children had asked them what was going on, although a minority of parents felt they did not understand it themselves well enough to explain.
Zack Hocking, the head of Child Trust Funds, said: “It’s possible that one good thing to arise from the downturn will be a generation that’s financially wiser and better equipped to manage their money through times of economic uncertainty.”
【小题1】 Professor John Beath’s lectures are          .

A．given in a traditional way

B．connected with the present situation

C．open to both students and their parents

D．warmly received by economics

【小题2】Careers in the public sector are more attractive because of their         .

A．better reputation

B．higher pay

C．fewer applications

D．greater stability

【小题3】In the opinion of most parents,         .

A．economics should be the focus of school teaching

B．more students should be admitted to universities

C．the teaching of financial matters should be strengthened

D．children should solve financial problems themselves

【小题4】According to Hocking, the global economic crisis might make the youngsters         .

A．get jobs in Child Trust Funds	B．have access to better equipment
C．confident about their future careers	D．wiser in money management

【小题5】What’s the main idea of the text?

A．Universities have received more applications.

B．Economics is attracting an increasing number of students.

C．College students benefit a lot from economic uncertainty

D．Parents are concerned with children’s subject selection.

Laws that would have ensured pupils from five to 16 received a full financial education got lost in the ‘wash up’. An application is calling on the next government to bring it back.
　At school the children are taught to add up and subtract(减法) but, extraordinarily, are not routinely shown how to open a bank account — let alone how to manage their finances in an increasingly complex and demanding world.
　Today the parenting website Mumsnet and the consumer campaigner Martin Lewis have joined forces to launch an online application to make financial education a compulsory element of the school curriculum in England. Children from five to 16 should be taught about everything from pocket money to pensions, they say. And that was exactly the plan preserved in the Children, Schools and Families bill that was shelved by the government in the so-called “wash-up” earlier this month — the rush to legislation before parliament was dismissed. Consumer and parent groups believe financial education has always been one of the most frustrating omissions of the curriculum.
　As the Personal Finance Education Group (Pfeg) points out, the good habits of young children do not last long. Over 75% of seven- to 11-year-olds are savers but by the time they get to 17, over half of them are in debt to family and friends. By this age, 26% see a credit card or overdraft(透支) as a way of extending their spending power. Pfeg predicts that these young people will “find it much harder to avoid the serious unexpected dangers that have befallen many of their parents' generation unless they receive good quality financial education while at school.”
　The UK has been in the worst financial recession(衰退)for generations. It does seem odd that — unless parents step in — young people are left in the dark until they are cruelly introduced to the world of debt when they turn up at university. In a recent poll of over 8,000 people, 97% supported financial education in schools, while 3% said it was a job for parents.
【小题1】The passage is mainly about _____________.

A．how to manage school lessons	B． teaching young people about money
C．how to deal with the financial crisis	D．teaching students how to study effectively

【小题2】It can be inferred from the first two paragraphs that __________.

A．laws on financial education have been effectively carried out

B．pupils should not be taught to add up and subtract

C．students have been taught to manage their finances

D．the author complains about the school education

【小题3】The website and the consumer campaigner joined to _________.

A．instruct the pupils to donate their pocket money

B．promote the connection of schools and families

C．ask the government to dismiss the parliament

D．appeal for the curriculum of financial education

【小题4】A poll is mentioned to ___________.

A．show the seriousness of the financial recession

B．stress the necessity of the curriculum reform

C．make the readers aware of burden of the parents

D．illustrate some people are strongly against the proposal

Mandara seemed to know something big was about to happen. So she let out a yell, caught hold of her 2-year-old daughter Kibibi and climbed up into a tree. She lives at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C.
And on Tuesday, August 23rd, witnesses say she seemed to sense the big earthquake that shook much of the East Coast before any humans knew what was going on. And she’s not the only one. In the moments before the quake, an orangutan (猩猩) let out a loud call and then climbed to the top of her shelter.
“It’s very different from their normal call,” said Brandie Smith, the zookeeper. “The lemurs (monkey-like animals of Madagascar) will sound an alarm call if they see or hear something highly unusual.”
But you can’t see or hear an earthquake 15 minutes before it happens, can you? Maybe you can — if you’re an animal. “Animals can hear above and below our range of hearing,” said Brandie Smith. “That’s part of their special abilities. They’re more sensitive to the environment, which is how they survive.”
Primates weren’t the only animals that seemed to sense the quake before it happened. One of the elephants made a warning sound. And a huge lizard (蜥蜴) ran quickly for cover. The flamingoes (a kind of bird) gathered before the quake and stayed together until the shaking stopped.
So what kind of vibrations were the animals picking up in the moments before the quake? Scientist Susan Hough says earthquakes produce two types of waves — a weak “P” wave and then a much stronger “S” wave. The “P” stands for “primary”. And the “S” stands for “secondary”. She said she thinks the “P” wave might be what set the animals off.
Not all the animals behaved unusually before the quake. For example, Smith says the zoo’s giant pandas didn’t jump up until the shaking actually began. But many of the other animals seemed to know something was coming before it happened. “I’m not surprised at all,” Smith said.
【小题1】Why did Mandara act strangely one day?

A．Because it sensed something unusual would happen.

B．Because its daughter Kibibi was injured.

C．Because it heard an orangutan let out a loud call.

D．Because an earthquake had happened.

【小题2】According to Brandie Smith, _____.

A．many animals’ hearing is sharp

B．earthquakes produce two types of waves

C．primates usually gather together before a quake

D．humans can also develop the ability to sense a quake

【小题3】Which word in the passage has a close meaning to the underlined word “cover”?

A．vibration

B．shelter

C．quake

D．range

【小题4】Which animal seems unable to sense a quake?

A．A giant panda.

B．A flamingo.

C．A lemur.

D．A lizard.

【小题5】What is the best title for the passage?

A．How animals survive a quake.	B．How animals differ from humans.
C．How animals behave before a quake.	D．How animals protect their young in a quake.

Students who date (约会）in middle school have significantly worse study skills, are four times more likely to drop out of school and report twice as much alcohol and tobacco use than their single classmates, according to new research from the University of Georgia.
"Romantic relationships are a trademark of adolescence, but very few studies have examined how adolescents differ in the development of these relationships," said Pamela Orpinas, study author and professor in the College of Public Health and head of the Department of Health Promotion and Behavior.
Orpinas followed a group of 624 students over a seven-year period from 6th to 12th grade.
Each year, the group of students completed a survey indicating whether they had dated and reported the frequency of different behaviors, including the use of drugs and alcohol. Their teachers completed questionnaires (调查表）about the students* academic efforts. He found some students never or hardly ever reported dating from middle to high school, and these students had consistently the best study skills according to their teachers. Other students dated infrequently in middle school but increased the frequency of dating in high school.
"At all points in time, teachers rated the students who reported the lowest frequency of dating as having the best study skills and the students with the highest dating as having the worst study skills,” according to the journal article. Study skills refer to behaviors that lead to academic success such as doing work for extra credit，being well organized, finishing homework, working hard and reading assigned chapters.
"Dating a classmate may have the same emotional complications of dating a co-worker," Orpinas said, "when the couple break up. they have to continue to see each other in class and perhaps witness the ex-partner dating someone else. It is reasonable to think this could be linked to depression and divert (转移）attention from studying.”
Dating should not be considered a ceremony of growth in middle school，”Orpinas concluded.
【小题1】When doing his study, Orpinas_____.

A．followed a group of students of 6th and 12th grade

B．completed a survey and a report each year

C．completed questionnaires about the students’ academic efforts

D．found that the students’ study skills have connection with their frequency of dating

【小题2】Study skills may include the following behaviors and qualities Except_____

A．being diligent	B．being well organized
C．being kind and helpful	D．finishing assigned schoolwork

【小题3】What can possibly happen to the school couples after they break up?

A．They don’t want to see each other any longer.

B．Their attention to studying will be affected.

C．They will miss their ex-partners sometimes

D．They will think it’s reasonable to get depressed.

【小题4】Orpinas’attitude towards dating in middle school is_____

A．supportive

B．positive

C．negative

D．indifferent