The most exciting kind of education is also the most personal． Nothing can exceed （超越) the joy of discovering for yourself something that is important to you! It may be an idea or a bit of information you come across accidentally—or a sudden insight, fitting together pieces of information or working through a problem． Such personal encounters are the “payoff” in education． A teacher may direct you to learning and even encourage you in it—but no teacher can make the excitement or the joy happen． That's up to you．

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A research paper, assigned in a course and perhaps checked at various stages by an instructor, leads you beyond classrooms, beyond the texts for classes and into a process where the joy of discovery and learning can come to you many times． Preparing the research paper is an active and individual process, and ideal learning process． It provides a structure within which you can make exciting discoveries, of knowledge and of self, that are basic to education． But the research paper also gives you a chance to individualize a school assignment, to suit a piece of work to your own interests and abilities, to show others what you can do． Writing a research paper is more than just a classroom exercise． It is an experience in searching out, understanding and synthesizing（综合）, which forms the basis of many skills applicable（可利用的） to both academic and nonacademic tasks． It is, in the fullest sense, a discovering of an education． So, to produce a good research paper is both a useful and a thoroughly satisfying experience!

To some, the thought of having to write an assigned number of pages, often more than ever produced before, is upsetting． To others, the very idea of having to work independently is threatening． But there is no need to approach paper assignment with anxiety, and nobody should view the research paper as an obstacle to overcome． Instead, consider it a goal to accomplish, a goal within reach if you use the help this book can give you．
【小题1】According to the writer, personal discoveries          ．

A．will give one encouragement and direction

B．are helpful in finding the right information

C．are the most valuable part of one's personal education

D．will help one to successfully complete school assignments

【小题2】It can be inferred from the passage that writing a research paper gives one chances        ．

A．to fully develop one's personal abilities

B．to use the skills learnt in the classroom

C．to prove that one is a productive writer

D．to demonstrate how well one can accomplish school assignment

【小题3】The writer argues in the passage that       ．

A．one should explore new areas in research

B．one should trust one's own ability to meet course requirements

C．one should consider research paper writing a pleasure, not a burden

D．one should use all one's knowledge and skills when doing research

【小题4】What will probably follow this passage?

A．How to write a research paper．

B．The importance of research in education．

C．How to make new discoveries for oneself．

D．The skill of putting pieces of information together．

Producing money requires both artistic and technological skills． Dollar bills are made so that they are interesting to look at but very hard to copy． In total, there are sixty-five separate steps required to make a dollar bill．

The money making process begins when． a yearly order is sent by the Federal Reserve Board． That order will then be divided in half． Half will be done here in Washington, D．     C．and the other half will be done in Fort Worth, Texas． Next, the Bureau orders special paper which is actually cloth since it is 75% cotton and 25% linen．

This paper is made so that it can last a long time． And, it is made with details that make it hard to copy． For example, bills contain security threads． These narrow pieces of plastic are inside the paper and run along the width of the bill． This special paper is also made with very small blue and red fibers．

Once the money is printed, guillotine cutters separate the sheets into two notes, then into individual notes． The notes are organized in "bricks," each of which contains forty one-hundred-note packages． The bricks then go to one of twelve Federal Reserve Districts, which then give the money to local banks． Ninety-five percent of the bills printed each year are used to replace money that is in circulation, or that has already been removed from circulation．

You may know that America's first president, George Washington, is pictured on the one- dollar bill． But do you know whose face is on the two, five, ten, twenty, fifty and one hundred-dollar bills? They are, in order． President Thomas Jefferson, President Abraham Lincoln, Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton, President Andrew Jackson, President Ulysses Grant and statesman Benjamin Franklin．

The average life span of a one-dollar bill is twenty-one months． But a ten-dollar bill lasts only about eighteen months． The one hundred-dollar bill lasts the longest, eighty-nine months． One popular question is about the two-dollar bill． This bill is not printed very often． This is because many Americans believe two-dollar bills are lucky, so they keep them． 

1.During money production, we must consider all EXCEPT that it must                    .

A．last a long time

B．be hard to copy

C．be interesting to look at

D．be done by the president's order

2.We can learn from the passage that the security threads                    .

A．are narrow pieces of plastic

B．are pressed outside the bills

C．are longer than the width of the bills

D．are actually made of cotton and linen

3.How many presidents are printed on the American money?

A． Four                 B． Five                C． Six             D． Seven

4.Why are the two-dollar bills not made often?

A．Because no one wants them．

B．Because their material is a bit more expensive．

C．Because they aren't used in America any more．

D．Because they aren't damaged quickly like other bills．

 

Rules for the University Entrance Examination

●You must be at the examination center ten minutes before the examination starts. If you are more than ten minutes late, you may not enter the examination center. The examination takes place at the same time in different states.

●You must have proof of your name and grade as well as official examination number. Show these when you come to the examination center.

●Depending on which examination you are taking, you may bring certain items into the examination center. Mathematics examinations may allow you to use electronic calculators (计算器). Other subjects may allow you to use dictionaries and other reference material. Please read the notes sent with your timetable carefully.

●You must bring your own pencils. None will be provided for you. The following items are not allowed in the examination center: walkmans and radios, head sets, any food or drink, schoolbags, electronic equipment (unless specifically permitted for various subjects), and mobile phones.

●Once in the center, you must sit at the desk with your examination number on it. When you sit down, place your examination number at the top corner of your desk.

●You must remain silent during the examination. You must not disturb other people who are taking the test.

●If you need a drink or toilet break, you should raise your hand and wait for the supervisor (监督者) to speak to you. You will be given water or the supervisor will take you to the bathroom. You are not allowed to talk with anyone during the break.

●You must write your answers in the official answer sheet. Your supervisor will provide extra paper if you wish to make notes.

●You may leave the examination room at any time if you do not plan to return. If you finish early and want to leave, please move well away from the examination center.

●The supervisor will warn you fifteen minutes, five minutes and one minute before the end of the examination. When the supervisor says that the time is up, you must put down your pencil and wait at your desk until your paper is collected.

1.What kind of examination are these rules probably for?

A. A local exam.                      B. A final exam. 

C. A college exam.                    D. A national exam.

2.What are you allowed to have with you when you take mathematics examination?

A. Related material.                   B. Proof of yourself.

C. A cell phone.                      D. A dictionary.

3.What should you do if you finish the test early and want to get a better result?

A. Take some notes carefully.           

B. Leave the room immediately.

C. Remain in your seat and check again.  

D. Raise your hand to inform your teacher.

4.What can be provided for you during the exam?

A. Pencils.                          B. Food and drink.     

C. Extra paper.                       D. Calculators.

 

 

But what is teacher quality? How can one measure it reliably?

An analysis is issued on a sample of data from a Texas school district. Experts argue convincingly that teacher effectiveness should be measured by students’ gains on standardized tests: Mr. Smith is probably a better teacher than Ms. Brown if his students consistently improve their test scores more than hers do.

Though this approach is appealing, there are tricky issues. For example, what if Ms. Brown teaches in a school where students score so high there is little room for improvement?

The authors try to correct for this problem, as well as other sorts of measurement issues, to generate a measurement of teacher effectiveness. The paper is primarily concerned with how this measure is related to other observable characteristics.

The first finding is that there is a large variation in teacher effectiveness: some teachers consistently have a larger impact on their students’ achievement than others.

Second, easily observable characteristics like having a master’s degree or a passing score on the teacher certification exam are not correlated关联 with teacher effectiveness.

Then what does matter? The most important single influence is experience: first-year teachers are much less effective than others. The second year is significantly better, and by the fourth year, most teachers hit their stride.

It is not entirely clear whether this experience effect is learning by doing (the more you teach, the more effective you become) or survival of the fittest (those who are not good at teaching tend to drop out early.)

From my reading of the paper, both effects appear important and there is no simple answer. The data do suggest, however, that teacher effectiveness is pretty clear by the end of the second year, so the information to make an informed decision is available at that time.

The authors also investigate the contentious 有争议的issue of racial matching of students and teachers. Here they find strong evidence that minority teachers tend to be more effective with minority students. Again, it is unclear whether this is because of a role model effect (students respond better to a teacher of their own race) or an empathy effect 移情效应(teachers empathize better with students of their own race) or something else entirely.

The authors also look at teacher mobility. There is some evidence that teachers who quit teaching or switch schools tend to be below average in effectiveness. This is consistent with the survival-of-the-fittest model.

1.The schoolmaster could decide wisely whether to further employ the teacher by the end of the ______.

A. the first year          B. the second year             C. the third year        D. the fourth year

2.The phrase “hit their stride” most probably means “______”.

A. reach their normal level                                    B. become confident

C. walk with long steps                                            D. get bored

3.The author of this passage holds the view that ______.

A. teachers will perform better with time passing

B. ineffective teachers should leave earlier rather than later

C. teacher’s effectiveness is apparent after a couple of years

D. a master’s degree will improve teacher’s effectiveness

4.Why do black teachers tend to be more effective with black students?

A. Students fell secure, so they respond better.

B. Teachers sympathize with students of their own race.

C. There are entirely some other identified reasons.

D. The reasons are far from clear and definite.

5.Which of the following may serve as the best title?

A. The Quality of Teaching

B. Impact of Teacher Quality on Student Learning

C. Different Sorts of Measurement Issues

D. Survival-of-the-fittest Model vs. Learning-by-doing Model