On the whole, it’s not something we parents shout about, but one in four of us does it. Hiring private tutors for our children is now widespread.

“It’s expensive, but worth it,” says Ashan Sabri, whose daughter Zarreen, is having tuition in biology and chemistry in preparation for A-levels this summer. “My husband and I tried to tutor her at home, but we found all our knowledge was out of date and we were only confusing Zarreen. We also tried a group revision course but all the children were sitting in a room for different kinds of exams. On the whole, we think one-to-one tuition works best.”

The real reason is: does tutoring do any good?

“It’s not the magic bullet,” says Professor Judith Ireson, author of a 2005 Institute of Education report on the subject. “It’s still up to the child to do the learning. If he or she isn’t interested, sending them to a private tutor won’t do any good. However, we did find that students who had private tuition in mathematics during the two years before GCSE achieved on average just under half a grade higher than students who did not have a tutor.”

In which case, surely it’s time to break open the champagne? Not necessarily, says Elaine Tyrrell, head of The Rowans School, Wimbledon, a preparation school which regularly gets children into the best private schools.

“While we recommend private tutoring for a few children whose first language isn’t English, we don’t encourage it for the others. With the level of education they get here, children really ought to be able to pass the entrance exams without any extra teaching. And our worry is that they might just get used to getting help from last-minute tutoring, but, once they actually get to that school, they won’t be able to cope.”

But Mylene Curtis, owner of Fleet Tutors, one of the biggest tutoring agencies in the country, holds a different view.

“In some respects, the hurdles children have to leap in order to get into these schools are set at a higher level than the reality,” says Curtis. “We often find that, once a child has got into a school, the standard of work isn’t as high as was feared. The trick is to do well enough in the exam to win a place.”

1.What does Ashan Sabri think of the group revision course?

A．It’s expensive but worthwhile because it works the best.

B．It confuses students because the knowledge taught in it is out of date.

C．It isn’t effective because it doesn’t focus on specific exams.

D．It is effective because it doesn’t focus on specific exams.

2. What do the underlined words “magic bullet” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．Something that cannot help to solve problems at all.

B．Something that solves a difficult problem in an easy way.

C．Something that seems useful but has no use at all.

D．Something that encourages interest in study.

3.According to Elaine Tyrrell, private tutoring is _______.

A．effective in language learning but not for exams

B．effective for foreign students but not for local students

C．unnecessary in most cases and may harm the further study of students

D．unnecessary in secondary school but helpful to further study

4. What can be inferred from the last two paragraphs?

A．Fleet Tutors and the Rowans School are competitors.

B．Entrance exams to schools are too difficult for most students.

C．Further study isn’t as difficult as was first thought.

D．Private tuition is worth the financial investment.

5.What attitude does the author hold towards home tutoring?

A．Critical

B．Objective

C．Supportive

D．Uninterested

 

To tell you the truth, I’m not interested in owning a cellular (网络) phone. Except for use in an emergency (紧急情况), for ordinary cellular phone service is very expensive. How would I get help if I were in trouble or in danger? A good friend said about a product she thought would settle my problem. It’s the SOS phone—a cellular phone service designed for emergency use.

With the touch of a button, the SOS phone will connect me to a roadside emergency service, a 911 service or a trained SOS operator, 24 hours a day. If I ever need help. I know it’s just a phone call away.

By pressing the “Tow” button, I’ll bc connected with my emergency roadside service provider. Or, if I don’t have one, the SOS operator can suggest one to me and get in touch with them immediately.

The “911” button would connect me to 911 emergency service in my area------best of all, the call is completely free!

If I just want to call home to tell my husband and children something necessary, I can, by pressing the “Call” hutton, I’ll reach an operator. When I ask the operator to call home, I’ll be connected automatically (自动地). And because the Call Center has my 10 most-used phone numbers, I don’t even have to recite the numbers.

Unlike ordinary cellular phone plans, the SOS phone doesn't have any minimum usage requirements (底价) or other promises that could change the price

Why not try it yourself!

1.The writer enjoys using the SOS phone because ______.

A. she is always in trouble or in danger

B. she thinks the cost of its service is reasonable

C. she needn’t pay for any emergency service

D. the ordinary cellular phone can not he used in an emergency

2.Press______button, and you can get service without paying fee.  

A. 911      B. Tow     C. call      D. Tow and 911

3.When you have an SOS phone, ________.  

A. you will get help whenever you are in an emergency

B. you will be safe wherever you are

C. you can be connected with anyone

D. you can get service from any cellular phones

4.When you want to call home, ______.  

A. you will have to tel1 the operator your home phone number

B. the operator will suggest one phone number to you

C. the Call Center will pass on your words to your family

D. you’ll be connected with your family with the Help of an operator

5.The writer wants to ______.

A. tell us her experience

B. let us know she has an SOS phone

C. let us know something about the SOS phone

D. tell us she is very safe now

 

 

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该选项的标号涂黑。

One of the speaking rules you need to know might sound strange to most ESL(English as a second language) students, but it is one of the most important rules. If you want to pass examinations, then study grammar. However, if you want to become fluent in English, then you should try to learn English without studying the grammar.

Studying grammar will only slow you down and confuse you. You will think about the rules when creating sentences instead of naturally saying a sentence like a native. Remember that only a small fraction(部分) of English speakers know more than 20% of all the grammar rules. Many ESL students know more grammar than native speakers. I can confidently say this with experience. I am a native English speaker, majored in English Literature, and have been teaching English for more than 10 years. However, many of my students know more details about English grammar than I do. When they sometimes ask me about grammar, I can easily look up the definition(定义) and apply it, but I can’t tell them the answer off the top of my head.

I often ask my native English friends some grammar questions, and only a few of them know the correct answer. However, they are fluent in English and can read, speak, listen, and communicate effectively.

Do you want to be able to recite the definition of a causative verb(使役动词), or do you want to be able to speak English fluently?

According to the author, what opinion do most ESL students hold?

A. Grammar matters a lot only in speaking.

B. Grammar doesn’t matter much in speaking.

C. Grammar is not important in English learning.

D. Grammar is very important in English learning.

What is the author?

A. An ESL student.

B. A native English teacher.

C. A native English student.

D. A teacher teaching English natives.

The underlined part “off the top of my head” means ________.

A. without consideration

B. on purpose

C. after thinking

D. with difficulty

Which of the following titles best suits the text?

A. Grammar Counts!

B. Fluency or Grammar?

C. Exams or No Exams?

D. No More Grammar!

A young boy loved football with all his heart. But being half the size of the other boys, this hopeful athlete  36   the bench and hardly ever played.

This young man was still the  37   of the class when he entered high school. He decided to try his best at every  38   , and perhaps he could play later. All through high school he   39   neither a practice nor a game, but   40    a bench-warmer all four years.

When the young man went to   41   , the coach kept him on the roster(候选名单)   42   he always put his heart and soul to every practice, and at same time,    43   the other members with the spirit they badly needed. But during his four years at college, he never   44   to play in a game,

In the last football match, the game was not going  45   . When the team was ten points  46   , the silent young man came to the coach and said “Coach, please let me  47   . Believe me.”  The coach pretended not to hear him . There was no  48   he wanted the worst player in this close playoff(决赛) game.

But the young man  49   , and finally the coach, feeling sorry for him,  50   . “All right,” he said. “You can go in.” Soon, the coach, the players and everyone in the   51   could not believe their eyes. This little   52  man, who had never played before, was doing everything right. The opposing team could not   53   him. He ran, he passed, blocked like a star.

The   54   was(were) soon tied, In the closing seconds of the game, he intercepted(拦截) a  55   and ran all the way for the winning touchdown(触地得分). The fans applauded(鼓掌) and his teammates raised him onto their shoulders. Such cheering he never heard.

A. stood by         B. sat on        C. carried up    D. moved away

A. smallest          B. smartest            C. bravest        D. biggest

A. risk             B. step           C . practice      D. match

A. missed            B. hated         C. joined         D. watched

A. forgot             B. earned      C. displayed     D. remained

A. his hometown        B. his coach’s  C. college        D. school

A. before             B. though            C. when        D. because

A. charged           B. applied       C. provided      D. changed

A. managed          B. persuaded   C. promised     D. wanted

A. any more         B. badly       C. well         D . anyway

A. later             B. above       C. behind         D. over

A. go               B. play         C. stay          D. think

A. idea             B. doubt       C. way         D. need

A. won             B. tolerated     C. scared         D. insisted

A. took in            B. broke in     C. sent in         D. gave in

A. families           B. stands      C. corners        D. queues

A. puzzled           B. unknown    C. boring         D. polite

A. accept             B. believe       C. defeat          D. stop

A. ball              B. judges      C. score        D. fans

A. fly               B. jump        C. pass          D. pause

??       Before I went to senior middle school,some peoples told                         1.       

me,“A life of senior middle school is unforgettable.”                                     2.       

While I first entered my senior middle school,everything                               3.       

seemed unpleasant.Face all the strange things around me,                               4.       

I often miss my old friends and classmates.I didn’t want                               5.       

to talk others or make friends with others.Little by little,my                           6.       

school record went from bad to worse,especially my                                     7.        

maths.I couldn’t even pass the exam.I lost the heart and                                 8.       

missed the happy times all day long.I told me,“I don’t                                   9.       

belong to it.I don’t like the life here.”                                                          10.