Eleven top universities are joining the Open University to launch free Internet courses. King’s College London, along with the Universities of Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, East Anglia, Exeter, Lancaster, Leeds, Southampton, St Andrews and Warwick, has partnered with FutureLearn, a company set up by the Open University that will offer free and non-credit bearing courses to Internet-users around the world.

The courses are modeled on the US phenomenon “Massive open online courses” ( Moocs ), which have attracted millions of users around the world and are especially popular in emerging economies.

FutureLearn will improve UK institutions for international students, said Prof Martin Bean, voice-chancellor of the Open University. “At the moment, foreign students’ perception of UK Universities is: wonderful history, great tradition, really good teaching, but a bit boring.”

Leeds University says the partnership will benefit students studying on campus. “Students will have access to a rich set of resources from both Leeds and our partners. They can also broaden their education beyond their main subject areas.”

The UK higher education industry stands among the top five export earners for Britain Moocs have grown rapidly in the US over the past year, with two providers leading the field. Coursera offers courses from 33 Universities, including Princeton, Brown, Columbia and Duke, and has reached more than 1.7 million users, EdX, a nonprofit start-up from Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology courses this autumn.

Simon Nelson, one of the key architects of BBC Online, will head FutureLearn as launch CEO. “It’s really meaningful for these universities to come together –we’ll punch much harder collectively than any other university will individually,” he said.

Partner Institutions will be responsible for their own content while the OU, which has been providing distance-learning courses since 1971, will assist with course delivery and infrastructure. Details of further universities will be revealed next year, as will the courses on offer.

1. What does the underlined word “perception” in paragrah3 mean?

A．expectation        B．view             C．dream            D．proposal

2. We can learn from the passage that              

A．Coursera, one of the two providers, leads the online courses in the US.

B．Economics is the most popular subject among these online courses.

C．FutureLearn is only set up for the Internet-users.

D．About 1,7million users are taking the free courses launched by UK.

3.What is implied in Simon’s words?

A．It’s really meaningful for these universities to cooperate.

B．Single university can’t do the work very well.

C．These universities will compete with each other.

D．Joint efforts by these top universities will help the program go more smoothly.

4.All of the following statements are true except             

A．Internet-users don’t need to get credit for the courses.

B．UK may top the list of online education one day.

C．The UK higher education industry stands among the top five export earners for England.

D．Some foreign students may think UK universities are not so satisfying.

5. In which magazine would you most likely find this passage?

A．Entertainment      B．Science           C．Education         D．Business Week

 

DEARAUNTYf

My husband’s niece is 13 and what I would call “a handful”. She wants to stay with us for while, and her mother and grandmother have told me what a great influence I would be on her. Her visit ，no doubt, would bring about a long list of demands’ and she’d want to bring a friend too. I don t feel comfortable hosting her, but I don 3r know how to tell my husband’s family members without hurting their feelings.

-Reluctant Aunt

Dear Reluctant,

Let’s get you out of this mess. Your husband’s family is making a request that borders on a demand and sugarcoating it with self-serving flattery (恭维）• Put your foot down, and tell the truth. Say you don’t feel equipped or comfortable hosting the little darling, and regretfully decline (拒绝).Under no circumstances should you take part in any discussion that attempts to change your mind through flattery.

DEAR AUNTY

  have two stepdaughters, 21 and 24. On holidays, the older one always buys me gift but adds her sister’s name on the card. I feel insincere thanking the younger daughter -Vd rather get no gift than be a part of this pretence. Is it tacky (俗气)to ask the 24-year-old to stop giving her sister credit while it isn t deserved? Will the younger one ever learn to be thoughtful?

-Mindful Mum

Dear Mindful,

Lighten up! Your older stepdaughter is a considerate and generous sister who covers for and protects her younger sister. Good for her! The girls’ relationship is between them. As for your role, you can’t punish anyone into being thoughtful. You can, however, model thoughtful behavior. Spend some time with her, and get to know her better.

1.The underlined word “a handful” would probably mean a person who______

A.is difficult to deal with    B.enjoys making friends

C.is easy to get along with D.gets easily influenced

2.AUNTY suggested that Reluctant Aunt______

A.kindly host the guest

B.discuss with her husband

C.politely turn down the request

D.try to meet all the demands

3.Which of the following is TRUE about the second case?

A.Mindful Mum is very proud of her two step daughters.

B.The two stepdaughters always buy Mindful Mum gifts.

C.AUNTY thinks the older sister should be punished.

D.The older stepdaughter cares for her sister.

4.In which section does the passage most probably appear in a magazine?

A.Entertainment.       B. Advice. C. Health.  D. Food &Recipes.

 

Teachers and parents usually call attention to the pictures when they read storybooks to pre-school children. But a new study suggests that calling attention to the words and letters on the page may lead to better readers.

The two-year study compared children who were read in this way in class with children who were not. Those whose teachers most often discussed the print showed clearly higher skills in reading, spelling and understanding. These results were found one year and even two years later.

Shayne Piasta, an assistant professor of teaching and learning at Ohio State University, was an author of the study. She says most pre-school teachers would find this method manageable and would need only a small change in the way they teach. They already read story-books in class. The only difference would be increased attention to the printed text. “If you get children to pay attention to letters and words, it makes sense that they will do better at word recognition and spelling.” But she says research suggests that very few parents and teachers do this in a systematic way.

More than 300 children aged four and five were observed in classrooms. They came from poor families and were below average in their language skills. For thirty weeks, the children took part in a program called Project STAR--- Sit Together and Read. The project is based at Ohio State. It tests the short-term and long-term results of reading regularly to pre-school children in their classrooms.

There are different ways that adults can talk to children about print. They can point to a letter and discuss it, and even trace the shape with a finger. They can point out a word and discuss the meaning of the print or how the words tell the story. And they can talk about the organization of the print--- for instance, showing how words are written left to right in English.

1.What do we know about the ways pre-school children are usually taught?

A. More attention is paid to the pictures ,with words and letters being ignored.

B. Preference is given to the shape of letters and the organization of the print.

C. The focus of the teaching is on bringing them up to be good readers.

D. Equal attention is paid to the texts and the pictures.

2.What does Shayne Piasta suggest pre-school teachers should do in class?

A. Teach children how to draw pictures to get an idea of what they mean.

B. Change the way they teach and pay more attention to words and letters.

C. Adopt different methods according to the students’ difference in reading skills.

D. Read storybooks to children rather than explain the meaning of the pictures.

3.Which of the following is TRUE about the study on language skills of pre-school children?

A. Many teachers want to change their way of teaching pre-school children.

B. Attention on the pictures has made the children uninterested in reading.

C. Project STAR aims to research into the results of reading books to pre-school children in the classroom.

D. Teachers are often prevented from taking different approaches to language teaching.

4.Which section of a magazine does the passage probably come from?

A. Fashion.     B. Economy .    C. Entertainment.     D. Education.

 

Teachers and parents usually call attention to the pictures when they read storybooks to pre-school children. But a new study suggests that calling attention to the words and letters on the page may lead to better readers.
The two-year study compared children who were read in this way in class with children who were not. Those whose teachers most often discussed the print showed clearly higher skills in reading, spelling and understanding. These results were found one year and even two years later.
Shayne Piasta, an assistant professor of teaching and learning at Ohio State University, was an author of the study. She says most pre-school teachers would find this method manageable and would need only a small change in the way they teach. They already read story-books in class. The only difference would be increased attention to the printed text. “If you get children to pay attention to letters and words, it makes sense that they will do better at word recognition and spelling.” But she says research suggests that very few parents and teachers do this in a systematic way.
More than 300 children aged four and five were observed in classrooms. They came from poor families and were below average in their language skills. For thirty weeks, the children took part in a program called Project STAR--- Sit Together and Read. The project is based at Ohio State. It tests the short-term and long-term results of reading regularly to pre-school children in their classrooms.
There are different ways that adults can talk to children about print. They can point to a letter and discuss it, and even trace the shape with a finger. They can point out a word and discuss the meaning of the print or how the words tell the story. And they can talk about the organization of the print--- for instance, showing how words are written left to right in English.
【小题1】What do we know about the ways pre-school children are usually taught?

A．More attention is paid to the pictures ,with words and letters being ignored.

B．Preference is given to the shape of letters and the organization of the print.

C．The focus of the teaching is on bringing them up to be good readers.

D．Equal attention is paid to the texts and the pictures.

【小题2】What does Shayne Piasta suggest pre-school teachers should do in class?

A．Teach children how to draw pictures to get an idea of what they mean.

B．Change the way they teach and pay more attention to words and letters.

C．Adopt different methods according to the students’ difference in reading skills.

D．Read storybooks to children rather than explain the meaning of the pictures.

【小题3】Which of the following is TRUE about the study on language skills of pre-school children?

A．Many teachers want to change their way of teaching pre-school children.

B．Attention on the pictures has made the children uninterested in reading.

C．Project STAR aims to research into the results of reading books to pre-school children in the classroom.

D．Teachers are often prevented from taking different approaches to language teaching.

【小题4】Which section of a magazine does the passage probably come from?

A．Fashion.

B．Economy .

C．Entertainment.

D．Education.

Teachers and parents usually call attention to the pictures when they read storybooks to pre-school children. But a new study suggests that calling attention to the words and letters on the page may lead to better readers.

The two-year study compared children who were read in this way in class with children who were not. Those whose teachers most often discussed the print showed clearly higher skills in reading, spelling and understanding. These results were found one year and even two years later.

Shayne Piasta, an assistant professor of teaching and learning at Ohio State University, was an author of the study. She says most pre-school teachers would find this method manageable and would need only a small change in the way they teach. They already read story-books in class. The only difference would be increased attention to the printed text. “If you get children to pay attention to letters and words, it makes sense that they will do better at word recognition and spelling.” But she says research suggests that very few parents and teachers do this in a systematic way.

More than 300 children aged four and five were observed in classrooms. They came from poor families and were below average in their language skills. For thirty weeks, the children took part in a program called Project STAR--- Sit Together and Read. The project is based at Ohio State. It tests the short-term and long-term results of reading regularly to pre-school children in their classrooms.

There are different ways that adults can talk to children about print. They can point to a letter and discuss it, and even trace the shape with a finger. They can point out a word and discuss the meaning of the print or how the words tell the story. And they can talk about the organization of the print--- for instance, showing how words are written left to right in English.

1.What do we know about the ways pre-school children are usually taught?

A．More attention is paid to the pictures ,with words and letters being ignored.

B．Preference is given to the shape of letters and the organization of the print.

C．The focus of the teaching is on bringing them up to be good readers.

D．Equal attention is paid to the texts and the pictures.

2.What does Shayne Piasta suggest pre-school teachers should do in class?

A．Teach children how to draw pictures to get an idea of what they mean.

B．Change the way they teach and pay more attention to words and letters.

C．Adopt different methods according to the students’ difference in reading skills.

D．Read storybooks to children rather than explain the meaning of the pictures.

3.Which of the following is TRUE about the study on language skills of pre-school children?

A．Many teachers want to change their way of teaching pre-school children.

B．Attention on the pictures has made the children uninterested in reading.

C．Project STAR aims to research into the results of reading books to pre-school children in the classroom.

D．Teachers are often prevented from taking different approaches to language teaching.

4.Which section of a magazine does the passage probably come from?

A．Fashion.          B．Economy .         C．Entertainment.     D．Education.