Quality after-school programs are designed to improve academic performance, decrease youth crimes and other high-risk behaviors, and help young people grow into healthy, successful adults.

The effect of quality after-school programs on academic performance is clear. Studies show that students who take part in such programs show better work habits, higher rates of homework completion, improved grades, and higher scores on achievement tests. They also have fewer absences and are less likely to blame. After-school programs also influence high-risk teen behavior. Various studies show decreased rates of crime, drug-taking, and teen sex among youth who join in well-run after-school programs when compared to similar youth who do not. Finally, after-school programs play an important role in supporting different kinds of fields of development: physical development, mental development and social development. Thus, one can safely say that after-school programming is an effective method to help young people become contributing members of society.

Although there is enough proof from both small and large assessments that after-school programs can make a positive difference, it is important to note that not all programs are equal. First, dosage matters -- young people who attend the most hours over the most years benefit more than members who attend less often or over a shorter period of time. Next, after-school programs make a bigger difference for those students who need help most and have the fewest choices. Finally, program qualities matter. After-school programs work best when they create unique opportunities for youth. They should provide opportunities, skill building meaningful involvement, expression, suggestion, service, and work. Staff characteristics make an important difference in the quality of a program. The adults should treat youth as partners, create safe and fair environment, encourage personalized involvement, and actively create learning opportunities. In short, although after-school programs have a promising future, how they are designed and run matters.

Title: Quality After-school Programs

In all the world's cultures, people sing, play instruments, and celebrate with music． It plays such an important role in our lives that all fields focus on its study, including one looking at the biology of music． Experts are finding that because of the way our brains process music, learning to play an instrument or just listening to music can have a wide range of benefits．
Music education has received a lot of attention． Learning to play an instrument can help children improve math, science, and language skills． One study in Canada tracked children's IQ scores for nine months, discovering that children who studied music had the biggest test score improvements． The secret may lie in the way reading music and playing notes uses several areas of the brain, increasing our ability to learn school subjects． For example, reading notes improves spatial （空间的） reasoning skills, which are helpful in solving math problems like fractions（分数）．
Music is also used for medical purposes, such as the treatment of diseases which affect memory． The secret lies in the way the brain processes music． One area near the forehead, the medial prefrontal cortex, connects music with memories stored in two other areas: the amygdale and hippocampus． That's why an old song can remind you of something that happened years ago． For patients suffering from diseases like Alzheimer's, listening to music can help unlock buried memories by strengthening musical pathways to memories．
With the evidence of music's benefits pouring in, it's no wonder some countries make  music study a part of their education systems． People are recognizing that more than just a  form of entertainment, music is also great for the brain．

1. 1.

   Scientists are studying music because _______．

   1. A.
      music can be used for medical treatments
   2. B.
      music plays a very important role in our lives
   3. C.
      our brains can possess music in different ways
   4. D.
      music education has received a lot of attention
2. 2.

   According to the Canadian study, which children had increased IQ scores?

   1. A.
      Those who already had high IQs．
   2. B.
      Those who had always played music．
   3. C.
      Those who could not play any instrument．
   4. D.
      Those who studied music for a period of time．
3. 3.

   Which of the following is a kind of disease?

   1. A.
      Spatial reasoning．
   2. B.
      Alzheimer's．
   3. C.
      The amygdale and hippocampus．
   4. D.
      The medial prefrontal cortex．
4. 4.

   What can be the best title for the text?

   1. A.
      Music and health
   2. B.
      Music and the mind
   3. C.
      Music and education
   4. D.
      Music and instruments

　　Steve, a typical American, stays home on workdays. He plugs into his personal computer terminal (终端) in order to hook up with his office. After work, he watches a movie on his home video recorder, or challenges himself to a game of electronic baseball. On many days, Steve does not talk to any other human beings, and he does not see any people except the ones on television. Steve is imaginary, but his lifestyle is very possible. The inventions of modem technology seem to be cutting us off from contact with our fellow human beings.

　　The world of business is one area in which technology is isolating us. Experts predict, for example, that many people will soon be able to work at home. With access to a large central computer, employees such as insurance agents(保险公司), secretaries, and accountants(会计)could do their jobs at display terminals in their own homes. They would never have to actually see the people they are dealing with. In addition, the way employees are paid will change. Workers' salaries will automatically be credited (记入……名下) to their pay or cash their checks. Personal banking will change, too. Customers will deal with machines to deposit or withdraw money from their accounts. Bank loans (贷款) will be approved or rejected, not in an interview with a loan officer, but through a display on a computer screen.

　　Another area that technology is changing is entertainment. Music, for instance, was once a group experience. People listened to music at contact halls or in small social gatherings. For many people now, however, music is a solitary (孤独的) experience. Walking along the street or sitting in their living rooms, they wear headphones to build a wall of music around them. Many more are choosing to wait for a film to appear on television or are renting videocassettes to watch at home. Instead of being involved with the laughter, applause, or hisses (尖叫声) of the audience, viewers watch movie in the isolation of their living moms.

　　Our games and sports are also changing. Rather than play tag (捉人游戏) or baseball after school, children now rush to the local video arcade to stare at their individual electronic playing fields. They are no longer interested in competing or interacting with each other.

　　Technology, then, seems to be driving human beings apart. Soon, we may no longer need to communicate with other human beings in order to do our work, entertain ourselves, or play the games we enjoy. Machines will be the coworkers and companions of the future.

1．The first paragraph presents the reader with a description of Steve's ________.

[　　]

2．The phrase“With access to a large central computer”in paragraph 2 can be best paraphrased as ________.

[　　]

A．“Owing to a large central computer”

B．“With a visit to a large central computer”

C．“With the help of a large central computer”

D．“Knowing how to operate a large central computer”

3．Technology is changing the world of business in that ________.

[　　]

A．machines will take over the work usually done by human beings

B．labor and time will be saved

C．people will be able to work at home

D．people will be kept well-informed through a display on a computer screen

4．From this selection we can conclude that ________.

[　　]

A．the author welcomes modem technology with open arms

B．modern technology is faultless in the author's eyes

C．the author only looks the dark side of modem technology

D．the author is strongly against modern technology

5．Which of the following is Not true according to the passage?

[　　]

A．The changes modern techno logy is bringing to people's life may be many.

B．There are a lot of side effects of modem technology.

C．People are becoming more and more solitary with modem technology.

D．None of the above.

Let’s say you took violin lessons all through elementary school, but you haven’t got the instrument out of its case for years. Were all those lessons a waste of your parents’ money because you didn’t become a violinist?
Even though it has been a long time since you played the violin, a new study shows that as little as one year of music training can have a positive impact (影响) on your brain that will last the rest of your life.
In an experiment, researchers compared children who had taken music lessons to those who hadn’t. Laurel Trainor, who studies music and the mind, discovered that the musically-trained children had better brain responses in certain sound recognition exams. Trainor’s findings show the possibility that musical education can actually improve the brain’s hearing cortex(大脑皮层). “The study’s results show that music training affects attention and memory, and helps children develop learning skills. In this way music training might lead to better learning across a number of fields,” Trainor said in a statement. The effects of music education are even more obvious on children with difficulty in reading and writing and other language-related disabilities.
So, whether you can play a good piece of music or not, it’s likely that your years of music lessons have prepared your brain for all the speeches, emails, and adult conversations that are part of your life today. We should help make sure that children today have the same opportunities for music, and help out by volunteering with or donating instruments to your school’s music education department.
【小题1】Compared with children who haven’t taken music lessons, musically-trained children _______.