A recent report on online education, made by SRI International for the Department of Education, has a serious academic (学术的) title, but a most interesting conclusion: “ Students in online learning conditions performed better than those receiving face-to-face instruction.”

The report examined the research on online and traditional classroom teaching from 1996 to 2008. Some of it was in K-12 settings, but most of the studies were in colleges and adult continuing education programs.

Over the 12 years, the report found 99 studies in which there were comparisons of online and classroom performance for the same courses. The result of the Department of Education’ s research showed that usually, students doing some or all of the course online would rank a little higher than the classroom students with little but meaningful difference.

“The importance of the study lies in showing that online learning today is not just better than nothing — it actually tends to be better than traditional instruction.” said Barbara Means, the study’ s lead author and an educational psychologist at SRI International.

This hardly means that we’ll be saying goodbye to classrooms. But the report does suggest that online education could be set to develop sharply over the next few years.

Until fairly recently, online education totaled to little. That has really changed with the arrival of webbased video, instant (即时的) messaging and teamwork tools.

The real promise of online education, experts say, is providing learning experiences that are more suitable for individual (个体的) students than is possible in classrooms. That allows more “learning by doing,” which many students find more attractive and useful.

“We are at a turning point in online education,” said Philip R. Regier, the leader of Arizona State University’ s Online and Extended Campus program.

The biggest near-term growth, Mr. Regier predicts, will be in continuing education programs.

What do we know from the passage?

Most of the studies were done in high schools.

The report was based on more than 100 studies.

The studies were carried out for more than 20 years.

The difference between online and traditional teaching is not big.

We can learn from the passage that __________.

traditional education will come to an end

traditional education is not popular any longer

online education didn’ t develop rapidly until recently

middle schools are facing the choice between online and traditional teaching

Which is NOT the reason why many students prefer online learning?

Online teaching is more suitable for individuals.

Classroom teaching is not practical and useful.

Students can learn by doing in online courses.

Online teaching is more interesting.

Which do you think is the best title for the passage?

Study finds that online education beats the classroom

Why is online education on the rise?

A report on online education

Classroom teaching is out

A recent report on online education, made by SRI International for the Department of Education, has a serious academic (学术的) title, but a most interesting conclusion: “ Students in online learning conditions performed better than those receiving face-to-face instruction.”
The report examined the research on online and traditional classroom teaching from 1996 to 2008. Some of it was in K-12 settings, but most of the studies were in colleges and adult continuing education programs.
Over the 12 years, the report found 99 studies in which there were comparisons of online and classroom performance for the same courses. The result of the Department of Education’ s research showed that usually, students doing some or all of the course online would rank a little higher than the classroom students with little but meaningful difference.
“The importance of the study lies in showing that online learning today is not just better than nothing — it actually tends to be better than traditional instruction.” said Barbara Means, the study’ s lead author and an educational psychologist at SRI International.
This hardly means that we’ll be saying goodbye to classrooms. But the report does suggest that online education could be set to develop sharply over the next few years.
Until fairly recently, online education totaled to little. That has really changed with the arrival of webbased video, instant (即时的) messaging and teamwork tools.
The real promise of online education, experts say, is providing learning experiences that are more suitable for individual (个体的) students than is possible in classrooms. That allows more “learning by doing,” which many students find more attractive and useful.
“We are at a turning point in online education,” said Philip R. Regier, the leader of Arizona State University’ s Online and Extended Campus program.
The biggest near-term growth, Mr. Regier predicts, will be in continuing education programs.
【小题1】What do we know from the passage?
Most of the studies were done in high schools.
The report was based on more than 100 studies.
The studies were carried out for more than 20 years.
The difference between online and traditional teaching is not big.
【小题2】We can learn from the passage that __________.
traditional education will come to an end
traditional education is not popular any longer
online education didn’ t develop rapidly until recently
middle schools are facing the choice between online and traditional teaching
【小题3】Which is NOT the reason why many students prefer online learning?
Online teaching is more suitable for individuals.
Classroom teaching is not practical and useful.
Students can learn by doing in online courses.
Online teaching is more interesting.
【小题4】Which do you think is the best title for the passage?
Study finds that online education beats the classroom
Why is online education on the rise?
A report on online education
Classroom teaching is out

A New Zealand volcano dormant for more than a century has erupted，sending up ash clouds，disturbing flights and closing roads．
Mount Tongariro, one of three volcanoes in the centre of the North Island, became active just before midnight local time, with reports of loud explosions，pouting rocks and steam.
The 1, 978m peak is in a national park popular with hikers. No damages have been reported after the eruption.
Witnesses described a dramatic scene as the volcano erupted.
“I saw this beautiful. big cloud and I thought: ‘Gee that looks like a volcanic plume’. Just as I thought that there was a great big orange flash,” truck driver Bryn Rodda told New Zealand National Radio. “It was quite impressive.”
Mount Tongariro last erupted 115 years ago. And scientists said they did not yet know if this eruption was a single event.
Experts said they were caught by surprise—they had recorded some activity like an earthquake in recent weeks but were not expecting an eruption．
“This might just be a quiet period and we should expect it to start again at any time. So we are watching things Very closely,” volcanologist Michael Rosenberg told TVNZ.
Eruption activity has currently reduced, New Zealand media said．Meteorologists(气象学家)said the ash was blowing east towards the Pacific Ocean.
A number of inland flights from the North Island to the South Island had been affected by the volcanic activity, Air New Zealand said.
Police said highways that had been closed because visibility was affected after the eruption are now open.
Some residents in the nearby areas had temporarily left their homes. Officials have not ordered an evacuation(撤离), but advised those affected by the ash cloud to stay indoors and close their doors and windows.
【小题1】What effect did the eruption cause?

A blog can be a very effective way of spreading the words about yourself, and your other writing. It can unshroud your knowledge, and create an ongoing relationship with your readers. A good blog is more than just a marketing tool; it’s also an expression of your personality.

An obvious starting point is to post samples of your work that not only show off your skills and writing ability but also leave people wanting more. Post elections from the most exciting parts of your stories but end them just as the action reaches its peak. If you write nonfiction （写实文学）, show people what they could achieve, and give them a few steps to get them started.

Give tips, information and advice about the subjects you cover. For example, something about struggling with difficulty and many other issues like this. Your writing tips can also be included, as well as interesting, strange or funny things you discovered during your research. Whenever you contact an expert, ask if he or she has any interesting stories you could use. You many also give background information about your stories and locations

Give details of coming posts on your blog, so people can watch out for you, or come and meet you. Personal news will help people feel better connected to you Include photos of objects and locations in your writing, famous people you meet, the views from your window, and your favorite things – with a note about where they came from and what they mean to you. Look out for things that will help your readers get to know you better, know the subject better, or anything else you think they might find useful, inspiring or entertaining.

If you only occasionally post things on your blog, people have a tendency to forget you. As a writer you shouldn’t ever run out of interesting materials to fill your blog with —and your readers will love you for it.

1.Which is the best title for the text?

A. What to Blog about                                    B. How to Start a Blog

C. Why to Launch a Blog                                D. How to Make Website Attractive

2.The underlined word “unshroud” in the first paragraph means _____.

A. put on                     B. turn up          C. show off                  D. write down

3.You’d better blog about ______.

A. the difficulties of your position to readers

B. the entertaining stories you have

C. advice about your readers’ subjects

D. masterpieces from famous writers

4.What does the author suggest for keeping a blog?

A. Posting things on your blog once in a while.

B. Adding new stories to it every day.

C. Filling it with attractive things frequently.

D. Loving it as your life.

A blog can be a very effective way of spreading the words about yourself, and your other writing. It can unshroud your knowledge, and create an ongoing relationship with your readers. A good blog is more than just a marketing tool; it’s also an expression of your personality.

An obvious starting point is to post samples of your work that not only show off your skills and writing ability but also leave people wanting more. Post selections from the most exciting parts of your stories but end them just as the action reaches its peak. If you write nonfiction (写实文学), show people what they could achieve, and give them a few steps to get them started.

Give tips, information and advice about the subjects you cover. For example, something about struggling with difficulty and many other issues like this. Your writing tips can also be included, as well as interesting, strange or funny things you discovered during your research. Whenever you contact an expert, ask if he or she has any interesting stories you could use. You may also give background information about your stories and the locations.

Give details of coming posts on your blog, so people can watch out for you, or come and meet you. Personal news will help people feel better connected to you. Include photos of objects and locations in your writing, famous people you meet, the views from your window, and your favorite things—with a note about where they came from and what they mean to you. Look out for things that will help your readers get to know you better, know the subject better, or anything else you think they might find useful, inspiring or entertaining.

If you only occasionally post things on your blog, people have a tendency to forget you. As a writer you shouldn’t ever run out of interesting materials to fill your blog with—and your readers will love you for it.

1.Which is the best title for the text?

A．What to Blog about                      B．How to Start a Blog

C．Why to Launch a Blog                    D．How to Make Website Attractive

2.The underlined word “unshroud” in the first paragraph means ________.

A．hold out                              B．turn up

C．show off                              D．put down

3.You’d better blog about ________.

A．the difficulties of your position to readers

B．the entertaining stories you have

C．advice about your readers’ subjects

D．masterpieces from famous writers

4.What does the author suggest for keeping a blog?

A．Posting things on your blog once in a while.

B．Adding new stories to it every day.

C．Filling it with attractive things frequently.

D．Loving it as your life.