Have you ever been afraid to talk back when you were treated unfairly? Have you ever bought something just because the shop assistant asked you to buy it? Have you ever been afraid to ask someone for an appointment?

    Many people are afraid to assert themselves （坚持主见）. Dr. Alberti, author of Stand Up and Speak Out, thinks it’s because their self-respect （自尊心） is low. “Our whole system （体制） of society is designed to make people less confident,” says Alberti. “There’s always a person who knows more and better around us—a parent, a teacher or a boss. These people often chip away at （削弱） our self-image （自我形象）.”

    To help people assert themselves, Alberti and other scientists offer AT courses where people learn that they have a right （权利） to do so. They learn to speak out and feel good doing so. They learn to be more active without hurting other people.

    In one way, learning to speak out is to get over fear. A group taking an AT course will help the shy person lose fear. And AT even encourages the need to share （分享） so that even the shy person wants to tell others how he feels.

    Whether you speak out depends on your self-image. If someone you face is more “important” than you, you may be afraid to do so. But, why should you? AT says once you can learn to speak out, you will gradually feel good about yourself.

1．The author asks some questions in the first paragraph in order to     .

A．find out the answers

B．make a survey

C．ask for some advice

D．introduce the topic

2．The underlined phrase “talk back” in the first paragraph means     .

A．criticizing somebody

B．answering to show disagreement

C．talking behind somebody’s back

D．fighting with somebody

3．One thing that AT does NOT do is     .

A．help people to get over fear

B．remind people of their right to assert themselves

C．teach people to assert themselves without respecting others

D．help people to feel good about themselves

4．What’s the author’s attitude towards AT courses?

A．肯定的          B．否定的         C．冷漠的       D．怀疑的

5．The most suitable title for this passage would probably be     .

A．The AT courses

B．Speak out for yourself

C．The sadness of shy people

D．The importance of self-respect

初中三年的学习生活相信大家经历了许多风雨有不少的感想。请你根据以下内容，写一篇短文。（参考词汇以给出）

1 我过去常常成绩不好，现在在老师的帮助下，取得了很大的进步，非常感谢他们。

（be weak in; with the help of, make progress）

2 过去我性格内向，不敢再全班面前发言。现在变得外向了，还取得学校英语演讲比赛一等奖，与同学友好相处。（be afraid to; win the first prize; English speech）

3 原来体质很弱，经常头痛。现在经常跑步，去年还参加了校运动会。

（unhealthy; have a lot of headaches; keep healthy）

4 想给那些面临太多压力的同学、英语成绩较差的同学一些建议。（可自由发挥，多做运动等。）

注意：1 可适当增加细节，要求意思连贯，语句通顺；

      2 词数80左右，短文的开头已给出（不计入总数）

   I have changed a lot in the past three years. I used to______________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

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初中三年的学习生活相信大家经历了许多风雨有不少的感想。请你根据以下内容，写一篇短文。（参考词汇以给出）
1 我过去常常成绩不好，现在在老师的帮助下，取得了很大的进步，非常感谢他们。
（be weak in; with the help of, make progress）
2 过去我性格内向，不敢再全班面前发言。现在变得外向了，还取得学校英语演讲比赛一等奖，与同学友好相处。（be afraid to; win the first prize; English speech）
3 原来体质很弱，经常头痛。现在经常跑步，去年还参加了校运动会。
（unhealthy; have a lot of headaches; keep healthy）
4 想给那些面临太多压力的同学、英语成绩较差的同学一些建议。（可自由发挥，多做运动等。）
注意：1 可适当增加细节，要求意思连贯，语句通顺；
2 词数80左右，短文的开头已给出（不计入总数）
I have changed a lot in the past three years. I used to______________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________