Many people wonder why the United States has been a hotspot for Chinese students for years, despite its extremely strict visa policy. On the other hand, China’s rise as an economic powerhouse is resulting in a rapid expansion of its higher education system, making it the faster-growing destination for American foreign exchange students.

Recently, according to a study by the Institute of International Education, a research organization based in New York, the number of American students seeking higher education in China has never been greater, increasing by 90 percent from 2002 to 2004. Alan Goodman, president of the institute, believes that the phenomenon lies in the pace of change in China, which is spending billions of dollars to expend and transform its higher educational facilities into world-class institutions.

“China is a job market,” said Professor Chou, professor of East Asian Studies at Princeton University. “Twenty years ago, only those interested in Chinese literature would study Chinese language. Now all professors have opened up.”

China now ranks 9^th as a host destination for American students, advancing from the No.12 spot it held a year earlier. The study revealed that Britain continues to be the leading destination, attracting 16.8 percent of all American students who study abroad．On the other hand, in the 2004-2005 academic year, China sent more than 62,000 students to the United States, nearly 60 percent more than a decade earlier. According to the study, the Chinese now make up 11 percent of foreign students in the United States, the second-largest group behind students from India.

1．From the first paragraph, we know that for many years Chinese students want to go to the US but _____.

A．Chinese government refuses to give a visa     B．it is extremely difficult to get a visa

C．it results in a rapid expansion                       D．China becomes a fast-growing country

2．According to the text, “the phenomenon” in the second paragraph refers to _____.

A．more American students’ seeking higher education in China

B．the pace of change in China during the past few years

C．founding a research organization based in New York

D．expending and transforming its higher educational facilities

3．Ten years ago, China sent about _____ students to the United States.

A．62,000                     B．55,000               C．37,000                     D．6,820

4．What is the main idea of this text?

A．American Students are looking for destination.

B．American students are interested in Chinese culture.

C．Britain continues to be the leading destination.

D．China grows as study hotspot for U.S. students.

假如你是张林，担任某校学生英文报纸English Corner 的编辑该报打算开办“校园生活”版。请你用英文为此写一则征稿启事。该版的主要栏目与相关内容要求如下：

注意：欢迎来稿附相关照片；所有稿件内容与学校有关；必须是自己的作品；稿件可投入学校大门口的信箱或发电子邮件到：Englishcorner2008@sina．com。

参考词汇：征稿启事invitation to contribute

要求：1．词数100左右；  2．开头已为你写好（不计入你所写词数）；

3．已给出的开头不得抄入答题卡。（以下所给内容不得抄入答题卡）

Invitation to Contribute

The Campus Report Page of English corner is for you, our dear readers to report happenings around campus．

On the afternoon of September 27,2008 ,astronaut Zhai Zhigang became the first Chinese man to walk in space on Saturday, clambering（攀爬）out of China's Shenzhou VII space craft in a technological feat（成就） that made the Chinese people excited．

"I'm feeling quite well． I greet the Chinese people and the people of the world," Zhai said as he climbed out of the craft at around 16:40 Beijing time, a historic achievement telecast live on CCTV．Tens of millions of Chinese viewers gathered before TV screens to watch the moment．

Chinese President Hu Jintao and other top leaders had appeared at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center to watch the live transmission of Zhai's space walk．

Zhai, 42, chosen by an expert team for the first "out-of -capsule activity," showed a red national flag, helped by colleague Liu Boming, who also briefly popped his head out of the capsule．

Zhai slowly made his way towards a test sample of solid lubricant（润滑剂）outside the capsule, took a sample and handed it to Liu．

Zhai safely returned inside the craft after about 20 minutes．The walk marked the highpoint of China's third manned space journey, which has received widespread media coverage．

Zhai wore a $4．4 million Chinese-made suit weighing 120-kg．Liu wore a Russian-made one and acted as an assistant．

The third crew member, Jing Haipeng, monitored the ship from inside the re-entry module．

The risky maneuver is a step towards China's longer-term goal of building a space lab and then a larger space station, analysts said．

"On this flight, Chinese people's footprints will be left in space for the first time," said a commentary by the Xinhua news agency．

The astronauts went abroad on their walk after receiving a clean bill of health from doctors on the ground at mission control in Beijing, Xinhua said．

Zhai's suit has 10 layers and takes up to 15 hours to assemble and put on．

China's first manned spaceflight was in 2003．A second, two-manned flight followed in 2005． The only other countries that have sent people into space are Russia and the United States．

Shenzhou VII took off on Thursday and is due to land on the northern steppes （草原）of Inner Mongolia on Sunday．

1．The space walk done by the Chinese astronaut was historic because_______．

A．it was telecast live  

B．there were more Chinese viewers than ever

C．it was the first space walk carried out by Chinese astronauts

D．top leaders watched the space walk

2．The following statements are true EXCEPT________．

      A．the lubricant put outside the capsule was a test sample

      B．it took Zhai Zhigang about 20 minutes to return to the craft safely

C．many televisions and newspapers around the world reported the event

D．there is an aerospace control center in the capital

3．The significance of the space walk is that _________．

      A．the astronaut can work outside the spacecraft

      B．it marks a successful step towards China’s longer-term goal of building a space lab as well as a space station

C．it has attracted tens of millions of people to watch the walk

D．the Chinese-made space suit can be used in space

4．What does the underlined word “clean” mean in the passage?

      A．Healthy      B．Paid-off              C．Not dirty            D．Clear

5．The best title of the passage is ________ ．

      A．First Footprints of Chinese People in Space

B．Expensive Space Suit

C．Three Successful Manned Flights by Chinese Astronauts

D．Historic Space Walk by Chinese Astronaut

你们一次班会的讨论主题是“上大学是高中生唯一的出路吗？”，请你根据下面图表及汉语提示，写一篇短文，并阐述你的个人观点。

参考要点：1．增长学识，提高素养，利于择业；

          2．成功的路不止一条；

          3．学费高，就业难

注意：1．词数：100个左右

      2．开头语已为你写好。

Is It the Only Way Out to Go to College?

We had a discussion about whether it is the only way out for senior students to go to college．Views vary from person to person．

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

Everyone’s at it, even my neighbors．I thought I might be the only person left in the world who hadn’t done an eBay deal．So, I decided to try my hand at online auction（网上拍卖）.

Buying for Beginners

Sign up on www．eBay．co．uk．Most items （e.g．tables, computers and books） ready for auction will come with a picture and a short description; others may be marked with “Buy It Now ” and have a fixed price．You can buy these right away．

If the item is being auctioned, you offer the highest price you are prepared to pay and eBay bids （出价） for you．The bid will be increased little by little until it goes beyond your highest bid, then you are emailed and asked if you would like to bid again．Auctions last up to 10 days and when they finish, you get an email telling you whether you have won the item.

How to Pay

Sellers decide how they would like to be paid and you need to check this before placing a bid as you might not want to post a check or postal orders．The easiest way is through PayPal, an online payment system that takes the money away from your credit card．

Selling Made Simple

If you plan to sell on eBay, it helps to include a picture of the item．I followed my friends’ advice and put up the items I wanted to sell for a 10-day auction, starting on a Thursday．This way buyers had two weekends to bid.

The Big Things in Life

It’s easy to post a small item, but furniture is a big part of eBay and this has to be collectively sent by deliverymen．Check the ways of delivery before you bid.

1．After bidding for an item, a buyer _____________.

A．is likely to make higher bids                           B．will get what he wants in ten days

C．should make payment immediately                  D．may check its picture and description

2．Which is the easiest way of making payment according to the passage?

A．Through a local banking system.                    B．By sending the money to the seller．

C．Through an online payment system.               D．By paying the deliveryman directly.

3．What is the passage mainly about?

A．How to make payment online.                        B．Ways of making delivery online.

C．How to use an online-auction system．                D．Advantages of an online auction system.

1．If you happen to be the 200th customer to buy Cholesterolblock, you will          .

       A．be able to buy it at a low price               B．be the luckiest one online

       C．try it free of charge                              D．change your diet

2．Liptor®, Zocor®, Crestor® are         .

       A．diseases              B．side effects          C．medicines            D．cholesterol

3．Cholestrolblock^TM  has the following advantages EXCEPT that _____________________.

       A．it helps take cholesterol out of whatever food you eat.

       B．it has been proved useful in hospital testing.

       C．it helps people absorb at least 42% cholesterol.

       D．it sells best on Internet every month.

4．Where can you most probably read this passage?

    A．In a travel guide book.                          B．On a university bulletin board.

       C．In a health magazine.                            D．In a doctor's prescription.

最近，宁波博物馆宣布免费开放。消息传出，博物馆每天被闻讯涌来的上万名游客挤得近乎“爆棚”。这一现象引发了各方的热烈讨论：博物馆该不该免费开放？下图是中国宁波网做的一次社会调查，请你根据图示用英语给该网站的英语栏目写一篇短文介绍调查结果，并为三种不同的意见拟写各自的理由。

注意： 1．词数120左右（文章开头已经给出，但不计入总词数）；

2．可以有适当发挥，以使行文连贯。      

Recently a survey entitled “Should museums be free to the public?” has been conducted to find out people’s attitudes towards this question________                                    

We can never expect        bluer sky unless we create        less polluted world.

A．a; a                               B．a; the

C．the; a                               D．the; the

Timetable

1．Which of the following is true of the membership card?

    A．Its number is l0865 305305．

    B．It belongs to Mr.E.M.driscoll．

    C．It is valid through the year of 2010．

    D．It gets the owner a discount when used．

2． If one wants to attend a business lunch in London at l2：00,the latest train that he should take at Oxford leaves at         ．

    A．11：45    B．11：15    C．10：35       D．10：05

3．If you would like to have some vegetable beef, what may be your choice?

    A．French Slam®                   B．Chicken-Fried Steak®

C．The Super Bird®                   D．Sandwich with Salad or Soup®

4．The chart shows that from 2005 to 2008，        ．

    A．the percentage of the Spanish families with a computer rose 35 points

    B．the percentage of the White families with a computer remained unchanged

    C．the number of the Black families with a computer was on the decrease

    D．the number of the Asian families with a computer showed the sharpest increase

假设你正在参加全省中学生英语演讲比赛，请你针对有些父母经常翻看孩子日记或书包这一现象，写一篇演讲稿，陈述你的观点。

    演讲稿的主要内容应包括：

  认为同学们不必为此苦恼；

  希望能够体谅父母的苦衷；

          建议与父母进行交流和沟通。

注意：

    1．词数100左右；

    2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；

    3．开头和结尾已为你写好，不计入总词数。

    Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.

    Some of us are having problems with our parents, as they often look into our school bags or read our diaries.                                                                        

Thank you!