The high school diploma (文凭) is losing its value quickly, as a growing number of students graduate (毕业) from school without the math and reading skills that colleges and companies require, according to a new report.

The high school graduation exams that most states (州) require students to pass before they graduate remain far too easy. Most of the exams generally test eighth-or ninth-grade level work.

Today, even high school graduates who are going to have blue-collar (蓝领) jobs need to study the math, research and writing courses. But in high school, only students who are going to college are now required to take these courses.

“If you want a good job with a good pay, it’s a high-skill job,” said Michael Cohen, a leading member of the America Diploma Project.

The project suggests that all graduates master a wide range (范围) of skills. “A high school diploma should mean something to a company and university,” said Ohio Gov. Bob Taft, who is Achieve’s co-chairman.

In Taft’s state, about 30% students who go directly to college from high school have to take remedial classes of English or math, he said. It’s easy to see that the present high-school graduating standards are not preparing students for college education.

And with high-skilled jobs increasingly headed overseas to places like India and Ireland, states need to act, he said.

To prove why math and reading skills matter, the report includes real-life examples of problems students meet in college and that workers must solve each day on the job. ?

Some states are taking actions to upgrade the high school diploma. In Texas, all high school students, starting with the 2008 graduating class, will have to take the college-prep curriculum (大学预备课程) - unless a parent agrees to an easier course load. Other states are planning similar moves.

The report includes examples of reading and math skills that high-school students should have. Project leaders say they hope parents will use those examples to judge (评定) the coursework at their kids’ high schools.

1.Why is the high school diploma losing its value quickly?

A．Because the number of high school students is growing fast.

B．Because high school students fail to reach the standards.

C．Because the graduation tests are easier than it should be.

D．Because difficult courses are not required in high schools.

2.Remedial classes in Paragraph 6 mean classes____.

A．for good learners to study quickly and better

B．for slower learners weak in the subject

C．for learners to be taught one by one

D．for learners to reach a higher standard

3.What can we learn from the passage?

A．Colleges require higher math and reading skills than companies.

B．It is easier for companies to find high-skilled workers in India.

C．Math and reading skills help little for workers to solve daily problems.

D．Parents ask high schools to offer college-prep curriculum in Texas.

4.What can be the best title for the passage?

A．High School Diploma Means Little

B．Give Students More High-skill Jobs

C．Math and Reading Skills Really Matter

D．Judge Coursework at High Schools

 

Tony Buzan’s grades were going down at university. Disappointed with his low marks, he went to the library to find a book on how to use his brain. He was directed to the medical section. Confused, he said to the librarian, “I don’t want to take my brain out, I just want to learn how to use it.” Her reply was simple: “There’s no book on that.”
“I thought to myself,” says Buzan, “if I buy a little radio, I get an instruction manual (说明书). If I buy a microwave, I get an instruction manual. But for the most important machine in the world, no instruction manual?”
Fifty years later, Buzan has become the world’s leading speaker on the brain and learning. In the late 1960s, he invented the mind map, a visual representation of thought processes.
This kind of thinking has become a popular tool for planning, organizing, problem solving, and communicating across the world. He has since authored and co-authored over 100 books that have appeared in more than 30 languages.
“I think in most cases, people use less than 1 percent of their brains,” he says.
But how do you expand this 1 percent? How do you become the best student you can be?
According to Buzan, the answer is simple. You take a section of whatever it is that you are trying to learn, he says, and you read it for its essence (精髓、要素). Then you make a mind map of all the important details. For a truly effective mind map, you start with a colored image in the center of your page. Draw the first image that comes to mind on the topic you are mind mapping. Branch off from your central image and create one of your main ideas. From your main branches draw some sub-branches and from those sub-branches you can draw even more branches. He emphasizes that you should use plenty of images and colors as these help with memory recall and encourage creativity.
By using this visual format (形式), according to Buzan, your mind will begin to make associations that will help you remember more information for longer periods of time.
Buzan believes that traditional note-taking methods, such as lists and summaries, do not stimulate the brain’s recall capacity or ability in the same way. Because of this, students will often find themselves locked away in their rooms for hours, trying hard to memorize separate details. Buzan believes that for a more effective and lasting way of studying, you must first understand how your brain works.
“Everyone is born smart,” he says. “You just have to learn how to learn.”
【小题1】What is the main purpose of the first two paragraphs?

A．To show that Tony Buzan was worried about his study.

B．To invite us to think about the importance of manuals.

C．To prove that the mind map is a useful tool for the brain.

D．To show why Tony Buzan studies the brain and learning.

【小题2】What does the word “stimulate” mean in the passage?

A．Excite.

B．Improve.

C．Encourage.

D．Affect.

【小题3】What can we infer from the passage?

A．If we learn the mind map, we will become the best student.

B．The mind map will help your brain connect separate details.

C．The mind map will be more effective if we put more details in it.

D．We will solve the problem if we make connections between ideas.

【小题4】What is the best title for the passage?

A．How to make the mind map?

B．Is the mind map widely used?

C．Can your memory be mapped?

D．Is the mind map helpful in thinking?

Tony Buzan’s grades were going down at university. Disappointed with his low marks, he went to the library to find a book on how to use his brain. He was directed to the medical section. Confused, he said to the librarian, “I don’t want to take my brain out, I just want to learn how to use it.” Her reply was simple: “There’s no book on that.”

“I thought to myself,” says Buzan, “if I buy a little radio, I get an instruction manual (说明书). If I buy a microwave, I get an instruction manual. But for the most important machine in the world, no instruction manual?”

Fifty years later, Buzan has become the world’s leading speaker on the brain and learning. In the late 1960s, he invented the mind map, a visual representation of thought processes.

This kind of thinking has become a popular tool for planning, organizing, problem solving, and communicating across the world. He has since authored and co-authored over 100 books that have appeared in more than 30 languages.

“I think in most cases, people use less than 1 percent of their brains,” he says.

But how do you expand this 1 percent? How do you become the best student you can be?

According to Buzan, the answer is simple. You take a section of whatever it is that you are trying to learn, he says, and you read it for its essence (精髓、要素). Then you make a mind map of all the important details. For a truly effective mind map, you start with a colored image in the center of your page. Draw the first image that comes to mind on the topic you are mind mapping. Branch off from your central image and create one of your main ideas. From your main branches draw some sub-branches and from those sub-branches you can draw even more branches. He emphasizes that you should use plenty of images and colors as these help with memory recall and encourage creativity.

By using this visual format (形式), according to Buzan, your mind will begin to make associations that will help you remember more information for longer periods of time.

Buzan believes that traditional note-taking methods, such as lists and summaries, do not stimulate the brain’s recall capacity or ability in the same way. Because of this, students will often find themselves locked away in their rooms for hours, trying hard to memorize separate details. Buzan believes that for a more effective and lasting way of studying, you must first understand how your brain works.

“Everyone is born smart,” he says. “You just have to learn how to learn.”

1.What is the main purpose of the first two paragraphs?

A．To show that Tony Buzan was worried about his study.

B．To invite us to think about the importance of manuals.

C．To prove that the mind map is a useful tool for the brain.

D．To show why Tony Buzan studies the brain and learning.

2.What does the word “stimulate” mean in the passage?

A．Excite.            B．Improve.          C．Encourage.        D．Affect.

3.What can we infer from the passage?

A．If we learn the mind map, we will become the best student.

B．The mind map will help your brain connect separate details.

C．The mind map will be more effective if we put more details in it.

D．We will solve the problem if we make connections between ideas.

4.What is the best title for the passage?

A．How to make the mind map?

B．Is the mind map widely used?

C．Can your memory be mapped?

D．Is the mind map helpful in thinking?

 

The high school diploma (文凭) is losing its value quickly, as a growing number of students graduate (毕业) from school without the math and reading skills that colleges and companies require, according to a new report.
The high school graduation exams that most states (州) require students to pass before they graduate remain far too easy. Most of the exams generally test eighth-or ninth-grade level work.
Today, even high school graduates who are going to have blue-collar (蓝领) jobs need to study the math, research and writing courses. But in high school, only students who are going to college are now required to take these courses.
“If you want a good job with a good pay, it’s a high-skill job,” said Michael Cohen, a leading member of the America Diploma Project.
The project suggests that all graduates master a wide range (范围) of skills. “A high school diploma should mean something to a company and university,” said Ohio Gov. Bob Taft, who is Achieve’s co-chairman.
In Taft’s state, about 30% students who go directly to college from high school have to take remedial classes of English or math, he said. It’s easy to see that the present high-school graduating standards are not preparing students for college education.
And with high-skilled jobs increasingly headed overseas to places like India and Ireland, states need to act, he said.
To prove why math and reading skills matter, the report includes real-life examples of problems students meet in college and that workers must solve each day on the job. ?
Some states are taking actions to upgrade the high school diploma. In Texas, all high school students, starting with the 2008 graduating class, will have to take the college-prep curriculum (大学预备课程) - unless a parent agrees to an easier course load. Other states are planning similar moves.
The report includes examples of reading and math skills that high-school students should have. Project leaders say they hope parents will use those examples to judge (评定) the coursework at their kids’ high schools.
【小题1】Why is the high school diploma losing its value quickly?

A．Because the number of high school students is growing fast.

B．Because high school students fail to reach the standards.

C．Because the graduation tests are easier than it should be.

D．Because difficult courses are not required in high schools.

【小题2】Remedial classes in Paragraph 6 mean classes____.

A．for good learners to study quickly and better

B．for slower learners weak in the subject

C．for learners to be taught one by one

D．for learners to reach a higher standard

【小题3】What can we learn from the passage?

A．Colleges require higher math and reading skills than companies.

B．It is easier for companies to find high-skilled workers in India.

C．Math and reading skills help little for workers to solve daily problems.

D．Parents ask high schools to offer college-prep curriculum in Texas.

【小题4】What can be the best title for the passage?

A．High School Diploma Means Little

B．Give Students More High-skill Jobs

C．Math and Reading Skills Really Matter

D．Judge Coursework at High Schools

Napping(小睡) after learning something new could help improve your memory--- as long as you dream, scientists say.

   They found people who dream about a new task do it better on waking than those who do not sleep or do not dream.

Volunteers were asked to learn the layout(布局，设计) of a 3D computer maze(迷宫) so they could find their way several hours later. Those allowed to take a pap and who also remembered dreaming of the task, found their way to a landmark quicker.

   The researchers think the dreams are a sign that unconscious(无意识的) parts of the brain are working hard to process information about the task..

   Dr. Robert Stickgold of Harvard Medical School, said dreams may be a marker that the brain is working on the same problem at many levels.

   Study tips

   Co-author Dr. Erin Wamsley said the study suggests our non-conscious brain works on the things that it deem(认为) are the most important.

   “Every day we are gathering lots of information and new experiences,” she said. “It would seem that our dreams are asking the question, “How do I use this information to inform(影响) my life?”

   The scientists say there may be ways to use this phenomenon(现象) for improving learning and memory. For example, students might be better studying hard before bedtime, or taking a nap after a period of afternoon study.

 

1. Scientists say ______ could help improve your memory.

   A. dream     B. nap          C. nap and dream       D. nap without dream

2. What were volunteers asked to do?

  A. Take a nap.   B. Dream a task.   C. Learn about 3D computer.    D. Find their way out of a maze.

3.Which is right about dreams?

   A. They are a sign that parts of the brain is unconscious.

   B. They can help us fall asleep and improve learning and memory.

C. They tell us how to use this information to inform our life.

D. They may be a marker that the brain is working on the same problem.

4.When is the best time for study?

   A. Before bedtime.    B. After bedtime.    C. Before taking a nap.   D. In the afternoon.