Public schools are supposed to remove barriers so people can succeed. For some, the system does remove barriers and provide a solid base for achievement. For others, the system replaces one set of barriers with another. For example, creativity is killed by pressuring students to accept the current situation, by establishing a fear to be different and a fear of failure. Independent thinking is replaced by dependency. In some cases, pressure to succeed academically kills morality, faithfulness motivation, and skills needed for success in the real world. People who have a dream, motivating them can overcome all barriers on the whole.

My story begins in Summit, NJ, at the age of sixteen, where I am sitting in a classroom staring out of the window. Out of the first window I could see myself exploring the jungles of South America searching for gold, I could see myself going down the Amazon River on a boat, I could see monkeys swinging through the trees, I could see myself as Tarzan swinging on a climbing plant. Through the next window, I could see…

    Then BANG! The teacher's yardstick hitting my desk brought me back to the real world where subjects did not relate to my interest. In a loud voice the teacher said, "You are a failure! If you don't pay attention, you will continue to be a failure!"

    When the bell rang, instead of going to the next class I walked out of school never to return. I was tired of being called a failure. Right or wrong, I took charge of my future. When I left school, I carried the single most important basic factor for success---A DREAM. During the next twenty years, every one of my teenage dreams came true.

    You may be asking, "How does one make their dreams come true?" There are three basic factors:

    First, we must have a dream that motivates us. No one has ever achieved anything without a dream attached to a burning desire.

    Second, we must learn how-to-learn. In school, we learn how to memorize or be taught. Learning how to learn frees our dependency on others for knowledge.

    Third, we must learn from failure and learn how to bounce back from failure. No one has ever succeeded without failure. In the classroom, failure is a no-no.

26. What is the main idea of Paragraph 1?

A. Public schools should make it easier for students to succeed.

B. Some public schools have no barriers at all.

C. There are a lot of barriers in all public schools.

D. Barriers have been replaced by new ones in most public schools.

27. Which of the following is TRUE according to Paragraph 2?

A. The author left school because of his dream.

B. The author slept and had a dream.

C. The author didn’t listen carefully to the teacher.

D. The author made a plan for the future

28. The author intended to show that ___________.

A. he was bored in class

B. it is not necessary to receive an education

C. he was considered to be a failure at school

D. people sticking to their dreams can succeed

29. According to the passage, _________ is the most important factor of success.

A. having a dream                      B. knowing how-to-learn

C. overcoming failure                   D. having a good education

30. On the whole, the author’s attitude towards America’s public schools is ___________.

A. agreeable          B. unsatisfied        C. arbitrary       D. unknown

An Iraqi reporter called President George W. Bush a "dog" and threw his shoes at him on Sunday, staining a farewell visit to Baghdad which was meant to mark greater security in Iraq after years of bloody conflict, Reuters reported. "It's like going to a political assembly and have people yell at you. It's a way for people to draw attention," Bush said. Bush joked, saying that all he can report was that it was a size 10 shoe, then calmly took questions.

A new United Nations report says nearly two million children die each year because they have no access to clean water. The 2006 Human Development Report, released Thursday in South Africa, says most of the deaths are caused by diarrhea and dysentery brought on by dirty water. The report's leading author, Kevin Watkins, said that the reason behind the water crisis is not a shortage of water, but a lack of will On the part of governments to provide water to people: The report calls on the international community to do more to help solve the problem by doubling annual contributions for water and cleanness.

Indian police say they have found four bombs on a train in the eastern city of Kolkata （formerly known as Calcutta）. Authorities described the bombs as crude（土制的）. They were discovered during a security check before the train was scheduled to leave for the holy Hindu town of Tarakeswar. There has been no claim of responsibility for the explosive devices.

The U.S. Navy is warning ships to stay away from the coast of Somalia after a series ot pirate （海盗） attacks there. The U.S. Maritime Liaison Office in Bahrain says that, although ships belonging to U.S. are operating in the area, they cannot control every ship that passes the east coast of Somalia. The office is urging merchant ships to stay at least 200 nautical miles off Somalia. Pirates have attacked at least eight ships in the area this year. On Saturday, pirates tried but failed to hijack（劫持） a boat carrying food to Somalia for the United Nations World Food Program. The United Nations is calling for international action against the rampant（猖獗的） piracy off Somalia's coast, saving it threatens further aid deliveries to the country.

1．From the news above, we can say that the United Nations wants _____________ .

    A．to launch a war against Somalia

    B．to call for more international contributions for water and cleanness in Africa

    C．to take actions to assure the security in India

    D．Bush not to visit Iraq again for the security

2．But for the careful security check, _______________ might have happened.

    A．a bomb explosion on a train in India

    B．two million children's death

    C．the Somalian pirates' rampant piracy

    D．the Iraqi reporter's behavior of throwing shoes at Bush

3．Which of the following is NOT the fact, according to the news?

    A．Nearly 2 million children die because of the shortage of clean water.

    B．All the organizations haven't claimed responsibility for the explosive devices on an Indian train.

    C．An Iraqi reporter considered George W. Bush a "dog".

D．The U.S. Navy is aimed to help keep the passing ships in that area in safety.