Now, there is a growing movement to pay the students in American schools---in some cases, even just for coming to class.

Students at one school in New Mexico can earn up to three hundred dollars a year for good attendance. In Baltimore, Maryland, high scores in state graduation tests can be worth more than one hundred dollars. And a New Jersey school system plans to pay students fifty dollars a week to attend after---school tutoring programs.

Schools that pay students can be found in more than one---fourth of the fifty states. Other schools pay students with food or other rewards.

Robert Schaefer is a public education director. He says paying students may improve performance in the short term, but students develop false expectations for the future. He sees a lack of long term planning in these programs because of the pressure on schools to raise test scores.

Public schools need to show improvement under the education reform law. Low---performing schools may lose their federal money; teachers and administrators(行政人员) may lose their jobs. Often these schools are in poor neighborhoods where getting students to go to school can be a continual problem.

Critics(评论家) say paying students sends a message that money is the only valuable reward. But some students say it makes school more exciting. And some teachers have reported getting more requests for extra help.

In two thousand four, the city schools in Coshocton, Ohio, launched a program. They wanted to see if paying elementary school students as much as one hundred dollars would help in passing the state exams.

Now, Eric Bettinger of Case Western Reserve University (EUCWRU) has reported mixed results. Math scores increased, but only white students were able to get paid. And there was no evidence of higher scores in reading, social studies and science. Official will decide later this year whether to continue the program.

1.Paying students who show improvement in tests __________.

A．has been done in most American schools

B．is becoming a growing practice in the USA

C．is not very popular with teachers

D．only aims at high scores at school

2.According to the text, Robert Schaefer _____________.

A．is a very excellent teacher

B．thinks highly of paying students

C．thinks students will show improvement in study in the future

D．thinks people should make a careful plan for the paying program

3.From the last paragraph we can see __________.

A．EBCWRU has got great success in its paying program

B．not all the students in EUCWRU have made progress in all subjects

C．only students who study math can get paid

D．EBCWRU will go on with the paying program

4.The text is mainly written to _____________.

A．persuade teachers to give students more prizes

B．tell people how to become an excellent student

C．introduce something about American paying students program

D．explain the advantages of American paying students program

 

Hilton English Language Center

Information for New Students

CLASS TIME: 8:30a.m.—10:00a.m., 10:30a.m.—12:00a.m., 1:30p.m.—3:00p.m..

The Language Center is open Monday to Friday. Each class has one afternoon free per week. On the first day, go to the lecture hall to check your timetable.

SELF-ACCESS: The language laboratory (Room 1110) is open Monday to Friday from 3:15p.m. to 5:00p.m. for all full-time students.

You can learn how to use computers for language games or word-processing（文字处理）. There are tapes for students to borrow to practice their English. Go in and ask the teacher to show you. If you plan to take public examinations, there are dictation and listening comprehension tapes for you to practice with. There are cloze exercises on the computers. Ask your class teacher for a list of past exam essays. Students can borrow tapes to take home but they must be returned after two days.

ATTENDANCE（出勤）：All students are expected to attend classes as it is required. Students who do not attend classes will be reported to OSS. Eighty percent attendance is required for students to receive their certificates（证书）when they finish their courses. It is also required by OSS for an extension to your visa.

BOOKS: If students are given course books, the books are their responsibility. If a book is lost, the student will be expected to pay for it.

If students wish to buy books, there is a bookshop in the college specializing in English books (Room 3520).

1.When do classes begin and end on a full day?

A．8:30a.m.—1:30p.m..                     B．8:30a.m.—3:00p.m..

C．8:30a.m.—3:15p.m..                     D．3:15p.m.—5:00p.m..

2.Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．No teachers are in the language lab.

B．90% attendance is required for the students.

C．Books can’t be taken out of the center.

D．Students can prepare for exams by listening to tapes.

3.The timetable can be seen in _____.

A．the lecture hall     B．Room 3520        C．the classroom      D．Room 1110

 

In Renee Smith's classroom, attendance is up. Trips to the headmaster's office are down and students are handing in assignments on time. The Springfield High School teacher says she has seen great __1__  since adding a few new students to her class―five Labrador puppies and their father.

      The seven __2__ students in Smith's class have a history of discipline __3__. But since they've started teaching the dogs obedience (顺从), their own __4__ has improved. A dog trainer Chuck Reynolds __5__ the students a new trick each week that they then work on with the puppies. At night, the dogs go home with the staff members who have raised them. They get dropped off in the morning, __6__ a parent would take a child to day care.

Smith said she came up with the idea when her dog had puppies and she say, how __7__ her own children responded to them. She consulted with school psychologist Kristin Edinger, __8__ they took the idea―along with letters from students __9__ the program ―to the school board. A pet therapist said, "What you are trying to teach is __10__ and that there are consequences for the decisions you make."

A. disappointment       B. progress     C. disturbance D. promotion

A. human    B. dog           C. new          D. Labrador

A. problems       B. questions  C. issues        D. troubles

A. habit      B. attitude      C. action        D. behavior

A. guides   B. teaches      C. permits      D. aids

A. such as  B. much as     C. so that       D. even if

A. well       B. quickly      C. poorly       D. carelessly

A. but         B. so.            C. and           D. because

A. revising                B. describing C. opposing                 D. supporting

A. self-importance    B. self-respect C. self-control              D. self-criticism

The United States has about 475,000 school buses ---all painted yellow.Each day they carry more than 25,000,000 children, half of all schoolchildren in the country.But these buses, on average, use four liters of diesel (柴油) fuel to travel less than sixteen kilometers.When the school year began last fall, diesel averaged 55 cents a liter nationally.The price nearly doubled, to a dollar and 8 cents, by the end of school in June.

Bob Riley speaks for the American School Bus Council.He says fuel prices for schools are not much lower than others have to pay.As a result, schools are looking for ways to reduce transportation costs.Bus routes are being redrawn or, in some cases, canceled (取消).Some areas are buying buses that use natural gas or other alternative fuels.Other steps include fewer field trips and less travel by sports teams.And some school districts (地区) may end any bus service not required by law.

Studies show that school buses are the safest form of transportation to and from school.The American School Bus Council says cuts in bus service are bad for children and possibly the environment.It says removing buses from the road will mean an increase in other vehicles transporting students.Spokesman Bob Riley says another concern is that reducing bus services might reduce attendance.

But it could also get more children to walk or bicycle to school.And that would surely make people happy at the National Center for Safe Routes to School.More kids walking or biking safely to school is the aim of a three-year-old federal program, part of an international movement.The goal is to increase physical activity and reduce air pollution.The United States will celebrate Walk to School Day on October the eighth this year.But for some students, high fuel prices could make every day a walk-to-school day.

1.What does this passage mainly tell us?

A．High fuel prices’ influences on school buses.

B．New measures to transport school students.

C．The safest form of student transportation.

D．The origin of Walk to School Day.

2.Which of the following information is implied in the first paragraph?

A．There are too many school buses in the United States.

B．There are too many students in the US.

C．Diesel prices are going up too rapidly in the US.

D．School buses consume too much diesel in the US.

3.What can we learn from Paragraph 3?

A．Cuts in bus service will have negative results.

B．The US government is encouraging cuts in bus services.

C．The US schools are searching for the safest transportation means.

D．Reducing bus service will do a lot of good to the environment.

4.The National Center for Safe Routes to school encourages more children to walk or bike to school in order to ____.

A.save more fuels and diesel for the country

B.keep the children safe on their way to school

D.keep the children healthy and the environment clean.

 

In spite of the uncertainty of the economy, the movie industry has been stricken by a box-office outburst. Suddenly it seems as if everyone is going to the movies, with ticket sales this year up 17.5 percent, to $1.7 billion.

And it is not just because ticket prices are higher. Attendance has also jumped, by nearly 16 percent. If that pace continues through the year, it would amount to the biggest box-office increase in at least two decades.

Americans, for the moment, just want to hide in a very dark place. People want to forget their troubles, and they want to be with other people. Helping feed the outburst is the mix of movies, which have been more audience-friendly in recent months as the studios have tried to adjust after the discouraging sales of more serious films.

As she stood in line at the 18-screen Bridge theater complex here on Thursday to buy weekend tickets for “Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience,” Angel Hernandez was not thinking much about escaping reality. Instead, Ms. Hernandez, a Los Angeles parking lot attendant and mother of four young girls, was focused on one very specific reality: her wallet.

   “Spending hundreds of dollars to take them to Disneyland is ridiculous right now,” she said. “For $60 and some candy money I can still be a good mom and give them a little fun.”

A lot of parents may have been thinking the same thing Friday, as “Jonas Brothers” sold out more than 800 theaters, and was expected to sell a powerful $25 million or more in tickets.

The film industry appears to have had a hand in its recent good luck. Over the last year or two, studios have released movies that are happier, scarier or just less depressing than what came before. After poor results for a rush of serious dramas built around the Middle East, Hollywood got back to comedies.

1.Which of the following is not a reason for the improvement of the movie industry?

A. A growing number of people are going to the cinema.

B. People are richer with the development of economy.

C. More comedies are made than serious films.

D. People have to pay more to watch a movie.   

2.Ms. Hernandez purchased the movie tickets because ________.

A. she tried to escape reality                           B. she was a crazy movie fan

C. she was fond of Disneyland                        D. she wanted to please her kids

3.According to the text, which of the following number is not used to describe the shooting up of the movie industry?

A.17.5%              B. $1.7 billion                C. $60                 D. $25 million

4.The passage is developed mainly by ________.

A. presenting the effect and analyzing the causes

B. following the order of time

C. describing problems and drawing a conclusion

D. making comparison of ideas