Part III: Reading Comprehension (2*15=30%)

　　Read the following passages carefully and choose the correct answer to each question.

　　Passage one

　　Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.

　　Greek soldiers sent messages by turning their shields(盾)toward the sun. The flashes reflected light could be seen several miles away. The enemy did not know what the flashes meant, but other Greek soldiers could understand the messages.

　　Roman soldiers in some places built long rows of signal towers. When they had a message to send, the soldiers shouted it from tower to tower. If there were enough towers and enough soldiers with loud voices, important news could be sent quickly over distance.

　　In Africa, people learned to send messages by beating on a series of large drums. Each drum was kept within hearing distance of the next one. The drum beats were sent out in a special way that all the drummers understood. Though the messages were simple, they could be sent at great speed for hundreds of miles.

　　In the eighteenth century, a French engineer found a new way to send short messages. In this way, a person held a flag in each hand and the arms were moved to various positions representing different letters of the alphabet. It was like spelling out words with flags and arms.

　　Over a long period of time, people sent messages by all these different ways. However, not until the telephone was invented in America in the nineteenth century could people send speech sounds over a great distance in just a few seconds.

　　36. According to this passage, the Roman way of communication depended very much upon .

　　[A] fine weather

　　[B] high tower

　　[C] the spelling system

　　[D] arm movements

　　37. Which of the following statements is true?

　　[A] Neither the Greek soldiers nor their enemy could understand the message.

　　[B] African soldiers shouted from tower to tower to pass message.

　　[C] Telephone was invented by a French engineer.

　　[D] Only by using telephone could people send speech sounds quickly.

　　38. The African way of communication sent messages.

　　[A] in a special way

　　[B] over a very short distance

　　[C] by a musical instrument

　　[D] at a rather slow speed

　　39.4 The way of communication made use of visible signs.

　　[A] French

　　[B] Roman

　　[C] African

　　[D] American

　　40. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

　　[A] Greek soldiers sent messages by turning their shields(盾)

　　[B] All Roman soldiers sent news by shouting to each other.

　　[C] In Africa, messages are sent by beating drums.

　　[D] Telephone was invented in America.

　　Passage two

　　Questions 41 to 45 are based on the following passage.

　　Education is all enormous and expensive part of American life.Its size is matched by its variety.

　　Differences in American schools compared with those found in the majority of other countries lie in the fact that education here has long been intended for everyone—not just for a privileged elite.Schools ale expected to meet the needs of every child,regardless of ability,and also the needs of society itself.This means that public schools offer more than academic subjects.It surprises many people when they come here to find high schools offering such courses as typing，sewing，radio repair,computer programming or driver training，along with traditional academic subjects such as mathematics，history,and languages.Students choose their curricula depending on their interests，future goals，and level of ability.The underlying goal of American education is to develop every child to the utmost of his or her own possibilities，and to give each one a sense of civic and community consciousness.

　　Schools have traditionally played an important role in creating national unity and“Americanizing”the millions of immigrants who have poured into this country from many different backgrounds and origins.Schools still play a large role in the community,especially in the small towns.

　　The approach to teaching may seem unfamiliar to many,not only because it is informal，but also because there is not much emphasis on learning facts.Instead，Americans try to teach their children to think for themselves and to develop their own intellectual and creative abilities.Students spend much time，learning how to use resource materials libraries,statistics and computers.Americans believe that if children are taught to reason well and to reserch well,they will be able to find whatever facts they need throughout the rest of their lives.Knowing how to solve problems is considered more important than the accumulation of facts.This is America’s answer to the searching question that thoughtful parents all over the world are asking themselves in the fast-moving time：“How can one prepare today’s child for a tomorrow that one can neither predict nor understand?”

　　词汇：

　　privileged adj.享有特权的

　　elite n.精英，精华

　　academic adj.学术的

　　curricula n.课程

　　underlying adj.潜在的

　　reason v.推理

　　41.Which of the following best states the goal of American education?

　　A)To teach every learner some practical skills.

　　B)To provide every learner with rich knowledge.

　　C)To give every student the opportunity to fully develop his/her ability.

　　D)To train every student to be a responsible citizen.

　　42.It is implied in the passage that

　　A)all high-school students take the same courses.

　　B)every highschool student must take some practical ability training courses.

　　C)every public school offers the same academic subjects.

　　D)the subjects every student takes may vary.

　　43.American schools place great emphasis on the learner’s

　　A)enrichment of knowledge.

　　B)accumulation of facts.

　　C)acquisition of the ability to be creative.

　　D)acquisition of the ability to work with his hands.

　　44.According to the passage，American education meets the needs of all the following

　　EXCEPT

　　A)the brightest students.

　　B)the slow students. C)the students from foreign countries.

　　D)the immigrants.

　　45. Which of the following best states the feature of American education that makes it different from education in other countries?

　　A)The large number of its schools.

　　B)The variety of the courses offered in its schools.

　　C)Its special consideration given to immigrants.

　　D)Its underlying goal to develop every child’s abilities to the fullest extent