In order to learn a foreign language well, it is necessary to overcome the fear of making mistakes. If the basic goal of language use is communication, then mistakes are secondary considerations that may be dealt with gradually as realization of those mistakes increase. On the other hand, students should not ignore their mistakes. The language learner may observe how native speakers express themselves, and how native expressions differ from the way the learner might say them. For example, a Spanish speaker who has been saying “I do it” to express willingness to do something in the immediate future, could, by interacting with native speakers of English, observe that native speakers actually say “I’ll do it”. The resulting difference can serve as a basis for the student to correct his way of using the present tense in English.

　　But a student who is unwilling to interact in the first place would lose this opportunity to learn by trial and error(错误).

　　1. According to the passage, the present tense in English is _______.

　　A. not used to express a desire to do something in the immediate future

　　B. used with some verbs but not with others to express future plan

　　C. basically the same in English as it is in Spanish D. not the most difficult problem for foreign students

　　2. According to the passage, language learners can reduce the number of their mistakes by _______.

　　A. asking native speakers for explanations　　B. reading good books in the foreign language

　　C. comparing (对比)their speech with that of native speakers D. speaking without regard to native speakers

　　3. According to the passage, foreign language students should not worry too much about making mistakes because _______.

　　A. native speakers like foreign students who try to learn their language

　　B. communication is the basic goal of language learning

　　C. native speakers will ignore their mistakes

　　D. everyone makes mistakes when trying to communicate in a strange language

　　4. The author’s main conclusion about the use of mistake in foreign language learning is that ________.

　　A. mistakes are not important in the course of learning a language B. learners are often very afraid of making mistakes

　　C. making mistakes can help the learner discover the rules of the language

　　D. native speakers often do not tell foreign language learners about their mistakes

　　(1—4 ACBC)

　　【答案与解析】本文论述了在外语的学习过程中，学习者要不要害怕犯错误，才能学好外语的观点。

　　1. A。推断题。根据文章中的举例，英语本族人所用英语表达将来时的方法可推知此题的答案为A。

　　2. C。细节题。根据文章第1段第4句：语言学习者会观察本族的说话者如何表达，他们的用词又与自己的用词又有何不同，以及本段的最后一句可推知此题答案为C。

　　3. B。细节题。根据文章第1段第2句If the basic goal of language use is communication, then mistakes are secondary considerations… 可推知此题答案为B。

　　4. C。推断题。可从第1段最后一句The resulting difference can serve as a basis for the student to correct his way of using the present tense in English推知此答案为C。