考研英語(yǔ)閱讀理解精讀100篇unit73
Unit 73
In the past few years, reformers have embraced a disarmingly simple idea for fixing schools: Why not actually flunk those students who don't earn passing grades? Both Democrats and Republicans have begun attacking the practice of "social promotion"--shuttling bad students to the next grade, advancing them with peers even if they are failing. Make F truly mean failure, the movement says.
Last week in Los Angeles, the reformers learned just how ornery the current system can be. According to a plan released Tuesday by the L.A. school district, ending social promotion there will take at least four years, could cost hundreds of millions of dollars--and probably would require flunking about half the district's students. That's a pessimistic assessment, but it's not just bureaucrats' caterwauling. Rather, L.A. school superintendent Ruben Zacarias was an eager convert to the crusade against social promotion. In February he unveiled an ambitious plan to end unwarranted promotions in five grades during the 1999-2000 school year--a full year ahead of the timetable set by a state law.
At the time, Zacarias acknowledged that his goal would be hard to meet. He estimated that as many as 6 of every 10 students would flunk if they had to advance on merit. Zacarias wanted to spend $140 million in the first year alone to help these kids. Why so much? Because a mountain of research shows that ending social promotion doesn't work if it just means more Fs. Kids who are simply forced to repeat grades over and over usually don't improve academically and often drop out. Zacarias wanted more tutoring, summer school and intensive-learning classes. Unqualified students wouldn't rise to the next grade; nor would they be doomed to redo work they already failed. It was a forward-looking plan that Zacarias, 70, didn't have the clout to enact. He wasn't popular enough--the school board recently bought out his contract after a bitter power struggle--but even fellow reformers think his plan was too much, too soon. Says board member David Tokofsky: "You've got the unions who want their say. And, of course, there's the facilities issue: Where do you send all these eighth-graders if you can't send them to high school?" The district now says it will stop advancing low-achieving students only in two grades (second and eighth), and it will begin next year.
Los Angeles isn't the only place that has run into roadblocks while trying to end social promotion. In New York City, some advocates have said in lawsuits that parents weren't notified early enough that their kids were flunking. And in Chicago, which led the nation on the issue, a parents' group has filed civil rights complaints alleging that the promotion crackdown holds back a disproportionate number of black and Latino kids.
Still, the war on social promotion could have one salutary consequence: if every school district takes L.A.'s approach, struggling students will get a lot more teaching help, not just a kick in the rear as they finish another unproductive school year.
注（1）：本文選自Time；12/13/99, p73, 2/3p, 1c
注（2）：本文習(xí)題命題模仿對(duì)象2001年真題text 2和text 4第4題（本習(xí)題第5題）
1. “Social promotion” is ___________.
[A] a simple idea for fixing school
[B] flunking students who don’t earn passing grades
[C] making F more or less meaningless
[D] a political movement
2. Education officials give the reform prospect a pessimistic assessment because_______.
[A] it takes too long time, costs too much and may produce undesirable result
[B] there is no feasible plan yet
[C] it involves too many students
[D] it is not approved by state legislature
3. The writer mentioned the case of Zacarias to show that ______________.
[A] ending social promotion doesn’t work
[B] schools do not have the ability to enact his plan
[C] plans like his are too ambitious
[D] it’s hard to reach agreement on the issue of ending social promotion
4. It seems that the effort at ending social promotion _____________.
[A] is confronting a lot of resistance
[B] has proved fruitless
[C] has little hope of success
[D] does more harm than good
5. Toward the proposal of ending social promotion, the author’s attitude seems to be ________.
[A] pessimistic
[B] optimistic
[C] objective
[D] biased
答案：C A D A B
篇章剖析：
本篇文章圍繞教育改革派主張?jiān)诿绹?guó)中小學(xué)取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”的問(wèn)題展開(kāi)了討論，第一段介紹了改革派的主張：取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”。第二、三段以洛杉磯教育區(qū)為例，說(shuō)明取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”在實(shí)施過(guò)程中所面臨的巨大困難。第四段介紹了這種實(shí)踐引起的社會(huì)反響。最后一段介紹了它可能帶來(lái)的有益后果。
詞匯注釋：
disarmingly: [] adv. 使人消除警惕性[疑心]地, 使人不緊張的地
flunk: [] v. 使不及格
social promotion: 自動(dòng)升級(jí)
shuttle: [] v. 穿梭運(yùn)送
peer: [] n. 同等的人；同輩
ornery: [] adj. 脾氣壞的; 愛(ài)爭(zhēng)吵的
assessment: [] n. 評(píng)估，評(píng)價(jià)
bureaucrat: [] n. 官僚；官吏
caterwauling: [] n. 哀訴聲,抱怨聲
superintendent: [] n. 主管, 負(fù)責(zé)人, 指揮者, 管理者
convert: [] n. （常與to連用）改變信仰或意見(jiàn)的人
crusade: [] n. 討伐；改革運(yùn)動(dòng)；熱心于社會(huì)除惡的運(yùn)動(dòng)
unwarranted: [] adj. 無(wú)根據(jù)的, 未獲保證的, 無(wú)保證的, 未獲承認(rèn)的
clout: [] n. 影響力
enact: [] v. 制定，制訂成法律
roadblock: [] n. 障礙, 障礙物
advocate: [] n. （常與of連用）擁護(hù)者；提倡者
notify: [] v. 正式通知（某人）
allege: [] v. 〈法〉指控
crackdown: [] n. 鎮(zhèn)壓, 打擊
disproportionate: [] adj. 不相稱的；不成比例的；不勻稱的
Latino: [] n. 拉丁美洲人
salutary: [] adj. 有益的
難句突破
And in Chicago, which led the nation on the issue, a parents' group has filed civil rights complaints alleging that the promotion crackdown holds back a disproportionate number of black and Latino kids.
主體句式：a parents’ group has filed complaints
結(jié)構(gòu)分析：本句是一個(gè)復(fù)雜句，在介詞in引導(dǎo)的狀語(yǔ)中包含了一個(gè)which引導(dǎo)的非限定性定語(yǔ)從句，修飾Chicago，在主句中包含一個(gè)分詞alleging引導(dǎo)的狀語(yǔ)，這個(gè)狀語(yǔ)自己還包含了一個(gè)that引導(dǎo)的賓語(yǔ)從句。
句子譯文：在芝加哥，一個(gè)家長(zhǎng)團(tuán)體提出了民權(quán)控訴，宣稱取消自動(dòng)升級(jí)使相當(dāng)比例的黑人和拉丁美洲裔的孩子升不了級(jí)。
題目分析：
1. 答案為C, 屬事實(shí)細(xì)節(jié)題。從文章第一段破折號(hào)后對(duì)social promotion的解釋來(lái)看，它的意思是：就算差生考試不及格，他們照樣可以和其他同學(xué)一起進(jìn)入下一年級(jí)。在從改革派反對(duì)“social promotion”，主張使F真正意味著“不及格”來(lái)看，social promotion 顯然使F失去了意義。
2. 答案為A，屬事實(shí)細(xì)節(jié)題。本文答案可以在that’s a pessimistic assessment前面的部分讀到。
3. 答案為D，屬推理判斷題。文章第三段先介紹了Zacarias的計(jì)劃，然后說(shuō)明他的計(jì)劃為什么難以實(shí)施：他在校董事會(huì)的權(quán)力之爭(zhēng)中落敗，以及其他改革派對(duì)他的計(jì)劃所持的不同意見(jiàn)。以這樣一個(gè)例子旨在說(shuō)明在取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”問(wèn)題上難以達(dá)成一致意見(jiàn)。
4. 答案為A，屬事實(shí)細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)文章第四段所舉的例子可知，這一改革方案遭到了較多的抵制。
5. 答案為B，屬推理判斷題。雖然文章用了較大篇幅介紹取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”所面臨的困難和計(jì)劃實(shí)施中存在的問(wèn)題，但作者的態(tài)度仍然是積極樂(lè)觀的。這一點(diǎn)可以從作者評(píng)論Zacarias的計(jì)劃時(shí)所用的措辭“forward-looking”以及最后一段作者評(píng)論其有益后果看出。
參考譯文：
過(guò)去幾年，改革派一直堅(jiān)持用一種令人毫無(wú)懷疑的簡(jiǎn)單想法解決學(xué)校的問(wèn)題：對(duì)于那些成績(jī)不達(dá)標(biāo)的學(xué)生，為什么不讓他們留級(jí)？民主黨和共和黨已經(jīng)開(kāi)始抨擊“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”的做法---按照這種做法，就算差生考試不及格，他們照樣可以和其他同學(xué)一起進(jìn)入下一年級(jí)。這場(chǎng)運(yùn)動(dòng)主張要讓“F”這個(gè)成績(jī)真的意味著“不及格”。
上周在洛杉磯，改革派領(lǐng)教了當(dāng)前體制令人不快的一面。根據(jù)洛杉磯教育區(qū)周二發(fā)布的一項(xiàng)計(jì)劃，取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”將需要至少花費(fèi)四年的時(shí)間，耗資成百上千萬(wàn)美元---也許還會(huì)使地區(qū)一半左右的學(xué)生留級(jí)。這是悲觀的估計(jì)，但官員們并非危言聳聽(tīng)。洛杉磯的學(xué)校督導(dǎo)員魯本•扎卡雷斯以前曾積極參與反對(duì)“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”的活動(dòng)。二月份他提出了一項(xiàng)很有挑戰(zhàn)性的計(jì)劃，以期在1999-2000學(xué)年在五個(gè)年級(jí)取消無(wú)根據(jù)的升級(jí)---這比該州法律設(shè)定的時(shí)間表提前了整整一年。
扎卡雷斯承認(rèn)他的目標(biāo)在當(dāng)時(shí)很難實(shí)現(xiàn)。他估計(jì)如果按照成績(jī)升級(jí)的話，十個(gè)學(xué)生中將有六個(gè)過(guò)不了關(guān)。僅第一年扎卡雷斯就打算花費(fèi)1.4億美元來(lái)幫助這些孩子。為什么要花這么多錢呢？因?yàn)楸姸嘌芯勘砻魅绻∠白詣?dòng)升級(jí)”僅僅意味著有更多學(xué)生無(wú)法升級(jí)的話，那么它就失去了意義。那些被迫一遍又一遍地復(fù)讀的孩子成績(jī)并沒(méi)有提高，甚至還經(jīng)常會(huì)退學(xué)。扎卡雷斯希望學(xué)生們能得到更多的指導(dǎo)，開(kāi)設(shè)更多的夏季班和強(qiáng)化學(xué)習(xí)班。不合格的學(xué)生不會(huì)進(jìn)入下一年級(jí)，但也不必把功課重學(xué)一遍。他提出的這一計(jì)劃很有遠(yuǎn)見(jiàn)，但70高齡的扎卡雷斯本人并沒(méi)有足夠的影響力將其付諸實(shí)施---他還不夠受歡迎---在一場(chǎng)激烈的權(quán)力斗爭(zhēng)之后，該校董事會(huì)最近買斷了他的合同---但就連其他改革派也認(rèn)為他的計(jì)劃太宏大，太迫切。另一位董事會(huì)成員大衛(wèi)•托科夫斯基說(shuō)：“工會(huì)想要有發(fā)言權(quán)。當(dāng)然，還有設(shè)施的問(wèn)題：如果不能把八年級(jí)學(xué)生送入中學(xué)，那該把他們送往哪里呢？”現(xiàn)在，該教育區(qū)宣布它將只在兩個(gè)年級(jí)（二年級(jí)和八年級(jí)）對(duì)成績(jī)較差的學(xué)生取消升級(jí)，并將從明年起實(shí)施。
洛杉磯并不是唯一一個(gè)在取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”工作中遇到困難的地方。在紐約市，一些辯護(hù)律師在訴訟中稱家長(zhǎng)沒(méi)有及時(shí)被告知他們的孩子會(huì)留級(jí)。在芝加哥，一個(gè)家長(zhǎng)團(tuán)體提出了民權(quán)控訴，宣稱取消自動(dòng)升級(jí)使相當(dāng)比例的黑人和拉丁美洲裔的孩子升不了級(jí)。
然而，這場(chǎng)關(guān)于“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”的戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)還是會(huì)帶來(lái)一個(gè)有益的結(jié)果：如果每個(gè)教育區(qū)采用洛杉磯的做法，那些學(xué)習(xí)吃力的學(xué)生就會(huì)得到學(xué)習(xí)幫助，而不僅僅是在學(xué)完一年毫無(wú)收獲之外再被踢上一腳。
考研英語(yǔ)閱讀理解精讀100篇unit72
Unit 72
Sal Monella is a poisonous gangster hell bent on infection, and a pimple is a power-mad oil gland. That's life--and a quirky twist on salmonella and acne--in the animated world of Ozzy & Drix, part of the WB network's Saturday-morning lineup. This was the first season for what might be called a "smartoon." It was in the top programs among kids ages 2 to 11. And it's coming back this fall.
Instead of battling mystical monsters, Ozzy & Drix cleverly personifies body parts--a muscle cell is a police chief--to teach kids about their bodies. Rather than lecture kids about smoking, Ozzy & Drix turns nicotine into Nick O'Teen, a smarmy villain with long claws that hook into brains and cause addictions. Bad guys like Nick are taken down by the title stars: Osmosis "Ozzy" Jones, a street-smart white blood cell, and Drix, an uptight but intelligent cold pill with a chest full of medicine. White blood cells help fight infection, and Drix is a medicine chest. Get it?
Ozzy & Drix makes a point of tackling "issues that are very real to the day-to-day lives of kids," says David Foster, a Harvard University internist who helps develop story lines for the show. "We hope they take an interest in what is going on inside them." That's why all the action occurs within 13-year-old Hector, who contracts diseases, encounters peer pressure, and even drinks spoiled milk. "This poor kid has been through a lot," says Producer Alan Burnett.
Pun fun. The slap-your-knee, ba-dum-dum humor takes many forms. Ozzy and Drix set up a detective firm behind Hector's cornea--they're "private eyes"--to ensure him a safe adolescence. Blood cells race like cars through Hector's arteries and past a "roadside" billboard reading "Peace for the Middle Ear." There's a rock concert at the Diaphragm Club featuring the band Metabolica. Ozzy and Drix drive a Cel Camino.
"This is a very interesting direction for broadcasters to take," says Sandra Calvert, a psychologist and director of the Children's Digital Media Center at Georgetown University. "We rarely see someone go after the health area." Kids go for the slapstick and drama while adults are drawn to the puns and parodies, and the dual enjoyment sparks questions and conversation, she says.
Consider an upcoming episode in which Hector eats bad sausage containing parasitic worms. A spoof of jaws begins as his stomach becomes a sea of acid dotted with boats. On one, Ozzy teams up with grizzled Captain Quinine--recalling movie shark hunter Quint and the fact that quinine was once used to treat parasites. Ozzy and the Cap'n blow up the monsters with bicarbonate of soda. A soothing end, not for the worms, but for Hector's upset stomach.
注（1）：本文選自U.S. News & World Report；7/28/2003-8/4/2003, p40, 2p, 1c；
注（2）：本文習(xí)題命題模仿對(duì)象2002年真題text4和text2第5題；
1. From the first three paragraphs, we learn that ___________.
[A] Ozzy & Drix is a cartoon about good-guy fighting bad guy.
[B] the target audience of Ozzy & Drix are children.
[C] smartoon is a new type of cartoon
[D] the purpose of Ozzy & Drix is to help children fight against diseases
2. Which of the following statements is true according to the text?
[A] Ozzy in the cartoon lacks experiences.
[B] Hector’s friends show sympathy to him when he contracts disease.
[C] A new season of Ozzy & Drix will be on show this fall.
[D] Ozzy & Drix mainly deals with battling frightening creatures。
3. According to Sandra Calvert, broadcasters may learn from Ozzy & Drix_________.
[A] how to create humorous effect
[B] that health area is worth exploring
[C] that dual enjoyment of both kids and adults is the key to Ozzy & Drix’s success
[D] that kids and adults alike take great fun in Ozzy & Drix
4. Which of the following best defines the word “slapstick”?
[A] humorous acting
[B] serious theme
[C] interesting plot
[D] instructive stories
5. The author uses the episode in which Hector eats bad sausage containing parasitic worms to show _____________.
[A] how the cartoon is plotted
[B] how children feel when they fall ill
[C] the pun and humor in the cartoon
[D] the way children can be educated
答案：B C B A C
篇章剖析：
本篇為說(shuō)明文，通過(guò)點(diǎn)面結(jié)合來(lái)說(shuō)明一檔流行的電視節(jié)目《奧茲和德里克斯》的內(nèi)容，特點(diǎn)，引人之處等。第一段是對(duì)熱門電視系列劇《奧茲和德里克斯》的簡(jiǎn)要介紹，突出了其“出奇”和“熱門”兩大特色，第二段，第三段說(shuō)明了這個(gè)電視劇的主要內(nèi)容，即以賦予身體各部分人性化的特點(diǎn)幫助孩子們了解自己的身體以及發(fā)生在日常生活中的問(wèn)題；第四段，第五段介紹了該劇輕松幽默，老少咸宜的特點(diǎn)；第六段以一段劇情結(jié)束全文，讓人更加深刻的體會(huì)這部劇作。
詞匯注釋：
salmonella []n. 沙門氏菌
pimple []n. 丘疹, 面泡, 疙瘩
gland []n. 腺
quirky [ ] adj. 詭詐的, 離奇的
acne []n. 痤瘡, 粉刺
lineup [] n. 系列節(jié)目
personify []vt. 賦與...以人性, 使人格化
nicotine []n. 煙堿，尼古丁
smarmy []adj. 令人厭煩的, 愛(ài)說(shuō)奉承話的, 虛情假意的
osmosis []n. 滲透(作用), 滲透性
street-smart: adj. 經(jīng)驗(yàn)老到的
uptight []adj. 過(guò)分拘謹(jǐn)?shù)�；（行為，觀點(diǎn)和品味）極端保守的
internist []n. <美>內(nèi)科醫(yī)師
contract []v. 感染
cornea []n. [醫(yī)]角膜
artery []n. 動(dòng)脈
slapstick [] n. 鬧�。换鼊�
parody: [] n. 模仿滑稽作品
spoof [] n. 胡說(shuō)；戲弄；哄騙
grizzled [] adj. 灰色的, 頭發(fā)斑白的
難句突破
Rather than lecture kids about smoking, Ozzy & Drix turns nicotine into Nick O'Teen, a smarmy villain with long claws that hook into brains and cause addictions.
主體句式：Ozzy & Drix turns nicotine into Nick O'Teen
結(jié)構(gòu)分析：這是一個(gè)復(fù)雜句，主句為Ozzy & Drix turns nicotine into Nick O'Teen，Nick O’Teen后面有個(gè)較長(zhǎng)的同位語(yǔ)，其中還含有定語(yǔ)從句。Rather than作為連接詞引導(dǎo)從句，通常表示否定意義，意為：“而不是”，用于和另外一種可以肯定的情況作比較。比如，Rather than sit in a cozy room, he works out in the cold air. 他沒(méi)有在舒適的房間里安坐，而是冒著嚴(yán)寒在室外工作。
句子譯文：對(duì)于吸煙，《奧茲和德里克斯》也沒(méi)有采用對(duì)孩子們說(shuō)教的方式，而是把尼古丁變成了一個(gè)名叫尼克•丁的口蜜腹劍的惡棍，它長(zhǎng)著長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的爪子，并用它來(lái)鉤住人的大腦，使人上癮。
題目分析：
1. 答案為B，屬事實(shí)細(xì)節(jié)題。文中第一段最后說(shuō)這部卡通片“深受2-11歲孩子的歡迎。”第二段說(shuō)要通過(guò)卡通片教孩子們認(rèn)識(shí)自己的身體，第三段都講卡通片涉及的是孩子們?nèi)粘Ｉ钪忻媾R的真實(shí)問(wèn)題。由此可見(jiàn)，答案為B：卡通片的目標(biāo)人群為兒童。C項(xiàng)中的smartoon只是用來(lái)說(shuō)明該卡通構(gòu)思巧妙，并不是新型卡通。
2. 答案為C，屬事實(shí)細(xì)節(jié)題。從文章第一段末it’s coming back this fall可知新一季的Ozzy& Drix即將在秋季上映。文中第二段提到Ozzy是street-smart，這個(gè)詞的意思是“閱歷豐富的，經(jīng)驗(yàn)老到的”。文中第三段提到Hector患病后遭遇了peer pressure，即同伴的壓力，可見(jiàn)同伴們都不喜歡患病的他。第二段特意提到了instead of battling mystical monsters，也就是說(shuō)這部卡通一改和怪物斗爭(zhēng)的模式，所以只有答案C是正確的。
3. 答案為B，屬推理判斷題。文章第五段一開(kāi)頭就引用Sandra Calvert的話說(shuō)，這是廣播公司可以發(fā)展的一個(gè)非常有趣的方向，接著又說(shuō)，以前很少見(jiàn)到涉足保健領(lǐng)域的話題�？梢�(jiàn)，她的意思是廣播公司在保健領(lǐng)域大有可為。
4. 答案為A，屬猜詞題。文章第四段開(kāi)頭說(shuō)“The slap-your-knee, ba-dum-dum humor takes many forms.”接下來(lái)舉例說(shuō)明，并在第五段說(shuō)孩子們喜歡這種slapstick，根據(jù)上下文判斷，“幽默的表演”應(yīng)該是最佳選項(xiàng)。
5. 答案為C，屬推理判斷題。從第三段可知雙關(guān)和幽默是該劇最大的特點(diǎn)，在最后一段的劇情里，作者說(shuō)奎寧船長(zhǎng)的名字讓人想起獵鯊專家奎恩特以及奎寧曾用于治療寄生蟲(chóng)病的事情，可見(jiàn)作者是以此舉例說(shuō)明這部卡通劇作的雙關(guān)和幽默。
參考譯文
沙門氏是一伙惡毒的，會(huì)傳染疾病的壞蛋，而一個(gè)粉刺則是一個(gè)迷戀權(quán)利的油脂腺。這就是在《奧茲和德里克斯》這檔華納電視網(wǎng)周六早晨節(jié)目中展現(xiàn)的生活---而且是對(duì)于沙門氏菌和粉刺最離奇的一次改編。而這僅是這部堪稱 “聰明卡通”的系列片的第一季。在2至11歲的孩子中，它是最受歡迎的一檔節(jié)目。今年秋季，它又將上演。
《奧茲和德里克斯》中并沒(méi)有和神秘怪獸作斗爭(zhēng)的內(nèi)容，而是將人體的某些部位賦予了人性化的特征——一個(gè)肌肉細(xì)胞擔(dān)任了警察局長(zhǎng)——目的是教孩子們了解自己的身體。對(duì)于吸煙，《奧茲和德里克斯》也沒(méi)有采用對(duì)孩子們說(shuō)教的方式，而是把尼古丁變成了一個(gè)名叫尼克•丁的口蜜腹劍的惡棍，它長(zhǎng)著長(zhǎng)長(zhǎng)的爪子，并用它來(lái)鉤住人的大腦，使人上癮。像尼克這樣的壞蛋都被卡通片名里的明星們治服了：善于滲透的“奧茲”瓊斯是一個(gè)經(jīng)驗(yàn)老到的白血球；拘謹(jǐn)聰明的德里克斯則是一粒肚子里裝滿藥的感冒藥丸。白血球們幫助抗擊感染，而德里克斯則是個(gè)藥箱子。這下明白了吧？
《奧茲和德里克斯》涉及的都是“孩子們?nèi)粘Ｉ钪忻鎸?duì)的真實(shí)問(wèn)題”，參與該電視劇劇情編寫(xiě)的哈佛大學(xué)內(nèi)科醫(yī)生大衛(wèi)•福斯特說(shuō)道�！拔覀兿Ｍ⒆觽儗�(duì)發(fā)生在自己體內(nèi)的事情感興趣�！彼运械墓适露及l(fā)生在13歲的赫克托爾體內(nèi)。這個(gè)孩子染病在身，感受到了來(lái)自同伴的壓力，甚至還喝下了變質(zhì)的牛奶�！斑@個(gè)可憐的小家伙受了不少罪，”制片人艾倫•伯內(nèi)特說(shuō)道。
片中的雙關(guān)語(yǔ)非常有趣。拍膝蓋，打拍子這一類的幽默都通過(guò)很多形式表現(xiàn)出來(lái)。奧茲和德里克斯在赫克托爾的角膜后面成立了一家偵探事務(wù)所---他們是“私人的眼睛”---為的是確保他安全度過(guò)青春期。血細(xì)胞經(jīng)過(guò)赫克托爾的動(dòng)脈時(shí)好像汽車一樣飛馳而過(guò)，經(jīng)過(guò)一個(gè)“路邊”廣告牌，上面寫(xiě)著“中耳需要安寧�！薄皺M隔膜俱樂(lè)部”正在舉辦一場(chǎng)“新陳代謝樂(lè)隊(duì)”的專場(chǎng)搖滾音樂(lè)會(huì)。奧茲和德里克斯開(kāi)的是一輛卡米諾牌細(xì)胞汽車。
“對(duì)于廣播公司來(lái)說(shuō)，這是一種非常有趣的發(fā)展方向，”喬治敦大學(xué)兒童數(shù)字媒體中心主任，心理學(xué)家桑德拉•卡爾弗特說(shuō)道。“我們很少見(jiàn)到有人在健康領(lǐng)域做文章�！焙⒆觽兿矚g有趣刺激的情節(jié)，而大人們也被片中的雙關(guān)語(yǔ)和滑稽的模仿所吸引，這種老少皆宜的片子能引發(fā)思考和討論。
以接下來(lái)的一幕中赫克托爾吃了含有寄生蟲(chóng)的變質(zhì)香腸為例。危險(xiǎn)的情況被以一種輕松搞笑的方式演繹了出來(lái)。他的胃變成一片酸性物質(zhì)的海洋，上面漂著幾頁(yè)扁舟。其中一艘小船上坐著奧茲和頭發(fā)花白的奎寧船長(zhǎng)，他們同舟共濟(jì)---這讓人想起了電影中的獵鯊專家奎恩特，以及奎寧曾被用來(lái)對(duì)付寄生蟲(chóng)的事。奧茲和船長(zhǎng)用碳酸水中的重碳酸鹽把那些怪物統(tǒng)統(tǒng)炸死了。對(duì)蟲(chóng)子們來(lái)說(shuō)，這是滅頂之災(zāi)，但對(duì)赫克托爾翻江倒海的胃來(lái)說(shuō)，結(jié)局令人寬慰。
考研英語(yǔ)閱讀理解精讀100篇unit73
Unit 73
In the past few years, reformers have embraced a disarmingly simple idea for fixing schools: Why not actually flunk those students who don't earn passing grades? Both Democrats and Republicans have begun attacking the practice of "social promotion"--shuttling bad students to the next grade, advancing them with peers even if they are failing. Make F truly mean failure, the movement says.
Last week in Los Angeles, the reformers learned just how ornery the current system can be. According to a plan released Tuesday by the L.A. school district, ending social promotion there will take at least four years, could cost hundreds of millions of dollars--and probably would require flunking about half the district's students. That's a pessimistic assessment, but it's not just bureaucrats' caterwauling. Rather, L.A. school superintendent Ruben Zacarias was an eager convert to the crusade against social promotion. In February he unveiled an ambitious plan to end unwarranted promotions in five grades during the 1999-2000 school year--a full year ahead of the timetable set by a state law.
At the time, Zacarias acknowledged that his goal would be hard to meet. He estimated that as many as 6 of every 10 students would flunk if they had to advance on merit. Zacarias wanted to spend $140 million in the first year alone to help these kids. Why so much? Because a mountain of research shows that ending social promotion doesn't work if it just means more Fs. Kids who are simply forced to repeat grades over and over usually don't improve academically and often drop out. Zacarias wanted more tutoring, summer school and intensive-learning classes. Unqualified students wouldn't rise to the next grade; nor would they be doomed to redo work they already failed. It was a forward-looking plan that Zacarias, 70, didn't have the clout to enact. He wasn't popular enough--the school board recently bought out his contract after a bitter power struggle--but even fellow reformers think his plan was too much, too soon. Says board member David Tokofsky: "You've got the unions who want their say. And, of course, there's the facilities issue: Where do you send all these eighth-graders if you can't send them to high school?" The district now says it will stop advancing low-achieving students only in two grades (second and eighth), and it will begin next year.
Los Angeles isn't the only place that has run into roadblocks while trying to end social promotion. In New York City, some advocates have said in lawsuits that parents weren't notified early enough that their kids were flunking. And in Chicago, which led the nation on the issue, a parents' group has filed civil rights complaints alleging that the promotion crackdown holds back a disproportionate number of black and Latino kids.
Still, the war on social promotion could have one salutary consequence: if every school district takes L.A.'s approach, struggling students will get a lot more teaching help, not just a kick in the rear as they finish another unproductive school year.
注（1）：本文選自Time；12/13/99, p73, 2/3p, 1c
注（2）：本文習(xí)題命題模仿對(duì)象2001年真題text 2和text 4第4題（本習(xí)題第5題）
1. “Social promotion” is ___________.
[A] a simple idea for fixing school
[B] flunking students who don’t earn passing grades
[C] making F more or less meaningless
[D] a political movement
2. Education officials give the reform prospect a pessimistic assessment because_______.
[A] it takes too long time, costs too much and may produce undesirable result
[B] there is no feasible plan yet
[C] it involves too many students
[D] it is not approved by state legislature
3. The writer mentioned the case of Zacarias to show that ______________.
[A] ending social promotion doesn’t work
[B] schools do not have the ability to enact his plan
[C] plans like his are too ambitious
[D] it’s hard to reach agreement on the issue of ending social promotion
4. It seems that the effort at ending social promotion _____________.
[A] is confronting a lot of resistance
[B] has proved fruitless
[C] has little hope of success
[D] does more harm than good
5. Toward the proposal of ending social promotion, the author’s attitude seems to be ________.
[A] pessimistic
[B] optimistic
[C] objective
[D] biased
答案：C A D A B
篇章剖析：
本篇文章圍繞教育改革派主張?jiān)诿绹?guó)中小學(xué)取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”的問(wèn)題展開(kāi)了討論，第一段介紹了改革派的主張：取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”。第二、三段以洛杉磯教育區(qū)為例，說(shuō)明取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”在實(shí)施過(guò)程中所面臨的巨大困難。第四段介紹了這種實(shí)踐引起的社會(huì)反響。最后一段介紹了它可能帶來(lái)的有益后果。
詞匯注釋：
disarmingly: [] adv. 使人消除警惕性[疑心]地, 使人不緊張的地
flunk: [] v. 使不及格
social promotion: 自動(dòng)升級(jí)
shuttle: [] v. 穿梭運(yùn)送
peer: [] n. 同等的人；同輩
ornery: [] adj. 脾氣壞的; 愛(ài)爭(zhēng)吵的
assessment: [] n. 評(píng)估，評(píng)價(jià)
bureaucrat: [] n. 官僚；官吏
caterwauling: [] n. 哀訴聲,抱怨聲
superintendent: [] n. 主管, 負(fù)責(zé)人, 指揮者, 管理者
convert: [] n. （常與to連用）改變信仰或意見(jiàn)的人
crusade: [] n. 討伐；改革運(yùn)動(dòng)；熱心于社會(huì)除惡的運(yùn)動(dòng)
unwarranted: [] adj. 無(wú)根據(jù)的, 未獲保證的, 無(wú)保證的, 未獲承認(rèn)的
clout: [] n. 影響力
enact: [] v. 制定，制訂成法律
roadblock: [] n. 障礙, 障礙物
advocate: [] n. （常與of連用）擁護(hù)者；提倡者
notify: [] v. 正式通知（某人）
allege: [] v. 〈法〉指控
crackdown: [] n. 鎮(zhèn)壓, 打擊
disproportionate: [] adj. 不相稱的；不成比例的；不勻稱的
Latino: [] n. 拉丁美洲人
salutary: [] adj. 有益的
難句突破
And in Chicago, which led the nation on the issue, a parents' group has filed civil rights complaints alleging that the promotion crackdown holds back a disproportionate number of black and Latino kids.
主體句式：a parents’ group has filed complaints
結(jié)構(gòu)分析：本句是一個(gè)復(fù)雜句，在介詞in引導(dǎo)的狀語(yǔ)中包含了一個(gè)which引導(dǎo)的非限定性定語(yǔ)從句，修飾Chicago，在主句中包含一個(gè)分詞alleging引導(dǎo)的狀語(yǔ)，這個(gè)狀語(yǔ)自己還包含了一個(gè)that引導(dǎo)的賓語(yǔ)從句。
句子譯文：在芝加哥，一個(gè)家長(zhǎng)團(tuán)體提出了民權(quán)控訴，宣稱取消自動(dòng)升級(jí)使相當(dāng)比例的黑人和拉丁美洲裔的孩子升不了級(jí)。
題目分析：
1. 答案為C, 屬事實(shí)細(xì)節(jié)題。從文章第一段破折號(hào)后對(duì)social promotion的解釋來(lái)看，它的意思是：就算差生考試不及格，他們照樣可以和其他同學(xué)一起進(jìn)入下一年級(jí)。在從改革派反對(duì)“social promotion”，主張使F真正意味著“不及格”來(lái)看，social promotion 顯然使F失去了意義。
2. 答案為A，屬事實(shí)細(xì)節(jié)題。本文答案可以在that’s a pessimistic assessment前面的部分讀到。
3. 答案為D，屬推理判斷題。文章第三段先介紹了Zacarias的計(jì)劃，然后說(shuō)明他的計(jì)劃為什么難以實(shí)施：他在校董事會(huì)的權(quán)力之爭(zhēng)中落敗，以及其他改革派對(duì)他的計(jì)劃所持的不同意見(jiàn)。以這樣一個(gè)例子旨在說(shuō)明在取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”問(wèn)題上難以達(dá)成一致意見(jiàn)。
4. 答案為A，屬事實(shí)細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)文章第四段所舉的例子可知，這一改革方案遭到了較多的抵制。
5. 答案為B，屬推理判斷題。雖然文章用了較大篇幅介紹取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”所面臨的困難和計(jì)劃實(shí)施中存在的問(wèn)題，但作者的態(tài)度仍然是積極樂(lè)觀的。這一點(diǎn)可以從作者評(píng)論Zacarias的計(jì)劃時(shí)所用的措辭“forward-looking”以及最后一段作者評(píng)論其有益后果看出。
參考譯文：
過(guò)去幾年，改革派一直堅(jiān)持用一種令人毫無(wú)懷疑的簡(jiǎn)單想法解決學(xué)校的問(wèn)題：對(duì)于那些成績(jī)不達(dá)標(biāo)的學(xué)生，為什么不讓他們留級(jí)？民主黨和共和黨已經(jīng)開(kāi)始抨擊“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”的做法---按照這種做法，就算差生考試不及格，他們照樣可以和其他同學(xué)一起進(jìn)入下一年級(jí)。這場(chǎng)運(yùn)動(dòng)主張要讓“F”這個(gè)成績(jī)真的意味著“不及格”。
上周在洛杉磯，改革派領(lǐng)教了當(dāng)前體制令人不快的一面。根據(jù)洛杉磯教育區(qū)周二發(fā)布的一項(xiàng)計(jì)劃，取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”將需要至少花費(fèi)四年的時(shí)間，耗資成百上千萬(wàn)美元---也許還會(huì)使地區(qū)一半左右的學(xué)生留級(jí)。這是悲觀的估計(jì)，但官員們并非危言聳聽(tīng)。洛杉磯的學(xué)校督導(dǎo)員魯本•扎卡雷斯以前曾積極參與反對(duì)“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”的活動(dòng)。二月份他提出了一項(xiàng)很有挑戰(zhàn)性的計(jì)劃，以期在1999-2000學(xué)年在五個(gè)年級(jí)取消無(wú)根據(jù)的升級(jí)---這比該州法律設(shè)定的時(shí)間表提前了整整一年。
扎卡雷斯承認(rèn)他的目標(biāo)在當(dāng)時(shí)很難實(shí)現(xiàn)。他估計(jì)如果按照成績(jī)升級(jí)的話，十個(gè)學(xué)生中將有六個(gè)過(guò)不了關(guān)。僅第一年扎卡雷斯就打算花費(fèi)1.4億美元來(lái)幫助這些孩子。為什么要花這么多錢呢？因?yàn)楸姸嘌芯勘砻魅绻∠白詣?dòng)升級(jí)”僅僅意味著有更多學(xué)生無(wú)法升級(jí)的話，那么它就失去了意義。那些被迫一遍又一遍地復(fù)讀的孩子成績(jī)并沒(méi)有提高，甚至還經(jīng)常會(huì)退學(xué)。扎卡雷斯希望學(xué)生們能得到更多的指導(dǎo)，開(kāi)設(shè)更多的夏季班和強(qiáng)化學(xué)習(xí)班。不合格的學(xué)生不會(huì)進(jìn)入下一年級(jí)，但也不必把功課重學(xué)一遍。他提出的這一計(jì)劃很有遠(yuǎn)見(jiàn)，但70高齡的扎卡雷斯本人并沒(méi)有足夠的影響力將其付諸實(shí)施---他還不夠受歡迎---在一場(chǎng)激烈的權(quán)力斗爭(zhēng)之后，該校董事會(huì)最近買斷了他的合同---但就連其他改革派也認(rèn)為他的計(jì)劃太宏大，太迫切。另一位董事會(huì)成員大衛(wèi)•托科夫斯基說(shuō)：“工會(huì)想要有發(fā)言權(quán)。當(dāng)然，還有設(shè)施的問(wèn)題：如果不能把八年級(jí)學(xué)生送入中學(xué)，那該把他們送往哪里呢？”現(xiàn)在，該教育區(qū)宣布它將只在兩個(gè)年級(jí)（二年級(jí)和八年級(jí)）對(duì)成績(jī)較差的學(xué)生取消升級(jí)，并將從明年起實(shí)施。
洛杉磯并不是唯一一個(gè)在取消“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”工作中遇到困難的地方。在紐約市，一些辯護(hù)律師在訴訟中稱家長(zhǎng)沒(méi)有及時(shí)被告知他們的孩子會(huì)留級(jí)。在芝加哥，一個(gè)家長(zhǎng)團(tuán)體提出了民權(quán)控訴，宣稱取消自動(dòng)升級(jí)使相當(dāng)比例的黑人和拉丁美洲裔的孩子升不了級(jí)。
然而，這場(chǎng)關(guān)于“自動(dòng)升級(jí)”的戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)還是會(huì)帶來(lái)一個(gè)有益的結(jié)果：如果每個(gè)教育區(qū)采用洛杉磯的做法，那些學(xué)習(xí)吃力的學(xué)生就會(huì)得到學(xué)習(xí)幫助，而不僅僅是在學(xué)完一年毫無(wú)收獲之外再被踢上一腳。
二：資料下載
| 資料類別 |
08年考研英語(yǔ)閱讀理解精讀100篇【教育類】 |
| 資料格式 |
Word格式） |
| 資料來(lái)源 |
考試吧BBS |
| 資料下載： |
點(diǎn)擊這里下載>> |
更多資料請(qǐng)?jiān)L問(wèn)：考試吧考研欄目
