Question：My ninth-grade art teacher doesn't give any grade above 94％ because, she says, "There's always room for improvement．" In previous years, I earned a 99％ and a 100％．The 94％ I received this term does not reflect the hard work that I put into this course．Because of her "improvement" theory, I got a lower grade than I deserve．Is her grading philosophy(原则)morally correct?
Answer：Your teacher's grading system may be unwise, but it is not morally wrong．A teacher deserves wide latitude in selecting the method of grading that best promotes learning in her classroom ; that is, after all, the prime function of grades．It is she who has the training and experience to make this decision．
You can criticize her methodology．A 100 need not imply that there is no possibility of improvement, only that a student successfully completed the course work．A ninth grader could get a well-earned 100 in English class but still has a way to go before he writes as well as Jane Austen．What's more, grades are not only an educational device(手段)but are also part of a screening system to help assign(分配)kids to their next class or program．By capping her grades at 94 while most other teachers grade on a scale that tops out at 100, your teacher could risk making a student lose a chance of getting a scholarship or getting into a top college．
What it is wrong to condemn(指责)her for is overlooking your hard work．Your hard work is worthy of encouragement, but effort does not equal accomplishment．If scholars suddenly discovered that Rembrandt had dashed off The Night Watch in an afternoon, it would still be The Night Watch．
I could spend months sweating over my own "paintings", but I'd produce something you wouldn't want to hang in your living room or your garage．
One feature(特点)of a good grading system is that those measured by it generally regard it as fair and reasonable－not the case here．Strong feeling of anger is seldom an aid to education．And so your next step should be to discuss your concerns with your teacher or the principal．
(1)
When writing the question, the ninth-grader was _________．
[ ]
A．
annoyed
B．
worried
C．
excited
D．
delighted
(2)
The underlined word "latitude" in Paragraph 2 probably means ________．
[ ]
A．
difference
B．
knowledge
C．
freedom
D．
experience
(3)
Rembrandt's painting is mentioned to show that _________．
[ ]
A．
there's difference between effort and achievement
B．
The Night Watch was completed in half a day
C．
everybody's hard work should be encouraged
D．
one is to blame for doing the work in a hurry
(4)
What is the author's attitude towards the grading system of the ninth-grader's teacher?
Suppose we built a robot(机器人)to explore the planet Mars．We provide the robot with seeing detectors(探测器)to keep it away from danger．It is powered entirely by the sun．Should we program the robot to be equally active at all times?No．The robot would be using up energy at a time when it was not receiving any．So we would probably program it to stop its activity at night and to wake up at dawn the next morning．
According to the evolutionary(进化的)theory of sleep, evolution equipped us with a regular pattern of sleeping and waking for the same reason．The theory does not deny(否认)that sleep provides some important restorative functions(恢复功能)．It merely says that evolution has programmed us to perform those functions at a time when activity would be inefficient and possibly dangerous．However, sleep protects us only from the sort of trouble we might walk into; it does not protect us from trouble that comes looking for us．So we sleep well when we are in a familiar, safe place, but we sleep lightly, if at all, when we fear that bears will nose into the tent．
The evolutionary theory explains the differences in sleep among creatures．Why do eats, for instance, sleep so much, while horses sleep so little?Surely cats do not need five times as much repair and restoration as horses do．But cats can afford to have long periods of inactivity because they spend little time eating and are unlikely to be attacked while they sleep．Horses must spend almost all their waking hours eating, because what they eat is very low in energy value．Moreover, they cannot afford to sleep too long or too deeply, because their survival(生存)depends on their ability to run away from attackers．
(1)
The author uses the example of the robot in space exploration to tell us ________．
[ ]
A．
the differences between robots and men
B．
the reason why men need to sleep
C．
about the need for robots to save power
D．
about the danger of men working at night
(2)
Evolution has programmed man to sleep at night chiefly to help him ________．
[ ]
A．
keep up a regular pattern of life
B．
prevent trouble that comes looking for him
C．
avoid danger and inefficient labour
D．
restore his bodily functions
(3)
According to the author, we cannot sleep well when we ________．
[ ]
A．
are worrying about our safety
B．
are overworked
C．
are in a tent
D．
are away from home
(4)
Cats sleep much more than horses do partly because cats ________．
[ ]
A．
need more time for restoration
B．
are unlikely to be attackers
C．
axe more active than homes when they are awake
D．
spend less time eating to get enough energy
(5)
Which of the following is the main idea of the passage?
[ ]
A．
Evolution has equipped all creatures with a regular pattern of sleeping and waking．
B．
The study of sleep is an important part of the evolutionary theory．
C．
Sleeping patterns must be taken into consideration in the designing of robots．
D．
The sleeping pattern of a living creature is determined by the food it eats．
阅读理解：
Several years ago, my parents, my wife, my son and I ate at one of those restaurants where the menu is written on a blackboard．After a wonderful dinner, the waiter set the check in the middle of the table．That’s when it happened：my father did not reach for the check．
Conversation continued．Finally I realized that I should pick up the check!After hundreds of restaurant meals with my parents, after a lifetime of thinking of my father as the one with dollars, it had all changed．I reached for the check, and my view of myself suddenly changed．I was an adult．I was no longer a kid．
Some people mark off(区分)their lives in years, I measure mine in small events．I didn’t become a young man at a particular age, like 16, but rather when a kid who wandered in the streets called me “mister．” These events in my life are called “milestones”(里程碑)
There have been other milestones．The cops(policemen)of my youth always seemed big, even huge, and of course they were older than I was．Then one day they were suddenly realized that all the football players in the game I was watching were younger than I was．They were just big kids．With that milestone gone was the dream that someday, maybe I, too, could be a football player．Without ever having reached the hill, I was over it．
I never thought that I would fall asleep in front of the TV set as my father did．Now it’s what I do best．I never thought that I would go to the beach and not swim, yet I spent all of August at the shore and never once went into the ocean．I never thought that I would appreciate opera, but now the combination of voice and orchestra attract me．I never thought that I would prefer to stay home in the evenings, but now I find myself passing up parties．I used to think that people who watched birds were strange, but this summer I fond myself watching them, and maybe I’ll get a book on the subject．I feel a strong desire for a religious belief that I never thought I’d want, feel close to my ancestors(祖先)long gone, and echo my father in arguments with my son．I still lose…
One day I bought a house．One day－what a day!–I became a father, and not too long after that I picked up the check for my own father．I thought then it was a milestone for me．One day, when I was a little older, I realized it was one for him, too, another milestone．
(1)
The tone established in the passage is one of ________．
[ ]
A．
sad regret
B．
amusement
C．
happiness
D．
deep feeling
(2)
The author mentions the event in the restaurant because ________．
[ ]
A．
that was one of his milestone
B．
he paid the bill but he didn’t want to
C．
he became a father with dollars
D．
that was the last restaurant meal with his parents
(3)
“Then they were suddenly neither．” Suggests that ________．
[ ]
A．
suddenly they became older than I was
B．
suddenly I knew that they was neither bigger nor older than I was
C．
suddenly I realized that I made mistake
D．
suddenly I found myself no longer a kid
(4)
Which of the following best expresses the author’s thinking?
[ ]
A．
One day is worth two tomorrow
B．
To save time is to length life
C．
When an opportunity is lost, it never comes back to you
D．
Time and tide wait for no man
阅读理解：
Our boat floated on, between walls of forest too thick to allow us a view of the land we were passing through, though we knew from the map that our river must from time to time be passing through chains of hills which crossed the jungle plains．Nowhere did we find a place where we could have landed：where the jungle did not actually spread right down into the river, banks of soft mud prevented us going ashore．In any case, what would we have sailed by landing?The country was full of snakes and other dangerous creatures, and the jungle was so thick that one would be able to advance only slowly, cutting one’s way with knives the whole way．So we stayed in the boat, hoping we reached the sea, a friendly fisherman would pick us up and take us to civilization．
We lived on fish, caught with home-made net of string(we had no hooks), and fruits and nuts we could pick up out of the water．As we had no fire, we had to eat everything, including the fish, raw I had never tasted raw fish before, and I must say I did not much enjoy the experience; perhaps sea fish which do not live in the mud are less tasteless．After eating my raw fish, I lay back and dreamed of such things as fried chicken and rice, and ice-cream．In the never-ending damp heat of the jungle, ice-cream was a particularly frequent dream．
As for water, there was a choice：we could drink the muddy river water, or die of thirst．We drank the water．Men who had just escaped what had appeared to be certain death lose all worries about such small things as diseases caused by dirty water．In fact, none of us suffered from any illness as a result．
One day we passed another village, but fortunately nobody saw us．We did not wish to risk being taken prisoners a second time：we might not be so lucky to escape in a stolen boat again．
(1)
What they could see in the boat was only ________．
[ ]
A．
high wall
B．
villagers from time to time
C．
vast land
D．
heavy woods
(2)
They couldn’t land because ________．
[ ]
A．
the mud on the shore was too soft
B．
the forest was too thick to let them go through
C．
they could not find the mark on the map
D．
they could not find anyone to lead them out of the forest
(3)
The passage infers that the forest was ________．
[ ]
A．
rich of fruits and animals to be served as food
B．
not very thick as they could advance slowly by cutting the branches
C．
full of various dangerous beings
D．
full of ancient trees
(4)
The most proper title for this passage might be ________．
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