Japanese students work very hard but many are unhappy. They feel heavy pressures from their parents. Most students are always told by their parents to study harder and better so that they can have a wonderful life in the future. Though this may be a good idea for those very bright students, it can have terrible results for many students who are not gifted enough. Many of them have tried very hard at school but have failed in the exams and have their parents lose hope. Such students feel that they are hated by everyone else they meet and they don’t want to go to school any longer. They became dropouts.

It is surprising that though most Japanese parents are worried about their children, they do not help them in any way. Many parents feel that they are not able to help their children and that it is the teachers’ work to help their children. To make matters worse, a lot of parents send their children to those schools opening in the evenings and on weekends—they only help the students to pass the exams and never teach them any real sense of the world.

Many Japanese schools usually have rules about everything from the students’ hair to their clothes and things in the school bags. Child psychologists now think that such strict rules are harmful to the feelings of the students. Almost 40% of the students said that no one had taught them how to get on with others, how to tell right from wrong and how to show love and care for others, even for their parents.

1.Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?

2. “Dropouts” are those who ___.

3. Why do Japanese students work very hard at school and feel unhappy?

4. Failure in examinations cause students to ___.

5. According to the passage, it’s necessary to teach students ___.

Scientists have found a new use for children’s imaginations(想象力)—to make Stomachaches go away.   

The BBC reports a new study that shows: “Children can be taught to use their Imaginations to deal with stomachaches.” This may be very good news for parents who need a quick cure for their sick children.

Any mother or father understands the stomach problem is one of the most frequent(时常发生的) things their children complain about. Around twenty percent of children suffer from stomachaches that doctors cannot find a reason for.

This new research is especially good for kids with active imaginations. Researchers found that the more creative the child is, the better he or she is at imagining the pain away.

The researchers used a relaxing CD with children. A voice guided them through different fantasy(幻想) situations. One of these was pretending to be floating on a cloud. Thirty children took part in the tests. Half of them used the “guided imagery” method, and the other half received normal medicines. Researchers found 73.3 percent of the CD users reported a reduction in pain. This compared to only 26.7 percent of kids who got normal treatment.

Study leader Dr Miranda Tilburg was very excited about her findings. She believed that it was a very cheap and easy way to stop children’s stomachaches. She said it would not work as well with adults.

1.The new study may be good news for those who____________.

A. have less imaginations

B. don’t know how to relax

C. want to stop their kids’ stomachaches in a short time

D. can find why children suffer from stomachaches

2.What kind of kids will benefit most from the new research?

A. Kids who like listening to music.

B. Kids who are good at remembering things.

C. The independent(独立的) kids.

D. Kids with active imaginations.

3.From the end of the passage, we know that__________.

A. adults can also use their imaginations to make stomachaches go away

B. Dr Miranda Tilburg wasn’t pleased with her findings

C. the normal cure for stomachaches will not be used

D. a cheap and easy way to stop children’s stomachaches has been found

4.What is the best title for this passage?

A. How to stop stomachaches in public places.

B. Children can “imagine” their pain away.

C. Children’s imaginations are very active.

D. How to develop children’s imaginations.

Thousands of teenagers will be able to move to a new wave of “studio schools” at the age of 14 to improve their chances of finding a job in UK. Twelve new-style schools are open to act as a bridge to the workplace and cut the number of NEETs.
Under plans, schools will operate longer days and work outside standard school terms.
Each teenager will be expected to spend between four hours and two days a week on work placements with business related to the school and a personal coach will be sent to the teenagers to act as a school “line manager”.
The reforms (改革) are put forward because of the fears that too many teenagers are finishing full-time education at present but they are short of the skills needed to succeed in the workplace. According to a recent report, more than two thirds of employers (雇主) believe school and college leavers have less important employability skills, while 55% say they are unable to manage their time or daily routine. And the number of NEETs who are not in education has hit a record high, with almost one-in-five young people being left without a job or a training place.
The Department for Education will tell the public the building of 12 studio schools – providing for around 3,600 teenagers – in areas such as Liverpool, Stevenage, Stock-on-Trent and Fulham, west London. Each one will be connected to the local employers. Under plans, teenagers will be able to move out of ordinary schools to attend them between the ages of 14 and 19.
The government said all subjects would be taught “through projects, often prepared with employers” – with rules such as science being connected directly to local engineering companies or hospitals. Schools will operate a longer day to give teenagers a better understanding of the needs of the workplace. Along with their studies, students will carry out work placements for four hours a week, rising to two days a week of paid work for those aged 16 to 19. They will also get the chance to take professional qualifications (专业资历) connected directly to the needs of local employers.
【小题1】According to the passage, NEETs refer to those who ______.

Researchers have announced the result of two studies on the health effects of the drug aspirin(阿斯匹林). One study shows aspirin can sharply reduce the chance that a healthy, older man will suffer from a heart attack.

     The study offered two new results from earlier findings. It said taking one aspirin pill every other day helped only healthy men over the age of fifty. It also said aspirin gave the greatest protection against heart attacks to men with low blood cholesterol(胆固醇) levels.

     Earlier in the United States began a major aspirin study in the early 1980s. it included 22,000 healthy men doctors. All were between the ages of forty and eighty-four. More than 11,000 of the doctors took a harmless pill that contained no drug. The men did not know which kind of pill they were taking.

    The doctors who took aspirin suffered 44% fewer heart attacks than those taking the harmless pill. 139 men who took aspirin suffered from heart attacks. Ten of them died. 239 men who didn’t take aspirin suffered from heart attacks. Twenty-six of them died.

The researchers said the doctors’ study provides clear proof that taking aspirin can prevent a first heart attack in healthy, older men. They said ,however, the result does not mean every man over the age of fifty should take aspirin. They said aspirin couldn’t help men who do not eat healthy foods, who smoke cigarettes and who are fat. The researchers said men who think they would be helped by taking aspirin should talk with their doctors first.

1. The passage tells us that the new use of aspirin is___________.

A.to treat heart disease.

B.to reduce pain while one suffers from a heart attack.

C.to help old people to be more healthy.

D.to reduce the chance of a heart attack in old men.

2.Aspirin can help those who___________.

    A. work as doctors                  B. are under 40 years old      

C. are fat and smoke cigarettes     D. are older and healthy

3.From the experiment we can conclude that about _________ of people who suffered from heart attacks without aspirin died.

    A.7%                        B. 11%

    C. 19%                      D. 44%

Scientists have found a new use for children’s imaginations(想象力)—to make Stomachaches go away.   

The BBC reports a new study that shows: “Children can be taught to use their Imaginations to deal with stomachaches.” This may be very good news for parents who need a quick cure for their sick children.

Any mother or father understands the stomach problem is one of the most frequent(时常发生的) things their children complain about. Around twenty percent of children suffer from stomachaches that doctors cannot find a reason for.

This new research is especially good for kids with active imaginations. Researchers found that the more creative the child is, the better he or she is at imagining the pain away.

The researchers used a relaxing CD with children. A voice guided them through different fantasy(幻想) situations. One of these was pretending to be floating on a cloud. Thirty children took part in the tests. Half of them used the “guided imagery” method, and the other half received normal medicines. Researchers found 73.3 percent of the CD users reported a reduction in pain. This compared to only 26.7 percent of kids who got normal treatment.

Study leader Dr Miranda Tilburg was very excited about her findings. She believed that it was a very cheap and easy way to stop children’s stomachaches. She said it would not work as well with adults.

1.The new study may be good news for those who____________.

A. have less imaginations

B. don’t know how to relax

C. want to stop their kids’ stomachaches in a short time

D. can find why children suffer from stomachaches

2.What kind of kids will benefit most from the new research?

A. Kids who like listening to music.

B. Kids who are good at remembering things.

C. The independent(独立的) kids.

D. Kids with active imaginations.

3.From the end of the passage, we know that__________.

A. adults can also use their imaginations to make stomachaches go away

B. Dr Miranda Tilburg wasn’t pleased with her findings

C. the normal cure for stomachaches will not be used

D. a cheap and easy way to stop children’s stomachaches has been found

4. What is the best title for this passage?

A. How to stop stomachaches in public places.

B. Children can “imagine” their pain away.

C. Children’s imaginations are very active.

D. How to develop children’s imaginations.