This is the VOA Special English Education Report. A few weeks ago, we talked about the Test of English as a Foreign Language, or TOEFL. A listener in Cambodia named Thida asks if American colleges and universities also accept the IELTS exam. IELTS is the International English Language Testing System. It was developed by the University of Cambridge ESOL examiners.

Cambridge ESOL says the test measures true-to-life ability to communicate in English for education, immigration or employment. The IELTS tests listening, reading, writing and speaking skills. It uses a mixture of accents and spellings, including British English and American English.

The test is used by government agencies, schools and professional organizations in one hundred and twenty countries. And, yes, that includes the United States. The many American schools that accepted the IELTS can be found on the Web at felts.org.

Some schools accept both the TOEFL and the IELTS, but the graduate school at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, for example, says it prefers the IEITS.

The listening and speaking parts are the same for everyone who takes the IELTS, but people have a choice of reading and writing tests -- either academic or general training.

The listening test takes thirty minutes. There are forty questions based on a recording. The reading test takes sixty minutes. Students answer forty questions based on three written passages.

The writing test also takes sixty minutes. Students have to write two essays. One essay has to be at least one hundred and fifty words long and the other at least two hundred and fifty words. The shorter one is description of something; the longer one has to support and argument.

The speaking test takes less than fifteen minutes. The score is based on a recorded talk between the student and a test examiner.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. If you have a general question for our series, write to special@voanews.com. I'm Barbara Klein.

What does TOEFL stand for?

A. The Voice of America              B. The International English Language Testing System

C. The Test of English as a Foreign Language

D. The Test of English as a Native Language

The International English Language Testing System commonly takes _______ in all.

A. less than 160 minutes                      B. more than 165 minutes

C. no more than 160 minutes                   D. less than 166 minutes

According to the passage, we can infer _______.

A. IELTS is efficient and necessary if you want to go to English-speaking countries

B. IELTS is completely different from TOEFL

C. every American needs to accept TOEFL   D. IEITS isn't used more widely than TOEFL

What is the main idea of the passage?

A. How can the readers write papers to the VOA programme?

B. It talks about some ways to pass TOEFL.

C. It introduces IELTS.                             

D. How can the readers pass two kinds of tests?

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. A few weeks ago, we talked about the Test of English as a Foreign Language, or TOEFL. A listener in Cambodia named Thida asks if American colleges and universities also accept the IELTS exam. IELTS is the International English Language Testing System. It was developed by the University of Cambridge ESOL examiners.
Cambridge ESOL says the test measures true-to-life ability to communicate in English for education, immigration or employment. The IELTS tests listening, reading, writing and speaking skills. It uses a mixture of accents and spellings, including British English and American English.
The test is used by government agencies, schools and professional organizations in one hundred and twenty countries. And, yes, that includes the United States. The many American schools that accepted the IELTS can be found on the Web at felts.org.
Some schools accept both the TOEFL and the IELTS, but the graduate school at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, for example, says it prefers the IEITS.
The listening and speaking parts are the same for everyone who takes the IELTS, but people have a choice of reading and writing tests -- either academic or general training.
The listening test takes thirty minutes. There are forty questions based on a recording. The reading test takes sixty minutes. Students answer forty questions based on three written passages.
The writing test also takes sixty minutes. Students have to write two essays. One essay has to be at least one hundred and fifty words long and the other at least two hundred and fifty words. The shorter one is description of something; the longer one has to support and argument.
The speaking test takes less than fifteen minutes. The score is based on a recorded talk between the student and a test examiner.
And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. If you have a general question for our series, write to special@voanews.com. I'm Barbara Klein.
【小题1】What does TOEFL stand for?

This is the VOA Special English Education Report. A few weeks ago, we talked about the Test of English as a Foreign Language, or TOEFL. A listener in Cambodia named Thida asks if American colleges and universities also accept the IELTS exam. IELTS is the International English Language Testing System. It was developed by the University of Cambridge ESOL examiners.

Cambridge ESOL says the test measures true-to-life ability to communicate in English for education, immigration or employment. The IELTS tests listening, reading, writing and speaking skills. It uses a mixture of accents and spellings, including British English and American English.

The test is used by government agencies, schools and professional organizations in one hundred and twenty countries. And, yes, that includes the United States. The many American schools that accepted the IELTS can be found on the Web at felts.org.

Some schools accept both the TOEFL and the IELTS, but the graduate school at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, for example, says it prefers the IEITS.

The listening and speaking parts are the same for everyone who takes the IELTS, but people have a choice of reading and writing tests -- either academic or general training.

The listening test takes thirty minutes. There are forty questions based on a recording. The reading test takes sixty minutes. Students answer forty questions based on three written passages.

The writing test also takes sixty minutes. Students have to write two essays. One essay has to be at least one hundred and fifty words long and the other at least two hundred and fifty words. The shorter one is description of something; the longer one has to support and argument.

The speaking test takes less than fifteen minutes. The score is based on a recorded talk between the student and a test examiner.

And that's the VOA Special English Education Report, written by Nancy Steinbach. If you have a general question for our series, write to special@voanews.com. I'm Barbara Klein.

1.What does TOEFL stand for?

A. The Voice of America            B. The International English Language Testing System

C. The Test of English as a Foreign Language

D. The Test of English as a Native Language

2.The International English Language Testing System commonly takes _______ in all.

A. less than 160 minutes                       B. more than 165 minutes

C. no more than 160 minutes                     D. less than 166 minutes

3. According to the passage, we can infer _______.

A. IELTS is efficient and necessary if you want to go to English-speaking countries

B. IELTS is completely different from TOEFL

C. every American needs to accept TOEFL      D. IEITS isn't used more widely than TOEFL

4.What is the main idea of the passage?

A. How can the readers write papers to the VOA programme?

B. It talks about some ways to pass TOEFL.

C. It introduces IELTS.                                          

D. How can the readers pass two kinds of tests?

Read the passage carefully．Then answer the questions or complete the statements in not more than 15 words for each question．?

① “Hello” is one of the first words we learn as babies, yet it’s one of the last ones we think to use as adults．That’s unfortunate, because saying hello is more than just saying hello．It is recognition of another’s worth．How might the world change — how might we change — if we mastered this word? To find out, I spent one month saying hello to every person I met． Here’s what I’ve learned．

② It can boost（促进）productivity．In one of the few studies ever done on this subject, Allan Allday, an assistant professor of special education at Oklahoma State University, had middle school teachers greet their students individually each morning．This exchange of greetings raised the kids’ productivity．School went from impersonal to personal, and that resulted in more class participation （参与）and better grades．

③ Environments influence friendliness．One study found that people in the city were more likely to kiss one’s hands with a stranger than those in the countryside．And, researchers say, pleasant environments generally encourage more smiles and hellos than unpleasant one．My experience was similar．Whatever the reason, my urban hellos were answered far less often than my rural ones．Similarly, people in vacation spots, like the Jersey Shore, were far friendlier than those hurrying to work downtown．

④ It’s a form of universal health insurance．It’s impossible to say hello without smiling．And smiling has been shown to lower blood pressure, relieve stress and boost happiness．Apparently, a smile creates a similar effect in the recipient （接受者）．

⑤ So maybe we can make the world a better place by saying hello to each other．After a month of doing it, I feel lighter and more connected and I have a better sense of well-being．

1．In the first paragraph, what does the author mean by saying “it’s one of the last ones we think to use as adults”?

2．The research shows that if the school teachers greet their students each morning individually, the students______________________．

3．Three effects of smiling on health are: （1） ___________ （2） _____________ （3） _____________

4．What is the main idea of the passage? 

_________________________________________________________________