My father was a foreman of a sugar-cane plantation in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. My first job was to drive the oxen that ploughed the cane fields. I would walk behind an ox, guiding him with a broomstick. For $ 1 a day, I worked eight hours straight, with no food breaks.

It was very tedious work, but it prepared me for life and taught me many lasting lessons. Because the plantation owners were always watching us, I had to be on time every day and work as hard as I could. I’ve never been late for any job since. I also learned about being respectful and faithful to the people you work for. More important, I earned my pay; it never entered my mind to say I was sick just because I didn’t want to work.

I was only six years old, but I was doing a man’s job. Our family needed every dollar we could make because my father never earned more than $ 18 a week. Our home was a three-room wood shack with a dirty floor and no toilet. Nothing made me prouder than bringing home money to help my mother, father, two brothers and three sisters. This gave me self-esteem(自尊心), one of the most important things a person can have.

When I was seven, I got work at a golf course near our house. My job was to stand down the fairway and spot the balls as they landed, so the golfers could find them. Losing a ball meant you were fired, so I never missed one. Some nights I would lie in bed and dreamt of making thousands of dollars by playing golf and being able to buy a bicycle.

The more I dreamed, the more I thought. Why not? I made my first golf club out of guava limb(番石榴树枝) and a piece of pipe. Then I hammered an empty tin can into the shape of a ball. And finally I dug two small holes in the ground and hit the ball back and forth. I practiced with the same devotion and intensity. I learned working in the field — except now I was driving golf balls with club, not oxen with a broomstick.

1. The writer’s first job was _______.

　 A. to stand down the fairway at a golf course

　 B. to watch over the sugar-cane plantation

　 C. to drive the oxen that ploughed the cane fields

　 D. to spot the balls as they landed so the golfers could find them

2. The writer learned that_______ from his first job.

　A. he should work for those who he liked most

　B. he should work longer than what he was expected

　 C. he should never fail to say hello to his owner

　 D. he should be respectful and faithful to the people he worked for

3. _______ gave the writer self-esteem.

A. Having a family of eight people

　 B. Owning his own golf course

　 C. Bringing money back home to help the family

　 D. Helping his father with the work on the plantation

4. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

　 A. He wanted to be a successful golfer.

　B. He wanted to run a golf course near his house.

　C. He was satisfied with the job he got on a plantation.

　D. He wanted to make money by guiding oxen with a broomstick.

Today, there are many chances for those who wish to continue their education. However, nearly all require some break in one’s career in order to attend school full time.    　　

Part-time education, that is, attending school at night or for one weekend a month, tends to drag the process out over time and puts the completion of a degree program out of reach of many people. Additionally, such programs require a fixed time commitment which can also impact negatively on one’s career and family time. 

Of the many approaches to teaching and learning, however, perhaps the most flexible (灵活的) is that called distance learning. Distance learning is an educational method which allows the students the flexibility to study at his or her own pace to achieve the academic goals which are so necessary in today’s world. The time required to study may be set aside at the student’s convenience. Additionally, the student may enroll in distance learning courses from actually any place in the world, while continuing to pursue their chosen career. Individual assistance may be available via regular airmail, telephone, fax machine, teleconferencing and over the Internet.

Good distance learning programs are characterized by the inclusion of a subject evaluation tool with every subject, so a student doesn’t need to travel away from home to take a test. Another characteristic of a good distance learning program is the equivalence (等同) of the distance learning course with the same subject materials as those students taking the course on the home campus. The resultant diploma or degree should also be the same whether distance learning or on-campus study is employed. The individuality of the professor/student relationship is another characteristic of a good distance learning program. In the final analysis, a good distance learning program has a place not only for the individual student but also the company or business that wants to work in partnership with their employees for the educational benefit, professional development, and business growth of the organization. Supporting distance learning programs for their employees gives the business the advantage of retaining (留住) career-minded people while contributing to their personal and professional growth through education.  　　

1.According to the passage, which of the following is NOT a disadvantage of part time education?

A. It requires some break in one’s career. 　　

B. It tends to last too long for many people to complete a degree program.       　　

C. It affects one’s career.     　　

D. It gives the student less time to share with the family.    　　

2. Which of the following is NOT an advantage of distance learning?   　

A. The student may choose his or her own pace.  　

B. The student may study at his or her convenience.   　　

C. They can pursue their chosen career while studying.    　　

D. Individual assistance comes through regular airmail, telephone and fax machine.

3.What benefit will distance learning program bring to a business?    　　

A. Attracting more talented people.      　　

B. Good image of the business.    　　

C. Better cooperation with universities.     　　

D. Further training of employees and business growth.      　　

4. Good distance learning program have the following characteristics EXCEPT _______.     　　

A. distance learning course is the same as students taking courses on campus     　

B. the diploma or degree should be the same as on campus study  　　

C. professor-student relationship is strictly one to one all through the course    　　

D. includes subject evaluation tool

5.What benefit will distance learning bring to an employee of a business?     　　

A. Higher salary.   　　

B. Professional growth.      　　

C. Good impression on the employer.      　　

D. Good relationship with the employer. 

Some women ________ a good salary in a job instead of staying home, but they decided not to work for the sake of the family.

　　A. must make

　　B. should have made

　　C. would make

　　D. could have made

As any homemaker who has tried to keep order at the dinner table knows, there is far more to a family meal than food. Sociologist Michael Lewis has been studying 50 families to find out just how much more.

Lewis and his co-workers carried out their study by videotaping the families while they ate ordinary meals in their own homes. They found that parents with small families talk actively with each other and their children. But as the number of children gets larger, conversation gives way to the parents’ efforts to control the loud noise they make. That can have an important effect on the children." In general the more question-asking the parents do, the higher the children’s IQ scores," Lewis says. "And the more children there are, the less question-asking there is."

The study also provides an explanation for why middle children often seem to have a harder time in life than their siblings(兄弟，姐妹). Lewis found that in families with three or four children, dinner conversation is likely to center on the oldest child, who has the most to talk about, and the youngest, who needs the most attention. “Middle children are invisible,” says Lewis. “When you see someone get up from the table and walk around during dinner, chances are that it’s the middle child.” There is, however, one thing that stops all conversation and prevents anyone from having attention: “When the TV is on,” Lewis says, “dinner is a non-event(扫兴的事).”

1.The writer’s purpose in writing the text is to _________.

　　A. show the relationship between parents and children

　　B. teach parents ways to keep order at the dinner table

　　C. report on the findings of a study

　　D. give information about family problems

2. Parents with large families ask fewer questions at dinner because____.

　　A. they are busy serving food to their children

　　B. they are busy keeping order at the dinner table

　　C. they have to pay more attention to younger children

　　D. they are tired out having prepared food for the whole family

3.By saying “Middle children are invisible” in paragraph 3, Lewis means that middle children__________.

　　A. have to help their parents to serve dinner

　　B. get the least attention from the family

　　C. are often kept away from the dinner table

　　D. find it hard to keep up with other children

4.Lewis’ research provides an answer to the question_________.

　　A. why TV is important in family life

　　B. why parents should keep good order

　　C. why children in small families seem to be quieter

　　D. why middle children seem to have more difficulties in life

5.Which of the following statements would the writer agree to?

　　A. It is important to have the right food for children.

　　B. It is a good idea to have the TV on during dinner.

　　C. Parents should talk to each of their children frequently.

　　D. Elder children should help the younger ones at dinner.

Some women ________ a good salary in a job instead of staying home, but they decided not to work for the sake of the family.

　　A. must make    　B. should have made

　　C. would make    D. could have made