Because of the change in the American public school system over the last several years, now many parents choose to home-school their children. There are many reasons behind this. Let’s take a look at a few of them.

For some parents, they have religious (宗教的) reasons for home-schooling. The public school system does not have religious teachings, so these parents want to put religion into the children’s daily school activities. This might include teaching religion-based courses rather than coursework that is taught in public schools.

For some parents, they do not feel that their local school system offers their children the best learning opportunities. So they want to take matters into their own hands. This may be because the local school has low educational standards (标准) or for some other reason the parents think it necessary to take their children out of the system. Sometimes the parents just feel the children will get a better education at home.

Some parents may not be rich enough to send their children to a private school, so the next best thing in their eyes is home-schooling. Thus they can teach their children what they like.

One should remember that the laws about home-schooling vary from state to state. In some states, the parents are required to hand in monthly attendance records (出席记录) to their local school system. What’s more, most states require state testing at certain periods such as the CRCT.

1.The writer wrote this passage mainly to _______.   

A．advise parents to home-school their children

B．explain why some parents choose to home-school their children

C．tell us the advantages and disadvantages of home-schooling

D．praise home-schooling and private schools

2.Paragraph 3 tells us that some parents choose home-schooling because ______.

A．school teachers are not strict with their children

B．their children don’t do well in their studies at school

C．their children don’t like going to school

D．they are not satisfied with the school education

3.What does the underlined word “vary” in the last paragraph mean?

A．Increase          B．Change           C．Spread           D．Keep

4.How many reasons for home-schooling are mentioned in the passage?

A．2                B．4                C．3                D．5

Many of the world’s pollution problems have been caused by the crowding of large groups of people into the cities. Supply for the needs of the people leads to further   1  by industry. If the rapid increase of world 2  continues at the present rate, there may be much greater 3  to human beings. Some scientists 4  of the increase in numbers of people as “population pollution（人口公害）”.

About 2, 000 years ago, the world population was about 250 million. It  5 a billion in 1850. By 1930 the population was two billion. It is now six billion. It is  6 to double by the year 2020. If the population  7  to grow at the same rate, there will be 25 billion people in the 8   a hundred years from now.

Man has been 9   the earth’s resources more and more 10   over the past years. Some of them are almost gone. Now many people believe that man’s 11   problem is how to control the 12   of the population. The material supplies in the world will be far from enough to  13  the human population if the present rate of increase continues. There is already over-crowding（过分拥挤）in many cities and  14  in some countries. Many people believe that human survival（生存） in the future  15  on the answer to the question.

1.                A．progress        B．pollution        C．education D．production

2.                A．agriculture      B．industry        C．environment   D．population

3.                A．danger         B．harm           C．benefit   D．hardship

4.                A．dream         B．approve        C．rid  D．speak

5.                A．got            B．took           C．brought  D．reached

6.                A．suggested       B．hoped          C．expected D．said

7.                A．continues       B．fails            C．tries D．means

8.                A．world          B．country         C．star  D．end

9.                A．discovering      B．using           C．digging   D．destroying

10.               A．seriously       B．dangerously     C．rapidly    D．steadily

11.               A．greatest        B．easiest         C．lightest    D．simplest

12.               A．existence       B．start           C．growth    D．birth

13.               A．increase        B．decrease       C．report D．support

14.               A．discussion      B．starvation       C．construction    D．argument

15.               A．depends        B．agrees         C．saves D．passes

American cities are similar to other cities around the world: In every country, cities reflect the values of the culture, American cities are changing, just as American society is changing.

After World War II, the population of most large American cities decreased; however, the population in many Sun Belt cities increased. Los Angeles and Houston are cities where population shifts（转移）to and from the city reflect the changing values of American society. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, city residents(居民) became wealthier. They had more children so they needed more space. They moved out of their apartments in the city to buy their own homes. They bought houses in the suburbs(郊区).

    Now things are changing. The children of the people who left the cities in the 1950s are now adults. Many, unlike their parents, want to live in the cities. They continue to move to Sun Belt cities and older ones of the Northeast and Midwest. Many young professionals are moving back into the city. They prefer the city to the suburbs because their jobs are there; or they just enjoy the excitement and possibilities that the city offers.

 This population shift is bringing problems as well as benefits. Countless poor people must leave their apartments in the city because the owners want to sell the buildings or make apartments for

sale instead of for rent. In the 1950s, many poor people did not have enough money to move to the suburbs; now many of these same people do not have enough money to stay in the cities.

Only a few years ago, people thought that the older American cities were dying. Some city residents now see a bright, new future. Others see only problems and conflicts. One thing is sure: many dying cities are alive again.

1.What does the author think of cities all over the world?

A. They are alive            B. They are hopeless      

C. They are similar          D .They are different

2. Why did American city residents want to live in the suburbs after World War II?

A. Because older American cities were dying

B. Because they were richer and needed more space

C. Because cities contained the worst parts of society

D. Because they could hardly afford to live in the city

3. According to the 4^th paragraph, a great many poor people in American cities     .

A. are faced with housing problems        B. are forced to move to the suburbs        

C. want to sell their buildings            D. need more money for daily expenses

4.We can conclude from the text that       .

A. American cities are changing for the worse 

B. people have different views on American cities

C. many people are now moving from American cities        

D. the population is decreasing in older American cities

.

Recently, the most popular topic among people in Zhongguancun has been: How far is Zhongguancun away from Silicon Valley (硅谷)? Can Zhongguancun be the next Silicon Valley?

People think that the day is not far when Zhongguancun will become a Silicon Valley. This is because Silicon Valley has two famous universities, Stanford and Berkeley universities, and Zhongguancun also has two universities, Peking and Tsinghua universities. Silicon Valley and Zhongguancun are gathering places for engineers. Silicon Valley has a group of well-known American high-tech companies including Intel and Hewlett-Packard, and Zhongguancun has famous companies such as Lenovo and Founder. Silicon Valley is good at science and technology, especially the information industry, while Zhongguancun is known as an electronics street.

However, Silicon Valley is still a far dream for Zhongguancun. Silicon Valley is a product of the market economy, while Zhongguancun is a government-led industrial group. Silicon Valley has an investment system of its own, while Zhongguancun is mainly a trading center for information products, a sales center and a market center. The Silicon Valley people have special and useful ideas. It’s important because of people’s innovation and adventure. All of the people have a good inter-personal relationship network, which enables Silicon Valley business starters to quickly get more money they need, find partners and grow.

The people in Zhongguancun think more about fund-raising, and give little thought to other factors. Some managers don’t understand the idea of market well. This can bring about many problems and can easily lead to failure. Now the basic task for Zhongguancun is to know the demands of the market and the users.

Now, many overseas talents who are returning home are people who once studied, lived and worked in Silicon Valley. A group of first-class universities have taken part in the development of Zhongguancun. It’s believed that Zhongguancun can become the next Silicon Valley, but it doesn’t need to copy Silicon Valley in every way. Zhongguancun can become a Silicon Valley with Chinese characteristics.

64. According to the passage, what is Hewlett-Packard?

A.An American high-tech company in Silicon Valley.

B.A famous American company in Zhongguancun.

C.The most famous university in America.

D.The headquarters of Silicon Valley.

65. Which of the following is WRONG about the differences between Zhongguancun and Silicon Valley?

A.Zhongguancun is a government-led industrial group.             

B.Silicon Valley has an investment system of its own.

C.The Zhongguancun people don’t have lots of ideas of innovation and adventure.

D.Some managers in Silicon Valley don’t understand the idea of market well.

66. What does the author suggest in the fourth paragraph?

Chinese should bravely face some failure.

Chinese should think more about fund-raising.

Chinese should understand the demands of the market and the customers.

Chinese should have a quicker development in science.

67. What is the main idea of this passage?

A.China develops more slowly than America in science and technology.

B.The possibility that Zhongguancun becomes a Silicon Valley is discussed.

C.Americans have a better inter-personal relationship network than Chinese.

D.Some methods are put up to enlarge the competitive ability of Zhongguancun.

(E)
Free and secure accommodation, no bills and even the odd home-cooked meal. It sounds like the perfect living arrangement for cash-strapped students.
Two mothers believe they have devised a way for struggling students to save on accommodation costs when they leave home to study at university.
Kate Barnham and Amanda Flude have launched Student Swaps, an online accommodation forum (论坛) for parents and students, in advance of the introduction in September of ￡3,000 higher education top-up fees.
Their website says, “The principle behind Student Swaps is to enable students to literally swap (交换) family homes.” The website will hold a database of students who would like to swap and link them with suitable matches. So those from one town / city could swap with those from a different town / city.
The site describes itself as offering a “cost-free accommodation alternative… at a time of growing student debt”. There is no charge for the service at the moment but Ms Barnham and Ms Flude intend to introduce a ￡10 annual fee if it becomes established.
However, the National Union of Students (NUS) has warned that, while the scheme may sound appealing to struggling freshers, it lacks any formal regulation.
Veronica King, NUS vice-president of welfare, said, “The fact that this scheme has even been suggested is evidence to the high levels of debt students now face on graduation.” Recent research has shown that students are more likely to live at home in coming years, in a bid to cut down on the cost of a degree.
“This is worrying, as it may mean that students choose their university on the basis of where it is, rather than because it offers the best course for them. It also means students will miss out on what is for some a key part of the student experience-living away from home.”
71. A “cash-strapped” student means one who __________.
A. lacks money                        B. prefers to stay at home
C. is careful with money             D. wants to change cash
72. What is Kate Barnham and Amanda Flude’s purpose of launching Student Swaps?
A. To provide cheaper accommodation for students.          
B. To let students stay close to their universities.
C. To help students spend less on accommodation costs. 
D.To let students exchange ideas freely online.
73. What can students do on Student Swaps?
A. They can find students to exchange homes with.
B. They can make friends with students from a different city.
C. They can borrow money to pay for their higher education.
D. They can voice their opinions against the rising cost of a degree.
74. Now many students would prefer a university _________.
A. which can give them free accommodation            
B. which is not far away from their homes
C. which offers the best courses                                     
D. which can offer home-cooked meals
75. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. High Cost Troubles University Students in UK.
B. Students Swaps is Welcomed by Students in UK.
C. Two Mothers’ Good Intention to Help Students in UK.
D. Website Helps Students Live at Someone Else’s Home.