C
The questions of what children learn, and how they should learn it, is continually being debated and reheated. Nobody dares any longer to defend the old system, the parrot – fashion (way of learning by repeating what others say) of learning lessons, the grammar with a whip system，which was good enough for our grandparents．The theories of modern psychology have stepped into argue that we must understand the needs of children．Children are not just small adults；they are children who must be respected as such．
Well，you may say，this is as it should be，and a good idea．But think further．What happens?
‘Education’ becomes the responsibility not of teachers, but of psychologists．What happens then? Teachers worry too much about the psychological implications of their lessons，and forget about the subjects themselves．If a child dislikes a lesson，the teacher feels that it is his fault，not the child’s. So teachers worry whether history is ‘relevant’ to modem young children．And do they dare to recount stories about violent battles? Or will this make the children themselves violent? Can they tell their classes about children of different races，or will this encourage racial hatred? Why teach children to write grammatical sentences? Verbal expression is better．Sums? Arithmetic? No：real—life mathematical situations are more understandable．
You see．you can go too far．Influenced by educational theorists，who have nothing better to do than write books about their ideas，teachers leave their teacher—training colleges filled with grand，psychological ideas about children and their needs. They make complicated preparations and try out their ‘modern methods’ on the long – suffering children. Since one ‘modern method’ rapidly replaces another, the poor kids will have well been fed up by the time they leave school. frequently the modern methods are so complicated that they fail to be understood by the teachers, let alone the children; even more often, the relaxed discipline so necessary for the ‘informal’ feeling the class must have, prevents all but a handful of children from learning anything.
63．Under the old system, children were           .
A．made to learn passively                        B．good enough to their grandparents
C．made to learn actively                          D．understood and respected by teachers
64．What happens when teachers pay too much attention to the psychological implications during a lesson?
A．They find that children dislike the lessons.
B．They worry too much about history, stories, racial hatred, grammar and arithmetic.
C．They don’t pay enough attention to what students are learning.
D．They tend to blame students for their failure in teaching.
65．How do you understand the underlined sentence at the end of the passage?
A．Children will learn well in a relaxed classroom atmosphere.
B．Few children will actually learn when there is no discipline.
C．Relaxed discipline is necessary for children to develop.
D．No children will learn anything without strict discipline.
66．What is the author’s attitude toward the theories of modern psychology?
A．Indifferent (不关心的).                       B．Tolerant (容忍的).
C．Supportive (支持的).                           D．Critical (批评的).

Happiness is U-shaped, for we are happier at the start and end of our lives but hit a slump when we are middle-aged, British and US researchers say.

Economists from the University of Warwick, central England, and from Dartmouth College, New Hampshire, looked at data on the mental health of two million people from 80 countries.

In Britain, the probability of depression for men and women peaks at around 44 years of age, Warwick University said in a press release.

In the United States, though, ________________________between men and women. Among women, unhappiness peaked at around the age of 40, whereas among men, it was about 50.

But the U-shape of happiness is constant around the world, and mid-life depression occurs regardless of marital status（婚姻状况）, changes in job or income.

The study appears in Social Science & Medicine, published by the Dutch publishing house Elsevier.

"It happens to men and women, to single and married people, to rich and poor, and to those with and without children.” said co-author Andrew Oswald.

One possibility may be that people realize they won't achieve many of their ambitions at middle age. The researchers said.

Another reason could be that after seeing their fellow middle-aged peers begin to die, people begin to value their own remaining years and embrace life once more.

But the good news is that if people make it to aged 70 and are still physically fit, they are on average as happy and mentally healthy as a 20-year old.

"For the average persons in the modern world, the dip in mental health and happiness comes on slowly, not suddenly in a single year," Oswald said. "Only in their fifties do people emerge from this low period.”

1. Which sentence in the passage is the closest in meaning to the following one?

There are chances that the middle-aged people will realize their ideal is likely to be unattainable.

__________________________________________________________________________

2. Fill in the blank in Paragraph 3 with a proper sentence．（within 10 words）

__________________________________________________________________________

3. How do you understand the sentence that “Happiness is U-shaped”? （within 20 words）

__________________________________________________________________________

4. Is mid-life depression a common Phenomenon in the world? How do you know? （within 15 words）

__________________________________________________________________________

5. Translate the underlined sentence in the last paragraph into Chinese

__________________________________________________________________________

A Divine Plan

    At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning­disabled children, the father of one student delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by those who attended. He began with a question. “Everything God does is done with perfection. Yet, my son, Shay, cannot learn and understand things as other children do. Where is God's plan reflected in my son？”

    The audience was stilled by the question. The father continued，“I believe that when God brings a child like Shay into the world, an opportunity to realize the Divine Plan presents itself. And it comes in the way people treat that child.”

    Then he told the following story：

    Shay and I walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked，“Do you think they will let me play？”

    I knew that most boys would not want him on their team. Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball. So I approached one of the boys on the field and asked if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance from his teammates. Getting none, he took matters into his own hands and said, “We are losing by six runs(得分). The game is in the eighth inning(回合). He can be on our team and we will try to put him up to bat in the ninth inning.”

    In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. At the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the outfield.

    In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. They had the potential to win. Would the team actually let Shay bat at this juncture and give away their chance to win the game?

    Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat.  At last, understanding what the boy's intentions had been, the boys from both teams helped Shay win the game for the team and Shay was cheered as the hero.

     “That day，” said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face，“the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of the Divine Plan into this world.”

56Why did the father think most of the boys wouldn't let_____ join them?

A. Because it was a very important game and they couldn'tafford to lose it.

B. Because they knew Shay was physically disabled.

C. Because they didn't get on well with Shay.

D. Because they knew Shay was anything but good at playing baseball.

57The sentence “Although no hits came his way, he was obviously very happy just to be on the field.” should be put t the end of ________.

A. Paragraph 5                 B. Paragraph 6

C. Paragraph 8                 D. Paragraph 9

58What can we infer from the passage?

A. Shay's team would have lost the game without him.

B. The opponent team let Shay score purposely.

C. It was quite by accident that Shay scored.

D. Shay's team let him play because they didn't take the game seriously.

59The underlined word “juncture” can be explained by ________.

A. a critical point                  B. a particular place

C. a dilemma                          D. an important game