Unit Eight
   
    Passage 1
   
    The School Years
   
    Soon after the United States was founded, Thomas Jefferson, who was President from 1801 to 1809 wrote, "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be. " Jefferson believed that the new republic would be served best by literate, well-informed citizens and that everyone should have a guarantee of some education with further education for those who wanted it and were qualified. The American system of public education has been built on this philosophy. Public education in this country is expected to offer equal educational opportunities to everyone enrolled in secular schools, which are publicly controlled and publicly financed, with free tuition, free books, and compulsory attendance.
   
    There is no mention of education in the Constitution, and each state is responsible for its own educational system. Public schools are financed primarily by local and state taxes, and the amount of money spent on public school students varies from state to state. Alabama, for example, spent an average of $716 for each pupil in 1974, the lowest rate of any state. New York, by contrast, had the highest rate, $ 1809 per pupil. The majority of states spent more than  $ 800 per pupil.
   
    There are great differences in expenditures (花费 ) by communities within each state, depending on the amount of local funds available for public education. Often, well-to-do communities spend several hundred dollars more for each child than poorer towns nearby do. These figures reflect differences in expenditures . for such items as teachers' salaries, the purchase of books, and school construction and maintenance.
   
    Despite these differences, there is general uniformity in the organization and curricula of public schools throughout the country. Each state is divided into local school districts. Usually a state department of education sets the general requirements that local communities or school districts must meet. Local school boards, usually elected by members of their communities, are responsible for the detailed organization and operation of their schools. This-responsibility includes hiring teachers and administration and setting their salaries.
   
    The twelve years of public school education usually begin when a child is six years old. Some school systems are divided into eight years of primary school and four years of secondary school. Primary schools are often called elementary schools, and secondary schools are called high schools. Many systems combine the last two years of elementary school and the first year of high school in what is known as junior high school. This is followed by three years of senior high school. A large number of school systems also have a kindergarten program that provides one year of preschool training for five-year-old children before they begin the formal school years. The academic year lasts nine months, from September to June, with winter and spring vacations. Classes are held five days a week, from Monday through Friday.
   
    Elementary schools are usually organized on a neighbourhood basis. Children living in the same area attend a school that is close to their homes. High schools, on the other hand, serve children from many different elementary schools, and a single high school often has several thousand students from various parts of the community. Many towns have just one high school. In rural areas one elementary school frequently serves the children from several communi¬ties. When schools are located beyond convenient walking distance, children are transported free of charge in bright yellow school buses. Today more than 40 percent of all American school children are bused to and from school daily.
   
    It took many years for Jefferson's dream of education for everyone to approach reality. In 1870 only slightly more than half of all children of school age attended school. It was not until 1918 that every state had a compulsory school-attendance law. Today most states require the attendance of all children between the ages of six and sixteen. Approximately 99 percent of all American children of elementary school age (six through thirteen) and 94 percent of high school age (fourteen through seventeen) go to school.
   
    The quality of education has changed as the record of school attendance. For example, in a typical mid-nineteenth century elementary school class children sat in one place in one position for hours on end, with periodic arm swinging for exercise and perhaps occasional permission to go to the bathroom. The method of instruction was catechism (questions by the teacher with memorized responses by the students).. . The teacher fed the stuff out one day, and wanted it back the next, in her own words.
   
    Emphasis was on good behavior and learning what were called "the three Rs"—reading, 'riting and 'rithmetic. Most of the teachers had no more than elementary school education themselves.
   
    In the modern elementary school, in addition to the study of reading, writing, arithmetic, and language arts (including spelling), children are taught social studies (history, geography, and civics or government) science, art, and music. They are. often also taught cooking and manual skills such as carpentry and sewing. Outdoor playgrounds and indoor gymnasiums offer opportunities for lots of physical exercise.
   
    Modern teaching theories and methods vary greatly, but they frequently reflect the influence of John Dewey, an important twentieth-century educator and philosopher. Dewey believed that education should be more concerned with the interests and needs of each child than with the particular subjects that the child is taught. Today many teachers try to give considerable attention to the personal development of each individual student, especially at the elementary school level.
   
    Entrance to high school is automatic when a student completes elementary school. No examinations are required. High schools usually offer courses in English literature and composition, the social sciences, mathematics, laboratory sciences, and foreign languages as well as art, music, and physical education. After completing certain basic requirements, students are often permitted to choose the subjects that best suit their plans for college or for work after graduation.
   
    Extracurricular activities including clubs, school newspapers and magazines, and sports are important features of high-school life. In addition, student representatives, elected by their fellow students, often work with school officials in planning school policies. This arrangement is an effort to encourage students' interest in self-government and in their responsibilities as citizens.
   
    Most high schools are organized on what is called a comprehensive basis, which means that programs in academic (college preparatory), vocational, and general education are offered in the same school. In some large cities specialized high schools concentrate on just one type of program. In addition, many communities provide programs for handicapped children (children who are deaf, blind, crippled, emotionally disturbed, or mentally retarded) and children who are specially gifted, intellectually or artistically.
   
    1.    In   American   system  of  public   education,   everyone   is   expected   to   have   equal educational opportunities, which is defined in the U. S.  Constitution.
   
    2.   The amount of money spent on public school students depends mainly on local and state taxes.
   
    3.   The organization and curricula of public schools have much in common throughout the country.
   
    4.   All students can take yellow school buses to school in some states.
   
    5.Both school attendance and the quality of education have been greatly improved today.
   
    6.All children between the ages of five and eighteen are required to attend school in most states.
   
    7.There are much higher requirements for public school teachers today than in the past.
   
    8.Students can get well prepared for college study in_______________
   
    9.Modern teaching theories and methods are generally influenced by_________________
   
    10. Children may have one year of before they start elementary school years.

   
    Passage 2
   
    When a person feels low, blue, or down in the clumps, it usually means he has been hurt, disappointed, or saddened by something that causes a confused and listless feeling. There is 11 a type of music called "the blue", a low, mournful, sad sound to     12    these universal human feelings.
   
    Depression is another name for this mood. Feeling depressed is a normal and natural 13 to experiences of loss, failure, and undeserved bad luck. Indeed, it has been pointed out that without depression, we would 14 much of the world's great tragic literature, music, and art.
   
    In some cases, however, depression becomes something more than just 15 feelings of blues or letdown. A large number of people suffer from what psychiatrists call "depressive illness. " Depressive illness is more 16 and lasts longer than common listless feelings. Sometimes a serious 17 of depression can begin with the loss of a loved one or a change of job. Many times, in very 18 cases, there doesn't seem to be any circumstance serious enough to have caused the depression.
   
    Some psychiatrists suggest that the key feature in depression is change. The person becomes different from the way before the onset of his depression. He may even become the opposite of his usual self. There are many examples: the businessman who becomes a wanderer, the mother who wants to 19 her children and herself. Instead of seeking satisfaction and pleasure, the depressed person    20    it.
   
    A. ever B. escape C. intense D. response
   
    E. avoids F. even G. express H. realization
   
    I. severe J. lessen K. dense L. period
   
    M. harm N. lack O. normal

   
    Passage 3
   
    Social change is more likely to occur in societies where there is a mixture of different kinds of people than in societies where people are similar in many ways. The simple reason for this is that there are more different ways of looking at things present in the first kind of society. There are more ideas, more disagreements in interest, and more groups and organizations with different beliefs. In addition, there is usually a greater worldly interest and greater tolerance in mixed societies. All these factors tend to promote social change by opening more areas of life to decision. In a society where people are quite similar in many ways, there are fewer occasions for people to see the need or the opportunity for change because everything seems to be the same. And although conditions may not be satisfactory, they are at least customary and undisputed.
   
    Within a society, social changes is also likely to occur more frequently and more readily in the material aspects of the culture than in the non-material, for example, in technology rather than in values; in what has been learned later in life rather than what was learned early; in the less basic and less emotional aspects of society than in their opposites; in the simple elements rather than in the complex ones; in form rather than in substance; and in elements that are acceptable to the culture rather than in strange elements.
   
    Furthermore, social change is easier if it is gradual. For example, it comes more readily in human relations on a continuous scale rather than one with sharp difference. This is one reason why change has not come more quickly to Black Americans as compared to other American minorities, because of the sharp difference in appearance between them and their white counterparts.

   
    21.
   
    The passage is mainly discussing  .
   
    A. the necessity of social change
   
    B. certain factors that determine the ease with which social changes occur
   
    C. two different societies

   
    22.
   
    D. certain factors that promote social change
   
    One of the factors that tend to promote social change is  .
   
    A. joint interest B. different points of view
   
    C. less emotional people D. advanced technology

   
    23.
   
    According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true? A. Social change tends to meet with more difficulty in basic and emotional aspects of society.
   
    B.   Disagreement with and argument about conditions tend to slow down social change.
   
    C.   Social change is more likely to occur in the material aspect of society.
   
    D.   Social change is less likely to occur in what people learned when they were young.

   
    24.   The expression "greater tolerance "(Para. 1) refers to_______.
   
    A.   greater willingness to accept social change
   
    B.   quicker adaptation to changing circumstances
   
    C.   more respect for different beliefs and behavior
   
    D.   greater readiness to agree to different opinions and ideas

   
    25.   Social change is less likely to occur in a society where people are quite similar in many ways because_______.v
   
    A.   people there have got so accustomed to their conditions that they seldom think it necessary to change
   
    B.   people there have identical needs that can be satisfied without much difficulty
   
    C.   people there are easy to please
   
    D.   people there are less disputed

   
    Passage 4
   
    Anne Whitney, a sophomore (大学二年级学生) at Colorado State University, first had a problem taking tests when she began college. "I was always well prepared for my tests. Sometimes I studied for weeks before a test. Yet I would go in to take the test, only to find I could not answer the questions correctly. I would blank out because of nervousness and fear. I couldn't think of the answer. My low grades on the tests did not show what I knew to the teacher. " Another student in biology had similar experiences. He said, "My first chemistry test was very difficult. Then, on the second test, I sat down to take it, and I was so nervous that I was shaking. My hands were moving up and down so quickly that it was hard to hold my pencil. I knew the material and I knew the answers.  Yet I couldn't even write them down!"
   
    These two young students were experiencing something called test anxiety. Because a student worries and is uneasy about a test, his or her mind does not work as well as it usually does. The student cannot write or think clearly because of the extreme tension and nervousness. Although poor grades are often a result of poor study habits, sometimes test anxiety causes the low grades. Recently, test anxiety has been recognized as a real problem, not just an excuse or a false explanation of lazy students.
   
    Special university advising courses try to help students. In these courses, advisors try to help students by teaching them how to manage test anxiety. At some universities, students take tests to measure their anxiety. If the tests show (heir anxiety is high, the students can take short courses to help them deal with (heir tensions. These courses teach students how to relax their bodies. Students are trained to become calm in very tense situations. By controlling their nervousness, they can let their minds work at ease. Learned information then comes out without difficulty on a test.
   
    An expert • at the University of California explains, " With almost all students, relaxation and less stress are felt after taking our program. Most of them experience better control during their tests. Almost all have some improvement.  With some, the improvement is very great. "

   
    26.  To "blank out" is probably______.
   
    A. to be like a blanket       B. to be sure of an answer
   
    C.  to be unable to think clearly                D.  to show knowledge to the teacher

   
    27.  Poor grades are usually the result of______.
   
    A. poor sleeping habit        B. laziness
   
    C. lack of sleep                  D. inability to form good study habits

   
    28.   Test anxiety has been recognized as______.
   
    A.  an excuse for laziness    B.  the result of poor study habits
   
    C.  a real problem               D.  something that cannot be changed

   
    29.  To deal with this problem, students say they want to______.
   
    A.  take a short course on anxiety
   
    B.  read about anxiety
   
    C.   be able to manage or understand their anxiety
   
    D.   take tests to prove they are not anxious

   
    30.  A University of California advisor said______.
   
    A.  all students could overcome the anxiety after taking a special test anxiety program
   
    B.   almost all students felt less stress after taking a University of California advising course
   
    C.   students found it difficult to improve even though they had taken a special test anxiety course
   
    D.   students found it easy to relax as soon as they entered a University of California advising course

   
    参考答案：Unit Eight
   
    I.   N     2. Y     3. Y     4. N     5. Y     6. N     7. NG
   
    8. comprehensive high schools    9. John Dewey    10. preschool training
   
    II.   F    12. G   13. D   14. N   15. O   16. C   17. L    18.  I     19. M   20. E 21. B   22. B   23. B   24. C   25. A   26. C   27. D   28. C   29. A   30. B