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Sometimes it is difficult to talk to taxi drivers. They must give all their attention to the road as they work out the shortest way to the place where you are going. However, passengers from Wangfujing were in surprise when they took a taxi. The driver just would not stop talking ―in English.
Organized by the Cultural and Education Section of the British Embassy, “Dare to Speak” examines if Chinese people will speak English in “real-life” situations. Matthew Knowles, an acting student from South Carolina at Beijing Film Academy, acted the part as the “driver”. He collected six passengers on Saturday morning, most of whom were female white-collar workers.
“Of course they were surprised at first, wondering why I’m driving a taxi, and wondering whether this is a real taxi, but then most of them were pretty willing to speak,” he said. Knowles said he was also surprised by his “passengers”. “Apart from my first ‘passenger’, who could speak very little English, all the rest spoke
English very well, and it was fun to communicate with them,” he said, adding that some “passengers” were quite talkative.The “foreign taxi driver” project was just one of the “Dare to Speak” activities, which have been going on since the end of October. Other projects included a foreign store owner near a high school in Beijing, a cook in a Shanghai university canteen. They were testing the willingness of Chinese people, especially students and white-collar workers, to speak to foreigners in English. Rong Xin, senior manager of IELTS (雅思) with the British Embassy, said they hoped to let IELTS takers in China know that communication is the most important goal of IELTS.
“We hope that more and more IELTS takers in China can realize the importance of communicating in English in real life, instead of just getting high test scores,” she said.
1. Why did Matthew Knowles drive a taxi?
A. He enjoyed chatting with people in English.
B. He played the role of a taxi driver in a film.
C. He took part in the project “Dare to speak”
D. He wanted to improve his Chinese while driving.
2.The Chinese may meet and talk to _______ in
“Dare to speak” projects.A. a white-collar worker
B. a high school student
C. a restaurant manager
D. a foreign store owner
3.The purpose of the project “Dare to Speak” is to _______ .
A. draw Chinese people’s attention to IELTS
B. remind language learners of the goal of learning
C. attract more foreigners to start business in China
D. give more chances for English learners in China
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Zheng Pengyu: Interest is the best teacher. Classrooms that weren’t fixed could give students the chance to explore their interests. At the same time, they would be able to learn on their own because they would have to make their own decisions. All in all, the new system would be a good chance to inspire students’ passion for studying.
Sun Yao: Despite its benefits, I’m worried about whether the new system would work. Going to different classrooms would take up a big part of our break time and we would have less time to relax after class. Also, not all schools could offer so many diversified classes.
Shi Zhenghan: I support s
tudents learning in different classes. It would solve the problem of some students thinking the classes are too easy while some think they are too difficult. Teachers could also teach more effectively. What’s more, friendships built while in different classes might be a pleasant surprise.Zhou Qingqing: In my opinion, studying in different classrooms might affect students’ psychological (心理的) development. They might find it difficult to develop deep and strong friendships with other students if they had to change classrooms constantly. They would also lose their sense of belonging to a certain class.
Hu Qile: I applaud the idea. It would help teachers set up special teaching plans for different classes. For students, making choices by themselves could encourage them to be responsible. Changing classrooms could also help relive the boredom of doing the same dull routine (惯例) every day.
Wang Xiaoqian: The new system might help with students’ individual development, but I still prefer the current system. Studying in one fixed classroom, students with different academic levels can help each other. Spending your senior middle school years with the same classmates is an unforgettable experience.1.According to Sun Yao, which of the following sentences is TRUE?
A. The new system will work if great measures are taken.
B. All the schools can’t afford so many diversified classes.
C
. Students will have more time to relax.D. He supports the system because of its benefits.
2.Sun Yao holds a(n) _____ attitude towards the new system.
A. optimistic B. doubtful C. negative D. neutral
3.What is the passage about?
A. Schools should offer diversified classes to students.
B. Students find it difficult to develop friendship.
C. Different opinions about changing classroom.
D. Changing classroom can help with students’ individual development.
4.Which of the following can best replace the word “applaud” in paragraph 5?
A. hate B. oppose C. favor D. Benefit
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Some futurologists have assumed that the vast upsurge(剧增) of women in the workforce may mean a rejection of marriage. Many women, according to this hypothesis, would rather work than marry. The converse(反面) of this concern is that becoming a multi-paycheck household could encourage marriage. In the past, only the earnings and financial prospects of the man counted in the marriage decision. Now, however, the earning ability of a woman can make her more attractive as a marriage partner. Data show that economic downturns tend to put off marriage because the parties cannot afford to establish a family or are concerned about rainy days ahead. As the economy comes to life, the number of marriages also rises.
The increase in divorce rates follows to the increase in women working outside the home. Yet, it may be wrong to jump to any simple cause-and-effect conclusions. The impact of a wife’s work on divorce is no less cloudy than its impact on marriage decisions. The realization that she can be a good provider may increase the chances that a working wife will choose divorce over an unsatisfactory marriage. But the reverse is equally plausible(似是而非的). Tensions grounded in financial problems often play a key role in ending a marriage. By raising a family’s standard of living, a working wife may strengthen her family’s financial and emotional stability.
Psychological factors also should be considered. For example, a wife blocked from a career outside the home may feel caged in the house. She may view her only choice as seeking a divorce. On the other hand, if she can find fulfillment through work outside the home, work and marriage can go together to create a stronger and more stable union.
Also, a major part of women’s inequality in marriage has been due to the fact that, in most cases, men have remained the main breadwinners. A working wife may rob a husband of being the master of the house. Depending upon how the couple reacts to these new conditions, i
t could create a stronger equal partnership or it could create new insecurities.1.It is said in the passage that when the economy falls_____
A. men would choose working women as their marriage partners
B. more women would get married to seek financial security
C. even working women would worry about their marriages
D. more people would prefer to remain single for the time being
2.If women find fulfillment through work outside the home,_____.
A. they are more likely to dominate their marriage partners
B. their husbands are expected to do more housework
C. their marriage ties can be strengthened
D. they tend to put their career before marriage
3.One reason why women with no career may seek a divorce is that_____.
A. they feel that they have been robbed of their freedom
B. they are afraid of being bossed around by their husbands
C. they feel that their partners fail to live up to their expectations
D. they tend to suspect their husbands loyalty to their marriage
4.Which of the following statements can best summarize the authors view in the passage?
A. The stability of marriage and the divorce rate may reflect the economic situation of the country
B. Even when economically independent, most women have to struggle for real equality in marriage
C. In order to secure their marriage women should work outside the home and remain independent
D. The impact of the growing female workforce on marriage varies from case to case.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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On the day after Thanskgiving in the US, or Black Friday, lots of stores offer special discounts to mark the beginning of holiday shopping season. In China, a similar day falls on Nov. 11 when millions of Chinese shoppers go to Tmall.com and Taobao.com, two e-commerce websites operated by Alibaba.
The 11.11 Shopping Festival, as the event is now called, is also known in China as Singles Day. The shopping festival first started in 2009 and Alibaba said it chose the date because it was easy to remember. Last year, Tmall and Taobao together produced 19.1 billion in sales on that day, according to Alibaba. This year’s shopping festival kicked off with an even stronger start—sales hit 100 million yuan 55 seconds after midnight and reached 35 billion at the end of the day.
The shopping spree(狂欢) drew the attention of China’s leaders, as Premier Li Keqiang recently praised Alibaba’s founder, Jack Ma, for creating a day for consumption. China is trying to lead the country’s
economy to a slower, more sustainable（可持续的）growth model based on domestic (国内的) consumption instead of investment and exports. Online shopping is no doubt a growth point that will release spending potential. China had 564 million regular Internet users by the end of last year. It has surpassed the US to become the world’s largest e-commerce market, with its online sales over 1 trillion US dollars (6 trillion yuan) by 2020.“The real-time nature of online consumption attracts millions of people to spend money and enjoy life. E-commerce opens a new channel for China to encourage domestic demand,” Liu Yin, vice-president of the China International Electronic Commerce Center said. More importantly, it promotes employment and the logistics (物流) industry with its sales model of “online purchasing plus express delivery”, he added. Convenience, choice and low prices have increased online shopping, but there are still some problems with the one-day shopping spree.
Some online shops, driven by the huge profits, took this opportunity to play price tricks. They raised prices to twice those of the originals in the early October and then offered discounts on Nov 11. Many consumers, driven by the advantage they could take, just went along for the ride. “They spend lots of time online to check what to buy and are happy to get what they don’t really need at a lower price,” wrote Jia Ge, an Internet analyst, on his Sina weibo.
1.In the US, a holiday shopping season refers to _________.
A. a spree in a holiday like Thanksgiving
B. one of the four seasons in a year like spring
C. a shopping spree when stores offer special discounts
D. a holiday when people can relax themselves by shopping
2. In this year’s 11.11 Shopping Festival, Tmall and Taobao produced ______in all.
A. 19.1 billion yuan B. 100 million yuan
C. 35.1 billion yuan D. 35 billion yuan
3. What Liu Yin said is mainly about _______.
A. the advantages of e-commerce
B. the advantages of express delivery
C. the development of online shopping
D. the development of logistic industry
4.It can be inferred from the last paragraph that _______.
A. most online shops played price tricks on consumers to make huge profits
B. driven by the huge profits, many consumers bought what they didn’t really need
C. some prices of the goods were raised at first and sold at the original price on Nov. 11
D. many consumers were cheated by the online shops and bought unnecessary goods
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
English very well, and it was fun to communicate with them,” he said, adding that some “passengers” were quite talkative.
tudents learning in different classes. It would solve the problem of some students thinking the classes are too easy while some think they are too difficult. Teachers could also teach more effectively. What’s more, friendships built while in different classes might be a pleasant surprise.
economy to a slower, more sustainable（可持续的）growth model based on domestic (国内的) consumption instead of investment and exports. Online shopping is no doubt a growth point that will release spending potential. China had 564 million regular Internet users by the end of last year. It has surpassed the US to become the world’s largest e-commerce market, with its online sales over 1 trillion US dollars (6 trillion yuan) by 2020.
alked on, Pierre