Work and the Young: Generation Jobless“YOUNG ...

Work and the Young: Generation Jobless

“YOUNG people ought not to be idle (闲置的) . It is very bad for them," said MargaretThatcher in 1984. She was right: there are few worse things that society can do to its young than to leave them ignored.

Yet more young people are idle than ever. The International Labour Organization reports that 75m (m=million) young people globally are looking for a job. World Bank surveys suggest that 262m young people are economically inactive. The number of young people without a job is nearly as large as the population of America (311m).

Two factors play a big part. First, the long slowdown in the West has reduced demand for labour, and it is easier to put off hiring young people than it is to fire older workers. Second, inemerging economies population growth is the fastest in countries with disordered labour markets, such as India and Egypt.

One possible way to settle this problem is to stimulate growth. That is easier said than done in a world suffering from debt, and is anyway a possible answer. The countries where the problem is worst (such as Spain and Egypt) suffered from high youth unemployment even when their economies were growing. Throughout the recession ( 经济不景气)，companies have continued to complain that they cannot find young people with the right skills. This underlines the importance of two other solutions: reforming labour markets and improving education.

Youth unemployment is often at its worst in countries with inflexible labour markets. High taxes on hiring, strict rules about firing, high minimum wages: all these help force young people to the street corner. South Africa has some of the highest unemployment, in part because it has powerful trade unions and inflexible rules about hiring and firing. Many countries with high youth unemployment rate have high minimum wages and heavy taxes on labour. India has around 200 laws on work and pay.

Across the OECD (经合组织) , people who left school at the earliest opportunity are twice as likely to be unemployed as university graduates. But it is unwise to conclude that governments should simply continue increasing the number of people who graduate from university. In both Britain and the United States many people with arts degrees are finding it impossible to get appropriate jobs. In North Africa university graduates are twice as likely to be unemployed as non-graduates.

What matters is not just number of years of education people get, but its content. This means expanding the study of science and technology and closing the gap between the world of education and the world of work-for example by upgrading vocational education and by building closer relations between companies and schools. Germany, which has the second lowest level of youth unemployment in the rich world, owns long-history system of vocational schooling and apprenticeships (学徒制).

The problem of youth unemployment has been getting worse for several years. But there are at last some reasons for hope. Governments are trying to address the mismatch between education and the labour market. Companies are beginning to take more responsibility for the young. The world has a real chance of introducing an education-and-training revolution worthy of the solution to the problem.

1.According to the passage, which of the following statements may the author approve of ?

A. A flexible labour market is not enough to raise youth employment.

B. As long as the economy grows youth unemployment will soon be settled.

C. Firms fire more older workers than the young in the economic slowdown.

D. Powerful trade unions and high minimum wages lead to high employment.

2.The author mentioned the German's education system in order to show_____________.

A. rich countries are responsible for high youth unemployment

B. the problem of youth unemployment has been settled

C. companies have more responsibilities to settle youth unemployment

D. the match between education and the labour market can reduce youth unemployment

3.What does the underlined phrase "vocational education” mean in Para.7 ?

A. Technical training.

B. Higher education.

C. Moral education.

D. Business courses.

4.The passage mainly talks about _____________.

A. the need for labour market revolution

B. possible ways to settle global youth unemployment

C. the relations between education and employment

D. factors contributing to low youth unemployment

高一英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

A few years ago it was popular to speak of a generation gap, a disagreement between young people and their elders．Parents said that children did not show them proper respect and obedience(服从), while children complained(抱怨)that their parents did not understand them at all．What had gone wrong? Why had the generation gap suddenly appeared? Actually the generation gap has been around for a long time．Many people argue that a gap is built into the fabric(结构)of our society．

One important cause of the generation gap is the chance that young people have to choose their own ways of life．In more traditional societies, when children grow up, they are expected to live in the same area as their parents, to marry people that their parents know and agree to, and to continue the family occupation(职业)．In our society, young people often travel great distances for their education, move out of the family home at an early age, marry or live with people whom their parents have never met, and choose occupations different from those of their parents．

In our easily changing society, parents often expect their children to do better than they did: to find better jobs, to make more money, and to do all the things that they were unable to do．Often, however, the strong desire that parents have for their children are another cause of the disagreement between them．Often, they discover that they have very little in common with each other．

Finally, the speed at which changes take place in our society is another cause of the gap between the generations．In a traditional culture, elderly people are valued for their wisdom, but in our society the knowledge of a lifetime may become out of date overnight．The young and the old seem to live in two very different worlds, separated by different skills and abilities．

No doubt, the generation gap will continue to be a feature(特点)of American life for some time to come．Its causes are rooted in the freedom and changes of our society, and in the rapid speed at which society changes．

1.The main idea of the first paragraph is that _______．

2.The word “around” in Paragraph 1 means _______．

3.Which cause of the generation gap is not mentioned in the passage?

4.In American society, young people often _______．

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

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

We often hear people talking about a generation gap (代沟). The name is new,but the idea is old. Young people and their parents don’t understand each other. The world has always kept changing. During the second century after Christ a wise man said, “Bury me on my face because in a little while everything will be turned upside down.”  There has always been a gap between generations, but more people talk about it now. Old Mr. Ellis thinks he understands what has happened. “When I was a boy, I thought the world was a beautiful place. My life was very pleasant. But when I was older, I learned about people who were treated badly, people who didn’t have enough to eat. I wanted to help them, and I married a girl who wanted to help them, too. We went to meetings and talked a lot, but it didn’t seem to make much difference. ”“Our children grew up in a world at war. They didn’t know when the fighting would stop. They wanted their children to have nice clothes and toys. They didn’t want to think about the future. They thought nothing could be done about it.” “Now I have grandchildren, and they have their own ideas. They are trying to make the world better. They are trying to help other people. They’re making people listen to them. I am proud of their generation.”

1. The wise man mentioned in the text told people to bury him on his face so   that when everything is turned upside down he will _____.

A. lie on his stomach       B. lie on his back

C. stand quietly           D. sit in peace

2.Which generation did NOT want to do anything to make the world a better one?

A. Mr. Ellis’ generation             B. His children’s generation

C. His grandchildren’s generation     D. None of the above.

3. What is the writer’s attitude towards the generation gap?

A. Unacceptable. B. Awful.  C. Funny. D. Common.

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

As the young people in Nanning, we ought to do everything we can ________ our city more beautiful from now on.

高一英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

Upon first look, the world of business is no place for young women. And many people have told my cofounders and me that in many circumstances. Pessimistic though people are about women’s chances in conducting business, three of us female college students, without any experiences, started our business with a greatly aggressive goal: to set up a seaweed farm in North Carolina and grow as much seaweed as possible to help cut down carbon emissions (排放) and pollution filled with nutrition from agricultural activities.

In the beginning, our ideas were either ignored or mocked by the researchers from whom we sought help and advice. But we carried on with our research–if others wouldn’t provide us with answers, we weren’t afraid to try to work them out by ourselves. We experiment on species which could grow in warmer waters, and we had identified potential markets into which we planned to sell the product. We've spent the last two years setting up the first seaweed farm in NC, applying for a patent (专利) and competing with five final teams in front of the United Nations for 2 million.

Despite all of our efforts, many industry experts remained unwilling to take us seriously. But as often happens in business, the same characteristics we were ignored for were, in reality, our biggest competitive advantage. Our age gave us the strength to learn from failure, and our background as environmental scientists, rather than businesswomen, helped us find new marketing opportunities. For every 10 farmers who claimed nobody would ever want to feed their cows seaweed, we found one who was interested. For every 15 cosmetics producers who refused to answer our cold calls, we stuck to the one with an interesting idea for a seaweed lotion.

Over the course of our early business development efforts, we have had access to a wealth of resources, programs, and individuals who work constantly to help us succeed. By staying focused on bringing our ideas to light, our team has demonstrated that entrepreneurship (创业) is exactly the right place for the hopeful.

1.What was the major cause for their difficulty in starting business?

A.They were women. B.They were young.

C.They lacked experience. D.They suffered prejudice.

2.What did they do to make their business successful?

A.They expanded their seaweed farms.

B.They experimented on seaweed species.

C.They got their product officially recognized.

D.They consulted the United Nations.

3.What is the third paragraph mainly about?

A.How they got others interested in seaweed.

B.How they succeeded from their so-called weaknesses.

C.How they made themselves more competitive.

D.How they approached potential customers.

4.Which of the following can best describe the three women?

A.Innocent and simple-minded. B.Ambitious and self-centered.

C.Adventurous and persistent. D.Courageous and stubborn.

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

It was the hard work and determination of the generation 　　　　 had changed the opinion of people towards Chinese.

A. why　　 B. that　　 C. when　　 D. which

高一英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

It was the hard work and determination of the generation _____ had changed the opinion of people towards Chinese.

A．why              B．when             C．that              D．which

高一英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

语篇语法填空

Young people1. (bear) in 1995 or later have another name in English一Generation Z. Now entering adulthood and soon to join the workforce, Generation Z grew up in a special period of time when technology developed fast and the Internet became2.(universe).

It 3.(believe) that Generation Z is the generation that is going to shape our future,4.is why policy makers are trying5.(them) best to understand these young people. Most people agree that biggest difference between Generation Z and other generations is how connected they are. This is a group of people who have been familiar6.social media as soon as they came to the world. It may be true that Generation Z-ers have a shorter attention span(持续时间)7.a goldfish does, but since they grew up among social changes, they are more active in8.(political).

Generation Z-ers are also culture creators.9.(grow) up with the Internet has freed this generation from traditional cultural expression. These young people are not 10.(will) to let their creativity be limited by their parents or traditional rules.

高一英语语法填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Long ago there were two people--- a young father and an old neighbor. One day the young father was visiting the old neighbor. They were standing in the old man’s garden, talking about children. The young man said, “How strict should parents be with their children?”

The old man pointed to a string（绳子）between a big strong tree and a thin young one．“Please untie（解开）that string，” he said．The young man untied it, and the young tree bent over to one side. “Now tie it again，please,” said the old man, “but first pull the string tight so that the young tree is straight again.”

The young man did so．Then the old man said，“There，it is the same with children. You must be strict with them, but sometimes you must untie the string to know how they are getting on．If they are not yet able to stand alone，you must tie the string tight again. But when you find that they are ready to stand alone，you can take the string away.”

1.The story is about ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ ．

A． how the young father should get on with his old neighbor

B． how to tie and untie the string

C． how to take care of young trees

D． how strict parents should be with their children.

2.The young man untied the string ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ ．

A． only to find that the thinner one bent over to one side

B． in order to let the old man teach him

C． in order to throw it away

D． so that both of the trees would grow straight

3.When can the string be taken away？＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ ．

A． When the young man has untied it next time

B． When the young tree grows strong enough

C． When the old man has left

D． After you have untied it

4.At last the old man told the young man ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ ．

A.  that he should be strict with his children if they could not yet stand alone

B． that he should be hard on them

C.   that he should tie his children until they are ready to stand alone

D． that he should always be strict with his children

高一英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Every country has its heroes. The heroes are the people the nation and especially the young people admire. If you get a list of the heroes of a nation, it will tell you the potential（潜势）of that nation.

If today in America, you ask the high school students to list their heroes, their choice would probably fall into three groups. The first group of heroes would be the rock stars —the people connected with rock music. There is no doubt that such people do have talent but one wonders if one should hold up rock stars as a model (推举…为榜样). The rock stars too often are involved with drugs and their personal life is not all that good. The rock stars are rich and wear the latest fashion styles. However, one should seek more in a hero than such things as money and good clothes.

A second type of hero for the American youth is the sports star. Again you have a person who has a great ability in one area — SPORTS. However, too often the personal life of the sports star is a bit of a mess. Too frequently drugs and drinking are a part of life of the sports star.

A third type of hero is the TV or movie star. This person may have lots of acting talent and is quite handsome. However, the personal life of too many actors is quite sad and they should not be held up as a model for young people.

Today, the rock star, the athlete and the actor all have become the models of the youth in America. Really, do you hear a young person say that his hero is a doctor, a teacher, or a scientist? These people are not rich and do not wear fashionable clothes. However, they are talented people who work hard to make the world a better place for everyone.

What is really sad is that the young try to imitate their heroes. They like to wear the same clothes and follow their styles. If the heroes of today for the American youngsters are only rock stars, athletes and actors, the future does not look too bright.

56. The hero discussed in this article means a person ______.

A. who has done something brave          B. who plays an important role in a play

C. whom people greatly admire            D. who rides the waves and moves with the tides

57. What is true of the groups mentioned in this article?

A. They are not fright but are good-looking.       B. They are rich but are strict with themselves.

C. They are talented in some area but lead an indecent life.   D. They are perfect in every way.

58. American young people will not admire ______.

A. a university professor           B. a popular singer     C. a football player     D. a film actress

59. According to the writer, people should hold up as their model those______.

A. who are rich and wear the latest fashion clothes     B. whose personal life is good

C. who can express people’s feelings             D. who work in the interests (利益) of the people

60. What is the writer’s attitude towards American youth’s admiration for their heroes?

A. He is understanding.      B. He is critical.     C. He is angry.        D. He is uninterested.

高一英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析