A new report says only about half of all students in the main school systems of America’s largest cities finish high school. The report notes higher rates of graduation — over 70% —in areas surrounding the cities. Researchers studied high school graduation rates from the 2003, 2004 school year. They also identified the nation’s fifty largest cities. The largest, New York City, had a population of more than eight million. The smallest city was Wichita, Kansas. It had about three hundred and sixty thousand people.
Researchers used a system of measurement called the cumulative promotion index to find graduation rates. School officials in many of the cities studied said the resulting numbers were too low. That is because different areas use different methods to find graduation rates. Critics say many methods do not give a true picture of the number of students who leave high school before finishing.
Other studies have put the national graduation rate at about 70%. But experts agree that too many students are not completing high school. They estimate the number at more than one million each year. The report was prepared for America’s Promise Alliance. The private group aims to help children receive services they need to succeed.
General Colin Powell was chairman of America’s Promise Alliance when it was formed in 1997. He attended the press conference Tuesday where the report was released. He said studies have shown that the US must do more to educate the leaders and work force of the future.
Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings also spoke. She said the government will propose that states use the same methods when reporting graduation rates. Alliance officials also announced the start of a nationwide campaign to improve graduation rates. It is to include a series of meetings to be held in every state over the next two years. The meetings will bring together elected leaders, business owners, students, parents and education officials. They will develop plans to increase the number of Americans who finish high school.
1.The author wants to tell us ___________.
A. too many Americans do not finish high school
B. different methods to find graduation rates
C. services American children need to receive
D. the increase of the number of Americans who finish their high school
2.From Paragraph 1 we can infer that __________.
A. there are 8,360,000 people in the US’ fifty largest cities
B. Wichita in Kansas is the smallest city in the US
C. 50% of the people in the US don’t finish their high school education
D. high school graduation rates in or near the biggest cities are higher
3. The underlined word “picture” probably can be replaced by “_______”.
A. situation B. scene C. image D. mood
4.From the last paragraph, we can draw a conclusion that _______-.
A. secretary of Education Margaret Spellings didn’t believe that number from the report
B. the government will stop using the cumulative promotion index to find graduation rates
C. secretary of Education Margaret Spellings announced the start of a nationwide campaign to improve graduation rates
D. the low graduation rates should be paid attention to by the government and the society
Born in a fishing village in Japan, Fujiyama, 25, recalls a childhood dominated by health concerns. Doctors told his parents that he had a hole in his heart and “they didn’t think I had a lot longer to live”. But during a later visit to the doctor, his family learned the hole had closed. “Somehow I was cured and I became a normal kid,” Fujiyama says. “And I had a second chance.”
During his second year at the University of Mary Washington, he volunteered in Honduras with a campus group and was struck by the extreme poverty he saw—barefoot children collecting cans and sleeping in the streets. Fujiyama realized he could help give other children their own second chance.
Today, his organization, Students Helping Honduras, brings education and community projects to children and families in need.
He started by telling his friends about his experience and collecting spare change at his two campus jobs. “When I had my very first meeting, only two people showed up,” he says. “I knew I had to keep fighting.” He persuaded his younger sister, Cosmo, to join the cause. “She’s dynamite,.” He says. “When she talks in front of a crowd, she can move mountains. Knowing that she was behind it, I knew I could do anything.” Since 2006, the siblings’ organization has grown to 25 campuses and raised more than $750,000 to fund projects, including the construction of two schools and the establishment of scholarships to help young women attend college.
Fujiyama says students are deeply committed to the organization. They raise money and then travel to Honduras to help building houses. While Fujiyama spends his summers in Honduras working alongside volunteers, he spends a large portion of the year on the road visiting colleges to raise funds. Cosmo Fujiyama, 23, lives in Honduras full time to coordinate（协调）the group’s building efforts on the ground.
Students Helping Honduras is working with community members of Siete de Abril to build a new village. Many of the families lost their belongings in Hurricane Mitch in 1998. A lot of them didn’t have access to clean water or health care, and they didn’t have a school. Fujiyama’s group helped build 44 homes in the village named “Sunshine Village”. The organization is also raising funds to build a water tower, an eco-friendly sanitation system and a library.
1. At the beginning of his organization, ________.
A. Fujiyama was supported by many friends B. things didn’t go on smoothly
C. Fujiyama had little idea of Honduras D. many famous people joined in
2. We can infer that Fujiyama is a _______ man.
A. diligent B. mean C. sympathetic D. cheerful
3. The underlined word “siblings’ ” can be replaced by __________.
A. brothers’ B. brother and sister’s C. friends’ D. couple’s
4.Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A. Help the people in need
B. Students lend a hand in America
C. Fujiyama helps build “Sunshine Village”
D. Fujiyama gives poor people in Honduras a second chance
I’ve always had strong opinions of how love should be expressed, but others had their own ways of showing care.
What I 36 most about visiting my boyfriend’s parents is the loud tick of the clock in the dining room as we 37 ate our meal. With so little conversation I was quick to 38 his family as cold. When we got into the 39 to go home, his father suddenly appeared. 40 , he began to wash his son’s windscreen. I could feel he was a caring man through the glass.
I learned another lesson about love a few years later. My father often 41 me early in the morning. “Buy Xerox. It’s a good sharp price,” he might say when I answered the phone. No pleasant 42 or inquiry about my life, just financial instructions. This manner of his 43 me and we often quarreled. But one day, I thought about my father’s success in business and realized that his concern for my financial security lay behind his 44 morning calls. The next time he called and told me to buy a stock, I 45 him.
When my social style has conflicted with that of my friends, I’ve often felt 46 . For example, I always return phone calls 47 and regularly contact with my friends. I expect the same from them. I had one friend who rarely called, answering my messages with short e-mails. I rushed to the 48 : She wasn’t a good friend! My anger 49 as the holidays approached. But then she came to a gathering I 50 and handed me a beautiful dress I had fallen in love with when we did some window-shopping the previous month. I was 51 at her thoughtfulness, and regretful for how I’d considered her to be 52 . Clearly I needed to change my expectations of friends.
Far too often, I ignored their 53 expressions, eagerly expecting them to do things in my 54 . Over the years, however, I’ve learned to 55 other persons, love signs.
1.A. remember B. enjoy C. value D. admire
2.A. excitedly B. nervously C. silently D. instantly
3.A. regard B. treat C. take D. think
4.A. bus B. train C. car D. plane
5.A. Punctually B. Carefully C. Proudly D. Coldly
6.A. visited B. interrupted C. warned D. telephoned
7.A. greeting B. meeting C. apology D. explanation
8.A. interested B. angered C. encouraged D. surprised
9.A. long B. short C. warm D. polite
10.A. praised B. remembered C. blamed D. thanked
11.A. content B. guilty C. curious D. disappointed
12.A. in order B. in turn C. without delay D. without difficulty
13.A. feeling B. suggestion C. judgment D. belief
14.A. disappeared B. grew C. helped D. declined
15.A. opened B. refused C. hosted D. invited
16.A. depressed B. upset C. fascinated D. shocked
17.A. uncaring B. dishonest C. unhappy D. uncooperative
18.A. unique B. common C. pleasant D. familiar
19.A. opinion B. way C. mind D. life
20.A. send B. read C. give D. express
---Tom was caught cheating in the exam. ---Just his luck. ______
A. He has to kill the fatted calf. B. He has to face the music.
C. He must be the apple of his parents’ eve. D. He must be a black sheep.
Not until ___ on TV ___ that the Chinese was rescued by the European Union Task Force.
A. did I turn; did I know B. did I turn; I knew
C. I turned; did I know D. I turned; I had know
---Oh, how depressed! I’m bound to lose to him in tomorrow’s competition.
---Cheer up! In fact, he is _________ than you.
A. not more nervous B. no more nervous
C. no less nervous D. a little less nervous
