Question

The kids in this village wear dirty, ragged clothes. They sleep beside cows and sheep in huts(小屋）made of sticks and mud. They have no school. Yet they all can chant the English alphabet（字母表）, and some can make words.

The key to their success: 20 tablet computers(平板电脑) dropped off in their Ethiopian village in February by a U.S. group called One Laptop Per Child.

The goal is to find out whether kids using today’s new technology can teach themselves to read in places where no schools or teachers exist. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers analyzing the project data say they’re already amazed. “What I think has already happened is that the kids have already learned more than they would have in one year of kindergarten,” said Matt Keller, who runs the Ethiopia program.

The fastest learner—and the first to turn on one of the tablets—is 8-year-old Kelbesa Negusse. The device’s camera was disabled to save memory, yet within weeks Kelbesa had figured out its workings and made the camera work. He called himself a lion, a marker of accomplishment in Ethiopia.

With his tablet, Kelbasa rearranged the letters HSROE into one of the many English animal names he knows. Then he spelled words on his own. “Seven months ago he didn’t know any English. That’s unbelievable,” said Keller.

The project aims to get kids to a stage called “deep reading,” where they can read to learn. It won’t be in Amharic, Ethiopia’s first language, but in English, which is widely seen as the ticket to higher paying jobs.

1. What can we infer from Keller’s words in Paragraph 3?

A. They need more time to analyze data.

B. More children are needed for the research.

C. He is confident about the future of the project.

D. The research should be carried out in kindergartens.

2. How does the Ethiopia program benefit the kids in the village?

A. It trains teachers for them.

B. It contributes to their self-study.

C. It helps raise their living standards.

D. It provides funds for building schools.

3.What is the aim of the project?

A. To offer Ethiopians higher paying jobs.

B. To make Amharic widely used in the world.

C. To help Ethiopian kids read to learn in English.

D. To assist Ethiopians in learning their first language.

4.It amazed Keller that with the tablet Kelbesa could _______.

A. learn English words quickly.

B. draw pictures of animals.

C. write letters to researchers.

D. make phone calls to his friends.

Answer

1.C

2.B

3.C

4.A

【解析】

试题分析：本文是一篇调查研究。讲述的是美国一个团体在俄塞俄比亚没有学校和老师的地方，通过给孩子们20台平板电脑的方式看使用新技术的孩子是否能够教会自己阅读。这个计划的目的是让孩子到达一个“深读”的阶段，他们能通过阅读来学习。不是学习埃塞俄比亚的官方语言阿姆哈拉语，而是被广泛认为是获得高薪工作的“敲门砖”的英语。

1.C推理判断题。Keller认为孩子们自学学到的知识比他们在幼儿园一年学的还多，这说明他对这个计划的前景是满怀信心的。故选C。

2.B细节理解题。通过对文章的阅读可知，这个计划的目的是看看孩子们能否再没有学校和老师的情况下自学，通过这个计划人们发现这些孩子会背英文字母表，有的甚至会拼单词，这说明这个计划对孩子们的自学是有益的。故选B。

3.C细节理解题。由文章最后一段The project aims to get kids to a stage called “deep reading,” where they can read to learn. It won’t be in Amharic, Ethiopia’s first language, but in English, which is widely seen as the ticket to higher paying jobs.可知，这个计划的目的是帮助埃塞俄比亚的孩子学会用英语阅读。故选C。

4.细节理解题。通过对文章倒数第二段的阅读可知，Keller对Kelbesa在短短七个月里从不认识英语到会拼写英语感到不可思议，故选A。

考点：考查语言文化类短文阅读。