2013—2014学年下学期高中二年级第二次阶段性考试

英 语 试 题

命题人：韩平 2014.5.28

第Ⅰ卷

Ⅰ阅读15×2=30分

A

My husband Ollie had retired from teaching and we were making plans to travel together to Florida. Then he was terribly ill and became very weak, hardly able to speak. Weeks passed and it became clear that Ollie was near death, but I prayed day and night that he could get better.

One of us was always in Ollie's hospital room--either me, or our grown children, Bruce and Karen. One day, in his broken and weak speech, Ollie told Bruce, "Go home. You should be with Gwen. " Gwen was Bruce's wife. They had been married for six years and lived hundreds of miles away. Gwen was about to have a baby. We felt an extra sadness, knowing Ollie would never see his first grandchild.

"I don't want to leave you, dad," Bruce said. Ollie repeated, "You should be with Gwen. " Reluctantly, Bruce left. "When the baby comes," he promised Ollie, "you will be the first to know. " A few days later, around 2 p. m., Ollie awoke from a sleep. He turned and looked at me. I sat close to hear his weak words. "The baby is coming now. It's a boy," he said. For a moment his eyes were filled with tears. Then he went back to sleep again. Not long after that, Karen ran into the room. "Bruce called," she said, a smile lighting her face. " Gwen gave birth to a healthy baby boy around two o' clock. "

Ollie smiled; he had been the first to know. That night, Ollie died in his sleep.

1. Ollie didn't travel to Florida because

A. he was too weak to travel

B. he could hardly be able to speak

C. he could not afford the trip

D. he was waiting for his grandchild to be born

2. Why did Ollie want Bruce to be with Gwen?

A. Ollie thought it was too much trouble for Bruce to stay at hospital.

B. Ollie wanted Bruce to bring the baby along as soon as it was born.

C. Ollie didn't want his son to be absent when his baby was born.

D. Ollie couldn't bear his son seeing him dying with a broken heart.

3. The underlined word in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to .

A. Disappointedly B. Unwillingly

C. Excitedly D. Immediately

4. What can we learn from the passage?

A. Ollie and his wife had planned to settle in Florida.

B. Ollie cared for his son more than his daughter.

C. Ollie was sad about not being able to see his first grandchild.

D. Ollie died happy and in peace.

B

The South Korean Ministry of education is investing $ 2.4 billion into making the country's school system completely digital. The plan is to get rid of textbooks and replace them with digital learning materials stored in a central database, which students would get into with PCs. Though some digital education programs have been tried in the U.S. and other countries, few can match the South Korean plan. While it will certainly be interesting to spread out, a completely paperless school system will surely stand for other countries to follow. Perhaps the digital learning revolution will have its start in Seoul.

The digital developments have improved our personal lives. It was a matter of time before they would finally have an effect on other fields. It's an exciting time in education--whether you're a CEO setting plans for growth, an IT expert making new technology decisions or an educator giving lively courses. All of us are connected by the movement of a more digital campus. Today's generation has integrated web-based technology into their daily lives. Expectations are forming: lively content-anytime, anywhere and on any equipment. And those expectations aren't just for fun--they're spreading into the educational space as well. Expanding our digital footprint isn't just an excitement-it's a necessity. And CEOs and IT experts aren't the only ones feeling the pressure to improve--educators are as well.

More and more studies report a change from teaching to learning--moving away from giving lectures of facts to encouraging skills of self-study, analysis and learning paths ; from courses built using a single textbook to numbers of available publisher materials ; and from dull content to lively digital advantages that connect the learners, providing real-time response. Students aren't the only ones benefiting from this change. Educators can now easily build lively online courses while increasing student outcomes.

5. Why does the author take the South Korean's decision for example?

A. To introduce digital education's role and value.

B. To prove even a small country has a great dream.

C. To call on all the countries to carry out digital education.

D. To persuade American government to carry out digital education.

6. What can we learn from the second paragraph?

A. Digital developments have nothing to do with our daily life.

B. CEOs and IT experts have more pressure to make work plans.

C. Educators should use digital techniques to make classes exciting.

D. Digital education will sooner or later be carried out across the world.

7. The underlined word "integrated" is closest in meaning to ________

A. direct B. advise C. combine D. admit

8. The use of digital technology in education is _________

A. a success for teachers and students to make friends

B. a revolution of teaching to learning with many advantages

C. an advance to attract more students to learn IT knowledge

D. an improvement in making more companies to support schools

C

India is traditionally a tea-drinking country. But, it is now gaining a new taste for coffee. This has led international coffee companies to consider opening businesses in the huge market. Local business people are also hoping to profit from the country's tea-drinking habits. They want to open new stores that offer tea.

In the past ten years, cafes have become increasingly popular in India. The country's huge young population has quickly taken to the coffee culture. Coffee stores have spread from major cities like New Delhi and Mumbai to smaller towns. Coffee use has doubled in the last ten years. It is the success of this market that has gained the attention of companies like the American-based coffee chain Starbucks. The company will open its first store in India later this year. Other companies like Lavazza, Rancilio and Costa Coffee are already there.

The head of India Coffee Trust, Anil Bhandari, praises Starbucks's decision. "Cafés in India have become central to the lifestyle of the young middle-class as incomes grow and global trends gain popularity. They should have been here before. Almost anycafé chain which has a reasonable quality with its service, food and coffee, will succeed in this country. Because the young population is growing and they are all taking to it like ducks to water," he said.

Yet, the growth of coffee is not to reduce the popularity of

tea. Indians drink eight times more tea than coffee. They have been drinking tea for more than 150 years. India is one of the world's biggest producers of tea, which is known locally as " chai ". Outside homes and offices, it is mostly sold by small businesses on the street.

That is what businessmen like Amuleek hope to change. The thirty-six-year-old graduated from Harvard University. He has opened a tea store called Chai Point in Bangalore. In less than a year, fourteen Chai Points have opened in the city.

Business experts note that half of India's population of over one billion is under 25. They say both cafés and tea places will find room to grow.

9. Which of the following companies hasn't opened a store in India so far?

A. Lavazza. B. Rancilio. C. Costa Coffee. D. Starbucks.

10. We can learn from Anil Bhandari's words that

A. cafes in India are small and crowded

B. the old Indians do not like drinking coffee

C. there is a big potential market for coffee in India

D. the young Indians like making friends in cafés

11. What does Amuleek expect to take place in Bangalore?

A. More coffee stores are appearing.

B. More tea stores replace small tea businesses on the street.

C. Coffee is reducing the popularity of tea.

D. More Indians are selling tea on the street.

12. In which section of a newspaper can you read this passage?

A. Technology. B. Economy. C. Culture. D. Environment.

D

Some people make you feel comfortable when they are around. You spend an hour with them and feel as if you have known them half your life. These people have something in common. And once we know what it is, we can try to do it ourselves.

How is it done? Here are several skills that good talkers have. If you follow the skills, they'll help you put people at their ease, and make friends with them quickly.

First of all, good talkers ask questions. Almost anyone, no matter how shy he is, will answer a question. One well-known businesswoman says, "At business lunches,1 always ask people what they did that morning. It's a common question, but it will get things going. " From there you can move on to other matters--sometimes to really personal questions. And how he answers will let you know how far you can go.

Second, once good talkers have asked questions, they listen to the answers. This point seems clear, but it isn't. Your questions should have a point and help to tell what sort of person you are talking to. And to find out, you really have to listen carefully and attentively.

Real listening at least means some things. First it means not to change the subject of conversation. If someone sticks to one topic, you can take it as a fact that, he's really interested in it. Real listening also means not just listening to words, but to tones of voice. If the voice sounds dull, then, it's time for you to change the subject.

Finally, good talkers know well how to deal with the occasion of parting. If you're saying good-bye, you