The most gifted of the “university wits” was ____.

A.Tamburlaine

B.The Jew of Malta

C.Volpone

D.The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus

A.Best writer of the English novel

B.Father of the English novel

C.the most gifted writer of the English novel

D.conventional writer of English novel

ren; thy do not have sufficient basis for comparison. Their observations may be distorted by their ambitions. However, they may be able to furnish details about the child's early development that indicate to the discerning teacher or psychologist the presence of superior ability.

Teachers who are familiar with the characteristics of gifted children and who have a chance to observe children in an informal and challenging environment can give evidence that is valuable in identifying the gifted. Teachers have daily opportunity to observe how skillfully children use language, how quickly they see relations, how sensitive they are to things in their environment, how readily they learn, how easily they remember. Moreover, gifted children usually show out- standing resourcefulness and imagination, sustained attention, and wide interests.

Classroom and playground also offer opportunities to identify children who get along exceptionally well with others and handle frustrating situations with exceptional maturity. It is most rewarding to study children's interaction in groups. However, teachers have been given little help in using these daily opportunities to identify and educate the socially gifted.

Like parental observation, teacher observation also has its pitfalls. Some teachers have a tendency to overrate the abilities of docile, obedient, conscientious children. Others fail to recognize potential giftedness that is suppressed by emotional conflicts or by boredom with dull, reutilized, teacher - dominated situations.

According to the author, parents ______.

A．are very important to experts in identifying gifted children

B．are not very reliable in identifying gifted children

C．are not very reliable in identifying gifted children

D．are more helpful than teachers in identifying gifted children

s were received enthusiastically both in England and in the United States. He was, in fact, one of the most successful writers of his time in either country, delighting a large general public and at the same time winning the admiration of fellow writers like Scott in Britain and Poe and Hawthorne in the United States. The respect in which he was held was partly owing to the man himself, with his warm friendliness, his good sense, his politeness, his gay spirits, his artistic integrity, his love of both the Old World and the New World. Thackery described Irving as"a gentleman, who, though himself born in no very high sphere, was most finished, polished, witty; socially the equal of the most refined Europeans". In England he was granted an honorary degree from Oxford—an unusual honor for a citizen of a young, uncultured nation—and he received the medal of the Royal Society of Literature; America made him ambassador to Spain. Irving's background provides little to explain his literary achievements. A gifted but delicate child, he had little schooling. He studied law, but without zeal, and never did practice seriously. He was immune to his strict Presbyterian(长老会教徒的)home environment, frequenting both social gatherings and the theater.

What is the most proper comment on Irving？

A．His works were very popular in England and the United States.

B．He was respected by many fellow writers.

C．He gained international fame by his personality and his works.

D．He is a gentleman.

such students often have little good to say about their school experience. In one study of 400 adults who had achieved distinction in all areas of life, researchers found that three-fifths of these individuals either did badly in school or were unhappy in school. Few MacArthur Prize fellows, winners of the MacArthur Award for creative accomplishment, had good things to say about their precollegiate schooling if they had not been placed in advanced programs. Anecdotal (名人轶事) reports support this. Pablo Picasso, Charles Darwin, Mark Twain, Oliver Goldsmith, and William Butler Yeats all disliked school. So did Winston Churchill, who almost failed out of Harrow, an elite British school. About Oliver Goldsmith, one of his teachers remarked, "Never was so dull a boy. " Often these children realize that they know more than their teachers, and their teachers often feel that these children are arrogant, inattentive, or unmotivated. Some of these gifted people may have done poorly in school because their gifts were not scholastic. Maybe we can account for Picasso in this way. But most fared poorly in school not because they lacked ability but because they found school unchallenging and consequently lost interest. Yeats described the lack of fit between his mind and school: "Because I had found it difficult to attend to anything less interesting than my own thoughts, I was difficult to teach." As noted earlier, gifted children of all kinds tend to be strong-willed nonconformists. Nonconformity and stubbornness (and Yeats's level of arrogance and self-absorption) are likely to lead to Conflicts with teachers.

When highly gifted students in any domain talk about what was important to the development of their abilities, they are far more likely to mention their families than their schools or teachers. A writing prodigy (神童) studied by David Feldman and Lynn Goldsmith was taught far more about writing by his journalist father than his English teacher. High-IQ children, in Australia studied by Miraca Gross had much more positive feelings about their families than their schools. About half of the mathematicians studied by Benjamin Bloom had little good to say about school. They all did well in school and took honors classes when available, and some skipped grades.

The main point the author is making about schools is that______.

A．they should satisfy the needs of students from different family backgrounds.

B．they are often incapable of catering to the needs of talented students.

C．they should organize their classes according to the students' ability.

D．they should enroll as many gifted students as possible.

s were received enthusiastically both in England and in the United States. He was, in fact, one of the most successful writers of his time in either country, delighting a large general public and at the same time winning the admiration of fellow writers like Scott in Britain and Poe and Thoreau in the United States. The respect in which he was held was partly owing to the man himself with his warm friendliness, his good sense, his politeness, his gray spirits, his artistic integrity, his love of both the old World and the New. Thackeray described Irving as a "gentleman, who, though himself born in no very high sphere, was most finished, polished, witty; socially the equal of the most refined Europeans". In England he was granted an honorary degree from Oxford—an unusual honor for a citizen of a young, uncultured nation—and he received the medal of the Royal Society of Literature; America made him ambassador to Spain. Irving's background provides little to explain his literary achievements. A gifted but delicate child, he had little Schooling. He studied law, but without zeal, and never did practice seriously. He was immune to his strict Presbyterian home environment, frequenting both social gatherings and the theater.

The main point of the first paragraph is that Washington Irving was______.

A．the world's first man of letters

B．a writer who had great success both in his own country and outside

C．a man who was able to move from America to England

D．a man whose personal achievements made him able to sell works

of how much sleep we ought to have. There are some who think we can leave the body to regulate these matters for itself. "The answer is easy," says Dr. A. Burton. "With the tight amount of sleep you should wake up fresh and alert five minutes before the alarm tings." If he is right many people must be under sleeping, including myself. But we must remember that some people have a greater inertia than others. This is not meant rudely. They switch on Slowly, and they are reluctant to switch off. They are alert at bedtime and sleepy when it is time to get up, and this may have nothing to do with how fatigued their bodies are, or how much sleep they must take to lose their fatigue.

Other people feel sure that the present trend is towards too little sleep. To quote one medical opinion, "Thousands of people drift through life suffering from the effects of too little sleep; the reason is not that they can't sleep. Like advancing colonists, we do seem to be grasping ever more of the land of sleep for our waking needs, pushing the boundary back and reaching, apparently, for a point in our evolution where we will sleep no more. This in itself, of course, need not be a bad thing. What could be disastrous, however, is that we should press too quickly towards this goal, sacrificing sleep only to gain more time in which to jeopardize our civilization by actions and decisions made weak by fatigue.

Then, to complete the picture, there are those who believe that most people are persuaded to sleep too much. Dr. H. Roberts, writing in Every Man in Health, asserts it may safely be stated also. It would be a pity to retard our development by holding back those people who are gifted enough to work and play well with less than the average amount of sleep, if indeed it does them no harm. If one of the trends of evolution is that more of the life span is to be spent in gainful waking activity, then surely these people are in the van of this advance.

The author seems to indicate that ______.

A．there are many controversial issues like the right amount of sleep

B．among many issues the right amount of sleep is the least controversial

C．people are now moving towards solving many controversial issues

D．the right amount of sleep is a topic of much controversy among doctors

阅读材料，回答题。

Washington Irving was America’s first man of letters to beknown internationally. His works were received enthusiastically both in Englandand in the United States. He was, in fact; one of the most successful writersof his time in the country, and at the same time winning the admiration offellow writers like Scott in Britain and Poe and Hawthorne in the UnitedStates. The respect in which he was held partly owing to the man himself, withhis warm friendliness, his good sense, his urbanity, his gay spirits, hisartistic integrity, his love of both the Old World and the New. Thackeray describedIrving as "a gentleman, who, though himself born in no very high sphere, wasmost finished, polished, witty; socially the equal of the most refinedEuropeans. " In England be was granted an honorary degree from Oxford anunusual honor for a citizen of a young, uncultured nation and he received themedal of the Royal Society of Literature. America made him ambassador to Spain.

Irving’s background provides little to explain his literaryachievements. A gifted but delicate child, he had little schooling. He studiedlaw, but without zeal, and never did practice seriously. He was immune to hisslrict Presbyterian home environment, frequenting both social gatherings and thetheater.

The main point of the first paragraph is that WashingtonIrving was________ 查看材料

A.America’s first man of letters

B.a writer who had great success both in and outside his owncountry

C.a man who was able to move from literature to politics

D.a man whose personal charm enabled him to get by withbasically inferior work

rk someone does and if they are capable of significant success, label them as talented. The purely quantitative route -- 'percentage definition' - looks not at individuals, but at simple percentages, such as the top five per cent of the population, and labels them -- by definition -- as gifted. This definition has fallen from favor, eclipsed by the advent of IQ tests, favored by luminaries such as Professor Hans Eysenck, where a series of written or verbal tests of general intelligence leads to a score of intelligence.

The IQ test has been eclipsed in turn. Most people studying intelligence and creativity in the new millennium now prefer a broader definition, using a multifaceted approach where talents in many areas are recognized rather than purely concentrating on academic achievement. If we are therefore assuming that talented, creative or gifted individuals may need to be assessed across a range of abilities, does this mean intelligence can run in families as a genetic or inherited tendency？ Mental dysfunction such as schizophrenia(精神分裂症)-- can, so is an efficient mental capacity passed on from parent to child？

Animal experiments throw some light on this question, and 'on the whole area of whether it is genetics, the environment or a combination of the two that allows for intelligence and creative ability. Different strains of rats show great differences in intelligence or 'rat reasoning'. If these are brought up in normal Conditions and then run through a maze to reach a food goal, the 'bright' strain make far fewer wrong turns that the 'dull' ones. But if the environment is made dull and boring the number of errors becomes equal. Return the rats to an exciting maze and the discrepancy returns as before -- but is much smaller. In other words, a dull rat in a stimulating environment will almost do as well as a bright rat who is bored in a normal one. This principle applies to humans too -- someone may be born with inborn intelligence, but their environment probably has the final say over whether they become creative or even a genius.

Evidence now exists that most young children, if given enough opportunities and encouragement, are able to achieve significant and sustainable levels of ~academic or sporting prowess. Bright or creative children are often physically very active at the same time, and so may receive more parental attention as a result almost by default -- in order to ensure their safety. They may also talk earlier, and this, in turn, breeds parental interest. This can sometimes cause problems with other siblings(兄弟姊妹)who may feel jealous even though they themselves may be bright. Their creative talents may be undervalued and so never come to fruition(实现). Two themes seem to run through famously creative families as a result. The first is that' the parents were able to identify the talents of each child, and nurture and encourage these accordingly but in an even-handed manner. Individual differences were encouraged, and friendly sibling rivalry was not seen as a particular problem. If the father is, say, a famous actor, there is no undue pressure for his children to follow him onto the boards, but instead their chosen interests are encouraged. There need not even by any obvious talent in such a family since there always needs to be someone who sets the family career in motion, as in the case of the Sheen acting dynasty.

Martin Sheen was the seventh of ten children born to a Spanish immigrant father and an Irish mother. Despite intense parental disapproval he turned his back on entrance exams to university and borrowed cash from a local priest to start a fledgling(乳臭小儿)acting career. His acting successes in films such as Badlands and Apocalypse Now made him one of the most highly-regarded actors of the 1970S. Three sons -- Emilio Estevez,' Ramon Estevez a

A．Y

B．N

C．NG

ose with fewer students are flourishing.

Fifty years ago, they were the latest thing in educational reform. big, modem, suburban high schools with students counted in the thousands. As baby boomers (二战后婴儿潮时期出生的人) came of high-school age, big schools promised economic efficiency, a greater choice of courses, and, of course, better football teams. Only years later did we understand the trade-offs this involved: the creation of excessive bureaucracies (官僚机构), the difficulty of forging personal connections between teachers and students. SAT scores began dropping in 1963; today, on average, 30% of students do not complete high school in four years, a figure that rises to 50% in poor urban neighborhoods. While the emphasis on teaching to higher, test-driven standards as set in No Child Left Behind resulted in significantly better performance in elementary (and some middle) schools, high schools for a variety of reasons seemed to have made little progress.

Size isn't everything, but it does matter, and the past decade has seen a noticeable countertrend toward smaller schools. This has been due, in part, to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has invested $1.8 billion in American high schools, helping to open about 1,000 small schools—most of them with about 400 kids each, with an average enrollment of only 150 per grade. About 500 more are on the drawing board. Districts all over the country are taking notice, along with mayors in cities like New York, Chicago and San Diego. The movement includes independent public charter schools, such as No.1 BASIS in Tucson, with only 120 high-schoolers and 18 graduates this year. It embraces district- sanctioned magnet schools, such as the Talented and Gifted School, with 198 students, and the Science and Engineering Magnet, with 383, which share a building in Dallas, as well as the City Honors School in Buffalo, N.Y., which grew out of volunteer evening seminars for students. And it includes alternative schools with students selected by lottery (抽签), such as H-B Woodlawn in Arlington, Va.And most noticeable of all, there is the phenomenon of large urban and suburban high schools that have split up into smaller units of a few hundred, generally housed in the same grounds that once boasted thousands of students all marching to the same band.

Hillsdale High School in San Mateo, Calif., is one of those, ranking No.423—among the top 2% in the country—on Newsweek's annual ranking of America's top high schools. The success of small schools is apparent in the listings. Ten years ago, when the first Newsweek list based on college-level test participation was published, only three of the top 100 schools had graduating classes smaller than 100 students. This year there are 22. Nearly 250 schools on the full Newsweek list of the top 5% of schools nationally had fewer than 200 graduates in 2007.

Although many of Hillsdale's students came from wealthy households, by the late 1990s average test scores were sliding and it had earned the unaffectionate nickname (绰号) "Hillsjail". Jeff Gilbert, a Hillsdale teacher who became principal last year, remembers sitting with other teachers watching students file out a graduation ceremony and asking one another in astonishment, "How did that student graduate？"

So in 2003 Hillsdale remade itself into three "houses", romantically named Florence, Marrakech and Kyoto. Each of the 300 arriving ninth grades are randomly (随机地) assigned to one of the houses, where they will keep the same four core subject teachers for two years, before moving on to another for 11th and 12th grades. The closeness this system cultivates is reinforced by the institution of "advisory" classes. Teachers meet with students in groups of 25, five mornings a week, for open-ended discussions of everything from homework problems to bad Saturday-night dates. The advisers also meet with students privately and stay in touch with parents, so they are deeply invested in the students' success. "We're constantly talking about one another's advisees," says English Teacher Chris Crockett. "If you hear that yours isn't doing well in math, or see them sitting outside the dean's office, it's like a personal failure." Along with the new structure came a more demanding academic program; the percentage of freshmen taking biology jumped from 17 to 95. "It was rough for some, but by senior year, two-thirds have moved up to physics," says Gilbert. "Our kids are coming to school in part because they know there are adults here who know them and care for them." But not all schools show advances after downsizing, and it remains to be seen whether smaller schools will be a cure-all solution.

The Newsweek list of top U.S. high schools was made this year, as in years past, according to a single metric, the proportion of students taking college-level exams. Over the years this system has come in for its share of criticism for its simplicity. But that is also its strength: it's easy for readers to understand, and to do the arithmetic for their own schools if they'd like.

Ranking schools is always controversial, and this year a group of 38 superintendents (地区教育主管) from five states wrote to ask that their schools be excluded from the calculation. "It is impossible to know which high schools are 'the best 'in the nation," their letter read, in part. "Determining whether different schools do or don't offer a high quality of education requires a look at many different measures, including students' overall academic accomplishments and their subsequent performance in college, and taking into consideration the unique needs of their communities."

In the end, the superintendents agreed to provide the data we sought, which is, after all, public information. There is, in our view, no real dispute here; we are all seeking the same thing, which is schools that better serve our children and our nation by encouraging students to tackle tough subjects under the guidance of gifted teachers. And if we keep working toward that goal, someday, perhaps, a list won't be necessary.

1.Fifty years ago, big, modem, suburban high schools were established in the hope of ______.

A. ensuring no child is left behind

B. increasing economic efficiency

C. improving students' performance on SAT

D. providing good education for baby boomers