2014年5月北京地区成人英语三级考试真题及答案解析Part I Reading Comprehension (30%)Directions: There are three passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice and blacken the corresponding letter m the Answer Sheet. Passage 1Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following passage:The first year of school in America, known as kindergarten, usually begins between the ages of five and six. Among rich countries such a late start is very strange. President Obama believes it is an economic and social problem; his education secretary goes as far as to say that it is morally wrong. This statement has some support, as it is clear from research into vocabulary that youngsters from poor families enter kindergarten well behind those from rich familiesa disadvantage that usually lasts a lifetime. Children from households on welfare knew 525 words by the age of three, while the children of professionals had mastered 1,116.(76) Pre.school can help close this gap. So in a speech last month, Mr, Obama called for a partnership between the federal government and the states to expand it to every American child. It later became known that every meant those who come from families with incomes of up to 200% above the poverty lineequal to an income of $47,000 for a family of four.(77) Some critics say that sending children to school at the age of four does not work. The evidence suggests otherwise. For example, on March 20th new results were announced from a study of 9.to.l 1.year.olds in New Jersey. This report found that disadvantaged children who had attended pre.school had better literacy (读写能力), language, maths and science skills. And two years of pre.kindergarten were better than one.Some studies also follow the effects of early learning over lifetimes, such as its effect on crime rates and other factors that may eventually burden society. Critics have singled out a government scheme called Head Start, created in 1965, which provides poor households with a range of services including school.based early education.1Kindergarten in rich countries other than America usually begins at the age of _A. eight B. seven C. six D. four2According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?A. Poor pre.school kids have a larger vocabulary than rich kids.B. President Obama believes that early education can solve all economic and social problems.C. Rich pre.school kids have a richer vocabulary than poor kids.D. President Obamas education secretary thinks it is morally wrong to let kids start kindergarten early.3Which of the following about the New Jersey study is TRUE?A. There is no evidence to support the New Jersey study.B. New Jersey has created a new Head Start to help disadvantaged kids.C. Sending children to school at the age of four is not going to help.D. Two years of pre.kindergarten were better than one.4The phrase single out in the last paragraph means _.A. choose B. think about C. count D. depend on5Which of the following is an appropriate title for this passage?A. Secondary Education B. Pre.school EducationC. Poor Kids Education D. Rich Kids Education答案详解：1. D four第一段第一句说美国的幼儿园一般在五到六岁开始，第二句说在富裕国家里这么晚才开始是十分奇怪的，所以是在五岁以前，综合答案选择D，四岁。2. C Rich pre-school kids have a richer vocabulary than poor kids.第一第四句中提到，根据调查，贫困家庭的孩子在词汇方面要落后于富有家庭的孩子，而这种差距往往会持续一生。所以选C。3. D Two years of pre-kindergarten were better than one. 倒数第二段第三四句讲到，参加学前教育的孩子在读写能力、语言能力、数学能力和科学能力上均有更好的表现，而有两年的学前教育效果要好于一年，所以选D。4. A choose本句的句意是批评者们选择了一个叫做“头脑启蒙”政府计划来其他的选项分别都B 考虑 C计数D依赖5. B Pre-school Education本文通篇都在探讨的是学前教。A选项未提到，CD均为学前教育研究的一部分，所以选B。Passage 2Questions 6 to 10 are based on the following passage:Humans may not have landed on Mars (火星) just yet, but that isnt shopping a European company from devising a plan to send four people to the Red Planet within the next few years. (78) This project, called Mars One, aims to send a small group of people to Mars in 2022 and eventually establish a permanent colony on the planet.Everything we need to go to Mars exists, said Mars One co.founder Bas Lansdorp in March 2014. We have the rockets to send people to Mars, the equipment to land on Mars, the robots to prepare the settlement for humans. For a one.way mission, all the technology exists. Yet the four astronauts (宇航员) chosen for the trip will be stuck on Marsforever. And despite Mars Ones thorough planning, there are a number of challenges that may prevent the mission from ever taking place. (79) The biggest road block could be the missions huge cost ($6 billion). However, Lansdorp is confident that Mars One will be able to fund the project by selling the broadcast rights for the