Are
we "Math People" or "English People"? The earliest hint of
verbal dexterity is enough to earn a language ability label while the slightest
struggle with a mathematical concept might as well come with a forehead stamped
"{{U}}mathematically inept{{/U}}." "The common wisdom in the United
States is that mathematical ability is somehow innate, and there are people who,
no matter how hard they try, will not be able to achieve in mathematics," said
A1 Cuoco, director of the Center for Mathematics Education at Educational
Department Center Inc, a nonprofit in Newton, who has taught math since the late
1960s. Struggling in math is socially acceptable, while having
trouble reading is reason for worry. Why the stigma around numbers?
Cuoco said the belief that you've got a math gene is "an American
phenomenon." In the United States, he said, "kids from a very young age are put
into two categories: those who get {{U}}it{{/U}} and those who don't. In other
countries, the {{U}}perspective{{/U}} is that if you work hard and apply yourself,
anyone can achieve mathematics at an advanced high school level."
Abby Coyle, 15, of Newton, a sophomore at Dana Hall School, an all-girls
campus in Wellesley, has long noticed educators putting math and English at
opposite poles. "It seems there is always a distinct
classification between math and science and English and social studies," said
Coyle. Part of making your way through elementary school, she said, is figuring
out if you're better at math or English. "Once you fit into one, you don't
concentrate on the other side," said Coyle, who said it has taken effort to see
herself as good at both. The cultural divide around math is not
just about sorting students into math-focused and English-focused, but to make
assumptions based on gender. Are boys better at math? Do girls soar in English?
These may be common presumptions, but research
suggests.
单选题
According to the widespread belief in the United States, the ability in mathematics is ______.
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[分析] 细节题型
见第三段：“The common wisdom in the United States is that mathematical ability is somehow innate, and there are people who, no matter how hard they try, will not be able to achieve in mathematics, ...”(在美国人们的共识是不知什么原因数学能力是天生的，有些人无论如何努力却无法在数学上有所成就……)；因此B为答案。
单选题
The "mathematically inept" underlined in Paragraph 2 most probably means showing ______.