The evidence keeps mounting that America is no longer a leader when it comes to educating its children. The dangerous situation is exposed by each new report on the data. The National Assessment of Educational Progress shows little improvement over the decades. The achievement gap between the black and the white is as wide as ever. SAT scores are declining. I am convinced that one of the reasons is that the school day and year are too short. Without additional time, it is virtually impossible for students behind grade level—particularly poor and minority students—to catch up.
Longer school days can lead to fewer crimes committed by young people and a decline in teen pregnancies (怀孕). An extended school day gives administrators the ability to ensure that children get a well-rounded education. Many schools today are sacrificing social studies, the arts and physical education, so that children can cover basic subjects like math, English and science. This is hurting children across America.
Extending the school day would also help families. In two-parent households, women have increasingly entered the workplace, and in single-parent households, there is even more of a need for the adults to work. That means parents do not fully control their own schedule, since they have to scramble to find high-quality after-school options.
What happens when children are not engaged in enriching activities is well-documented: crimes committed by youths in the hours immediately after school soar, as do teen pregnancies. These hours can either provide an opportunity for children to grow or to get bored and drift into self-destructive behaviour. Meanwhile, our global competitors are keeping students in school longer, giving them a better shot at success. Failing to do our best to educate all of America's children is a mistake that will hurt this country for years to come.

单选题 Which is the specific proof about the dangerous situation of American education?

【正确答案】 B

【答案解析】本题考查对文章大意及细节的掌握。由题干中的the dangerous situation定位到第一段第二句。该句提及美国统计数据报告显示了这种危险的情况。第四、五句进一步给出相关证据：黑人和白人取得成就的差距跟以前一样大；学术能力评估考试的成绩在下降。B)是对第五句的同义转述，因此为最佳答案。

单选题 What's the advantage of extending the school day?

单选题 What is hurting children all over America?

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】由题干中的hurting children all over America定位到第二段最后一句，由此可以将该句中的This所指的内容定位到前一句。这两句意为“现在许多学校牺牲了社会研究、艺术和体育课程的教学时间，以便学生们学习诸如数学、英语和科学等基础课程，这种做法给全美的孩子带来危害”，因此D)“全面教育的缺乏”为最佳答案。