单选题
The familiar sounds of an early English summer are with us once again. Millions of children sit clown to SATs, GCSEs, AS-levels, A-levels and a host of lesser exams, and the argument over educational standards starts. Depending on whom you listen to, we should either be letting up on over-examined pupils by abolishing SATs, and even GCSEs, or else making exams far more rigorous. The chorus will reach a peak when GCSE and A-level results are published in August. If pass rates rise again, commentators will say that standards are falling because exams are getting easier. If pass rates drop, they will say that standards are falling because children are getting lower marks. Parents like myself try to ignore this and base our judgements on what our children are learning. But it's not easy given how much education has changed since we were at school. Some trends are encouraging—education has been made more relevant and enthuses many children that it would have previously bored. My sons' A-level French revision involved listening to radio debates on current affairs, whereas mine involved rereading Molière. And among their peers, a far greater proportion stayed in education for longer. On the other hand, some aspects of schooling today are incomprehensible to my generation, such as graps in general knowledge and the hand-holding that goes with ensuring that students leave with good grades. Even when we parents resist the temptation to help with GCSE or A-level coursework, a teacher with the child's interests at heart may send a draft piece of work back several times with pointers to how it can be improved before the examiners see it. The debate about standards persists because there is no single objective answer to the question "Are standards better or worse than they were a generation ago?" Each side points to indicators that favour them, in the knowledge that there is no authoritative definition, let alone a measure that has been consistently applied over the decades. But the annual soul-searching over exams is about more than student assessment. It reveals a national insecurity about whether our education system is teaching the right things. It is also fed by an anxiety about whether, in a country with a history of upholding standards by ensuring that plenty of students fail, we can attain the more modern objective of ensuring that every child leaves school with something to show for it.
单选题
It can be concluded from Paragraph 1 that ______. A. SATs is one of the most rigorous exams mentioned B. it has been debated if children should be given exams C. few parents approve of the exam systems in England D. each year children have to face up to some new exams
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 本题是判断对错题。根据文中第一段的最后一句“…or else making exams far more rigorous”可知，SATS是所提及的最难的考试之一。答案为A。
单选题
Parents try to judge the educational standards by ______. A. whether their children have passed the exams B. what knowledge their children have acquired C. what educators say about curriculum planning D. whether their children's school scores are stable
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[解析] 本题是细节题。根据文中第二段倒数第二句“Parents like myself try to ignore this and base our judgments on what our children are learning．”可知，像我一样的家长们努力去忽略这些，而是根据自己孩子学到的东西给出自己的判断。由此可知，B项符合题意。
单选题
To the author, the rereading of Molière was ______. A. dreary B. routine C. outmoded D. arduous
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查推断能力。根据第三段第二句话“My sons' A-level French revision involved listening to radio debates on current affairs，whereas mine involved rereading Molière．”可知，我儿子的A-level法语复习涉及通过收音机收听有关时事新闻的报道，然而我的复习涉及重读莫里哀的作品。这个例子是用来说明第三段第一句话的：以前许多学生认为教育枯燥无趣，但现在很多学生喜欢上学。所以A项符合题意。
单选题
To the author's generation, it is beyond understanding today why ______. A. teachers lay great stress on helping students obtain good grades B. teachers show much concern for students' future C. parents help little with their children's coursework D. parents focus on their children's general knowledge
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 本题是细节题。根据文中第四段的第一句“On the other hand，some aspects of schooling today are incomprehensible to my generation，such as gaps in general knowledge and the hand-holding that goes with ensuring that students leave with good grades．”可知，A选项符合题意。
单选题
According to the passage, with respect to educational standards in Britain, ______. A. no authorities have ever made a comment B. no one has ever tried to give them a definition C. no effective ways have been taken to apply them D. no consistent yardstick has ever been used
单选题
In the author's opinion, the school education in Britain has been ______. A. inflexible B. irresponsible C. unsuccessful D. unforgivable
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[解析] 本题考查细节。根据最后一段倒数第二句“It reveals a national insecurity about whether our education system is teaching the right things．”可知，这表明了一个国家的不安全性，即是否我们的教育体系在教授正确的东西，由此可知，C选项符合题意。