单选题 The effect of the baby boom on the schools helped to make possible a shift in thinking about the role of public education in the 1920's. In the 1920's, but especially (1) the Depression of the 1930's, the United States experienced a (2) birth rate. Then with the prosperity (3) on by the Second World War and the economic boom that followed it, young people married and (4) households earlier and began to (5) larger families than had their (6) during the Depression. Birth rates rose to 102 per thousand in 1946, 106.2 in 1950, and t18 in 1955. (7) economics was probably the most important (8) , it is not the only explanation for the baby boom. The increased value placed (9) the idea of the family also helps to (10) this rise in birth rates. The baby boomers began streaming (11) the first grade by the mid-1940's and became a (12) by 1950. The public school system suddenly found itself (13) The wartime economy meant that few new schools were built between 1940 and 1945. (14) , large numbers of teachers left their profession during that period for better-paying jobs elsewhere.
(15) , in the 1950's, the baby boom hit an antiquated and inadequate school system. Consequently, the custodial rhetoric of the 1930's no longer made (16) ; keeping youths ages sixteen and older out of the labor market by keeping them in school could no longer be a high (17) for an institution unable to find space and staff to teach younger children. With the baby boom, the focus of educators (18) turned toward the lower grades and back to basic academic skills and (19) . The system no longer had much (20) in offering nontraditional, new, and extra services to older youths.

单选题 A. in B. for C. at D. on
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】表示“在三十年代的萧条期中”应用介词in。
单选题 A. accelerating B. strengthening C. declining D. fluctuating
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】此处需要根据下文判断：随着第二次世界大战带来的经济繁荣，这个时代的年轻人比起他们经历过大萧条的前辈，结婚更早，并且生育的子女也更多。出生率上升到……因此此处关于大萧条时期的婴儿出生率应该填declining。
单选题 A. took B. produced C. brought D. carried
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】bring on带来，导致；carry on实施，实行(计划、措施)；take on呈现。
单选题 A. adopted B. incorporated C. administered D. established
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】establish households成家。
单选题 A. increase B. raise C. erect D. generate
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】raise large families养活一大家子。
单选题 A. predecessors B. successors C. processors D. oppressors
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】predecessor前辈，前人；successor后辈，后人。
单选题 A. Since B. Despite C. Although D. Unless
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】转折关系。这句话大意是：尽管经济可能是最重要的因素，但它并不是出现生育高峰的惟一原因。
单选题 A. tenant B. determinant C. lubricant D. repentant
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】determinant决定因素；tenant房客；lubricant润滑剂；repentant后悔的，悔悟的。
单选题 A. at B. on C. for D. with
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】place value on．．．认为……有价值，注意place．．．on...的常用搭配。
单选题 A. demonstrate B. interpret C. exhibit D. explain
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】联系上下文，这里应该填入表示“解释”的词；排除A和C两项；再看前面的一句话中出现了单词explanation，那么这里填其动词形式explain。interpret作“解释”讲时多指对复杂问题的较深入的解释。
单选题 A. through B. across C. into D. towards
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】stream into涌进。
单选题 A. creek B. flood C. bonus D. pledge
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】很容易排除C和D。在A和B之间作判断时，从前面的stream into可以推知只有 flood是合适的。
单选题 A. overtaxed B. overdosed C. overweighed D. overlapped
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】overtaxed负荷的；overdosed药量过多的；overweighed 超重的；overlapped重叠的。
单选题 A. Moreover B. However' C. Otherwise D. Thus
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】表示境况的进一步恶化。
单选题 A. Nevertheless B. Therefore C. Furthermore D. Hence fore
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】表示因果关系；
单选题 A. sense B. meaning C. sensible D. meaningful
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】make sense词组，表示“有意义”。
单选题 A. notoriety B. compatibility C. proximity D. priority
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】priority优先，首要；notoriety恶名，丑名；compatibility兼容性；proximity接近，亲近。
单选题 A. refutably B. indispensably C. inevitably D. respectively
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】inevitably不可避免的；refutably可反驳的；indispensably不可缺少的；respectively分别地，各自地。
单选题 A. conference B. symposium C. seminar D. discipline
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】discipline此处是“学科”的意思；conference会议；symposium讨论会，座谈会；seminar研讨会。
单选题 A. ability B. advantage C. benefit D. interest
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】have interest in．一对……有兴趣，固定搭配；ability能力；advantage优势；benefit益处。