问答题
There are six questions in this section. For each question, you will be given a short time to prepare your response. When the preparation time is up, answer the question as completely as possible in the time indicated for that question. You should record your responses so that you can review them later and compare them with the answer key and scoring rubrics.
There are six questions in this section. For each question, you will be given a short time to prepare your response. When the preparation time is up, answer the question as completely as possible in the time indicated for that question. You should record your responses so that you can review them later and compare them with the answer key and scoring rubrics.
问答题
You will now be asked to speak about a familiar topic. Give yourself 15 seconds to prepare your response. Then record yourself speaking for 45 seconds.
Listen to Track 76.
Sometimes one individual can have a great impact on a group or community. Select one person and explain how you think this person has affected others in the group or community. Give specific details and examples to explain your answer.
【正确答案】There are many ways you could answer this particular question. You first need to choose one person and explain how that person has had a great impact on a group. It is important to provide an explanation for your choice beyond simply stating that the person is important or great. You should provide clear support so that your listeners understand why this person was important or great.
As an example, you may choose to talk about a person that you work with. You could say that this person is a very good leader, and this person's leadership has enabled your company to achieve many great things, such as obtain many new clients. Also, you could say that this person has had an effect on the other members of the group because the other members have followed this person's example to be better employees.
Your response should be intelligible, should demonstrate effective use of grammar and vocabulary, and should be well developed and coherent. Your response is scored using the Independent Speaking Rubric (see Appendix A).
【答案解析】[解析]
Narrator
Sometimes one individual can have a great impact on a group or community. Select one person and explain how you think this person has affected others in the group or community. Give specific details and examples to explain your answer.
Narrator
Sometimes one individual can have a great impact on a group or community. Select one person and explain how you think this person has affected others in the group or community. Give specific details and examples to explain your answer.
问答题
You will now be asked to give your opinion about a familiar topic. Give yourself 15 seconds to prepare your response. Then record yourself speaking for 45 seconds.
Listen to Track 77.
When some people visit a city or country for the first time, they prefer to take an organized tour. Other people prefer to explore new places on their own. Which do you prefer and why?
【正确答案】To respond to this particular question, you should clearly state what your opinion is: do you prefer to take an organized tour when visiting a place for the first time, or do you prefer to explore the new place on your own? There is no "correct" answer to this question. Whichever option you prefer, your answer should be supported with examples.
If you think that it is better to take an organized tour, you could say that a tour is better, especially if you do not know much about the new place. You might not know where to go or what to see. Plus, the guide will have more knowledge than you do. You might give a specific example of a tour that you have been on yourself.
If you prefer to explore a place on your own, you might say that a tour would limit you, because you would be told where to go. There might be a situation where you want to stay in one place for a longer time, but the tour would not allow this. In this case, you could also give a specific example of a time when you explored a place on your own and why this was good.
It is important to make sure that you state your opinion and develop your response with good examples and relevant details.
Your response should be intelligible, should demonstrate effective use of grammar and vocabulary, and should be well developed and coherent. Your response is scored using the Independent Speaking Rubric (see Appendix A).
【答案解析】[解析]
Narrator
When some people visit a city or country for the first time, they prefer to take an organized tour. Other people prefer to explore new places on their own. Which do you prefer and why?
Narrator
When some people visit a city or country for the first time, they prefer to take an organized tour. Other people prefer to explore new places on their own. Which do you prefer and why?
问答题
You will now read a short passage and listen to a conversation on the
same topic. You will then be asked a question about them. After you hear the
question, give yourself 30 seconds to prepare your response. Then record
yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Listen to Track 78.
We are happy to announce that Professor Fox will be filling the vacant Dean of Students position. Strong organizational skills are important for this position. Professor Fox has demonstrated such skills in her role as Head of the Philosophy Department, where she has coordinated department affairs for five years. Additionally, the Dean of Students must be someone who is able to work well with students, since responsibilities include counseling and advising students who are dealing with personal problems. As our head women's soccer coach, Professor Fox has proven to be a supportive role model for team members, always offering assistance when they ask for personal guidance.
Listen to Track 79.
Listen to Track 78.
Professor Fox Accepts New
Position
We are happy to announce that Professor Fox will be filling the vacant Dean of Students position. Strong organizational skills are important for this position. Professor Fox has demonstrated such skills in her role as Head of the Philosophy Department, where she has coordinated department affairs for five years. Additionally, the Dean of Students must be someone who is able to work well with students, since responsibilities include counseling and advising students who are dealing with personal problems. As our head women's soccer coach, Professor Fox has proven to be a supportive role model for team members, always offering assistance when they ask for personal guidance.
Listen to Track 79.
【正确答案】To respond to this particular question, you should state the woman's opinion of the university's decision to give the position of Dean of Students to Professor Fox. In this case, the woman disagrees with the decision.
After stating that the woman disagrees with the decision, you should convey the two main reasons she gives for holding that opinion. You will need to connect information from the conversation to the reading in order for the response to be complete. The woman says that the first reason given for appointing Professor Fox—that she has strong organizational skills—is not valid. You should provide as her explanation either that some classes were cancelled because Professor Fox did not organize enough teaching assistants or that she missed a philosophy course in Europe because Professor Fox did not sign her paperwork in time.
Your response should also convey the woman's second reason for not agreeing with the university's decision to make Professor Fox Dean of Students. The woman disagrees that Professor Fox works well with students. As support, she says that Professor Fox has an aggressive coaching style. She also gives an example of her friend who was criticized by Professor Fox when she was looking for emotional support. This shows that, in the woman's opinion, Professor Fox would not be a good Dean of Students.
As you need to discuss both of the woman's reasons for disagreeing with the university's decision, you should not include too much detail from the reading or concentrate too much on one of the reasons. Give yourself enough time to discuss both reasons.
Your response should be intelligible, should demonstrate effective use of grammar and vocabulary, and should be well developed and coherent. Your response is scored using the Integrated Speaking Rubric (see Appendix A).
【答案解析】[解析]
TRACK 78 TRANSCRIPT
Narrator
A university professor is switching to a new position. Read the article from the university about the professor. You will have 45 seconds to read the article. Begin reading now.
TRACK 79 TRANSCRIPT
Narrator
Now listen to two students discussing the article.
Female student
I don't like this at all.
Male student
Why not? She's done a lot for the philosophy department... like, well, hiring some great new teaching assistants... and putting together seminars.
Female student
Well, she has trouble organizing schedules.
Male student
Whadda'ya mean?
Female student
Well, she only realized last minute that she didn't have enough teaching assistants in the department, so some classes got cancelled.
Male student
Oh!
Female student
And I wanted to take a special two-week philosophy course in Europe... she was supposed to sign all the paperwork, but she didn't do it in time so I missed the whole trip!
Male student
Oh, wow. So organization's not her strong point, I guess.
Female student
Yeah. Besides, she's always critical. A lot of us on the team have complained to the university about her aggressive coaching style.
Male student
Oh, really? I met her... mean, l thought she was nice.
Female student
Humph! Well, my friend... she had some serious problems in her family. She went to talk to Professor Fox and...
Male student
Yeah? What happened?
Female student
Well, she wanted emotional support from someone she looked up to, but instead Professor Fox made all kinds of critical comments. Maybe she's good at philosophy, but she's not a counselor. When students go to the dean, they go because they need someone to talk to, not so someone can criticize them.
Narrator
The woman expresses her opinion about the change described in the article. Briefly summarize the change. Then state her opinion about the change and explain the reasons she gives for holding that opinion.
TRACK 78 TRANSCRIPT
Narrator
A university professor is switching to a new position. Read the article from the university about the professor. You will have 45 seconds to read the article. Begin reading now.
TRACK 79 TRANSCRIPT
Narrator
Now listen to two students discussing the article.
Female student
I don't like this at all.
Male student
Why not? She's done a lot for the philosophy department... like, well, hiring some great new teaching assistants... and putting together seminars.
Female student
Well, she has trouble organizing schedules.
Male student
Whadda'ya mean?
Female student
Well, she only realized last minute that she didn't have enough teaching assistants in the department, so some classes got cancelled.
Male student
Oh!
Female student
And I wanted to take a special two-week philosophy course in Europe... she was supposed to sign all the paperwork, but she didn't do it in time so I missed the whole trip!
Male student
Oh, wow. So organization's not her strong point, I guess.
Female student
Yeah. Besides, she's always critical. A lot of us on the team have complained to the university about her aggressive coaching style.
Male student
Oh, really? I met her... mean, l thought she was nice.
Female student
Humph! Well, my friend... she had some serious problems in her family. She went to talk to Professor Fox and...
Male student
Yeah? What happened?
Female student
Well, she wanted emotional support from someone she looked up to, but instead Professor Fox made all kinds of critical comments. Maybe she's good at philosophy, but she's not a counselor. When students go to the dean, they go because they need someone to talk to, not so someone can criticize them.
Narrator
The woman expresses her opinion about the change described in the article. Briefly summarize the change. Then state her opinion about the change and explain the reasons she gives for holding that opinion.
问答题
You will now read a short passage and listen to a lecture on the same
topic. You will then be asked a question about them. After you hear the
question, give yourself 30 seconds to prepare your response. Then record
yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Listen to Track 80.
It is generally believed that for many organisms, there is a specific time period, a so-called "window of opportunity," during which the organism must receive crucial input from its environment in order for normal development to occur. This period is called the critical period. If the needed environmental input is not received during this period, the normal development of certain physical attributes or behaviors may never occur. In other words, if the organism is not provided with the needed stimulus or influence during the critical period, it may permanently lose the capacity to ever obtain a particular physical attribute or behavior.
Listen to Track 81.
Listen to Track 80.
Critical Period
It is generally believed that for many organisms, there is a specific time period, a so-called "window of opportunity," during which the organism must receive crucial input from its environment in order for normal development to occur. This period is called the critical period. If the needed environmental input is not received during this period, the normal development of certain physical attributes or behaviors may never occur. In other words, if the organism is not provided with the needed stimulus or influence during the critical period, it may permanently lose the capacity to ever obtain a particular physical attribute or behavior.
Listen to Track 81.
【正确答案】To respond to this particular question you should first explain the idea of a critical period as it was presented in the reading. The critical period is a specific time period for many organisms. Organisms must receive external or environmental input during this critical period in order to develop normally. Do not spend too much time summarizing all of the content of the reading.
You should then use the examples given by the professor to explain critical periods. In the first example, the professor discusses a critical period that affects a physical attribute. Vision in kittens will not develop normally if they are not exposed to light within the first four months of life. In the second example, the professor discusses a critical period affecting a behavior. Baby geese will adopt whatever large moving object they first see within the first two days of their lives as their parent. They will follow this "parent" even if it's a different species. That behavior cannot be changed even if a real goose reappears.
You do not need to repeat all of the details from the reading and the lecture, but instead integrate points from both to answer the question completely. For this question, you need to give yourself enough time to talk about both examples.
Your response should be intelligible, should demonstrate effective use of grammar and vocabulary, and should be well developed and coherent. Your response is scored using the Integrated Speaking Rubric (see Appendix A).
【答案解析】[解析]
TRACK 80 TRANSCRIPT
Narrator
Read the following paragraph from a psychology textbook. You will have 45 seconds to read the passage. Begin reading now.
TRACK 81 TRANSCRIPT
Narrator
Now listen to part of a lecture in a psychology class.
Professor
Let's start with a physical attribute, say, uh, in kittens. Adult cats have extremely good vision, especially at night. But in order for a kitten's eyesight to develop normally, the kitten must be exposed to light during the first four months of its life. Without that, its eyesight will not develop correctly, it will never be able to see as well as it should. Even if the kitten is exposed to plenty of light after those four months of darkness, it won't matter, its vision will never develop normally.
As far as behavior's concerned, well, have you ever seen how little baby geese line up and then, single-file, they follow their parent goose around? Well, what would happen if they didn't see a parent goose within the first two days of their lives?
Actually, for normal behavior to develop, they must see what to follow within these first two days. What happens is, whatever large moving object they first see during those two days, they'll adopt that object as their parent... forever. It can never be changed. For example, suppose after the baby geese were hatched, the only other animal around was, I don't know, say a dog. OK? So the baby geese see a dog, but no other geese. Even though the dog is a totally different species, the geese will adopt it as their parent—they'll follow it around. And even if the parent geese reappear later, it won't matter to the babies—they'll follow the dog. After two days the behavior is fixed and they'll never exhibit the normal behavior of following their real parent—a goose.
Narrator
Using the examples of kittens and geese, explain the idea of a critical period.
TRACK 80 TRANSCRIPT
Narrator
Read the following paragraph from a psychology textbook. You will have 45 seconds to read the passage. Begin reading now.
TRACK 81 TRANSCRIPT
Narrator
Now listen to part of a lecture in a psychology class.
Professor
Let's start with a physical attribute, say, uh, in kittens. Adult cats have extremely good vision, especially at night. But in order for a kitten's eyesight to develop normally, the kitten must be exposed to light during the first four months of its life. Without that, its eyesight will not develop correctly, it will never be able to see as well as it should. Even if the kitten is exposed to plenty of light after those four months of darkness, it won't matter, its vision will never develop normally.
As far as behavior's concerned, well, have you ever seen how little baby geese line up and then, single-file, they follow their parent goose around? Well, what would happen if they didn't see a parent goose within the first two days of their lives?
Actually, for normal behavior to develop, they must see what to follow within these first two days. What happens is, whatever large moving object they first see during those two days, they'll adopt that object as their parent... forever. It can never be changed. For example, suppose after the baby geese were hatched, the only other animal around was, I don't know, say a dog. OK? So the baby geese see a dog, but no other geese. Even though the dog is a totally different species, the geese will adopt it as their parent—they'll follow it around. And even if the parent geese reappear later, it won't matter to the babies—they'll follow the dog. After two days the behavior is fixed and they'll never exhibit the normal behavior of following their real parent—a goose.
Narrator
Using the examples of kittens and geese, explain the idea of a critical period.
问答题
You will now listen to part of a conversation. You will then be asked a
question about it. After you hear the question, give yourself 20 seconds to
prepare your response. Then record yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Listen to Track 82.
Listen to Track 82.
【正确答案】To respond to this particular question you should briefly describe the problem. In this case the problem is that the woman does not want to cook her own meals because the kitchen in the dorm is always a mess.
Next, you need to choose one of the two solutions and explain why you think that solution is best. Note that you are not required to talk about both solutions. The two solutions in this conversation are: 1) put up a schedule so people can sign up to use the kitchen. Anyone who uses the kitchen must clean up, or 2) hire someone to clean the kitchen once a week. It does not matter which of the two proposed solutions you choose, since there is no "right" solution or "wrong" solution. You should choose the solution that you think is best and support your choice with reasons why you think it is best. The reasons you give can include information provided by the speakers as well as your own experiences.
For example, if you believe the first solution is preferable, you could say that it should be the students' responsibility to clean the kitchen. Cleaning the kitchen is important because it could lead to good habits, and eventually these students will be responsible for their own kitchens. Another way to discuss this is to talk about the disadvantage of the other solution. In this case you might say that hiring somebody else is not a good idea because it costs money, and students do not usually have a lot of money. They would be better off using this money to buy food for themselves.
If you believe the second solution is preferable, you might say that students don't really have enough time to clean. They are already very busy with their schoolwork, so cleaning is something that they should get somebody else to do. Also, somebody else might do a better job since many students don't have a lot of experience cleaning.
These are just examples of possible responses; remember, this type of question can be answered in many different ways.
Your response should be intelligible, should demonstrate effective use of grammar and vocabulary, and should be well developed and coherent. Your response is scored using the Integrated Speaking Rubric (see Appendix A).
【答案解析】[解析]
Narrator
Now listen to a conversation between two students talking about a problem at the dormitory.
Male student
Carrie, how come I always see you eating in the cafeteria lately? Didn't you tell me you had a kitchen in your dorm and you were gonna start to...
Female student
Uh-huh... and I was gonna start cooking my own meals there.
Male student
So you changed your mind?
Female student
It's not that. The kitchen's just always a mess. It's filthy—dirty dishes everywhere, the trash is overflowing. Nobody ever cleans up so it's gotten really disgusting.
Male student
We had that problem in my dorm last year. We ended up making a schedule. Maybe you should try something like that.
Female student
What do you mean a schedule?
Male student
Well, people had to sign up to use the kitchen. Then whoever used it that day was responsible for cleaning it up.
Female student
So you mean if the kitchen's a mess on Tuesday, you just check and see who used it on Monday? Track'em down and make'em clean up the mess?
Male student
Uh-huh. It kinda works... as long as people sign up like they're supposed to.
Female student
Well, I was wondering if we could just pay to have someone clean the place, maybe once a week or something. If everybody chipped in a few dollars, we could hire someone to clean the whole kitchen area.
Male student
Wow. That'd be great if you could find someone. You mean like a student or something?
Female student
Yeah. As long as it's not too expensive.
Male student
You should check out the bulletin board in the student center. I've seen notes from students looking for different jobs—even cleaning jobs.
Female student
Good idea. And I'll see what the other people in my dorm wanna do.
Male student
Well, good luck. I hope it works out.
Narrator
Briefly summarize the problem the speakers are discussing. Then state which of the two solutions from the conversation you would recommend. Explain the reasons for your recommendation.
Narrator
Now listen to a conversation between two students talking about a problem at the dormitory.
Male student
Carrie, how come I always see you eating in the cafeteria lately? Didn't you tell me you had a kitchen in your dorm and you were gonna start to...
Female student
Uh-huh... and I was gonna start cooking my own meals there.
Male student
So you changed your mind?
Female student
It's not that. The kitchen's just always a mess. It's filthy—dirty dishes everywhere, the trash is overflowing. Nobody ever cleans up so it's gotten really disgusting.
Male student
We had that problem in my dorm last year. We ended up making a schedule. Maybe you should try something like that.
Female student
What do you mean a schedule?
Male student
Well, people had to sign up to use the kitchen. Then whoever used it that day was responsible for cleaning it up.
Female student
So you mean if the kitchen's a mess on Tuesday, you just check and see who used it on Monday? Track'em down and make'em clean up the mess?
Male student
Uh-huh. It kinda works... as long as people sign up like they're supposed to.
Female student
Well, I was wondering if we could just pay to have someone clean the place, maybe once a week or something. If everybody chipped in a few dollars, we could hire someone to clean the whole kitchen area.
Male student
Wow. That'd be great if you could find someone. You mean like a student or something?
Female student
Yeah. As long as it's not too expensive.
Male student
You should check out the bulletin board in the student center. I've seen notes from students looking for different jobs—even cleaning jobs.
Female student
Good idea. And I'll see what the other people in my dorm wanna do.
Male student
Well, good luck. I hope it works out.
Narrator
Briefly summarize the problem the speakers are discussing. Then state which of the two solutions from the conversation you would recommend. Explain the reasons for your recommendation.
问答题
You will now listen to part of a lecture. You will then be asked a
question about it. After you hear the question, give yourself 20 seconds to
prepare your response. Then record yourself speaking for 60 seconds.
Listen to Track 83.
Listen to Track 83.
【正确答案】This particular question requires you to summarize the contents of a lecture you hear. In your response, you should talk about exaggeration in advertising, including the examples of when it is legal to use exaggeration and when it is not legal to use exaggeration.
You should begin with a general statement about the lecture, such as that exaggeration in advertising has to be so extreme that nobody will believe it. If it isn't, this advertising may be illegal. You would then talk about the first example that the professor gives. An advertiser that wanted to make the point that its vacuum cleaner is very light showed it in a television and floating in the air. This kind of advertisement was legal because no one would really believe that a vacuum cleaner floated in the air.
You should then talk about the professor's second example. The professor says that if the company showed the vacuum cleaner cleaning a big dirty carpet in just a few seconds that is an exaggeration and would be unacceptable because someone might actually believe it. We can imagine someone buying the vacuum cleaner and being disappointed that it didn't work that well.
You should read the question carefully and respond with the appropriate information. This question clearly directs you to talk about a time when it is acceptable to use exaggeration and a time when it is not acceptable. You should budget your time so that you are able to talk about both examples.
Your response should be intelligible, should demonstrate effective use of grammar and vocabulary, and should be well developed and coherent. Your response is scored using the Integrated Speaking Rubric (see Appendix A).
【答案解析】[解析]
Narrator
Now listen to part of a lecture in a business ethics class. The professor is discussing advertising.
Professor
Advertisers often try to sell you things by exaggerating about the quality of their products. It helps them get your attention. And exaggeration in advertising is usually considered acceptable, but not always. In the United States, there are laws to help determine what advertisers can say about their products. Basically, the law says advertisers can exaggerate as long as no one's gonna actually believe the exaggeration and take it literally. So, the exaggeration has to be very extreme. If it's not extreme enough and someone would actually buy the product because they believed the exaggeration, that advertisement may be illegal.
Take this example: a vacuum cleaner manufacturer made a vacuum cleaner that didn't weigh very much, and they wanted to get the point across about how light it was. So they made a TV commercial showing the vacuum cleaner floating in the air while cleaning the house. Well, that was a visual exaggeration. It got people's attention. And because a floating vacuum cleaner is obviously impossible, the commercial was legal because no one would actually believe the visual exaggeration and buy the vacuum cleaner because they thought it floated in the air.
But what if the company wanted to show that the vacuum cleaner was very powerful? What if it made a television commercial where a person uses the vacuum cleaner to perfectly clean this really big and really dirty carpet in, uh, just a few seconds. Well that would really grab your attention. But the thing is, even though that commercial is an exaggeration, you can imagine someone actually believing it and buying the vacuum cleaner and then being very disappointed because the vacuum cleaner couldn't do that. So advertisers can't use an exaggeration like that because it's actually not extreme enough and someone might believe it.
Narrator
Using the example of the vacuum cleaner, explain when it is legally acceptable to use exaggeration in advertising and when it is not.
Narrator
Now listen to part of a lecture in a business ethics class. The professor is discussing advertising.
Professor
Advertisers often try to sell you things by exaggerating about the quality of their products. It helps them get your attention. And exaggeration in advertising is usually considered acceptable, but not always. In the United States, there are laws to help determine what advertisers can say about their products. Basically, the law says advertisers can exaggerate as long as no one's gonna actually believe the exaggeration and take it literally. So, the exaggeration has to be very extreme. If it's not extreme enough and someone would actually buy the product because they believed the exaggeration, that advertisement may be illegal.
Take this example: a vacuum cleaner manufacturer made a vacuum cleaner that didn't weigh very much, and they wanted to get the point across about how light it was. So they made a TV commercial showing the vacuum cleaner floating in the air while cleaning the house. Well, that was a visual exaggeration. It got people's attention. And because a floating vacuum cleaner is obviously impossible, the commercial was legal because no one would actually believe the visual exaggeration and buy the vacuum cleaner because they thought it floated in the air.
But what if the company wanted to show that the vacuum cleaner was very powerful? What if it made a television commercial where a person uses the vacuum cleaner to perfectly clean this really big and really dirty carpet in, uh, just a few seconds. Well that would really grab your attention. But the thing is, even though that commercial is an exaggeration, you can imagine someone actually believing it and buying the vacuum cleaner and then being very disappointed because the vacuum cleaner couldn't do that. So advertisers can't use an exaggeration like that because it's actually not extreme enough and someone might believe it.
Narrator
Using the example of the vacuum cleaner, explain when it is legally acceptable to use exaggeration in advertising and when it is not.