Passage 2
What do student newspapers complain about these days?
How about this headline in Swansea University’s student paper following the recent bad weather.
“Students lose? 20 a lecture after snow sends university into lockdown.”
It pointed out that fee-paying students are not getting full value for money if lectures are cancelled.
Students were seeing their “money disappear quicker than the snow melted”.
It illustrates something about changed attitudes on campus when students are complaining that they are not getting enough lectures.
Paying fees means that students are customers as well as learners.
The student union president at Swansea University, James Houston, says that going to university is “still different from a shopping experience”—but that paying fees is pushing it in that direction.
“There is a strong argument that if you charge more, then people will want to know where their money is going” he says.
Universities are more than a business, he says. But he fears that fees are driving a campus consumer ethic.
The students’ union already has complaints from students about not getting “value for money”.
This shift in attitude is also reflected in an increase in complaints by students to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education—which it attributes to fees.
“We believe that one reason for the increase is the rise in tuition fees. There is also more consumerist thinking amongst students. Students have become more assertive about their rights, and the services they are entitled to,” said chief executive, Rob Behrens.
While the debate about fees was once about whether it would be a social barrier to poorer students, in practice there have been other less expected changes.
The combination of fees and debts from student loans means that university courses are judged by their price tags as well as academic worth.
Frank Furedi, social commentator and academic at the University of Kent, says that the campus culture is “unrecognisable” from a generation ago.
Students now ring lecturers at home at the weekend, he says, seeing this as being part of the service they are buying with their fees.
“They feel they can make all kinds of demands,” says Prof Furedi.
“Fees give a clear and tangible form to the idea of students as consumers.”
“The relationship with the student is no longer academic, it’s a service provider and customer.
The academic relationship is an endangered species.”
But the landscape is one in which many students expect to have everything done for them.
“School has extended into higher education. Students behave like schoolchildren.”
If tuition fees are hiked further, he says it will intensify the sense of consumerism among students.
There are other signs of how fees have changed life on campus.
Students are more careers-focused than ever before, the accumulation of large debts putting pressure on them to get a degree that will help them in the jobs market.
Beginning a university degree course is a serious financial undertaking and that now shapes the experience of student life.
There are other practical changes. More students than ever are living at home while at university—with surveys suggesting that perhaps a fifth of students continue to live with their parents.
This in turn means that more students, particularly from less well-off families, are choosing from universities close to where they live.
The role of parents, who pay towards student costs, has also been seen as becoming more prominent.
This has been caricatured as “helicopter parents” who hover over every decision taken by their student offspring, including contacting lecturers.
Parents can now act as agents for their children in university applications—and have even been allowed to sit in on admissions interviews.
Cary Cooper, pro-vice chancellor at Lancaster University, also points to the structural consequences of a further increase in fees.
At present, he says, the current level of student debt means that many more students have to take part-time jobs to pay their way.
Another hike in fees will mean even more students will need to work—including those who will only be able to study part-time.
This will mean universities will have to adapt, such as providing courses which can be passed in individual units, accumulating credits over a number of years.
Professor Cooper says this could mean a fundamental change for higher education, moving away from the traditional model of 18 to 21-year-olds taking a three-year degree course.
1. Describe Frank Furedi’s viewpoint of the present relationship between professor and student and the reason.
2. How do the hiked fees change students’ choice of majors and universities?
3. What changes are likely to happen if there is another jump in tuition fees?
As indicated in the passage, being free personal preference in that _____.
Passage 5Questions 1-7
● Look at the statements below and the company news reports on the opposite page.
● Which news report (A, B, C or D) does each statement 1-7 refer to?
● For each sentence 1-7, mark one letter (A, B, C, or D) on your Answer Sheet.
● You will need to use some of the letters more than once.
Example:
0. This company is going to reduce staff numbers.
1. A strong currency has had a negative effect on the company.
2. The workforce has made it difficult for this company to become more efficient.
3. The use of specialists led to very high costs.
4. Increased competition has contributed to this company’s difficulties.
5. This company has reached an agreement on a new project.
6. Part of this company was up for sale.
7. This company has expanded its manufacturing base.
A
Walger, the bus maker, has entered into a joint venture with IMCO Bus Corporation to participate in coachbuilding operations in Mexico. The two companies have just announced the $70 million acquisition of Mexican Coachworks, the largest bus and coach builder in Mexico, with 2,400 employees and three factories. Walger retains a 60% interest in the coachbuilding venture. Analysts have expressed surprise, given the current exchange rate.
B
Jetline Airports has said that it spent £2.1 million on its failed attempt to dispose of its duty-free retail division. The chief executive said the company’s six-month search for a buyer ran up heavy consultancy expenses which left half-year pre-tax profits at £4.5 million. It also emerged that the Director of Finance received a £500,000 settlement when he left the company.
C
GRD, the manufacturing giant, plans to cut 1,500 jobs at its Portland factory over the next five years after union refusal to increase productivity. A company representative said that although they have invested more than $42 million in the new plant and improved technology, the trade unions are still unwilling to increase output. As a result, GRD have been forced to downsize the Portland plant.
D
Maybrooke, the Scottish department store, reported a fall in trading profits in the first half of the year from £545,000 to £462,000, on sales which were down two per cent. They blame the disappointing first half on the strength of the pound, which hit the company’s tourist business, as well as an increase in traffic and parking problems in the city centre, and the growth of out-of-town shopping centres.
Directions:In this section, there is one passage followed by 5 statements. Go over the passage quickly and mark the answers on the Answer Sheet. For questions 1-6, mark
T (for True) if the statement agrees with the information given in the passage;
F (for False) if the statement contradicts with information given in the passage;
NG (for Not Given) if the information is not given in the passage.
During World War II at the height of the blitz on East London, a boy of 12 was found wandering the rubble streets near Tower Bridge. His dirty face and torn clothing suggested that something awful had happened.
It was 7 a.m., and dawn was breaking into a sky of crimson red lit up by the many fires that burned across the City, London’s docks were ablaze as far as the eye could see, and the river had become a wall of crackling flame with dark plumes of smoke rising into the air as beleaguered firemen fought to put out fires with their spent hoses.
Wherever he looked, the boy could see the flames, the buildings all around him were on fire, and his nostrils were filled with the smell charcoal and smoke, he could hear the sparks crackle as the flames licked at the burning beams of wood.
It is a vision that the boy, now a man, remembers, as though it were yesterday, for that boy was me and this is my true stow:
That morning my father had sent me out after the “all clear” had sounded, to get fresh milk at the local dairy, I had been scampering up the road when an unexploded bomb went off in a house nearby covering me in rubble.
Somehow, dazed and bewildered, I had managed to brush myself down and run on, but I was badly cut by flying glass, and in no state to continue my journey.
It was then that an Air-raid Precautions Warden appeared, his dog had found me with tail wagging, “Come along son” he said “you need a bandage on that wound”, he looked me over apprehensively, “Come up the road to our first-aid unit and we’ll patch you up.”
By nine o’clock I was covered with sticky plasters and bandages, and looked like a wounded war veteran, “I’ve got to get the milk at Evans now” I said. The Warden looked at me sadly, “I’m afraid there’ll be no milk supplied today; the dairy was blitzed last night.”
I wondered what my father would say, me coming home in such a state and without milk too.
I hobbled back towards home through the back streets covered in rubble and bomb damage, but as I neared I had to rub my eyes, where my home had stood was a large smoldering crater. Everything and everyone had gone, blown away by a bomb.
I remember searching with others for many hours, calling for my father and mother, I found his pocket watch and chain in the rubble just as another air-raid started and we had to rush once more for shelter, I opened up the watch when I felt safe, inside an inscription read “Happy Birthday, Dad”, and I cried.
I can’t ever forget what the war did to me and my family, as a London cockney I have taught my children about their past so that they can guard against the future, this is one family that knows the anguish and loss that war brings, my children have never known their grandparents, but they do know right from wrong, for those who perish in war are often the innocent and we must remember that for all time.
Statements:
1.The author’s father asked him to buy some milk after the air-raid alarm was lifted.
2.he author could not get any milk because the dairy was closed for the day.
3.After the author had his wound bandaged, he walked home in high spirits.
4.The author was sure that his father would scold him for returning home without the milk.
5.When the boy reached home, he found that his home had been destroyed by a bomb.
6.The author found the birthday present his father was going to give him and ran to an air-raid shelter to get a closer look at it.
Because a rockslide had blocked much of the passage, the spelunking team was not able of exploring the full extent of the cave.
According to the passage, “They don’t talk the same language” (Paragraph 1), can refer to problems in ______.
According to the passage, which of the following statements can be made about the content of Weird Fantasy and The Crypt of Terror?
Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following passage. Scratchy throats, stuffy noses and body aches all spell misery, but being able to tell if the cause is a cold or flu (流感) may make a difference in how long the misery lasts. The American Lung Association (ALA) has issued new guidelines on combating colds and the flu, and one of the keys is being able to quickly tell the two apart. That’s because the prescription drugs available for the flu need to be taken soon after the illness sets in. As for colds, the sooner a person starts taking over-the-counter remedy, the sooner relief will come. The common cold and the flu are both caused by viruses. More than 200 viruses can cause cold symptoms, while the flu is caused by three viruses—flu A, B and C. There is no cure for either illness, but the flu can be prevented by the flu vaccine (疫苗), which is, for most people, the best way to fight the flu, according to the ALA. But if the flu does strike, quick action can help. Although the flu and common cold have many similarities, there are some obvious signs to look for. Cold symptoms such as stuffy nose, runny nose and scratchy throat typically develop gradually, and adults and teens often do not get a fever. On the other hand, fever is one of the characteristic features of the flu for all ages. And in general, flu symptoms including fever and chills, sore throat and body aches come on suddenly and are more severe than cold symptoms. The ALA notes that it may be particularly difficult to tell when infants and preschool age children have the flu. It advises parents to call the doctor if their small children have flu-like symptoms. Both cold and flu symptoms can be eased with over-the-counter medications as well. However, children and teens with a cold or flu should not take aspirin for pain relief because of the risk of Reye syndrome (综合症),a rare but serious condition of the liver and central nervous system. There is, of course, no vaccine for the common cold. But frequent hand washing and avoiding close contact with people who have colds can reduce the likelihood of catching one. If children have flu-like symptoms, their parents ()
In this section, there is one passage followed by a summary. Read the passage carefully and complete the summary below by choosing a maximum of three words from the passage to fill in the spaces 76-80. Remember to write the answers on the Answer Sheet.(10 points)
Questions 1-5 are based on the following passage.
Paper is different from other waste produce because it comes from a sustainable resource: trees. Unlike the minerals and oil used to make plastics and metals, trees are replaceable. Paper is also biodegradable, so it does not pose as much threat to the environment when it is discarded. While 45 out of every 100 tonnes of wood fibre used to make paper in Australia comes from waste paper, the rest comes directly from virgin fibre from forests and plantations. By world standards this is a good performance since the worldwide average is 33 per cent waste paper. Governments have encouraged waste paper collection and sorting schemes and, at the same time, the paper industry has responded by developing new recycling technologies that have paved the way for even greater utilization of used fibre. As a result, industry’s use of recycled fibres is expected to increase at twice the rate of virgin fibre over the coming years.
Already, waste paper constitutes 70% of paper used for packaging, and advances in the technology required to remove ink from the paper have allowed a higher recycled content in newsprint and writing paper. To achieve the benefits of recycling, the community must also contribute. We need to accept a change in the quality of paper products; for example stationery may be less white and of a rougher texture. There also needs to be support from the community for waste paper collection programs. Not only do we need to make the paper available to collectors but it also needs to be separated into different types and sorted from contaminants such as staples, paperclips, string and other miscellaneous items.
There are technical limitations to the amount of paper which can be recycled and some paper products cannot be collected for re-use. These include paper in the form of books and permanent records, photographic paper and paper which is badly contaminated. The four most common sources of paper for recycling are factories and retail stores which gather large amounts of packaging material in which goods are delivered, also offices which have unwanted business documents and computer output, paper converters and printers and lastly households which discard newspapers and packaging material. The paper manufacturer pays a price for the paper and may also incur the collection cost.
Once collected, the paper has to be sorted by hand by people trained to recognize various types of paper. This is necessary because some types of paper can only be made from particular kinds of recycled fibre. The sorted paper then has to be repulped or mixed with water and broken down into its individual fibres. This mixture is called stock and may contain a wide variety of contaminating materials, particularly if it is made from mixed waste paper which has had little sorting. Various machinery is used to remove other materials from the stock. After passing through the repulping process, the fibres from printed waste paper are grey in colour because the printing ink has soaked into the individual fibres. This recycled material can only be used in products where the grey colour does not matter, such as cardboard boxes but if the grey colour is not acceptable, the fibres must be de-inked. This involves adding chemicals such as caustic soda or other alkalis, soaps and detergents, water-hardening agents such as calcium chloride, frothing agents and bleaching agents. Before the recycled fibres can be made into paper they must be refined or treated in such a way that they bond together.
Most paper products must contain some virgin fibre as well as recycled fibres and unlike glass, paper cannot be recycled indefinitely. Most paper is down-cycled which means that a product made from recycled paper is of an inferior quality to the original paper. Recycling paper is beneficial in that it saves some of the energy, labour and capital that goes into producing virgin pulp. However, recycling requires the use of fossil fuel, a nonrenewable energy source, to collect the waste paper from the community and to process it to produce new paper. And the recycling process still creates emissions which require treatment before they can be disposed of safely. Nevertheless, paper recycling is an important economical and environmental practice but one which must be carried out in a rational and viable manner for it to be useful to both industry and the community.
Summary:
From the point of view of recycling, paper has two advantages over minerals and oil in that firstly it comes from a resource which is 1 and secondly it is less threatening to our environment when we throw it away because it is 2 Although Australia’s record in the re-use of waste paper is good, it is still necessary to use a combination of recycled fibre and 3 to make new paper. The paper industry has contributed positively and people have also been encouraged by the government to collect their waste on a regular basis. One major difficulty is the removal of 4 from used paper but advances are being made in this area. However, we need to learn to accept paper which is generally of a lower quality than before and to sort our waste paper by removing 5 before discarding it for collection.
According to the passage, Borglum’s son ______.