MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) are free, but without tutoring, and are open to anyone, anywhere in the world. The courses are flexible — normally three to five hours of study a week — done at any time, short (5 to 10 weeks) and video-rich. They are also heavily dependent on crowd sourcing: you can discuss a course with fellow students through online forums, discussion boards and peer review. Students don’t have to finish the courses, pass assessments or do assignments, but, if they do, they get a certification of participation.
The Open University launched FutureLearn, the UK’s answer to US platforms such as Coursera, EdX and Udacity, which have been offering MOOCs from top US universities for the past two years. The response has been incredible, with more than three million people registering worldwide. Meanwhile, in 2012, Edinburgh University became the first non-US institution to join Coursera’s partnership, comprising 13 universities. “We already run 50 online master’s degrees, so this was a logical expansion,” says Professor Jeff Haywood, Edinburgh’s vice-principal. “It’s an investment in teaching methods research. How am I going to teach introductory philosophy to 100,000 people? That’s what I call educational R&D.” He adds “If you look ahead 10 years, you’d expect all students graduating to have taken some online courses, so you’ve got to research that. Our MOOCs are no more in competition with our degrees than a lifelong learning course because they don’t carry credits.”
Cooperation is key, Haywood stresses. It is far better to offer 20-30 courses in your own areas of expertise (专门技能) and let other institutions do likewise. Professor Mike Sharples, FutureLearn’s academic lead, goes further: “We’ve tied the elements available before into a package of courses offered by leading universities worldwide on a new software platform, with a new way of promoting it and also a new social-learning teaching method. You won’t just receive an exam, but be able to discuss and mark each other’s assignments.”
Bath University, one of more than 20 universities working with FutureLearn, launches its first course, Inside Cancer, next January, and regards MOOCs as a way of breaking down age barriers. “There’s no reason why someone doing GCSEs should not look at our MOOCs and get quite a way through them, or someone at PhD level and beyond,” says Professor Bernie Morley, expert for learning and teaching.
1.MOOCs have these features EXCEPT that ________.
A. MOOCs have a platform for learners to share their learning experience
B. MOOCs provide teachers’ instructions if you have some difficulty
C. MOOCs can be adjusted according to people’s learning pace
D. MOOCs are free of charge for anyone
2.The response to FutureLearn has been thought to be unbelievable mainly because ________.
A. all the courses on the platform are available to anyone in the world
B. Edinburgh University became the first non-US institution to join it
C. students can get a certification of participation without passing assessments
D. the number of people registering in the platform is beyond expectation
3.What can be inferred from Professor Bernie Morley in the last paragraph?
A. People at PhD level have already known everything about MOOCs.
B. People with various learning levels will probably show interest in MOOCs.
C. Inside Cancer will be the most popular course for someone doing GCSEs.
D. MOOCs are not so competitive as lifelong learning courses due to the problems of credits.
4.The passage mainly deals with ________.
A. the appearance of a new learning platform
B. the various opinions on FutureLearn
C. the popularity of no-credit courses
D. the advantages of online teaching methods
The Americans believe that anybody can become president of the United States. In a recent Hollywood comedy, that is exactly what happens.
Dave Kovic, played by Kevin Kline, is a kind-hearted man who runs a business that finds people jobs. He leads a typical American way of life, except for one thing－he looks exactly like the president, Bill Mitchell. In fact, the only thing that makes him different from the nation’s leader is that he is very nice!
The president has started using look-alikes during some public appearances. Dave is offered a chance to “serve his country” by becoming one. However, things go wrong. The president becomes very ill and Dave ends up acting as the president forever.
Director Ivan Reitman, who made the popular and successful comedies like Twins, Ghostbusters and Legal Eagles, could have gone for easy laughs by making fun of the American government. Instead, Dave is an attractive comedy about an ordinary man in extraordinary situations. Kevin Kline gives a double performance as Dave and the president, and Sigourney Weaver is at her best as his First Lady. The love story that develops between her role and Dave is a real classic.
The film is 100% American. However, if you’ve ever felt that anybody could do a better job running the country than the people in power, then you’ll enjoy Dave!
1.What is the purpose of the text?
A. To introduce a new film to the reader.
B. To discus the Americans’ ideas about the President.
C. To make a comparison between Dave and other films.
D. To tell the reader about the American government.
2.Who plays the role of the President in the film?
A. Sigourney Weaver.B. Kevin Kline.
C. Bill Mitchell.D. Ivan Reitman.
3.The underlined word “one” in the 3rd paragraph refers to ________.
A. the PresidentB. the director
C. an actorD. a look-alike
4.Which of the following is best supported by the text?
A. The author makes fun of the President.
B. The author is a fan of Hollywood comedies.
C. The author thinks highly of the film.
D. The author wishes to become the American President.
Space is where our future is — trips to the Moon, Mars and beyond. Most people would think that aside from comets(彗星) and stars, there is little else out there. But, since our space journey started we have left so much trash(垃圾) there that scientists are now concerned that if we don’t clean it up, we may all be in mortal(致命的) danger.
The first piece of space junk was created in 1964, when the American satellite Vanguard Ⅰ stopped operating and lost its connection with the ground center. However, since it kept orbiting around the Earth without any consequences, scientists became increasingly comfortable abandoning(抛弃) things that no longer served any useful purpose in space.
It is estimated(估计) that there are now over 500,000 pieces of man-made trash orbiting the Earth at speeds of up to 17,500 miles per hour. The junk varies from tiny pieces of paint chipped off rockets to cameras, huge fuel tanks, and even odd items like the million-dollar tool kit that astronaut Heidemarie Stefanyshyn Piper lost during a spacewalk.
The major problem with the space trash is that it may hit working satellites and damage traveling spacecraft(飞船). Moreover, pieces of junk may collide(碰撞) with each other and break into pieces which fall back to the Earth. To avoid this, scientists have invented several ways for clearing the sky. Ground stations have been built to monitor larger pieces of space trash to prevent them from crashing into working satellites or space shuttles. Future plans include a cooperative effort among many nations to stop littering in space and to clean up the trash already there.
1.What was the first piece of man-made space trash?
A. A camera.B. A tool kit.
C. A broken satellite.D. A fuel tank.
2.Why were scientists NOT concerned about space trash in the beginning?
A. It did not cause any problems.
B. It no longer served any useful purpose.
C. It was millions of miles away from the Earth.
D. It was regarded as similar to comets and stars.
3.Which of the following statements is true about space junk?
A. It is huge, heavy machines.
B. It may cause problems for space shuttles.
C. It floats slowly around the Earth.
D. It never changes position.
4.What has been done about the space trash problem?
A. Ground stations are built to help store the trash properly in space.
B. Many nations have worked together to stop polluting space.
C. Large pieces of space trash are being closely watched.
D. Scientists have cleaned up most of the trash.
I have heard having a good sense of humour often helps in breaking the ice. Also people remember you because of your humour. But I think I don’t have a very good sense of humour. Could you suggest how to build on this?
——Radha Karnik
This is a great question that is unfortunately difficult to answer. I can only give you my views on this topic, which may or may not be correct. I know that my sense of humour developed over time.
When I was younger I was not funny at all, now I can easily make people laugh. At the same time, sometimes I say things that I think are very funny but others do not. Improving wit and humour, I believe, is an ongoing process.
Now, there are various forms of humour and everyone has their individual style. Overall, I believe being fluent in a language is very important for being witty or funny. The way we play around with words adds the “funny” tag to an otherwise normal sentence.
Also, seeing irony is very important. I think humour is often the link between two unrelated things.
In my experience, laughing frequently and appreciating other people’s jokes and wit are very important. Within these, finding humour in everyday normal situations is the key.
I often notice what is going on around me and say funny things in my head and laugh to myself. That serves almost as practice for when I am in a group. I watch comedy shows and movies and I am sure that has some effect on helping me improve my sense of humour.
And last, having confidence that you are witty is important. There will always be someone wittier or funnier than you, which is fine. Just work on building your own style.
Remember, if you are trying to be funny and witty in order to break the ice at a business function, be careful.
In those situations, humour has to be mild and politically correct.
Yours,
Brad
1.Radha Karnik’s problem is that he doesn’t ________.
A. have friends
B. have a good sense of humour
C. understand others’ humour
D. know the functions of humour
2.By telling his own experience, Brad tried to make Radha Karnik believe that ________.
A. a sense of humour can be developed
B. a sense of humour helps impress others
C. laughter is the best medicine
D. laughter and humour go hand in hand
3.Which of the following would Brad agree with?
A. Everyone knows how to appreciate others’ jokes.
B. Everyone is as funny and witty as others.
C. Everyone needs to laugh to themselves each day.
D. Everyone has their individual style of humour.
书面表达
假设你班最近举行了一次班会，讨论怎样使英语学习变成一件快乐的事。请你根据下表所提示的信息，为某英语网站写一篇短文，谈谈你们的讨论情况并提出你的建议。
讨论情况
| 1.课内互动（讨论，采访，讲故事等） |
2.课外活动（演讲或晚会等） | |
3. 运用英语（口头或书面交流） | |
…….. | |
你的建议 |
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注意：
1. 对所给要点注意陈述，不要简单翻译。
2. 词数110左右。开头已经写好，不计入总词数。
3. 参考词汇：have interactive activities 进行互动活动
Recently, we had a discussion on how to make learning English relaxing and fun.
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短文改错
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处，每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加，删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错误的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
When I was a kid, my sisters and I started a club for fan of a band. Our club met regular to trade facts about the band’s and to listen to their music. We were all different ages, and we might not have many common besides our love for this music, or the club was important to us for a while. We had good time and became good friends.
Since then, I had joined all kind of clubs. Clubs give us a chance to focus on special interests, improve a skill, or learn about new one. Clubs are also about make new friends. I’ve learned that the best clubs are the ones that welcome someone who wants to join.
