Question

One of the main challenges facing many countries is how to maintain their identity in the face of globalization and the growing multi-language trend. "One of the main reasons for economic failure in many African countries is the fact that, with a few important exceptions, mother-tongue education is not practiced in any of the independent African states." said Neville Alexander, Director of the Project for the Study of Alternative Education in South Africa at the University of Cape Town.

In response to the spread of English and the increased multi-language trends arising from immigration, many countries have introduced language laws in the last decade. In some, the use of languages other than the national language is banned in public spaces such as advertising posters. One of the first such legal provisions(规定) was the 1994 "Toubon law" in France, and the idea has been copied in many countries since then. Such efforts to govern language use are often considered as futile by language experts, who are well aware of the difficulty in controlling fashions in speech and know from research that language switching among bilinguals is a natural process.

It is especially difficult for native speakers of English to understand the desire to maintain the "purity" of a language by law. Since the time of Shakespeare, English has continually absorbed foreign words into its own language. English is one of the most mixed and rapidly changing languages in the world, but that has not been a barrier to acquiring superiority and power. Another reason for the failure of many native English speakers to understand the role of the state regulation is that it has never been the Anglo-Saxon way of doing things. English has never had a state-controlled authority for the language, similar, for example, to the Academic Francaise in France.

The need to protect national languages is, for most western Europeans, a recent phenomenon-------especially the need to ensure that English does not unnecessarily take over too many fields. Public communication, education and new ways of communication promoted by technology, may be key fields to defend.

1.Neville Alexander believes that __________.

A. mother-tongue education is not practiced in all African countries

B. globalization has resulted in the economic failure of Africa

C. globalization has led to the rise of multi-language trend

D. lack of mother-tongue education can lead to economic failure

2.The underlined word "futile" (in paragraph 2) most probably means " ___________".

A. workable    B. practical

C. useless    D. unnecessary

3.What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A. English has taken over fields like public communication and education.

B. Many aspects of national culture are threatened by the spread of English.

C. Most language experts believe it is important to promote a national language.

D. Europeans have long realized the need to protect a national language.

4.The best title for the passage is __________.

A. Fighting against the rule of English

B. Protecting local languages and identities

C. Globalization and multi-language trend

D. To maintain the purity of language by law

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.B

4.B

【解析】试题分析：现在世界全球化导致很多国家的独特的文化收到了冲击和影响，本文讲述的正是这方面的话题。很多国家都采取了很多的措施来保护本国的文化。

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考点：考查社会现象类短文阅读

【点评】

现在世界全球化导致很多国家的独特的文化收到了冲击和影响，本文讲述的正是这方面的话题。考生要在阅读理解整体语篇的基础上，把握文章的真正内涵。要吃透文章的字面意思，从字里行间捕捉有用的提示和线索，这是推理的前提和基础;要对文字的表面信息进行挖掘加工，由表入里，由浅入深，从具体到抽象，从非凡到一般，通过分析、综合、判定等，进行深层处理，符合逻辑地推理。不能就是论事，断章取义，以偏概全。要忠实于原文，以文章提供的事实和线索为依据。