Empathy
Last year, researchers from the University of Michigan reported that empathy, the ability to understand other people, among college students had dropped a lot over the past 10 years. That could be because so many people have replaced face time with screen time, the researchers said. Today, people spend more time alone and seldom join groups and clubs.
Jennifer Freed, a director of a teen program, has another explanation. on the TV, and you’re showered with news and reality shows full of people fighting, competing, and generally treating one another with no respect(尊重). Humans learn by example—and most of the examples on it are anything but empathetic.
There are good reasons not to follow those bad examples. Humans are socially connected with nature. Having relationships with other people is an important part of being human—and having empathy is important to those relationships. Researchers have also found that empathetic teenagers always have high self-respect. Besides, empathy can be helpful for loneliness, sadness, anxiety, and fear.
Empathy is also necessary for a good leader. In fact, Freed says, many top companies report that empathy is one the most important things they look for in new managers. Social skills—including empathy—are a kind of “emotional(情感的) intelligence" that will help you succeed in many areas of life. “Tests results are important. But if you don’t have emotional intelligence, you won’t be as successful in work or in your love life,” she says.
What’s the best way to up your EQ(情商)? For starters, let down your guard and really listen to others. “One doesn’t develop empathy by having a lot of opinions and doing a lot of talking,” Freed says. To really develop empathy, you’d better volunteer at a nursing home or a hospital, join a club or a team that has a diverse membership, have a “sharing circle” with your family, or spend time caring for pets at an animal shelter.
1.Why does empathy among college students drop a lot?
A. They spend too much time on screen.
B. Understanding each other is hard for them.
C. They are busy with their studies.
D. Programs on screens are attractive.
2.What does Jennifer Freed think of reality shows on TV?
A. Exciting. B. Boring.
C. Bad. D. Good.
3.What does Paragraph 4 mainly talk about?
A. Necessary social skills in daily life.
B. The importance of empathy for leaders.
C. Successful leaders with high empathy.
D. The requirements for new managers.
4.What are people encouraged to do according to the last paragraph?
A. Show your opinions freely.
B. Work as doctors.
C. Develop empathy in different ways.
D. Protect animals.
Recently, we’ve been talking about how we need better teachers. There’s no doubt that great teacher can help in a student’s learning but here’s what some new studies are also showing: We need better parents.
Every three years, the organization called O.E.C.D. organizes exams as part of the Program for International Student Assessment(评估), or PISA, which tests 15-year-olds on their abilities to deal with real problems. America’s 15-year-olds have not done as well as students in Singapore, Finland and Shanghai in the PISA exams.
To better understand the reasons, the PISA team, starting with four countries in 2006, and then adding 14 more in 2009, went to the parents of 5,000 students. They interviewed them about how they raised their kids and then compared it with the test results for each of those years. Two weeks ago, the PISA team published the main finding of its study.
Fifteen-year-olds whose parents often read books with them during their first year of primary school get much higher scores in PISA 2009 than students whose parents don’t often read with them or not at all. Parents’ concern for their children is strongly connected with better results in PISA.
According to Schleicher, the leader of the team, just asking your children how their school day was and showing great interest in their learning can help a lot. It is something every parent can do, no matter what their education level is.
The study found that getting parents concerned about their children’s learning at home is more powerful than parents attending parent-teacher meetings, volunteering in classrooms, taking part in money-raising, and showing up at back-to-back nights.
To be sure, nothing can replace a good teacher. But let’s stop putting the whole duty on teachers. We also need better parents. Better parents can make teaching more beneficial.
1.What can we learn about the organization O.E.C.D ?
A. It tests teenagers’ learning skills.
B. It calls for better teachers.
C. It organizes PISA exams every 3 years.
D. It compares parents from different countries.
2.Why does the PISA team interview some parents?
A. To understand students better.
B. To get along well with parents.
C. To help students with bad test results.
D. To find out why students have different test results.
3.According to the study, parents are advised to .
A. try to search for better teachers
B. put the whole duty on teachers
C. care about their children’s school life
D. ask their children to read more books.
4.What’s the best title for the passage?
A. Better Parents Are Needed B. Better Teachers Are Appreciated
C. A Study by the PISA Team D. An Interview with Parents.
In England, we look forward to our birthdays for 364 days a year! We invite special people to celebrate it with us.
The Presents
Presents are opened as soon as the children are awake. They can’t wait for the birthday cake later in the day!
The Cards
Friends and family send birthday cards. Sending birthday cards is a custom that began in England about 100 years ago.
The Party
The birthday child will have a party to which friends and family are invited. Visitors to the party bring presents for the birthday child. The children play games such as Musical Chairs and Pass the Parcel.
The Cake
The birthday cake is decorated on a theme(主题). A candle for each year is lit and placed on top and the child blows out the candles making a wish. We don’t put objects inside the cake as shown on many websites.
The Bumps
It used to be traditional for the birthday child to have the bumps. Friends would hold the child by the child by the legs and under the arms and lift the child up and down bumping them gently on the ground. The number of bumps given is the age of the child plus one for extra good luck. As this can be dangerous, clapping is often done instead.
The Sweets
Some children do take sweets into school to share with their classmates on their birthdays.
1.1n England, the birthday present is opened .
A. before the child goes to sleep B. immediately after the child wakes up
C. as soon as the child gets up D. when the birthday party is going on
2.What is mentioned on many websites?
A. Making a wish. B. Lighting a candle.
C. Putting objects inside the cake. D. Placing the candle on top.
3.What can be done to avoid the danger of bumps?
A. Bumping less. B. Decorating cakes.
C. Clapping instead. D. Taking sweets.
上个月我校某班学生去当地一家孤儿院（orphanage）开展志愿者活动。请根据下列要点写一篇英语报道。
要点：1.时间、地点、人物及活动（赠送书籍、玩具等)；
2.孤儿院孩子们的反应；
3.简短评论。
要求：1.词数100左右；2.可合理增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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We are aiming to build a peaceful school. I thought it is every student’s duty to work hard to achieve this goal. As high school student, what should we do? First for all, we should love our school. Meanwhile, you should respect our teachers and obeying the rules in our school. Secondly, we should show our respect for our parents and do which we can help them. Besides, we classmates should also try to be kind and friendly. Most important, all of us must believe in each other and been honest in our daily life. And we will study even more harder and try out best to do all.
Even if you have already seen dozens of sports movies, Dangal is still1. (attract) and inspiring than any others. This is because it is as much a story 2. it is about a complex father-daughter relationship. The Bollywood movie, 3. (release) on the Chinese mainland on May 5th, is an instant big hit. It tells the story of a father, 4. struggles to turn his daughters into award-winning 5.(athlete) after abandoning his dream of being 6. international wrestling (摔跤) champion. What on earth makes this movie so special? The reason 7. its success is that many audience find 8. own connection to the movie. It 9. (become) the most popular Indian movie in China during the past few years, 10.(make) more than 100 million yuan.
