四大名校summary汇编

一、上海中学高考模拟练习卷

Sociologists have long recognized that organization of less than 200 individuals can operate through the free flow of information among the members. Once their size goes beyond this figure, the organizations are getting less flexible. So it seems necessary to prevent total disorder resulting from failures of communication.

     One solution to this problem would, of course, be to structure large organizations into smaller units of a size that can act as a group. By allowing these groups to build reliance on each other, larger organizations can be built up. However, merely having groups of, say, 150 will never of itself be a complete solution to the problems of the organization. Something else is needed: the people involved must be able to build direct personal relationships. To allow free flow of information, they have to be able to communicate with each other in a casual way. Maintaining too formal a structure of relationships inevitably prevents the way a system works.

     The importance of this was drawn to my attention two years ago by the case of a TV station. Whether by chance or by design, it so happened that there were almost exactly 150 people in the station. The whole process worked very smoothly as an organization for many years until they were moved into purpose-built accommodation. Then, for no apparent reason, the work seemed to be more difficult to do, not to say less satisfying.

     It was some time before they work out what the problem was. It turn out that, when the architects were designing the new building, they decided that the coffee room where everyone ate their sandwiches at lunch times was an unnecessary luxury and so did away with it. And with that, they accidentally destroyed the close social networks that strengthened the whole organization. What had apparently been happening was that, as people gathered informally over their sandwiches in the coffee room, useful information was casually being exchanged.

Keys: According to sociologists, larger organizations may function poorly for lack of free flow of information. To solve this problem, we can divide them into smaller groups and encourage individuals to communicate casually and directly. The removal of a coffee room is a typical example, showing how important close social networks are to a company’s smooth operation.

2、上海中学2018年2月开学第一周周练

Judging from recent surveys, most experts in sleep behavior agree that there is virtually an epidemic（流行病）of sleepiness in the nation．”I can’t think of a single study that hasn’t found Americans getting less sleep than they ought to,” says Dr.David. Even people who think they are sleeping enough would probably be better off with more rest.

The beginning of our sleep-deficit（睡眠不足）crisis can be traced back to the invention of the light bulb a century ago．From diary entries and our personal accounts from the 18th and 19th centuries, sleep scientists have reached the conclusion that the average person used to sleep about 9.5 hours a night. ”The best sleep habits once were forced on us, when we had nothing to do in the evening down on the farm, and it was dark.” By the 1950s and 1960s, the sleep schedule had been reduced dramatically, to between 7.5 and 8 hours, and most people had to wake to an alarm clock. “People cheat in their sleep, and they don’t even realize they’re doing it,” says Dr.David, ”They think they’re okay because they can get by on 6.5 hours, when they really need 7.5, 8 or even more to feel ideally vigorous. ”

Perhaps the most merciless robber of sleep, researches say, is the complexity of the day．Whenever pressures from work, family, friends and community increase, many people consider sleep the least expensive item on their programme.” In our society, you’re considered dynamic if you say you need only 5.5 hours’ sleep. If you’ve got to get 8.5 hours, people think you lack drive and ambition. “

To determine the consequences of sleep-deficit, researchers have put subjects through a set of psychological and performance tests requiring them, for instance, to add columns of numbers or recall a passage read to them only minutes earlier.” We’ve found that if you’re in sleep deficit, performance suffers,” says Dr.David, ”Short-term memory is weakened, as are abilities to make decisions and to concentrate.”

【答案】Sleep-deficit, a common phenomenon in America, is caused by several factors. Firstly, the invention of the light bulb has changed people’s lifestyle and shorten people’s sleep time by about 2 hours. Secondly, various pressures and misleading social concepts also contribute to sleep-deficit. Researchers have found out that sleep-deficit would influence us intellectually.

三、交大附中2017-2018学年度下学期5月月考卷

e-learning: Hazy past—better future?

How much of an effect does technology have on students’ learning? A significant one, it seems, according to experts. Currently available technologies, the most important of which are computers and the Internet, apparently provide a learning environment in which problem-solving and intellectual enquiry can flourish. The process of learning in the classroom may become significantly more effective as students can deal with information on the computer. Or so the theory goes. My own viewpoint is rather different, I’m afraid.

Computers have been around for two decades as part of school equipment. There are, of course, obstacles like costs to overcome, but it’s just a matter of time and effort. This is because schools have done what every organisation does when it sees an innovation—it applies the innovation to its existing model, which adds cost but doesn’t transform the standard classroom. We have, during that period, spent over $60 billion on them, but in my view they seem to have had little or no effect on learning in schools. Content is king and the mode of delivery is irrelevant. If a teacher makes the subject matter interesting, it does not matter what, if any, equipment is used.

However, change is on the horizon. I think student-centred learning will become the norm and transform education. Computers will pave the way for far more independent learning. Students who currently don’t have access to schools or teachers are now able to get online. They can study from home thanks to the fact that more learning programmes are being written for learners who are forced by their circumstances to be self-sufficient. This would prove especially beneficial in those areas of the world where quality education is limited or extremely expensive. Therefore, in a few years’ time we could have a completely different conversation about technology and its impact on learning.

Although experts say modern technology has a significant effect on classroom learning, the writer holds a different view. Schools have invested much to apply computers in their classroom teaching, but it hasn’t changed the classroom teaching because what teachers teach is more important. But computers make it possible for those with no access to school to study on their own.

四、交大附中2017-2018学年下学期高三英语摸底考

Virginia is killing its U.S. history tests

As a history exam supporter, I have seen so many people appealing to the government to cancel it. Many students scored poorly in it and complained about hard work. In 2014, the Virginia legislature(立法) ordered a cut in the number of tests taken by the state’s children, and specifically eliminated the fifth grade and middle school U.S. history tests. The U.S. and Virginia history exam in high school is also about to disappear. Politicians seem to think the best way to reduce testing pressure is to abandon tests, no matter how important.

I met Steve Constantino, now chief academic officer of the Virginia Education Department, and he told me, “even without tests, the course, requirements, standards, etc., are all still very much required and schools are accountable to ensure that students master the content. I believe what this does is move the course toward more of a deeper learning experience, like IB.”

But when I met him the first time in the late 1990s, he was then the brilliant principal of Stonewall Jackson High School. He turned that school into a model for the demanding International Baccalaureate(IB) program.One of the reasons his IB program at Stonewall Jackson High School worked so well was that his IB students had to take the nation’s most difficult final exams, some of them five hours long.

My suggestion is that Virginia replace its state history tests with IB exams. You can learn a great deal preparing for one of those even if you fail.But that’s not going to happen. Constantino’s dream of deeper learning without challenging tests has never been achieved in American schools. So we will muddle along, not learning much history, since despite what we say, we really don’t think we need it.

Few people share the author’s affection for history test,

which has been canceled to ease students’ burden.

The current chief officer, Steve, said without tests, students would learn as much and experience deep learning.

But Steve’s previous successful IB program owed much to the hard exams.

The author thinks history tests be substituted by IB tests but is pessimistic.