1、大学英语四级 156及答案解析(总分：746.57，做题时间：130 分钟)一、Writing (30 minutes)(总题数：1，分数：30.00)1.Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay on the topic of students selecting their lecturers. You should write at least 120 words following the outline given below: 1有些大学允许学生自由选择某些课程的任课教师
2、 2学生选择教师时所考虑的主要因素 3学生自选任课教师的益处和可能产生的问题 On Students Selecting Lecturers _ _ _ （分数：30.00）_二、Reading Comprehensio(总题数：1，分数：71.00)Learning a language When Do We Learn a Language? Children begin learning languages at birth (infants pay attention to their parents voices, as opposed to random noises or eve
3、n other languages), and havent really mastered it subtleties before the age of ten years. Indeed. we never really stop learning our language. This isnt exactly the sort of behavior (like foals walking an hour after birth) that we call instinct in animals. Do We learn When We Dont Have to? But at lea
4、st its effortless, isnt it? Well, no, as we can see when children have a choice of languages to learn. Whats found is that, to be frank, children dont learn a language if they can get away with not learning it. Many an immigrant family in the U.S. intends to teach their child their native language;
5、and for the first few years it goes swimmingly so much so that the parents worry that the child wont learn English. Then the child goes to school, picks up English, and within a few years the worry is reversed: the child still understands his parents, but responds in English. Eventually the parents
6、may give up, and the home language becomes English. Peoples Influence A child is likely to end up as a fluent speaker of a language only if there are significant people in her life who speak it: a nanny who only speaks Spanish, a relative who doesnt speak English, etc. Once a child discovers that hi
7、s parents understand English perfectly well, hes likely to give up on the home language, even in the face of strong disapproval from the parents. Its a myth that children learn to speak mainly from their parents. They dont: they learn mostly from their peers. This is most easily seen among children
8、of immigrants, whether they come from differing language backgrounds or merely different dialect areas: the children invariably come to speak the dialect of their neighborhood and school, not that of their parents. (I found a neat example of this in my colleges alumni magazine: A liberal family in M
9、ississippi sent their daughter to the public schools, which except for her were all black. She grew up speaking fluent African-American Vernacular English. ) Do We Need Grammar? Supporters of the language instinct make much of the fact that children learn to speak without formal instruction - indeed
10、, they notoriously ignore explicit corrections. Very little of what we learn is through formal instruction. Children arent schooled in video games, either, yet they pick them up with the same seeming ease. The apparent effortlessness is largely an illusion caused by psychological distance. We just d
11、ont remember how hard it was to learn language. (In fact, theres some studies suggesting that memory is tied to language, so that we cant remember the language learning process. ) The perception of effortlessness should be balanced, anyway, by the universal amusement (which some cartoonists have bee
12、n mining for nearly half a century) over childrens language mistakes. Do Children Learn Faster? One may fall back on the position that languages may be hard for children to learn, but at least they do it better than adults. This, however, turns out to be surprisingly difficult to prove. Singleton ex
13、amined hundreds of studies, and found them resoundingly ambiguous. Quite a few studies, in fact, find that adult learners progress faster than children. Even in phonetics, sometimes tile last stronghold of the kids-learn-free position, there are studies finding that adults are better at recognizing
14、and producing foreign sounds. Now, I think Singleton misses a key point in understanding this discrepancy: the studies he reviews compare children vs. adults who are learning languages. Thats quite reasonable, and indeed its hard to imagine an alternative approach, but the two groups are not really
15、comparable! All children have to learn at least one language; but few adults do. So the studies compare the situation of all children with that of the minority of adults motivated to formally learn other languages. Why? Why do children learn languages well, when even adults who want to learn them ha
16、ve trouble with them? Innate abilities aside, children have a number of powerful advantages: They can devote almost their full time to it. Adults consider half an hours study a day to be onerous. Their motivation is intense. Adults rarely have to spend much of their time in the company of people the
17、y need to talk to but cant children can get very little of what they want without learning language(s). Their peers are nastier. Embarrassment is a prime motivating factor for human beings (I owe this insight to Marvin Minskys The Society of Mind, but it was most memorably expressed by David Berlins
18、ki (in Black Mischief, p. 129), who noted that of all emotions, from rage to depression to first love, only embarrassment can recur, decades later, with its full original intensity). Dealing with a French waiter is nothing compared with the vicious reception in store for a child who speaks funny. If
19、 adults could be placed in a similar situation, they might well learn languages as readily as children. The closest such situation is cross-cultural marriage. And indeed, this works quite well. My wife, for instance, a native Spanish speaker who came here in her late 20s, has learned exceptional Eng
20、lish, since we speak it at home. By contrast, some of her Spanish-speaking friends of the same age, married to other Spanish speakers, speak English haltingly and with a strong accent. （分数：71.00）(1).The passage gives a general explanation about the benefits of a cross cultural marriage. （分数：7.10）A.Y
21、B.NC.NG(2).According to the author, children dont learn another language if they dont have to. （分数：7.10）A.YB.NC.NG(3).Unless children have other people in their lives who speak another language, they wont become fluent speakers in that language. （分数：7.10）A.YB.NC.NG(4).Children dont learn to speak an
22、other language from their parents because at times, children dont get along with their parents. （分数：7.10）A.YB.NC.NG(5).Nearly everything we learn is through formal instruction. （分数：7.10）A.YB.NC.NG(6).Few studies find that adult language learners progress faster than children. （分数：7.10）A.YB.NC.NG(7).
23、Some studies say that adults are better at learning phonetics than children. （分数：7.10）A.YB.NC.NG(8).Singletons studies compare the situation of all children with that of the _ of adults motivated to formally learn other languages. （分数：7.10）_(9).Three advantages that children have over adults in lang
24、uage learning include: _ , and _. （分数：7.10）_(10).The closest situation to that of a childrens environment for adults is _. （分数：7.10）_三、Listening Comprehens(总题数：1，分数：15.00)A.9:30.B.11:30.C.10:00.D.10:30.A.Betty hasnt heard about Bills new job.B.Betty wont be pleased by the news.C.He doesnt think Bill
25、 got the job.D.Betty has also got a promotion.A.Every day.B.Frequently.C.Occasionally.D.Very rarely.A.At the bank.B.In the elevator.C.At the hospital.D.In the classroom.A.Sandy.B.Jack.C.Her husband.D.Her mother.A.He is her husband.B.He is a boss.C.He is a shop assistant.D.He is a doctor.A.Scotland.B
26、.Spain.C.Swiss.D.Switzerland.A.Gloves.B.Slippers.C.Glasses.D.T-shirt.四、Section B(总题数：2，分数：10.00)A.Registration at a polytechnic.B.The length of his stay in this country to be allowed.C.The way to open a bank account in Britain.D.The course he intends to have next year.A.Six months.B.Ten months.C.One
27、 year.D.One year and a half.A.Either a passport or a driving license.B.Both a passport and a driving license.C.A credit card.D.A students identity card.A.One of the students friends.B.The students parents.C.Either his employer or his university.D.Both his employer and his university.A.Typing letters
28、 for Mr. Black.B.Typing a report for Mrs. Smith.C.Typing a report for Mr. Black.D.Typing letters for Mrs. Smith.A.Detroit.B.Chicago.C.New York.D.Boston.A.Because her husband is out on business.B.Because her husband is at home on leave.C.Because her parents have come to help with housework.D.Because
29、her parents are out on holiday.A.A Rolex.B.A Bulova.C.A Seiko.D.An Elgin.A.Professor and student.B.A college boy and a college girl.C.Two college boys.D.Husband and wife.A.A little shy but wise.B.Afraid to make mistakes.C.Very tall.D.Very short.A.His professor.B.Nobody.C.Someone else.D.The author.A.
30、4 people died and 112,000 people have been evacuated.B.14 people died and 112,000 people have been evacuated.C.14 people died and 11,200 people have been evacuated.D.14 people died and 1,120,000 people have been evacuated.A.1,500 millimeters of rain per year.B.2,500 millimeters of rain per year.C.3,
31、600 millimeters of rain per year.D.360 millimeters of rain per week.A.It has been suffering from heavy rainfalls.B.It has been suffering from severe drought.C.It has been suffering from heavy sandstorm.D.It has been suffering from high temperature.A.It is a good place to land at by aeroplane.B.It is
32、 a good place to fly over.C.It is a good place to travel to by land.D.It is a good place to live at.A.Because there planes fly higher than at the equator.B.Because there the eyes can reach about 4,000 metres.C.Because there planes are clear of bad weather.D.Because there planes fly more quickly than
33、 at the equator.A.In warm air.B.In cold air.C.When it reaches the polar region.D.Only when the clouds are down low.六、Section C(总题数：1，分数：10.00)Whenever you see an old film, even one made as (36) 1as ten yeas ago, you cannot help being (37) 2by the appearance of the women taking part. Their (38) 3and
34、make-up look dated; their skirts look either too long or too short; their general appearance is, in fact, slightly (39) 4. The men taking part in the film, on the other hand, are clearly (40) 5. There is nothing about their appearance to suggest that they belong to an (41) 6different age. This (42)
35、7is created by changing fashions. Over the years, the great (43) 8of men have successfully resisted all the attempts to make them change their style of dress. The same cannot be said for women (44) 9. This year, they decide in their arbitrary fashion. Next year the law is reversed and far from takin
36、g exception, no one is ever mildly surprised. And women all over the world rush to obey. Changing fashions are nothing more than the deliberate creation of waste. (45) 10. Fashion designers are rarely concerned with vital things like warmth, comfort and durability. They are only interested in outwar
37、d appearance and (46) 11, providing they look right. （分数：10.00）填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_七、Reading Comprehensio(总题数：2，分数：355.00)Rugby has the reputation of being the roughest sports in the world. Outside the British isles, rugby is little known and,
38、 in fact, is often confused with soccer. But in England, an old sports saying serves to point out the differences between the two games: soccer is supposedly a gentlemens game played by ruffians, whereas rugby is a ruffians game played by gentlemen. The game begins with a kick-off from one end of a
39、100-yard field. The receiving ruggers, as a rugby team is called, attempt to move the ball down the field, the opposing team attempts to stop the man with the ball. The rules are quite simple. You cannot tackle anyone but the man who is carrying the ball, and once the ball carrier is tackled, he mus
40、t give up the ball. Obviously, a good strategy for moving the ball downfield is to carry it as far as possible, then pass the ball before being tackled. If the ball carrier can travel the length of the field, his team is awarded four points, and another two points are won by kicking the ball over th
41、e goalpost after the score. Penalties are equally simple, tackling a player who is not carrying the ball carries a ten yard penalty. Much of rugbys reputation for roughness stems from the fact that the players wear no pads. To Americans accustomed to seeing professional football players in suits and
42、 helmets like armor, a rugby players uniform seems suicidally simple. Most ruggers wear a very thick jersey, heavy gymnasium shorts, heavy socks, rugby shoes, and a mouthpiece. Ruggers use other equipment or pads only when an injury requires protection. But even with this minimal equipment, the game
43、 is apparently not as brutal as it might seem. The players are quite satisfied with the lack of padding and helmets and actually think the game might be too rough if players used more equipment. “ Human nature is not to hit as hard if no one is wearing pads,“ one rugger explains. Rugby games are pla
44、yed in two halves, each lasting forty minutes. Teams always meet to play two games consecutively, back-to-back. Again, playing a demanding physical sport like rugby for more than 160 minutes seems like an impossible task, but the ruggers love this idea. “ It gives everyone on the team a chance to ge
45、t into the game,“ they say. Rugby is slowly catching on in America. The sport is gaining an enthusiastic following among college teams and in independent ruggy “unions“ organized on the British model. It has all the appeal of football, but it is simpler and requires much less costly equipment. Rugby
46、 is ready to be rediscovered. （分数：177.50）(1).The main purpose of this passage is to_.（分数：35.50）A.compare English and American sportsB.compare rugby to footballC.discuss the brutality of rugbyD.provide a brief introduction to rugby(2).Acoording to the passage, which of the following statements is tru
47、e?（分数：35.50）A.Tackling a player who is not carrying the ball is a ten-yard penalty.B.It is legal to pass the ball in rugby if you are already down.C.Only the offensive team in rugby can be called “ruggers“.D.All of the above.(3).We can conclude from the passage that_.（分数：35.50）A.basketball was derived f
