Question

In 1974, after filling out fifty applications, going through four interviews, and winning one offer, I look what I could get — a teaching job at what I considered a distant wild area: western New Jersey. My characteristic optimism was alive only when I reminded myself that I would be doing what I had wanted to do since I was fourteen 一 teaching English.

School started, but I felt more and more as if I were in a foreign country. Waa this rural area really New Jersey? My students a week off when hunting season began. I was told they were also frequently absent in late October to help their fathers make hay on the farms. I was a young woman from New York City, who thought that “Make hay while the sun shines” just meant to have a good time.

But, still, I was teaching English. I worked hard, taking lime off only to eat and sleep. And then there was my sixth-grade class 一 seventeen boys and five girls who were only six yean younger than me. I had a problem long before I knew it. I was struggling in my work as a young idealistic teacher. I wanted to make literature come alive and lo promote a love of the written word. The students wanted to throw spitballs and whisper dirty words in the back of the room.

In college I had been taught that a successful educator should ignore bad behavior. So I did, confident that, as the textbook had said, the bad behavior would disappear as I gave ray students positive attention. It sounds reasonable, but the text evidently ignored the fact that humans, particularly teenagers, rarely seem reasonable. By the time ray boss, who was also ray taskmaster known to be the strictest, most demanding, most quick to fire inexperienced teachers, came into the classroom to observe me, the students exhibited very little good behavior to praise.

My boss sat in the back of the room. The boys in the class were making animal noises, hitting each other while the girls filed their nails or read magazines. I just pretended it all wasn’t happening, and went on lecturing and tried to ask some inspiring questions. My boss, sitting in the back of the room, seemed to be growing bigger and bigger. After twenty minutes he left, silently. Visions of unemployment marched before my eyes.

I felt mildly victorious that I got through the rest of class without crying, but at my next free period I had to face him. I wondered if he would let me finish out the day. I walked to his office, took a deep breath, and opened the door.

He was sitting in his chair, and he looked at me long and hard. I said nothing. All I could think of was that I was not an English teacher; I had been lying to myself, pretending that everything was fine.

When he spoke, he said simply, without accusation, “You had nothing to say to them.”

“You had nothing to say to them," he repeated. “No wonder they’re bored. Why not get to the meal of the literature and stop talking about symbolism. Talk with them, not at them. And more important, why do you ignore their bad behavior?” We talked. He named ray problems and offered solutions. We role-played. He was the bad student, and I was the forceful, yet, warm, teacher.

As the year progressed, we spent many hours discussing literature and ideas about human beings and their motivations. He helped me identify my weaknesses and my strengths. In short, he made a teacher of me by teaching me the reality of Emerson's words: “The secret to education lies in respecting the pupil.”

Fifteen years later I still drive that same winding road to the same school. Thanks to the help I received that difficult first year, the school is my home now.

55. It can be inferred from the story that in 1974 ______.

A. the writer became an optimistic person

B. the writer was very happy about her new job

C. it was rather difficult to get a job in the USA

D. it was easy to get a teaching job in New Jersey

56. According to the passage, which of the following is most probably the writer’s problem as a new teacher?

A. She had blind trust in what she learnt at college.

B. She didn’t ask experienced teachers for advice.

C. She took too much time off to eat and sleep.

D. She didn’t like teaching English literature.

57. What is the writer’s biggest worry after her taskmaster's observation of her class?

A. She might lose her teaching job.

B. She might lose her students’ respect.

C. She couldn’t teach the same class any more.

D. She couldn’t ignore her students’ bad behavior any more.

58. Which of the following gives the writer a sense of mild victory?

A. Her talk about symbolism sounded convincing.

B. Her students behaved a little better than usual.

C. She managed to finish the class without crying.

D. She was invited for a talk by her boss after class.

59. The students behaved badly in the writer's classes because ______.

A. they were eager to embarrass her

B. she didn't really understand them

C. they didn't regard her as a good teacher

D. she didn’t have a good command of English

60. The taskmaster’s attitude towards the writer after his observation of her class can be best described as ______.

A. cruel but encouraging                        B. fierce but forgiving

C. sincere and supportive                       D. angry and aggressive

Answer 1

【语篇解读】本文是一篇记叙文，题材是作者从教第一年的经历。文章描述的是作者工作第一年到偏远山区的一所学校执教的经历，当作者个人的执教理念和现实脱节时得到了上司的指点，对自己以后文学的教学起到了很大的影响。

段落	关键词、句	大意推测
第一部分（Para. 1-2）	In 1974；a teaching job；distant wild aera；optimism; teaching English; in a foreign country; were also frequently absent	故事缘由：通过层层选拔，我得到了一份偏远地区的教学工作，具体的教学状况令我有些迷茫。
第二部分（Para. 3-5）	had a problem; idealistic teacher; make literature come alive; ignore bad behavior; positive attention; my boss; pretended; unemployment	问题的暴露：我以大学的经验实施我的理想教学，忽视孩子们的不良举动，被老板发现炒鱿鱼。
第三部分（Para. 6-9）	Face him；finish out；looked at me long and hard；without accusation；no wonder；why not；bad behavior	与老板的对话：我教学中的弊端在与老板的对话中得以发现，使我恍然大悟。
第三部分（Para. 10-11）	The year progressed；spent many hours；helped me identify； in short；fifteen years later；thanks to	对我教学的影响：市场的介入给我们的生活带来的巨大变化。

【解析】

55A。推理判断题。难度：中等。题干关键词为in 1974，定位第一段。根据第一段第一句的描述可知，作者是经过投了50份简历，经历了四次面试才得到这份工作的，由此可知当时的美国就业是相当困难的。

56. C。细节理解题。难度：中等。题干关键词为the writer’s problem as a new teacher，定位于第三第四段。第三段后半部分说我有个问题很久没意识到，我的教学理念和教学实际脱节，第四段又说大学里受到的教育对我影响很大，可知对大学知识的盲目自信正是她的问题所在，A项正确。 B项的内容在文中没有涉及，没有提到其他老师的存在，可排除；C项描述与第三段第一句I worked hard，taking time off only to eat and sleep相矛盾；D项说作者不喜欢文学教学也与文中说作者对工作的执着和热心相背。

四、A。细节理解题。难度：中等。题干关键词为biggest worry，定位于第五段和第六段。第五段最后两句说负责人只听了20分钟就悄悄地离开了，我似乎看到了自己被解雇的情形以及下一段第二句话我不知道他是否让我上完那天的课，由此可知作者怕丢掉来之不易的工作。

五、C。细节理解题。难度：中等。题干关键词为a sense of wild victory，定位于第六段。第一句I felt wildly victorious that I got through the rest of the class without crying, 可知作者能坚持平静地上完剩下的课程就已经是使她感到不容易的事情了。所以答案为C。

六、B。推理判断题。难度：中等。题干关键词为the students behaved badly，定位于全篇文章。尤其从第四段中的描述可知，作者就是按照教科书中传授的理论教育学生，但效果甚微，而且教科书忽略了一个事实就是人尤其是青少年很少是理智的，可知学生在她的课堂上表现不佳的原因就是她并不真正了解学生。

七、C。推理判断题。难度：中等。题干关键词为the taskmaster’s attitude towards the writer，定位于第八第九段，他没有指责我，而是向我提出了许多建议并交换角色实地体验（他当坏学生我当老师）等内容都体现出负责人的态度是真诚的和支持的。

【难句学习】

1. In 1974, after filling out fifty applications, going through four interviews, and winning one offer, I took what I could get--a teaching job at what I considered a distant wild area: western New Jersey.

翻译：1974年，在我填写了50份申请表格，参加了四次工作面试，得到了一份邀请函之后，我终于获得了一份工作——一份在新泽西州西部的一个遥远的萧山区的教学工作。

分析：本句是一个主从复合句。其主干是I took what I could get。In 1974, after filling out fifty applications, going through four interviews, and winning one offer, 都是属于介词短语做时间状语的用法，主句中包含一个what引导的宾语从句做动词took的宾语；a teaching job是what i could get的同位语，后面还有一个介词短语at what I considered a distant wild area: western New Jersey.作定语修饰a teaching job。

2. It sounds reasonable, but the text evidently ignored the fact that humans, particularly teenagers, rarely seemed reasonable.

翻译：这听起来是合理的，但是教科书明显地忽略了一个事实：人类，尤其是青少年很少显得那么理智。

分析：本句是一个主从复合句。But前面是一个简单句，后面句中含有一个名词性从句，即that引导的同位语从句，其中particularly teenagers又是同位语从句中主语humans的同位语。

16. All I could think of was that I was not an English teacher; I had been lying to myself,pretending that everything was fine.

翻译：我所能想到的全部就是我不是一个英语老师；我一直在对自己撒谎，假装事情一切都正常。

分析：本句是由分号连接的两个主从复合句。第一个句子主语是all，后面包含了一个that引导的定语从句I could think of，先行词为all时关系词只能选择that，又因为that在从句中做介词of的宾语，所以可以省略，而was后面还有一个that引导的名词性从句即表语从句；后面的句子中只有一个that引导的宾语从句，做动词pretend的宾语。