2011年6月大学英语六级真题

Part Ⅰ Writing (30minutes)

1．现在许多人热衷于各类证书考试 2．其目的各不相同 3．在我看来……

The Certificate Craze

Part II Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning) (15 minutes)

Minority Report

American universities are accepting more minorities than ever. Graduating them is another matter.

Barry Mills, the president of Bowdoin College, was justifiably proud of Bowdoin's efforts to recruit minority students. Since 2003 the small, elite liberal arts school in Brunswick, Maine, has boosted the proportion of so-called under-represented minority students in

entering freshman classes from 8% to 13%. \reach out and attract students to come to our kinds of places,\a NEWSWEEK reporter. But Bowdoin has not done quite as well when it comes to actually graduating minorities. While 9 out of 10 white students routinely get their diplomas within six years, only 7 out of 10 black students made it to graduation day in several recent classes. \Hilary Pennington, director of postsecondary programs for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which has closely studied enrollment

patterns in higher education. \stage for a diploma, it's still largely the white, upper-income population.\

The United States once had the highest graduation rate of any nation. Now it stands 10th. For the first time in American history, there is the risk that the rising generation will be less well educated than the previous one. The graduation rate among 25- to 34-year-olds is no better than the rate for the 55- to 64-year-olds who were going to

1

college more than 30 years ago. Studies show that more and more poor and non-white students want to graduate from college – but their graduation rates fall far short of their dreams. The graduation rates for blacks, Latinos, and Native Americans lag far behind the graduation rates for whites and Asians. As the minority population grows in the United States, low college graduation rates become a threat to national prosperity.

The problem is pronounced at public universities. In 2007 the

University of Wisconsin-Madison – one of the top five or so prestigious public universities – graduated 81% of its white students within six years, but only 56% of its blacks. At less-selective state schools, the numbers get worse. During the same time frame, the University of Northern Iowa graduated 67% of its white students, but only 39% of its blacks. Community colleges have low graduation rates generally – but rock-bottom rates for minorities. A recent review of California community colleges found that while a third of the Asian students picked up their degrees, only 15% of African-Americans did so as well. Private colleges and universities generally do better, partly because they offer smaller classes and more personal attention. But when it comes to a significant graduation gap, Bowdoin has company. Nearby Colby College logged an 18-point difference between white and black graduates in 2007 and 25 points in 2006. Middlebury College in Vermont, another top school, had a 19-point gap in 2007 and a

22-point gap in 2006. The most selective private schools – Harvard, Yale, and Princeton – show almost no gap between black and white graduation rates. But that may have more to do with their ability to select the best students. According to data gathered by Harvard Law School professor Lain Gainer, the most selective schools are more likely to choose blacks who have at least one immigrant parent from Africa or the Caribbean than black students who are descendants of American slaves.

\

particularly the more selective schools, by saying the responsibility is on the individual student,\\– students admitted with lower test scores and grades from shaky high schools often struggle at elite schools. But a bigger problem may be

that poor high schools often send their students to colleges for which they are \schools, but instead go to community colleges and low-rated state schools that lack the resources to help them. Some schools out for profit cynically increase tuitions and count on student loans and

federal aid to foot the bill – knowing full well that the students won't make it. \debt and no degree and no ability to get a better job. Colleges are not holding up their end,\ A college education is getting ever more expensive. Since 1982

tuitions have been rising at roughly twice the rate of inflation. In 2008 the net cost of attending a four-year public university – after financial aid – equaled 28% of median (中间的)family income, while a four-year private university cost 76% of median family income. More and more scholarships are based on merit, not need. Poorer students are not always the best-informed consumers. Often they wind up deeply in debt or simply unable to pay after a year or two and must drop out. There once was a time when universities took pride in their dropout rates. Professors would begin the year by saying, \and look to the left. One of you is not going to be here by the end of the year.\least a few colleges face up to the graduation gap. At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the gap has been roughly halved over the last three years. The university has poured resources into peer counseling to help students from inner-city schools adjust to the rigor (严格要求)and faster pace of a university classroom –and also to help minority students overcome the stereotype that they are less qualified.

Wisconsin has a \first three months, according to vice provost (教务长)Damon Williams. State and federal governments could sharpen that focus everywhere by broadly publishing minority graduation rates. For years private colleges such as Princeton and MIT have had success bringing

minorities onto campus in the summer before freshman year to give them some prepare Tory courses. The newer trend is to start

recruiting poor and non-white students as early as the seventh grade, using innovative tools to identify kids with sophisticated verbal skills. Such programs can be expensive, of course, but cheap compared with

2

the millions already invested in scholarships and grants for kids who have little chance to graduate without special support.

With effort and money, the graduation gap can be closed. Washington and Lee is a small, selective school in Lexington, Va. Its student body is less than 5% black and less than 2% Latino. While the school

usually graduated about 90% of its whites, the graduation rate of its blacks and Latinos had dipped to 63% by 2007. \dramatic shift,\affairs. The school aggressively pushed mentoring (辅导) of minorities by other students and \pre-enrollment session. The school had its first-ever black

homecoming. Last spring the school graduated the same proportion of minorities as it did whites. If the United States wants to keep up in the global economic race, it will have to pay systematic attention to graduating minorities, not just enrolling them. 注意：此部分试题请在答题卡1上作答。

1. What is the author's main concern about American higher education?

A) The small proportion of minority students. B) The low graduation rates of minority students.

C) The growing conflicts among ethnic groups. D) The poor academic performance of students.

2. What was the pride of President Barry Mills of Bowdoin College?

A) The prestige of its liberal arts programs . B) Its ranking among universities in Maine.

C) The high graduation rates of its students. D) Its increased enrollment of minority students. 3. What is the risk facing America?

A) Its schools will be overwhelmed by the growing number of illegal immigrants.

B) The rising generation will be less well educated than the previous one.

C) More poor and non-white students will be denied access to college.

D) It is going to lose its competitive edge in higher education. 4. How many African-American students earned their degrees in California community colleges according to a recent review?

A) Fifty-six percent. B) Thirty-nine percent. C) Fifteen percent D) Sixty-seven percent.

5. Harvard, Yale, and Princeton show almost no gap between black and white graduation rates mainly because .

A) Their students work

harder B) They recruit the best students

C) Their classes are generally smaller D) They give students more attention

6. How does Amy Wilkins of the Education Trust view minority students' failure to get a degree?

A) Universities are to blame. B) Students don't work hard.

C) The government fails to provide the necessary support. D) Affirmative action should be held responsible.

7. Why do some students drop out after a year or two according to the author?

A) They have lost confidence in themselves. B) They cannot afford the high tuition.

C) They cannot adapt to the rigor of the school. D) They fail to develop interest in their studies.

8. To tackle the problem of graduation gap, the University of

Wisconsin-Madison helps minority students get over the stereotype that _______.

9. For years, private colleges such as Princeton and MIT have

provided minority students with _______ during the summer before freshman year.

10. Washington and Lee University is cited as an example to show that the gap of graduation rates between whites and minorities can _______.

Part IV Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth) (25 minutes)

Questions 47 to 51 are based on the following passage.

How good are you at saying \This is especially true of editors, who by nature tend to be eager and engaged participants in everything they do. Consider these scenarios: It's late in the day. That front-page package you've been working on is nearly complete; one last edit and it's finished. Enter the executive editor, who makes a suggestion requiring a more-than-modest

rearrangement of the design and the addition of an information box. You want to scream: \

The first rule of saying no to the boss is doing say no. She probably has something in mind when she makes suggestions, and it's up to you to find out what. The second rule is doing raise the stakes by challenging her authority. That issue is already decided. The third rule is to be ready to cite options and consequences. The boss's suggestions might be appropriate, but there are always consequences. She might not know about the pages backing up that need attention, or about the designer who had to go home sick. Tell her she can have what she wants, but explain the consequences. Understand what she's trying to accomplish and propose a Plan B that will make it happen without destroying what you've done so far.

Here's another case. Your least-favorite reporter suggests a dumb story idea. This one should be easy, but it's not. If you say no, even politely, you risk inhibiting further ideas, not just from that reporter, but from others who heard that you turned down the idea. This

scenario is common in newsrooms that lack a systematic way to filter story suggestions.

Two steps are necessary. First, you need a system for how stories are proposed and reviewed. Reporters can tolerate rejection of their ideas if they believe they were given a fair hearing. Your gut reaction (本能反应) and dismissive rejection, even of a worthless idea, might not qualify as systematic or fair.

Second, the people you work with need to negotiate a \agreement covering \expected to react? Is there an appeal process? Can they refine the idea and resubmit it? By anticipating \they happen, you can reach understanding that will help ease you out of confrontations.

3