Holding Onto a Dream
Ⅰ.Reading Strategy: Scanning for Specific Information
“It s like being in a jungle,”one student said about reading.
Well, although a full-scale rescue isn t possible (because no one can actually do the reading for you),you can learn how to prepare yourself in advance and find paths to make the going easier.And you need to be efficient or you ll collapse with exhaustion.
The purpose for which you are reading sources of information will determine how you read them.And you are not an efficient reader if you read all texts in the same way.
Scanning is sweeping your eyes (like a radar ) over part of a text,to find specific pieces of information.It s a bit like skimming with a clear purpose.It can help you find specific information or know which sections of the text to read more intensively.If you are scanning for information, you are looking for information which you know/ suspect is present in the text.Scanning is an important reading skill because it compels you to read actively by putting you in a search mode.It is useful when you are required to read quickly enough to cope with an academic course, to read the media for information or to understand non-standard correspondence.An example of scanning in real life is looking quickly through the headlines of newspaper for articles of interest.Then how do you scan?1.After over-viewing and skimming, identify the part of the text which probably contains the information you need.
2.Read the question again or be clear what it is you are looking for.
3.Scan the text.As soon as your eyes catch an important word or phrase, stop reading.
4.Read the material close to this point.Can you complete your task ? If not，scan the material again.
Ⅱ.Applying the Reading Strategy
In this part,you are required to use the reading strategy you have just learned.Read the following paragraphs and answer the questions after them.
High-speed ground transportation (HSGT) technologies with vehicle speed exceeding 150 mph can be divided into two basic categories.
High-speed rail (HSR) systems, with top speeds between 150 and 200 mph，use steel wheels on steel rails, as with traditional railroads, but can achieve higher speed because of the design of both the rail bed and cars.
High-speed magnetic levitation (Maglev) systems, with top speeds between 250 and 300 mph, use forces of attraction from powerful magnets placed in either the vehicle or the guide way beneath it both to lift the vehicle above the guide way and to propel it forward.
The potential top speed of innovated HSR systems can be somewhere.
A.between 150 and 300 mph B.between 150～200 mph or higher.
C.between 200 and 250 mph D.between 250 and 300 mph.
Carnegie Hall, the famous concert hall in New York City, has again.
undergone a restoration.While this is not the first,it is certainly the most extensive in the building s history.As a result of this new restoration, Carnegie Hall once again has the quality of sound that it had when it was first built.
Carnegie Hall owes its existence to Andrew Carnegie, the wealthy owner of a steel company in the late 1800s.The hall was finished in 1891 and quickly gained a reputation as an excellent performing arts hall where accomplished musicians gained fame.Despite its reputation, however, the concert hall suffered from several detrimental renovations over the years.During the Great Depression,when fewer people could afford to attend performances, the directors sold part of the building to commercial businesses.In 1960, the violinist Isaac Stern became involved in restoring the hall after a group of real estate developers planed to demolish Carnegie Hall and build a high-rise office building on the site.
Who is Andrew Carnegie?A.A violinist.B.An architect.
C.A steel tycoon.D.Mayor of New York City.
Ⅲ.Reading Tasks
A.Pre-reading activity.
Education has always been the concern of governments around the whole world.Do you know anything about the education in Australia ? What do you expect the following article to tell you?B.Reading
Australians are all required to go to school from the time they are six until they finish junior high school at about the age of 15.However, the pressures of a specialized technological society mean that Australians commonly continue formal education well into young adulthood.
About 75 per cent of school-aged children attend “ free” ( tax-paid )government institutions.The rest are sent to preparatory, primary and secondary schools run by religious, sectarian or non-denominational private organizations.Confusingly for people from other English-speaking backgrounds, the term public school in Australia means a government school (open to the general public).Non-government schools are usually known as private schools.
But there is rarely any snobbery about which school a person attends and little or no kudos is attached to private education.In some places, education at a particularly well-funded, high-standard government school is preferred to school before they qualify for high school.Government schools account for 80 per cent of primary age pupils in Australia.The class teacher guides pupils through a wide range of subjects, including language, arts, mathematics,elementary science, music, health and physical education.Religious education is optional at most State schools.
At the age of 12 or 13, children are transferred to a local government high school.Pupils entering government high schools are not subject to streaming in academic or technically oriented institutions, as in some countries.However,Victoria does provide a choice between university-oriented schools and technical high schools, slanted towards preparing pupils for careers in skilled trades or sub-professional courses by placing greater emphasis on practical and craft subjects.