Passage Three

Questions 33 to 35 are based on the passage you have just heard.

33.A) It may produce an increasing number of idle youngsters. B) It may affect the quality of higher education in America.

C) It may cause many schools to go out of operation. D) It may lead to a lack of properly educated workers.

34. A）It is less serious in cities than in rural areas. B) It affects both junior and senior high schools.

C) It results from a worsening economic climate. D) It is a new challenge facing American educators.

35. A) Allowing them to choose their favorite teachers. B) Creating a more relaxed learning environment.

C) Rewarding excellent academic performance. D) Helping them to develop better study habits.

答案

33. D) It may lead to a lack of properly educated workers.

34. B) It affects both junior and senior high schools.

35. C) Rewarding excellent academic performance.

原文

Articles in magazines and newspapers and special reports on radio and television reflect the concern of many Americans about the increasing drop-out rate in our junior and senior high schools. Coupled with this fact is the warning that soon we will no longer have a work force to fill the many jobs that require properly educated personnel. The high student drop-out rate is not a recent development. Ten years ago, many urban schools were reporting drop-out rates between 35 and 50 percent. Some administrators maintain that drop-outs remain the single greatest problem in their schools. Consequently, much effort has been spent on identifying students with problems in order to give them more attention before they become failures. Since the drop-out problem doesn’t start in senior high school, special programs in junior high school focus on students who show promise but have a record of truancy—that is staying away from school without permission. Under the guidance of counselors, these students are placed in classes with teachers who have had success in working with similar young people. Strategies to motivate students in a high school include rewarding academic excellence by designating scholars of the month, or by issuing articles of clothing, such as school letter jackets formerly given only to athletes. No one working with these students claims to know how to keep all students in school. Counselors, teachers and administrators are in the frontlines of what seems at times to be a losing battle. Actually, this problem should be everyone’s concern since uneducated, unemployed citizens affect us all.

33. Why are many Americans concerned with the increasing drop-out rate in school?

34. What do we learn about the student drop-out problem in America?

35. What is mentioned as one of the strategies used to motivate students?