to represent things and ideas,
and also to represent the sounds of their language The signs these people used became a kind of alphabet The Egyptians used to record information and
to tell stories by putting picture writing and pictures together When an important person died,
scenes and stories from his life were painted on the walls of the place where he was buried
Some of these pictures are like modern comic strip stories It has been said that Egypt is the home of the comic strip But, for the Egyptians,
pictures still had magic power
So they did not try to make their way of writing simple The ordinary people could not understand it By the year BC,
people who lived in the area around the Mediterranean Sea had developed a simpler system of writing The signs they used were very easy to write,
and there were fewer of them than in the Egyptian system This was because each sign, or letter,
represented only one sound in their language The Greeks developed this system and formed the letters of the Greek alphabet The Romans copied the idea,
and the Roman alphabet is now used all over the world These days, we can write down a story, or record information, without using pictures
But we still need pictures of all kinds drawing, photographs, signs and diagrams
Pictures help us to understand and remember things more easily, and they can make a story much more interesting Questions to are based on the passage you have just heard
What did the Egyptians draw simple pictures for? What do we know about Egyptians’ way of writing? Which alphabet is used worldwide?
Passage Three
Human beings have used tools for a very long time In some parts of the world you can still
find tools that people used more than two million years ago They made these tools by hitting one stone against another In this way,
they broke off pieces from one of the stones
These chips of stone were usually sharp on one side
People used them for cutting meat and skin from dead animals, and also for making other tools out of wood Tools helped people to get food more easily
Working with tools also helped to develop human intelligence The human brain grew bigger,
and human beings began to invent more and more tools and machines
The stone chip was one of the first tools that people used Some scientists say that it is the key to success of mankind Since ,
a new kind of tool has appeared
That is, the silicon chip—a little chip of silicon crystal It is smaller than a fingernail,
but it can store more than a million “bits” of information It is an electronic brain
Every year these chips get cleverer, but their size gets smaller, and their cost gets less They are used in watches,
calculators and intelligent machines that we can use in many ways
In the future we will not need to work with tools in the old way Human beings used stone chips for more than two million years,
but human life changed very little in that time We have used silicon chips for only a few years, but life is changing faster every day Questions to are based on the passage
you have just heard
How did early human beings make tools two million years ago?
Why is the stone chip thought to be an important tool?
What is the future like according to the speaker?
Section C
Directions In this section,
you will hear a passage three times
When the passage is read for the first time, you should listen carefully for its general idea When the passage is read for the second time, you are required to fill in the blanks with the exact words you have just heard
Finally, when the passage is read for the third time, you should check what you have written Now listen to the passage
Accomplished teachers of world languages
are keenly aware that young people learn in various ways They use their knowledge of child
in designing and providing appropriate instruction to their students
They recognize and make professional accommodations for variations in students’ age levels, cognitive, physical, and motor development, gender, multiple intelligences, and learning styles
Attitude also plays an important role in student success
Students with low self-esteem or little confidence about their ability to learn another language
might benefit from extra encouragement from the teacher Of course, all students can benefit from positive teacher feedback
Teachers might have students work in groups so that they can also benefit from the help and positive reinforcement of their peers Students who are motivated and confident might work well independently, using computer software
Those who teach young children know
the importance of working at concrete levels; students might learn to tell time
as they manipulate individual student clocks, or learn children’s songs while using hand and body movements As for mature students,
teachers need to provide more abstract and analytical challenges Teachers should be aware
that personalizing the language experience is helpful to students because many students
will talk readily about themselves and their experiences Teachers recognize
that providing learning experiences in the affective field
by encouraging open-ended personal expression
is a valuable way of enhancing students’ cognitive ability, cultural understanding, and linguistic proficiency
Teachers provide a range of meaningful,
interesting, and personally relevant instruction for students at all levels of development or ability Now the passage will be read again
Now the passage will be read for the third time This is the end of listening comprehension