Question

Grown?ups are often surprised by how well they remember something they learned as children but have never practiced ever since. A man who has not had a chance to go swimming for years can still swim as well as ever when he gets back in the water. He can get on a bicycle after many years and still ride away. He can play catch and hit a ball as well as his son. A mother who has not thought about the words for years can teach her daughter the poem that begins “Twinkle, twinkle, little star” or remember the story of Cinderella or Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

One explanation is the law of overlearning, which can be stated as follows: Once we have learned something, additional learning trials increase the length of time we will remember it.

In childhood we usually continue to practice such skills as swimming, bicycle riding, and playing baseball long after we have learned them. We continue to listen to and remind ourselves of words such as “Twinkle, twinkle, little star” and childhood tales such as Cinderella and Goldilocks. We not only learn but overlearn.

The multiplication tables (乘法口訣表) are an exception to the general rule that we forget rather quickly the things that we learn in school, because they are another of the things we overlearn in childhood.

The law of overlearning explains why cramming (突擊學習) for an examination, though it may result in a passing grade, is not a satisfactory way to learn a college course. By cramming, a student may learn the subject well enough to get by on the examination, but he is likely soon to forget almost everything he learned. A little overlearning, on the other hand, is really necessary for one's future development.

1.What is the main idea of Paragraph 1?

A．People remember well what they learned in childhood.

B．Children have a better memory than grown?ups.

C．Poem reading is a good way to learn words.

D．Stories for children are easy to remember.

2.The author explains the law of overlearning by________.

A．presenting research findings

B．setting down general rules

C．making a comparison

D．using examples

3.According to the author, being able to use multiplication tables is ________.

A．a result of overlearning

B．a special case of cramming

C．a skill to deal with math problems

D．a basic step towards advanced studies

4.What is the author's opinion on cramming?

A．It leads to failure in college exams.

B．It's helpful only in a limited way.

C．It's possible to result in poor memory.

D．It increases students' learning interest.

 

Answer 1

1.A

2.D

3.A

4.B

【解析】文章大意：本文是一篇議論文。成年人常常驚嘆他們能很好地記著兒時學過的東西。作者認為這是兒時過度學習的結果，是因為當我們兒時學會一樣東西的時候，我們不是就此停止，而是繼續(xù)練習，才使我們記憶深刻。文章用例證法說明了“過度學習”的概念。 最后作者談到了“過度學習”的好處和“突擊學習”的弊端。

1.段落大意題。根據文章第一段中的“Grown?ups are often surprised by how well they remember something they learned as children but have never practiced ever since.”可知，文章講的是成年人常常驚嘆他們非常好地記著兒時學過的東西。C、D斷章取義，講得太具體，B項錯誤，因為那是過度學習的結果，不是兒時記憶力好。所以A正確。

2.推理判斷題。根據文章的內容可知：作者采用了舉例子的說明方法。比如：“practice such skills as swimming, bicycle riding, and playing baseball long after we have learned them.”和“…they [the multiplication tables(乘法口訣表)] are another of the things we overlearn in childhood.”

3.推理判斷題。根據文章的第四段“because they are another of the things we overlearn in childhood.”可知，乘法口訣仍然是兒時過度學習的結果。所以選A。

4.推理判斷題。根據文章最后一段中的“By cramming, a student may learn the subject well enough to get by on the examination, but he is likely soon to forget almost everything he learned.”可知，突擊學習只在有限的方面有幫助。所以B正確。