For my grandmother's 70th birthday, my family and I visited South Korea. While there, I was attentive to Korean high schools and students.

I was surprised by how different Korea's public high schools are from America's. Korean high schools can be all-girls, all-boys or co-ed (男女同校的）unlike our standard co-ed high schools. There are three grades: “go 1（10th) ”， “go 2” (1l th) and “go 3” (12th). “Go”is the first syllable of the word “go-deung –hakkyo”, which, simply translated, is “high school”.

In America, unless you want to go to a private school, you don't have to take an entrance exam. In Korea, however, students must take a test to get in because of the many choices of schools.

Another difference I couldn't help but notice was the students' appearance. With very few exceptions, all wear uniforms. A name tag (標(biāo)牌)with the student's name, grade and homeroom number must also be worn. Girl's skirts can't be above the upper part of the knee, and it is forbidden to dye (染)your hair or wear accessories (裝飾品)except small earrings. There are strict regulations for appearance to achieve neatness, and it seems the only freedom students have is with their choices of hair style, socks and shoes.

The final difference was the setup of the classes. There may be 40 students in a classroom, but the number can be less or even more, depending on the population of the town or city. Although there are many students per classroom, they are very close, which I think is a result of not changing classrooms for different subjects. There are no levels in the subjects and the teachers are the ones who switch classrooms. They just have ten-minute breaks between subjects. In each class, students are ranked by their grades. This causes strict competition, and Korean students do a lot of studying. To help them, all schools have extra study classes after school. One other fact that helped me appreciate living in America is that Koreans have school on Saturdays. Although it's only a half day, I think I speak for most Americans when I say we could never imagine ourselves in school on a Saturday.

Korea's public high schools are clearly different from America's. I had imagined them to be just like our schools, but now I have a clear picture of how different they are.

59. How many main differences are mentioned between Korea's public high school and America’s?

A. 3.                               B. 4.                   C. 5.                   D. 6.

60. It seems that the writer  _______ .

A. is familiar with the education system of high schools in Korea

B. is fond of Korean students' appearance

C. prefers the high school life of America to the one of Korea

D. feels it common to have lessons on weekends

61. What does the underlined word "setup" in paragraph 5 probably mean?

A. Arrangement.        B. Size.               C. Number.         D. Outline.

62. According to the rules, the students of Korea can _______  .

A. go to different high schools without exams  B. wear any clothes except uniforms at school

C. attend different classes as they like               D. have different hair styles

Designed as a gift book or family souvenir, this beautiful hardcover has a traditional connection with Christmas virtues (美德). Each virtue is discussed in a short article and then followed by four to five all-new heart-touching stories from Chicken Soup for the Soul. Each section ends with a one-page suggestion for how to start your own holiday tradition, from baking cookies to charity ideas, which reflects the spirit of the virtue.

With the amusing description of life and heart-warming tales about cats, each touching story in Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers' Soul celebrates the special bond we share with our cats.

The Real Dear Friends explores the classic puzzles which every child aged 9-19 faces: friends -- making them, keeping them, fighting with them, losing them, helping them and competing with them. And there are no lectures here; this is the straight talk from teens that young readers love.

This is a book that covers problems for girls only! Chicken Soup for Girls' Soul is a book by girls, for girls, where readers can find encouragement, support and positive advice when facing the challenges of being a pre-teen girl.

The heart-warming stories and photographs in Chicken Soup for the Soul Celebrates Grandmothers celebrate and catch the loving moments spent together with family: the joyful surprise of becoming a grandma, the amazing times when young children teach them lessons about life and living.

56. If you are a pet lover, which book might interest you most? ______.

A. Chicken Soup for the Soul              B. Chicken Soup for the Cat Lovers' Soul

C. The Real Dear Friends                        D. Chicken Soup for Girls' Soul

57. The Real Dear Friends appeals to young readers because it ______.

A. tells the real experience of teenagers

B. has a beautiful hardcover which teens like most

C. covers touching lectures by famous authors

D. gives suggestions on how to defeat their friends

58. The feature of the Chicken Soup for the Soul Celebrates Grandmothers lies in ______.

A. some useful suggestions on traditional cooking

B. encouragement and support from family members

C. some experiences of teens in different regions

D. a perfect combination of warm stories and photos

When Julie was a child, she was a very big fan of animals. As a result, all she ever heard  36  was “Julie, you should be a vet. You’re going to be a great vet. That’s what you should do.”  37  when she got to the Ohio State University, she started studying to be a vet.

A scholarship allowed her to spend her  38  year studying abroad in Manchester, England. Away from the family  39  back home, she found herself one day sitting at her desk, surrounded by biology books and staring out the window, when it suddenly hit her: “I’m in total  40 . I don’t want to be a vet!”

 41  she thought back over all the things she’d done in her life and what had made her happy. And then it hit her—it was all of the youth leadership conferences that she had volunteered  42 , and the communications and leadership courses she had taken as elective courses back at Ohio State. “How could I have been so  43 ? Here I am in my fourth year at school and just finally realizing I’m on the  44  path. I just never took the time to  45  it until now, ” she thought.

Inspired by her new  46 , Julie spent the rest of her year in England taking courses in communications and media studies. When  47  to Ohio State, she was eventually able to  48  the administration to let her create her own program in “l(fā)eadership studies”,  49  it took her 2 years longer to finally graduate. She  50  to become a senior management consultant in leadership training and development for the Pentagon. She  51  founded a drug-prevention organization that  52  the message “Lead your own life with the skill and the  53  to say no.”

So, never live someone else’s  54 . If you limit your  55  only to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want.

36. A. showing up       B. growing up          C. ending up             D. cheering up

37. A. So                 B. But                      C. Or                       D. For

38. A. final                 B. usual                   C. next                      D. past

39. A. routines            B. warnings                C. complaints             D. pressures

40. A. confidence        B. silence                   C. misery                   D. surprise

41. A. Perhaps                  B. Instead                   C. Then                     D. Often

42. A. of                   B. to                                C. on                        D. at

43. A. internal            B. innocent                C. intellectual             D. intelligent

44. A. clear                 B. wrong                    C. short                     D. wide

45. A. acknowledge     B. accomplish           C. include                   D. criticize

46. A. discovery          B. information              C. understanding         D. research

47. A. returning          B. referring                 C. relating                  D. responding

48. A. prepare            B. convince                C. forbid                    D. force

49. A. as                     B. if                           C. once                       D. though

50. A. hesitated            B. failed                      C. retired                    D. continued

51. A. still                   B. again                      C. also                       D. only

52. A. leaves               B. promotes                C. confirms              D. acquires

53. A. will                  B. chance                   C. fact                      D. pride

54. A. promises           B. decisions                C. successes              D. dreams

55. A. choices             B. reasons                    C. smiles                     D. mistakes

 —When can I use your computer?

—Never! ________ should you touch it．

A. In no time               B. At no time                 C. At any time               D. At one time

Chery, a car maker in Anhui province, sold nearly 700,000 units in 2011, with the total value ________ it was in 2005.

A. more than three times what　 　　　　　　　　　 B. three more times than that

C, over three times than what　 　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. over three times of that

 —Do you have anything to say for yourselves?

—Yes, there is one point________ we must insist on.

 A. why             B. where           C. how                     D. /

—How dangerous it was!

—Yes, but for the passer-by’s quick action, the girl ________.

 A. was drowned   B. could have been drowned  C. had drowned     D. should be drowned

— It's no easy task to catch a ticket on a website that receives 1 billion clicks daily.

— I can't agree with you more. There ________ be errors for every single step.

A. should　 　　　　　　　 B. must　 　　　　　　　　　 C. will　 　　　　　　　　　　 D. can

 — ________ no ad during TV plays.

—Great move! I cannot tolerate those annoying ads appearing every several minutes.

A. There is said to have                                 B. It is said to have

C. There is said to be                                    D. It is said to be

 ________, as long as I’m with nature, I don’t care.

A. However tough the journey is               B. Whatever tough the journey is

C. However the journey is tough                D. Whatever the journey is tough