1、2015 年 12 月英语四级真题及答案Part I Writing (30minutes)Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay commenting on the saying “Listening is more important than talking. You can cite examples to illustrate the importance of paying attention to others1 opinions. You should write at le
2、ast 120 words but no more than 180 words.Part Listening Comprehension (30 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the end of each conversation, one or more questions will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and th
3、e questions will be spoken only once. After each question there will be a -pause. During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A), B), C) and D), and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.1. A) They admi
4、re the courage of space explorers.B) They were going to watch a wonderful movie.C) They enjoyed the movie on space exploration.D) They like doing scientific exploration very much.2. A) In a school library.B) At a gift shop.C) In the office of a travel agency.D) At a graduation ceremony.3. A) He used
5、 to work in the art gallery.B) He does not have a good memory.C) He is not interested in any part-time jobs.D) He declined a job offer from the art gallery.4. A) He will be unable to attend the birthday party.B) The woman should have informed him earlier.C) He will go to the birthday party after the
6、 lecture.D) Susan has been invited to give a lecture tomorrow.5. A) Set a deadline for the staff to meet.B) Assign more workers to the project.C) Reward those having made good progress.D) Encourage the staff to work in small groups.6. A) Where she can leave her car.B) The rate for parking in Lot C.C
7、) How far away the parking lot is.D) The way to the visitors parking.7. A) He regrets missing the classes.B) He has benefited from exercise.C) He plans to take the fitness classes.D) He is looking forward to a better life.8. A) How to select secretaries.B) How to raise work efficiency.C) The respons
8、ibilities of secretaries.D) The secretaries in the mans company.Questions 9 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.9. A) It is used by more people than English.B) It is more difficult to learn than English.C) It will be as commonly used as English.D) It will eventually become a worl
9、d language.10. A) Its popularity with the common people.B) The effect of the Industrial Revolution.C) The influence of the British Empire.D) Its loan words from many languages.11. A) It has a growing number of newly coined words.B) It includes a lot of words from other languages.C) It is the largest
10、 among all languages in the world.D) It can be easily picked up by overseas travellers.Questions 12 to 15 are based on the conversation you have just heard.12. A) To place an order.B) To apply for a job.C) To return some goods.D) To make a complaint.13. A) He works on a part-time basis for the compa
11、ny.B) He has not worked in the sales department for long.C) He is not familiar with the exact details of the goods.D) He has become somewhat impatient with the woman.14. A) It is not his responsibility.B) It will be free for large orders.C) It depends on a number of factors.D) It costs &15 more for
12、express delivery.15. A) Make inquiries with some other companies.B) Report the information to her superior.C) Pay a visit to the saleswoman in charge.D) Ring back when she comes to a decision.Section BDirections: In this section, you will hear 3 short passages. At the end of each passage, you will h
13、ear some questions. Both the passage and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C), and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre.Questions 16 to 18 a
14、re based on the passage you have just heard.16. A) No one knows for sure when they came into being.B) No one knows exactly where they were first made.C) No one knows for what purpose they were invented.D) No one knows what they will look like in the future.17. A) Measure the speed of wind.B) Give wa
15、rnings of danger.C) Pass on secret messages.D) Carry ropes across rivers.18. A) To find out the strength of silk for kites.B) To test the effects of the lightning rod.C) To prove that lightning is electricity.D) To protect houses against lightning. Questions 19 to 22 are based on the passage you hav
16、e just heard.19. A) She was born with a talent for languages.B) She was trained to be an interpreter.C) She can speak several languages.D) She enjoys teaching languages.20. A) They want to learn as many foreign languages as possible.B) They have an intense interest in cross-cultural interactions.C)
17、They acquire an immunity to culture shock.D) They would like to live abroad permanently.21. A) She became an expert in horse racing.B) She learned to appreciate classical music.C) She was able to translate for a German sports judge.D) She got a chance to visit several European countries.22. A) Take
18、part in a cooking competition.B) Taste the beef and give her comment.C) Teach vocabulary for food in English.D) Give cooking lessons on Western food.Questions 23 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.23. A) He had only a third-grade education.B) He once threatened to kill his teacher.C)
19、 He often helped his mother do housework.D) He grew up in a poor single-parent family.24. A) Stupid.B) Active.C) Brave. D) Careless.25. A) Watch educational TV programs only.B) Write two book reports a week.C) Help with housework.D) Keep a diary.Section C Directions: In this section, you will hear a
20、 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, yo
21、u should check what you have written.When you look up at the night sky, what do you see? There are other 26 bodies out there besides the moon and stars. One of the most 27 of these is a comet ( 彗 星 ).Comets were formed around the same time the Earth was formed. They are 28 ice and other frozen liqui
22、ds and gases. 29 these “dirty snowballs” begin to orbit the sun, just as the planets do.As a comet gets closer to the sun, some gases in it begin to unfreeze. They 30 dust particles from the comet to form a huge cloud. As the comet gets even nearer to the sun, a solar wind blows the cloud behind the
23、 comet, thus forming its tail. The tail and the 31 fuzzy (模糊的) atmosphere around a comet are 32 that can help identify this 33 in the night sky.In any given year, about a dozen known comets come close to the sun in their orbits. The average person cant see them all, of course. Usually there is only
24、one or two a year bright enough to be seen with the 34 eye. Comet Hale-Bopp, discovered in 1995, was an unusually bright comet. Its orbit brought it 35 close to the Earth, within 122 million miles of it. But Hale-Bopp came a long way on its earthly visit. It wont be back for another four thousand ye
25、ars or so.Part Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)Section ADirections: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choic
26、es. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.Questions 36 to 45 are based on the following passage.Scholars of the informa
27、tion society are divided over whether social inequality decreases or increases in an information-based society. However, they generally agree with the idea that inequality in the information society is 36 different from that of an industrial society. As informatization progresses in society, the cau
28、se and structural nature of social inequality changes as well.It seems that the information society 37 the quantity of information available to the members of a society by revolutionizing the ways of using and exchanging information. But such a view is a 38 analysis based on the quantity of informat
29、ion supplied by various forms of the mass media. A different 39 is possible when the actual amount of information 40 by the user is taken into account. In fact, the more information 41 throughout the entire society, the wider the gap becomes between “information haves” and “information have-nots”, l
30、eading to digital divide.According to recent studies, digital divide has been caused by three major 42 ： class, sex, and generation. In terms of class, digital divide exists among different types of workers and between the upper and middle classes and the lower class. With 43 to sex, digital divide
31、exists between men and women. The greatest gap, however, is between the Net-generation, 44 with personal computers and the Internet, and the older generation, 45 to an industrial society.A) AccustomedB) AcquiredC) AssemblyD) AttributeE) ChampionsF) ElementsG) ExpandsH) FamiliarI) FlowsJ) Fundamental
32、lyK) InterpretationL) PassiveM) RegardN) RespectivelyO) SuperficialSection BDirections: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is derive
33、d. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2.Joy: A Subject Schools LackBecoming educated should not require giving up pleasure.A) When Jonathan Swift proposed, in 1729, that the peopl
34、e of Ireland eat their children, he insisted it would solve three problems at once：feed the hungry masses, reduce the population during a severe depression, and stimulate the restaurant business. Even as a satire (讽刺), it seems disgusting and shocking in America with its child-centered culture. But
35、actually, the country is closer to his proposal than you might think.B) If you spend much time with educators and policy makers, youll hear a lot of the following words: “standards,”“results,”“skills,”“self-control,” “accountability,” and so on. I have visited some of the newer supposedly “effective
36、” schools, where children shout slogans in order to learn self- control or must stand behind their desk when they cant sit still.C) A look at what goes on in most classrooms these days makes it abundantly clear that when people think about education, they are not thinking about what it feels like to
37、 be a child, or what makes childhood an important and valuable stage of life in its own right.D) Im a mother of three, a teacher, and a developmental psychologist. So Ive watched a lot of childrentalking, playing, arguing, eating, studying, and being young. Heres what Ive come to understand. The thi
38、ng that sets children apart from adults is not their ignorance, nor their lack of skills. Its their enormous capacity for joy. Think of a 3-year-old lost in the pleasures of finding out what he can and cannot sink in the bathtub, a 5-year-old beside herself with the thrill of putting together string
39、s of nonsensical words with her best friends, or an 11-year-old completely absorbed in a fascinating comic strip. A childs ability to become deeply absorbed in something, and derive intense pleasure from that absorption, is something adults spend the rest of their lives trying to return to.E) A frie
40、nd told me the following story. One day, when he went to get his 7-year-old son from soccer practice, his kid greeted him with a downcast face and a sad voice. The coach had criticized him for not focusing on his soccer drills. The little boy walked out of the school with his head and shoulders hang
41、ing down. He seemed wrapped in sadness. But just before he reached the car door, he suddenly stopped, crouching (蹲伏) down to peer at something on the sidewalk. His face went down lower and lower, and then, with complete joy he called out, “Dad. Come here. This is the strangest bug Ive ever seen. It
42、has, like, a million legs. Look at this. Its amazing. ” He looked up at his father, his features overflowing with energy and delight. “ Cant we stay here for just a minute? I want to find out what he does with all those legs. This is the coolest ever. ”F) The traditional view of such moments is that
43、 they constitute a charming but irrelevant byproduct of youthsomething to be pushed aside to make room for more important qualities, like perseverance (坚持不懈) , obligation, and practicality. Yet moments like this one are just the kind of intense absorption and pleasure adults spend the rest of their
44、lives seeking. Human lives are governed by the desire to experience joy. Becoming educated should not require giving up joy but rather lead to finding joy in new kinds of things: reading novels instead of playing with small figures, conducting experiments instead of sinking cups in the bathtub, and
45、debating serious issues rather than stringing together nonsense words, for example. In some cases, schools should help children find new, more grown-up ways of doing the same things that are constant sources of joy: making art, making friends, making decisions.G) Building on a childs ability to feel
46、 joy, rather than pushing it aside, wouldnt be that hard. It would just require a shift in the education worlds mindset（思维模式）. Instead of trying to get children to work hard, why not focus on getting them to take pleasure in meaningful, productive activity, like making things, working with others, e
47、xploring ideas, and solving problems? These focuses are not so different from the things in which they delight.H) Before you brush this argument aside as rubbish, or think of joy as an unaffordable luxury in a nation where there is awful poverty, low academic achievement, and high dropout rates, thi
48、nk again. The more horrible the school circumstances, the more important pleasure is to achieving any educational success.I) Many of the assignments and rules teachers come up with, often because they are pressured by their administrators, treat pleasure and joy as the enemies of competence and responsibility. The assumption is that children shouldnt chat in the classroom because it hinders hard work; ins