公共英语三级历年考试真题及答案（阅读理解）
2016下半年全国英语等级考试时间为9月10、11日，三级是中间级，通过该级考试的考生，其英语已达到高等教育自学考试非英语专业本科毕业水平或符合普通高校非英语专业本科毕业的要求，基本符合企事业单位行政秘书、经理助理、初级科技人员、外企职员的工作，以及同层次其他工作在对外交往中的基本需要。
SECTION III Reading Comprehension Part A(40 minutes)
Text 1
46、根据下列材料，请回答46-60题：
In 1997, 25 Japanese citizens, all older than 60, launched Jeeba (the name means "old man and old woman") to make senior-friendly products. They knew they were making history when they coined their company motto : "Of the elderly, by the elderly and for the elderly. " They do not hire young people, and the oldest of their workers is 75.
Firms run by senior citizens are still a rarity, in Japan and worldwide. But the elderly have numbers on their side. Healthier and longer-living seniors, born immediately after World War II,are reaching retirement age in huge numbers all over the developed world. Extremely low birthrates in those same countries mean there are far fewer young workers to take their place. One likely con-sequence is now clear: shrinking work forces.
While the streamlining effects of international competition are focusing attention on the need to create and keep good jobs, those fears will eventually give way to worries about the growing short-age of young workers. One unavoidable solution: putting older people back to work, whether they like it or not. Indeed, advanced economies like those of Finland and Denmark have already raised their retirement ages. Others are under severe pressure to follow suit, as both the European Com-mission and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development have recently warned their members that their future prosperity depends on a growing contribution from the elderly.
Whether these changes are good or bad news to workers depends on whether they anticipate retirement with eagerness or dread. In the United States, half of working-age Americans now expect to work into their 70s, whether by financial necessity or by lifestyle choice, according to a new study by Putnam Investments.
Contrary to still widespread assumptions, there is very little hard evidence to suggest that com-panies cannot stay competitive with a rising share of older workers. At 13ritish hardware chain B&Q, its "elder worker" stores in Manchester and Exmouth were 18 percent more profitable than its regular outlets--due in part, the company says, to six times less employee turnover and 60 per-cent less shoplifting and breakage.
46、Jeeba' s difference from a conventional company mainly lies in
A.the age of its employees
B.the number of its owners
C.the quality of its products
D.the scope of its operations
47、 In the developed world, compared with young people, the elderly
A.are better at business
B.are greater in number
C.have healthier lifestyles
D.have more job opportunities
48、 According to the writer, in the current situation companies are faced with the tough task of
A.creating good positions
B.employing retired workers
C.filling vacant positions
D.replacing unskilled workers
49、 For future prosperity, many European countries will have to
A.increase the number of young workers
B.offer many senior-friendly jobs
C.improve services for seniors
D.raise their retirement ages
50、 B&Q' s "elder worker" stores are mentioned to show that the employment of older work-ers
A.does not reduce a company' s competitiveness
B.does not affect older workers' lifestyle Choices
C.is not a usual practice among competitive firms
D.is not good news to those who are eager to retire
Text 2
根据下列材料，请回答51-65题：
Here' s how I want to watch the 2014 Winter Olympics. I want to go to a Web site to see any event I want, whenever I want to watch it, on whatever screen I choose. I' 11 gladly pay.
The technology exists to make this happen today. Yet nearly two decades after the introduction of the World Wide Web, this remains a fantasy. NBC, which broadcasted the Vancouver Olympics in the United States, wouldn' t put videos on its Web site until they had been shown on prime-time TV. So Americans had the weird experience of learning from a news report during the day that something fantastic had just happened, and then having to wait until that night' s broadcast to see it.
Bloggers complained, but NBC wouldn' t give way. Its research shows that people like me, who want to watch the Olympics online, represent only 7 percent of the total audience. The other, bigger concern is: the Internet doesn' t deliver any money. Advertisers remain willing to pay big money to show their commercials on prime-time TV. But on the Internet? Not so much.
So NBC clings to the old way of doing things. As it sees it, the prime-time show is the most important. To make matters worse, NBC was already expecting to lose $ 250 million on the 2010 Vancouver Games. Good luck persuading it to invest in a risky Web project.
It's easy to blame the network executives. But the NBC guys and their like are only doing what makes sense. They're going where the money is.
That needs to change. Yes, selling reporting of Olympic events over the Internet would drain away some of the prime-time audience, but my sense is many of the online subscribers would still watch the prime-time show. And over time, the subscription dollars could become a substantial rev- enue stream. Instead of viewing the Internet as a threat to prime time, the TV networks should see the Web as a way to sell even more of their product to a small but passionate subset of their audi-ence.
I' m hoping that by 2014, that will have changed.
51、 According to the writer, watching the Olympics online as one likes
A.is technologically impossible
B.is still denied to the audience
C.has been a dream for 20 years
D.will no longer be free in 2014
52、 We learn that what Americans saw about the Vancouver Olympics
A.was unavailable online
B.differed from the news
C.seemed weird to them
D.was first shown on TV
53、 Bloggers complained about NBC' s
A.neglect of those in the minority
B.excessive online advertisements
C.delay in providing videos online
D.limited reporting on sports news
54、 After the 2010 Vancouver Games, NBC is likely to
A.improve its prime-time show
B.continue its current practice
C.raise its price for advertising
D.try its luck in a web program
55、 The writer thinks the TV networks should view the Web as a potential to help them to
A.make dramatic profits
B.develop new products
C.satisfy their subscribers
D.divide prime-time revenues
Text 3
根据下列材料，请回答56-70题：
One important thing during the pre-Christmas rush at our house was the arrival of my daughter' s kindergarten report card. She got high praise for her reading, vocabulary and overall en-thusiasm. On the other hand, we learnt that she has work to do on her numbers and facility with the computer, though the detailed handwritten report her teachers prepared is absent of any words that might be interpreted as negative in describing her efforts. A number system indicates how she' s measuring up in each area without any mention of passing or failing.
All of which seems to make my daughter' s school neither fish nor fowl when it comes to the debate over the merits of giving formal grades to kids. At one level, the advantages and disadvanta-ges are obvious. A grade system provides a straightforward standard by which to measure how your child is progressing at school--and how he or she is getting on compared to other children. But as writer Sue Ferguson notes, "Grades can deceive. " The aim should be "to measure learning, not simply what a student can recall on a test. " The two aren' t the same--and if you doubt that as an adult, ask yourself whether you could sit down without any preparation and still pass those high-school-level examinations.
If you' re old enough, you' ve lived through this debate before. At one time, it was considered unfair to put children in direct competition with one another if it could be avoided. The inten-tion behind tha.t may have been good, but it ignored the fact that competition, and the will to come out on top, are essential components of the human condition.
This time around, educators working with a no-grades approach are emphasizing different rea-sons. The thing is, that approach is much more commonplace in the adult workplace than is the tra-ditional pass-fail system we place on our children. Many workplaces conduct regular employee eval-uations. There are usually fairly strict limits to what an employer can tell an employee in those eval-uations-and even then, negative evaluations can be challenged by the employee. No matter where you sit in the debate over the grade system, then, the real question is this: if it' s so good for kids, why isn't that also true for adults?
56、The school report indicates that the writer' s daughter
A.lacks interest in her school work
B.ranks among the best at language
C.has some trouble with her handwriting
D.needs to improve in math and computer skills
57、 We can learn that the girl' s school tries to deliver the report
A.in a positive way
B.in a scientific way
C.in an attractive way
D.in an enthusiastic way
58、 Sue Ferguson seems dissatisfied with the grade system for its focus on
A.the process of getting the knowledge
B.the capability of memorizing for the test
C.the procedure of measuring learning
D.the standard of comparing schools
59、 The writer would agree that cutting children off from competition is
A.fit for human development
B.fit for their age and experience
C.against a key part of human nature
D.out of consideration for children
60、 It can be learned that today's educators supporting the no-grades approach insist that
A.kids be allowed to challenge the negative evaluations
B.the traditional teacher-student relationship be changed
C.the evaluation system for kids be similar to that for adults
D.strict rules be set up in evaluating school children
SECTION III Reading Comprehension Part B(40 minutes)
61、根据下列材料，请回答61-65题：
Directions:
Read the texts from a magazine in which five people voice their different opinions in response to an article on the issue of praising. For questions 61 to 65, match the name of each person (61 to 65) to one of the statements ( A to G) given below. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET1.
Mike :
Praise often and sincerely--it' s as simple as that. Employees want to feel needed and appreci-ated. By offering sincere praise with examples about what they did right, you' ll go far in creating an energetic team. Meanwhile, I don't agree with the assertion that "to focus on what needs im-proving isn' t good management. " In fact, it' s the balance of praise along with constructive criti-cism that drives employees to work smarter and reach higher.
Frank:
This article makes a valid point that needs to be understood, especially for the new generation of workers, my generation. We don' t see ourselves as parts in the machine to be put in the dark to work. My generation needs respect in return from our employer, we need to feel appreciated beyond just a pay check, it' s the difference between being fulfilled at our career and being sad at our job.
Joyce :
One skill missing in today's workplace is the ability to build effective business relationships.At the core of that relationship is the need for consistent feedback. "How am I doing?" is a ques-tion that should be answered consistently. When you tell an employee once a year what is needed to improve, you have not done your job as a leader--build skills, provide feedback and help the em-ployee grow and develop.
Ellen:
I don' t see a problem with praising employees when it' s truly deserved ( insincere praise is an entirely different story). It' s a cost-free "benefit", if you will, in that it allows employees to see that their efforts are both noticed and valued. In the work world there are always people available to tell that you are doing something wrong and far too few occasions when employees are told that they've done something right!
Diana:
Praise what the employee did. Be specific about why it was helpful. An employee who contin-ually earns your praise also deserves your attention as to how else to reward their behavior. Mean-ingful praise encourages people beyond anything else. Written comments are available for later re-view. They give them confidence that they can "do it again. " I never regretted praising an employ-ee who deserved it but often kicked myself for missing an opportunity.
Now match the name of each person (61 to 65) to the appropriate statement
Note: there are two extra statements.
Statements
[A]Praise combined with criticism is helpful.
[B] Praise can bring about many kinds of desired behavior.
[C] Employees may feel it hard to accept.insincere praise.
[D] Let employees know exactly for what they are praised.
[E] In my opinion, we are not generous enough to give praise.
[F] Employees need helpful advice on a regular basis.
[G] Money alone cannot guarantee a sense of career fulfillment for me.
61、 Mike
62、 Frank
63、 Joyce
64、 Ellen
65、 Diana
参考答案及精析
第三部分阅读理解
Part A
Text 1
参考译文：
1997年，年龄均超过60岁的25名日本市民发起了一场Jeeba运动(Jeeba意为老年男性与女性)，生产适合于老年人使用的产品。当他们编撰出 公司的格言“老年人所有，老年人制造，为了老年人”时，他们知道自己正在创造历史。他们不雇佣年轻人，公司里最年长的员工年龄高达75岁。
不 管是在日本还是全世界，由高龄者经营的公司仍然为数不多。但是老年人口数量巨大。第二次世界大战以后出生的人们，现在到了退休年龄，这些老年人更加健康、 长寿，他们人数众多，遍布世界各地。在出生率极低的那些发达国家，接替老年人工作的年轻人更少了。一个可能出现的结果现在变得清楚了：劳动力日益缩减。
国际竞争的精简效应正集中注意力于创造和维持好工作的需求上，这些担心最终会转变为对日益缺少的年轻劳动力的担心。一个不可避免的解决方法是，让老年人 回归工作，不管他们喜不喜欢。确实如此，像芬兰和丹麦这样的经济发达国家，已经延迟了退休年龄。其他一些国家正处在顺应潮流的高压下，因为欧盟委员会和经 济合作与发展组织最近告诫其成员，他们未来的繁荣依赖于老年人的不断奉献。这些改变是否是好消息取决于工人们在退休的时候是怀着急切的还是恐惧的心情。据 百能投资的一项新研究显示，在美国，不论是由于经济需要还是生活方式的选择，现在有一半处在工作年龄的美国人期待着能工作到70多岁。
与一直 广泛传播的想法相反，几乎没有确凿的证据表明，公司里高龄工作者增多会导致公司不再有竞争力。在英国硬件连锁企业B&Q里，位于曼彻斯特和埃克斯 茅斯的“高龄者”商店比其一般商店多盈利18%，公司说部分原因是由于其少了6倍的员工流动，少了60%的商店偷窃和商品损坏事件。
46.A【精析】细节题。根据文章第一段可知，Jeeba是由日本的老年市民发起的运动，其目的和公司格言主要体现的是老年人这个特点。由此可知，Jeeba与传统公司的主要区别就体现在员工的年龄上，故选A。
47.B【精析】细节题。从文章第二段第四句话“Ex-tremely low birthrates in those same countries
mean there are far fewer young workers to take their place.”可以看出：在出生率极低的发达国家，接替退休老年人工作的年轻人的数量少得多。故选B。
48.B 【精析】推断题。从文章第三段第一、二句话： “While the streamlining effects of international competition are focusing attention on the need to create and keep good jobs，those fears will even-tually give way to worries about the growing short-age of young workers.One unavoidable solution：puking older people back to work，whether they like it or not.”和最后一句话：“…their future prosperity depends on a growing contribution from the elderly.”可知，对创造和维持好工作需求的担忧最终会转变为对日益缺少的年轻劳动力的担心，对此担心的解决方法就是需要让老年人回到工作岗位，公 司未来的发展繁荣依赖于老年人的不断贡献。由此可推测，在当前形势下，公司面临的严峻任务就是雇佣退休的员工，故选B。
49.D【精析】细节题。文章第三段倒数第二句说像芬兰和丹麦的发达经济国家，已经延迟了退休年龄，最后一句继而说公司的繁荣离不开老年人的贡献，故选D。
5 0.A【精析】推断题。从文章最后一段第二句话 “At British hardware chain B&Q.its‘elder worker’stores…were l8 percent more profitable than its regular outlets…”可知，B&Q的“高龄者”商店比其一般商店多盈利18%。由此可以推断，公司雇佣高龄工作者并不会降低公司的竞争力，故选A。
Text 2
参考译文
下面就是我想要如何观看2014年冬季奥运会。我想进入一个网站观看任何我想看的赛事，随时都能看，什么样的屏幕都能看。我很乐意付费。
现在的技术可以让它变为现实。但是在引进互联网后将近20年的时间里，这仍是一个幻想。美国广播公司在美国黄金时间播出了温哥华奥运会后，才会将视频放 到其网站上。所以美国人会有这样奇怪的经历，白天从新闻报道上 得知一些新奇的事件刚刚发生，然后不得不等到晚上播出时才能看到。
写博客的人抱怨起来，但美国广播公司不会让步。其调查显示，像我这样地想在线观看奥运会的人只代袁了观众总数的7%。另外一个更忧心的问题是：网络不会收费。广告商仍然愿意斥巨资在电视的黄金时段播放他们的广告。但是在网上播放?他们才不愿意付那么多钱。
因此美国广播公司沿用过去的老办法。正如其所看到的一样，在黄金时段播出的电视节目才是最重要的。更糟糕的是，美国广播公司已经预计在2010年温哥华冬奥会上将会损失2.5亿美元。但愿这能够劝服该公司在冒险的网络项目上投资。
网络执行者容易受到指责。但是美国广播公司和与他们类似的公司只做有意义的事情。他们只是在向钱看。
这需要改变。是的，把奥运会的报道放到网上去会让一些黄金时段的观众流失，但我认为，许多网上付费的观众仍然会在黄金时段观看电视节目。久而久之，网上 订阅费有可能会变成庞大的收入来源。不应该把网络看作对电视黄金时段的威胁，电视台应该把网络当作一种销售方式，可以把自己的产品更多地卖给那一小撮充满 激情的观众。
我希望到2014年，这一切都会改变。
51.B【精析】推断题。由文章第二段第一、二句话 “The technology exists to make this happen to-day.Yet nearly two decades after the introduc-tion of the World Wide Web，this remains a fan-tasy.”可以看出，当今的技术已经发展到可以让在线观看奥运会变为现实。然而，在引进互联网后将近二十年当中，这仍然是幻想。由此可推断，观 众不能在线观看奥运会的原因并不是技术方面的问题，而是不被允许， 奥运会仍然是幻想，be denied to意为“…得不到的”，故选B。
52.D【精析】细节题。由文章第二段最后两句“NBC，which broadcasted the Vancouver Olympics in the United States，wouldn’t put videos on its Web site until they had been shown on prime-time TV.”可知，美国广播公司会先在电视上播放温哥华奥运会，再把视频放到网上去。由此可知，美国观众观看温哥华奥运会最先是从电视上看到的，故选D。
53.C【精析】细节题。由文章第三段第一句话可知写博客的人在抱怨，此段承接第二段，第二段说美国广播公司会先在电视的黄金时段播放奥运会，再把其放到网上去，故得知写博客的人抱怨的是美国广播公司推迟将奥运会视频放上网，故选C。
54.B【精析】推断题。由第四段第一句“So NBC clings to the old way of doing things.”可知，美国广播公司会坚守过去的老办法，这与B选项意义一致，故选B。
55.A【精析】作者意图题。由第六段最后一句话 “…the TV networks should see the Web as a way to sell even more of their product to a small but passionate subset of their audience.”可知，作者认为网络可以帮助美国广播公司更多地出售他们的产品，更多地盈利，故选A。
Text 3
参考译文
在繁忙的圣诞节来临前，我们家一件重要的事情是，收到了女儿 幼儿园的成绩单。她在阅读、词汇和整体学习热情方面得到高度评价。另一方面，我们了解到，她需要好好练习数字运算和计算机操作，尽管女儿的老师准备的这份 手写的详细成绩单上没有出现任何可能显示女儿消极学习的话语。一项计数法暗示了女儿在每一个学科的成绩情况，虽然没有任何通过或不及格的说明。
当谈到给小学生正常评级的好处的争论时，所有这些似乎表明女儿的学校不伦不类。在一个层面上，优点和缺点不言而喻。评级系统提供了一个直接的标准，通过 这个标准可以衡量你的孩子在学校的进步情况，以及相对于其他孩子来说，自家孩子的表现情况。但正如苏·弗格森作家写的那样“成绩是可以欺骗人的”。目的应 该是“衡量学习情况，而不是简单地测试学生在考试时能记得多少东西。”这两者并不一样。如果作为一个成年人，你对此感到质疑，那么你可以问问你自己，是否 可以在不做任何准备的情况下仍然通过那些高中阶段的考试。
如果你足够大了，你以前就经历过了这样的辩论。曾经有人一度认为，在可以避免的情况下，让孩子们置于彼此之间直接竞争的`环境中是不公平的。这个想法背后的意图或许是好的，但它忽略了一个事实，竞争和出类拔萃的愿望构成了人类生存环境的核心部分。
现在，用不给成绩的教育方法工作的教育家们在强调不同的原因。问题是，比起传统的施加在孩子身上的“过或不过”体系，这个方法在我们成人工作中更普遍。 许多工作采用常规的员工测评方法。在这些测评中，通常有严格的规定限制雇主可以告知雇员的内容，即便如此，员工还是可以质疑消极的测评结果。不管你是处在 关于评级体系争论的哪一方，真正的问题是：如果不给成绩的方式对孩子来说有这么多好处，为什么对成年人来说却并非如此呢?
56.D【精析】细 节题。由文章第一段第三句话“on the other hand，we learnt that she has work to do on her numbers and facility with the computer，though the detailed handwritten report her teach-ers prepared is absent of any words that might be interpreted as negative in describing her effort.”
可知，作者从成绩单上面了解到女儿在数 字和计算机应用能力方面仍有功课要做，言外之意便是女儿需要在这两方面加强和提高，故D项符合文意。而根据第一段第二句话“She got high praise for her reading.vocabulary and over-all enthusiasm.”只能得知，作者从成绩单上面了解到女儿在语言方面得到很高的评价，因此B选项表述与原文不符。其他两项原文没有涉及，故选D。
57.A【精析】推断题。从文章的第一段来看，作者收到女儿学校的成绩单，上面写的全是表扬的话，而作者自己知道，女儿在数字运算等方面还需要学习，由此可推断女儿学校只是努力从正面的角度赞扬女儿在学校的表现，故选A。
58.B【精析】细节题。从文章第二段第五句“The aim should be‘to measure learning，not simply what a student can recall on a test’”可知苏·弗格森对评级体系不满意的原因是它强调测试学生的记忆能力，而非学习本身，故选B。
59.C【精析】细节题。文章第三段 最后一句话“…but it ignored the fact that competition，and the will to come out on top，are essential components of the human condition.”可知，作者认为让孩子们远离竞争是违反了人类生存本质的，故选C。
60.B【精析】推断题。题干意为“可以知道，赞成 不给成绩的教育方式的教育家坚持认为什么?”通过排除法，A项说允许孩子质疑消极的测评结果，与原文不符，原文是作者拿成年人举例，并提出疑问，为什么成 年人不能用不评级的体系，故排除A项和C项。D项说应该建立严格的规章制度来测评学生，这个文章中更没有提及，亦排除，故选B。
Part B
参考译文
下面这段文字是5个人对一篇关于表扬问题的文章的不同观点。
麦克：
频繁且真诚地表扬，就是这么简单。雇员希望感受到被需要和赏识。通过用员工做的实际工作举例来真诚地表扬，你就离创造一个活力四射的团队不远了。同时， 我不同意这样一种说法“密切关注需要改进的方面不是好的管理方法”。事实上，正是表扬和有建设性的批评之间的平衡促使员工工作更有效率，取得更多的进步。
弗兰克：
这篇文章指出一个需要理解的有效观点，特别是对我这新一代的工作者。我们不把自己视为放在黑暗角落里工作的机器的一部分。我这一代人需要从雇主那儿得到尊重作为回报，除了一份工资单，我们需要被赏识。这就是在 事业中感到充实和为工作而痛苦的区别。
乔伊斯：
在当今就业市场缺失的一项技能是建立有效商业关系的能力。这个关系的核心是需要持续不断的反馈。“我做得怎么样?”是一个应该不断得到回答的问题。当你 一年之中仅有一次告诉一个员工应该改进的方面，你并没有做 好领导者的本职工作——技能培训，提供反馈，帮助员工成长和发展。
艾伦：
我认为，当员工应得表扬时去表扬他没有什么问题(不真诚的表扬另当别论)。这是个不用成本的“所得”，如果你表扬了，员工便看到了自己的努力得到了关注和重视。在工作领域，总有人告诉你做错了什么事，但是几乎没人告诉你你做得很好!
戴安娜：
夸奖员工所做的事。具体说明为什么其所做的事有帮助。经常得到表扬的员工同样应该受到关注，得到可以犒劳其所为的奖励。有意义的表扬给人们的鼓励超过任 何其他的东西。书面形式的评价可以用于将来的回顾。这些评价给了他们“就这么做”的信心。我从不后悔表扬了应受表扬的员工，但经常责怪自己错过了表扬的机 会。
61.A【精析】主旨题。麦克认为正是表扬和有建设性的批评之间的平衡促进了员工更有效率地工作，取得更多的进步，故选A。
62.G【精析】主旨题。弗兰克认为，除了一份工资单，员工还需要被赏识，这是在事业中感到充实和为工作而痛苦的区别。意思与G项“对我来说，金钱本身不能保证事业充实的感觉”，故选G。
63.F【精析】主旨题。乔伊斯说，当你一年之中仅有一次告诉一个员工应该改进的方面，你并没有做好领导者的本职工作，意思是说一个公司的领导者应该及时地向员工提供反馈，与F项“员工需要定期得到有用的建议”意思相符，故选F。
64.E【精析】主旨题。艾伦最后一句话“在工作领域，总有人告诉你做错了什么事，但是几乎没人告诉你你做得很好”与E项“我们表扬他人时不够慷慨”意思相符，故选E。
65.D【精析】细节题。戴安娜前面两句话“夸奖员工所做的事。具体说明为什么其所做的事有帮助”与D项“让员工确切知道为什么他们受到表扬”意思相符，故选D。
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