Question

Mike Maietta was eating lunch when he got a text message from his mom.
“Notre Dame,” it said. “Big envelope!”
Mike, a senior at a Californian high school, shouted with joy. The big envelope meant that the excellent university in Indiana had offered him a place in its Class of 2013. But the $51,300 annual fee is a big trouble. So Mike and his parents are considering offers from several other colleges and are figuring out the costs of tuition, housing and holiday trips home.
This year, money is the driving factor(因素) for a growing number of high school seniors, who have to decide what colleges to attend this fall. Less jobs and house prices have changed family spending.
“We’re excited that Mike got into eight great schools,” said Mike’s father, an engineer at Microsoft. “But if you consider going to school out of state, you’ve got to think about all of the other costs: moving, flying back and forth for the holidays. You’re looking at about $3,000 a year, just for travel.”
As families weigh their choices, some are going back to financial aid offices hoping help packages can be increased.
Rachel Brown was happy to get a thick envelope from New York University (NYU). Although she has always wanted to live in Manhattan, she is seriously considering the University of California San Diego (UCSD), because of the high cost in New York.
“The tuition for NYU is twice as much as UCSD,” said Rachel, 17. “My mom doesn’t want me to have a big debt when I graduate, and I don’t want that either. I’d have to take out a loan of $15,000. I’ll check and see if there’s any way that NYU can offer me any financial aid.”
More than 7.6 million American students have filled out the Free Application for Students Aid, 19.9 percent increase over last year.
This month the Federal Department of Education urged college financial aid officers to give more help to certain families. A record 30,428 students applied for 2,300 places at Stanford, partly because the university increased financial aid for families earning below $10,000.
【小題1】Mike may give up Notre Dame because of ______.

A．travel fees

B．financial concerns

C．poor exam results

D．worries about living far away from home

【小題2】The phrase “Big envelope” in paragraph 2 probably refers to“______”.

A．A text message	B．A large gift package
C．An admission letter	D．A scholarship letter

【小題3】What can we learn from the passage?

A．The number of American senior students applying for financial aid is increasing.

B．Rachel Brown has given up NYU because of its high tuition and big debts.

C．It is inevitably hard for college students to borrow money to cover costs.

D．An interest-free loan for students helps more students apply for Stanford.

【小題4】The passage mainly focuses on ______

A．the calculation of different costs including tuition

B．the extremely hard financial situation in America

C．the excitement of students’ being able to enter ideal colleges

D．the financial crisis of families over college entrance

Answer 1

【小題1】B
【小題2】C
【小題3】A
【小題4】D

解析試題分析：本文是關于美國的高中生畢業以后在選擇大學時所面臨的大學學費過高的問題，很多美國的高中畢業生都申請了助學貸款。
【小題1】B 細節題。根據第3段后3行But the $51,300 annual fee is a big trouble. So Mike and his parents are considering offers from several other colleges and are figuring out the costs of tuition, housing and holiday trips home. 說明父母和他要考慮的問題的學費等費用的問題，所以他們有可能因為資金的問題而放棄。故B項正確。
【小題2】C 推理題。根據文章3,4行The big envelope meant that the excellent university in Indiana had offered him a place in its Class of 2013說明這個信封意味著大學的錄取通知書，故C正確。
【小題3】A 細節題。根據文章倒數第二段More than 7.6 million American students have filled out the Free Application for Students Aid, 19.9 percent increase over last year.說明申請助學金的學生的數量一直在增加，故A正確。
【小題4】D 主旨大意題。通讀全文可知本文是關于美國的高中生畢業以后在選擇大學時所面臨的大學學費過高的問題，故D項正確。
考點：考查新聞報告類短文閱讀
點評：隨著西方的經濟危機，大學生的學費負擔越來越重，本文所述內容正是這方面的相關知識。要求考生能在仔細研讀文本內容的基礎上，根據題目及選型內容作出適當的延伸和推理判斷，也有部分題目的答案是從文章中可以直接找出來。