E

In the United States, the number of children affected by divorce(离婚) grows by about one million each year. As the number increases, experts continue to debate the effects of divorce on children.  

Some experts say divorce is harmful to children. Some studies show that children of divorce have more problems. For example, some children of divorce are more often aggressive toward parents and teachers. They have a greater risk of leaving school before completing their studies. They have more health and learning problems. However, experts note that these problems are not necessarily caused by divorce alone.  

During the 1970’s, many Americans believed that divorce was the best solution for married people who were not happy. People did not think divorce would harm children. They thought children would go through a period of change when their parents ended their marriage. Then the children would be all right.  

These beliefs have changed in recent years. Researcher Judith Wallerstein studied more than one hundred children of divorce over a twenty-five-year period. She says some children never recover from divorce. She says they often have problems with their own adult relationships as a result of their parents’ divorce.

Ms. Wallerstein says her study proves that parents should stay together for their children, even if they are unhappy. However, some people say that children suffer more in a situation where there is much conflict. They say it is better for children to live with one divorced parent than to live with two parents who are angry and unhappy.  

Other experts note that many children of divorce do not have serious problems. This is because their parents are able to deal with the situation in a responsible way.

Experts say that some people who get divorced are able to put the needs of their children first. They say that they are able to show the children that their love and support will continue after the divorce.

73. The passage focuses on _______.

A. whether parents should divorce

B. whether children suffer from parents’ divorce

C. whether children should stay with divorced parents

D. whether parents should put children’s needs first when getting divorced

74. According to Ms. Wallerstein, _______.      

A. it is better for parents not to divorce

B. children should not stay with divorced parents

C. it is better to live with one divorced parent

D. children of divorced parents don’t have serious problems

75. Divorce results in all the following problems except that _______.

A. the children are more aggressive to their teachers

B. the children are more likely to quit school

C. the children may have problems with their own adult relationship

D. the children may experience more pressure from society

第Ⅱ卷（非选择题，共35分）

第四部分 书面表达

第一节 填空（共10小题； 每小题1分）

阅读短文，根据所读内容在下表中的空格处填上适当的单词或短语，每空不超过3个单词。

Chinese are very generous when it comes to educating their children. Not caring about the money, parents often send their children to the best schools or even abroad to England, the US or Australia. They also want their children to take extra-courses activities where they will either learn a musical instrument or ballet, or other classes that will give them a head start in life. The Chinese believe that the more expensive an education is, the better it is. So parents will spend unreasonable amount of money on education. Even poor couples will buy a computer for their son or daughter.

     However, what most parents fail to see is that the best education they can give their children is usually very cheap.

     Parents can see that their children’s skills vary, skilled in some areas while poor in others. What most parents fail to realize though, is that today’s children lack self-respect and self-confidence.

   The problem is that parents are only educating their children on how to take multiple-choice tests and how to study well, but parents are not teaching them the most important skills they need to be confident, happy and clever.

     Parents can achieve this by teaching practical skills like cooking , sewing and doing other housework.

   Teaching a child to cook will improve many of the skills that he will need later in life. Cooking demands patience and time. It is an enjoyable but difficult experience. A good cook always tries to improve his cooking, so he will learn to work hard and gradually finish his job successfully. His result, a well-cooked dinner, will give him much satisfaction and a lot of confidence.

    Some old machines, such as a broken radio or TV set that you give your child to play with will make him curious and arouse his interest. He will spend hours looking at them, trying to fix them; your child might become an engineer when he grows up. These activities are not only teaching a child to read a book, but rather to think, to use his mind. And that is more important.

What Chinese Parents Do In 76________ Their Children