17．A report released this month found that grouping children by ability is on the rise again--teaching students in groups of similar ability has improved achievement for fast and slow learners alike--and who wouldn't want bright kids to be able to move ahead，or strugglers to get the help they need？
But for most kids，labels （標(biāo)簽） applied early in life tend to stick，even if they are wrong．
Sorting school children by ability has long been controversial．In some countries，especially in Asia，school-wide tracking （分流） remains normal．Children are tested and placed in different schools that direct them toward professional or vocational careers．Movement between the tracks is rare．
School-wide tracking decreased in U．S．schools in the 1960s and'70s．It never died out，though．Sorting students into separate tracks for math at about junior high school age continues to be common，and other forms of tracking persist as well．
Unlike tracking，which means sorting students into separate classrooms，ability grouping happens within classrooms．When done according to the latest research，it has proven to promote achievement．
Ability grouping is changeable and temporary．Within classrooms，students might be divided into different learning groups dealing with materials of different levels．Any students who master concepts can move upward between groups，and the student groups might look different from subject to subject and unit to unit．For instance，a student who stands out in language arts might be at an average or slower level in math．A student who flies through multiplication tables might need extra help with fractions．Students who lag in reading can be pulled out of the classroom in small groups for practice with a tutor until their reading improves．
Research shows ability grouping within classes has more positive benefits than tracking．However，that must be weighed against the challenges involved．In many regular classrooms，the differences between student ability levels are very big．That presents challenges for teachers and low-performing students to constantly compare themselves with students who seem to fly through school with ease．
The rigid ability groups and tracking of the past are still with us in many schools．Likely，labels are applied with more caution than in the bad old days when some teachers gave reading groups not-so-secret code names like"Bluebirds"，"Robins"，"Crows"and"Buzzards"．But kids still know．
58．Why is grouping children by ability becoming popular again？C
A．Because most teachers do not like slower learners．
B．Because grouping children should be done early in life．
C．Because it is academically beneficial to different learners．
D．Because fast learners can move ahead without teachers'help．
59．By saying"Movement between the tracks is rare．"（Para.3），the writer really meansD．
A．tracking children is normal in Asia
B．school-wide tracking has decreased in US
C．professional and vocational careers are unrelated
D．sorted students can hardly change schools
60．The examples in Paragraph 6are used mainly to illustrateB．
A．a(chǎn) good language learner promises to be good at maths
B．a(chǎn) student might join different groups for different courses
C．a(chǎn)bility grouping benefits gifted students more than slow ones
D．a(chǎn)bility grouping presents no challenge for those slow students
61．What might be the challenge in regular classrooms for teachers？A
A．Students'different levels．
B．Students'low performance．
C．Constant self-comparison．
D．Application of not-so-secret code．
分析 本文屬于說(shuō)明文閱讀，作者通過(guò)這篇文章向我們說(shuō)明了如今很多學(xué)校依然根據(jù)學(xué)生的能力對(duì)他們進(jìn)行不同的分組，這雖然對(duì)他們的學(xué)習(xí)有益，但是這種分組卻一直存在爭(zhēng)議，作者在文中討論了這樣分組的好處以及缺點(diǎn)．
解答 58．C 細(xì)節(jié)理解題，根據(jù)第五段Unlike tracking，which means sorting students into separate classrooms，ability grouping happens within classrooms．When done according to the latest research，it has proven to promote achievement．可知學(xué)生根據(jù)他們的能力分組再次流行是因?yàn)樗趯W(xué)術(shù)上對(duì)不同能力的學(xué)習(xí)者是有益的，故選C．
59．D 推理判斷題，根據(jù)第三段Children are tested and placed in different schools that direct them toward professional or vocational careers．Movement between the tracks is rare．可知作者說(shuō)"Movement between the tracks is rare．"是為了告訴我們給學(xué)生排序幾乎不能改變學(xué)校，故選D．
60．B 細(xì)節(jié)理解題，根據(jù)第六段For instance，a student who stands out in language arts might be at an average or slower level in math．A student who flies through multiplication tables might need extra help with fractions．Students who lag in reading can be pulled out of the classroom in small groups for practice with a tutor until their reading improves．所提出的例子可知一個(gè)學(xué)生可能會(huì)加入不同的小組來(lái)學(xué)習(xí)不同的課程，故選B．
61．A 細(xì)節(jié)理解題，根據(jù)倒數(shù)第二段In many regular classrooms，the differences between student ability levels are very big．That presents challenges for teachers and low-performing students to constantly compare themselves with students who seem to fly through school with ease．可知教師在普通課堂上的挑戰(zhàn)是學(xué)生能力水平之間的很大的差異，故選A．
點(diǎn)評(píng) 考查學(xué)生的細(xì)節(jié)理解和推理判斷能力．做細(xì)節(jié)理解題時(shí)一定要找到文章中的原句，和題干進(jìn)行比較，再做出正確選擇．在做推理判斷題時(shí)不要以個(gè)人的主觀想象代替文章的事實(shí)，要根據(jù)文章事實(shí)進(jìn)行合乎邏輯的推理判斷．
