第一段
①Homework has never been terribly popular with students and even many parents, but in recently years it has been particularly scorned.②School districts across the country, most recently Los Angeles Unified, are revising their thinking on this educational ritual.③Unfortunately, L.A. Unified has produced an inflexible policy which mandates that with the exception of some advanced courses, homework may no longer count for more than 10% of a student's academic grade.
单词&词组
scorn v. 蔑视，鄙视
revise v. 改变，修正
ritual n. 惯例，老规矩，例行公事
inflexible a. 僵化的，缺乏弹性的
mandate v. 命令，指示
be popular with 受……欢迎
across the country 全国
with the exception of 除……之外
academic grade 学业成绩
本段翻译
家庭作业从来就不曾得到学生甚至许多父母的真正欢迎，但近几年尤其饱受诟病。全国的学区，如最近的洛杉矶联合学区，都在修改他们有关此教育惯例的思路。不幸的是，洛杉矶联合学区制定了一项硬性规定，责令除某些高级课程之外，家庭作业在学生学业成绩中所占比例不得超过10%。
第二段
①This rule is meant to address the difficulty that students from impoverished or chaotic homes might have in completing their homework.②But the policy is unclear and contradictory.③Certainly, no homework should be assigned that students cannot complete on their own or that they cannot do without expensive equipment.④But if the district is essentially giving a pass to students who do not do their homework because of complicated family lives, it is going riskily close to the implication that standards need to be lowered for poor children.
单词&词组
address v. （着手）解决、处理（问题）
impoverished a. 贫困的
chaotic a. 混乱的
contradictory a. 矛盾的
essentially ad. 本质上，根本上
pass n. 通行证
implication n. 含义，暗示
be meant to 旨在……
give a pass to 对……给予通行证
本段翻译
此规定旨在解决贫困或混乱家庭学生在完成家庭作业方面可能存有的困难。但政策内容不明且自相矛盾。当然，不应给学生布置他们无法独立完成或者需要贵重设备才能完成的家庭作业。但如果学区本质上是在给那些因家庭复杂而不做作业的学生以通行证，则近于冒险暗示应降低对贫困孩子的标准。
第三段
①District administrators say that homework will still be a part of schooling; teachers are allowed to assign as much of it as they want.②But with homework counting for no more than 10% of their grades, students can easily skip half their homework and see very little difference on their report cards.③Some students might do well on state tests without completing their homework, but what about the students who performed well on the tests and did their homework? It is quite possible that the homework helped.④Yet rather than empowering teachers to find what works best for their students, the policy imposes a flat, across-the-board rule.
单词&词组
skip v. 不做（本来应做或常做的事）
report card 成绩单
empower v. 授权（某人或某组织做某事）
flat a. 固定的
across-the-board a. 一刀切的
be allowed to do sth. 被允许做某事
no more than 仅仅，只有
at the same time 与此同时
thorny questions 棘手的问题
academic achievement 学业成绩
a significant portion of ……的很大一部分
本段翻译
学区管理者表示，家庭作业仍将是学校教育的一部分；教师可以自主安排作业量。但在家庭作业仅占学业成绩的10%的情形下，学生大可逃掉一半的作业而成绩单却几乎不会有变化。有些学生可能没做家庭作业也会在州考中表现良好，但那些做了家庭作业且在州考中表现良好的学生又该怎么解释呢?很有可能家庭作业起到了助益作用。然而该政策不是授权教师去探索什么样的方式最适合学生，而是强制颁布一项呆板的、一刀切的规定。
第四段
①At the same time, the policy addresses none of the truly thorny questions about homework.
②If the district finds homework to be unimportant to its students' academic achievement, it should move to reduce or eliminate the assignments, not make them count for almost nothing.
③Conversely, if homework matters, it should account for a significant portion of the grade.
④Meanwhile, this policy does nothing to ensure that the homework students receive is meaningful or appropriate to their age and the subject, or that teachers are not assigning more than they are willing to review and correct.
单词&词组
thorny a. 棘手的
conversely a. 相反地，另一方面
portion n. （某物的）一部分
本段翻译
与此同时，该政策并未解决任何关于家庭作业的真正棘手问题。如果学区发现家庭作业对学生的学业成绩影响不大，那么它应该减少甚至排除家庭作业，而不是让其在成绩中的比重变得微乎其微。相反，如果家庭作业确实重要，那就应该让其在成绩中占据重要比例。并且，这一政策并未采取任何措施确保学生的家庭作业对于他们的年龄和学科来说是有意义且合适的，也不能确保教师布置的作业量未超过他们愿意批改的量。
第五段
①The homework rules should be put on hold while the school board, which is responsible for setting educational policy, looks into the matter and conducts public hearings.
②It is not too late for L. A. Unified to do homework right.
单词&词组
put on hold 搁置，暂缓实施
hearing n. 听证会，审讯，聆讯
school board 董事会
be responsible for 负责
look into 调查
conduct public hearings 举行公众听证会
it is not too late for sb. to do sth. 为时不晚
本段翻译
有关家庭作业的规定应暂缓实施，而负责制定教育政策的校董事会应深入调查并举行公众听证会。洛杉矶联合学区要正确对待家庭作业，现在还为时不晚。
五道题
21. It is implied in Paragraph 1 that nowadays homework________.
[A] is receiving more criticism
[B] is no longer an educational ritual
[C] is not required for advanced courses
[D] is gaining more preferences
22. L.A. Unified has made the rule about homework mainly because poor students________.
[A] tend to have moderate expectations for their education
[B] have asked for a different educational standard
[C] may have problems finishing their homework
[D] have voiced their complaints about homework
23. According to Paragraph 3, one problem with the policy is that it may________.
[A] discourage students from doing homework
[B] result in students' indifference to their report cards
[C] undermine the authority of state tests
[D] restrict teachers' power in education
24. As mentioned in Paragraph 4, a key question unanswered about homework is whether ______.
[A] it should be eliminated
[B] it counts much in schooling
[C] it places extra burdens on teachers
[D] it is important for grades
25. A suitable title for this text could be________.
[A] Wrong Interpretations of an Educational Policy
[B] A Welcomed Policy for Poor Students
[C] Thorny Questions about Homework
[D] A Faulty Approach to Homework
参考答案
ACDBA
选项翻译
21.第一段暗示现在家庭作业______
[A]正在遭受更多批评
[B]正在得到更多青睐
[C]不再是一种教育惯例
[D]不再为高级课程所需要
22.洛杉矶联合学区之所以制定关于家庭作业的规定，主要是因为贫困学生______.
[A]对教育的期望值普遍不高
[B]要求实施不同的教育标准
[C]在完成家庭作业上可能存有困难
D]对家庭作业大发抱怨
23.根据第三段可知，政策存有的一个问题是它可能______
[A]导致学生对成绩单漠不关心
[B]削弱州考的权威性主雅
[C]限制教师在教育中的权力
[D]打击学生做作业的积极性
24.第四段提到，关于家庭作业一个未解决的核心问题是
[A]它是否应该被废除
[B]它是否对教育重要
[C]它是否对教师造成额外负担
[D]它是否对成绩重要
25.适合本文的标题是______
[A]对家庭作业的错误处理方法
[B]为贫困学生所欢迎的政策
[C]关于家庭作业的一些棘手问题
[D]对教育政策的错误解读
答案解析
21、根据题干nowadays， homework定位至第一段首句(homework， in recent years) 。该句指出，家庭作业从未真正受欢迎，近几年来更是饱受批评。即家庭作业正遭受更多批评，[A]正确。
22、 根据题干poor students与原文词汇impoverished、poor children的对应关系定位到第二段。该段首句指出，此规定(洛杉矶联合学区有关家庭作业的新规定)旨在解决贫困或混乱家庭学生在完成家庭作业方面可能的困难。可见[C]体现了洛杉矶联合学区新政主要目的，为正确项。
23、第三段②句指出，由于家庭作业不得超过学业成绩的10%，学生大可逃掉一半作业而成绩却不会有明显变化，即：学生会因逃避作业对成绩几无影响而降低做作业的积极性，[D]正确。
24、第四段首句指出新政策并未解决关于家庭作业真正棘手的问题，接下来指出：如果认为家庭作业对学业不重要，那就应该减少甚至撤销家庭作业；如果认为家庭作业重要，那就应该让其在成绩中占重要比例。即：新政策当前做法未明确回答“家庭作业在教育中的重要性”，[B]正确。
25、解答文章主旨题需要纵览全文。本文第一段引出话题，洛杉矶联合学区就家庭作业制定了新政策；第二至四段多角度说明新政存有的问题；第五段做出结论“应暂缓实施新规”。可见全文围绕“家庭作业新政策”展开，着重分析了新政的各种弊端，[A]是对全文内容的恰当概括。
