For a clearer picture of what the student knows, most teachers use another kind of examination in addition to objective tests. They use "essay" tests, which require students to write long answers to broad, general questions such as the following: "Mention several ways in which Benjamin Franklin has influenced thinking of people in his own country and in other parts of the world."
One advantage of the essay test is that it reduces the element of luck. The student cannot get a high score just by making a lucky guess. Another advantage is that it shows the examiner more cares about the student's ability to put facts together into a meaningful whole. It should show how deeply he has thought about the subject. Sometimes, though, essay tests have disadvantages, too. Some students are able to writerather good answers without really knowing much about the subject, while other students who actually know the material have trouble expressing their ideas in the essay form.
Besides, in an essay test the student's score may depend upon the examiner's feelings at the time of reading the answer. If he is feeling tired or bored, the student may receive a lower score than he should. Another examiner reading the same answer might give it a much higher mark. Because of this, the objective test gives each student a fairer chance, and of course it is easier and quicker to score.
Whether an objective test or an essay test is used, problems arise. When some objective questions are used along with some essay questions, however, a fairly clear picture of the student's knowledge can usually be gotten.
1. What may have been discussed in the previous (先前的) paragraphs?
A. The essay test.
B. How teachers test their students.
C. How students write their essays.
D. The objective test.
2. The essay test is preferred because _____.
A. it shows more about the student's understanding of the subject
B. it tests the student's knowledge of the material as well as his expression of ideas
C. it gives each student a fairer chance
D. its scoring may be influenced by the examiner's feelings
3. The underlined word "this" in the third paragraph refers to the fact that _____.
A. students may receive a lower score in an essay test
B. another examiner usually gives the answer a higher mark
C. different examiners may give the same essay different scores
D. the objective test gives each student a fairer chance
4. According to the passage, which of the following statements about the objective test is NOT true?
A. It is more objective than the essay test in terms of scoring.
B. It allows the students to guess the correct answer without really knowing the material.
C. It shows the student's ability to think bout difficult problems.
D. It is easy and quick to score.
答案
1-4: DACC
考点名称：科教类阅读
科教类阅读的概念：
科教类阅读主要考查考生对书面语篇的整体领悟能力和接受及处理具体信息的能力。试题的取材，密切联系当前我国和世界经济、科技等方面的变化，有关数据的来源真实可信。
科教类文章阅读技巧：
一、材料特点：
这类文章的总体特点是：科技词汇多，句子结构复杂，理论性强，逻辑严谨。具体说来它有以下几个特点：
1、文章中词汇的意义比较单一、稳定、简明，不带感情色彩，具有单一性和准确性的特点。这类文章通常不会出现文学英语中采用的排比、比喻、夸张等修辞手法，一词多义的现象也不多见。
2、句子结构较复杂，语法分析较困难。为了描述一个客观事物，严密地表达自己的思想，作者经常会使用集多种语法现象于一体的长句。
3、常使用被动语态，尤其是一些惯用被动句式。
二、命题特点：
科普类阅读的主要命题形式有事实细节题、词义猜测题、推理判断题以及主旨概括题等，其中推理判断题居多。
三、应对策略：
1、要想做好科普英语阅读理解题，同学们就要注意平时多读科普知识类文章，学习科普知识，积累常见的科普词汇，从根本上提高科普英语的阅读能力。
2、要熟悉科普类文章的结构特点。科普类文章一般由标题(Head line)，导语(Introduction)，背景(Back ground)，主体(Main body)和结尾(End)五部分构成。标题是文章中心思想高度而又精辟的概括，但根据历年的高考情况来看，这类阅读理解材料一般不给标题，而要同学们选择标题。导语一般位于整篇文章的首段。背景交待一个事实的起因。主体则对导语概括的事实进行详细叙述，这一部分命题往往最多，因此，阅读时，同学们要把这部分作为重点。结尾往往也是中心思想的概括，并与导语相呼应，命题者常在此要设计一道推理判断题。
3、在进行推理判断时，同学们一定要以阅读材料所提供的科学事实为依据，同时所得出的结论还应符合基本的科普常识。