At present the federal government subsidises student loans in two ways．First，the government lends through the William D．Ford direct loan programme，which competes with private lenders and has about a quarter of the student-loan market．Second，private lenders get subsidies that allow them to lower the interest rates they charge students．In the past，lenders have successfully resisted proposed reductions to their subsidies of as little as ten basis points by threatening to leave the market．Now the bills are proposing to reduce subsidies by 50-55 basis points.

The principal terms of both bills are sensible．They increase the maximum“Pell Grant” for low-income students from $4,050 currently to $5,400 by 2011．The funding comes by cutting about $18 billion-19 billion in lender subsidies over five years．Next，graduates’ loan repayments are capped at a manageable percentage of income and all debt is cancelled after 25 years of repayment．Finally，the bills provide more loan forgiveness for graduates who enter public-service careers，including police，firefighters，nurses and inner-city teachers．Taken together，these are the biggest changes since the student-loan system was created，in 1965，as part of Lyndon Johnson's Great Society programmes.

The biggest risk in cutting the interest-rate subsidies is that banks may leave student lending en masse，or that smaller lenders may be forced out of the market．This would mean few choices for students and possibly a large number of borrowers swamping the government programme．“Congress still wants lending to be profitable，just not too profitable,” says Ajita Talwalker of TICAS，a non-partisan institute that studies the accessibility and affordability of higher education．This may prove a tough balancing act，since no one knows what the right number is.

Critics still find the bills defective．Higher-education costs have risen much faster than inflation or aid increases，so students have been paying more out-of-pocket and taking more private loans．Yet both bills do little to tackle the rise in tuition costs．Richard Vedder of Ohio University points out that productivity is a major problem; professors in many schools have a weekly teaching workload that is a third lighter than 40 years ago，but their pay and benefits have increased．All sides agree there needs to be more transparency in costs and an element of price competition．As far as the bills at hand are concerned，many experts are calling for the House to drop its entitlement programmes，which make certain spending mandatory，and to direct the money to the Pell Grants.


注（1）：本文选自Economist；

注（2）：本文习题命题模仿对象为2001年真题Text 2和Text 4第4题（本习题第5题）。



1．The expression“land on the president's desk” （Line 2，Paragraph 1）means that _______.

A) something flies to or drops on the president's desk

B) something is put on the president's desk for decoration

C) something is sent for the president's approval

D) something is presented to the president as a gift

2．Cutting the interest-rate subsidies is risky because _______.

A) it might leave students few choices to borrow money

B) it might lead to a huge loss for banks and private lenders

C) it might make government programmes less profitable

D) it might damage the whole student-loan system

3．The writer mentioned the“50-55 basis points” at the end of the 2nd paragraph to show that _______.

A) government will support their own programmes rather than private lenders

B) the government is unwilling to subsidize private lenders

C) private lenders fail to lobby the congressmen

D) the Congress is determined to make some big changes

4．It can be indicated from the last paragraph that ______.

A) the increase of high-education cost is mainly due to inflation in recent years

B) the bill is believed by some people to be unpromising since it does not grasp the key problem

C) the rising tuition cost is solely caused by the decreasing productivity of university professors

D) more competition will be soon introduced into the market of students’ loan thanks to the bill

5．Toward the issue of student lending and high-education costs，the attitude of many experts seems to be _______.

A) indifferent

B) unsatisfactory

C) objective

D) biased





篇章剖析


本文就学生贷款改革这一事项展开了讨论。第一段首先介绍了关于学生贷款出现的一些问题和丑闻；第二段介绍了联邦政府对学生贷款进行补贴的方式；第三段介绍了改革学生贷款法案中一些重要的内容；第四、五段指出了目前仍然存在的一些问题。





词汇注释


spur /spɜː/ v. 鞭策，刺激

kickback /ˈkikbæk/ n. 回扣，酬金

consortium /kənˈsɔːtɪəm/ n. 社团，协会

spotlight /ˈspɒtˈlaɪt/ n. 聚光灯

equity /ˈekwɪti/ n. 资产净值

cap /kæp/ v. 给…定一个上限

swamp /swɒmp/ v. 陷入沼泽，淹没

transparency /trænsˈpærənsi/ n. 透明，透明度

mandatory /ˈmændətəri/ adj. 命令的，强制的





难句突破


They are spurred on by scandal—many lenders like Student Loan Xpress have been caught handing illegal kickbacks to college aid officials—and by the fact that a private-equity consortium，led by J．C．Flowers，is in the process of buying out Sallie Mae，the largest student lender.

主体句式：They are spurred on by scandal and by the fact that...

结构分析：这个句子的基本结构非常简单，但由于中间包含了很多内容，所以看上去有一些复杂。作者为了使句子更加容易理解，巧妙地利用了破折号。因为scandal的内容相对比较长，如果将其内容放在句子里会显得很臃肿，将其放在两个破折号之间，从而使得句子结构更加清晰。

句子译文：最近，在学生贷款问题上曝光的丑闻使他们感到震惊：许多学生贷款提供方诸如Xpress利用回扣佣金贿赂大学贷款办负责人；此外，以J．C．弗劳尔斯为首的私募基金财团正在收购美国最大的学生贷款公司Sallie Mae。





题目分析


1．C 语义题。这个词组的表面意思是“降落到总统的办公桌上”，这是一个非常形象的表述，即“送到总统的办公桌上”，意思也就是送呈总统以待批准。

2．A 细节题。本题对应细节于文章第四段“The biggest risk in cutting the interest-rate subsidies is that banks may leave student lending en masse，or that smaller lenders may be forced out of the market．This would mean few choices for students and possibly a large number of borrowers swamping the government programme”，可见其风险是会减少学生们的贷款选择。

3．D 推理题。文章第二段指出，过去曾经有提案要求对贷款机构的补贴降低10个基点的利率，但都遭到了抵制，而现在新提案则要求减少50至55个基点的补贴，这充分表明了国会希望通过此次提案做出一些重大改革的决心。

4．B 推理题。文章最后一段前三句话指出，法案没有触及的一个关键问题就是学费的上涨，因此正确答案为B。A选项的错误原因在于文章并没有提及两者之间存在着因果联系。C选项的错误原因在于该陈述中提到的教授们生产力下降是一个主要原因，但不是唯一的原因。D选项的错误原因在于法案并不会带来更多的竞争。

5．B 情感态度题。文章最后一段指出“Critics still find the bills defective”，专家们要求采取进一步的措施降低高校的学费，比如取消一些指令性费用等，可见他们对于目前状况的态度是不满意的。





参考译文



最近众、参两院都通过了改革学生贷款的法案。观察家们认为不出一个月，最后的法案就可能送到总统的办公桌上以待审批。学生贷款是通过联邦政府在利率上补贴私营贷款者而实现的，而民主党对此政策一向持批评态度。最近，在学生贷款问题上曝光的丑闻使他们感到震惊：许多学生贷款提供方诸如Xpress利用回扣佣金贿赂大学贷款办负责人；此外，以弗劳尔斯为首的私募基金财团正在收购美国最大的学生贷款公司Sallie Mae。这使得每年利润高达850亿美元的学生贷款行业暴露在聚光灯下，仅Sallie Mae公司五年中的资本回报率平均每年高达52%。

目前，联邦政府通过两种方式对学生贷款进行补贴。其一是由政府实行威廉·D·福特直接贷款计划，该计划在与私营贷款机构竞争中占有四分之一的学生贷款市场。其二是对私营贷款机构进行补贴，从而使他们降低学生贷款的利率。过去曾经有提案要求对贷款机构的补贴幅度降低10个基点的利率，但贷款方以撤离市场为要挟抵制了该提案。现在，新提案则要求减少50至55个基点的补贴。

两份提案的主要条款都十分合乎情理。这些条款指出为贫困学生设立的“助学金”现在的上限从4050美元提高到2011年的5400美元。这笔资金将来源于今后五年间通过减少贷款机构的补贴节省出的约180～190亿美元。其次，研究生贷款的分期还款必须为其收入的一个合理比例，并且所有债务在分期偿还25年之后将全部取消。最后，该提案为选择从事公共服务事业的毕业生提供更多的贷款宽免，这些职业包括警察、消防人员、护士和贫民区的教师。总体来说，自从1965年总统林登·约翰逊在其“伟大社会”施政纲领中提出学生贷款计划以来，这是该计划经历的最大规模的变革。

削减利率补贴的最大风险在于银行可能会集体撤离市场，或小规模贷方被挤出市场。这意味着学生的贷款选择范围变得更小，而大量借贷者将深陷政府计划之中。TICAS是一所专门研究高等教育的普及和费用承受能力的无党派机构，其政策研究员味田·塔沃克认为“国会仍然希望贷款能够有利可图，只是不得获得暴利”。他的话也说明了国会这一法案将很难找到平衡点，因为没人知道究竟多少才是适当的利润。

评论家仍然能在提案中找到一些缺陷。高等教育费用的上涨速度远远超过通货膨胀及学生补助的增长，因此学生不得不支付额外费用并增加私人贷款。但两份提案几乎都没有涉及学费上涨的问题。俄亥俄大学的理查·维得认为主要问题是教学效率不足：许多大学的教授每周教学任务比40年前少了三分之一，而他们的薪水和福利却提高了。各方在增加教育成本透明度和价格竞争因素问题上意见一致。就现有的这些提案来说，许多专家要求国会去掉其中一些指定性的费用支出，把省下来的资金投入到贫困生助学金中去。





Unit 74


On this one point George W．Bush and Al Gore would agree: our schools need more Marilyn Whirrys．For 35 years，Whirry has inspired high school students to think deeply about great literature and to use its devices in their writing．She is the kind of teacher that students come back to visit decades later in her classroom in Manhattan Beach，Calif．Last May a national educators’ group named her its Teacher of the Year．And with the nation's public schools planning to hire 2.5 million new teachers over the next decade，Whirry is excited that each presidential candidate is pushing ways to recruit，train and reward better teachers．“They’re both talking about teacher quality,” she says．“We have a real opportunity right now.”

Bush's plan combines most existing federal funds for professional development and class-size reduction into a flexible new fund for teacher training and recruitment，and he adds $400 million a year in new money．Bush would allow states to spend the funds as they see fit—so long as they establish teacher-accountability systems．This is similar to what Ronald Reagan did in the 1980s．But then，says Emily Feistritzer，president of the Center for Education Information，“the money disappeared.” Under Bush's plan，she says，“I worry that the money won’t go where it's intended to once it reaches the states.”

Bush would expand funding from $2．4 million to $30 million for the Troops to Teachers program，which places veterans who want to teach in public schools．The program makes use of people like Arthur Moore，who retired in 1994 after 21 years in the Army and knew he wanted to teach．“There are a lot of people who would make excellent teachers but are discouraged by the bureaucracy of the certification process,” says Moore，45，who began teaching fourth grade in Baltimore and now tests students for special education．“Troops to Teachers is an excellent way to tap their potential by lowering the barriers.” Bush would also expand loan forgiveness for math and science majors who teach in needy schools．

Gore's plan，endorsed by the teachers’ unions，would spend $8 billion over 10 years to help recruit 1 million new teachers，with provisions for college aid，loan forgiveness and signing bonuses．Gore would spend an additional $8 billion to provide raises of as much as $5,000 each to teachers in poor districts that have adopted aggressive plans to improve teacher quality，plus as much as $10,000 each to teachers certified by a national board. Gore would also require states to ensure that all new teachers pass rigorous assessments．Says Feistritzer:“Gore's proposal might be a little excessive in the number of teachers he wants to recruit，but his teacher testing is exactly what we need.”


注（1）：本文选自Time；

注（2）：本文习题命题模仿对象：第1题模仿2005年真题Text 1第1题，第2、4、5、3题分别模仿2001年真题Text 4第2、3题和Text 3第1、2题。



1．In the opening paragraph，the author introduces his topic by ______．

A) quoting the Teacher of the Year

B) citing an example

C) making an assumption

D) posing a contrast

2．According to Emily Feistritzer，Bush's plan might ______．

A) be handicapped by the states

B) give the states too much freedom

C) help states recruit more teachers

D) be too flexible

3．The basic problem many veterans encounter when they seek the teaching profession is ______.

A) their lack of training and experience

B) their background

C) that they do not have the making of a teacher

D) the barriers in the certification process

4．From Paragraph 4 we can infer that ______．

A) Gore's plan is better than Bush's plan

B) poor districts will receive more funding from Gore's plan

C) Gore's plan focuses on the number of teachers while Bush's plan on the accountability

D) Gore's plan gives qualified teachers generous paycheck

5．What is the passage mainly about?

A) The competition between Bush and Gore.

B) Two presidential candidates’ plans of teacher training，recruitment and rewarding．

C) The increasing importance of teaching profession.

D) The differences between Bush's plan and that of Gore’s.





篇章剖析


本篇文章是说明文，介绍了两位总统候选人布什和戈尔各自的教师招募和培训计划。第一段提出了两位候选人的一个共同之处：想方设法招募、培训和奖励优秀教师；第二段介绍了布什的新基金计划；第三段介绍了布什的“军人当教师”计划；第四段介绍了戈尔的教师招募和评估方案。





词汇注释


candidate /ˈkændɪdɪt/ n. 候选人

recruit /rɪˈkruːt/ v. 吸收（新成员）；招募

accountability /əˌkaʊntəˈbɪlɪti/ n. 有责任，有义务

bureaucracy /bjʊˈrɒkrəsi/ n. 官僚，官僚作风，官僚机构

certification /sɜːtɪfɪˈkeɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 证明，证明书；合格证

tap /tæp/ v．开发；利用

endorse /ɪnˈdɔːs/ v. 支持；签署（姓名）；背书，在（票据等）背面签字

forgiveness /fəˈgɪvnɪs/ n. 免除（债务等）

bonus /ˈbəʊnəs/ n. 红利；奖金；额外津贴

rigorous /ˈrɪgərəs/ adj. 严格的，严厉的

excessive /ɪkˈsesɪv/ adj. 过多的，过分的





难句突破


Gore would spend an additional $8 billion to provide raises of as much as $5,000 each to teachers in poor districts that have adopted aggressive plans to improve teacher quality，plus as much as $10,000 each to teachers certified by a national board.

主体句式：Gore would spend an additional $8 billion．

结构分析：本句是一个复杂句，不定式to provide raises...作整个句子的目的状语，其中包含了一个that引导的定语从句，修饰districts；介词plus引导了一个伴随状语，修饰这个目的状语。

句子译文：此外，戈尔计划再花80亿美元给为提高教师质量采取积极策略的贫困地区的每位教师增加5，000美元工资，另外，给每位获得国家教育委员会证书的教师10，000美元。





题目分析


1．C 论证方式题。可以从第一句话would agree看出。would是一种虚拟用法，表明这是作者的一种假想。

2．A 细节题。根据上下文，布什的计划类似于里根的计划，当时钱拨到了各州，但最后都不知去向。Emily Feistritzer担心如果各州可以按照自己认为适合的方式动用这笔资金的话，这笔钱将不被用于最初的目的。也就是说布什的计划会被各州执行不力。

3．D 细节题。这一题的答案在文中第三段，退伍老兵Moore说许多本来可成为优秀教师的退伍军人却因为the bureaucracy of the certification process而受阻。

4．D 推理题。这可以从“获得全国教育委员会认证的教师每人还可以得到1万美元”的提议中看出。

5．B 主旨题。判断文章的主旨。文章第一段借用Whirry之口来说明两位总统候选人都在积极推动对教师的招募、培训和奖励政策，接着在第二段和第三段介绍了布什的两个计划，第四段介绍了戈尔的计划，这些计划都与招募、培训和奖励政策有关。所以应该是B。





参考译文



乔治·W·布什和艾尔·戈尔也许会一致同意这样一种说法：我们的学校需要更多的像玛丽莲·威尔瑞斯这样的老师。在过去35年中，威尔瑞斯一直鼓励中学生深入思考伟大文学作品的意义并在自己的写作中运用其中的一些创作手法。她是那种学生几十年后依旧会回到她在加州曼哈顿海滩的教室来拜访她的老师。去年五月，一个全国教师组织将她评为“年度教师”。现在全国公立学校计划在未来十年招聘250万名新教师，威尔瑞斯对于每位总统候选人都想方设法招募、培训和奖励优秀教师的做法深受鼓舞。“他们两人都谈到了教师素质的问题”，她说。“现在正是我们的大好时机。”

现有联邦基金的大部分原来是用于职业培训和缩小课堂规模的，布什计划把这部分资金和用于教师培训和招募的新基金合在一起，再给这笔新资金每年追加四亿美元。布什允许各州在自己认为合适的情况下支配这笔基金——前提是他们必须建立教师责任制制度。这与罗纳德·里根在80年代所做的类似。不过那时，教育信息中心主席埃米莉·费斯特里泽说道：“钱都不知去向。”对于布什的计划，她说：“我担心资金到了州里会被挪做他用。”

布什打算将用于“军人当教师”计划的资金投入从240万美元增加到3,000万美元。该计划旨在把那些想教书的退伍军人安置在公立学校，并任用像阿瑟·摩尔这样的人。阿瑟·摩尔在军中服役21年后于1994年退役，有教书的愿望。“很多人本来可以成为出色的教师，但由于认证过程中的官僚主义而受阻。”现年45岁的摩尔说道。他最初在巴尔的摩教四年级学生，现在负责给接受特殊教育的学生做测试工作。“‘军人当教师’计划可以降低门槛，激发退役军人的潜能，是非常好的计划。”布什还计划增加数学和理科专业出身的在贫困学校教书的退伍军人的贷款免除额。

戈尔的方案得到了教师工会的支持。该方案计划在10年内斥资80亿美元帮助招募100万名新教师，并拨款为大学提供资助，实行贷款免除以及发放奖金。此外，戈尔计划再花80亿美元给为提高教师质量采取积极策略的贫困地区的每位教师增加5,000美元工资，另外，给每位获得国家教育委员会证书的教师10,000美元。戈尔还要求各州确保所有的新教师都能通过严格的评估。费斯特里泽说：“戈尔计划招募的教师人数也许有点多，但他的教师测试提案正是我们所需要的。”