About six years ago I was eating lunch in a restaurant in New York City when a woman and a young boy sat down at the next table, I couldn’t help overhearing parts of their conversation. At one point the woman asked: “So, how have you been?” And the boy—who could not have been more than seven or eight years old—replied. “Frankly, I’ve been feeling a little depressed lately.” 
　　This incident stuck in my mind because it confirmed my growing belief that children are changing. As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were "depressed” until we were in high school. 
　　The evidence of a change in children has increased steadily in recent years. Children don’t seem childlike anymore. Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to. 
　　Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say, but it certainly is different. Childhood as it once was no longer exists, Why? 
　　Human development is based not only on innate (天生的) biological states, but also on patterns of access to social knowledge. Movement from one social rote to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new status. Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages: traditionally, we tell sixth graders things we keep hidden from fifth graders. 
　　In the last 30 years, however, a secret-revelation (揭示) machine has been installed in 98 percent of American homes. It is called television, Television passes information, and indiscriminately (不加区分地), to all viewers alike, be they children or adults. Unable to resist the temptation, many children turn their attention from printed texts to the less challenging, more vivid moving pictures. 
　　Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information to which children have access. Reading and writing involve a complex code of symbols that must be memorized and practices. Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials.
 
　　31. According to the author, feeling depressed is ________. 
　　A) a sure sign of a psychological problem in a child 
　　B) something hardly to be expected in a young child 
　　C) an inevitable has of children’s mental development 
　　D) a mental scale present in all humans, including children
 
　　32. Traditionally, a child is supposed to learn about the adult world ________. 
　　A) through contact with society 
　　B) gradually and under guidance 
　　C) naturally and by biological instinct 
　　D) through exposure to social information
 
　　33. The phenomenon that today’s children seem adult like is attributed by the author to ________. 
　　A) the widespread influence of television 
　　B) the poor arrangement of teaching content 
　　C) the fast pace of human intellectual development 
　　D) the constantly rising standard of living
 
　　34. Why is the author in favor of communication through print for children? 
　　A) It enables children to gain more social information. 
　　B) It develops children’s interest in reading and writing. 
　　C) It helps children to memorize and practice more. 
　　D) It can control what children are to learn.
 
　　35. What does the author think of the change in today’s children? 
　　A) He feels amused by chair premature behavior. 
　　B) He thinks it is a phenomenon worthy of note. 
　　C) He considers it a positive development. 
　　D) He seems to be upset about it.
 
　　这篇材料讲的是儿童早熟的问题。开头首先讲述了一个作者亲历的故事，作为引出儿童早熟问题的契机——六年前我在餐厅里遇见一对母子并偷听了他们的谈话；母亲问儿子过的怎么样，儿子回答说最近有一点沮丧（a little depressed lately）。 
　　母子的对话深深印在作者的脑子里，因为它证实了作者的一个想法：现在的孩子正在改变。是什么方面改变了？作者拿现在的孩子与小时候的自己做了对比：小时的我直到高中才知道沮丧是什么滋味（I didn’t find out we were “depressed” until we were in high school）。 
　　问题已经提出，接下来作者就要证明这个问题确实存在。第三段举出了很多现在儿童早熟的表现：Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to。 
　　儿童早熟的原因何在？从第四段开始，文章进入了分析问题阶段。第一句话就一针见血，指出问题的根源出在接触社会知识的途径上（patterns of access to social knowledge）。社会角色转变后通常要学习相应的新知识（Movement from one social rote to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new status），大人们一直在教给孩子们这样的知识，但要进度是缓慢的、按部就班的（slowly and in stages）。这里所说的社会角色转变也就是年龄增长的结果，比如上六年级和上五年级即是两种不同的社会角色。 
　　第四段说的是孩子们过去吸收新知识的情形，第五段则开始介绍现状。还是从途径说起，98%的美国家庭都已经安装了电视（installed in 98 percent of American homes），电视是一个传递信息的载体，传递对象不分成人与儿童，儿童通过看电视过早地吸收了尚不适合他们的知识。 
　　文章最后一段介绍了通过书本传授知识的好处，这也算是作者提出的儿童早熟问题的一个解决方案。通过印刷品传授知识可以更容易地控制儿童接触到的知识是适合他们的年龄层次的（allows for a great deal of control over the social information to which children have access），只要不让儿童在成长到一定程度之前接触较为复杂的知识就可以了（Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials）。
 
　　31. B 
　　题目问根据作者的说法，“感到沮丧”是……。 
　　A，孩子出现心理问题的明确信号。 
　　B，很难想象会在小孩子身上出现。 
　　C，孩子精神成长过程中不可避免的现象（原文有误，此为大体意思）。 
　　D，存在于所有人类身上的精神现象，包括孩子。 
　　这道题需要注意的地方是题目给出的According to the author，这是一个限定条件，意思是说判断选项的对错不是依据其说法本身是否错误，而是与作者的说法是否一致。文中作者对feeling depressed的评论应该是在第二段，也就是刚刚讲完作者亲历的故事之后。作者说到my friends and I didn’t find out we were “depressed” until we were in high school，意思是我和我的朋友们直到高中才开始感觉沮丧，言下之意就是小孩子是不会出现沮丧心理的。符合这个意思的是选项B，其余几项都不能从作者的叙述中推测出来。 

　　32. B 
　　这道题问从传统来看，孩子应该通过什么方式来了解学习成人世界。 
　　A，通过与社会的接触。 
　　B，循序渐进，受教于人。 
　　C，依靠生理本能自然习得。 
　　D，将其暴露在社会信息的冲击之下。 
　　本题讨论孩子学习社会知识的途径，这应该是第五段的内容。在第五段中有这样一句话：Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages，后面一句以traditionally开头，说明这一句讨论的是传统方式的学习途径。been taught，受教，应该说相当于选项B中的under guidance；in stages，stage是阶段的意思，in stages就是按阶段，循序渐进，这个意思与B中的gradually一样。这样的话，按照文意，本题选择B最为合适。
 
　　33. A 
　　本题问如今的儿童成人化现象被作者归因于什么。 
　　A，电视的广泛影响。 
　　B，教育内容安排不当。 
　　C，人类智力发展的快速进步。 
　　D，生活水平的持续提高。 
　　这道题较为容易。第五段讲的是孩子学习社会知识的传统方式，这一段在上一题中已经考过了。在第六段作者开始讨论如今孩子们早熟的原因，本题考查的就是第六 段。在这一段作者首先讲述了一种现象，也就是电视在美国社会的普及（第一句），以及电视不分地域、不分老幼地传播信息的特点（第二句）。最后一句指出这种 现象对孩子们的学习途径的影响：many children turn their attention from printed texts to moving pictures，孩子们把注意力从书本转向了电视。上一段讲过，按照传统学习方式，孩子们就是传统的孩子，而以电视为主体的方式，必然造成儿童发生某种变化，在文章中这种变化就是成人化。这道题应该选A。 

　　34. D 
　　本题问作者为何要主张让孩子们通过印刷媒介交流信息。 
　　A，这种方式可以使孩子们获得更多的社会信息。 
　　B，可以发展孩子们对阅读和写作的兴趣。 
　　C，可以增加孩子们记忆和练习的机会。 
　　D，可以控制孩子们学习的内容。 
　　作者在最后一段主张孩子们应该通过印刷媒介交流信息。此段一共三句话，把它们逐一分析透彻，答案也就显而易见了。Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information to which children have access。首先找到主谓宾的大体结构，主语是通过印刷媒介交流，谓语是allows for ，allow本意是允许，在这里是指“使……可以发生”，宾语是control，控制。“控制”是对什么的控制呢？social information，社会信息、知识。后面是一个从句，to which children have access可以改变句序来理解：which children have access to。宾语与宾语从句合起来的意思就是“儿童能够接触到的信息的控制”。整个句子的大意则是通过印刷媒介交流可以控制儿童能够接触到的信息。符合这个意思的是D，而A与此正好相反。 
　　Reading and writing involve a complex code of symbols that must be memorized and practiced。这一句的结构比上一句要清晰一些。主语是阅读与写作；谓语involve，涉及；宾语是“复杂的象征符号”。后面的从句对符号做了解释：必须记忆和练习。这句话所要表达的意思是：阅读与写作涉及很多复杂的要素，是需要不断记忆和练习（实践）才能掌握的。 
　　Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials。根据上一句所述的道理，儿童们必须循序渐进，先读简单的材料，待其完全理解掌握了这些资料，再学习更为复杂的资料。 
　　这两句话中没有提到培养孩子兴趣的问题，B可以排除。至于C的说法，文中有关阅读与写作的论述所要表达的核心观点是先易后难，循序渐进，与增加机会无关。这道题选择D。
 
　　35. D 
　　这道题问作者对如今发生在孩子们身上的变化是如何看待的。 
　　A，他觉得孩子们的早熟行为十分有趣。 
　　B，他觉得这是一个值得注意的现象。 
　　C，他认为这是一种积极的进步。 
　　D，他似乎为此充满忧虑。 
　　本题考查对全篇材料的理解，必须结合全文的各种信息，寻找文章中流露出作者态度的地方，最后做出判断。第二段中As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were “depressed” until we were in high school，这里把自己和现在的小孩进行对比，暗含现在的小孩不应该这么小就感到depressed的意思，应该说对孩子们身上的变化是持否定态度的。
　　第四段作者提出：Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say，似乎对儿童的变化是好是坏没有做出评判，但再看最后一段最后一句话Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials，这里赫然使用了must这样带有强烈肯定色彩的词，可见作者的态度并不像第四段说的那样，而是对孩子们身上发生的变化持有明显的否定态度，说他为这种现象感到忧虑也不为过。 
　　四个题支中D表达了作者的这种态度。B似乎也有道理，但不如D准确、具体，所以还是应该选择D。