第四部分 閱讀理解（共六篇）
第二篇
Outside-the-classroom Learning Makes a Big Difference
Putting a bunch of college students in charge of a $300,000 Dance Marathon, fundraiser surely sounds a bit risky.1 When you consider the fact that the money is supposed to be given to. Children in need of medical care, you might call the idea crazy.
Most student leaders don't want to spend a large amount of time on something they care little about, said 22-year-old University of Florida student Darren Heitner. He was the Dance Marathon's operations officer for two years.
Yvonne Fangmeyer, director of the student organization office at the University of Wisconsin, conducted a survey in February of students involved in campus organizations.2 She said the desire for friendship was the most frequently cited reason for joining.
At large universities like Fangmeyer's, which has more than 40,000 students, the students first of all want to find a way to "belong in their own comer of campus".
Katie Rowley, a Wisconsin senior, confirms the survey's findings. "I wanted to make the campus feel smaller by joining an organization where I could not only get involved on campus but also find a group of friends."
All of this talk of friendship, however, does not mean that students aren't thinking about their resumes. "I think that a lot of people do join to ‘fatten up their resume’," said Heitner. "At the beginning of my college career, I joined a few of these organizations, hoping to get a start in my leadership roles."
But without passion student leaders can have a difficult time trying to weather the storms that come. For example, in April, several student organizations at Wisconsin teamed up3 for an event designed to educate students about homelessness and poverty. Student leaders had to face the problem of solving disagreements, moving the event because of rainy weather, and dealing with the university's complicated bureaucracy.
"Outside-of the classroom learning really makes a big difference," Fangmeyer said.
詞匯：
Bunch n. 群
Marathon n. 馬立松；耐力活動
fundraiser n. 募捐
weather v. 經受風雨
bureaucracy n. 官僚機構
注釋：
1．Putting a bunch of college students in charge of a$300，000 Dance Marathon，fundraiser surely sounds a bit risky．讓一群大學生去負責募集30萬美元的馬拉松式的跳舞活動，這種募捐聽起來肯定有點兒冒險。“putting．．．in charge of．．．”是“讓……負責”。
2．Yvonne Fangmeyer, director of the student organization office at the University of Wisconsin, conducted a survey in February of students involved in campus organizations．Yvonne Fangmeyer是威斯康星大學學生組織辦公室主任，在二月組織了一次學生參加校園組織的調查。“a survey of students involved in campus organizations”太長了，所以“in February”插到了中間。
3.“teamup”是“參加”。
練習：
1. An extracurricular activity like raising a fund of $300,000 is risky because most student leaders
A) are lazy.
B) are stupid.
C) are not rich enough.
D) wilt not take an interest in it.
2. American students join campus organizations mostly for
A) making a difference.
B) gaining experience.
C) building friendship.
D) improving their resumes.
3. Who is Katie Rowley?
A) She's a senior professor.
B) She's a senior student.
C) She's a senior official.
D) She's a senior citizen
4. What do student leaders need to carry an activity through to a successful end?
A) Passion.
B) Money.
C) Power.
D) Fame.
5. The phrasal verb fatten up in paragraph 6 could be best replaced by
A) invent.
B) rewrite.
C) polish.
D) complete.
答案與題解：
1．D 問題問的是：像募集30萬美元的的課外活動有點冒險是為什么?答案可以從第二段的第一句話中找到。第一句話是這么說的：大多數學生頭頭并不想在它們不感興趣的事上花大量的時間。
2．C 問題問的是：美國學生參加校園組織的主要目的是什么?答案可以從第三段找到。第三段是這么說的：威斯康星大學學生組織辦公室主任Yvonne Fangmeyer在二月組織了一次學生參加校園組織的調查。她說，尋求友誼是最經常列舉的理由。
3．B問題問的是：Katie Rowley是誰?文章提到了好幾個人，Katie Rowley是其中的一個。第五段講到了Katie Rowley。“a Wisconsin senior”是“威斯康星四年級學生”。
4．A 問題問的是：為了把一項活動順利地貫徹到底學生頭頭需要什么?答案可以從倒數第二段找到。第一句話是這么說的：但是，如果沒有激情(passion)，學生頭頭試圖經受急風暴雨的考驗是會有困難的。
5．C 問題問的是：哪個詞替換第6段中的“fatten up”最合適？“fatten up”原義是“使
人或動物變肥”，在這里可以解釋為使一個人的履歷更充實一些，因此也好看一些。因此意思上最接近的是“polish”(潤色)。
