沪江小编：英语四级考试，阅读是很让大家头疼的一块。题量大，时间少，理解难，选项长，于是很容易产生畏惧心理。其实，阅读并不像想象中的那么难，只要掌握了正确的方法，加上勤读多练，提高效率，征服阅读，指日可待。而沪江小编就为大家详细分析历年四级真题中的阅读部分，各种方法，各种技巧对号入座，供大家参考练习。

真题可能每位备考四级的同学都做过，那么，真题做完后，你有没有思考过为什么这些题你做对了，又为什么那些题你做错了吗？每一题的答案你都能清楚地知道是怎么来的吗？如果你从没想过以上问题，从现在开始，就跟小编一起重新再做一遍真题，仔仔细细来分析每一道题，探寻出题思路，摸索答题技巧， 最终成为考场上的阅读达人！

【真题训练】Passage One
Questions 57 to 61 are based on following passage.
By almost any measure, there is a boom in Internet-based instruction. In just a few years, 34 percent of American universities have begun offering some form of distance learning(DL), and among the larger schools, it's closer to 90 percent. If you doubt the popularity of the trend, you probably haven't heard of the University of Phoenix. It grants degrees entirely on the basis of online instruction. It enrolls 90,000 student, a statistic used to support its claim to be the largest private university in the country.

While the kinds of instruction offered in these programs will differ, DL usually signifies a course in which the instructions post syllabi(课程大纲), reading assignments, and schedules on Websites, and students send in their assignments by e-mail. Generally speaking, face-to-face communication with an instructor is minimized or eliminated altogether.

The attraction for students might at first seem obvious. Primarily, there's the convenience promised by courses on the Net: you can do the work, as they say, in your pajamas(睡衣). But figures indicate that the reduced effort results in a reduced commitment to the course. While dropout rates for all freshmen at American universities is around 20 percent, the rate for online students is 35 percent. Students themselves seem to understand the weaknesses inherent in the setup. In a survey conducted for eCornell, the DL division of Cornell University, less than a third of the respondents expected the quality of the online course to be as good as the classroom course.

Cleary form the schools perspective, there's a lot of money to be saved. Although some of the more ambitious programs require new investments in servers and networks to support collaborative software, most DL courses can run on existing or minimally upgraded(升级)systems. The more students who enroll in a course but don’t come to campus, the more the school saves on keeping the lights on in the classrooms, paying doorkeepers, and maintaining parking lots, And there's evindence that instructors must work harder to run a DL course for a variety of reasons, won't be paid any more, and might well be paid less.

注意：此部分试题请在答题卡2上作答。

57. What is the most striking feature of the University of Phoenix?
A) It boasts the largest number of students on campus.
B) All its courses are offered online.
C) Its online courses are of the best quality.
D) Anyone taking its online courses is sure to get a degree.

58．According to the passage , distance learning is basically characterized by_____
A) A minimum or total absence of face-to-face instruction
B) A considerable flexibility in its academic requirements
C) The great diversity of students’ academic backgrounds
D) The casual relationship between students and professors

59. Many students take Internet -based courses mainly because they can_____
A) Earn their academic degrees with much less effort
B) Save a great deal on traveling and boarding expenses
C) Select courses from various colleges and universities
D) Work on the required courses whenever and wherever

60. What accounts for the high drop-out rates for online students?
A) There is no strict control over the academic standards of the courses.
B) The evaluation system used by online universities is inherently weak.
C) There is no mechanism to ensure that they make the required effort.
D) Lack of classroom interaction reduces the effectiveness of instruction.

61. According to the passage, universities show great enthusiasm for DL programs for the purpose of_____
A) building up their reputation
B) cutting down on their expenses
C) upgrading their teaching facilities
D) providing convenience for students 

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