模拟练习:雅思阅读练习题
This reading test contains 10 questions. You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.
Read the passage below and answer questions 1-10.
Language Conservation and Revitalisation
It is estimated that around of the approximately six thousand languages that are spoken today, over three thousand of them are likely to have disappeared by the year 2100. Many of these are now classified as endangered languages and are classified as such by factors such as the number of speakers a language has, the age of the speakers, and the percentage of the youngest generation acquiring fluency in the language. For example, a language with many tens of thousands of speakers may be considered endangered if the children in the community are no longer learning the language. This scenario may happen in a place like Indonesia which as many different languages in use, but is trying to make communication easier by teaching a national language nation-wide. In another scenario, a language may only have a few hundred speakers but may not be considered endangered because all of the children in the community are learning the language.
Once a language is classified as endangered, conservation efforts may be made in an attempt to save or revive the language. Whether or not to make such efforts is a decision which is ultimately made by the speakers of the language themselves, but success often requires a great deal of help and approval from the government or other authorities.
One of the most famous language conservation success stories is that of the Welsh language. Historically, large numbers of Welsh people spoke only Welsh, but eventually English became the main language of Wales and fewer and fewer people learned Welsh. Conservation efforts began to be made in the mid-20th century with the establishment of such organisations as the Welsh Language Association in 1962. The Welsh Language Act and the Government of Wales Act, both passed in the 1990s, protected the Welsh language and made sure that English and Welsh would have equal status in Wales. Since 2000, the study of the Welsh language has been a compulsory subject in school. Today, over 22% of the population of Wales are Welsh speakers, up from 18% in 1991.
Another famous example, Hebrew, is not so much a story of language conservation as much as language revitalisation. Hebrew was once a spoken language but by the 4th century BCE it had been replaced by Aramaic. Hebrew continued to be used for religious purposes and in literature but the language was no longer used for everyday purposes. In the 19th century, there was a movement to revive Hebrew as a spoken language, and when the State of Israel was founded in 1948, Hebrew was adopted as the official language. There was some resistance to this idea, as Hebrew was considered a religious language, not a language to be used for common communication. In addition, because Hebrew was an ancient language, it lacked many of the words that are used in modern times and many new words had to be coined. However, because there was a need for a common language in Israel, the language was accepted and now thrives.
The successes of language conservation are many, but many more attempts at language preservation do not succeed and there are many languages that have not survived except for a few recordings made by the last native speakers before their deaths. In some cases, the number of remaining speakers at the start of conservation efforts was not enough to sustain revitalisation, and in others, efforts may fail because there is often no economic benefit to learning an endangered language at the expense of a more commonly spoken national or international language.
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the article?
In boxes 1-10 on your answer sheet write
TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1) Half of the languages spoken today will be gone by 2100.
2) A language may be considered endangered if children of the speakers are no longer learning the language.
3) Indonesian is an endangered language.
4) Most endangered languages today are saved and revived.
5) Welsh was revived mainly due to government legislature.
6) The number of Welsh speakers is expected to rise rapidly in the future.
7) All school lessons in Wales are taught in Welsh.
8) Hebrew died out completely in the 4th century BCE.
9) Hebrew and Aramaic are similar languages.
10) Many new terms had to be added to Hebrew to make it functional for todays world.
上一篇: 模拟练习:雅思阅读练习题-11
下一篇: 雅思阅读全方位提升攻略
2016春科普版英语五年级下册全册教案
2016春科普版英语四下Lesson 3《They are in Class Three》word教案2
2016春科普版英语五下Lesson 7《It’s seven thirty-five》word教案
科普版英语四下《第五课》教学设计
2016春科普版英语四下Lesson 1《Whose watch is it》word教案1
2016春科普版英语三下Lesson 3《Is that a pig》word教案
2016春科普版英语三下Lesson 8《Who is he》word教案
科普版英语四下《第三课》教学设计
科普版英语四下《第十一课》教学设计
2016春科普版英语四下Lesson 2《What colour are the trousers》ppt课件2
2016春科普版英语六下Lesson 1《I’m not feeling well》word教案
2016春科普版英语三下Lesson 9《I have a kite》word教案
2016春科普版英语五下Lesson 9《Do you always have lunch at twelve》word教案
2016春科普版英语五下Lesson 4《Where do you live》word教案
2013广州版六上《UNIT 8 Janet Is Going to Have a Party》word教案
科普版英语四下《第二课》教学设计
2016春科普版英语三下Lesson 4《Where is my doll》word说课稿
科普版英语四下《第一课》教学设计
2016春科普版英语三年级下册全册教案
科普版英语四下《第十二课》教学设计
2016春科普版英语三下Lesson 5《Let’s run a race》word教案
2016春科普版英语四下Lesson 3《They are in Class Three》word教案1
2016春科普版英语四下Lesson 1《Whose watch is it》ppt课件4
2016春科普版英语三下Lesson 5《Let’s run a race》word教案1
2016春科普版英语五下Lesson 2《We mustn’t cross the street now》word教案
科普版英语四下《第十课》教学设计
科普版英语三下全册教案设计
科普版英语四下《第八课》教学设计
2016春科普版英语四下Lesson 5《What are these》word教案
2016春科普版英语六下Lesson 4《What did you do last saturday》word教案