Q: My daughter is a junior in high school and has been on an individualized education program since fourth grade. She plans to go to college and intends to finish with a master’s degree. Her performance in general is fairly good, but test scores are very low. She has held many leadership and volunteer positions. We have been advised to have her write an essay about how her learning disability is a barrier that she has to get over. Will that help or hurt her chances for admission?
---- Deborah
A: First let me answer the question on low standardized test scores (ACT/SAT). There are hundreds of colleges that are “test optional” which means students can choose not to release their test scores in the application process. Admission decisions at these colleges for students who do not submit their test scores are made based on other factors. A list of test optional colleges can be found at fairtest.org. It is important, however, to make sure that the college is the right fit academically regardless of the test optional policy.
You also asked if your daughter should write about her disability and if this would hurt her chances of being admitted. Please know that colleges do not deny admission based on disability. “Disclosing” a learning disability in a personal statement within the college application can certainly help. By writing a personal statement, students can potentially demonstrate, for example, their understanding of the challenge they face. They might also prove an improved grade trend in that subject area, and show interest in more complex courses in spite of this disability. More importantly, a student disclosure can show self-confidence, motivation and an understanding of the disability.
---- Ms. Kravis
小题1:What do we know about Deborah’s daughter?
A．She is applying for a master’s degree.
B．She is very active in her high school.
C．Her disability prevents her studying well.
D．She has difficulty getting over her learning disability.小题2:The underlined word “demonstrate” in the last paragraph probably means “_____”.
A．show
B．develop
C．gain
D．change小题3:What is Ms. Kravis’ attitude towards one’s declaring his/her learning disability?
A．Supportive.
B．Critical.
C．Doubtful.
D．Unconcerned.小题4:According to the passage, Mr. Kravis is probably _____.
A．an editor
B．a school leader
C．a psychological doctor
D．an educational expert
小题1:B
小题2:A
小题3:A
小题4:D
题目分析：这篇文章是一位家长为女儿申请上大学，以及教育专家的回复。
小题1:根据She has held many leadership and volunteer positions.故选B。
小题2:根据for example, their understanding of the challenge they face.故选A。
小题3:根据You also asked if your daughter should write about her disability and if this would hurt her chances of being admitted. Please know that colleges do not deny admission based on disability. “Disclosing” a learning disability in a personal statement within the college application can certainly help.所以答案为A。
小题4:根据More importantly, a student disclosure can show self-confidence, motivation and an understanding of the disability.因此选D。
点评：要想答好题目，重在理解全文意思。这篇文章比较难，先看问题，再带着问题读短文，找出各段落的主旨句，理解全文内容，总结全文中心，然后再回到问题上来，很容易选出正确答案。多了解一些常识性知识有利于阅读理解。如果对文章的相关背景有所了解，读起文章一定既省时又省力。因此，在学习过程中，了解各方面的背景知识是十分重要的。