28. In the view of State Treasurer Mike Coffman, the educational budget shortage is ________.
A) unavoidable
B) unthinkable
C) insolvable
D) irreversible(B)
29. Why did Coffman request an investigation?
A) To see if there was a deliberate cover-up of the problem.
B) To find out the extent of the consequences of the case.
C) To make sure that the school principals were innocent.
D) To stop the voters approving the $212 million bong issue.(A)
30. Three high school students started a website in order to ________.
A) attract greater public attention to their needs
B) appeal to the public for contributions and donations
C) expose officials who neglected their duties
D) keep people properly informed of the crisis(D)
這篇短文講述的是學校資金短缺事件。全文共十個小段，第一段從丹佛某社區發起運動說起，交代了事件基本信息：1380萬美元的預算短缺，而后引用某位學生父母對學校表示物質支持的原話(we can help ease their financial burden, we will)。這個段落有這樣一個特點，即事件本身只是在句中附帶提到，敘述的重點在于社區對與此事相關的學校、教師的支持。這也暗示了后文的敘述方向不會是對資金短缺事件的原委的敘述，而是各方對此事的反應。從全文來看，包括社區、教師、官方、企業以及學生的反應。
接下來的第二段敘述了教師們對社區支持的反應(grateful)，而后用教師們的想法傳達出資金短缺事件的解決難度(impossible for then to solve this problem，社區支持不可能解決問題)。
下一段進一步透露出事件的其他信息：發現時間(last month)，并交代了州官員的反應：驚詫(Nobody would have imagined something happening like this at this level)。下三小段繼續敘述官方的進一步行動：為教師工資提供貸款(9.8 million loan that enabled the payroll)，從學生活動資金帳戶中提出170萬美元(officials also took $1.7 million)，調查該地區財務(begun investigating the district’s finances)。
最后的四段分別交代了學生父母、企業和學生們的反應。父母們為學校購買日常教學器具(buying classroom supplies and offering to pay for groceries and utilities)，企業捐助，如一家雪佛蘭經銷商捐助一萬美元，同時免除校車租金(A Chevrolet dealership donated $10,000 and forgave the district’s $10,750 bill)，IBM捐助了實物(4,500 packs of paper)。之后的一段簡單解釋了募捐的原因。最后一段是學生們的行動：建立網站隨時發布該事件的進展情況(We wanted to know the truth, and spread that around instead.)。
26. What has happened to the Vrain School District?
A) A huge financial problem has arisen.
B) Many schools there are mismanaged.
C) Lots of teachers in the district are planning to quit.
D) Many administrative personnel have been laid off.(A)
題目問Vrain校區發生了什么事情。從第一段可知，Vrain校區發生了資金短缺($13.8 million budget shortage)，而通讀全篇后可知，這一難題的影響非常嚴重。
A，發生了嚴重的財務困難。資金短缺(budget shortage)也就是財務困難，可以選A。
B，那里許多學校管理不善。此選項考查對the Vrain school District tries to solve a $13.8 million budget shortage blamed on mismanagement一句的理解。前半句的理解應該不成問題，意思是該校區力圖解決一個1380萬的預算缺口。后面的blamed on mismanagement是理解的關鍵，blamed是個被動語態，這里省略了is，而這個句子的完整形式應該是個which引導的從句：shortage which is blamed on mismanagement。Blamed sth on sth 是把某事物的錯誤歸因于另一事物，在句中就是“預算短缺的原因被歸咎于管理不善”。這樣的話，管理不善的對象就是預算而不是學校。
C，該校區的許多教師計劃離職。文中引用了一位學生家長的話：we really don’t want to lose them because of this，表達了人們對預算短缺可能導致教師離去的后果。但文中沒有指出教師是否計劃(planning)離職，或者是否有“很多”(many)教師有此想法。
D，許多管理人員遭到解雇。文中沒有相關敘述。
