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Part Ⅳ Reading comprehension( Reading in Depth) (25 minutes)
Section A
Women who apply for jobs in middle or senior management have a higher success rate than men, according to an employment survey. But of course far fewer of them apply for these positions. The study, by recruitment (征召新成員) consultants NB Selection, shows that while one in six men who appear on interview shortlist get jobs, the figure rises to one in four for women。
Reasons for higher success rates among women are difficult to isolate. One explanation suggested is that if a woman candidate manages to get on a shortlist, then she has probably already proved herself to be an exceptional candidate. Dr. Marx said that when women apply for positions they tend to be better qualified than their male counterparts but are more selective and conservative in their job search. Women tend to research thoroughly before applying for positions or attending interviews. Men, on the other hand, seem to rely on their ability to sell themselves and to convince employers that any shortcomings they have will not prevent them from doing a good job。
Managerial and executive progress made by women is confirmed by the annual survey of boards of directors carried out by Korn International. This year the survey shows a doubling of the number of women serving as non-executive directors compared with the previous year. However, progress remains painfully slow and there were still only 18 posts filled by women out of a total of 354 non-executive positions surveyed。
In Europe a recent feature of corporate life in the recession has been the de-layering of management structures. Hilary Sears said that this has halted progress for women in as much as de-layering has taken place either where women are working or in layers they aspire to. Sears also noted a positive trend from the recession, which has been the growing number of women who have started up on their own。
In business as a whole, there are a number of factors encouraging the prospect of greater equality in the workforce. Demographic trends suggest that the number of women going into employment is steadily increasing. In addition a far greater number of women are now passing through higher education, making them better qualified to move into management positions. Organizations such as the European Women's Management Development Network provide a range of opportunities for women to enhance their skills and contacts。
However, Ariane Antal, director of the International Institute for Organization Change for Archamps in France, said that there is only anecdotal evidence of changes in recruitment patterns. And she said: "It's still so hard for women to even get on to shortlists -there are so many hurdles and barriers." She agreed that there have been some positive signs but said: "Until there is a belief among employers, until they value the difference, nothing will change."
47. From the passage, we can see that males applicants ______ female applicants for top posts。
48. Women are more ______ than men when they apply for positions or attending interviews。
49. What aspect of company structuring has disadvantaged women in getting management positions?
50. According to Sears; the number of female-run business is ______。
51. Which group of people should change their attitude to recruitment so as to have a greater equality in the workforce?
Section B
Passage One
The radical transformation of the Soviet society had a profound impact on women's lives. Marxists had traditionally believed that both capitalism and the middle-class husbands exploited women. The Russian Revolution of 1917 immediately proclaimed complete equality of rights for women. In the 1920s divorce and abortion were made easily available, and women were urged to work outside the home and liberate themselves sexually. After Stalin came to power, sexual and familial liberation was played down, and the most lasting changes for women involved work and education。
These changes were truly revolutionary. Young women were constantly told that they had to be equal to men, that they could and should do everything men could do. Peasant women in Russia had long experienced the equality of backbreaking physical labor in the countryside, and they continued to enjoy that equality on collective farms. With the advent of the five-year-plans, millions of women also began to toil in factories and in heavy construction, building dams, roads and steel mills in summer heat and winter frost. Most of the opportunities open to men through education were also open to women. Determined women pursued their studies and entered the ranks of the better-paid specialists in industry and science. Medicine practically became a woman's profession. By 1950, 75 percent of doctors in the Soviet Union were women。
Thus Stalinist society gave woman great opportunities but demanded great sacrifices as well. The vast majority of women simply had to work outside the home. Wages were so law that it was almost impossible for a family or couple to live only on the husband's earnings. Moreover, the fun-time working woman had a heavy burden of household tasks in her off hours, for most Soviet men in the 1930s still considered the home and the children the woman's responsibility. Men continued to monopolize the best jobs. Finally, rapid change and economic hardship led to many broken families, creating further physical, emotional, and mental strains for women. In any event, the often-neglected human resource of women was mobilized in Stalinist society。
52. The main idea of this passage is that women in Stalinist society ______。
A) had economic opportunities that had never been available before
B) had difficulty balancing their work and family responsibilities
C) had new opportunities but also many hardships
D) moved quickly into the highest levels of government
53. In the last paragraph, "monopolize" probably means ______。
A) hold B) earn C) leave D) pay
54. The author's main purpose in writing this passage is to ______。
A) compare different systems of government
B) tell stories about women in Soviet Union
C) amuse the reader
D) provide information
55. The author's tone in this passage can best be described as ______。
A) disapproving B) emotional
C) objective D) sympathetic
56. We can conclude that the economic and social status of women in Stalinist society ______。
A) had been improved
B) was worse than before
C) had not Changed much
D) was better than that in capitalistic countries
