朗文3L看听学英语第四册 Lesson 99

　　Lesson 99 Homework
"Finished!" Sandy cried.
"Me too!" Sue¹ cried.
Gretel has often noticed that Sandy and Sue don't have very much homework. She raised the subject at dinner the other evening and Mr Clark tried to explain. "In some countries," he said, "children are made to do a lot of homework from the moment they begin school. They're often obliged² to learn their lessons by heart and they are tested each day by their teachers. The children learn from exactly the same books and follow a strict state programme. It' quite the opposite in England. Teachers rarely make very young children do any homework. They rarely get their pupils to learn lessons by heart. The teachers themselves are usually free to choose the books they will use. Some teachers don't use books at all! After the age of 11 or 12, of course, children are generally made to do some homework, but never very much, From the age of 14 onwards, they usually heve quite a lot, as they will be taking important examinations³. But even then, the question of homework is largely⁴ their own responsibility."
Gretel thought English children were very lucky, but Sandy and Sue didn't agree-which is hardly surprising!

1 sue   

vt.控告，起诉；vi.请求，追求，起诉

参考例句：

• If you don't pay me the money,I'll sue you.如果你不付给我钱，我就告你。
• The war criminals sue for peace.战犯求和。

2 obliged   

adj.感激，感谢v.迫使做( oblige的过去式和过去分词 )；使负义务；满足请求；施惠

参考例句：

• We were obliged, faute de mieux, to drink the local beverage. 因为没有更好的饮料，我们只好将就着喝当地的。
• Parents are obliged by law to send their children to school. 法律规定父母必须送子女入学。

3 examinations   

n.检查( examination的名词复数 )；考试；考查；试题

参考例句：

• He had been forced to incriminate himself in cross-examinations. 他在盘问中被迫受到牵连。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Examinations are hanging over her head—that's why she can't sleep at nights. 她大脑里想的都是考试，所以晚上无法入睡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 largely   

adv.大部分，主要地

参考例句：

• It is largely dependent on the weather.这多半取决于天气情况。
• Their conclusions were largely founded on guesswork.他们的结论大部份基于猜测。