As long as her parents can remember, 13-year-old Katie Hart has been talking about going to college. Her mother, Tally, a financial-aid officer at an Ohio university, knows all too well the daunting calculus of paying for a college education. Last year the average yearly tuition at a private, four-year school climbed 5.5 percent to more than $17,000. The Harts have started saving, and figure they can afford a public university without a problem. But what if Katie applies to Princeton (she's threatening), where one year's tuition, room and board--almost $34,000 in 2002--will cost more than some luxury cars? Even a number cruncher like Tally admits it's a little scary, especially since she'll retire and Katie will go to college at around the same time.

　　Paying for college has always been a humbling endeavor. The good news: last year students collected $74 billion in financial aid, the most ever. Most families pay less than full freight. Sixty percent of public-university students and three quarters of those at private colleges receive some form of financial aid--mostly, these days, in the form of loans. But those numbers are not as encouraging as they appear for lower-income families, because schools are changing their formulas for distributing aid. Eager to boost their magazine rankings, which are based in part on the test scores of entering freshmen, they're throwing more aid at smarter kids--whether they need it or not.

　　The best way to prepare is to start saving early. A new law passed last year makes that easier for some families. So-called 529 plans allow parents to sock away funds in federal-tax-free-investment accounts, as long as the money is used for "qualified education expenses" like tuition, room and board. The plans aren't for everyone. For tax reasons, some lower- and middle-income families may be better off choosing other investments. But saving is vital. When's the best time to start? "Sometime," says Jack Joyce of the College Board, "between the maternity ward and middle school."

　　Aid packages usually come in some combination of grants, loans and jobs. These days 60 percent of all aid comes in the form of low-interest loans. All students are eligible for "unsubsidized" federal Stafford loans, which let them defer interest payments until after graduation. Students who can demonstrate need can also qualify for federal Perkins loans or "subsidized" Staffords, where the government pays the interest during school. Fortunately, this is a borrower's market. "Interest rates are at their lowest level in the history of student loans," says Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of Finaid. Kantrowitz expects rates to fall even further when they're reviewed this summer.

　　Traditional scholarships, academic or athletic, are still a part of many families' planning. Mack Reiter, a 17-year-old national wrestling champion, gets so many recruiting letters he throws most away. He'll almost certainly get a free ride. Without it, "we would really be in a bind," says his mother, Janet. For everyone else, it's worth the effort to pick through local and national scholarship offerings, which can be found on Web sites like collegeboard.com.

1.What does the author intend to illustrate with the example of the Harts?
　　[A]the difficulty of paying the tuition
　　[B]the far-sight of the parents
　　[C]the promising future of Katie
　　[D]the increasing tuition in the university

2.What can we infer from the second paragraph?
　　[A]Some families are too poor to pay the full amount of the tuition.
　　[B]The parents do not favor the form of loans.
　　[C]Paying the tuition makes the parents feel humble.
　　[D]Those who are in great need may not get what they need.

3.The last paragraph suggests that ___________.
　　[A]many recruiting letters failed to provide Mack Reiter with scholarships
　　[B]Mack Reiter wanted to help his family go out of the trouble
　　[C]traditional scholarships are a good solution to the tuition problems in some families
　　[D]Mack Reiter was very proud of his national wrestling championship

4.What does the author mean by “better off”(Line 5, Paragraph 3)?
　　[A]richer
　　[B]wiser
　　[C]happier
　　[D]luckier

5.Which of the following is true according to the text?
　　[A]The Harts prefer a public university to a private one.
　　[B]It is much easier to pay the tuition at present.
　　[C]All students can get the aid package.
　　[D]Traditional scholarships are still attractive to some families.

　　答案：ADCBD

　　篇章剖析

　　本文采用提出问题——分析问题的模式，指出支付高昂的大学学费对很多家庭来说都有些力不从心，以及一些助学贷款及其它资助项目所起的作用。第一段提出问题，以哈特家为例，说明支付大学学费对家庭造成的压力；第二段指出大多数家庭支付大学学费的方式以及存在的一些问题；第三段指出家庭存钱的作用；第四段指出资助项目的形式；第五段指出传统奖学金的吸引力。

　　词汇注释

　　daunting [5dC:ntIN]adj.使人畏缩的

　　calculus [5kAlkjJlEs]n.微积分学, 结石

　　tuition [tju:5IF(E)n; (?@) 5tu:-]n.学费

　　number cruncher n.捣弄数字者；能够进行复杂、大量运算的人

　　boost[bu:st]v.推进

　　sock away把钱存放起来

　　better off (doing something) adj.(对于做某事来说)是较为明智的

　　maternity ward n.产科病房

　　the College Board大学委员会

　　eligible[5elIdVEb(E)l]adj.符合条件的,合格的

　　defer[dI5f\:(r)]vt.使推迟, 使延期

　　wrestling [5res(E)lIN]n.[体]摔跤

　　in a bind adv.处于困境

　　难句突破

　　1．So-called 529 plans allow parents to sock away funds in federal-tax-free-investment accounts, as long as the money is used for "qualified education expenses" like tuition, room and board.

　　主体句式：plans allow parents to sock away …

　　结构分析：本句是个条件复合句。主句是529 plans allow parents to sock away funds，federal-tax-free-investment是一个复合名词; as long as引导条件从句，be used for 意为“用做某一目的”，like是介词，后跟名词，共同来修饰qualified education expenses.

　　句子译文：这就是所谓的529方案。该方案准许父母把钱存在联邦免税投资账户上，但他们所存的钱只能用于支付类似学费、食宿费等“符合资格教育费用”。

　　2．Without it, "we would really be in a bind,"

　　主体句式：Without it, "we would really be in a bind,"

　　结构分析：从without我们可看出此句是虚拟语气，in a bind是固定搭配，意思是“处于困境”。

　　句子译文：要不是这样的话，那么“我们真的就陷入困境了。”

　　题目分析

　　1． 答案为A,属推理判断题。原文对应信息是：“Even a number cruncher like Tally admits it's a little scary, especially since she'll retire and Katie will go to college at around the same time.”

　　2．答案为D，属推理判断题。原文对应信息是：“Eager to boost