重庆合川区2017高考英语阅读理解九月指导题：5（含解析）_高考复习指南

重庆合川区2017高考英语阅读理解九月指导题：5（含解析）

　　English has become the world's number one language in the 20th century. In every country where English is not the native language, especially in the Third World, people must strive to learn it to the best of their abilities, if they want to participate fully in the development of their countries. But many people are concerned that English's dominance (优势地位) will destroy native languages. A close examination reveals a great number of languages have fallen casualty to English. For example, it has wiped out Hawaiian, Welsh, Scotch Gaelic, Irish, native American languages, and many others. Luckily, some of these languages are now being revived （复苏）, such as Hawaiian and Welsh, and these languages will live again, hopefully, if dedicated people continue their work of reviving them. In the case of Welsh, its revival is so successful that the language is now being used as a medium of insturction in schools and universities in Wales.

　　Many leaders of these Third World countries are obsessed with (被迷住) English and for them English is everything. They seem to believe that if the students speak English, they are already knowledgeable. These leaders speak and write English much better than their national languages. If these leaders deliver speeches anywhere in the world they use English and they feel more at home with it and proud of their ability as well. The citizens of their countries do not understand their leaders' speeches because they are made in a foreign language. All the greatest countries of the world are great because they constantly use their own languages in all national development activities, including education. From a psychological point of view, those who are taught in their own language from the start will develop better selfconfidence and self-reliance. From a linguistic point of view, the best brains can only be produced if students are educated in their own language from the start. Those who are taught in a foreign language from the start will tend to be imitators and lack self-confidence. They will tend to rely on foreign consultants. There is nothing wrong, however, in learning a foreign language at advanced levels of education. But the best thing to do is to have a good education in one's native language first, then go abroad to have a university education in a foreign language.