Holidays

As is clearly shown in the table that there was a dramatic change in the way people spent their holidays between 1990 and 2000. Especially, in 1990, 63% of people spent their holidays at home, while the figure decreased considerably to 24% in 2000. There are three reasons for this phenomenon.

To begin with, with the development of market-oriented economy, people earn by far more money than they used to, making it possible for them to afford traveling expenses. In addition, people realize the importance of getting well-informed about the outside world in this modern era to develop their potential. For example, a traveller may encounter or talk with someone of a different cultural background so as to broaden his vision. Last but not least, by traveling outside, people are close to nature, which is not only beneficial to both their health and peace of mind. In short, more and more people take the occasion of holiday to travel outside and relax themselves.

As far as I am concerned, I prefer to go traveling instead of staying at home during holidays. On the one hand, I love meeting different people and take in some fresh ideas. On the other hand, it is agreed that the world is becoming a global village. No one could confine himself within his small circle of families or relatives. In brief, I have benefited a lot and will benefit more from traveling during the holidays.

点评：该篇作文属图表作文，命题思路与四级真题图表作文一致，仿真度高。本范例题关于人们旅游度假方式的变化，也是社会热点话题，2006年1月就考过名校校园该不该成为旅游景点话题；2004年6月也是关于旅游景点的介绍。

范例十七

Directions:For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a composition on the topic: Social Practice.You should write at least120words following the outline below in Chinese.

a) 社会实践的作用

b) 可能产生的问题

c) 提出建议

Social Practice

Social practice has been more and more popular in universities and colleges. Students are asked to enter society and get some idea of it. Surely social practice has many advantages. Firstly, social practice can offer students a chance to contact society and meet different kinds of people. In this way students can gain some valuable social experience, which will be useful to their future career. Secondly, students can apply what they have learned in class to practical work, thus knowing themselves more clearly. Thirdly, social practice can bring them some financial reward and make them more independent of their family.

However, some problems may arise if no correct guidance is made. For example, some students get overly interested in social practice and want to work full-time and earn money, thus neglecting their studies. And some students are likely to get in touch with the dark side of society, which will affect their future studies.

In order to carry out social practice smoothly, students should first know its objective. They should put their studies in the first place and see social practice just as a useful supplement, so they ought to try to strike a balance between social practice and their studies.

点评：本篇文章属于解释性说明文。就业市场的竞争要求大学生具有丰富的社会实践，才能适应就业市场的竞争，所以现在在校大学生参与社会实践活动频繁，但如何处理好学业和社会实践的关系成为人们关注的话题。本范例题与大学生生活密切相关，也是四级作文关注的重要话题。