SECTION A – LISTENING (2.5 points)

Part 1. You will hear two teachers, Andrew and Katie, discussing the coming excursion of their language class. Listen and answer each question with NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER. You will listen twice. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.5 points)

1. When is the school excursion?

2. Where are they going?

3. How will the weather be on the day of their excursion?

4. In the activity “Birds of Prey”, what do the students throw into the air?

5. What time will they return?

Part 2. You will hear a conversation between two friends, Dan and Julie, talking about the time Julie’s father was on a television quiz show. Listen and decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F). You will listen twice. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.6 points)

1. At first, the TV producer had wanted Julia’s aunt to go on the quiz show but she didn’t.

2. Julie’s father went to the show in a hired car.

3. Julie’s father prepared for the show by reading encyclopedias.

4. Julie’s father competed against a high school teacher and a bus driver.

5. During the show, the presenter was not friendly.

6. Julie really wants to take part in a quiz show.

Part 3. You are going to hear a man talking about his experiences of eating in other countries. For each question, choose the best answer A, B or C. You will listen twice. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.6 points)

1. Betty was given a … scarf on her 14th birthday.

2. Yesterday, Mike was given a detention. He … something wrong.

3. I wish I … in the countryside – I would have enjoyed the peace of summer evenings there.

4. … makes the mountain-patrol team’s job interesting and fulfilling.

5. Your daughter may not do her best at mathematics and chemistry, but she definitely … at English literature.

6. Hats like this may have been fashionable in the 1960s, but now they are … the times.

7. When I started to study archaeology, I knew … no Latin, but within a year, I could read it rather well.

8. Our chances of coming in time for the meeting are rather … .

9. When I was a teenager, I had a … on one of my classmates.

10. You … one of your friends at the disco last night.

Part 2. In each sentence, there is ONE error. Choose the underlined part A, B, C or D that needs correcting, then correct it. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. There is an example at the beginning

(0). (0.5 points)

Example: 0. The (A) last time we (B) visited the Statue of Liberty (C) is 3 years (D) ago.

Answer: 0. C -> was

1. Michael recommended that his son (A) does a (B) twenty-minute workout (C) every morning to (D) stay healthy.

2. (A) Blowing out birthday candles is an ancient test (B) to see if a growing child is (C) enough strong to blow out (D) a greater number each year.

3. For a (A) better memory, I prefer (B) having an (C) early night (D) rather than staying up late.

4. I wonder (A) if you (B) could tell me how (C) do you work this (D) ticket machine.

5. Transplanting organs (A) such as hearts and kidneys (B) has proved (C) more easily than (D) transplanting muscle.

Part 3. For each sentence, supply the correct form of the word provided in brackets. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.5 points)

1. Just ignore such a minor … (SHORT) and you will agree that the heating system is quite efficient.

2. The local hospital is trying to raise funds for… (ADVANTAGE) patients.

3. The… (BREAK) of war has made thousands of people homeless.

4. The movement has actively… (POWER) women and given them confidence in themselves.

5. When Angelica knew that she would be laid off, she began shaking… (CONTROL).

SECTION C – READING (2.5 points)

Part 1. Read the text below and think of the word which best fits each blank. Use only one word in each blank. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.5 points)

BLOGAHOLICS

The word ‘blog’ is short for ‘weblog’ and is a frequently-updated Internet journal that is intended for (1)

                     general public to read. Blogs have become popular (2)                    they give their authors, bloggers, their own voice on the Internet. It’s a place where ordinary people can share interests – whether through a political commentary, a personal diary, (3)                a list of links to favourite websites. Many people use a blog to organise (4)                                    thoughts and ideas, while others may become so ‘famous’ that they attract international audiences of thousands.

Professional as well as amateur journalists often use blogs to publish breaking (5)                                                                     , while personal bloggers may share their everyday concerns and inner thoughts (6)                                                         the rest of the world. (7)

                    , blogging is not only putting your thoughts on the web, but also hearing back from and communicating with like-minded people.

For many people, blogging is just a hobby, but for others, it can become an obsession. Bloggers (8)

                     fall into this group can feel compelled to write several times a day and become anxious if something

(9)                      them from blogging. Some of these people blog at home and at work using their laptops while travelling. As with other addicts, these people spend more and more of their time on their obsessions and end

(10)                      neglecting their families, their friends and their jobs.

Part 2. Read the text below and choose the best answer A, B, C or D for each blank. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.5 points)

CRITICISM

It can take a long time to become successful in your chosen field, (1)                                                    talented you are. One thing you have to be (2)                                                    of is that you will face criticism along the way. The world is full of people who would rather say something negative than positive. If you’ve made up your (3)                                                         to achieve a certain goal, such as writing a novel, don’t let the negative criticism of others prevent you from reaching your target, and let constructive criticism have a positive (4)                      on your work. If someone says you’re totally (5)

                     in talent, ignore them. That’s negative criticism. If, however, someone (6)                you to revise your work and gives you good reasons for doing so, you should consider their suggestions carefully. There are many film stars who were once out of (7)     . There are many famous novelists who made a complete

(8)                      of their first novel – or who didn’t, but had to keep on approaching hundreds of publishers before

they could get it published. Being successful does depend on luck, (9)                                                           a certain extent. But things are more likely to (10)                                                           well if you persevere and stay positive.

Part 3. Read the text below and choose the best answer A, B, C or D for each of the following questions. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.5 points)

Distant Space Travel Better As Family Affair

“Forget the kind of macho astronauts you are used to seeing in films. Space travel to faraway solar systems will probably be a family affair conducted by married couples and their kids,” says US anthropologist, John Moore.

“The family has the kind of natural organisation to deal with the tensions likely to characterise space trips of 200 years or longer to settle remote planets,” says Moore. “We are less likely to go crazy in space and more likely to accomplish our missions by using crews that are organised along family lines.”

“Whenever colonisation is done on Earth, it is always by people looking for a better life. All of the colonisations that I know about have been done by families, especially young couples.”

In the past, astronauts had to be specially trained and physically very fit to survive in very small space capsules, but spacecraft size is no longer a constraint, making it possible to take ordinary people such as midwives, electricians and cleaners. For a space crew that is going to colonise space and reproduce for many generations, these kinds of people will be just as important as space technologists.

Starting with a population of childless married couples also works best on board a spaceship because it will give the initial crew a few years to adjust to their new surroundings without the distraction and responsibility of caring for children. People may be horrified at the idea that children will be living and dying in space, with their only images of Earth coming from pictures and videos. But, says John Moore, parents have always made choices affecting their children’s lives.

“We change jobs, we move to another town, we emigrate to a foreign country. If we educate space kids properly, I think one day they might say, ‘Gosh, I’m sure glad I’m on this spaceship and not back on dirty old Earth.’”

“According to Moore, a starting population of 150 to 180 would best sustain itself at the same rate over six to eight generations. Every person would have the opportunity to be married – with a choice of at least ten possible spouses within three years of their age – and to be a parent.

Ideally, the group should share social and cultural values. ‘Having some people accustomed to monogamy and others to plural marriages would create some confusion when it becomes time for the sons and daughters of the first generation to marry,’ says Moore. ‘Designing morals for people on such a fantastic voyage is problematic because people on Earth would have little influence once the crew is on its own. If the space crew decides on a system of slavery for some and privilege for others, there is little the planners on Earth will be able to do to prevent it.’

Thinking about these issues is not as far-fetched as you might think. Experts predict that such a space mission will take place within the next hundred years.

1. Which of the following would be a good title for this passage?

2. What makes families especially suited to long-distance space travel?

A. They are good at organizing.

3. Why will more ordinary people probably go on space flights in the future?

4. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

5. The article suggests that long-distance space travel .

Part 4. You are going to read the article about the activities organised by different schools for Environmental Awareness Day. Answer the questions by choosing from the schools (A-D). The schools may be chosen MORE THAN ONCE. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.5 points)

A.  Plumpton High School

This school decided to arrange a variety of activities, some aimed at achieving a better understanding of environmental problems, and others designed to be of practical help. For instance, the school magazine brought out a special edition on the subject, full of articles and stories where pupils expressed their feelings about the threats facing our environment. In another attempt to find out for themselves how serious these threats really are, the pupils decided to study the problem of pollution by making a survey, run by the Science Department, into air pollution in the local shopping centre. On the practical side, the school held a sponsored walk and handed over

£750 to the World Wildlife Fund. Pupils prepared a campaign to ban cars from the city centre and reduce traffic congestion. They cycled around the city and handed out brochures about the benefits of cycling and walking. This generated a lot of publicity for the school.

B.  Cresswell College

The staff and students at Cresswell College held a meeting and discussed a number of suggestions. The most popular suggestion turned out to be the most practical one: it was decided that the local environment should be brightened up. Teams were sent out to plant flowers and young trees on areas of land in the neighbourhood. Within the school, the senior students prepared a report monitoring the progress of species threatened with extinction. It was hoped that this would help publicise the problem. As part of that project, a leading expert on wild birds was invited to come and give a talk about the dangers faced by these creatures. He explained the importance of the food chain and asked people to support local wildlife reserves.

C.  Smithson Institute

This school had already been involved in some projects connected with the environment, though naturally efforts were increased for Environmental Awareness Day. For the last two years, the school had been studying the effects of changes in climatic patterns around the world and how these can affect wildlife. A film about those magnificent marine mammals, whales, was shown to the whole school as part of Environmental Awareness Day, which was received with great enthusiasm by pupils. Meredith Summers, architect, was invited to talk about how pollution can destroy historic buildings in the region. Following that, pupils decided to launch a campaign for the restoration of the medieval square in the city centre and asked local authorities to support them financially.

D.  Halliwell Comprehensive

The pupils at this inner-city comprehensive school felt that the best way to mark Environmental Awareness Day would be to help people in the area understand how important the environment is to them. One suggestion that was greeted with enthusiasm was to measure the levels of noise in Stanley Road, a busy local shopping street. The information was then placed on a website that the school had started. In an effort to provide direct assistance to people who are working to save the environment, a jumble sale was held at the school, and £1,000 was donated to the local office of the Wildlife Rescue Service. Finally, the school took pupils to the coastal marshes of Easton- on-Sea. Many pupils reported afterwards that they had never realised how terrible the effects of pollution could be on coastal wildlife.

Which school(s)

1. started a project about endangered species?

2. is located in the centre of the city?

3. became well known after Environmental Awareness Day?

4. provided online information about the environment?

5. asked a specialist to give a talk?

6. asked pupils to write about environmental problems?

7. organised a trip to the coast?

8. is studying changes in general weather conditions?

9. encouraged the use of bicycles?

10. decided to protect a local historical site?

Part 5. You are going to read an article about children who spend too much time at the computer. Choose the most suitable heading from the list A-H for each part (1-5) of the article. There are TWO EXTRA headings which you do not need to use. There is an example at the beginning (0). Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes. (0.5 points)

1. Stop those computers now!

2. The type of child at risk

3. Our children are in danger!

4. When the problem disappears

5. Teachers – watch for the signs!

6. How the habit is broken

7. Parents on the lookout

8. How affected children act

A PRICE TO PAY

Danger when a computer becomes your best friend

0. C

Many of Britain’s children are becoming computer addicts, according to leading education specialists. Such children then lose interest in anything else and become withdrawn and introverted.

1.                     

“These children are unable to relate to friends and family or express their feeling,” says Mrs. Noel Janis-Norton, a specialist at treating problem children and adults. They behave badly at school and at home – and when desperate parents forbid them to use computers, they find ways to use the computers in secret and deceive their parents. The result is that they often fail school tests and lose friends. But they do not care. The computer has become their best – and sometimes their only – friend.

2.                     

Mrs. Janis-Norton says children who have difficulty communicating are hit by this problem. “A child who is energetic and outgoing is unlikely to become a computer addict, although any kind of child can enjoy the computer,” she says. “There’s a very big difference between use and abuse. Often the problem continues into the late teens and sometimes into adult life, where the addict becomes increasingly shut off from reality.”

3.                     

Mrs. Janis-Norton adds: “The situation changes when they have less to be anxious about. Many grow out of it when they leave home. Like any other nervous condition, such as asthma, it hardly exists in the summer holidays.”

4.                     

Tony Miller, one of the teachers’ union spokesmen, says parents should limit the amount of time their children spend at the machines. He adds, “Very young children take to computers like fish to water. It seems to be like the problem of obsessive TV-watching.” One parent was woken at 5 a.m. by a strange bleeping noise. She later discovered it was her addict son at his computer.

5.                     

Mrs. Janis-Norton claims a high success rate with her unique system which involves teaching the parents as well as the child. It is a similar problem to gambling or drug addiction. She says: “With the parents, we examine all the issues which come up in a child’s day – food, bedtime, co-operation, homework, the tone of voice children use when talking to their parents, and sweets. We teach parents how to be in charge of the situation, how to be positive, firm and consistent. We give the child extra lessons in whatever subjects they’re weak in. By slowly getting the children off the machines, and replacing computers with other activities and more confidence, the habit is broken.”

SECTION D – WRITING (2.5 points)

Part 1. Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between THREE AND FIVE WORDS, including the word given. Write your answers in the space provided. There is an example at the beginning (0) (0.5 points)

Example: I really hate it when people speak to me like that. BEING

I really object                                                              like that.

Answer: I really object to being spoken to like that.

1. Jane is so good at speaking French that everyone thinks she comes from Paris. SPEAK

-> So                                that everyone thinks she comes from Paris.

2. People say that the west of the country suffered very badly in the SAID

-> The west of the country                                      very badly in the storm.

3. Regarding the future of the company, the staff members need to undergo more TO

-> When                                                                the future of the company, the staff members need to undergo more training.

4. It isn’t possible for me to take you to the party QUESTION

-> It                                                              to take you to the party tonight.

5. “Do your homework first, and then you can go to the cinema,” said Jim’s LONG

-> Jim’s mother agreed to let him go to the cinema                                                                                                                                       his homework first.

Part 2. Essay writing (2 points)

“Vocational training should be included in the secondary school curriculum.”

Do you agree or disagree with this statement?

Write an essay of about 250 words to express your opinion. Write your essay in the space provided.

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