SAMPLE QUESTIONS

800/3 MUET

MALAYSIAN UNIVERSITY ENGLISH TEST

PAPER 3 READING
(75 minutes)

MAJLIS PEPERIKSAAN MALAYSIA

(MALAYSIAN EXAMINATIONS COUNCIL)

Instructions to candidates:

DO NOT OPEN THIS QUESTION PAPER UNTIL YOU ARE TOLD TO DO SO.

There are 40 questions in this test.

For each question, choose the correct answer.

Indicate your answers on the Multiple – choice Answer Sheet provided.

Answer all the questions.

This question paper consists of 18 printed pages.

© Majlis Peperiksaan Malaysia

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 Part 1

Read three notices about houses for rent.

Answer questions 1 to 4 based on the notices about houses for rent (A to C).

Which house

1. has easy parking?

2. is the closest to shops?

3. is suitable for nature lovers?

4. has no bedroom furniture?

A. Special for University B. New House for Rent @ C. Looking for Female
Students Palm Villa Housemate
• Two storey house for rent (4 • 3-room house. Empty • Single room at RM350
rooms and 3 bathrooms) except for cooker and per month (inclusive of
fridge electricity & water bills)
• Fully-furnished
• Only 5 minutes by car to • Study table, chair,
• No animals allowed
university, clinic, local
• Available: September standing fan, wardrobe,
stores and food courts
onwards single bed, window grill
• Quiet and comfortable with mosquito net,
• Nearby public transport environment (opposite a
washing machine and
• Short walk to banks, large park)
refrigerator
university, and Happy • Safety ensured (door and
Garden shopping mall window grills installed) • Covered garage area for
up to 3 cars
• The rent is only RM300 per
room

N 1 2021 – 800/3

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Part 2

Read an email from a university lecturer.

Answer questions 5 to 9 based on the email.

To: student.mailinglist@university.edu.my
From: hassanabu@university.edu.my
Subject: Research Invitation

Dear students,
We are conducting interviews as part of some research for the university’s computer science
department about how the subject of computer science is seen and experienced by both
students and the public.
As a first-year computer science student, you are in an excellent position to give us
valuable first-hand information about your own position. The interview takes around 30
minutes and is very informal. We are simply trying to capture your thoughts and views on
being a student here in computer science, and learn about your previous use of technology in
education. Your responses to questions will be kept confidential, and each interview will be
given a number code to make sure that your personal information is not shown during the
analysis and in the report.
Your participation will be valuable to our research, and findings could lead to greater
public understanding of computer science and the people involved in the field. As a reward,
you will receive a RM5 voucher on completion of the interview. This voucher can be used to
make purchases at any of the stores in the university, including the bookstore and pharmacy.
It is valid for a month from the date of the interview.
If you are willing to participate, please contact my secretary to suggest a day and time
that suits you within the next month. I'll do my best to be available though I will be holding
seminars and giving lectures at certain times of the day. I will be away for a conference from
the end of the month.
If you have any questions about the research, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
Thank you for your attention, and I hope that you will be willing to contribute to this
valuable study.
Kind regards,
Hassan Abu
Lecturer
Faculty of Computer Science

(Adapted from http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~cfrieze/courses/sample_invitation.pdf)

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5 Hassan sent the email because he is looking for
A suitable people to take part in a project
B students who want to learn more about his work
C people to organise interviews as part of some research

6 Hassan says that the interview is informal so that the students feel
A happy about studying in the computer science department
B confident about what they will be learning
C comfortable about giving their opinions

7 In the research Hassan aims to

A find out something about technology in schools
B learn why the students chose to study at the university
C discover what the ambitions of computer science students are

8 The purpose of the RM5 voucher is to

A prove how important scientific research is to the university
B encourage students to provide information for the research
C allow students to buy materials for use in the research

9 Hassan says that he can interview the students

A only on certain days of the week
B before his departure for an event
C at a time when they are not attending lectures

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Part 3

Read an extract from a novel.

Answer questions 10 to 14 based on the extract.

Tuesday

Going through the forest is my favourite part of the walk. Benji loves it too. Benji’s my dog, by the
way, and I’m Grace. I live on a farm with my parents and take Benji for a walk most days after
school.

While Benji runs ahead, I stop and take a photo of a butterfly. A new Facebook photo? Maybe, but
my friends on there already call me 'Nature Girl', so perhaps not. Suddenly, I hear Benji’s bark.
I look up and see Benji jumping and running round a boy. The boy’s about my age and looks
worried. 'Benji, stop! Come here!' I call and reach into my pocket for the ball. I’m about to apologise
to the boy, but he’s gone, disappeared between the trees.

Wednesday

I’m out with Benji again. It’s cold and rainy today, so we’re going fast. As I’m coming through the
forest, it starts raining hard, so I run. Suddenly, I’m slipping and falling and, before I know it, I’m
lying on my back. Ouch! That hurts.
Then there’s someone there and a voice says,
“Are you all right? That was a bad fall.” I look up and see the boy from yesterday.
“I’m OK, I think,” I say slowly and the boy helps me up. Benji arrives and the boy pats his head.
“I haven’t seen you at school. Do you live near here?” I ask.
“No, I’m from Manchester,” he says. “Listen! I have to go. Are you OK to walk home? Do you need
help?”
“No, I’m fine. Thanks!” I say, as the boy walks away.
“Hey, I’m Grace. What’s your name?” I call, but he’s already gone.

Back home, Mum’s watching the news.

“Hi Grace. Have you heard about this boy, Mark?” she asks. “No, what boy?” I say.
“A boy from Manchester. He’s run away from home. Look! This is his dad.” There’s a man on TV
sitting next to a policeman. He’s crying and looks as if he hasn’t slept for days. Then they show
a photo of the missing boy. I know him. It’s the boy from the forest. He’s Mark. Should I tell Mum?
“Poor man,” says Mum. “I just hope they find his son soon.”

No, I mustn’t say anything. If I tell Mum, the police will come and find Mark. What if he’s run away
for a good reason? I have to talk to him first.

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10 During her walk on Tuesday, Grace felt unsure about whether to
A talk to a stranger she met
B put something on social media
C control the behaviour of her dog

11 Why did the boy speak to Grace on Wednesday?

A He had found her dog.
B She had had an accident.
C They both wanted to get out of the rain.

12 What does Grace’s mum tell her about the boy on the news?
A He had had problems with his father.
B He had recently left his family’s house.
C He had done something against the law.

13 When Grace saw the news on TV, she was

A sure the facts reported were not correct
B upset by the appearance of the man shown
C surprised to recognise the person in the photo

14 What will probably happen next?

A Grace will go looking for the boy.
B Grace will ask her mother for advice.
C Grace will contact the police for information.

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Part 4

Read two reviews about a film.

Answer questions 15 and 16 based on Review 1.

Review 1

This enchanting Hollywood musical will have you purring with pleasure, the film is the follow-up
to Whiplash, Damien Chazelle’s 2014 film about the tough love between a jazz drummer and his
teacher. At the Oscars, Whiplash was nominated for five Academy Awards, winning three – for
best supporting actor, film editing and sound mixing. Success like this can go to a filmmaker’s
head. Or, it can make them anxious or suspicious. But sometimes it warms a director up like the
sun, and the result is as gorgeous a splash of sound and colour as Damien Chazelle’s La La Land.

The film begins with a traffic jam on a Los Angeles freeway. Suddenly, the commuters leap from
their cars and onto their roofs for a daring dance sequence. The song finishes, and everyone climbs
back into the car to resume leaning on the horn. This marks the start of the grand romance between
the two main leads, a boy (Ryan Gosling) in a red sports car and a girl (Emma Stone) in a Prius.

The delay between writing the script and filming allowed Chazelle to get acclaimed stars, Gosling
and Stone, to act in the movie. Stone plays an actress named Mia who works as a barista on the
Warner Bros. premises. Gosling plays a fussy jazz pianist named Sebastian, who owns a piano
stool once sat on by Hoagy Carmichael and wishes one day to open his own jazz joint. “They
always say, ‘Let it die.’ Not on my watch.” The film’s guiding principle is thus laid down.

The plot about how her artistic career competes with his artistic career is an old one, A Star Is
Born for the current generation. In the end, La La Land succeeds because it realises that being a
musical is not enough. It needs a talented group of performers to make it work. What keeps the
film from being just another musical is the same advantage that drove Whiplash to its astonishing
conclusion. There can be no compromise. You can have the fantasy or you can have the reality,
Chazelle suggests, but you cannot, even after a couple of hours of the rarest enchantment, have
both.

(Adapted from http://europe.newsweek.com) !

15 What do we learn about the reviewer’s impression of the movie?

A He felt moved by the love story.
B He was amazed by the opening scene.
C He appreciated the message the film put forward.

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16 How are the contents of this review organised?

A
Information about the filmmaker

Overview of the movie

Information about the

Evaluation of the movie

Details of the cast

B
Information about the filmmaker

Overview of the movie

Information about the

Details of the cast

Evaluation of the movie

C
Overview of the movie
Information about the

Information about the filmmaker

Details of the cast

Evaluation of the movie

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Answer questions 17 and 18 based on Review 2.

Review 2

Hollywood is singing the praises for the hit movie La La Land, which has received 14 Oscar
nominations. One of the nominations is for 32-year-old Damien Chazelle as Best Director. It’s
his second commercial feature and a box-office smash he describes as one he had to make.
“I’d been a movie fan my whole life and have loved everything about music since young.
But ironically, musicals – I was one of the people who got a little uncomfortable when people
break into song,” Chazelle said. That all changed for the young director after he saw the daring
dance sequences in films like An American in Paris and Singin’ in the Rain.
“I think there’s something very unusual about them in a really wonderful and liberating way
that you don’t see as much of in Hollywood anymore,” Chazelle said.
La La Land is a modern romance between a jazz musician played by Ryan Gosling and
an actress played by Emma Stone. Chazelle calls it a love letter to the kind of dreams society
often laughs at.
When asked when he knew he wanted to make movies, Chazelle replies, “I’ve never wanted
to do anything else. I can’t remember ever wanting to do anything else.” When Chazelle was
10 years old, his father was his first cameraman.
“But I was very unhappy with the footage because the camera was never pointed the way it
should be,” Chazelle said. “So, I had to learn how to use the camera myself. And from then on,
that was my camera.”
When he first took La La Land to people out in Hollywood in 2010, Chazelle says, “Interest
was nowhere to be found, to be frank, for quite a while.” So he wrote a screenplay based on his
years studying to be a jazz drummer. The film, Whiplash, which he also directed, would win
three Oscars. And suddenly Hollywood was interested in La La Land.
“It took Whiplash to open the door although it’s a low-budget film,” Chazelle said. It was
a pretty big risk on his second film to want to make a musical, as musicals either work or they
don’t and the film will succeed or fail depending on the actors you have. There’s not a lot
of middle ground. “Yeah, there’s nothing quite as bad as a bad musical,” Chazelle said.

17 Why does the writer include information about Chazelle’s childhood?

A To describe mistakes Chazelle made learning to use a movie camera
B To highlight Chazelle’s passion for the whole idea of making movies
C To show how Chazelle’s father helped him understand how to shoot scenes

18 What do we learn about the making of La La Land?

A Chazelle was aware that it could go seriously wrong.
B Chazelle was anxious that it might fail to be a box-office hit.
C Chazelle was inspired by his own previous experience in life.

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Answer questions 19 and 20 based on Review 1 and Review 2.

19 Which of the following is true of both reviews?

A Both reviews describe La La Land’s storyline in detail.
B Both reviews suggest that La La Land is better made than Whiplash.
C Both reviews mention the importance of Chazelle’s success with Whiplash.

20 The two reviews suggest that a successful musical requires

A a strong cast
B huge investment
C a convincing plot

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Part 5

Read an article about the problems of antibiotic use. Six sentences have been removed from the
article. Choose from the sentences A to G the one which fits each gap (21 to 26). There is one extra
sentence which you do not need to use.

It’s a stunning statistic. Three-fourths of emergency room patients who are given antibiotics for
certain infections don’t actually need them because they don’t have the infection doctors think they
have. That finding, presented at a conference last summer by researchers from the St. John Hospital
and Medical Center in Detroit, is one of several recent reports that say antibiotics are being used far
more than necessary in medicine.
In fact, a third of antibiotic prescriptions written in medical offices are unnecessary, given for
things such as viral infections that antibiotics can’t cure, according to a May report by physicians
from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 21. _____________. The reason why not
is that they’re “broad spectrum”, which means capable of killing many organisms and thus more
likely than infection-specific “narrow spectrum” drugs to stimulate antibiotic resistance.
While a slew of health organisations and national governments are all ringing the alarm about
antibiotic resistance, the excessive prescribing by doctors that fuel its development just keeps
happening. 22. _______________. Since prescriptions are written by physicians, it seems fair to ask:
Why can’t they stop?
“That is the million-dollar question,” says Lauri Hicks, a physician who leads the CDC’s Office
of Antibiotic Stewardship. “This is really about behaviour change, and behaviour change is
notoriously difficult.” 23. _______________. Other CDC researchers just reported that antibiotic use
in U.S. hospitals didn’t change from 2006 to 2012. In fact, use of last-resort antibiotics for those that
need the most protection from resistance went up.
There’s no shortage of information telling doctors about the issue. World Antibiotic Awareness
Week recently highlighted the problem of resistance. 24. _______________. The CDC has been
running its “Get Smart About Antibiotics” programme for much longer, starting back in the 1990s.
Yet inappropriate prescribing has barely budged.
Patients who believe they have an illness go to the doctor expecting a cure. 25. ____________.
When one isn’t given, they feel the visit didn’t go as planned. That realisation turns the medical
encounter around; instead of the doctor being the person with the power, it’s the patient, wielding the
moral suasion of disappointment.
Are there solutions? The CDC backs medical offices putting up posters and “commitment
letters” that emphasise reducing use. 26. ________________. These are not just the remote threat of
antibiotic resistance but also the immediate risk of developing life-threatening infections when
antibiotics kill off bacteria in the gut.
(Adapted from National Geographic, November 2016)

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A The agency is also asking doctors to stress to their patients that antibiotics have various
downsides.
B They imagine that fix will be an antibiotic.
C This situation is somehow out of control and this overuse in the medical profession continues.
D That’s true in doctor’s offices and, according to newer research, seems to be true in most medical
institutions too.
E 700,000 people around the world, therefore, die as a result of it each year.
F Medical and health-care organisations were recruited to make public commitments to solve this
issue.
G The same organisation found that half of the antibiotics prescribed to treat very common
problems, such as sore throats and ear infections, shouldn’t be used.

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Part 6

Read an article on a condition known as hyperlexia.

Answer questions 27 to 33 based on the article.

1 There is a small corner of the mysterious world of autism where children silently sit
and read dictionaries at age two, but do not say their first word until, say, three or
four. Reading is such an obsession that these children may read every license plate
and sign in a parking lot as they walk through it. They can decode and pronounce
words and sentences far beyond the ability of their contemporaries, though they 5
often struggle to comprehend the passages they read.
2 This is the world of hyperlexia, a disorder whose definition is still in dispute
among researchers but which encompasses children with autistic characteristics,
who are also stunningly precocious readers. Like other children on the autistic
spectrum, they have great trouble with social interactions, including difficulty 10
looking others in the eye or understanding the emotional states of others. One
estimate is that they comprise only two in 10 000 in the general population.
3 Researchers are beginning to study these unusual people to learn more about
both autism and reading, hoping to find clues that will help autistic people and those
with dyslexia and other reading disabilities. A study in the journal Neuron is the 15
first to peek inside the brain of a hyperlexic child using functional magnetic
resonance imaging, a way of looking at the brain at work. The researchers suspected
they might find some unusual places being used in the brain of the child, a nine-
year-old boy who learned to read before he could speak. Instead, they found that the
boy for the most part used the same places in the brain that normal and above 20
average readers use. But he used them in a more intense way. The places were in the
left side of the brain, in an area that in other studies appeared underused by children
with dyslexia. Because hyperlexic children can read well despite significant
language delays and because they largely seem to use the same brain wiring
as regular readers - the study suggests that reading can be learned visually, without 25
relying on spoken language.
4 This conclusion bolsters the practice of training dyslexic children to associate
“sounds with visual information.” says Dr. Eden, director of the Center for the
Study of Learning at Georgetown University, in Washington, and senior author of
the study. In such training, dyslexic children are taught to decode writing by tapping 30
out the sounds of a word or using blocks of different colours to represent word
sounds.
5 “I say it with hesitation,” Dr. Eden says, but “it argues that good spoken
language is not crucial to developing good reading skills.” The notion challenges
current dogma that considers the ability to read words on a page to be inseparable 35
from the ability to speak words.
6 Little research has been done on hyperlexic children, in large part because there
is little money available for research into a rare condition that is not life-
threatening. And there is no official diagnosis of hyperlexia. But some researchers
say that studying the disorder makes sense as a way of finding treatments for 40
reading disabilities. “To be great at basketball,” says Daniel Geschwind,
a neurologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, “you don’t study people
who can’t shoot.”

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 7 Typically, hyperlexic children are not diagnosed as classically autistic, but
rather on a different part of the autistic continuum. Most often they are boys, 45
although girls can be hyperlexic too. Like classically autistic children, those with
hyperlexia often have great difficulty fitting in. But their precocious reading skills
provide an avenue for interaction with the world. Often, parents and therapists say,
such children respond to written directions - “stop jumping on the couch,” “ please
use a yellow crayon” - after apparently failing to comprehend spoken instructions. 50
(Adapted from The Herald Tribune, 2004)

27 In paragraph 1, the writer’s main intention is to highlight the

A adult-like behaviour of certain autistic children
B advanced reading abilities of some autistic children
C severe speaking impairments found in autistic children
D connection between the reading and speaking skills of autistic children

28 Which of the following is true of hyperlexia?

A It has a detrimental effect on reading ability.
B It affects a small but growing minority of children.
C Its defining features are not fully agreed on by experts.
D It has less impact on social skills than other forms of autism.

29 The conclusion of the study in the journal Neuron is that

A reading can be learned through visual information
B the ability to read is inseparable from good speaking skills
C hyperlexic children use the brain as intensely as dyslexic children
D hyperlexic children use different places in the brain from regular readers

30 What is the word dogma being used to refer to in line 35?

A Proven facts about the subject
B Mistaken opinions on the subject
C Previous research findings on the subject
D Beliefs about the subject that are generally accepted

31 Why is there limited research on hyperlexia?

A It is difficult to diagnose hyperlexia.
B Research on hyperlexia is very costly.
C Hyperlexia is not a common and serious disorder.
D Hyperlexia is less apparent than other forms of autism.

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32 Daniel Geschwind refers to basketball to support the idea that
A any skill can only be improved through regular practice
B neurological studies can be used to improve sports performance
C understanding successful reading can help in the treatment of reading disorders
D studying physical aspects of autism can advance understanding of speech difficulties

33 The examples of instructions in lines 49 and 50 are used to illustrate the point that hyperlexic
children
A respond best when instructions are repeated
B have trouble interacting with parents and therapists
C need constant direction about appropriate behaviour
D are able to follow instructions delivered in a certain form

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Part 7

Read an article entitled The World's Lungs.

Answer questions 34 to 40 based on the article.

1 The summer dry-season, now drawing to an end, is when the Amazon rainforest
gets cut and burned. The smoke can often be seen from space. But not this year.
Brazil's deforestation rate has dropped astoundingly fast. In 2004 some 2.8 million
hectares of the Amazon were razed; last year only around 750 000 hectares were
affected. This progress is not isolated. Many of the world's biggest clearers of trees 5
have started to hug and save them. Over the past decade, the United Nations (UN)
records, nearly eight million hectares of forest a year were allowed to re-grow or
were planted anew. This was mostly in richer places, such as North America and in
Europe, where rapidly falling rural populations have taken the pressure off
forestland. But a couple of big poorer countries have launched huge tree-planting 10
schemes in a bid to prevent deforestation-related environmental disasters. "Even in
tropical countries, where most deforestation takes place, Brazil is not alone in
becoming more reluctant to chop down trees.”
2 The progress made in recent years shows that mankind is not doomed to strip
the planet of its forest cover. But the transition from tree-chopper to tree-hugger is 15
not happening fast enough. Over the past decade, according to UN figures, around
13 million hectares of forestland - an area the size of England - was converted each
year to other uses, mostly agriculture. If the world is to keep the protective covering
that helps it breathe, waters its crops, keeps it cool and nurtures its biodiversity, it is
going to have to move fast. 20
3 In most rich countries, the pressure on forests has eased; but in many tropical
ones - home to around half the remaining forest, including the planet's green
rainforest girdle - the demand for land is increasing as populations rise. In the
Congo, which has more rainforest than any country except Brazil, the clearance is
mostly driven by smallholders whose number is about to double. Rising global 25
demand for food and biofuels adds even more to the heat. So will climate change.
That may already be happening in Australia, where forests have been devastated by
drought and forest fires.
4 Clearing forest may enrich those who are doing it, but over the long run it
impoverishes the planet as a whole. Rainforests are an important prop to continental 30
water-cycles. Losing the Amazon forest could reduce rainfall across many
countries. By regulating run-offs, trees help guarantee water-supplies and prevent
landslides and floods. Moreover, losing the rainforest would mean losing 80 per
cent of terrestrial biodiversity.
5 "Economic development both causes deforestation and slows it." In the early 35
stages of development, people destroy forests to make a living out of the forest
produce. Globalisation is speeding up the process by boosting the demand for
agricultural goods produced in tropical countries. At the same time, as people in
emerging economies become more prosperous, they start thinking about issues
beyond their family's welfare; their governments begin to pass and slowly enforce 40
laws to conserve the environment. Trade can also allow the greener concerns of
rich-world consumers to influence developing-world producers.

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 6 The transition from clearing to protecting, however, is occurring too slowly. The
main international effort to speed it up is an idea known as Reducing Emissions
from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD), which pays people in 45
developing countries to leave trees standing. This is not an outlandish concept. It is
increasingly common for governments and companies to pay for forest and other
ecosystem services. Half a dozen rich countries, including Norway, America and
Britain, have promised US$4.5 billion for starters.
7 Nevertheless, the difficulties are immense. REDD projects will be effective only 50
in places where the government sort of works. Even in countries with functioning
states, some of the money is bound to be stolen. Yet with sufficient attention to
monitoring and making sure the cash goes to people who can actually protect the
forest, REDD could work. This will cost much more than has so far been promised.
The most obvious source of extra cash is the carbon market, or preferably a carbon 55
tax. Since saving forests is often the cheapest way to tackle carbon emissions,
funding it this way makes sense. However, with global climate-change negotiations
floundering, the prospects of raising cash for REDD even that way look poor. But
the money must be found from somewhere. Without a serious effort to solve this
problem, the planet will lose one of its most valuable, and most beautiful assets. 60
(Adapted from “The World’s Lungs”, The Economist, September 25, 2010)

34 The main idea in paragraph 1 is that

A poorer countries have started tree-planting schemes
B tropical countries are leading the way in reducing deforestation
C countries which used to destroy forest are now more hesitant to do so
D the world is concerned about deforestation-related environmental disasters

35 What does the phrase This progress (line 5) refer to?

A The replanting of forests in Brazil
B The reduction of smoke over the Amazon
C An increase in tree-planting schemes in Brazil
D Less cutting and burning of the Amazon rainforest

36 In paragraph 2, the writer cites UN figures to support the fact that

A the world will gradually lose its forest cover
B man does not destroy the forest unnecessarily
C there has been a significant reduction in deforestation
D mankind is not working quickly enough to conserve forest

37 the heat (line 26) refers to

A forest fires
B climate change
C pressure to cut down forests
D rising global demand for food

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38 In paragraph 5, what is the main point made by the writer?
A Globalisation increases the rate of deforestation.
B Rich countries determine the rate of deforestation.
C Deforestation decreases with a rise in economic status.
D Emerging economies are concerned about forest conservation.

39 The following are obstacles to the success of REDD except

A corruption
B inadequate financial support
C poor implementation of carbon tax
D poor supervision by the governments concerned

40 Which of the following best summarises the text?

A The threat of deforestation has been overstated.
B The needs of agriculture must be our primary concern.
C If significant action is not taken now we will all suffer.
D It is the responsibility of developing economies to conserve resources.

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