Tổng điểm bài thi Giám khảo

Số phách
Giám khảo 1 Giám khảo 2 (Do chủ tịch HĐ
Bằng số Bằng chữ chấm thi ghi)
(kí, ghi rõ họ tên) (kí, ghi rõ họ tên)

Lưu ý: Thí sinh làm bài trực tiếp trên tờ giấy thi. Cán bộ coi thi không giải thích gì thêm.
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PART I. LISTENING (50p)
HƯỚNG DẪN PHẦN THI NGHE HIỂU
 Bài nghe gồm 4 phần; mỗi phần được nghe 2 lần, mỗi lần cách nhau 05 giây; mở đầu và kết thúc mỗi
phần nghe có tín hiệu. Thí sinh có 15 giây để đọc mỗi phần câu hỏi.
 Mở đầu và kết thúc bài nghe có tín hiệu nhạc.
 Mọi hướng dẫn cho thí sinh (bằng tiếng Anh) đã có trong bài nghe.
Section 1. You will hear a man asking a woman the information about a family excursion. For questions
from 1 to 7, fill in each gap with NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER. (14p)

FAMILY EXCURSIONS

Cruise on a lake
 Travel on an old (1)______________.
 Can take photos of the mountains that surround the lake
Farm visit

Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4.

5. 6. 7.

Page 1 of 16
Section 2. Listen to the recording and complete each of the following gaps with NO MORE THAN THREE
WORDS AND/ OR A NUMBER (16p)
1. Unlike crowded jets, the Aircruise will allow passengers to travel in___________________
2. The Aircruise can travel at low altitudes if there is something_________________________
3. Hydrogen fuels the airship and also provides __________________ for the people on board.
4. The Hindenburg airship disaster killed____________________________________ people.
5. Scientists are keen to develop transport options which are both ____________________and
environmentally friendly.
6. The luxury features on board include private apartments, a bar and a _________________
7. Compared to airports, the Aircruise has the potential to land closer to_________________
8. The concept is getting a lot of attention from a Korean company which makes_________
Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4.

5. 6. 7. 8.

Section 3. Listen to a teacher giving a lesson on the effects of tourism. For questions 1 – 5, decide whether
the statements are true (T) or false (F). (10p)
1.  According to the teacher, tourism damages the things that tourists come to see.
2.  Most people who visited Goa before 1986 were poor.
3.  Local people welcomed the increase in tourism.
4.  Local people benefit from all-inclusive holiday packages.
5.  The removal of mangrove swamps increases the risk of coastal flooding.
Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Section 4. You will hear a radio interview with a ghost hunter called Carlene Belfort. For questions 1-5,
choose the best answer (A, B, C or D). (10 pts)
1   How did Carlene become a ghost hunter?
A. She wanted to contact her dead grandmother.
B. She grew up in a haunted house.
C. Her parents encouraged her.
D. She was often alone at home at night.
2. Who does Carlene mostly work for?
A. people who want reassurance
B. people who want to contact loved ones
C. people who want to find a ghost
D. people who call him
3. How does Carlene detect when ghosts are present?
A. She feels cold.
B. She gets evidence from her equipment.
C. She feels them touching her hair.
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 D. She sees the ghosts in photos.
4. What does Carlene think about people who don’t believe her?
A. She doesn’t understand why they think that.
B. She thinks they don’t have enough evidence.
C. She wants them to experience it for themselves.
D. She thinks most of them are scientists.
5. What does Carlene feel about her business?
A. She realizes she is taking advantage of customers.
B. She doesn’t think it is a business.
C. She wants to expand and make more money.
D. She feels she is providing a service.
Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

PART II: LEXICO - GRAMMAR (40p)

Section 1. Choose the word or phrase that best fits each blank in the following sentences. (20 p)
1. _______ is imperative in your new job. The director disapproves of being late.
A. Having time B. Keeping time C. Being on time D. Taking time
2. Two students are talking about an upcoming test.
- Mary: “The sociology test seems to be very difficult. I am still not confident about my performance this
Friday. I’ve gone through all the materials, though!”
- Alexis: “_______”
A. You’ve read all the materials, it’s OK for you.
B. I have read all the chapters, but I have not studied the notes from the lectures.
C. That is correct! You are doing really well too, Mary!
D. I do not think that is your problem. It is probably a case of anxiety.
3. _______, the balcony chairs will be ruined in this weather.
A. Left uncovered B. Having left uncovered
C. Leaving uncovered D. Been left uncovered
4. Why do you have such a _______ with model railways?
A. desire B. love C. fascination D. preference
5. Small companies may take their goods abroad for trade shows without paying foreign value-added taxes by
acquiring _______ an ATA carnet.
A. a document calls B. a document called C. calls a document D. called a document.
6. She walked in _______, as if nothing had happened.
A. as cool as a cucumber B. as clear as mud
C. as dead as a doornail D. as dry as a bone
7. Ever since we quarreled in the office, Janice and I have been _______ enemies.
A. assured B. confirmed C. defined D. guaranteed

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8. I can accept criticism in general, but George really _______ it too far, so I had no other option but to show
my disapproval.
A. carried B. pushed C. put D. made
9. One of the organization’s aims is to _______ information about the disease so that more people know about
its symptoms.
A. disentangle B. deride C. dwindle D. disseminate
10. Luckily, I _______ a new pair of sunglasses as I found mine at the bottom of a bag.
A. needn’t have bought B. needed not to buy
C. didn’t need to buy D. hadn’t to buy
11. Take the doctor’s advice into consideration. He’s in _______ earnest about the epidemic.
A. mortally B. fatally C. deadly D. gravely
12. Hotel rooms must be _______ by 10 a.m., but luggage may be left with the porter.
A. vacated B. evacuated C. abandoned D. left
13. Mary: “Do you want to watch this or the news?”
Linda: “Oh, _______. It’s up to you.”
A. I agree B. I couldn’t agree more C. Don’t mention it D. I’m easy
14. It's difficult for a teacher to _______ her students' interest for a whole semester.
A. sustain B. resist C. account for D. recognize
15. This cheese isn’t fit for eating. It’s _______ all over after lying in the bin for so long.
A. rusty B. mouldy C. spoiled D. sour
16. We should all _______ when advertisers attempt to use unfair practices.
A. make a stand B. make a deal C. make amends D. make a comeback
17. Katie O'Donovan, public policy manager at Google UK, said the company had shown its ______ to
protecting children by developing its resources - such as an online safety course which has been taught to
40,000 schoolchildren.
A. commitment B. enthusiasm C. interest D. keenness
18. The realization of our holiday plans has had to be _______ because of my mother’s sudden illness.
A. prevented B. shelved C. expired D. lingered
19. The new situation has _______ a lot of anger and dissatisfaction. Our duty now is to encounter it in the
most sensible way.
A. devised B. established C. originated D. provoked
20. Education should be a universal right and not a _______.
A. deliverance B. enlightenment C. privilege D. liberty
Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

11. 12. 13. 14. 15.

16. 17. 18. 19. 20.

Section 2. Fill each gap with the correct form of the words in brackets. (10 p)
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1. It would be a _______ decision to stop supporting the arts. (RUTH)
2. In the not-too-distant past farm, animals were able to live _______ lives in what we would now term 'free-
range' conditions. (NATURE)
3. Forests from an integral component of the _______ are essential to the stabilization of global climate and
the management of water and land. (SPHERE)
4. Mr. Brown was the _______ at the meeting. (CHAIR)
5. He was _______ of making her acquaintance. (DESIRE)
6. As young women _______, they may perceive sex as an assertion of independence and gender equality.
(CULTURAL)
7. She is very efficient and _______ polite to the customers. (FAIL)
8. She found him arrogant and _______. (DOMINATE)
9. An anonymous _______ donated $2 million. (BENEFIT)
10. _______ of course, I’m much better off than I used to be. (MONEY)
Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Section 3. The passage below contains TEN mistakes. Identify the mistakes and provide the corrections in
the spaces below. (10 p)

Line

1 One of the most amazing marathon races in the world is the Marathon of the Sands. It takes places every
2 April in the Sahara Desert in the south of Morocco, a part of the world when temperatures can reach
3 fifty degrees centigrade. The standard length of the marathon is 42.5 kilometers but this one is 240
4 kilometers long and spends seven days to complete. It began in 1986 and now attracts about two
5 hundred runners, the majority of their ages range from seventeen to forty-seven. About half of them
6 come from France and the rest to all over the world. From Britain, it costs 2,500 pounds to enter, this
7 includes return air fares. The race is rapidly getting more and more popular despite, and perhaps because
8 of, the harsh conditions that runners must endure. They have to carry food and something else they need
9 for seven days in a rucksack weighing no more than twelve kilograms. In addition to this, they are given
10 a liter and a half of water every ten kilometers. Incredibly, near all the runners finish the course. One
11 man, Ibrahim EI Joual, took part in every race from 1986 to 2004. Runners do suffer terrible physical
12 hardships. Sometimes they lose toenails and skin peels on their foot. However, doctors are always on
13 hand to deal with minor injuries and to make sure that runners do not push themselves too far.
14
15

Write your answers here:

Line Mistakes  Corrections Line Mistakes  Corrections

1. 6.

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 2. 7.

3. 8.

4. 9.

5. 10.

PART III. READING (50p)

Section 1. Read the following passage and decide which answer (A, B, C, or D) best fits each gap. Write
your answer in corresponding numbered boxes. (10 p)
As time (1) ________, the power of newspapers seems to be on the increase. This is odd because in
the relatively (2) ________ past people were predicting that the influence of the written word would diminish
in direct proportion to the rate of increase of the spoken word and moving image through TV and video. The
Internet, cable and satellite television, Tele text and multi-media computers in (3) ________ other home
should surely have (4) ________for newspapers by now, particularly alongside a perceptible resurgence in the
audiences for news-carrying radio stations. How have these organs survived, let alone flourished, particularly
on a Sunday? Why do people who have seen a football or tennis (5) ________live or on the small screen rush
the next day to read a potted version of it in four or five columns which surely cannot mean more to the reader
than that self-same viewer of the previous afternoon or evening? Why would anyone who has seen a film and
formed a (6) ________ impression of it the following day read a review of the aforesaid film in a newspaper?
To see if he/ she is right? Isn’t that what friends are for? Don’t we have colleagues for just that purpose – to
see if our ideas on any (7) ________ song, film or programme tally with others? What is this product that (8)
________ of not much more than outrageous headlines, wayward comment, subjective editorials and
hyperbolic sports pages still doing in our lives? It seems for the time (9) ________ to be leading a charmed
life. When it finally goes, though, many may come to mourn its (10) _________.
1. A. flies B. passes C. goes D. drags
2. A. latest B. distant C. immediate D. recent
3. A. all B. any C. every D. one
4. A. done B. gone C. stood D. set
5. A. player B. set C. match D. meeting
6. A. direct B. coloured C. bright D. vivid
7. A. given B. taken C. subjected D. written
8. A. comprises B. contains C. consists D. informs
9. A. out B. being C. given D. present
10. A. perishing B. dying C. falling D. passing
Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Section 2. Read the passage and fill in each gap with ONE suitable word. (10 p)
In British English this standard accent is known as R.P. or Received Pronunciation. This coupled with
the sort of English described in grammar books is the accepted (1) _____. Its use, however, is restricted (2)
_____ geographically and socially; it is most (3) _____ used among the middle classes in the south of
England. Its speakers, (4) _____, carry both a geographical and (5) _____ label, as do the speakers of all its
variants, although the more socially mobile someone is the more complex his accent becomes, and so the

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more (6) _____ he is to label. Attitudes towards this vary, from the parents (7) _____ train their children not
to speak with a local (8) _____ so that “they will have a better chance in life”, to the liberal, trendy young
manager who adopts a local accent (9) _____ a form of inverted snobbery. But these stances are extreme, but,
nevertheless, the (10) _____ between language and social status is a potentially explosive subject in British
society.

Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Section 3: Read the following passage and complete the statements that follow by choosing A, B, C or D to
indicate your answer which you think fits best. (10 pts)
[1] Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution is known as one of the most important and controversial scientific
theories ever published. Darwin was an English scientist in the 19th century best known for his book “On the
Origin of Species.” In his book, Darwin postulated different species shared characteristics of common
ancestors, that they branched off from common ancestors as they evolved, and that new traits and
characteristics were a result of natural selection. The theory is based on the assumptions that life developed
from non-life and progressed and evolved in an indirect manner. Therefore, the Theory of Evolution,
while controversial, has shaped and influenced the modern scientific world's thinking on the
development of life itself. Darwin was born February 12, 1809 in England. Although initially entering
into medicine, Darwin chose to pursue his interest in natural science and embarked on a five-year
journey aboard the H.M.S. Beagle, a British sloop belonging to the Royal Navy. Because of his experience
aboard the Beagle, he laid the foundation for his Theory of Evolution while also establishing himself
within the scientific community. Specifically, Darwin's keen observation of the fossils and wildlife he saw
during his time on the Beagle served as the basis for the cornerstone of his theory: natural selection.

[2] Natural selection contributes to the basis of Darwin's Theory of Evolution. One of the core tenets of
Darwin's theory is that more offspring are always produced for a species than can possibly survive. Yet, no
two offspring are perfectly alike. As a result, through random mutation and genetic drift, over time offspring
develop new traits and characteristics. Over time beneficial traits and characteristics that promote
survival will be kept in the gene pool while those that harm survival will be selected against. Therefore, this
natural selection ensures that a species gradually improves itself over an extended duration of time. On
the other hand, as a species continues to 'improve' itself, it branches out to create entirely new species that are
no longer capable of reproducing together.

[3] Through natural selection, organisms could branch off of each other and evolve to the point where they no
longer belong to the same species. Consequently, simple organisms evolve into more complex and different
organisms as species break away from one another. Natural selection parallels selective breeding employed
by humans on domesticated animals for centuries. Namely, horse breeders will ensure that horses with
particular characteristics, such as speed and endurance, are allowed to produce offspring while horses that
do not share those above-average traits will not. Therefore, over several generations, the new offspring
will already be pre-disposed towards being excellent racing horses.
[4] Darwin's theory is that 'selective breeding' occurs in nature as 'natural selection' is the engine behind
evolution. Thus, the theory provides an excellent basis for understanding how organisms change over time.
Nevertheless, it is just a theory and elusively difficult to prove. One of the major holes in Darwin's theory
revolves around “irreducibly complex systems.” An irreducibly complex system is known as a system where
many different parts must all operate together. As a result, in the absence of one, the system as a
whole collapses. Consequently, as modern technology improves, science can identify these “irreducibly
complex systems” even at microscopic levels. These complex systems, if so inter -reliant, would be resistant
to Darwin's supposition of how evolution occurs. As Darwin himself admitted, “To suppose that the eye with
all its inimitable contrivance for adjusting the focus for different distances, for admitting different amounts of
light, and for the correction of spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural
selection, seems, I free confess, absurd in the highest degree".
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[5] In conclusion, “On the Origin of Species” is known as one of the most consequential books ever
published. Darwin's Theory of Evolution remains, to this day, a lightning rod for controversy. The
theory can be observed repeatedly, but never proven, and there are a plethora of instances that cast doubt on
the processes of natural selection and evolution. Darwin's conclusions were a result of keen observation
and training as a naturalist. Despite the controversy that swirls around his theory, Darwin remains one of the
most influential scientists and naturalists ever born due to his Theory of Evolution.
Questions:
1. The word 'postulated' in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to…
A. disagreed B. proved C. opposed D. hypothesized
2. Which sentence is most similar to the following sentence from paragraph 1?
The theory is based on the assumptions that life developed from non-life and progressed and
evolved in an indirect manner.
A. The Theory of Evolution is founded on evidence that non-organic compounds are the basis of life,
developed in an unguided way.
B. Based on certain assumptions, we can prove that evolution occurs in all living and non-living entities.
C. According to Darwin, if we assume that life at its origin was created from nonorganic compounds and
developed in an unguided manner, his theory holds true.
D. Due to the controversy, it is hard to make assumptions about the Theory of Evolution.
3. According to paragraph 2, what are the causes for species developing new traits and characteristics?
A. medicine and longevity B. survival and selection
C. mutation and genetic drift D. tenets and theory
4. According to paragraph 3, what is natural selection most comparable to as a process?
A. branching trees B. selective breeding
C. irreducibly complex systems D. the human eye
5. What is the purpose of paragraph 3 in the passage?
A. To show the simple-to-complex nature of natural selection in context
B. To create doubt as to the validity of the theory
C. To contrast with the ideas presented in paragraph 2
D. To segue into the main point presented in paragraph 4
6. The word 'contrivance' in paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to:
A. organization B. retention C. absurdity D. systems
7. All of the following are mentioned in paragraph 4 as a viewpoint to state that natural selection is
difficult to prove EXCEPT …
A. The belief that the complexity of the human eye could have been formed by natural selection seems
highly unlikely.
B. The presence of irreducibly complex system contradicts how evolution occurs.
C. Modern technology has been used to prove that irreducibly complex systems exists.
D. Selective breeding is the major hole in the theory of natural selection.
8. Examine the four [█] in the selection below and indicate at which block the following sentence could be
inserted into the passage:
The five-year voyage proved to be a major turning point in his life.
█ [A] Darwin was born February 12, 1809 in England. █ [B] Although initially entering into medicine,
Darwin chose to pursue his interest in natural science and embarked on a five-year journey aboard the H.M.S.
Beagle, a British sloop belonging to the Royal Navy █ [C] Because of his experience aboard the Beagle, he

Page 8 of 16
laid the foundation for his Theory of Evolution while also establishing himself within the scientific
community. █ [D]
A. [A] B. [B] C. [C] D. [D]
9. In paragraph 4, what was the author's purpose of including a quote that the belief that the complexity of
the human eye could have been formed by natural selection seems highly unlikely?
A. To provide evidence that irreducibly complex systems exists
B. To prove that the natural selection contradicts the basis of Darwin's Theory of Evolution
C. To support that the natural selection contributes to the basis of Darwin's Theory of Evolution
D. To support the claim that natural selection is just a theory and difficult to prove
10. These sentences express the most important ideas in the passage EXCEPT…
A. Natural selection explains how species change gradually over time.
B. The Theory of Evolution describes how species 'branch out' from a common ancestor.
C. Creationists strongly object to the premise of the Theory of Evolution
D. Both Darwin and “On the Origin of Species” are among the most influential things to happen to
naturalist science.
Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Section 4. Read the following passage and do the tasks that follow. (20p)
Flying tortoises
An airborne reintroduction programme has helped conservationists take significant steps to protect the
endangered Galapagos tortoise.
A
Forests of spiny cacti cover much of the uneven lava plains that separate the interior of the Galapagos island
of Isabela from the Pacific Ocean. With its five distinct volcanoes, the island resembles a lunar landscape.
Only the thick vegetation at the skirt of the often cloud-covered peak of Sierra Negra offers respite from the
barren terrain below.
This inhospitable environment is home to the giant Galapagos tortoise. Some time after the Galapagos’s birth,
around five million years ago, the islands were colonised by one or more tortoises from mainland South
America. As these ancestral tortoises settled on the individual islands, the different populations adapted to
their unique environments, giving rise to at least 14 different subspecies. Island life agreed with them. In the
absence of significant predators, they grew to become the largest and longest-living tortoises on the planet,
weighing more than 400 kilograms, occasionally exceeding 1.8 metres in length and living for more than a
century.
B
Before human arrival, the archipelago's tortoises numbered in the hundreds of thousands. From the 17th
century onwards, pirates took a few on board for food, but the arrival of whaling ships in the 1790s saw this
exploitation grow exponentially. Relatively immobile and capable of surviving for months without food or
water, the tortoises were taken on board these ships to act as food supplies during long ocean passages.
Sometimes, their bodies were processed into high- grade oil.
In total, an estimated 200,000 animals were taken from the archipelago before the 20th century. This historical
exploitation was then exacerbated when settlers came to the islands. They hunted the tortoises and destroyed
their habitat to clear land for agriculture. They also introduced alien species - ranging from cattle, pigs, goats,
rats and dogs to plants and ants - that either prey on the eggs and young tortoises or damage or destroy their
habitat.
C
Today, only 11 of the original subspecies survive and of these, several are highly endangered. In 1989, work
began on a tortoise-breeding centre just outside the town of Puerto Villamil on Isabela, dedicated to protecting
the island’s tortoise populations. The centre’s captive-breeding programme proved to be extremely successful,
and it eventually had to deal with an overpopulation problem.
D

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The problem was also a pressing one. Captive-bred tortoises can’t be reintroduced into the wild until they’re
at least five years old and weigh at least 4,5 kilograms, at which point their size and weight - and their
hardened shells - are sufficient to protect them from predators. But if people wait too long after that point, the
tortoises eventually become too large to transport.
E
For years, repatriation efforts were carried out in small numbers, with the tortoises carried on the backs of
men over weeks of long, treacherous hikes along narrow trails. But in November 2010, the environmentalist
and Galapagos National Park liaison officer Godfrey Merlin, a visiting private motor yacht captain and a
helicopter pilot gathered around a table in a small cafe in Puerto Ayora on the island of Santa Cruz to work
out more ambitious reintroduction. The aim was to use a helicopter to move 300 of the breeding centre’s
tortoises to various locations close to Sierra Negra.
F
This unprecedented effort was made possible by the owners of the 67-metre yacht White Cloud, who provided
the Galapagos National Park with free use of their helicopter and its experienced pilot, as well as the logistical
support of the yacht, its captain and crew. Originally an air ambulance, the yacht’s helicopter has a rear double
door and a large internal space that’s well suited for cargo, so a custom crate was designed to hold up to 33
tortoises with a total weight of about 150 kilograms. This weight, together with that of the fuel, pilot and four
crew, approached the helicopter’s maximum payload, and there were times when it was clearly right on the
edge of the helicopter’s capabilities. During a period of three days, a group of volunteers from the breeding
centre worked around the clock to prepare the young tortoises for transport. Meanwhile, park wardens,
dropped off ahead of time in remote locations, cleared landing sites within the thick brush, cacti and lava
rocks.

G
Upon their release, the juvenile tortoises quickly spread out over their ancestral territory, investigating their
new surroundings and feeding on the vegetation. Eventually, one tiny tortoise came across a fully grown giant
who had been lumbering around the island for around a hundred years. The two stood side by side, a powerful
symbol of the regeneration of an ancient species.

For questions 1 – 5, choose correct heading for sections B – F from the list of headings below.

List of Headings

i The importance of getting the timing right

ii Young meets old

Developments to the disadvantage of tortoise

iii
populations

iv Planning a bigger idea

v Tortoises populate the islands

vi Carrying out a carefully prepared operation

vii Looking for a home for the islands’ tortoises

viii The start of the conservation project

Example: Section A: v
1. Section B ___________ 2. Section C ___________
3. Section D ___________ 4. Section E ___________

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 5. Section F ___________
For questions 6 –10, fill in each blank with ONE WORD from the passage.
The decline of the Galapagos tortoise

• Originally from mainland South America

• Numbers on Galapagos islands increased, due to lack of predators

• 17th century: small numbers taken onto ships used by (6.) _________________

• 1790s: very large numbers taken onto whaling ships, kept for food and also used to produce (7.)
_______________

• Hunted by (8.) ___________________ on islands

• Habitat destruction: for the establishment of agriculture and by various (9.) ____________
not native to the islands, which also fed on baby tortoises and tortoises (10.) ______________.

Write your answers here:

6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Section 5. Read the following passage and choose from people A-D. The people may be chosen more than
once. (10p)
A
Sundance by Teresa Wilson
Kerry:
I really don't know why this book is so popular. I mean, I suppose it is going to appeal to young girls who
want danger and romance, but I found this book really tedious. For a start, the characters were really
unconvincing. The author went out of her way to add lots of details about the characters, but I found these
details really pointless. I thought that some of the facts she presented about the main characters would become
significant in some way later in the novel, but they didn't. They were just worthless bits of information. I also
was disappointed that, although this book is meant to be about kids at high school, the writer seems to have no
recollection at all about what it's like to be 17. The main character thought and acted like a 32-year old. It just
wasn't believable. I'm not saying Teresa Wilson is a bad writer. She can obviously string words together and
come up with a story that is appealing to a large number of people, but she lacks anything original. There is no
flair. It just uses the same sort of language as you can see in many other mediocre novels.
B
Wild Ways by Margery Emerson
Liz:
I have to say that I won't forget this book for a long time. I was hooked from the very first chapter. The
devastating story affected me so much that I don't know if I'll ever feel the same again. I was close to tears on
several occasions. I've got images in my brain now that I don't think will ever leave me. It's incredibly well-
researched and, although it is fiction, is based on shocking real-life events. I learned an awful lot about things
that went on that I never knew before. Margaret Emerson has a brilliant way with words and I really felt real
empathy towards the characters, although I was sometimes irritated by the choices they made. However, the
parallel story, the part that is set in the present, is not quite so good. I found myself just flicking through that
part so that I could get back to 1940s Paris.
C
Orchid by Henry Rathbone
Imogen:
This is a delightful novel full of wonderful imagery, a paints a remarkable picture of life in a distant time and
a far-away place. If you're looking to learn about Eastern culture in great detail, then this is probably not the
book for you, as the writer skims over most of the more complicated aspects of the country's etiquette. The
historical aspects are also not covered in much depth. However, I wonder whether this was the writer's
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intention. By doing this, he symbolise the superficiality of the girl's life. She, like the book, is beautiful and
eager to please, but remains too distant from us, the readers, to teach us much. Although I loved the book and
read it in one sitting, the ending was a bit of a disappointment. A story which involves so much turmoil, in a
place where the future is uncertain, should not have a happy-ever-after fairy-tale ending.
D
High Hills by Mary Holland
Hannah:
I read this book for a literature class. I know it's a classic, and I did try to like it, but I just didn't get into it. I
kept persevering, hoping that I'd start to enjoy it, but no such luck. The famous scene out on the moors was
definitely the best bit of the book, but even that I found ridiculous when it is clearly supposed to be
passionate. As I approached the end of the book, I figured there must be some kind of moral to the story,
something that I would learn from the experience of trudging through seven hundred long pages, but there was
nothing worthwhile. I don't know why the literary world sees this book as such a masterpiece. The characters
are portrayed as being intelligent, but they do such stupid things! And as for it being a love story - marrying
someone you don't love and then being abused by them - that doesn't spell love to me.

Which person read a book which...

1. was set in an Oriental country
2. had characters that the reader could sympathise with
3. is well-known and was written a long time ago
4. contained two stories
5. was historically accurate
6. made the reader cry
7. contained insignificant details
8. is written for teenagers
9. is classed as romantic fiction
10. has an attractive but shallow heroine
Write your answers here:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

PART IV: WRITING (50 points)

Section 1: Finish each of the following sentences in such a way that it means the same as the sentence
before it. (10 p)

1. I really enjoy getting thoroughly absorbed in this good book.

I am losing ________________________________________________________________ .

2. He’s partially deaf so he finds it difficult to communicate on the phone.

Were it ____________________________________________________________________.

3. Sally distrusts modern technology strongly.

Sally has ___________________________________________________________________.

4. If the weather is fine, we may go camping at the weekend.

Weather ___________________________________________________________________.

5. “There’s no point in writing it all out in longhand if you can use a typewriter, isn’t there?”
She dissuaded ________________________________________________________________.
Section 2: Rewrite these sentences using the words in CAPITAL. You must not change the given words. (10
p)

1. Do you think we can stew this kind of meat? (LEND)

Do _______________________________________________________________________?
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2. Normally, the money is released within about three months. (COURSE)
In ________________________________________________________________________.

3. We can’t possibly imagine how we are going to afford a new car. (REMOTEST)
We ________________________________________________________________________.

4. That medicine was very effective and I started to feel better immediately. (MAGIC)

That medicine __________________________________________________________.

5. I’m sure Nancy is still presuming that the party starts at nine. (IMPRESSION)

I’m sure _____________________________________________________________.

Section 3: Paragraph writing (30 p)
Recently, there have been an increasing number of school students choosing to take
standardized English examinations like TOEFL, IELTS or TOEIC.
What are the causes of this trend?
Write a paragraph of 200 words to express your viewpoint.
Write your paragraph here:
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--THE END----

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