End-of-year Test

Part A
Grammar and vocabulary

A Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning, using the word given.

Example:
His intention is to finish reading an article this afternoon.
going
He is going to finish reading an article this afternoon.

1 The bag was too heavy for me to carry.

such
It ………………………………… that I couldn’t carry it.

2 We moved here three years ago.

lived
We ………………………………… three years.

3 I regret shouting at the teacher.

shouted
If …………………………………… at the teacher.

4 We would stay with our grandparents during the school holidays.

to
We ………………………………… with our grandparents during the school holidays.

5 People say that there are ghosts in the castle.

said
………………………………… there are ghosts in the castle.

B Choose the correct answer, a, b, c or d to complete the sentences.

6 Bob ……… stolen the money. He would never do a thing like that.
a was
b might
c can’t have
d hadn’t been

7 She asked me ……… I would help with the cooking.

a that
b if
c weather
d to

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8 ……… it isn’t too expensive we want to go to Thailand for our holiday.

a Providing
b Only
c Unless
d As long

9 To lose weight you must stop ……… so much.

a eating
b to eat
c to be eating
d to be eaten

10 ……… we like best are the fried bananas.

a It is what
b Having
c Usually
d What

C Complete the sentences with the correct form of the words in brackets.

Example:
Apparently (apparent) there are a number of unsolved mysteries about the island.

11 You can’t trust Tom because he is so ……… (honest).

12 Joan has found her new job as a social worker very ……… (reward).
13 The pilot managed to make a safe ……… (land).
14 Charles Babbage was a ……… (maths) who became known as the father
of computing.
15 The civil ……… (serve) planned to become a politician one day.

D Choose the correct words from the list a–h to complete the sentences. There are three
extra words you do not need.

16 There is no ……… in her mind about what the truth is.

17 I can’t finish this cereal, it’s too ……… .
18 It’s a(n) ……… that we can’t go on the trip.
19 Do you know what this ……… advertises? I’ve been humming it all day!
20 We need to study its history in more detail to ……… the truth.

a reveal
b jingle
c soggy
d pity
e impact
f deny
g doubt
h slogan

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Part B
Reading, listening and pronunciation

E Reading
Read the article about the media and western civilisation. Choose the correct answer,
a, b, c or d.

Falling for TV
Apparently historians are still arguing about the complex reasons for the fall of ancient
Roman civilisation. By contrast, could it be that the fall of modern western civilisation has
a much simpler explanation? Neil Postman, who taught media studies at New York
University, thinks that it does. He claims that the root of the problem can be summed up
with only two letters: TV.

Postman highlights the sharp contrast between our culture, with the TV at its centre, and
an older typographic culture that had the printed book at its centre. In that older culture, if
people wanted to find out about their world they would have to read, and reading is often
considered an activity that naturally encourages people to think more about the world
they live in. Although, of course, some of the writing was humorous, the culture based on
the printed word was generally thoughtful, serious and rational. It was also a culture that
gave status and fame to highly intelligent people who had read widely and could express
themselves well in writing.

That all changed when TV moved to the centre of culture. To see the effect of TV
consider, for instance, the news, which is supposed to be the serious side of the medium.
For a start, there is the music and the impressive graphics, telling the viewers that the
news is actually another show. Viewers are then given a selection of facts, usually only
those accompanied by images because, according to Postman, TV gives more emphasis
to images than words. The show skips quickly from one item to the next, with little time to
dwell upon each story. As a result, the viewer is encouraged to think less, and just let the
mind go where the sequence of images takes it.

Actually, Postman is not entirely against TV. He says TV is full of junk, but he also says
that ‘The best things on TV are its junk.’ What he disagrees with is the way TV helps to
create a public life in which the activity of thinking carefully about and discussing the
serious issues that society faces looks more and more like an old-fashioned hobby.
Surely Postman is right when he says that if we stop thinking seriously about the ideas
and principles that our society is based on then we really will have fallen a long way.

21 What do we learn about Neil Postman from the article?

a He teaches history.
b He was born in New York.
c He dislikes all TV programmes.
d He is critical of Western culture.

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22 The author mentions the news on TV because …

a it is supposed to be serious.
b it is the most popular programme.
c it doesn’t emphasise images.
d it tells the truth about reality.

23 What is not said about the news on TV in this article?

a It moves quickly from one topic to another.
b Only some events get into the news.
c It sometimes includes music.
d It is a very popular type of programme.

24 According to the article, in the western TV culture …

a no one reads books any longer.
b people are not encouraged to think as much.
c everyone watches too much television.
d people are encouraged to buy more than they need.

25 What opinion does the author of the article have about Neil Postman’s ideas?
a He disagrees entirely with Postman.
b He agrees with at least one main idea.
c He thinks Postman’s ideas about TV are wrong.
d He is not sure that Postman is right.

F Listening
Listen to a woman talking about the problems she had growing up. Choose the correct
answer, a, b or c.

26 What does the speaker say about the time before she was ten years old?
a She didn’t do much sport.
b She was fat.
c She enjoyed big meals.

27 What happened when she was ten?

a She started to dislike herself.
b Her parents split up.
c She left home.

28 What does the speaker say happened at her friend’s house?

a Annette made her do the housework.
b She felt very guilty.
c There were huge arguments.

29 When the speaker started to have health problems …

a she paid no attention to them.
b Annette took her to see a doctor.
c she stopped jogging.

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30 The speaker’s life changed when …

a Annette showed her how much she cared.
b she first got on the weighing scales.
c she became seriously ill.

G Pronunciation
Listen to ten words. Then put them into pairs, so that each pair has the same
vowel sound.

fall
lord
great
four
weigh
brand
wave
how
play
shout
have
taught

0 fall lord
31
32
33
34
35

Part C Writing

Write 200–250 words in answer to one of these questions:

Either:
Your teacher has asked you to write an essay about the movement of people from the
countryside to the big cities. Consider the reasons why people are coming to live in the
city and you should also discuss the problems that it causes and any benefits that
it brings.

or:
A local magazine wants to publish short articles about people’s hopes for the future. The
hopes can be personal or they can be hopes for the family, the community or the wider
society. Describe your hopes and also write about the chances of them becoming reality.

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Part D Speaking

Work in pairs and discuss the future: your future and the future of the society you live in.

You should discuss:

 what you hope to do in the next few years.
 how useful your English skills will be.
 what you would like to be doing in 20 years’ time.
 what changes you think will happen in your society.
 whether society will be better or worse in the future.

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