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LEVEL 5
PART 1: LISTENING COMPREHENSION

Estimated time needed: 25 minutes

Exercise 1:
You will hear some people talking in eight different situations. For questions 1 – 8, choose the
best answer A, B or C. You will hear the recording twice.

1. You hear a man talking about a film he has seen. What was his reaction to the film?
A. He was disappointed.
B. He thought it was excellent.
C. He hated the whole thing.

2. You hear a young man talking about a rock concert he saw. What happened?
A. The police arrested all the fans.
B. The band played well.
C. Rain stopped the performance.

3. You hear a woman talking to another person. What is she talking about?
A. Her car.
B. Her bicycle.
C. Her hair.

4. You overhear an old man talking about the time he spent in Paris. What was he doing
there?
A. He was designing buildings.
B. He was on holiday.
C. He was at university.

5. You overhear a couple having an argument. What are they arguing about?
A. Their neighbour.
B. Their lodger.
C. Their dog.

6. You hear a man talking about his job. What does he do?
A. He is a computer programmer.
B. He is a painter and decorator.
C. He is a van driver.

7. Listen to two people talking. Where have they just returned from?
A. A party.
B. A meeting.
C. A sports event.

8. You hear a writer talking about books. What is she worried about?
A. The selection of books available.
B. The amount of TV that people are watching.
C. The number of books that people are reading.
Exercise2:

You are going to listen to a professor giving a lecture about acid rain and its effects on the
environment. Complete the missing information in each sentence. Use one / two word(s). You
will hear the recording twice.

 Acid rain is mostly found in 9. ____________________________________________ and

10. ________________________________
 Harmful 11. _________________________ are released into the air and mix with the water
in clouds to produce acid rain.
 Acid rain causes great damage to the plants and animal life in 12. ______________________
and 13. ____________________________
 Acid rain can slowly eat away the 14. __________________________ on the outside walls of
buildings.
 Governments are forcing power stations to 15. _________________________ the amounts of
poisonous fumes that they release into the 16. _________________________.
 We can help by using less 17. ______________________________________.
 If we used 18. _____________________________________ more often, the atmosphere
wouldn’t become so 19. __________________________________ by car exhaust fumes.
 If we make an effort, we can help to decrease the 20. _____________________________
of acid rain.
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LEVEL 5

PART 2: READING COMPREHENSION

Estimated time needed: 40 minutes

Exercise 1:
Read the passage and choose the answers you think fit best according to the text.

WILD STORIES

A staple of newspapers everywhere are those stories that run under the "Man Bites Dog" headline.
From France comes the story of an attack on an old man near Calais carried out by a swarm of
bees. The scenario might have pleased Hitchcock. The victim was sunning himself in his garden
at the time. The firemen were called but were driven back into their van by the ferocity of the
insects. After 45 minutes someone arrived with protective clothing and insecticide. By then the
man sitting in the deck chair was dead, covered in hundreds of stings, most of them on his eyelids.

The French liked the story from London about grafting a pig's kidneys on to a human patient.
They went for the animal rights angle. They liked the idea of putting a security ring round the
hospital to repel people who are intent on rescuing the pig from dismemberment. From London,
too, came the story of the brown paper parcel in London's main parcel sorting office, a parcel
which moved. Packages do not normally move very quickly through the post office at the best of
times, but this one was definitely frisky. A lady customs officer was summoned to X-ray the
package. The X-ray revealed a poisonous reptile called a gila monster wrapped in a sock. The
subsequent police trail led to a salesman in Hampshire whose back bedroom was filled with
rattlesnakes, lethal lizards, snapping turtles and a python, most of which he had sent himself
through the post.

An animal story which made the British papers a couple of years ago was the report that staff at
Stockholm's Skansen Park zoo had raffled the remains of a favourite bear cub, and that the
winners had taken home a joint for the pot. "How could they? How can staff give a cub a name,
look after her for a year or two, and then end up sneaking her on to the dinner table," asked Malin
Bergman, 15, winner of a national competition to pick a name for the cub, called Molly. A
Swedish newspaper columnist said she had been swamped with calls from readers in tears. She
said: "It sounds bizarre to eat up an animal that has been given a name and a national identity.
Dog meat is popular in China and Korea, but people there don't eat Oscar the family chow." The
superintendent of the zoo was quoted as saying that while people did not like to see "teddy bears"
eaten, "it's worse to destroy meat in a world that hungers."

The whole business of eating dog could be the answer to a crisis in Britain's cities. The country is
suffering from half a million stray dogs. 1,000 are destroyed every day. In one small town alone,
£100,000 is spent each year catching stray dogs. Terry Singh, the local dog-catcher, admits
grimly: "We are chasing our tails. In a town of half a million people, we have 50,000 stray dogs."
In Britain, seven million dogs bite a quarter of a million people a year, at a cost of six million for
casualty treatment. They attack 10,000 farm animals, cause 50,000 road accidents, and require
three million to be spent on kennelling and destruction.
Mr Singh says: "In my first year we had 775 complaints. That was 10 years ago. Our recent
figures show we are dealing with six thousand dogs a year. Everywhere you look in the town, on
any patch of grass or street corner, you will see at least one stray dog. We even get packs of dogs
loose on housing estates. Dog attacks have increased. The craze of the moment is for owning
Rottweilers and Dobermans." The city has two main dog kennels run by the RSPCA. At one, two
and a half thousand dogs are destroyed every year, put down with an injection of Pentobarbitone.

Considering what has been going on down at the farm, it may be safer to eat British dog rather
than British beef. It appears that British farmers have been feeding their cattle on processed
artificial food which includes sheep carcasses infected with a brain disease called scrapie. This
practice was banned in 1988, but it appears that the disease has already been transmitted to British
cattle. The big question has been, if the disease can be transmitted from sheep to cattle, surely it
follows that it can be transmitted from cattle to people.

The infection appears to be present in the immune system and in the brain and nervous system.
Evidence shows that there is a link between brain disease and the eating of sheep's heads in the
Middle East. In one instance, there is a high incidence of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a
degenerative disease of the brain, among Libyan Jews, who eat sheep's eyes. According to one
researcher: "Steak has very little nervous tissue in it, and it is very unlikely to pass on disease. But
nothing would induce me to eat other parts of the animal." So it's goodbye to cervelle au beurre
noisette and amourettes a la Tosca. Life gets duller all the time.

1. Which title best sums up the stories in the passage?

A. Life on the Farm

B. How to be a Journalist
C. Stranger than Fiction
D. Selling Newspapers

2. Which adjective best describes this type of newspaper story?

A. Untrue
B. Expected
C. Standard
D. Important

3. The incident of the man killed by bees might have ___

A. made a good horror movie.

B. been caused by pollution.
C. happened because the insects were poisoned.
D. occurred because of a new type of bee.
4. The British post office parcel delivery service is ___

A. cautious.
B. dangerous.
C. efficient.
D. slow.

5. Zoo staff took home pieces of the bear cub ___

A. by gambling for it.

B. according to their seniority.
C. by bidding at auction.
D. according to the size of their families.

6. According to Mr Singh, trying to catch stray dogs is ___

A. an expensive operation.
B. a difficult job.
C. important to the town.
D. an endless task.

7. Attacks by dogs on humans have increased because ___

A. there are more dogs around.

B. there is a fashion for owning bigger dogs.
C. the dogs are hungry.
D. the dogs roam in packs.

8. Meat is safe if you ___

A. wash it thoroughly.
B. don't freeze it.
C. cook it until it is overdone.
D. stick to eating steak.

9. It seems that the disease can be transmitted to humans because ___

A. it has travelled from sheep to cattle.

B. people who eat sheep's eyes get it.
C. people eating sheep get it.
D. it is in the brain.
Exercise 2:
You are going to read some geographical information about different English-speaking
countries. For questions 10 to 20, choose the country (A, B or C).

A JOURNEY
THROUGH THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING WORLD

A). Ireland
Land: The Republic of Ireland takes up about 83% of the island of Ireland, which is located in
north-western Europe. Ireland is a small country with an area of just 70.285 km2. Although there
are high mountains near the coasts, the central part of Ireland is flatter and used for farmland.
Climate: Most of Ireland is mild and wet throughout
the year, giving Ireland its green countryside and
earning it the name The Emerald Isle.
People: Dublin is both the capital and the largest city.
However, only about 57% of the Irish people today
live in urban areas. The first Irish people probably
came from Scandinavia to Scotland and then to
Ireland about 8,000 years ago. Since then, Ireland has
been invaded and colonized by Celts, Vikings, English and Scots. Today, most of Ireland’s
3,590,000 population are of Celtic origin. It was the Celts who first introduced the language we
know today as Irish, which is one of the country’s official languages. English is the other official
language.
B). New Zealand
Land: Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, New Zealand is a small country of about 270,543
km2. It is made up of two main islands, the North Island and the South Island, as well as a
number of smaller islands. The North Island is famous for its volcanoes and many hot springs as
well as its many forests, hills and mountains. The South Island has
many high, snow-capped mountains.
Climate: Most of the country is mild and rainy throughout the year,
with the South Island much cooler than the North.
People: Although Wellington is the capital city, it is not the largest.
About one third of New Zealand’s population lives in Auckland,
the largest city in New Zealand. Today, only about 15% of all New
Zealanders live in rural areas. Most of New Zealand’s 3,683,000 population are descendants of
British settlers. There are also increasing numbers of people of Asian and Pacific island descent
living in New Zealand. About 526,000 Maoris also live in New Zealand. Their ancestors came
from the Polynesian Islands about 1,000 years ago. Today, the official language of New Zealand
is English, although many Maoris speak their own language, Maori, as well.
C). Canada
Land: Canada, with an area of 9,970,610 km2, is the second largest country in the world, spread
across the top of North America. Canada is perhaps best known for its vast size, and variety of
natural wilderness areas. The high mountains in the west of Canada are covered with green
forests and crystal clear lakes, while in the centre are flat lands known as prairies. Further south,
there are rolling hills.
Climate: The climate ranges from temperate in the south to artic in
the north. In fact, the far north artic landscape is so cold that trees
cannot grow there. In the north the winters are cold and summers are
short and quite cool, whereas in the south the winters are cold, and
the summers are warm. It is wet on the coasts and dry in the centre.
People: Ottawa is the capital, but Toronto is the largest city, with a
population of over 4 million. More than one third of Canada’s
population of 29,450,000 are the descendants of British immigrants and there are almost as many
descendants of French immigrants. This is why both English and French are the official
languages of Canada. Other large immigrant groups include German, Italian and Asian people.
Native American Indians and Inuit make up only a small part of Canada’s population.
 Which country(ies) …

10. is smaller than only one country? ________

11. 12. are islands? ________ ________
13. has one official language? ________
14. 15. have a constant climate throughout the year? ________ ________
16. has an area where there are no trees? ________
17. 18. are made up of many different cultural groups? ________ ________
19. 20. have a population of about three million? ________ ________

* (When you have to give two answers, the order is not important).
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LEVEL 5

PART 3: USE OF ENGLISH

Estimated time needed: 40 minutes

Exercise 1:

Read the text and complete the gaps with the word which best fits each space.

The Low-Down on Low-Fat Labelling

When you walk around a supermarket 0) __these ____ days you

can easily be dazzled 1) ______________ all the food labels
claiming to be “fat-free” or “light”, but are these foods as healthy
2) ______________ they claim to be? Unfortunately, when you
look more closely, 3) ______________ becomes clear that they are
not. For example, a product that claims to be 80% fat free is simply
a product that contains 20% fat, actually quite a high fat content.
The same goes for so-called light foods. Products 4) ______________ as sausages and
mayonnaise that are naturally high 5) ______________ fat can be labelled “light” even if their fat
content is only slightly reduced. Another problem is that “low in fat” 6) ______________
sometimes also mean low in taste. So, to make up for this, some manufacturers add a lot 7)
______________ salt and sugar to their low-fat products than is needed. This makes them as bad
as, if not worse, the full fat equivalent. In the UK, the government is preparing guidelines that
would strictly control 8) ____________ use of phrases like “low fat” and “light” on food
packaging, but until these come 9) ______________effect don’t believe everything you read on
the label. If something looks 10) ______________ good to be true, it probably is.
Exercise 2:

Read the following newspaper article and circle the correct verb form (11 to 20).

Six-Foot Python Slithers Out Of Apartment Toilet

Friday June 20, 2008
CityNews.ca Staff

It's everyone's nightmare, a story that 11. ____ on almost apocryphal proportions - the
thought of a large snake slithering its way up into someone's home through their toilet. Yet
it actually 12. ____ in Darwin, Australia this week, after a six-foot long python made its
presence known on the 10th floor of an apartment complex in the northwestern part of the
city.

Experts 13. ____ the serpent was somebody's pet and they either didn't want it anymore or
it somehow got away from the owner and 14. ____ a convenient escape route. Either way, it
had apparently been travelling through the pipes for some time before it came up in the
bathroom of a very startled tenant.

The creature 15. ____ to reptile catcher Chris Peberdy, who told a local newspaper even he
was surprised by its appearance. "When I saw it I was pretty shocked," he 16. ____. "There
is no possible other way it 17. ____ there than through the toilet. I had to give him a wash
because he was wet and a bit smelly."

Meanwhile, thousand of kilometres away, a woman in Londonderry, New Hampshire got

the scare of her life when she reached into her outdoor mailbox, pulled out some letters and
discovered her own slithering surprise inside.

A corn snake 18. ____ amongst the bills and the ads, although it 19. ____ anyone mailed it to
her. Experts think the non-venomous beast was simply looking for a place to nest or rest
and the cool mailbox was the perfect solution.

No one 20. ____ in either case, although some people in that Aussie apartment may want to
have a second look before they take care of business in the bathroom.

11. A. had taken B. has taken C. has been taken

12. A. happened B. was happened C. has happened
13. A. think B. are thought C. will be thinking
14. A. had been found B. was found C. found
15. A. had been given over B. was given over C. gave over
16. A. admits B. admit C. is admitted
17. A. can’t have got B. must have got C. could have got
18. A. was sitting B. sat C. had been sitting
19. A. won’t appear B. doesn’t appear C. hasn’t been appeared
20. A. was being hurt B. had been hurt C. was hurt
Exercise 3:

For questions 21 to 30 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 and you must use between two and
five words, including the word given.

21. She didn’t study enough so she failed the test. HAVE
She ________________________________ the test if she had studied enough.

22. I wish he hadn’t misbehaved in class. RATHER

I _________________________________________ misbehaved in class.

23. He’s tired of Ann’s lies. FED

He _______________________________________ lies.

24. He was the only one who didn’t call. APART

Everyone __________________________________ him.

25. The book he is working on will be finished by the end of next month. HAVE
He _______________________________________ book by the end of next month.

26. The cupboards are practically empty. HARDLY

There _____________________________________ in the cupboards.

27. That’s the garage where they fixed Ann’s car. HAD
Ann ______________________________________ at that garage.

28. There are only a few strawberries left. MANY

There _____________________________________ left.

29. “Why don’t we go to the park?” Tony said. SUGGESTED

Tony _________________________________________ to the park.

30. It is thought that the company is expanding rapidly. BE

The company __________________________________ rapidly.
Exercise 4:

Fill in the gaps with words derived from the words in brackets.

The 2008 Paralympics, held in Beijing, China, were a 31) ____________________ (demonstrate)
of the best aspects of sporting 32) ____________________(compete). The games showed the
world that, with enough spiritual 33) ____________________ (strong) and 34)
____________________ (determine), even the most severely 35) ____________________
(disable) people can do 36) ____________________ (amaze) things in the field of sport. From
very humble 37) ____________________ (begin), the Paralympics have steadily gained 38)
____________________ (popular) and are now among the major sporting events in the world.
These games are an 39) ____________________ (inspire) to people (40) ____________________
(world), and are proof that people can reach their goals if they have faith in themselves and refuse
to be defeated.
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LEVEL 5

PART 4: WRITING
Estimated time needed: 60 minutes

Exercise 1:

* You are a teacher taking a group of students on a school trip. You have had a telephone
conversation with the centre where you plan to stay. Now the Activity Leader has sent you an e-
mail asking you to confirm the details you discussed on the phone. Read the e-mail and the notes
you made carefully.
* Then, write a letter in response. * Write about 100 words. Use an appropriate style.

Hawthorn Park Residential

Activity Centre
FROM: Joe Benson, (Activity Leader)
TO: Kate Peterson
RE: Trip details
Dear Kate,

Regarding our recent telephone conversation, I’d like

you to confirm a few details in writing so that we can
move ahead with the arrangements for your school trip.
 The dates of your stay. At: 12.45
6th – 16th Sept  The proposed time of arrival / means of travel. By: bus
 Size of party / number of rooms required.
 Any questions? 1. What sports
2 teachers I look forward to hearing from you in the near future. facilities do they
16 students Yours truly, have?
5 rooms Joe Benson 2. Can we arrange
a visit from a local
historian?

_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
Exercise 2:

Choose one of the following topics A or B and write about 100 words.

A. You have been asked to write an article for a monthly news magazine giving your opinion
on the topic: “Schools should provide computers for students to use for all the subjects”.
Use an appropriate style.

B. You have decided to enter a short story competition. You should write a composition
finishing with the words “After ten years of effort, he finally got what he had always
wanted.”

___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
 SPEAKING

1. CONVERSATION

Interlocutor and Student A / B

 Greetings and introductions.

 What are your interests and leisure activities?
 If you had an opportunity to learn something new, what would you choose?
 Are you someone who likes to plan for the future or do you prefer to let things
happen?
 Which part of your country would you recommend to tourists? Why?
 Do you think computers will replace newspapers and TV in the future?
 What kinds of holiday appeal to you most? Why?
2. SUSTAINED MONOLOGUE

Look at the two pictures showing different kinds of jobs. Compare and contrast the two
pictures. Think of the qualities and qualifications needed, the advantages and disadvantages of
each, and the lifestyle each job involves. Express opinions, give reasons, and think which one
you would like to have.
3. DISCUSSION

It has been said, “Not everything that is learned is contained in books.”

Compare and contrast knowledge gained from experience with knowledge gained
from books. In your opinion, which source is more important and why?

Give your opinions, agree or disagree, defend your points of view, make comments.
ANSWER KEY 5.4
PART 1:LISTENING (total 20 points) PART 3: USE OF ENGLISH (total 20 points)
– 1 point each - - 0.50 each –

1. A 1. BY
2. B 2. AS
3. A 3. IT
4. C 4. SUCH
5. C 5. IN
6. B 6. CAN
7. A 7. MORE
8. C 8. THE
9. INTO
9. EUROPE 10. TOO
10. NORTH AMERICA
11. CHEMICALS 11. B
12. LAKES 12. A
13. STREAMS 13. A
14. STONE 14. C
15. REDUCE 15. B
16. ATMOSPHERE 16. A
17. ELECTRICITY 17. C
18. PUBLIC TRANSPORT 18. A
19. POLLUTED 19. B
20. THREAT 20. C

PART 2: READING (total 20 points) 21. WOULDN’T HAVE FAILED

– 1 point each - 22. ‘D RATHER HE HADN’T
23. IS FED UP WITH ANN’S
1. C 24. CALLED APART FROM
2. C 25. WILL HAVE FINISHED THE
3. A 26. IS HARDLY ANYTHING
4. D 27. HAD HER CAR FIXED
5. A 28. AREN’T MANY STRAWBERRIES
6. D 29. SUGGESTED GOING / THAT WE GO
7. B 30. IS THOUGHT TO BE EXPANDING
8. D
9. A 31. DEMONSTRATION
32. COMPETITION
10. C 33. STRENGTH
11. A / B 34. DETERMINATION
12. B / A 35. DISABLED
13. B 36. AMAZING
14. A / B 37. BEGINNINGS
15. B / A 38. POPULARITY
16. C 39. WORLDWIDE
17. B / C 40. INSPIRATION
18. C / B
19. A / B
20. B / A