Straightforward Advanced Progress Test 1

Speaking Test Teacher’s Notes

Part 1

Ask three or four of the following questions:

 1Have you ever thought of making a fresh start? Why (not)?

yes, I thought, but these were fleeting thoughts, it is too difficult to make a new start when it has
already taken root somewhere, but mostly I did not think about it, because I do not see the
need for it
 2If you could make a fresh start anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
I don’t want to do this, in principle, I am satisfied with a lot of things now, and if you think about
the beginning again, it’s very difficult, well, for example, if I could re-enroll, I would not enter
this institute, well, or at least go to another faculty

 3What changes would you like to make to your life/lifestyle? Why?

I would like to change my daily routine, for example, go to bed and get up at the same time, not
stay up late, I would like to eat right and thus feel better and finally plan my time correctly
during the day
 4What do you think are the positive and negative effects of plastic surgery today?
I think there are more negative aspects in plastic surgery, for example, complications after
operations, a long recovery process, scars. Of course, this is an opportunity to correct in
yourself what you don't like, but most often these are attempts to please someone or
society, in pursuit of fashion. Each person is beautiful and individual. The advantages of
plastic surgery are the removal of wrinkles and some obvious defects.
 5How did you feel on your first date/day at school/day at work?
my first day at school was very exciting, but I was not very worried because many of my
acquaintances went to this school, I felt more curious about how and what we were going to
study
 6What do you think is the perfect age to be and why?
 I think that there is no ideal age, because each age is beautiful in its own way. As a child, we
do not care about anything, we are surrounded by the love of mom and dad and spend time
the way we want it. Adolescence is wonderful because we get a lot of freedom, open
ourselves up and begin to develop independently. As we grow older, we discover the delights
of love and building our own family, some personal successes and achievements, new heights
and opportunities.

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  7At what age do you think life is easiest? Why? How?
 I think the easiest way to live is when you are a child, you are surrounded by the care and
love of your parents, they take care of all your needs, dress you, prepare food for you, you
just enjoy life playing with your favorite toys, everyone wants to spend time with you, no the
burdens of adulthood
 8Have you ever forgotten anything important? What was it and what happened?
I think it happens to everyone that we forget something. I also forgot important things,
birthdays, names of people, recently I forgot to turn off the kettle, sometimes to do my
homework.
 9Do you do anything to try and improve your memory? If yes, what do you do? If not, what
could you do?
yes, I am. I read books, which helps me improve my vocabulary, sees the world in a different light,
and develops my horizons. I also study new languages, which also improves my memory, because
learning a new one always keeps my memory in good shape

 10Do you think there should be more or fewer charities in your society? Why?
I think that in our society there should be organizations aimed at every area of society in which
there is a need. Charitable organization to help sick children, orphans, to help retirees,
homeless people, to help families with many children, disabled people, to develop
infrastructure for children. If we take the realities of today, then we need a lot more
charitable organizations that would be involved in various fields and so that people know
these organizations and know which one is responsible for what.
 11Why do you think more and more people in some societies today do things to excess? What
are the consequences of this?
I think it depends on the upbringing and the moral framework of the society. Today, what was
previously prohibited is considered absolutely normal. What used to be considered a shame
is absolutely normal today. Therefore, more and more people are beginning to do rash
actions dictated by society, by what is fashionable, by what the environment imposes.

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Part 2

[This activity can be done in pairs or groups of three]

You have five minutes to think about what you will say. Here are some ideas to help
you. [Hand over sheet to student.]

You work for a local council in a big town, and you have $1 million to spend on a new recycling
scheme. You don’t necessarily need to spend all the money on one idea, but you need to make sure
that the amount you allocate to each scheme will be enough to make it effective. With your
group/partner decide in which schemes you will invest, and how much you will spend on each. The
four schemes being proposed are:

The bottle bank

There is concern that there are too many bottles, both glass and plastic. Plastic bottles are particularly
bad as they are non-biodegradable and hundreds of thousands are being thrown away in your town.
The proposal is to set up bottle banks at the end of every street for residents to dispose of their bottles.
These will then be sold to a recycling company to use. After three years it is felt the cost of the scheme
will have been recouped from selling the bottles to the recycling company. However, it will cost $1
million to initially set up the full scheme.
The plastic bag surcharge
At the moment most of the plastic bags that people use when shopping are thrown away. In order to
encourage people to use their bags again you want shops to start charging for each bag they give to a
customer. In order to make the scheme work you need every shop to join. You need money to
advertise the scheme and explain the reasons behind it. You think $500,000 would be enough. There
would be no revenue for the council from such a scheme.
The organic generator
Lots of food is thrown away, and the council propose to collect all this waste and turn it into compost
and fertiliser. Special bins will be provided for each household at a cost of $600,000. The contents of
these bins will be collected each week and turned into fertiliser using a special site, at a further cost of
around $350,000. The fertiliser will then be sold to local people to use in their gardens. It is hoped that
from the sale of the fertiliser the original cost will be recouped in just over three years.
The shoe rack
Thousands of pairs of shoes are thrown away each year in your town. ‘The shoe rack’ is the idea of a
local businessman who travels a lot to poor countries. Shoes and boots will be collected in special bins
and then shipped to various countries where they will be distributed to those who need them most. The
whole scheme will be funded by the local council and they hope to send out more than 100,000 pairs
of shoes over the next three years.

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