ĐỌC VIẾT 2 | Đề thi Học kì III năm học 2020-2021

HỆ ĐÀO TẠO: CHẤT LƯỢNG CAO | NGÀY THI: 19/10/2021

I. Thời gian: 90 phút.
II. Hình thức: Trực tuyến và đề mở.
III. Nội dung: Bài thi gồm hai phần.
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Part I (3 điểm, mỗi câu 0.5 điểm): Đọc Hiểu và Phân Tích: Reading Comprehension and
Analysis
READING TEXT: When counselors aren't available, students step in to fill the void

Questions 1-5: Write no more than 20 words for each question

1. What causes are mainly linked to most suicides?
2. After two residents committed suicide, what is the most important factor influencing
St. David to reach out to Hope Squad?
3. According to the article, why did Kason Jacquez get involved with Hope Squad?
4. How does Jason start a conversation with those who have mental health problems?
5. Write down the definition of the phrase "drum up excitement" as used in the ‘Spirit
Week’ section.

Question 6: Write between 70-100 words responding to the prompts below:

6. If a similar peer counseling were to be implemented at Ho Chi Minh City Open

University, would it make a difference to students’ mental health?

How might mentors and mentees benefit from the program?

Read and Write Courses 1

 When counselors aren't available, students step in to fill the void
In St. David, Arizona, about one hour from the U.S.-Mexico border, something new is growing
in the desert: hope. Mental health has been a focus for this town of fewer than 2,000 people.
Melanie Larson, nurse for the St. David school district, says many students experience anxiety
and depression. Depression is a mental illness. It is more than occasional sadness and the
symptoms can last for a long time. Sometimes depression is caused by situations such as a
bad relationship or stress from school. Anxiety is an unusually high level of fear, it is often
experienced by people who are depressed. Both anxiety and depression can improve with
medical treatment.

Two counselors support St. David's students, but each comes in only once a week. The rest of
the time, Larson serves as both nurse and counselor to more than 400 students.
A few years ago, two St. David adults committed suicide in close succession. One of the two
who died was a recent high school graduate. Suicides usually result when a combination of
events and circumstances make life temporarily unbearable. Mental health disorders or
substance abuse are associated with most suicides. Often, family and friends do not recognize
the warning signs or underlying mental health issues leading to a suicide.
After these deaths, the district enlisted the help of Hope Squad. The national organization
trains selected students to watch their peers for suicide warning signs and refer those at risk
to professionals. St. David is the first district to use the approach in Arizona. Larson serves as
the coordinator.

Peer counseling isn't a new concept. Hope squads were born two decades ago. Still, the idea
is steadily emerging as one approach to meeting mental health needs in schools.

Read and Write Courses 2

Nearly all teens recently surveyed by the Pew Research Center reported anxiety and
depression as problems for people their age. Mental health awareness is growing nationally.
However, school counseling services have not grown as fast. The American School Counselor
Association recommends that for every 250 students there should be one counselor. All but
four U.S. states have more students per counselor than the recommended rate.
"Many students that go into the counseling department just need to talk. They don't
necessarily need professional help," says Jennifer Wright-Berryman, a lead researcher for
Hope Squad.
Peer counseling can help "take some of that workload off of counselors," she says.

Hope Squad
It isn't difficult for high school sophomore Kason Jacquez to spot people in need of help. They
might be visibly upset or spending all of their time alone – or maybe they just don't ever
accept a compliment. He noticed them even before Hope Squad came to St. David.
"You could walk in the hallway and be able to pick out people pretty easily … during practices
and things like that and you could just see people that were struggling," he says. Kason has
experience with mental illness in his family. His aunt had depression and ultimately died by
suicide. When Hope Squad came to his school, his classmates nominated him for the program.
The group meets weekly, teaching students how to approach someone in need and when to
reach out for assistance from an adult. Not every conversation needs to start by talking about
mental health. Sometimes, Kason says, he begins by saying, "How are you?" or "You know, I
haven't heard you laugh in a while," or just complimenting them to get them at ease.

"A Much Better Understanding"

The Young Adult Connect Initiative, organized by the National Alliance on Mental Illness
(NAMI) in New Hampshire, is spreading similar skills. For almost a decade, the organization
has been training high schoolers to pay attention to the social-emotional well-being of their
classmates. It's now in its second year, training young adults up to age 25. Ann Duckless is
NAMI New Hampshire's community educator and prevention specialist. Duckless is
encouraged by how younger people seem more open to discussing suicide. The newest
generation of adults faces more mental health issues, she says. Duckless says it "is really the
connectedness to technology and just the stress of 2019."
At the same time, young people "have a much better understanding of mental health,
substance use and suicide risk than previous generations," she said. Amanda Novak is an
assistant principal at a Colorado school that started its own peer counseling program. She
helps connect students of all ages with trained high school mentors.
Her program aims to make counseling interactions feel more informal, although Novak or
other adults still supervise. The group, now four years old, has become so established that
many mentees have it formally recognized as a special social-emotional accommodation.
Some have even become mentors themselves.

Spirit Week
Peer counseling can only go so far, though. At Novak's program, some students, including
those who have severe needs or are thinking about suicide, meet with trained professionals

Read and Write Courses 3

exclusively. Still, many students say peer counseling is creating a positive shift. Recently, the
St. David Hope Squad organized a spirit week to drum up excitement around improving
mental health. Students dressed in wacky clothes just for fun.
"There's good things in life," Kason says. "I can make a difference for those people that are
struggling."

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Part II: Essay question: Writing a cause/effect essay. Choose ONE topic and write
between 250-350 words.

1. Why do some people find big success later in their life?

2. What are the negative effects of youth volunteerism?

Read and Write Courses 4