Midterm Test Purposes: I. Listening

Listening
and Speaking 4. Midterm

Name: ______________________________________ Date: _____________
Midterm Test Purposes
 Listen to a podcast about pseudoscience and comprehend the main ideas and details
(Listening comprehension)
 Understand and use target vocabulary from Units 1–4
 Take notes using a T‐chart (Unit 2 Note‐taking Skill)
 Listen for main ideas, to identify details, to make predictions, and to make inferences (Units
1–4 Listening Skills)
 Identify syllable stress, unstressed syllables, sentence stress, and basic intonation patterns
(Units 1–4 Pronunciation)
 Understand meaning from context and word forms (Units 1 and 4 Vocabulary Skills)
 Check for understanding, confirm understanding, and avoid answering questions (Units 1, 2,
and 4 Speaking Skills)
 Recognize and use gerunds and infinitives, subjunctives for suggestions, phrasal verbs, and
present perfect and present perfect continuous verbs (Units 1–4 Grammar)
 Debate when people should become classified as adults

I. Listening

A. In this section, you will hear a podcast about pseudoscience. You will hear the podcast twice.
Choose the correct answer.

1. The speakers are __________.
A. both professional scientists
B. a student and a teacher
C. podcast hosts
D. psychologists

2. The speakers believe pseudoscience is __________.
A. silly and not helpful
B. reliable and helpful
C. possibly helpful if proven true
D. not real but not all bad

© 2020 Oxford University Press. Permission granted to reproduce for classroom use.
Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm

3. The speakers say pseudoscience __________.
A. has not been reliably tested
B. is too optimistic
C. doesn’t have evidence to support it
D. is done by amateur scientists

4. The speakers talk about coins in order to demonstrate that __________.
A. pseudoscience never works
B. unlikely events can happen
C. statistics mean something is true
D. an idea needs to be tested to prove that it’s true

B. Complete the table with the information about these two laws of pseudoscience from the podcast.
Two letters will not be used.

A. has been proven true
B. deals with mind power
C. is an optimistic approach to life
D. has been extensively tested
E. can lead to gambling problems
F. relates to causing things to happen
G. deals with statistics
H. relates to predicting events based on past events

Law of Attraction Law of Averages
5. _____ 8. _____
6. _____ 9. _____
7. _____ 10. _____

1 point for each correct answer 10


II. Vocabulary
A. Complete the paragraph with the correct words from the word bank. Four words will not be used.
agency assess dramatically embrace

force hilarious minor moderately
stimulating stream throughout tool

Ever since I moved to Phoenix, my life has (11) __________ improved. I have more friends than I have
ever had, I love my job, and I’ve never been happier. I found the job through a hiring (12) __________
that matches up recent college graduates with employers looking to hire enthusiastic individuals. I’ve
been very lucky because my new company started to (13) __________ me from the second I arrived.
They didn’t (14) __________ me to do too much work too soon. I could go slowly and really learn the job
well. Now, the work is great! It has been really mentally (15) __________ with constant challenges that
I’m ready to take on. In my previous job, I only felt (16) __________ challenged, so I often got bored at
work. There is only one thing that I haven’t liked about my job here so far, but it is really a very (17)
__________ detail: I live pretty far away from work. The commute has been challenging, but it has
gotten easier. I’ll stay in my current apartment until my lease expires and then start to (18) __________
the pros an d cons of where I live to decide if I should move or not.

B. Match each word or phrase with its synonym. Three letters will not be used.

_____ 19. innovation A. inspiration
_____ 20. motivation B. creativity
_____ 21. pension C. perception
_____ 22. intention D. issue
E. employment
F. retirement payment
G. plan



III. Note‐taking Skill
A. Listen to the speech about being a good reality show producer. Then write three things a good
producer should do and three things a good producer should not do. You will hear the speech twice.

WHAT TO DO WHAT NOT TO DO
23. 26.

24. 27.

25. 28.


IV. Listening Skill
A. Listen to the two excerpts about different ways appearance relates to success and choose the
correct answer.
Excerpt 1:

29. What is the professor’s main point?
A. Dressing better earns you more respect.
B. It’s OK to wear anything you want to work.
C. Appearance isn’t the most important thing for respect.
D. Some universities are more respected than others.

30. What department does the professor teach in?
A. physics
B. history
C. languages
D. anthropology


31. What will the professor most likely talk about next?
A. how students react to the professor’s appearance
B. how the professor got a job at the university
C. what the professor used to dress like as a student
D. what the professors will wear in the future

32. Which of the following is something that the professor would probably wear to class?
A. a suit
B. an old T‐shirt
C. pajamas
D. a casual shirt

Excerpt 2:

33. What is the CEO’s main point?
A. It’s OK to wear anything you want as a company leader.
B. Dressing better helps people respect you more.
C. Appearance shouldn’t matter for earning respect.
D. The speaker doesn’t respect the CEOs of other companies.

34. What type of company is the speaker a CEO of?
A. an electronics company
B. a charity organization
C. a real estate company
D. an environmental organization

35. What will the CEO most likely talk about next?
A. the company’s new products
B. how to become a CEO
C. what causes the CEO to take other CEOs seriously
D. the company’s investment strategy


36. Which of the following is something that the CEO would probably wear to work?
A. a suit
B. an old T‐shirt
C. pajamas
D. a casual shirt


V. Pronunciation

A. Listen to the word or sentence. Identify the requested stress or intonation.

37. Underline the stressed syllable.

dramatically

38. Underline the unstressed syllable(s).

stimulating

39. Underline the stressed words.

I disagree with everything that you have just said.

40. Underline the stressed words.

Discoveries continue to reveal things about the world.

41. Write rising or falling to identify the correct intonation pattern.

How long have you been researching the atmosphere on other planets? __________

42. Write rising or falling to identify the correct intonation pattern:

This latest discovery will change the face of science. ___________



VI. Vocabulary Skill
A. Match each underlined word with the correct definition. Two letters will not be used.

A. a lot of something
B. the inability to do something well
C. a misunderstanding
D. entertaining
E. strange
F. surprising or concerning

43. There was a plethora of different options available for leadership books at the bookstore, so she
had no idea what to choose. _____
44. His partner’s sudden change in attitude was disarming. His partner had never acted like that
before. _____
45. The peculiar noise coming out of the machine was annoying, but it didn’t seem to be
problematic. _____
46. The employee got fired because of his incompetence. He had already used his second chance.
_____

B. Write the word in the correct form, based on the specified part of speech and definition.
Example: covering (n.)
verb to put something over top of something else: cover

47. imply (v.)
noun a conclusion that comes from something not directly said: __________
48. function (v.)
adjective works well: __________
49. balance (v.)
adjective both sides are of equal size or weight: __________
50. enthusiasm (n.)
adjective showing a lot of excitement: __________



VII. Speaking Skill

A. Complete each conversation by underlining the correct question or statement in parentheses.

51. A: And then you attach Part B to the rest of the device. (Do you know what I mean? / I’d prefer
not to say. / Is that the final version of it?)
B: Yeah, I do.
A: OK, great. Let’s move on.

52. A: Are you applying for any grant funding?
B: (No, I don’t understand you. / I’m exploring a lot of different options to help pay for the
project. / Sorry, I have to answer my phone.)
A: Oh, oK. Which ones exactly?

53. A: If you have any problems, just give Marla or me a call.
B: (Do you know what I mean? / I’d prefer not to say. / So you’re saying that I should contact the
program manager?)
A: Yeah, that’s probably the best choice.

54. A: And that’s how adulthood is legally defined across the world. (Does that make sense? / Are
you ready for lunch? / I don’t understand what you’re saying.)
B: No, not really. Could you clarify?
A: Sure, I can put it a different way.

55. A: What is your opinion on the new product design?
B: (Is that the final version of it? / Do you know what I mean? / Are you available on Tuesday?)
A: No, it isn’t. But what are your thoughts?

56. A: Who are you working with on the research?
B: (Is that clear? / OK, great. Let’s move on. / I’d prefer not to say.)
A: OK, that’s fine. I hope I didn’t offend you.
B: No, it’s no problem.

57. A: The child development center is open Thursdays and Fridays through October.
B: (Could you clarify? / Do you mean that it’s closed in the winter? / I’ll be there at 6:00.)
A: No, it will be open, but the days will change.

58. A: (Are you ready for the meeting? / Do you have any questions so far? / Is that clear enough?)
B: No, I don’t. I’ll let you know if I do. Thanks, though.
A: OK, great. Let’s continue.



VIII. Grammar

A. Correct the errors in the sentences. Check the use of gerunds and infinitives, subjunctive for
suggestions, phrasal verbs, present perfect verbs, and present perfect continuous verbs.

59. She has work in international relations before, but now she is doing a different job.

___________________________

60. If you decide continuing with the research, please let me know ahead of time.

___________________________

61. Louis is in charge of picking up him from the airport next Tuesday.

___________________________

62. I advise that Marcus calls before finalizing the purchase order.

___________________________

63. We ask them to care the plants for when we go traveling.

___________________________

64. It’s a good idea that Lisa to register her new device on the server.

___________________________

B. Read the sentence and choose the correct answer.

65. Please do not talk about the accident unless she __________ first.
A. brings up it
B. brings it up
C. it brings up

66. Sarah and Tina __________ the office six times.
A. have already called
B. have called already
C. called have already


67. It is important __________ the causes of the disease before they start.
A. fight
B. fighting
C. to fight

68. Our boss is against __________ any unnecessary costs for the company.
A. to create
B. create
C. creating

69. It’s best that he __________ the worksite before accepting the job.
A. visits
B. visit
C. will visit

70. George __________ for the job interview for three weeks now.
A. has been preparing
B. had been preparing
C. had prepared


Total points Sections I – VIII 70

IX. Speaking
Speaking prompt: Debate this topic with a partner:
Side A: You become an adult when you are legally classified as an adult (e.g., when you turn 18,
reach an age old enough to vote, drive, etc.)
Side B: You become an adult after you have had certain life experiences (e.g., when you
graduate from school, live on your own, etc.)

Be sure to actively listen to your partner and express and confirm understanding. Your
discussion should last about three minutes.

30 points Section IX 30

Total points Sections I – IX 100


Midterm Test
Speaking Rubric

Student name: _____________________________________________________

Date: _________________________

Speaking Prompt: Debate this topic with a partner:
Side A: You become an adult when you are legally classified as an adult (e.g., when
you turn 18, reach an age old enough to vote, drive, etc.)
Side B: You become an adult after you have had certain life experiences (e.g., when
you graduate from school, live on your own, etc.)
Be sure to actively listen to your partner and express and confirm understanding.
Your discussion should last about three minutes.
Points
Debate when people should become classified as adults
(0 – 5/10)
Gives opinion with supporting explanation / 10
or examples.
Discourse
Confirms understanding with partner. / 5
Competence
Shows appropriate comprehension of / 5
partner’s comments.
Uses appropriate vocabulary relating to the / 5
topic of becoming an adult.
Linguistic
Competence Uses appropriate structures relating to the / 5
topic, including phrasal verbs and
subjunctives for suggestions, as necessary.

Total points: ______________
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