BLOQUE A (Comprensión lectora)

Puntuación máxima: 4 puntos

I* TEXTO 1: COMPREHENSION (4 points) ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS
A Different Guided Tour
Guided tours are not a new phenomenon. In every major tourist city, you can spot groups of
sightseers following a guide, who carries a colourful umbrella or wears an easily visible hat to
ensure that no one becomes lost. They see the highlights of the city, all happily taking the same
photos and eating at the same restaurants.
Of course, such tours are popular because most people want to see the same iconic sights
and take photographs of themselves there. However, a new type of tour company is springing
up, since some people want to discover hidden secrets rather than famous landmarks. These
new tours are often run by locals who talk about why they consider the city to be their home.
Here are two examples of the kinds of tours on offer. Most people who visit Iceland want to
see the geysers, black sand beaches and waterfalls. As an alternative, one company is offering
tours of the capital Reykjavik which focus on the economic crash in 2008 that led to all three
of the country’s main banks going bankrupt. It is a fascinating tour, not only for those with an
interest in finance, but for anyone who wants to find out about the country and its people. The
tour is free for children, but probably not very interesting for them.
In Prague, you can book a tour of some of the city’s less visited spots, all of which are led
by people who have, at one time or another, been homeless. As they guide their small groups
around the city, they tell their own stories as well as point out interesting places unknown to
most visitors.
While such tours are popular, they do not attract sufficient numbers of tourists to transform
the areas they visit into overcrowded tourist sights. Instead, the visitors blend into the
neighbourhoods they visit and perhaps receive a better and more realistic understanding of the
city they are visiting.
CHOOSE AND WRITE THE CORRECT OPTION (A, B, C OR D). (0.5 points each)
1. What does the writer NOT say about guided tours?
(a) They can be found all over the (c) It’s easy for tourists to get lost
world. on them.
(b) They have been around for (d) The guides look similar
some time. wherever you are.
2. Why are new types of tours starting?
(a) Traditional guided tours are becoming less popular.
(b) Some people prefer to stay away from the main tourist sights.
(c) Traditional tour guides aren’t very good at their job.
(d) Famous tourist sights are becoming too crowded for tour groups.

ARE THESE STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH THE
PRECISE WORDS OR PHRASES FROM THE TEXT OR USE YOUR OWN WORDS.
(0.5 points each)
3. For the majority of tourists, a traditional guided tour goes to the places they want
to see.
4. The “crash tour” won’t be of interest to people uninterested in finance.
5. If you take the tour in Prague, you can be sure that you will be led by someone who is
currently homeless.
6. The writer is worried about the effect the new type of tours may have on the
neighbourhoods they visit.
7. FIND IN THE TEXT: (0.5 points)
7.1ONE SYNONYM FOR “see” (verb).
7.2ONE SYNONYM FOR “enough” (adjective).
8. FIND IN THE TEXT: (0.5 points)
8.1ONE WORD MEANING “major points of interest” (noun).
8.2 ONE WORD MEANING “direct someone’s attention to” (phrasal verb).
I* TEXTO 2: COMPREHENSION (4 points) ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS

A Language For All

The European Union has over 20 official languages, which results in an enormous amount of money that
is spent every day on translations and interpreting. The Swiss economist François Grin was asked to look
into this issue and make suggestions. In 2005 he published a report which suggested the use of a “constructed
language” – that is, an artificial language which has been specially invented for the purpose of making
communication easier. By far the best-known constructed language is Esperanto.
Esperanto was invented in 1877 by L. L. Zamenhof, a Polish eye doctor. He believed that with the help of
an international language, he could promote harmony and peace between countries. Zamenhof’s aim was to
make learning Esperanto as easy as possible, so its vocabulary and grammar are straightforward.
Linguists estimate that Esperanto can be learned in 5%-25% of the time required to learn other languages.
It has also been shown that learning Esperanto makes it easier to learn a third language. In one study, a group
of students learned Esperanto for one year and then French for three years. At the end of the four years, they
were significantly better at French than a control group which had studied French for four years.
Despite all these good reasons for learning Esperanto, there are probably only between one to two
thousand native speakers of Esperanto – that is, people who have learned the language as small children from
their Esperanto-speaking parents. In contrast, there are about 400 million native English-speakers and perhaps
1.1 billion people who speak it as a secondary language. The problem is that it is pointless to learn Esperanto
unless many other people do as well. Zamenhof himself said that it might take “many centuries” for
Esperanto to become a universal language.
CHOOSE AND WRITE THE CORRECT OPTION (A, B, C OR D). (0.5 points each)
9. Zamenhof …
(a) thought Esperanto could make the (c) wanted to learn an easy language.
world a better place.
(b) studied Esperanto as a student in (d) cooperated with other linguists to promote
Poland. peace between countries.
10.The writer of the text …
(a) encourages readers to learn Esperanto. (c) gives a negative opinion about Esperanto.

(b) informs readers about Esperanto. (d) wants to learn Esperanto.

ARE THESE STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH THE PRECISE
WORDS OR PHRASES FROM THE TEXT OR USE YOUR OWN WORDS. (0.5 points each)
11.François Grin was asked to construct an artificial language.
12.Esperanto is the only known constructed language.
13.Learning Esperanto makes learning other languages less difficult.
14.There are about 1,000-2,000 parents who speak Esperanto.

15.FIND IN THE TEXT: (0.5 points)

15.1 ONE OPPOSITE FOR “complicated” (adjective).
15.2 ONE SYNONYM FOR “needed” (verb).
16.FIND IN THE TEXT: (0.5 points)
16.1 ONE WORD MEANING “to examine or investigate” (phrasal verb).
16.2 ONE WORD MEANING “having no purpose” (adjective).
 II*USE OF ENGLISH (3 points; 0.5 points each). CHOOSE AND ANSWER ONLY 6 (SIX)
QUESTIONS.
17.FILL IN THE GAPS WITH THE CORRECT FORM OF THE VERB IN BRACKETS:
17.1 I wish more people __________ (learn) Esperanto.
17.2 She’s good at __________ (pick up) languages quickly.
18. FILL IN THE GAP WITH THE CORRECT WORD:
18.1 I can’t hear you. Could you please speak __________ (preposition)?
18.2 This book has been translated ________ (preposition) many languages.
19. THERE ARE TWO MISTAKES IN THIS SENTENCE. FIND THE MISTAKES AND REWRITE THE
SENTENCE CORRECTLY:
The youngest you are, the least difficult it is to learn a language.
20. COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING (CONDITIONAL) SENTENCE:
If there hadn’t been a translator there, … .
21. TURN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE INTO THE PASSIVE VOICE:
Perhaps more people will speak Esperanto one day.
22. GIVE A QUESTION FOR THE UNDERLINED WORDS:
French and English are the two official languages of Canada.
23. JOIN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES USING A RELATIVE. MAKE CHANGES IF NECESSARY:
Esperanto was invented in 1877 by L. L. Zamenhof, a Polish eye doctor. Its vocabulary and
grammar are straightforward.
24. REWRITE THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE WITHOUT CHANGING ITS MEANING. BEGIN AS
INDICATED:
It has also been shown that learning Esperanto makes it easier to learn a third language.
If you learn … .
25. TURN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE INTO DIRECT SPEECH:
Our teacher wanted to know if we had ever heard of Esperanto.
26. REWRITE THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE WITHOUT CHANGING ITS MEANING. BEGIN AS
INDICATED:
Esperanto is the easiest language to learn.
No other language … .
27. TURN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCE INTO THE PASSIVE VOICE:
There are about 400 million native English-speakers and perhaps 1.1 billion people who speak
Esperanto as a secondary language.
28. USE THE WORDS IN THE BOXES TO MAKE A MEANINGFUL SENTENCE. USE ALL AND ONLY
THE WORDS IN THE BOXES WITHOUT CHANGING THEIR FORM:

easy to language new is a for it learn children

BLOQUE C (Redacción)

III* WRITING (3 points)

29. WRITE A COMPOSITION OF APPROXIMATELY 120 WORDS ABOUT ONE OF THE TOPICS
PROPOSED AND FOCUS STRICTLY ON IT. CHOOSE ONE TOPIC ONLY:
29.1 Do you think guided tours should go into neighbourhoods that are residential? Give
reasons for your answer.
29.2 Is the classroom the best place to learn a foreign language? Discuss.