Foon Yew High School, Johor Bahru

1st Semester Unified Test 2021

Senior One English Language

Name: _______________________ ( ) Date: 9 th April 2021

Class: ________________ ( ) Student No: ______________ Time: 7.30a.m. – 8.15a.m.

Part A: Comprehension 30%

One of the most common problems in schools are facing today is truancy. Primary and secondary school
students can be seen in shopping malls in their school uniforms at any time of the day. What makes them want to
play truant and stay away from school? Some students feel that the schools do not provide a conducive and
exciting environment to study in. It is the same routine, week in week out until the end the year. They get bored
and skip school. They find many exciting things to do out of school with their friends.
Yet others complain that the school is very strict with lots of unnecessary school rules. They can’t have
slightly long hair, can’t wear earrings, can’t bring hand phones or wear sports shoes. They can only wear canvas
shoes! They feel this kind of discipline is unnecessary and unduly harsh! Another very important reason that
causes some students to play truant is peer pressure. They want to be part of the group and feel they have to be as
“cool” as their friends. They want to show they are independent and will purposely break school rules and
regulations and flout the law! This is their way of showing that they won’t conform to anything that they feel is
curbing their freedom in speech and action. They are happy as long as they are part of the “group”.
Students who play truant are the losers in the end. They will lose out on their formal education and will have
a tough time finding jobs. When they can’t get jobs, they won’t have money for their daily expenses. This will
force them to steal things or harass people to give them money. Others start drinking or smoking just because
their friends are doing so. Sometimes, just to show they are cool, they might resort to vandalism. They want to
fight the discipline that tells them they should not destroy public amenities. Yet others show off their artistic
talents by writing graffiti anywhere they feel like it. Many times, the despair of not having money leads them to
take drugs just to get over their feeling of misery. Then, the whole cycle starts all over again.
This unnecessary pain and misery could have been avoided if only the students had some self-discipline and
stayed in school to gain their academics certificates and school leaving certificates. But the fact remains that school
is the place where they learn discipline. It is this discipline that will help them when they become young adults
and go into the working world. It is this kind of discipline that will tell them “right” from “wrong” and “good”
from “bad”

PART I: Read the passage carefully and answer the questions in COMPLETE sentences. (4 marks each)
1. From paragraph 1, what is the most common problem in school ?
2. From paragraphs 2, what cause students to behave in such way ?
3. From paragraph 3, state any two negative behaviours that students may project to be cool or to be in their
friends’ group ?
4. From paragraph 4, what kind of attitude a student should have to avoid the problem ?
5. If you were the principal, what strategies would you engage in controlling this issue in your school ? Share two
ideas.
PART II: Find the WORDS OR PHRASES from the passage with the meanings given. (2 marks each)
6. _____________ (paragraph 1) - the problem or situation of children being absent from school regularly without
permission.
7. _____________ (paragraph 2) - to control or limit something that is not wanted.
8. _____________ (paragraph 3) - an amount of money needed or used to do or buy something.
9. _____________ (paragraph 3) - to behave in a way that is intended to attract attention or admiration.
10. _____________ (paragraph 4) - often very unhappy and is always complaining about things, emotional distress.

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Part B: Vocabulary 20%
Fill in the blanks with the BEST answers. (2 marks each) (Group A: Q3-Q12; Group B: Any 10)
emerge outgoing diminish make matters worse
accomplish demanding conform to revolved around
compelling stereotype rebellious unconventional

1. The drug's side effects should ____________________ over time.

2. If we all work together, I think we could _________________ our goal.
3. The discussion ___________________ the question of changing the club's name.
4. Students can be expelled for refusing to _________________ school rules.
5. New business opportunities will ____________________ with advances in technology.
6. Marshall's skills and her ___________________ personality made her very effective in her public relations jobs.
7. It is hard to find a more _________________ reason to quit smoking than the fact that it affects your
children's health.
8. In those days, travelling alone was something daring and ___________________ for a young woman to do.
9. Her teachers regard her as a __________________, trouble-making girl.
10. He was a __________________ baby, he always cried for milk and rarely slept through the night
11. Senior management doesn't know what the workers are facing these days. To _________________, they don't
listen to us.
12. Charles quite plainly did not fit the __________________ of a high powered businessman. He is humble and
friendly.

Part C: Error Identification 10%

In each of the sentences below, four parts are underlined and marked A, B, C and D. One of these parts contains an error. Decide
whether it is at A, B, C or D. (1 mark each)

1 He got out of the car, than he locked it and walked to the office.
A B C D
2 Can you guess who got the better result in Maths in our class?
A B C D
3 The sheeps ran over the cliff and killed themselves because they were chased by a leopard.
A B C D
4 The three-bedrooms flat offers air conditioner and water heater in the master bedroom.
A B C D
5 Mathematics is an useful subject. I find it interesting.
A B C D
6 Zainal told us a lot of amusing stories while made us laugh.
A B C D
7 He is used to tell lies. I can’t believe what he says.
A B C D
8 All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.
A B C D
9 As his pair of pant was old, a new pair of trousers was bought from the store.
A B C D
10 In the briefcase, there were loads of newspaper cuttings about things Sam had done and even a medal he
A B
had won for bravely
C D

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Part D: Language Use- Phrasal verbs, Idioms and Proverbs. 10%
Select the best answer for each sentence and fill in the blanks given. (2 marks each)
hang out led to gets on my nerves
spurred on made a name blood is thicker than water

1. Multi-talented Jennifer Lopez has ___________________ for herself in singing, dancing and acting.
2. We never could have finished the project if our boss hadn't ______________ us _________.
3. When his sister was going through a difficult period and needed support, he dropped everything and went to
stand by her; ____________________.
4. Where do all of the kids ___________________ on the weekends?
5. When our neighbour talks on the phone for hours it really _____________________ because he talks so loudly
that we can hear everything he says.

Part E: Word Formation 10%

Use the word given in the bracket and fill in each blank with the correct word form. (2 marks each)

1. The World Bank is being urged to write off debts from _________________ (develop) countries.
2. The National Museum __________________ (admit) tickets are $10 for adults and $4 for children.
3. There is a ___________________ (short) of nurses and doctors in this flooded area.
4. She was standing _________________ (danger) close to the fire.
5. She had been __________________ (care) and had left the window unlocked when she went out yesterday.

Part F: Literature 10%

Answer the following questions based on the poem “A Living Photograph”. (2 marks each)

1. Who is the persona in the poem?

2. How old was the persona when the photo was taken?
3. What do you infer from the line “Her soup forgot to boil”?
4. Is the persona’s grandmother afraid of death? Give a reason for your answer.
5. The photograph has captured the _________ of her grandmother permanently.

Part G: Verb forms 10%

Fill in the blank with the correct form of the verb in the bracket. (1 mark each)

1. We _______ (use) live in New York when I was a kid.

2. July _________ (teach) English for 10 years now since 2011.
3. John is _________ (always/create) problems in school.
4. Ram _________ (complete) his homework before his mother came back home.
5. My sister ________ (take) my shoes to the cobbler. That’s why I can’t find it anywhere now.
6. The school usually _______ (check) the validity of the student through their assessments.
7. Jackie _________ (hand) in her project at this time next week.
8. The debate team ________ (wait) for the plane for more than three hours before it finally arrived.
9. He ________ (tend) be very serious most of the time.
10. I _________ (write) to my sister who is in London once a week.

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