PRACTICE TEST 12-8

SECTION I: LISTENING
Part 1: For questions 1-5, listen to a radio interview in which a choreographer, Alice Reynold, discusses a
dance programme, and choose the answer A, B, C or D which fits best according to what you hear. Write
your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
1. How is the programme designed to help youngsters?
A. by getting them to talk about their feelings
B. by encouraging them to loosen up
C. by enabling them to convey their thoughts
D. by giving them a way to entertain themselves
2. When talking about the nature of communication, Alice reveals that________
A. teenagers are quick to react to a number of emotions.
B. people who learn how to show how they feel can articulate better.
C. shy youngsters find the programme more useful than others.
D. young people have a lot of pent up negative emotions.
3 . What aspect of the programme encourages teenagers to face their troubles?
A. the social side of dance
B. the freedom of the movement
C. the obligation to interact
D. the release of feelings
4. Alice contrasts professional and amateur dancers in order to________
A. highlight the usefulness of the programme.
B. emphasise the use of emotions in dance.
C. illustrate the difference between teaching style.
D. explain the ability to recognize feelings
5. What points does Alice make about the study into a person’s personality?
A. It found that certain types of people dance better than others.
B. Personality has a bearing on people’s willingness to participate.
C. Who people are can be recognized through their movements.
D. It revealed that most people try to hide their true nature.
Your answers:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Part 2. For questions 6-12, listen and complete the sentences with A WORD OR A SHORT PHRASE in
each blank. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
What happens in the Amazon has a (6) ______________________on the planet as a whole.
In the 10 years up to 2009, over a thousand (7) ______________________ of plants and animals were
discovered.
The plants and animals are in danger because the Amazon’s (8) ______________________are at risk.
The region is using its vital resources to place itself in the (9) ______________________.
The (10) ______________________of allowing even a small percentage of the carbon to escape would be
disastrous
Rapid development, thanks to plans put forward by the government, has resulted in (11)
______________________.
Activities to obtain minerals and other natural resources are also (12) ______________________.

Part 3. For questions 13-17, listen to the news about a new type of a currency that will be available
wordwide and answer the questions. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
13. What kind of digital money is being created?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
14. What problems do underclass people face up to when doing transaction?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
15. What Facebook currency is mentioned?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
16. According to the report, how is bitcoin different form the Facebook currency?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
17. What Facebook apps can be used in the transaction of this new currency ?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

SECTION II: LEXICO-GRAMMAR

I. Choose the correct answer that best fits each blank.
LEXICO & GRAMMAR
Part 1. Choose a word or phrase that best completes each sentence.
1: It is __________ that you are cordially /ˈkɔː.di.ə.li/ invited to attend.
A. at our annual wine-tasting evening B. on our annual wine-tasting evening
C. in our annual wine-tasting evening D. our annual wine-tasting evening
2: ___________ are that they'll be late anyway, so we’d better wait for them for another moment.
A. Opportunities B. Chances C. Fortunes D. Lucks
3: When my parents traveled to Singapore, they bought me a _______ piano on my birthday.
A. precious grand ancient wooden B. wooden grand ancient precious
C. precious ancient grand wooden D. ancient grand precious wooden
4: Strangely, no one believed us when we told them we'd been visited by a creature from Mars, __________?
A. didn’t we B. did we C. did they D. didn’t they
5: Urbanization has resulted in _____________ problems besides the benefits.
A. vary B. various C. variety D. variability
6: __________ the book again and again, I finally understood what the author meant.
A. Have been reading B. Have been read C. Have read D. Having read
7. There wasn't a...................of truth in what he said.
A. ray B. lump C. grain D. pinch
8. I would ............ my colleague's wrath and displeasure by using his research without consent.
A. incur B. co-occur C. concur D. recur
9. A student on the............. of a new life at university killed himself with a massive tranquiliser overdose
A. inception B. kick-off C. portal D. threshold
10. She gets fifteen per cent...........on every insurance policy she sells.
A. salary B. commission C. bonus D. pension
11. The removal men.................. the heavy piano up the stairs with great difficulty.
A. pushed B. shoved C. thrust D. heaved
12. Members of rock groups were asked to............their behaviour or else leave the hotel.
A. modify B. amend C. transfer D. convert
13. Hedgehogs, bears and other animals and hibernate remain................during winter.
A. deactivated B. impassive C. dormant D. inert
14. I don't know how George could ever find anything as his desk was always ..........
A. messed B. cluttered C. jumbled D. crammed
15. Her father ...............her when she came home two hours late from a party.
A. let in for B. let out C. laid into D. laid aside

16. I'm afraid we got our ................crossed. I thought my husband would be picking up the children and he
thought I was doing it.
A. minds B. purposes C. fingers D. wires
17. It was not only when I saw Manhattan ...........into the distance beneath and behind me that I finally began to
relax.
A. receding B. withdrawing C. abating D. reversing
18. All the members of the board were ..........................themselves to please the Chairperson.
A. coming about B. jumping over C. carrying off D. falling over
19.They spent their time fishing or ................through the wood
 A. ambling B. striding C. roaming D. treading
20. Everything included, the cost of our new living room came to a ............total of ₴10,000.
A. full B. grand C. gross D. great
Mark the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each
of the following questions.
21: She must have gotten up on the wrong side of the bed; normally she is very friendly, but she seems to be
screaming at everyone today.
A. have a bad day from the moment it begins B. was in a bad mood
C. felt irritableD. all are correct
22: The changing physical landscape reflected the shift to an urbanized society. Railroad terminals, factories,
skyscrapers, apartment houses, streetcars, electric engines, department stores, and the increased pace of life
were all signs of an emerging urban America.
A. position B. resource C. change D. returns
Mark the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the word(s) OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s) in
each of the following questions.
23: Rather than assuming responsibility for explaining corporate losses, the CEO passed the buck to his CFO
to explain the downturn.
A. denied responsibilities
B. shifted the responsibility for something to someone else
C. made someone responsible for a problem that you should deal with
D. shouldered the blame
24: It is believed that conflicts between parents and children can be resolved by means of heart-to-heart talks.
A. harmony B. disagreements C. differences D. similarities

Identify 10 errors in the following passage and correct them.

Line
1 A recent discovery has led scientists to revise their ideas about the ancestors of early
2 humans. It seems they started to make use of stone tools nearly one million years earlier as had
3 previously thought. Archaeologists revised the date after spotting distinctive marks made by stone
4 tools on animal bones dated back nearly three and a half million years. The remnants, including a
5 rib from a cow-like creature and a thigh bone from an animal similar in size of a goat, were
6 recovered from an old river bed which was being excavated in Europe.
7 The use of simple stone tools to remove meat from bones represents a crucial moment in
8 human history. As a result of turning to meat for sustenance, the early human developed larger
9 brains, which in part enabled them to make more sophisticated tools. The bones unearthed in
10 Ethiopia might well represent the very beginning of that procedure.
11 What scientists are still hoping to discover is whether the stone tools were manufactured
12 specifically to meet a need or whether they are natural forces that by chance had the correct shapes
13 and the necessary sharp edges. Any way, it seems that the early humans carried the tools around
14 with them rather than to rely on being able to find suitable one when the need rose.

SECTION III. READING

Part 1. Read the following passage and choose the words that best complete the sentences.
Working parents are devoting more quality time to their children than previous generations, despite
time-consuming (1)_____, research has shown. The findings of this study go against the claim that modern
parents, especially working mothers, spend less time with their children. The study found that parents devote
more than twice as much time on the (2)_____of their children than they did 30 years ago. Full-time working
parents were found to spend more time with their children than their part time and non-working counterparts.
This time is spent talking to children and enjoying planned (3)_____activities, such as swimming and trips to
museums together.
The results of the research show that parents devote an average of 85 minutes a day to each child. This
compares with 25 minutes a day in the (4)_____1970s. And it is predicted that the figure will (5)_____to 100
minutes a day by 2010.
The study highlighted a new concept of "positive parenting", where mothers and fathers are (6)_____committed
to working hard to be good parents and providing the best material and emotional support for their children.
The findings suggest that the "new man" is not a myth. Today's fathers were found to be more involved in their
children's lives than their own fathers or grandfathers were. More fathers are said to be equal (7)_____in
parenting.
During the study, three generations of families were questioned on their (8)_____to parenting. What is clear is
that parents desire an increase in creative involvement with children, and for family democracy. (9)_____, this
increase in parental involvement also suggests an increase in the stress (10)_____being a parent. In the future,
parenting classes could become as commonplace as antenatal classes are today.
1. A. jobs B. work C. positions D. occupations
2. A. education B. upbringing C. training D. instruction
3. A. amusement B. free C. leisure D. pleasure
4. A. mid B. middle C. medium D. halfway
5. A. arise B. arouse C. rise D. raise
6. A. equally B. hardly C. similar D. nearly
7. A. couples B. partners C. colleagues D. mates
8. A. thinkings B. opinions C. agreements D. attitudes
9. A. However B. Therefore C. Although D. Despite
10. A. for B. of C. in D. to

Part 2. Read the text below and think of the word which best fits each space. Use only one word in each
space.
Are there thousand books that all of us should read sometime in your lives?
Throughout this year, we will be recommending a collection of books that, when taken (1) as
__________ a whole, will form a library of 1,000 titles that will inspire and satisfy (2) every__________ kind
of reader imaginable.
Book lists appear from time to time, often arousing controversy for being too elitist or too populist. But
our list is the result of consultations with book buyers and book sellers, people know and (3)
love______________ books.
Currently, there are well (4) over___________ a million books in print. Add to these yet (5)
about___________100,000 books published each year and the choice for readers becomes bewildering,
(6 )although__________ certain books, both classics and contemporary works, stand out. While our list doesn't
identify classics in the traditional sense, many of the works included considered to be classic books. The list
aims to make the reader aware of what is available that is stimulating, rewarding and inspiring. (7)
___________how else does one team about a good read (8) __________other than by enthusiastic
recommendation?
This month we are highlighting fifty books from the area of business and reference. These fifty titles
represent the perfect business and reference library for your needs, whether personal or professional. Our
selection will help you to expand and enhance understanding of today's fast-changing (9) world___________ of
business.
Look out for the next month’s fifty choices, (10) ________which will take you a step nearer completion
of your 1000-book library.

Part 3: Read the text and choose the best answer A, B, C or D.

RUNNING WATER ON MARS
Photographic evidence suggests that liquid water once existed in great quantity on the surface of Mars. Two
types of flow features are seen: runoff channels and outflow channels. Runoff channels are found in the
southern highlands. These flow features are extensive systems - sometimes hundreds of kilometers in total
length - of interconnecting, twisting channels that seem to merge into larger, wider channels. They bear a
strong resemblance to river systems on Earth, and geologists think that they are dried-up beds of long-gone
rivers that once carried rainfall on Mars from the mountains down into the valleys. Runoff channels on Mars
speak of a time 4 billion years ago (the age of the Martian highlands), when the atmosphere was thicker, the
surface warmer, and liquid water widespread.
Outflow channels are probably relics of catastrophic flooding on Mars long ago. They appear only in equatorial
regions and generally do not form extensive interconnected networks. Instead, they are probably the paths taken
by huge volumes of water draining from the southern highlands into the northern plains. The onrushing water
arising from these flash floods likely also formed the odd teardrop-shaped “islands” (resembling the miniature
versions seen in the wet sand of our beaches at low tide) that have been found on the plains close to the ends of
the outflow channels. Judging from the width and depth of the channels, the flow rates must have been truly
enormous - perhaps as much as a hundred times greater than the 105 tons per second carried by the great
Amazon river. Flooding shaped the outflow channels approximately 3 billion years ago, about the same time as
the northern volcanic plains formed.
Some scientists speculate that Mars may have enjoyed an extended early period during which rivers, lakes, and
perhaps even oceans adorned its surface. A 2003 Mars Global Surveyor image shows what mission specialists
think may be a delta - a fan-shaped network of channels and sediments where a river once flowed into a larger
body of water, in this case a lake filling a crater in the southern highlands. Other researchers go even further,
suggesting that the data provide evidence for large open expanses of water on the early Martian surface. A
computer-generated view of the Martian north polar region shows the extent of what may have been an ancient
ocean covering much of the northern lowlands. The Hellas Basin, which measures some 3,000 kilometers
across and has a floor that lies nearly 9 kilometers below the basin’s rim, is another candidate for an ancient
Martian sea.
These ideas remain controversial. Proponents point to features such as the terraced “beaches” shown in one
image, which could conceivably have been left behind as a lake or ocean evaporated and the shoreline receded.
But detractors maintain that the terraces could also have been created by geological activity, perhaps
related to the geologic forces that depressed the Northern Hemisphere far below the level of the south, in
which case they have nothing whatever to do with Martian water. Furthermore, Mars Global Surveyor data
released in 2003 seem to indicate that the Martian surface contains too few carbonate rock layers - layers
containing compounds of carbon and oxygen - that should have been formed in abundance in an ancient ocean.
Their absence supports the picture of a cold, dry Mars that never experienced the extended mild period required
to form lakes and oceans. However, more recent data imply that at least some parts of the planet did in fact
experience long periods in the past during which liquid water existed on the surface.
Aside from some small-scale gullies (channels) found since 2000, which are inconclusive, astronomers have no
direct evidence for liquid water anywhere on the surface of Mars today, and the amount of water vapor in the
Martian atmosphere is tiny. Yet even setting aside the unproven hints of ancient oceans, the extent of the
outflow channels suggests that a huge total volume of water existed on Mars in the past. Where did all the water
go? The answer may be that virtually all the water on Mars is now locked in the permafrost layer under the
surface, with more contained in the planet’s polar caps.
1. The word “merge” in the passage is closest in meaning to ___________.
(A) expand (B) separate (C) straighten out (D) combine
2. What does the discussion in paragraph 1 of runoff channels in the southern highlands suggest about Mars?
(A) The atmosphere of Mars was once thinner than it is today.
(B) Large amounts of rain once fell on parts of Mars.
(C) The river systems of Mars were once more extensive than Earth’s.
(D) The rivers of Mars began to dry up about 4 billion years ago.
3. The word “relics” in the passage is closest in meaning to _________.
(A) remains (B) sites (C) requirements (D) sources
4. In paragraph 2, why does the author include the information that 105 tons of water flow through the Amazon
River per second?
(A) To emphasize the great size of the volume of water that seems to have flowed through Mars’outflow
channels.
(B) To indicate data used by scientists to estimate how long ago Mars’ outflow channels were formed.
 (C) To argue that flash floods on Mars may have been powerful enough to cause tear-shaped “islands”
to form.
(D) To argue that the force of flood waters on Mars was powerful enough to shape the northern volcanic
plains.
5. According to paragraph 2, all of the following are true of the outflow channels on Mars EXCEPT:
(A) They formed at around the same time that volcanic activity was occurring on the northern plains.
(B) They are found only on certain parts of the Martian surface.
(C) They sometimes empty onto what appear to have once been the wet sands of tidal beaches.
(D) They are thought to have carried water northward from the equatorial regions.
6. All of the following questions about geological features on Mars are answered in paragraph 3 EXCEPT:
(A) What are some regions of Mars that may have once been covered with an ocean?
(B) Where do mission scientists believe that the river forming the delta emptied?
(C) Approximately how many craters on Mars do mission scientists believe may once have been lakes
filled with water?
(D) During what period of Mars’ history do some scientists think it may have had large bodies of water?
7. According to paragraph 3, images of Mars’ surface have been interpreted as support for the idea that
(A) a large part of the northern lowlands may once have been under water.
(B) the polar regions of Mars were once more extensive than they are now.
(C) deltas were once a common feature of the Martian landscape.
(D) the shape of the Hellas Basin has changed considerably over time.
8. What can be inferred from paragraph 3 about liquid water on Mars?
(A) If ancient oceans ever existed on Mars’ surface, it is likely that the water in them has evaporated by
now.
(B) If there is any liquid water at all on Mars’ surface today, its quantity is much smaller than the
amount that likely existed there in the past.
(C) Small-scale gullies on Mars provide convincing evidence that liquid water existed on Mars in the
recent past.
(D) The small amount of water vapor in the Martian atmosphere suggests that there has never been
liquid water on Mars.
9. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the sentence in bold type in the
passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
(A) But detractors argue that geological activity may be responsible for the water associated with the
terraces.
(B) But detractors argue that the terraces may be related to geological forces in the Northern
Hemisphere of Mars, rather than to Martian water in the south.
(C) But detractors argue that geological forces depressed the Northern Hemisphere so far below the
level of the south that the terraces could not have been formed by water.
(D) But detractors argue that the terraces may have been formed by geological activity rather than by
the presence of water.
10. According to paragraph 4, what do the 2003 Global Surveyor data suggest about Mars?
(A) Ancient oceans on Mars contained only small amounts of carbon.
(B) The climate of Mars may not have been suitable for the formation of large bodies of water.
(C) Liquid water may have existed on some parts of Mars’ surface for long periods of time.
(D) The ancient oceans that formed on Mars dried up during periods of cold, dry weather.
Part 4: Read the passage and do the tasks below.
A. One misguided legacy over a hundred years of writing on bilingualism is that children's intelligence
will suffer if they are bilingual. Some of the earliest research into bilingualism examined whether bilingual
children were ahead of monolingual children on IQ tests. From the 1920s to the 1960s, the tendency was to find
monolingual children ahead of bilinguals on IQ tests. The conclusion was that bilingual children were mentally
confused. Having two languages in the brain, it was said, disrupted effective thinking. It was argued that having
one well-developed language was superior to having two half-developed languages.
 B. The idea that the bilinguals may have a lower IQ still exists among many people, particularly
monolinguals. However, we now know that this early research was misconceived and incorrect. First, such
research often gave bilinguals an IQ test in their weaker language – usually English. Had bilinguals tested in
Welsh or Spanish or Hebrew, a different result may have been found. The testing of bilinguals was thus unfair.
Second, like was not compared with like. Bilinguals tend to come from, for example, impoverished New York
or rural Welsh backgrounds. The monolinguals tend to come from more middle class, urban families. Working
class bilinguals were often compared with middle class monolinguals. So the results were more likely to be due
to social class differences than language differences. The comparison of monolinguals and bilinguals was
unfair.
C. The most recent research from Canada, the United States and Wales suggests that bilinguals are, at
least, equal to monolinguals on IQ tests. When bilinguals have two well-developed languages (in the research
literature called balanced bilinguals), bilinguals tend to show a slight superiority in IQ tests compared with
monolinguals. This is the received psychological wisdom of the moment and is good news for raising bilingual
children. Take, for example, a child who can operate in either language in the curriculum in the school. That
child is likely to be ahead on IQ tests compared with similar monolinguals (same gender, social class, and age).
Far from making people mentally confused, bilingualism is now associated with a mild degree of intellectual
superiority.
D. One note of caution needs to be sounded. IQ tests probably do not measure intelligence. IQ tests
measure a small sample of the broadest concept of intelligence. IQ tests are simply paper and pencil tests where
only "right and wrong" answers are allowed. Is all intelligence included in such right and wrong, pencil and
paper tests? Isn't there a wider variety of intelligences that are important in everyday functioning and everyday
life.
E. Many questions need answering. Do we only define an intelligent person as somebody who obtains a
high score on an IQ tests. Are the only intelligent people those who belong to high IQ organizations such as
MENSA? Is there social intelligence, musical intelligence, military intelligence, marketing intelligence,
motoring intelligence, political intelligence? Are all, or indeed any, of these forms of intelligence measured by
a simple pencil and paper IQ test which demands a single, acceptable, correct solution to each question?
Defining what constitutes intelligent behavior requires a personal value judgement as to what type of behavior,
and what kind of person is of more worth.
F. The current state of psychological wisdom about bilingual children is that, where two languages are
relatively well developed, bilinguals have thinking advantages over monolinguals. Take an example. A child is
asked a simple question: How many uses can you think of for a brick? Some children give two or three answers
only. They can think of building walls, building a house or perhaps that is all. Another child scribbles away,
pouring out ideas one after the other: blocking up a rabbit hole, breaking a window, using as a bird bath, as a
plumb line, as an abstract sculpture in an art exhibition.
G. Research across different continents of the world shows that bilinguals tend to be more fluent,
flexible, original and elaborate in their answers to this type of open-ended question. The person who can think
of a few answers tend to be termed a convergent thinker. They converge onto a few acceptable conventional
answers. People who think of lots of different uses for unusual items (e.g. a brick, tin can, cardboard box) are
call divergers. Divergers like a variety of answers to a question and are imaginative and fluent in their thinking.
H. There are other dimensions in thinking where approximately balanced bilinguals may have
temporary and occasionally permanent advantages over monolinguals: increased sensitivity to communication.
A slightly speedier movement through the stages of cognitive development, and being less fixed in the sounds
of words and more centred on the meaning of words. Such ability to move away from the sound of words and
fix on the meaning of words tends to be a (temporary) advantage for bilinguals around the ages four to six. This
advantage may mean an initial head start in learning to read and learning to think about language.
Choose the correct heading for paragraph B-G from the list of headings below.
i No single definition of intelligence
ii Faulty setting, wrong conclusion
iii Welsh research supports IQ testing
iv Beware: inadequate of testing intelligence
v International research support bilingualism
 vi Current thought on the advantage bilinguals have
vii Early beliefs regarding bilingualism
viii Monolinguals ahead of their bilingual peers
ix Exemplifying the bilingual advantage
Example paragraph A ____vii____
1 paragraph B ___ii_______
2 paragraph C ___vi_______
3 paragraph D _____iv_____
4 paragraph E _______i___
5 paragraph F __________ix
Write T (true), F (false) or NG (not given) for the following statements.
____f______ 6. Balanced bilinguals have more permanent than temporary advantages over
monolinguals.
_____f_____ 7. Often bilinguals concentrate more on the way a word sounds than its
meaning.
_______ng___ 8. Monolinguals learn to speak at a younger age than bilinguals.
____t______ 9. Bilinguals just starting school might pick up certain skills faster than
monolinguals.
10. What is the most suitable title for the passage?
A. Types of intelligence
B. The use of IQ tests
C. Bilingualism and intelligence in children
D. A new discovery in bilingualism

Part 5: You are going to read about the experiences and opinions of five educators on online courses and
learning. For questions 92-101, choose from the sections (A-E). The sections may be chosen more than
once.
Online studies
A. Educators have known for 30 years that students perform better when given one-on-one tutoring and mastery
learning - working on a subject until it is mastered, not just until a test is scheduled. Success also requires
motivation, whether from an inner drive or from parents, mentors or peers. For years my colleagues and I have
given artificial-intelligence courses: we lectured, assigned homework and gave everyone the same exam at the
same time. Each semester just 5 to 10 per cent of students regularly engaged in deep discussion; the rest were
more passive. We felt there had to be a better way, so we created a free online course, which was completed by
only 23,000 participants of an initial 'intake' of 100,000. Our second scheme was more successful as we made
learning happen actively. This helped us increase motivation and keep attention from wavering, both of which
led to a much lower dropout rate. For our class, teachers analysed the data generated by student participation,
but an artificial-intelligence system could perform this function and then make recommendations for what a
student could try next to improve.
B. Today students in most classrooms sit, listen and take notes while a professor lectures. Despite there being
20 to 300 students in the room, there is little or no human interaction. Exams often offer the first opportunity to
get real information on how well the students digested the knowledge. If the exam identifies a lack of
understanding of a basic concept, the class still moves on to a more advanced concept. Virtual tools are
providing an opportunity to rethink this methodology. If a lecture is available online, class time can be freed for
discussion, peer-tutoring or professor-led exploration. If a lecture is removed from class time and we have on-
demand adaptive exercises and diagnostics, we can enter the realm of 'blended learning'. In the blended learning
reality, the professor's role is moved up the value chain. Rather than spending the bulk of their time lecturing,
writing exams and grading them, they can interact with their students. Rather than enforcing a sit-and-listen
passivity, teachers will mentor and challenge their students to take control of their rate of learning - the most
valuable skill of all.
C. Digital technologies have the potential to transform Indian higher education. A new model built around
massive open online courses (MOOCs) that are developed locally and combined with those provided by top
universities abroad could deliver higher education on a scale and at a quality not possible before. India has
experimented with online classes before, but their impact has been marginal. A decade ago, the country began
using the Internet to distribute video and Web-based courses under a government-funded initiative, the National
Program on Technology Enhanced Learning. Developers created over 900 courses, focused mainly on science
and engineering with about 40 hours of instruction each. With limited interactivity and uneven quality, these
courses failed to attract a large body of students. Now, though, MOOCs have given Indian academics a better
sense of how a lecture could be restructured into short, self-contained segments with high interactivity to
engage students more effectively. This appears to be a step in the right direction, but what is really needed is the
right model to use MOOCs in an Indian context. With a decade of experience in this space and a vibrant
technology ecosystem, India will most likely find its way very soon.
D. The rapid evolution of digital resources like video, interactive multimedia and new modes of assessment
challenges us to reimagine what we can and should do when we are face-to-face with our students. As I develop
online courses on cellular metabolism, for instance, I hypothesise that the blend of animation and appropriate
embedded assessments will communicate the intricacies of electron transfer more effectively than that portion
of my traditional lecture. After rebalancing class assignments to include both reading and online materials,
while maintaining the same overall workload, I nonetheless gain time with my students in the classroom to
discuss and critically analyse the metabolic consequences of experimentally disrupting electron transfer.
Underlying this progress is the awareness that experimentation is the key and that we do not yet know how best
to harness the enormous positive potential of the online revolution for on-campus learning. This is why every
course or module should have an associated research component where student progress is measured.
E. Technology is transforming education for the worse and one of its dubious uses is to grade essays. Major
testing companies are using software to score written test answers as machines can work faster than teachers.
However, they cannot evaluate the imaginative use of language. Thus, students will learn to write according to
the formula that the machine responds to best at the expense of accuracy, creativity and imagination. Worse, the
teacher will abandon the important job of reading what the students write and will be less informed about how
they think. That is a loss for the quality of education. A more worrisome use of technology is the accumulation
and storage of personal, confidential data on a cloud. Who needs all this personal information and why is it
being shared? Advocates say that the goal is to create better products for individual students. Critics believe that
the information will be given or sold to vendors, who will use it to market products to children and their
parents.
In which section are the following mentioned? ________ Your answers:
a strategy that helped the learners focus 92.________
the reason why more data is required to make the best use of computer-based 93.________
learning
digital resources leading to the standardisation of student learning 94.________
the necessity to adapt online courses to a specific culture 95.________
a claim that information will be used to enhance product quality 96.________
personally combining digital and traditional tools to provide a more effective 97.________
learning experience
the problem of gaps in students' knowledge not being addressed 98.________
humans undertaking a task that machines could carry out 99. ________
the importance of students progressing at their own pace 100.________
computer-based courses that attracted a disappointing number of participants 101.________

WRITING
Part 1: For each of the sentences below, rewrite a new sentence as similar as possible to the original
sentence, using the words given in capital letters. These words must not be altered in any way.
1. She told me it had nothing to do with me and not to get involved. (BUSINESS)
she told me that it was none of my business...................................................................................................
2. The resort wasn't as nice as we thought it would be. (LIVE)
the resort didnt live up to our expectation
.................................................................................................................................................................
3. The change of manager hasn't had any impact at all on staff morale. (SLIGHTEST)
.....................changing of manager has made slightlest impact to staff mrale....
4. The government seems determined to keep control of the situation. (LET)
the goverment seems determined not to let the situation get out of control
5. Things have got worse since he started to interfere. (MATTERS)
he has only made the matter worse by interfering
6. It wasn't until I got home that I realised something was missing. (AFTER)
only after i got home did i realised some
Part 2: Write an essay on the following topic:
People nowadays sleep less than they used to in the past. What do you think is the reason behind this? What
are the effects on individuals and people around them?
You should use your own ideas, knowledge and experience and support your arguments with examples and
relevant evidence. Write at least 250 words.