SỞ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO KỲ THI CHỌN ĐỘI TUYỂN HỌC SINH GIỎI

TỈNH BÀ RỊA- VŨNG TÀU LỚP 12 THPT- NĂM HỌC 2022-2023

Môn thi: TIẾNG ANH

ĐỀ THI CHÍNH THỨC
Thời gian làm bài: 180 phút
Ngày thi: 27-9-2022

Lưu ý: Đề thi gồm 16 trang; thí sinh làm bài vào đề thi.
Tổng điểm: GIÁM KHẢO 1 GIÁM KHẢO 2 SỐ PHÁCH
( Ký, ghi rõ họ và tên) ( Ký, ghi rõ họ và tên)

Bằng chữ:

I. Listening II. Lexico- Grammar III. Reading IV. Writing

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 1 Part 2 Part Part Part Part Part Part Part Part
1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3

I. LISTENING (5points)

Part 1. For questions 1-6, listen to a conversation about formality in the workplace and
decide whether the following statements are True(T), False(F), or Not Given (NG) according
to what you hear. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided
(1.5pts).

1. Sue implies that today’s technology removes the need for open-plan offices.

2. Dominic thinks it’s up to individuals to decide the level of formality required when dealing with
others.

3. Dominic agrees with Sue that dressing casually for work is not always appropriate.

4. Sue holds the view that there are no similarities in attitudes towards dress between school and
the workplace.

5. According to Dominic, the boss should give their employees guidance as to what to wear.

6. Both Sue and Dominic believe that clothes can create artificial differences between work
colleagues.

Your answers:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Page 1 of 16 pages
Part 2. For question 7-16, you will hear a sport psychologist called Brian Hawthorn giving a
talk to psychology students about his profession and answer the questions. Write NO MORE
THAN TWO WORDS taken from the recording for each answer (2pts).

Brian says that sport psychologists assist both (7) __________________ and professional and
amateur competitors.

Brian helps his clients deal with problems caused by (8) __________________ and emotional
setbacks.

Brian says sport psychologists sometimes need to suggest ways for a trainer to improve
(9)__________________ within their team.

Brian says most sport psychologists do (10) __________________ as well as private

consultancy work.

According to Brian, all the techniques that sport psychologists use focus on encouraging (11)
__________________ in their clients.

Brian refers to a (12) __________________ that people can make through visualization before
going to, for example, a job interview.

Brian suggests that a footballer failed because he was thinking about the (13)
__________________ of his teammates.

Brian condemns the trend whereby a sportsman has (14) __________________ thrown at him
from the crowd.

According to Brian, the ability to cope with (15) __________________ is what distinguishes the
best sportspeople.

Part 3. For questions 16-20, you will hear an interview with the head of an employment
agency about job expectations. Choose the correct answer A, B, C or D which fits best
according to what you hear. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes
provided (1.5pts).

16. How does Diane Webber view “jobs for life” ?

A. She regrets the fact that this situation is no longer the norm.
B. She feels that many long-serving employees failed to make a useful contribution.
C. She believes that people should have challenged their employers’ motives more.
D. She wishes the workplace had been more secure in the past.
17. According to Diane, younger workers in today’s workplace____.
A. learn all the skills they need early on.
B. accept lateral moves if they are attractive.
C. expect to receive benefits right from the start.
D. change jobs regularly to achieve a higher level.
18. What does Diane say about staff continuity in companies?
A. It is desirable in both junior and senior management.
B. It is impossible to achieve in today’s more competitive environment.
C. It is unimportant, due to the greater emphasis on teamwork.
D. It is necessary, but only up to a point.
19. According to Diane, what is the actual benefit of higher levels of personnel
movement?

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 A. higher levels of output B. better problem-solving
C. more creativity D. greater efficiency
20. Diane considers that nowadays, companies are at most risk from____.
A. run-of-the-mill employees who play safe
B. successful high-fliers who quickly move on
C. unreliable staff who lack commitment
D. external advisors who have undue power
Your answers:

15. 16 17. 18. 19. 20.

II. LEXICO-GRAMMAR (2 points)

Part 1. For questions 21-35, choose the correct answer A, B, C or D to each of the following
questions. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided (1.5pts).

21. The doctor was_________ about when I could drive again after I had worn a plaster for two months
A. sinister B. non-committal C. invincible D. unctuous
22. On the threshold of adulthood, it’s normal for a teenager to go through a period of__________ with
uncertainty and many worries dominating their minds.
A. epitome B. acquittals C. attenuation D. perturbation
23. It is important for world leaders to_________ and honor their commitments on global warming.
A. batten down the hatches B. step up to the plate
C. jump on the bandwagon D. go down to the wire
24. As you have matured into a man, stop _________ your parents and go out to find a job.
A. drilling in B. blotting out C. harping on D. battening on
25. Coming home with a broken heart, he sank back on his pillow and fell into a_________, not noticing
my talking to him.
A. rabbit warren B. bottomless pit C. brown study D. heavy going
26. There is no point in challenging Tom in tennis, he is the reigning champion and he will ______with
you.
A. mop the floor B. pits his wits C. keep his shirt on D. push up daisies
32. The candidate _________ nervously up and down waiting to be called for the interview.
A. marched B. paced C. strutted D. plodded
27.Those openly _________their wealth show nothing but a shallow mind and a contemptible dignity of
themselves.
A. eliciting B. flaunting C. reviling D. exerting
28. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop but I accidentally heard of this odd __________ of conversation on the
bus.
A. buzz B. hum C. snippet D. snatch
29. Although the king has abdicated the throne in his son’s favor, he still rules the country_________
A. de facto B. de jure C. de-pronto D. jamais vu
30. Her life at last returned to __________ of normality after such a long period of complete isolation.
A. semblance B. vestige C. inkling D. portent
31.James Conrad was described as a(n) _________ explorer who would always be willing to venture
into the most dangerous corners for new discoveries despite all the risks.
A. obnoxious B. staunch C. stalwart D. audacious
32. By the time the traffic jam cleared up, we were pretty _________ off.
A. palmed B. browned C. nodded D. fobbed

Page 3 of 16 pages
33. During the earthquake, the land dropped ________ down to the rocky shore.
A. precipitously B. immaculately C. categorically D. unequivocally
34. It looks like she’s really _________ with her successful new business.
A. closing a deal B. moving on up C. breaking it even D. raking it in

Your answers

21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28.

29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35.

Part 2. For questions 36-40, write the correct form of each bracketed word in each sentence
in the numbered space provided in the column on the right (0.5p).

Your answers
36. “Dog” and “cat” are ________(NAME) of “animal”. 36. …………………………………….
37. It is _________ (FARCE) to expect police departments to 37. …………………………………….
investigate themselves and report everything honestly.
38. The sparse dialogue is as mind-numbingly_________ 38. …………………………………….
(CLAIM) and unsubtle as political oratory.
39. There is nothing to be proud of in showing _________ 39. …………………………………….
(FORM) attitude, you should really learn the value of discipline.
40.The whole city was _________ (NATURE) quiet during 40. …………………………………….
months of social distancing.

III. READING (5 points)

Part 1. For questions 41-50, read the passage and fill each of the following numbered blanks
with one suitable word. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided
(1.5pts).

How noisy do you like a car to be? For me, the quieter the better, but evidently not everyone feels as I
do. Recent research in the US and Europe has shown that 80% of motorists like to hear some noises –
especially from the engine – as they drive.

Approximately 60% welcomed the blinking of indicators which provide audible as well as visible
confirmation that (41) __________are working. Other noise sources – among (42) __________the
horn and the sound of braking – were rated relatively unimportant, as indeed (43)__________ tyre
rumble, which I for (44)__________find very surprising. Cars have become so quiet mechanically and
far less (45) __________ to create wind noise, that the boom and roar made by tyres running on
coarsely-textured road surfaces is now firmly at the top of my list of motoring dislikes.

In a recent research, (46) __________were asked to listen to sound samples obtained from a
variety of engines running under different conditions. The researchers wanted to know which engine-
produced sounds pleased drivers most. The results clearly showed that scientifically measured and
(47) __________perceived sound qualities are not the same thing. The difficulty facing car designers
must be in deciding just how such customer tastes vary according to the kinds of cars they have in
(48) __________. The buyer of a top-the –range sports car would, they conclude, feel cheated if the

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powerful engine did not sing like an operatic tenor at moderate speeds, and bellow like a wild animal
when the (49) __________ neared the red line. Such noises might, I suppose, be anathema to the
driver of a luxury saloon car, (50) __________.

Your answers

41. 42. 43. 44. 45.

46. 47. 48. 49. 50.

Part 2. Read the following passage and do the tasks that follow. (1.3pts)

Designed to Last
Could better design cure our throwaway culture?

A. Jonathan Chapman, a senior lecture at the University of Brighton, UK, is one of a new breed of
"sustainable designers”. Like many of us, they are concerned about the huge waste associated
with Western consumer culture and the damage this does to the environment. Some, like
Chapman, aim to create objects we will want to keep rather than discard. Others are working
to create more efficient or durable consumer goods, or goods designed with recycling in mind.
The waste entailed in our fleeting relationships with consumer durables is colossal.

B. Domestic power tools, such as electric drills, are a typical example of such waste. However,
much DIY the purchaser plans to do, the truth is that these things are thrown away having been
used, on average, for just ten minutes. Most will serve conscience time, gathering dust on a
shelf in the garage; people are reluctant to admit that they have wasted their money. However,
the end is inevitable thousands of years in landfill waste sites. In its design, manufacture,
packaging, transportation and disposal, a power tool consumes many times its own weight in
resources, all for a shorter active lifespan than that of the average small insect.

C. To understand why we have become so wasteful, we should look to the underlying motivation
of consumers. “People own things to give expression to who they are, and to show what group
of people they feel they belong to,” Chapman says. In a world of mass production, however,
that symbolism has lost much of its potency. For most of human history, people had an intimate
relationship with objects they used or treasured. Often they made the objects themselves, or
family members passed them on. For more specialist objects, people relied on expert
manufacturers living close by, whom they probably knew personally. Chapman points out that
all these factors gave objects a history - a narrative - and an emotional connection that today’s
mass production cannot match. Without these personal connections, consumerist culture instead
idolizes novelty. We know we can’t buy happiness, but the chance to remake ourselves with
glossy, box-fresh products seems irresistible. When the novelty fades we simply renew the
excitement by buying more new stuff: what John Thackara of Doors of Perception, a network
for sharing ideas about the future of design, calls the "schlock of the new".

D. As a sustainable designer, Chapman’s solution is what he calls "emotionally durable design".

Think about your favorite old jeans. They just don't have the right feel until they have been
worn and washed a hundred times, do they? It is like they are sharing your life story. You can
fake that look, but it isn’t the same. Chapman says the gradual unfolding of a relationship like
this transforms our interactions with objects into something richer than simple utility. Swiss
industrial analyst Walter Stahel, visiting professor at the University of Surrey, calls it the "teddy-
bear factor”. No matter how ragged and worn a favorite teddy becomes, we don't rush out and
buy another one. As adults, our teddy bear connects us to our childhoods, and this protects it
from obsolescence Stahel says this is what sustainable design needs to do.

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 E. It is not simply about making durable items that people want to keep. Sustainable design is a
matter of properly costing the whole process of production, energy use and disposal. "It is about
the design of systems, the design of culture." says Tim Cooper from the Centre for Sustainable
Consumption at Sheffield Hallam University in Britain. He thinks sustainable design has been
"surprisingly slow to take off” but says looming environmental crises and resource depletion are
pushing it to the top of the agenda.

F. Thackara agrees. For him, the roots of impending environmental collapse can be summarized in
two words: weight and speed. We are making more stuff than the planet can sustain and using
vast amounts of energy moving more and more of it around ever faster. The Information Age
was supposed to lighten our economies and reduce our impact on the environment, but the
reverse seems to be happening. We have simply added information technology to the industrial
era and hastened the developed world's metabolism, Thackara argues.

G. Once you grasp that, the cure is hardly rocket science: minimize waste and energy use, stop
moving stuff around so much and use people more. EZIO MANZINI， PROFESSOR of industrial
design at Politecnico di Milano university, Italy, describes the process of moving to a post-
throwaway society as like "changing the engine of an aircraft in midflight” Even so, he believes
it can be done, and he is not alone.

H. Manzini says a crucial step would be to redesign our globalized world into what he calls the
"multi-local society”. His vision is that every resource, from food to electricity generation, should
as far as possible be sourced and distributed locally. These local hubs would then be connected
to national and global networks to allow the most efficient use and flow of materials.

I. So what will post-throwaway consumerism look like? For a start, we will increasingly buy
sustainably designed products. This might be as simple as installing energy-saving light bulbs,
more efficient washing machines, or choosing locally produced groceries with less packaging.

J. We will spend less on material goods and more on services. Instead of buying a second car, for
example, we might buy into a car-sharing network. We will also buy less and rent a whole lot
more: why own things that you hardly use， especially things that are likely to be updated all
the time? Consumer durables will be sold with plans already in place for
their disposal. Electronic goods will be designed to be recyclable, with the extra cost added to
the retail price as prepayment. As consumers become increasingly concerned about the
environment, many big businesses are eagerly adopting sustainable design and brushing up
their green credentials to please their customers and stay one step ahead of the competition.

For questions 51-55, read the passage and choose the correct letter, A, B, C OR D. Write
your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.

51. What does ‘conscience time’ imply in paragraph 2?

A. People feel guilty when they throw things away easily.
B. The shelf in the garage needs cleaning.
C. The consumers are unaware of the waste problem.
D. The power tool should be placed in the right place after being used.
52. Prior to the mass production, people own things to show_____.
A. their quality B. their status C. their character D. their history
53. The word ‘narrative’ in paragraph 3 refers to___.
A. the novelty culture pursued by the customers
B. the motivation of buying new products
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C. object stories that relate personally and meaningfully to the owners
D. the image created by the manufacturers
54. Without personal connection, people buy new stuff for_____.
A. sharing B. freshness C. collection D. family members
55. The writer quotes the old jeans and teddy bear to illustrate that ___.
A. products are used for simple utility
B. producers should create more special stuff to attract the consumers
C. Chapman led a poor childhood life
D. the emotional connections make us to keep the objects for longer

Your answers

51. 52. 53. 54. 55.

For questions 56-59, read the following sentences and fill in each blank with NO MORE THAN
ONE WORD taken from the passage. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered
boxes provided.

Tim Cooper claims that although sustainable design proceeds (56)____________, the coming problems
are pushing the move. In accordance with Tim Cooper, Thackara believes that the origins of the looming
environmental crises are weight and (57) __________. The technology which was assumed to have a
positive effect on our society actually accelerates the world's (58) __________.To cure this, Manzini
proposes a ‘multi-local society’ which means every resource should be located and redeployed
(59)__________.

Your answers

56. 57. 58. 59.

For questions 60-63, decide whether the following statements are True(T), False(F), or Not
Given(NG). Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.

60. People often buy things that are seldom used and throw them away.
61. In a post-throwaway society, we will pay extra money after disposing the electronic goods.
62. Some businesses have jumped on the sustainability bandwagon.
63. Company will spend less on repairing in the future.

Your answers

60. 61. 62. 63.

Part 3. In the passage below, seven paragraphs have been removed. For questions 64-70,
read the passage and choose from paragraph A-H the one which fits each gap. There is ONE
extra paragraph which you do not need to use. Write your answers in the corresponding
numbered boxes provided. (0.7pt)

RAJASTHAN

One evening, by the light of an electric bulb we sat out with the villagers in the main street of a 'model
village' of the command area. The street was unpaved, and the villagers, welcoming us, had quickly
spread cotton rugs on the ground that had been softened by the morning's rain, half hardened by the

Page 7 of 16 pages
afternoon's heat, and then trampled and manured by the village cattle returning at dusk. The women
had withdrawn, we were left with the men and, until the rain came roaring in again, we talked.

64.
The problems of the irrigation project the commissioner was directing were not only those of salinity or
the ravines or land levelling. The problem as he saw it, was the remaking of men. And this was not simply
making men want something; it meant in the first place, bringing them back from the self-wounding and
the special waste that come with an established destitution.

65.
But if in this model village - near Kotah Town, which was fast industrialising - there had been some
movement, Bundi, the next day, seemed to take us backward. Bundi and Kotah; to me, until this trip,
they had only been beautiful names, the names of related but distinct schools of Rajasthan painting. The
artistic glory of Bundi had come first in the late seventeenth century.

66.
Old wars; bravely fought but usually little more had been at stake other than the honour and local glory
of one particular prince. The fortifications were now useless, the palace was empty. One dark, dusty
room had old photographs and remnants of Victorian brica-brac. The small formal garden in the courtyard
was in decay; and the mechanical, decorative nineteenth century Bundi murals around the courtyard had
faded to blues and yellows and greens. In the inner rooms, hidden from the sun, brighter colours
survived, and some panels were exquisite. But it all awaited ruin.

67.
Their mock aggressiveness and mock exasperation held little of real despair or rebellion. It was a ritual
show of deference to authority, a demonstration of their complete dependence on authority. The
commissioner smiled and listened and heard them all; and their passion faded.

68.
They were far removed from the commissioner's anxieties, from his vision of what could be done with
their land. They were, really, at peace with the world they knew. Like the woman in whose yard we sat.
She was friendly, she had dragged out string beds for us from her little brick hut; but her manner was
slightly supercilious. There was a reason. She was happy, she considered herself blessed. She had had
three sons, and she glowed with that achievement.

69.
Men had retreated to their last, impregnable defences: their knowledge of who they were, their
unshakeable place in the scheme of things; and this knowledge was like their knowledge of the seasons.
Rituals marked the passage of each day, rituals marked every stage of a man's life. Life itself had been
turned to ritual; and everything beyond this complete and sanctified world was vain and phantasmal.

70.
But to those who embraced its philosophy of distress, India also offered an enduring security, its
equilibrium. Only India with its great past, its civilisation, its philosophy, and its almost holy poverty,
offered this truth; India was the truth. And India, for all its surface terrors, could be proclaimed, without
disingenuousness or cruelty, as perfect. Not only by pauper but by prince.

Missing paragraphs:

A. We were as the commissioner said, among men who until recently, cut only the very tops of sugar
cane and left the rest of the plant, the substance of the crop, to rot. So the present concern, here
in the model village, about fertilisers and yields as an immeasurable advance.

Page 8 of 16 pages
B. Kingdoms, empires, projects like the commissioner's; they had come and gone. The monuments
of ambition and restlessness littered the land, so many of them abandoned or destroyed, so many
unfinished, the work of dynasties suddenly supplanted. India taught the vanity of all action; and
the visitor could be appalled by the waste, and by all that now appeared to threaten the
commissioner's enterprise.

C. So handsome, these men of Rajasthan, so self-possessed; it took time to understand that their
concerns were limited. The fields, water, crops, cattle: that was where concern began and ended.
They were a model village, and so they considered themselves. There was little more that they
needed, and I began to see my own ideas of village improvement as fantasies. Nothing beyond
food - and survival - had, as yet, become an object of ambition.

D. All vitality had been sucked up into that palace on the hill; and now vitality had gone out of Bundi.
It showed in the rundown town on the hillside below the palace; it showed in the fields; it showed
in the people, more beaten down than at Kotah Town just sixty miles away, less amenable to the
commissioner's ideas, and more full of complaints. They complained even when they had no
cause; and it seemed that they complained because they felt it was expected of them.

E. All the chivalry of Rajasthan had been reduced here to nothing. The palace was empty; the petty
wars of princes had been absorbed into legend and could no longer be dated. All that remained
was what the visitor could see: small poor fields, ragged men, huts, monsoon mud. But in that
very abjectness lay security. Where the world had shrunk, and ideas of human possibility had
become extinct, the world could be seen as complete.

F. The Prince's state, or what had been his state, was wretched; just the palace and the peasants.
The developments in which he had invested hadn't yet begun to show. In the morning, in the
rain, I saw young child labourers using their hands alone to shovel gravel onto a waterlogged
path. Groundnuts were the only source of protein here; but the peasants preferred to sell their
crop, and the children were stunted.

G. And after the flat waterlogged fields, pallid paddy thinning out at times to marshland, after the
desolation of the road from Kotah, the flooded ditches, the occasional cycle-rickshaw, the damp
groups of bright-turbaned peasants waiting for the bus, Bundi Castle on its hill was startling, its
great walls like the work of giants, the extravagant creation of men who had once had much to
defend.
H. Later we sat with the 'village level' workers in the shade of a small tree in a woman's yard. These
officials were the last in the chain of command; on them much of the success of the scheme
depended. There had been evidence during the morning's tour that they hadn't all been doing
their jobs. But they were not abashed; instead, sitting in a line on a string bed, dressed like officials
in trousers and shirts, they spoke of their need for promotion and status.

Your answers

64. 65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70.

Part 4. For questions 71-80, read the following passage and choose the correct answer A,
B, C or D which fits best according to the text. Write your answers in the corresponding
numbered boxes provided. (1pt)

SIMPLE – IT’S ALL IN THE MIND

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Tony Buzan is his own best advertisement when he claims that his latest book can teach you not only
how to be brilliant with words, but also to be fitter, live longer and be happier. He has transformed
himself from a promising but not outstanding schoolboy into a man with an IQ at genius level, who has
contributed to more than 80 books on the brain and is consulted by universities, business organisations
and governments. Some 250 million people worldwide have already benefited from his Mind Maps, a
diagrammatic learning tool that helps the brain to store and recall information. [A]

In his latest book, Head First, subtitled, ‘10 ways to tap into your natural genius’, he redefines
intelligence to include not only the familiar verbal, numerical and spatial benchmarks measured by
IQ tests, but other skills such as creative, social, spiritual and physical intelligence, to which he gives
equal weight. Developing these, he claims, will bring confidence, self-awareness and personal fulfilment.
And with this transformation will come physical benefits – less stress, a stronger immune system and
even a longer life. It is estimated that we use around one per cent of our brain, so there is plenty of
scope for improvement. ‘I have fallen into the usual traps of thinking that IQ was the be-all and end-all,
that being academic was better than being artistic and that art and music were unteachable gifts,’ admits
Buzan, 58. “Bit by bit, I have come to know better. This book is a compact history of my revelations”.

The first moment of truth came when Buzan was at primary school. After scoring 100 per cent in a nature
test, he found himself top of the A-stream. His best friend knew far more about ecology than Buzan, but
was bottom of the D-stream. ‘That started me wondering. Later, I became aware that many of the so-
called intelligent people I knew did not seem very bright at all. [B] They were brilliant at words and
numbers, but not particularly interesting to be with, or happy with themselves or even successful. [C] I
began working with children and found that many were like my best friend. [D] For instance, I spoke to
a boy of eight who had been marked down in an ‘intelligence test’ for ticking a picture of the earth when
asked which image was the odd one out – sun, moon, lemon or earth. When I asked him why he had
done this, he looked at me as if I were an idiot and said: ‘Because the earth is the only one that is blue.’
At that point I wondered who was the fool – the eight-year-old ‘slow learner’ or the university lecturer.
If we had measured the process by which the child had reached his answer – instead of the expected
response – we would have realised the beautiful, sophisticated intelligence behind it.’

Identifying and developing this kind of undervalued intelligence is Buzan’s mission. His starting point is
that all people have the potential to excel if they can only rid themselves of the barriers placed in their
way by upbringing, education and society’s belief systems and expectations. The first obstacle to
overcome is lack of selfbelief. Buzan describes how his marks in maths soared at secondary school after
he was told he was in the top one per cent of the population in the subject. ‘I realised that what I thought
about my ability in a subject affected how well I did.’ The second hurdle is the conviction most of us
have that certain skills – art, music and numerical ability – are gifts from heaven, conferred only on the
naturally talented few. Buzan disputes this, claiming that all we have to do is learn the appropriate
‘alphabet’. If we can learn to copy, he insists, we can learn to draw. ‘It is the same with music. The most
sophisticated musical instrument is the human voice. Many people think they cannot sing. But everybody
sings without realising it. It’s called talking. Listen to somebody speaking a foreign language of which
you know no vocabulary; it is pure music.’ Buzan’s third lesson is the recognition that we are all intelligent;
otherwise, we could not survive. ‘There is only one true intelligence test,’ he says, ‘and that is life on
planet Earth. Sitting in a room answering questions is not as difficult as survival. Every day, we are
confronted with new problems that we learn to handle.’

Head First offers a template for each of the 10 kinds of intelligence, including a definition, an outline of
its benefits and lots of exercises. ‘Think of each of your multiple intelligences as a finger on a pair of
Page 10 of 16 pages
wonderfully adept and agile piano-playing hands. You can play life’s music with just two fingers, but if
you use all 10 you can play a concerto where each one supplements and enhances the others. The
Moonlight Sonata will sound OK with two fingers. But it sounds much better with 10.

71. What is implied about Tony Buzan in the first paragraph?

A. His views have caused a certain amount of controversy.
B. Some of the claims he makes are rather exaggerated.
C. It is hard to understand why he has been so successful.
D. His theories are supported by his own life story.
72. What is said about the book Head First in the second paragraph?
A. Buzan accepts that some people may disagree with some of the views expressed in it.
B. In it Buzan argues against beliefs he previously held.
C. It suggests that IQ tests are of no real value.
D. Its main focus is on the relationship between intelligence and physical condition.
73. The phrases “verbal, numerical and spatial benchmark” in paragraph 2 are mentioned to ___.
A. analyze the contents of his latest book “Head First”.
B. question the template for kinds of intelligence
C. illustrate some of the criteria of intelligence
D. appreciate the value of the book “Head First”.
74. What does the phrase “tap into” in paragraph 2 mostly mean___.
A. boost B. scour C. sift D. unravel
75. Buzan uses the boy who ticked a picture of the earth as an example of_____.
A. People who are more interesting than many people considered to be intelligent.
B. People whose intelligence is not allowed to develop fully.
C. People with an attitude that prevents them from being considered intelligent.
D. People whose intelligence is likely to develop later in life.
76. Which of the following square brackets [A],[B],[C] and [D] best indicates where in the paragraph
the sentence “They were amazing, but they were not able to express their brilliance at school.”
can be inserted?
A.[B] B. [C] C.[D] D. [A]
77. Buzan thinks that one thing that prevents people from excelling is_____.
A. their habit of focusing too much on trivial aspects of everyday life.
B. their belief that too much effort is required to acquire certain skills.
C. their failure to realize how much natural intelligence they have.
D. their tendency to be easily discouraged by the comments of others.
78. Buzan uses the Moonlight Sonata to illustrate his belief that_____.
A. his book can benefit everyone who reads it.
B. some things are not as difficult to learn as they may seem.
C. it is desirable but not essential for people to develop their intelligence.
D. his definitions of intelligence are simple enough for everyone to understand.
79. Which of the following best summarises the view expressed by Tony Buzan in the article as a
whole?
A. Too much emphasis in life is placed on how intelligent people are.
B. Most people are inclined to underestimate their own intelligence.
C. Intelligence is something that it is unwise to generalise about.
D. Conventional views on what constitutes intelligence are inaccurate.
80. What does the word “adept” mentioned in paragraph 5 pertain to?
A. skillful B. awkward C. advisable D. skittish
Your answers

71. 72. 73. 74. 75.

76. 77. 78. 79. 80.
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Part 5. The passage below consists of five paragraphs marked A, B, C, and D. For questions
81-90, read the passage and do the task that follows. Write your answers in the
corresponding numbered boxes provided.

DIY PSYCHOLOGY

Books offering self-help and advice sell in their millions. We take a look at four of the most popular.
A. The last self-help book you’ll ever need by Paul Pearsall
In this book, Pearsall explores the tendency for proponents of self-help therapy to substitute
clichés for serious thought. Hackneyed fallacies like “be all that you can be”, “live up to your
full potential’, “nurture and understand your inner child, are just a few of the arguably silly
fabrications that masquerade as legitimate advice, and Pearsall exposes them to the light of
scientific scrutiny. Primarily, this book advocates accepting that you may never become a
concert pianist or an international footballer, and concentrating on achieving what is within
your reach. You can derive more happiness from life, he suggests, when you appreciate your
current situation and those around you. Were people less caught up in the misconception
that they should be happier and more fulfilled, they wouldn’t be so discontented. Pearsall
sees much of what we might term “therapeutic culture” as based on rather questionable
remedies that over time have gained the status of unassailable truth. He effectively explores
the validity of these assertions from a more objective, down-to-earth perspective.
B. Instant confidence by Paul McKenna
MacKenna puts forward the notion that people who feel they lack confidence are in fact
confident – if only in the belief that they have no confidence! He offers techniques to help
people develop their hitherto suppressed abilities and apply these to situations in which they
may be of use. Many of his suggestions follow well-known coaching concept familiar to
practitioners of neuro-linguistic programming. However, the book is written in a refreshingly
down-to-earth style that avoids the almost incomprehensible jargon which some self-help
practitioners are prone to! One of McKenna’s key ideas is to encourage people to visualize
and experience as far as possible what “the confident you” will be like. He advocates the
simple use of a technique which helps to reframe negative “inner thoughts” in a “positive”
way. Don’t expect to develop instant or total confidence as a result of reading this book, but
if you follow the suggestions and practice them, you should make some progress.
C. Help: How to become slightly happier and get a bit more done by Oliver Burkeman
This is a genuinely useful book; the writer really does want us to become slightly happier and
get a bit more done, just as the title promises us. In a winning aside, he says that 'adding an
exclamation mark to the title of your book isn't necessarily going to help make it fun. (There
are some exceptions.)' And this is an exception, because it is fun, and can be read for pleasure
even if you judge your self management and feelings of personal fulfilment to be in good
shape I like to think that a decent prose style is one of the guarantors of sanity, and Burkeman
has a lovely turn of phrase, neither too dry nor too flashy; but a sort of just-rightness that
makes his pronouncements sound wholly trustworthy. In short, Help is win-win. Should you
find yourself prone to those niggling difficulties which, though surmountable, are
disproportionately aggravating, then you'll find solace and good counsel here.
D. Feel the fear and do it anyway by Susan Jeffers
The subject of this book rests on the following premise: fear is a necessary and essential
element of life and pushing through fear is actually less frightening than living with a feeling
of helplessness. Susan Jeffers highlights the paradox that whilst we seek the security of a life
free of fear, this creates an environment in which we are denied the satisfaction of
achievement or development. The result is a no-win situation in which we experience both a
fear of change and fear of staying the same. The book introduces a progression of truths

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 which illuminate the crippling effects of fear and build the case for taking action to address
the problem. Given that you accept these truths, you can change your attitude and approach.
A number of simple models and techniques are engagingly presented through a series of first-
hand accounts of people at various stages of succumbing to addressing their fears. When
strung together, these provide a structured programme with which you may set about
changing your attitude and raising your self-awareness and self-esteem.

About which book is the following stated? Your answers

 It can be an enjoyable read irrespective of whether you have problems. 81.

 It presents idea in language that is accessible to the non-specialist. 82.

 It exams the evidence to support some of the claims made by 83.

exponents of self-help.
 It offers a step- by-step guide to working through a psychological 84.
dilemma.
 It describes ways in which people can make the most of their unfulfilled 85.
potential.
 It suggests that people may be encouraged to have unrealistic 86.
expectations.
 Many of the suggested therapies are based on recognized 87.
methodology.
 The quality of writing makes the advice appear more credible. 88.
 It suggested that we should view one particular negative emotion as 89.
something natural.
 It offers comfort and advice to those frustrated by seemingly 90.
straightforward problems.
IV. WRITING (6 points)

Part 1. Read the following extract and use your own words to summarize it. Your summary
should be between 60 and 80 words. (1.5pts)

There can be no single, simple definition of human nature. Many inter-twinning ideas in the history of
philosophy have helped us to form our understanding of ourselves. Yet there can be no more important
question than who we think we are, unless it is who I think I am, and who you think you are. The twin
questions of the character of humanity and the nature of the individual person are always linked.

Ideas of human nature radically affect the kind of society we live in and the kind we would like to live in.
How far do we need society? Is it feasible to imagine living in splendid isolation? Linked to this is the
question as to whether we are all naturally only concerned for ourselves, and only willing to co-operate

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with others when it is in our interests to do so. Are we, on the other hand, social beings by nature, eager
to co-operate with others for the common good? Our political views may be influenced by our answers.
There is also the problem about whether our natural inclinations and desire have to be restrained in
society or whether they find their proper expression in it. Does the beast in us need restraining, and is
civilization the result of curbing some of the strongest of human impulses?

Might it, therefore, be possible to change human nature by political means? Anyone who believes this
will be likely to have greater faith in the effectiveness of political change, and may even be tempted by
a doctrine of revolution. Those who consider human nature to be fixed, perhaps biologically, may well
be more cynical about the likely effects of political action, and perhaps be more ready to acquiesce in
the existing state of affairs. Conservatism, as a political philosophy, however, may also thrive when the
central role of custom and tradition in human life is experienced. If they may have us what we are, by
striking at them, we may seem to be striking at ourselves.

Ideas about human nature are of their essence philosophical. They are not simply the result of
scientifically established facts, but are generally conceptions arrived at through rational argument. They
are inevitably often controversial, but the theories produced determine our vision of ourselves. Most
writing on the subject is explicitly philosophical. Since, though, philosophical assumption about our nature
lie at the root of any discipline concerned with the activities of men and women, it is not surprising that
some thinkers have written primarily from the standpoint of another intellectual discipline. History, politics
and social anthropology, to name only the most obvious, all proceed with some view about human nature.

The largest assumption of all, which should never be taken for granted, is that there is such a thing as
‘human nature’. The concept has implications, particularly that we can assume similarities merely on the
basis of membership of one biological species. We will then all have some tendencies, and some likes
and dislikes, in common simply because of our common humanity. That notion of humanity would not
be an empty one. It is in fact controversial to hold that saying someone is human already tells us a lot
about him or her. Many assert that belonging to a society is far more significant, because we are moulded
by our society. If, however this view is pressed very far, it becomes clear that we cannot assume any
points of contact between members of one society and those of another. Neither set would then be able
to understand the other. As a consequence, any discipline depending on the comparison of people in
different societies would find its very existence threatened.

History is impossible if we cannot attribute similar motives to inhabitants of the past as to ourselves.
Politics cannot compare the effects of different political system if the members of one are not
fundamentally similar to those of another. Social anthropology cannot hope to grasp the strange customs
of those who, on this view, would be as alien to us as the inhabitants of some distant planets in science
fiction.

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Part 2. The table below shows the type of accommodation chosen by foreign students
studying English in the city of Melbourne and other related information.

Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant.
You should write about 150 words. (1.5pts)

Foreign Student Accommodation in the City of Melbourne

Type of % of Au $ per Average distance Rating for Overall

Accommodation students week from city centre English rating
in kms language
development
Homestay 31 175 15 ***** ****
Staying with relatives 11 65 20 ** **
Shared student flat 34 195 5 *** *****
Student hostel 15 160 4 ** *
One-room apartment 8 250 5 * **
Own home 1 _____ 20 * ****

Your writing

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Part 3. Essay writing (3pts)

Some people believe that it would be more beneficial to students if they learned a variety of subjects
while others claim that they should learn just some job-oriented subjects.

Discuss both views and give your opinion. Write an essay of 350 words on the topic.

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(You may write overleaf if you need more space)

-THE END-

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