English Exam Sample: Level B2 - Reading Comprehension, Exámenes de Idioma Inglés

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ENGLISH EXAM SAMPLE

LEVEL B

DOCUMENT 1: TASKS

READING COMPREHENSION (30 marks)

TASK 1

SPIDEY RETURNS

Andrew Garfield will play his role as Spider-Man once again in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, which hits theaters on May 2. What should viewers expect when the British actor slips into the iconic blue-and-red suit this time? In addition to a new costume, Garfield says there are fun action- packed scenes and a sweet love story. 0 – A (Example). "Spider-Man is really coming into his own as a hero and as a person,” Garfield told us, “He is really allowing himself to grow into the symbol and fill the duties of what it takes to be a hero." This time, Spidey will use his wits and his “spider-sense” to fight ominous and powerful villains such as Rhino and Electro. Garfield gave more scoop on the film during a phone interview recently. TFK: Were you a Spider-Man fan as a kid? Garfield: It was my first Halloween costume when I was 3 years old, in England! He was so important to me because he always stood up to the bullies. A bully was very mean to me in school, and I turned to Spider-Man in my imagination. He’s always been my hero. ____1____. I admire him as much as anyone. TFK: How did you prepare for this role? Garfield: I had to really work hard and make sure my body was in good shape. ____2____. And then preparing for [his alter-ego] Peter Parker, I had to do a lot of emotional training because Peter really goes on a journey of self-discovery. He’s a young man trying to navigate all these different aspects of life. ____3____. Both of those things were really enjoyable. TFK: How do the villains in the new movie challenge Spider-Man? You are going to read an interview with Andrew Garfield. Six sentences have been removed from the interview. Choose from sentences A – I the one that fits each gap 1 – 6. There are TWO sentences you do NOT need to use. 0 is the example. (6 marks)

TASK 2

HERE’S WHY CLASSROOMS HAVE BECOME WAR ZONES

No evening meal around our kitchen table is complete without one of the children whining about some teacher who has been 'really, really mean to me'. What they're actually saying is a teacher told them off for something they did wrong – and they didn't like it. I shut up the little darlings sharp by regaling them with frightening tales of my maths teacher, Mr X, who, 35 years ago, used to express his frustration by hurling a board rubber in the direction of dozy little Johnny. One day, the rubber was thrown so hard it lodged in the door and stuck there. Like an Apache tomahawk, it gave out a warning of the fate that awaited any boy who failed to behave. Mr X was frightening. He could also be incredibly kind, and was a brilliant teacher. But he wouldn't be allowed to teach today. A powerful authority figure like him couldn't survive in a school where it's the teacher who gets told off for a discipline problem. The latest casualty of this Alice in Wonderland farrago is Michael Becker, a 62-year-old teacher whose story is depressingly familiar. After asking a 15-year-old pupil four times to stop telling a racist joke, Mr Becker hauled the lad out of the class and parked him in a storeroom. The subsequent police investigation almost destroyed the veteran master, who was described as 'compassionate, dedicated and of the utmost integrity'. Clearly, the young joker lied through his teeth. He claimed that Mr Becker dangled him by an ankle. Magistrates rejected that account. But will the teenager get punished for giving false testimony? Hell, no. It is poor Michael Becker who has been convicted of assault. A long career is in pieces after one moment of refusing to take any more nonsense. Thank you, East Suffolk magistrates! Now every nightmare child in the country has a green light to abuse or ignore their teachers. Michael Becker is old enough to remember a time before pupils ruled the classroom. I don't think that's a coincidence. Young teachers are too scared to be frightening. So what will happen when the older generation is gone? It's a deeply alarming prospect and it's coming very soon. In Wales, the numbers of teachers taking early retirement is up 65 per cent in the past five years. Some are so desperate that they leave even before they are entitled to their pension. Ninety-two per cent of teachers claim to have been verbally abused and 49 per cent have been physically attacked. Of those, 53 per cent have been assaulted with a thrown object. It's not old Mr X who's hurling that board rubber any more. It’s little Johnny. Last week, I took part in a discussion on Woman's Hour with Christine Blower of the National Union of Teachers and with the deputy head of a former sink school. Ms Blower seemed anxious to play down the problems her members face, but she did accept that teaching is the second most stressful job in the country. In an extraordinary admission of defeat, Ms Blower said she didn't think teaching should be seen any longer as a career for life. In other words, like a tour of duty in Afghanistan, teachers can take their life in their hands for a few years in the war zone that is modern state education. Read the following text and choose the correct answer a), b) or c). Circle the correct answer on the answer sheet provided. 0 is the example. (7 marks)

The deputy head, meanwhile, talked about turning round an inner London school. And how had this miracle been achieved? Oh, by insisting pupils wore uniforms and sending them home if they didn't. By the formidable headmaster standing at the local station and eye-balling any pupils who dared to be uncivil. By laying down rules and – now here's a radical idea – punishing those who broke them. This new approach is called 'modern strict'. It sounds suspiciously like 'old strict'. That was a pedagogic approach that worked pretty well in our schools for, ooh, about 430 years until the educational establishment opted for the view that children, not teachers, know best. Adapted from The Daily Mail

1. The writer’s children... (Example) a) are rather badly-behaved. b) complain without reason. c) have a very strict teacher.
2. According to the passage, a teacher like Mr X ... a) is needed today. b) lacks kindness. c) would not be approved of these days.
3. In Mr Becker’s case, the … a) misbehaving student was finally punished. b) parents were to blame. c) teacher was punished.
4. From the writer’s point of view, ... a) old teachers act differently these days in order to survive. b) the younger generation will keep students under control. c) young teachers do not dare to be strict.
5. The situation is particularly alarming in Wales, where ... a) over fifty per cent of the teachers have been physically assaulted. b) the number of teachers retiring early has sharply risen in the last years. c) the teachers are assaulted on a daily basis.
6. The representative of the National Union of Teachers ... a) compares teaching to being a soldier in a war zone. b) ignores the problems her colleagues have at schools. c) is aware that teaching is not a career for life any more.
7. The example of the London school ... a) is a completely new approach. b) proves how important it is for students to have rules to obey. c) shows the significance of wearing a uniform.
8. In the writer’s opinion, … a) students can help teachers to teach in a more productive way. b) the old pedagogic approaches have been in force for too long. c) we should go back to the old teaching methods.

TASK 3a

HONG KONG

Do you want a holiday that mixes Chinese tradition and British colonialism with spectacular cityscape __0 – d __(Example)? Then Hong Kong is the place to go. The 14 British colony of Hong Kong, located 15 China’s southern coastline, is a visual feast. It’s a dynamic city of vivid contrasts; an intoxicating mix of neon-lit skyscrapers and traditional fishing villages. Where else in the world can you visit a Chinese tea shop, sunbathe on a beach, hike 16 the mountains and hit the designer boutiques all in one day? Life in the two __17__downtown areas, Kowloon Peninsula and Hong Kong Island, both 18 8 by the busy waters of Victoria Harbour moves along at a frenetic pace. 19, you don’t have to go far to find 230 islands with deserted beaches if you want a slower pace of life. Breathtaking views, impressive sights and, of course, plenty of shopping combine to make Hong Kong a truly unique holiday 20. Hong Kong’s peak tourist 21 used to be in spring and autumn, but now tourists come virtually year-round, so it’s best to 22 hotel reservations well in advance, particularly if you’re arriving during the Chinese New Year.

1. a) scenes b) background c) setting d) views (Example)
2. a) ancient b) previous c) antique d) former
3. a) at b) on c) in d) over
4. a) around b) at c) on d) in
5. a) major b) primary c) overall d) general
6. a) broken b) divided c) parted d) distanced
7. a) Even b) Although c) Despite d) However
8. a) maker b) destination c) centre d) package
9. a) time b) period c) season d) term
10. a) make b) plan c) have d) do Read the text, then choose the option a), b), c) or d) that best fits each gap. Circle the correct answer on the answer sheet provided. 0 is the example. (9 marks)

Example:

0 a) b) c) d)

14 a) b) c) d) 17 a) b) c) d) 20 a) b) c) d)

15 a) b) c) d) 18 a) b) c) d) 21 a) b) c) d)

16 a) b) c) d) 19 a) b) c) d) 22 a) b) c) d)