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English B2.
Mock exam
(December 2016)
Note: This is merely a mock exam without any validity in the final mark. Its purpose is
to give you an idea of what the real (final) exam will look like. Please remember that
the final exam will include the same kind of exercises but with a longer extension.
Reading comprehension
You are going to read about a text titled “Esperanto as the language of the future”. Follow the instruction and answer the following questions:
1. The following topic sentences have been removed from the text below. Match each sentence with its corresponding paragraph.
(a) Due to its international status, Esperanto is now widely spoken around the world. (b) Esperanto, which remains one of the best-loved artificial languages to date, was invented by the brilliant Ludwig Lazarus Zamenhof in the late nineteenth century. (c) In conclusion, Esperanto would clearly make a better global language than English in the future. (d) Given that it is easy to learn, Esperanto could rapidly overtake English as the global language of the twenty-first century. (e) How can a language help to bring about world peace?
(1) ______________________________________________________________________
Zamenhof, a multilingual who spoke Russian, Yiddish, Polish, Hebrew, Latin, Greek, French, German and English, set out to develop an easy-to-learn universal second language which could help bring about world peace (Crystal, 1987). (2) ______________________________________________________________________ When he constructed Esperanto, Zamenhof hoped it would become a universal second language. He based his new language on a number of Indo-European languages. Its sounds are from Slavic, its vocabulary comes from a mixture of languages, including Latin, French, Spanish and German (Wells, 1989). As a result, it is not associated with any one nationality and may be considered a truly international language. (3) ______________________________________________________________________ Although estimates vary widely, it is thought to have between 100,000 and 15,000, speakers. By the 1970s, over 60 countries had a national Esperanto association (Crystal, 1987). It is thus a global language. (4) _______________________________________________________________________ For example, in the mid-1960s approximately 1,000,000 people in 74 countries signed
a petition addressed to the United Nations in favour of Esperanto becoming an official international language (Auld, 1988). Although the UN eventually rejected this proposal, the petition is evidence of Esperanto’s popularity. (5) _______________________________________________________________________ In fact, it does not belong to any one group of people and so its speakers are all equal. Moreover, Esperanto is a popular language, with speakers all over the world. This fact also makes it a better global language than English. Finally, Esperanto is a relatively new language compared with English. Arguably, Esperanto is the language of the future whilst English is the language of the past.
2. Find the discourse markers (aka connectors) in the text (including the topic sentences) expressing:
(a) Exemplification: (b) Contrast: (c) Consequence or result: (d) Cause: (e) Addition:
3. Are these statements true, probably true or false? Find evidence in the text to justify your answers:
(a) Zamenhof, the inventor of Esperanto, was a linguist. (b) He thought a global language would help to prevent world hostilities. (c) As any other language, Esperanto poses a challenge to its learners. (d) Esperanto is likely to become the language of the future.
4. Find words in the text meaning the same as the words below:
(a) Remarkable (b) Prompt (c) Related (d) Pass (e) Alike
Listening comprehension
Listen to the following documentary and answer the questions:
http://www.history.com/topics/inventions/telegraph#
Questions:
1. What object is being discussed?
2. What year was it created in?
2. Read the text below and fill in the gaps with the word that fits each space best.
The hypothesis formulated in section three of this study has proved to (1) ………... partially wrong. It is true that in C 1 we found more instances of topic switch and drift (2) …………. the part of the speaker A, (3) …………….. clearly makes an effort to keep the conversation going. (4)…………….., in spite of the larger amount of data, this speaker does not make use of more strategies than A-C2. She rather repeats the recurrent pattern shown in section 4.1. This could be (5) ………… to the fact that, (6) ………. an attempt to help the non-native (7) ………… comprehend her message, she turns to simple repetitive structures that may have proved effective with low-level students in the past.
3. Some of the sentences are grammatically correct but some are wrong. Firstly, identify the correct sentences; secondly, identify and fix the incorrect sentences.
- He said us that the results were correct.
- The teacher explained the students how to proceed when taking the exam.
- They told me that she had to have passed because she was very happy.
- The car can’t have stolen because it was parked in the garage when I looked.
- The doctor agreed that there shall have been an increase in the salary last year.
- Suzanne, that I introduced you to last night, used to go to the gym with me.
- Painting landscapes has always been considered a relaxing activity.
- Statistics show that people who live alone tends to be less sociable.
- At the conference, scientists reported that they found a cure for malaria.
- The president’s spokesman mentioned that the election result was a victory for democracy.
4. Rewrite the sentences so that they have a similar meaning to the first sentence, start with the words given or use the words given in brackets. 1. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you, it can be dangerous,” My friend said__________________________________________________________ 2. There was a terrible accident. It was caused by the heavy rain. (which) ______________________________________________________________________ 3. Although they had bought ticket, they did not go to the show. Despite________________________________________________________________ 4. She might have been driving the car at high speed. The car ________________________________________________________________ 5. They complained about the new government measures. This is a regular problem. (which) _______________________________________________________________________
Writing The following paragraphs are all part of the same text and they are placed in order. Read the instructions and answer the questions for each of them.
“Advantages and Disadvantages of Technological Advances”
1. Paraphrase the following paragraph:
In today's world, where just about everything is more convenient and accessible due to advances in technology across almost all sectors, it may seem as though it's a misnomer to even mention any disadvantages of technological advances. However, despite how far technology has taken humans and no matter how convenient it may make things, there are some disadvantages accompanying this level of access.
2. Write the topic sentence that would introduce the following paragraph:
_____________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________
For example, education has been greatly advanced by the technological advances of computers. Students are able to learn on a global scale without ever leaving their classrooms. Agricultural processes that once required dozens upon dozens of human workers can now be automated, thanks to advances in technology, which means cost-efficiency for farmers. Medical discoveries occur at a much more rapid rate, thanks to machines and computers that aid in the research process and allow for more intense educational research into medical matters.
3. Write the paragraph that should come after the following topic sentence (50 words approximately):
The more advanced society becomes technologically, the more people begin to depend on computers and other forms of technology for everyday existence. _____________________
________________________________________________________________________.
