Category: General Reading Tests

Section 1

Consumer advice on buying shoes

If you have a problem with shoes you’ve recently bought follow this four-step plan.

Step 1
Go back to the shop with proof of purchase. If you return faulty shoes at once, you have a right to insist on a refund. It is also likely that you will get one if you change your mind about the shoes and take them back immediately. But if you delay or you’ve had some use out of the shoes, the shop may not give you all your money back. It depends on the state of the shoes and how long you’ve had them.

If you are offered a credit note, you don’t have to accept it. If you accept it you will usually not be able to exchange it for cash later on. So, you may be left with an unwanted credit note, if you cannot find any other shoes you want from the shop.

The shop may want to send the shoes back to head office for inspection. This is fair and could help to sort things out But don’t be put off by the shop which claims that it’s the manufacturer’s responsibility. This isn’t true. Its the shop’s legal duty to put things right.

Step 2
If you don’t seem to be getting anywhere, you can get help. Free advice is available from a Citizens Advice Bureau (get the address from your telephone book), or from a local Trading Standards Department. Again, consult the telephone directory under County, Regional or Borough Council. All these departments have people who can advise you about faulty goods and what to do with them.

Step 3
Most shops are covered by the Footwear Code of Practice. If the shop you are dealing with is covered, you can ask for the shoes to be sent to the Footwear Testing Centre for an independent opinion. The shop has to agree with whatever the resulting report says. There is a charge of £21. You pay £7 and the shop pays the rest (including postage).

Step 4
As a last resort you can take your case to court. This is not as difficult as it sounds. The small claims procedure for amounts up to £ 1000 (£750 in Scotland) is a cheap，easy and informal way of taking legal action.

The relevant forms are available from your nearest County Court or, in Scotland, the Sheriff Court. You can get advice and leaflets from the Citizens Advice Bureau. Alternatively, some bookshops sell advice packs which contain the relevant forms.

Questions 1-8

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text?

In boxes 1-8 on your answer sheet, write

• TRUE                       if the statement agrees with the information
• FALSE                     if the statement contradicts the information
• NOT GIVEN          if there is no information on this in the passage

1. If you return unwanted shoes straightaway, with a receipt, the shop will probably give you a refund.
2. You are advised to accept a credit note if you are offered one.
3. The factory is responsible for replacing unwanted shoes.
4. You can ask any shoe shop to send shoes to the Footwear Testing Centre.
5. Shops prefer to give a credit note rather than change shoes.
6. The customer contributes to the cost of having faulty shoes tested.
7. The procedure for making a legal claim is easier in Scotland.
8. Legal advice and forms can be bought from certain shops.

Read the text below and answer Questions 9-14

LOST CARDS

If you discover that your credit card, cheque book, debit card or cash card’s missing, telephone the credit card company or bank as soon as possible. Follow this up with a letter. If you suspect theft tell the police as well.

In most circumstances, provided you act quickly, you will not have to pay any bills which a thief runs up on your account. Most home insurance policies will also cover you against even this limited risk.

Because plastic money’s now so common, central registration schemes such as Credit Card Shield and Card Protection System exist to help customers whose cards are lost or stolen. Under the schemes you file details of all your cards- including cash cards and account cards issued by hops-with a central registry, for a small annual fee. Then, if any or all of your cards are stolen, you need to make only one phone call to the registry, which is open around the clock 365 days a year. As soon as you have called, your responsibility for any bills run up by the thief ends and the scheme’s staff make sure that all the companies whose cards you had are notified

What you stand to lose on a stolen card
CREDIT CARD You will not have to pay more than £50 of the bills a thief runs up with your card. If you report the loss before the card’s used, you will not have to pay anything.

CHEQUES AND GUARANTEE CARD Unless you have been careless- by signing blank cheques, you will not have to pay for any forged cheques a thief uses. The bank or shop that accepts them will have to bear the loss.

DEBIT CARD (Switch or Visa Delta) The banks operate a system similar to that for credit cards, in that you are liable for bills up to £50. If your cash card is stolen legally, you can be made to pay back any sums a thief withdraws using your card, but only up to the time you report the loss and up to £50, unless the bank can prove gross negligence, such as writing your personal identification number on your card.

• Never keep your card and a note of your personal number (which does not appear on the card) together.
• Memorise your personal number if possible. If you must make a note of it disguise it as something else-a telephone number, say.
• The same rules and precautions apply to a credit card used as a cash card.

Questions 9-14

Choose the correct letter, A. B, C or D.

Write the correct letter in boxes 9-14 on your answer sheet.

9. What should you do first if you lose a credit card?
   1. contact your insurance company
   2. write a letter
   3. contact the police
   4. make a phone call
10. Credit Card Shield is
    1. an insurance company which deals with card theft.
    2. a system for registering people’s card details.
    3. an emergency telephone answering service.
    4. an agency for finding lost or stolen cards
11. When contacted, the Card Protection System company will
    1. inform the police about the loss of the card.
    2. get in touch with the relevant credit card companies.
    3. ensure that lost cards are replaced.
    4. give details about the loss of the card to shops.
12. You are fully covered by both banks and shops if you lose
    1. a cheque that is signed but not otherwise completed.
    2. a blank unsigned cheque.
    3. a Switch card.
    4. a credit card.
13. If you have written your personal number on a stolen card, you may have to
    1. join a different credit card protection scheme.
    2. pay up to £50 for any loss incurred.
    3. pay for anything the thief buys on it.
    4. change your account to a different bank.
14. What happens if your cash card is stolen?
    1. You arrange for the card to be returned.
    2. The bank stops you withdrawing money.
    3. You may have to pay up to £50 of any stolen money.
    4. You cannot use a cash card in future.

Read the text and answer Questions 15-21.

Recycling at work handy hints to employers

It is estimated that avoidable waste costs UK businesses up to 4.5°/o of their annual revenue. Reducing waste in the workplace is about being efficient. By becoming more efficient, businesses not only increase profits but they also save natural resources.

On the island of Jersey, for example, the amount of waste produced each year has doubled since 1980. In 2004 it topped 100,000 tonnes and 60% is generated by local businesses. A lot of waste for a small island!

Setting up a company scheme

Waste audit
Before starting a recycling scheme, perform an audit. This will make you aware of how much waste you are producing in the company.

Company policy
Consider switching your office waste contractor to one that provides are cycling service. Buy recycled paper. Although this is sometimes more expensive, costs can be reduced by lowering consumption and using duplex printers.

Get everyone involved
• Raise awareness internally within the company, perhaps by putting up educational posters.
• Allocate a person to be the point of contact for anyone with queries.

There are also a couple of ways to increase motivation:
• Hold internal competitions between different departments. For example, see which can reduce their waste the most within a specific time period.
• Send out regular newsletters reporting on all waste improvements. Staff will then see the impact their actions are having.

WHAT TO RECYCLE AND HOW

Paper
According to a recent survey 65% of waste produced is paper waste. Waste paper will inevitably be produced in
the workplace but it is not necessary to discard it. It can serve a variety of purposes before it is recycled such as writing notes. Envelopes too can be re-used for internal mail.

Plastic cups
Rather than supplying disposable plastic cups in your workplace get ceramic mugs that can be re-used. Not only do they make your tea taste better but they can reduce your office waste by up to 1%!

Electrical equipment
Rather than giving up on any old electrical equipment and just throwing it away why not try upgrading it? This reduces waste as well as avoiding the need to manufacture a new machine -a process which creates a large amount of waste. You could also consider donating your old computers to charities when it comes to replacing them.

Questions 15-21

Answer the questions below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 15-21 on your answer sheet.

15. What does the writer think should be carried out in a company before it starts recycling?
16. What machines can help to cut the stationery budget?
17. What can be displayed in the workplace to publicise the recycling scheme?
18. What can be distributed to motivate staff to recycle more?
19. What can unwanted paper be used for in the office?
20. What can be bought to cut down on the waste produced by staff refreshments?
21. Where can unwanted PCs be sent?

Read the text below and answer Questions 22-27

Recycling at work handy hints to employers

To start, take a tip from consultants who coach executives on how to handle media interviews. They say you can deliver the message you want to an employer, regardless of the question you’re asked.

Unlike some politicians, who take no notice of press questions and immediately introduce a different topic in response, job candidates must answer employers queries, says John Barford of the interview training firm Genesis. However, you can quickly make the transition from your answer to the important points you want to convey about your qualifications, he says.

He advises candidates at job interviews to apply the formula Q= A + 1: Q is the question; A is the answer; + is the bridge to the message you want to deliver; and 1 is the point you want to make.

Diligent preparation is also necessary to effectively answer any interview question, say senior executives. They give a number of useful tips:

• Learn as much as you can beforehand. Ask company employees questions prior to job interviews to gain as much insight as you can if the company is publicly owned, find out how viable it is by reading shareholder reports. You can then tailor what you say to the company’s issues.

• Be prepared for questions that require you to show how you handled difficult challenges. These questions require stories in response, but as it’s unlikely that you’ll have one that fits every situation, try to recall some from your past experience that show how you coped with a range of issues.

• Count on being asked about a past mistake or blemish on your career record, and don t try to dodge the issue.
Ms Murphy, president of the Murphy Group, a media interview training firm, says that it’s important to steer clear of lies at all costs. Just answer the question and move on.

• When discussing a mistake, focus on the positive outcomes. You learn as much by dropping the ball as you do by catching it says senior executive Mr Friedmann. When he was being interviewed for his current job, he mentioned he had been involved in many successful turnarounds and one that failed. ‘And I said how I’d benefited in many ways from going through that experience,’ he says.

Questions 22-27

Complete the sentences below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer

Write your answers in boxes 22-27 on your answer sheet.

22. The writer warns candidates not to imitate the way that ________ ignore questions in interviews.
23. Interviewees are recommended to follow a certain ________ to allow them to communicate their main points.
24. Senior executives advise candidates to request information from ________ before an interview.
25. A candidate can also learn about a business by studying its ________.
26. The head of an interview training firm advises people to avoid telling ________.
27. In his job interview, one executive explained how he had ________ considerably from a previous failure.

Read the text below and answer Questions 28-40

Section 3

TALKING POINT

Learning a second language fuels children’s intelligence and makes their job prospects brighter. But the fact is, in New Zealand, as in many other English-speaking countries, speakers of two or more languages are in the minority. Eighty-four per cent of New Zealanders are monolingual (speakers of only one language). This leaves a small number who claim to speak two or more languages-a small percentage of whom were born in New Zealand.

No matter how proud people are of their cultural roots, to speak anything other than English is a marker of difference here. That’s why eight-year-old Tiffany Dvorak no longer wishes to speak her mother tongue German, and eight-year-old Ani Powell is embarrassed when people comment on the fact that she is able to speak Maori*. As Joanne Powell, Ani mother, points out: In Europe, it’s not unusual for kids to be bilingual. But, if you speak another language to your children in New Zealand, there are some people who think that you are not helping them to become a member of society.

But in fact, the general agreement among experts is that learning a second language is good for children. Experts believe that bilinguals – people who speak two languages have a clear learning advantage over their monolingual schoolmates. This depends on how much of each language they can speak, not on which language is used, so it doesn’t matter whether they are learning Maori or German or Chinese or any other language.

Cathie Elder, a professor of Language Teaching and Learning at Auckland University, says: ‘A lot of studies have shown that children who speak more than one language sometimes learn one language more slowly, but in the end they do as well as their monolingual schoolmates, and often better, in other subjects. The view is that there is an improvement in general intelligence from the effort of learning another language.’

Dr Brigitte Halford, a professor of linguistics at Freiburg University in Germany, agrees. Bilinguals tend to use language better as a whole, she says. They also display greater creativity and problem-solving ability, and they learn further languages more easily. So with all of the benefits, why do we not show more enthusiasm for learning other languages? Parents and teachers involved in bilingual education say pressure from friends at school, general attitudes to other languages in English-speaking countries, and problems in the school system are to blame.

In New Zealand, immigrants face the possibility of culture being lost along with the language their children no longer wish to speak. Tiffany’s mother, Susanne Dvorak, has experienced this. When she and husband Dieter left Germany six years ago to start up a new life in New Zealand, they thought it would be the perfect opportunity to raise their two-year-old as a bilingual. After all, bilingual Turkish families in Germany were normal and Susanne had read all the books she could find on the subject.

The idea was to have as a German language environment and for Tiffany to learn English at nursery school. But when Tiffany went to nursery school she stopped talking completely. She was quiet for about two or three months. Then, when she took up talking again, it was only in English. Concerned for her language development, Dieter started speaking English to his daughter while Susanne continued in German.

Today, when Susanne speaks to her daughter in German, she still answers in English.‘Or sometimes she speaks half and half. I checked with her teacher and she very seldom mixes up German and English at school. She speaks English like a New Zealander. It’s her German that’s behind,’ says Susanne.

Professor Halford, also a mother of two bilingual children, says, ‘It’s normal for kids to refuse to speak their home language at the stage when they start to socialise with other kids in kindergarten or school’. But, she says, this depends a lot on the attitudes of the societies in question. In monolingual societies, like New Zealand, ‘kids want to be like all the others and sometimes use bilingualism as one of the battlefields for finding their own identity in contrast to that of their parents.’

She supports Susanne’s approach of not pressuring her daughter. ‘Never force the child to use a specific language, just keep using it yourself. The child will accept that. There is often a time when children or teenagers will need to establish their own identity as different from their schoolmates and they may use their other language to do so.’

Cathie Elder thinks immigrant parents should only speak English to their children if they are able to use English well themselves. ‘What parents should do is provide rich language experiences for their children in whatever language they speak well. They may feel like outsiders and want to speak the local language, but it is more important for the child’s language development to provide a lot of language experience in any language.’

There can be differences between children in attitudes to learning languages. Susanne Dvorak’s two-year-old son, Danyon, is already showing signs of speaking German and English equally well. While her ‘ideal’ scenario hasn’t happened with Tiffany, she is aware that her daughter has a certain bilingual ability which, although mainly passive at this stage, may develop later on.

Joanne Powell feels the same way about her daughter, Ani. ‘At the moment she may not want to speak Maori but that’s okay because she’ll pick it up again in her own time. It’s more important that she has the ability to understand who she is. By learning another language she can open the door to another culture.’

Donna Chan, 25, a marketing specialist for IBM, arrived here with her parents from Hong Kong when she was four. She also remembers refusing to speak Chinese when she started primary school. But now she appreciates she had the chance to be bilingual. ‘It’s quite beneficial speaking another language in my job. Last year, my company sent me to a trade fair in Hong Kong because I could speak Chinese. Being bilingual definitely opens doors,’ she says

Questions 28-31

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text?

In boxes 28-31 on your answer sheet, write

• TRUE                      if the statement agrees with the information
• FALSE                    if the statement contradicts the information
• NOT GIVEN         if there is no information on this in the passage

28. Most people who speak a second language in New Zealand were born in another country.
29. Most New Zealanders believe it is good lo teach children a second language.
30. Chinese is the most common foreign language in New Zealand.
31. Some languages develop your intelligence more than others.

Questions 32-38

Look at the following statements (Questions 32-38) and the list of people below.

Match each statement with the correct person, A-E. Write the correct letter, A-E, in boxes 32-38 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

1. Cathie Elder
2. Brigitte Halford
3. Susanne Dvorak
4. Joanne Powell
5. Donna Chan

32. Children learning two languages may learn one language faster.
33. It has been unexpectedly difficult to raise a bilingual child in New Zealand.
34. Her daughter sometimes speaks a mixture of two languages.
35. Children’s attitudes to language depend on general social attitudes.
36. It is not important which language parents speak with their children.
37. Learning a second language provides opportunities to learn another culture
38. Speaking a second language provides work opportunities.

Question 39

Choose TWO letters, A-F.

Write the correct letters in box 39 on your answer sheet.

Which TWO people stopped speaking one language as a child?

1. Donna Chan
2. Susanne Dvorak
3. Tiffany Dvorak
4. Cathie Elder
5. Brigitte Halford
6. Joanne Powell

Question 40

Choose TWO letters, A-F.

Write the correct letters in box 40 on your answer sheet.

Which TWO people think that their children’s language may develop as they get older?

1. Donna Chan
2. Susanne Dvorak
3. Tiffany Dvorak
4. Cathie Elder
5. Brigitte Halford
6. Joanne Powell

Section 1 Consumer advice on buying shoes Questions 1-8 General Reading Answers

1. TRUE
2. FALSE
3. FALSE
4. FALSE
5. NOT GIVEN
6. TRUE
7. NOT GIVEN
8. TRUE

Section 1 LOST CARDS Questions 9-14 General Reading Answers

9. D
10. B
11. B
12. B
13. C
14. C

Section 2 Recycling at work handy hints to employers Questions 15-21 General Reading Answers

15. (an) audit/(waste) audit
16. (duplex) printers
17. (educational) posters
18. (regular) newsletters
19. (writing) notes
20. (ceramic) mugs
21. (to) charities

Section 2 Recycling at work handy hints to employers Questions 22-27 General Reading Answers

22. (some) politicians
23. formula
24. (company) employees
25. shareholder reports
26. lies
27. benefited/benefitted

Section 3 TALKING POINT Questions 28-40 General Reading Answers

28. TRUE
29. NOT GIVEN
30. NOT GIVEN
31. FALSE
32. A
33. C
34. C
35. B
36. A
37. D
38. E
39. A,C
40. B,F

Holiday Plus

				HOLIDAY PLUS Need a break? Choose from these three wonderful holidays.
	Holiday Location	Price *	Number of nights	Daily meals included in Package	Comments	Transport to/ from airport
A	Mountain Lodge a unique wilderness retreat on the edge of the World Heritage- listed National Park and only 5 km from the sea	$330		mountain buffet breakfast plus free soft drinks always available	free canoeing free talks in the evening free open-air tennis courts horse-riding optional extra	self-drive auto 1 hour 15 minutes or bus three times/week approx. 2 hours
B	Pelican Resort a true coral island right on The Great Barrier Reef swim straight from the beach	$580	4	hot breakfast Plus beach picnic lunch plus set 4-course dinner	refurbishment: resort will close for May free minibus trips around island Plane flights to Wilson island only $50	1/2 hour by minibus
C	Core Lege	$740	4	tropical breakfast picnic lunch – optional extra	Oldest living rainforest free bikes and tennis courts; horse riding extra	10 mins by taxi

Questions 1–3

Look at the three holidays, A, B and C in above text.

For which holiday are the following statements true?

Write correct letter, A, B or C, in boxes 1-3 on your answer sheet.

1. This holiday doesn’t cater for young children.
2. This holiday provides a tour at no extra cost.
3. This holiday involves most travel time from the airport.

Questions 4–6

Answer the questions below.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answer in boxes 4-6 on your answer sheet.

4. When will one of the holiday locations not be open?
5. Which two outdoor activities are provided at no extra cost at Mountain Lodge?
6. What is the fastest way to travel to Mountain Lodge?

SYDNEY TRAVEL COLLEGE

At this College, we recommend the Multiplan policy.

Travel insurance requirements
As this course includes a total of three months’ travel outside Australia, travel insurance is compulsory. If you are sick or have an accident in Australia, your medical bills will be fully covered – however, you cannot assume that everything will be covered overseas, so please read the following requirements carefully

1. Medical
Australia has reciprocal medical arrangements with the governments of the eight nations you will be visiting. This arrangement will cover all emergency hospital   treatment. However, students will have to take out insurance such as Multiplan to cover the costs of all visits to doctors, and other non-emergency medical situations.

If you have a serious accident or illness, Multiplan insurance will cover the cost of your flight back to Australia, if required. Depending on the circumstances, this may also pay for either medical personnel or a family member to accompany you home. Multiplan insurance may not cover all pre-existing medical conditions – so before you leave be sure to check with them about any long-term illnesses or disabilities that you have.

If you do require medical treatment overseas, and you want to make a claim on your insurance, the claim will not be accepted unless you produce both your student card and your travel insurance card.

2. Belongings
The Multiplan policy covers most student requirements. In particular, it provides students with luggage insurance. This covers any loss or theft of your everyday belongings. For example, this insurance covers:

• the present value of items that are stolen, provided that you  have purchase receipts for every item; if no receipts, no payment can be made
• replacement value of your briefcase or backpack and study books
• portable computers and CD players, if you specifically list them as items in the policy

3. Cancellation
This insurance covers any non-refundable deposit and other costs you have paid if you have to cancel due to ‘unforeseen or unforeseeable circumstances outside your control’. It does not provide cover if you change your study or travel plans for other reasons.

Questions 7–14

Classify the following events as being

1. covered by government arrangements
2. covered by the Multiplan policy
3. not covered by the Multiplan policy
4. covered in some situations

Write the correct letter, A, B, C or D in boxes 7-14 on your answer sheet.

7. A student travelling overseas suddenly needs hospital treatment.
8. A student consults a doctor regarding a minor problem while abroad.
9. A parent goes overseas to bring an injured or sick student to Australia.
10. A student is treated overseas for an illness he/she had before leaving Australia.
11. A student who requires medical treatment has lost his/her travel insurance card.
12. A student’s study books are lost.
13. A student’s laptop is stolen.
14. A student changes his/her mind about plans to study and decides not to take the booked flight.

Section 2

You should take around 20 minutes to complete this task.

Kenichi Software: Security Guidelines for Staff

Read the text below and answers questions 15-27 on your answer sheet.

General
It is in everyone’s interest to maintain a high level of security in the workplace. You should immediately challenge any person who appears to be on the premises without proper authorisation, or inform a senior member of staff about any odd or unusual activity.

Company Property
You are advised that it is within the company’s legal rights to detain any person on the grounds that they may be involved in the unauthorised removal of company property. The company reserves the right to search staff members leaving or entering the premises and to inspect any article or motor vehicle on company property. It is a condition of employment that you submit to such action if requested.

It is in your own interest to ensure that you have proper authority before removing any item of company property from a company building. Any member found removing company property from the building without proper authority will be subject to disciplinary action.

Identity Badges
You will be issued with an identity badge, which should be worn at all times when you are on company premises. The purpose of  these badges is to safeguard our security. Badges are issued by  Human Resources, and contractors and people visiting the company on a one-off basis are also obliged to wear them.

Confidential Matters
In the course of your work, you may have access to information  relating to the company’s business, or that of a supplier or customer. Such material, even where it appears comparatively trivial, can have a serious effect on the company, supplier or customer if it falls into the wrong hands. It is, therefore, essential that you should at all times be aware of the serious view the company would take of disclosure of such material to outsiders.

You must treat as confidential all information, data, specifications, drawings and all documents relating to the company’s business and/or its trading activities, and not divulge, use, or employ them except in the company’s service. Before you leave the company, you must hand over to your manager all private notes relevant to the company’s business, activities, prices, accounts, costs etc. Legal proceedings may be initiated for any misuse or unauthorized disclosure of such confidential information, whether during employment or afterwards.

Questions 15–20

Complete the sentences below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 15-20 on your answer sheet.

15. If you see anything suspicious, you should report it to a ……………… employee.
16. If the company wants to stop you and ……………… you, you have to agree to it.
17. If you take things belonging to the company without permission, you will face ………………
18. Staff, ………………. and visitors must all wear a badge on company premises.
19. You must not pass on confidential information to ……………… .
20. If you leave the company, you have to hand in any ……………… you have made on matters concerning the company.

Read the text below and answer Questions 21–27.

Is Everyone Entitled to Paid Holidays?

The Working Time Regulations (WTRs) introduced a new right to paid holidays for most workers. However, some workers were not covered when the WTRs came into force in October 1998. Since the regulations were amended, with effect from 1 August 2003, the majority of these workers have been entitled to paid holidays, and since 1 August 2004, the regulations have also applied to junior doctors.

Workers who qualify are entitled to no fewer than four weeks of paid holiday a year, and public holidays (normally eight days in England and Wales) count towards this. However, workers and employers can agree longer holidays.

For the first year of work, special accrual rules apply. For each month of employment, workers are entitled to one-twelfth of the annual holiday. After the first year of employment, you can take your holiday entitlement at any time, with your employer’s approval.

Before taking holidays, you must give your employer notice of at least twice the length of the holiday you want to take: for instance, to take a five-day holiday, you must give at least ten days’ notice. If your employer does not want you to take that holiday, they can give you counter-notice equal to the holiday – for example, five days’ notice not to take a five-day holiday.

If the employer wants you to take holiday at a given time, e.g. when there is a shutdown at the same time every year,’ they must give you notice of at least twice the length of the holiday. There is no right for the worker to take that holiday at a different time.

Holiday cannot be carried over to the next year, unless your contract of employment allows this to happen. Nor can you be paid in lieu of your holiday. However, when you leave the job, you are entitled to receive payment for any outstanding holiday, provided your contract specifically allows for this.

It may be that your contract gives you better rights, or your holiday rights might be specified in a collective agreement. Your union representative can advise you on this.

Questions 21–27

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 21-27 on your answer sheet.

21. In what year were the regulations extended to cover most of the workers who were originally excluded?
22. What is the minimum annual paid holiday which workers are entitled to?
23. During a worker’s first year of employment, what proportion  of their annual holiday does a month’s work give?  
24. What can an employer give a worker to stop them taking holiday that they have requested?
25. What is given as a possible reason for an employee having to take a holiday at a certain time?
26. When an employee leaves their job, what should be given in place of any holiday they have not taken?
27. Apart from a contract, what type of document may set out an employee’s holiday rights?

Section 3

Read the text below and answers questions 28-40 on your answer sheet.

You should take around 20 minutes to complete this task.

Snake Oil

A.   Back in the days of America’s Wild West, when cowboys roamed the range and people were getting themselves caught up in gunfights, a new phrase – ‘snake oil’ – entered the language. It was a dismissive term for the patent medicines, often useless, sold by travelling traders who always claimed miraculous cures for everything from baldness to snakebite.

Selling ‘snake oil’ was almost as risky a business as cattle stealing; you might be run out of town if your particular medicine, as you realised it would, failed to live up to its claims. Consequently, the smarter – ‘snake oil’ sellers left town before their customers had much chance to evaluate the ‘cure’ they had just bought.

B.   The remarkable thing about many of the medicines dismissed then as ‘snake oil’ is not so much that they failed to live up to the outrageous claims made for them – those that weren’t harmless coloured water could be positively dangerous. What’s remarkable is that so many of the claims made for some of these remedies, or at least their ingredients, most of them, plant based, have since been found to have at least some basis in fact.

One, Echinacea, eventually turned out to be far more potent than even its original promoter claimed. Echinacea first appeared in ‘Meyer’s Blood Purifier’, promoted as a cure-all by a Dr H.C.F. Meyer – a lay doctor with no medical qualifications.  ‘Meyer’s Blood Purifier’ claimed not only to cure snakebite, but also to eliminate a host of other ailments.

C.   Native to North America, the roots of Echinacea, or purple coneflower, had been used by the Plains Indians for all kinds of ailments long before Meyer came along. They applied poultices of it to wounds and stings, used it for teeth and gum disease and made a tea from it to treat everything from colds and measles to arthritis. They even used it for snakebite.

D.   Settlers quickly picked up on the plant’s usefulness but until Meyer sent samples of his ‘blood purifier’ to John Lloyd, a  pharmacist, it remained a folk remedy. Initially dismissing Meyer’s claims as nonsense, Lloyd was eventually converted after a colleague, John King, tested the herb and successfully used it to treat bee stings and nasal congestion.

In fact, he went much further in his claims than Meyer ever did and by the 1890s a bottle of tincture⁽¹⁾ of Echinacea could be found in almost every American home, incidentally making a fortune for Lloyd’s company, Lloyd Brothers Pharmacy.  

E.   As modern antibiotics became available, the use of Echinacea products declined and from the 1940s to the 1970s it was pretty much forgotten in the USA. It was a different story in Europe, where both French and German herbalists and homeopaths continued to make extensive use of it.

It had been introduced there by Gerhard Madaus, who travelled from Germany to America in 1937, returning with seed to establish commercial plots of Echinacea. His firm conducted extensive research on echinacin, a concentrate they made from the juice of flowering tops of the plants he had brought back. It was put into ointments, liquids for internal and external use, and into products for injections.

F.   There is no evidence that Echinacea is effective against snakebite, but Dr Meyer – who genuinely believed in Echinacea  – would probably be quite amused if he could come back and see the uses to which modern science has put ‘his’ herb. He might not be surprised that science has confirmed Echinacea’s role as a treatment for wounds, or that it has been found to be helpful in relieving arthritis, both claims Meyer made for the herb.

He might though be surprised to learn how Echinacea is proving to be an effective weapon against all sorts of disease, particularly infections. German researchers had used it successfully to treat a range of infections and found it to be effective against bacteria and protozoa ⁽²⁾.

There are many other intriguing medical possibilities for extracts from the herb, but its apparent ability to help with our more common ailments has seen thousands of people become enthusiastic converts. Dozens of packaged products containing extracts of Echinacea can now be found amongst the many herbal remedies and supplements on the shelves of health stores and pharmacies. Many of those might be the modern equivalents of ‘snake oil’, but Echinacea at least does seem to have some practical value.

G.   Echinacea is a dry prairie plant, drought-resistant and pretty tolerant of most soils, although it does best in good soil with plenty of sun. Plants are usually grown from seed but they are sometimes available from nurseries. Echinacea is a distinctive perennial with erect, hairy, spotted stems up to a meter tall. Flower heads look like daisies, with purple rayed florets and a dark brown central cone. The leaves are hairy; the lower leaves are oval to lance-shaped and coarsely and irregularly toothed.

H.   There are nine species of Echinacea in all but only three are generally grown for medicinal use. All have similar medicinal properties. Most European studies have used liquid concentrates extracted from the tops of plants, whereas extraction in the USA has usually been from the roots. Today   most manufacturers blend both, sometimes adding flowers and seeds to improve the quality.

For the home grower, the roots of all species seem equally effective. Dig them up in autumn after the tops have died back after the first frost. Wash and dry them carefully and store them in glass containers. You can harvest the tops throughout the summer and even eat small amounts of leaf straight from the plant.

Even if you don’t make your fortune from this herb, there are few sights more attractive than a field of purple coneflowers in all their glory. And with a few Echinacea plants nearby, you’ll never go short of a cure.
———————————————————-
(1) a liquid containing a special ingredient
(2) a type of micro-organism

Questions 28-33

The text on following pages has eight sections, A-H.

Choose the correct heading for sections C-H from the list of headings below.

Section A and Section B have been done for you.

Write the correct number, i-xi, in boxes 28-33 on your answer sheet.

List of Headings

1. Where to buy the best Echinacea
2. What ‘snake oil’ contained  
3. Growing Echinacea
4. How to use the Echinacea plant
5. Earlier applications of Echinacea
6. The origins of the term ‘snake oil’
7. Early research into the effectiveness of Echinacea
8. How ‘snake oil’ was first invented
9. The use of Echinacea in new locations
10. Modern evidence of the effectiveness of Echinacea
11. Early kinds of ‘snake oil’

Examples       Answers

Section A           vi
Section B           xi

28. Section C
29. Section D
30. Section E
31. Section F
32. Section G
33. Section H

Questions 34–40

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text?

In boxes 34-40 on your answer sheet, write:

• True    if the statement agrees with the information
• False   if the statement contradicts the information
• Not given   if there is no information on this

34. ‘Snake oil’ sellers believed their product was effective.
35. Most people in the Wild West mistrusted ‘snake oil’.
36. Some ‘snake oils’ were mostly water.
37. All ‘snake oils’ contained Echinacea.
38. Echinacea has been proven to kill microbes.
39. The highest quality Echinacea is grown in America.
40. More than one part of the Echinacea plant has a medicinal use.

Section 1 Holiday Plus Questions 1-6 General Reading Answers

1. C
2. B
3. A
4. (for/in) May
5. canoeing (and) tennis [in either order; both required for one mark]
6. (by) (self-drive) auto (mobile)

Section 1 SYDNEY TRAVEL COLLEGE Questions 7-14 General Reading Answers

7. A
8. B
9. D
10. D
11. C
12. B
13. D
14. C

Section 2 Kenichi Software: Security Guidelines for Staff Questions 15-20 General Reading Answers

15. senior
16. (to) search
17. disciplinary action
18. contractors
19. outsiders
20. (private) notes
21. (in) 2003

Section 2 Is Everyone Entitled to Paid Holidays? Questions 21-27 General Reading Answers

21. (in) 2003
22. 4 weeks (a year)
23. one twelfth// one-twelfth (of annual holiday(s))
24. (equal) counter-notice
25. (the) (annual) shutdown // (a) shutdown
26. (a) (holiday) payment/ outstanding holiday payment
27. (a) collective agreement

Section 3 Snake Oil Questions 28-40 General Reading Answers

28. v
29. vii
30. ix
31. x
32. iii
33. iv
34. FALSE
35. NOT GIVEN
36. TRUE
37. FALSE
38. TRUE
39. NOT GIVEN
40. TRUE

Section 1

Read the text below and answer questions 1-7.

The Young Person’s Railcard

A Young Person’s Railcard gives young people the opportunity to purchase discounted rail tickets across Britain. Just imagine where it could take you – to festivals, to see distant friends or to London for a weekend break.

Who can apply?
Absolutely anybody between 16 and 25 can apply. You will need to provide proof that you are under 26 years of age. For this, only your birth certificate, driving licence, passport or medical card will be acceptable. Alternatively, if you are a mature student over this age but in full-time education, you can also apply. In order to prove your eligibility, you will need to get your headteacher, tutor, or head of department to sign the application form as well as one of your photos, the latter also needing to be officially stamped. ‘Full-time education’ is defined as over 15 hours per week for at least 20 weeks a year.

Then go along to any major railway station, rail-appointed travel agent or authorised student travel office with your completed application form from this leaflet, together with £28, two passport-sized photos and proof of eligibility.

Using your railcard
You can use it at any time – weekends, Bank Holidays or during the week. But if you travel before 10 am Monday to Friday (except during July and August) minimum fares will apply. For full details of these, please ask at your local station or contact a rail-appointed travel agent.

Conditions
In cases where a railcard does not bear the user’s signature, it will be treated as invalid. Neither your railcard nor any tickets bought with it may be used by anybody else. Unless there are no purchase facilities available at the station where you began your journey, you will be required to pay the full fare if you are unable to produce a valid ticket for inspection during a journey.

Reduced rate tickets are not available for first-class travel or for Eurostar links to France and Belgium. Passengers will be charged the full rate if they want to use these services.

Questions 1-7

Complete the sentences below.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet.

1. Railcard applicants over 25 need to be involved in ………….
2. For mature, full-time students, one of the photographs submitted must be signed and ……………
3. At certain times of the year, there are no for………….. railcard holders at any time of day.
4. If your railcard doesn’t have your……………… it will be impossible to use it for travel.
5. The benefits of a railcard are not transferable to ……………
6. If you have no ticket but boarded a train at a station without any…… you will still be eligible for a discounted ticket.
7. If railcard holders wish to use the Eurostar network they must pay the ……………….

Read the text below and answer Questions 8-14.

TRAIN TRAVEL INFORMATION

We offer several distinct options for you to choose the ticket that suits you best.
TICKET TYPE DISCOUNT* NOTES
standard returns 20% return within 60 days of outward trip
same day returns 25% ticket cannot be altered or refunded
children 40% children between 4 and 11
students 25% student card Trust be shown
senior citizens 25% seniors card must be shown
groups (10-25 people) 15% discount on each section of the trip
globe-trotter tickets according to ticket Railpass, Tourist Card, Econopass
* Only one discount may apply to each fare.

CHANGES AND REFUNDS
Tickets may be refunded not later than 5 minutes before the departure of the train for a charge of 15% of the ticket price, or the journey may be changed to another day for a charge of 10% of the ticket price. (Not applicable to same day returns.)

CHANGES FOR SAME DAY TRAVEL
You may change your ticket once without charge for a journey on the same day as the original ticket.

INFORMATION OF INTEREST TO TRAVELLERS
• When you buy your ticket it is up to you to check that the dates and times of the journey on it are exactly as you requested.
• Ticket control and access to each train platform will be open until 2 minutes before departure of the train.
• Each traveller may take one suitcase and one item of hand Luggage. You may also check in 15kgs. of luggage not later than 30 minutes before departure, at no extra charge.
• If you would like to charter a train, or make reservations for over 25 passengers travelling together, call the Sales Department.

OUR TIMETABLE IS GUARANTEED
If the arrival of your train at your destination is delayed by more than 5 minutes according to the timetable, we will refund the full price of your ticket if the delay is caused by our company

Questions 8-14

Complete the summary below.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 8-14 on your answer sheet.

An elderly person who is also studying full-time receives a concession of (8)………………. Large groups people who want to reserve seats should get in touch with the (9)……………..If travellers cancel their trip, they will usually receive back the ticket price less (10)………………… or they may change the date of their trip by paying (11)……………… of the original value. These concessions do not apply in the case of 12………… It is the passenger’s responsibility to make sure the (13)……………. and ……….. are correct.

Travellers should ensure they are ready to board the train with a: least (14)………………. to spare. They may take a suitcase with them in the carriage as well as hand luggage. A traveller may check in 15 kilos maximum weight of luggage but his must be done at least 30 minutes before the train leaves.

SECTION 2

Read the text below and answer Questions 15-20.

Professional Credentials: Advice for Immigrants

As an immigrant to North America, you will need to ensure that employers and organisations such as colleges and universities properly recognise your international credentials. These may be trade certificates, but also educational qualifications such as degrees or diplomas, that you have completed or partially-completed.

It is common for hiring personnel to have little or no training in evaluating an academic background earned outside of North America. But at the same time, employers see formal education as very important when hiring. Education is a hiring requirement for 60% of employment opportunities, but 40% of human resources staff say that if they do not know a lot about the value of documents attained elsewhere, they will not recognise them.

Research has shown that sometimes immigrants start with a lower salary level than people who have completed their training in North America. You may want to apply for employment opportunities with companies whose staff understands your situation or, more importantly, who know where to send you to get your North American qualifications. If you need to complete your training in North America, apprenticeships leading to skilled trades are in high demand. Apprenticeship training is a hands-on program where about 10% is in a classroom setting at community colleges, and 90% of the training is at-the-job. The training involves working for an employer and earning income during the training period. Sometimes there is a limit of 5 years for training. You may be able to use this training toward college or university credits or education. There is a good potential for long-term job security after completion of apprenticeship training.

If you earned your papers outside of North America, you will need to get them translated if you want to work or study. It is important for you that your education is assessed by an accredited assessment service when you are applying for jobs, and particularly if the job posting has an education requirement. As well, it is recommended that you include a copy of the report with your cover letter. It is suggested that you provide this information early and do not wait until the time you actually meet with the employer. Getting job interviews is more than 50% of the whole process of securing employment; and with an evaluation report, you want to make sure that employers are screening you ‘in rather than ‘out’.

Establishing yourself in North America is a difficult process, but companies do consider integrating immigrants into the workforce important to the workplace mosaic. Employers are making significant progress in improving diversity at work

Questions 15-20

Complete the sentences below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 15-20 on your answer sheet.

15. New arrivals to North America need to make sure that their academic qualifications or their…………… are accepted.
16. A significant number of companies view…..…. as a major requirement.
17. People educated in North America may initially be offered a higher………. than immigrants.
18. ………… courses often provide more job stability.
19. Most of the effort to find work is spent trying to obtain………
20. As more newcomers enter the workforce………… increases.

Read the text below and answer Questions 21-27.

How to Prepare for a Presentation

The first time your boss suggests that you formally present something to your department or a client, your reaction may be to panic. But remember that being asked to present is a compliment. Someone believes that you have valuable information to share with the group, and wants to listen to your ideas.

You need to decide exactly what you will say during the allotted time. Condense your topic into one sentence. What do you want your audience to remember or learn from your talk? This is your big Idea’. Remember that you are dealing with the short attention spans of individuals who tend to have many things on their minds.

Think of three main points you want to make to support your overall topic. Develop a story to demonstrate each of those concepts. This could be something that happened to you or someone you know, or something you read in a newspaper or magazine.

We have all heard the saying A picture Is worth a thousand words. Think about how your presentation can be more interesting to watch. Props are a wonderful way to make your talk come alive. You could do something as simple as holding up a toy phone receiver when talking about customer service or putting on a hat to signal a different part of your talk.

Think of a dynamic and unusual way to start your presentation. This might involve telling anecdotes that relate to your topic. Never begin with, ‘Thank you for inviting me here to talk with you today: You will put your audience to sleep right away. Start off enthusiastically so they will listen with curiosity and interest. After your energetic introduction, identify yourself briefly and thank the audience for taking the time to listen to you.

Plan your ending, and finish in a memorable way. Your listen-s remember best what they hear at the beginning and end of a speech, so conclude with a game in which they can participate, or tell a humorous story and your audience will leave laughing.

Don’t try to memorise your talk or read it word-for-word. It will sound stilted and boring. Instead, practise your dynamic Introduction and conclusion until you can deliver them effortlessly. If you do this you’ll feel a burst of confidence that will help you sail through the whole of the speech.

Questions 21-27

Complete the sentences below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 21-27 on your answer sheet.

How to Prepare for a Presentation
• You should regard an invitation to speak as a 21…………
• Express your main idea in a 22……
• Try using a……… 23 to support the major points you are making.
• Add visual excitement to your talk by using 24………..
• Express appreciation to your listeners for their 25………….
• A 26……….. will get the audience to interact.
• It is important to prepare well as this will increase your 27………….

Section 3

Read the text below and answer Questions 28-40.

The Birdmen

Will people finally be able to fly long distances without a plane?
John Andres investigates

People have dreamt of flying since written history began. In the 1400s, Leonardo da Vinci drew detailed plans for human flying machines. You might have thought the invention of mechanised flight would have put an end to such ideas. Far from it. For many enthusiasts, the ultimate flight fantasy is the jet pack, a small piece of equipment on your back which enables you to climb vertically into the air and fly forwards, backwards and turn. Eric Scott was a stuntman in Hollywood for about a decade and has strapped jet packs to his back more than 600 times and propelled himself hundreds of metres into the air. Now he works for an energy-drink company that pays him to travel around the world with his jet pack. As Scott says: ‘I get to do what I love and wherever I go I advertise Go Fast drinks. Existing packs work for little more than 30 seconds, but people are working on designs which let you fly around for 20 minutes. That would be amazing,’ says Scott.

Paramotoring is another way of getting into the air. It combines the sort of parachute used in paragliding with a small engine and propeller and is now becoming popular. Chris Clarke has been flying a paramotor for five years. ‘Getting about is roughly comparable with driving a petrol-powered car in terms of expense. The trouble is that paramotoring is ill-suited to commuting because of the impossibility of taking off in strong winds,’ says Clarke.

Another keen paramotorist recently experienced a close call when in the air. ‘I started to get a warm feeling in my back,’ says Patrick Vandenbulcke. ‘I thought I was just sweating. But then I started to feel burning and I realized I had to get to the ground fast. Aker an inspection of the engine later, I noticed that the exhaust pipe had moved during the flight and the harness had started melting.’ This hasn’t put Vandenbulcke off, however, and he is enthusiastic about persuading others to take up paramotoring. However he warns: ‘Although it seems cheaper to try to teach yourself, you will regret it later as you won’t have a good technique.’ A training course will cost over £1,000, while the equipment costs a few thousand pounds. You may pick up cheaper equipment secondhand, however. There was one pre-used kit advertised on a website, with a bit of damage to the cage and tips of the propellers due to a rough landing. ‘Scared myself to death,’ the seller reported, ‘hence the reason for this sale.’

Fun though it is, paramotoring is not in the same league as the acrobatics demonstrated by Yves Rossy. He has always enjoyed being a daredevil showman. He once parachuted from a plane above Lake Geneva and, intentionally skimming the top of a fountain as he landed, he descended to the lake where he grabbed some water ski equipment and started waterskiing while the crowd watched open-mouthed.

Rossy, who has been labelled ‘the Birdman, was born in 1959 in Switzerland. After flying planes for the air force from the ages of 20 to 28, he went on to do a job as a pilot with a commercial airline from 1988 to 2000. ‘The cockpit of a plane is the most beautiful office in the world,’ he says, ‘but I didn’t have any contact with the air around me. It was a bit like being in a box or a submarine under water.’ From then on, he therefore concentrated on becoming the first jet-powered flying man.

In May 2008, he stepped out of an aircraft at about 3000 metres. Within seconds he was soaring and diving at over 290 kph, at one point reaching 300 kph, about 104 kph faster than the typical falling skydiver. His speed was monitored by a plane flying alongside. Rossy started his flight with a free fall, then he powered four jet turbines to keep him in the air before releasing a parachute which enabled him to float to the ground. The jet turbines are attached to special wings which he can unfold. The wings were manufactured by a German firm called JCT Composites. Initially he had approached a company called Jet-Ki: which specialised in miniature planes, but the wings they made for him weren’t rigid enough to support the weight of the engines. Rossy says he has become ‘the first person to maintain a stable horizontal flight, thanks to aerodynamic carbon foldable wings.’ Without these special wings, it is doubtful he would have managed to do this.

Rossy’s ambitions include flying down the Grand Canyon. To do this, he will have to fit his wings with bigger, more powerful jets. The engines he currently uses already provide enough thrust to allow him to climb through the air, but then he needs the power to stay there. In terms of the physical strength involved, Rossy insists it’s no more difficult than riding a motorbike. ‘But even the slightest change in position can cause problems. I have to focus hard on relaxing in the air, because if you put tension in your body, you start to swing round.’ If he makes it, other fliers will want to know whether they too will some day be able to soar. The answer is yes, possibly, but it is unlikely to be more than an expensive hobby.

Questions 28-30

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D. Write the correct letter in boxes 28-30 on your answer sheet.

28. What information is given about Vandenbulcke in paragraph 3?
    1. He narrowly avoided a dangerous situation.
    2. He did not understand the equipment he was using.
    3. He did not react fast enough to the situation.
    4. He was fortunate to get the help he needed.
29. When the writer refers to some second-hand paramotoing equipment which was for sale, he is emphasising that
    1. paramotoring equipment is in short supply
    2. paramotoring equipment needs to be carefully tested.
    3. paramotoring is a very expensive hobby.
    4. paramotoring can be a dangerous pastime.
30. The description of what happened at Lake Geneva is given to suggest that Rossy
    1. frequently changes his plans.
    2. likes to do what appears impossible.
    3. is an excellent overall sportsman.
    4. knows the area very thoroughly.

Questions 31-35

Complete the summary below.

Choose ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 31-35 on your answer sheet.

Yves Rossy

Yves Rossy was born in 1959. He worked as both a military and 31…….. pilot before focusing on his ambition of becoming a jet-powered flying man. First he asked a firm which made 32……….. planes to construct some 33…………. for him, but these proved unsuitable. The second company he approached was able to help him, however. On a flight in May 2008, he managed to achieve a top speed of 34………. easily exceeding the speed achieved by the average 35………… He lad engines to keep him in the air and then used a parachute when it was time to come down.

Questions 36-40

Look at the following statements (Questions 36-40) and the list of people below.

Match each statement with the correct person, A, B, C or D.

Write the correct letter, A, B, C or D, in boxes 36-40 on your answer sheet.

36. He acknowledges the role of his equipment in enabling him to set a flying record.
37. He explains how he uses his flying expertise to promote a product.
38. He explains what led him to experiment with different ways of flying.
39. He describes a mistake some beginners might make.
40. He mentions circumstances which prevent you from leaving the ground.

People

1. Eric Scott
2. Chris Clarke
3. Patrick Vandenbulcke
4. Yves Rossy

Section 1 The Young Person’s Railcard Questions 1-7 Answers

1. full-time education
2. (officially) stamped
3. minimum fares
4. signature
5. anybody else
6. purchase facilities
7. full fare/ rate

Section 1 Questions 8-14 TRAIN TRAVEL INFORMATION Answers

8. 25%
9. sales department
10. 15%
11. 10%
12. same day returns
13. dates, times
14. 2 minutes

Section 2 Questions 15-20 Professional Credentials: Advice for Immigrants Answers

15. trade certificates
16. (formal) education
17. salary (level)
18. apprenticeship (training)
19. (job) interview
20. (workplace/workforce) diversity

Section 2 Questions 21-27 How to Prepare for a Presentation Answers

21. compliment
22. sentence
23. story
24. props
25. time
26. game
27. confidence

Section 3 Questions 28-40 The Birdmen Answers

28. A
29. D
30. B
31. commercial
32. miniature
33. wings
34. 300 kph
35. skydivers
36. D
37. A
38. D
39. C
40. B

Section 1

Read the text below and answer questions 1-6.

A HELP- snack bar serving person – Bright, friendly, experience not essential – Energy and enthusiasm an absolute must – Sat & Sun only – Call or drop in at Kingway Centre, Melbourne/ Royston – Tel: 01763 24272 and ask for the manager	B Granta Hotel – Requires part time silver service waiter/ waitress – only applicants with experience and good references need apply – excellent wages, meals on duty – Tel: 01223 51468 (office hours)
C WANTED from January till July a nanny/carer for Toby, 2 years – formal qualifications not as important as a sensible, warm and imaginative approach – Hours: 8.50 – 5.00 Mon-Fri – car driver essential, non-smoker -references required – for further details phone: 01480 88056 after 6 pm	D Cleaner required for 12 floor modern office block in the Station road area St. Ives – 2 hours per day, Mondays to Fridays – to finish work before the office opens Wages: $80 per week Tel: 01223 93292
E Mature, experienced administrator/ secretary for soft furnishing company, working within hotel industry Hours: 1 pm – 5 pm, Mon-Fri Phone: Mr. S Quinn 01353 71251	F FULL – TIME COOK for a new and exciting cafe venture – good conditions – pay and hours can be negotiated Apply Red Cafe (01863) 72052
G 50 – SEATER REATAURANT TO LET – ideal for very experienced person looking to start up on their own – located on busy A10 road – reply Box No. P762, New Market Newspaper Ltd., 51 Cambridge Road, New Market, CB8 3BN

Questions 1-6

Look at the seven job advertisements, A-G, and read the descriptions of people below.

Which is the most suitable job for each person?

1. a person with two small children who wants a few hours a week of unskilled work in the early mornings
2. a person with no experience or qualifications who is looking for a short term full¬time job, Monday to Friday
3. a lively student with no experience, who cannot work on weekdays
4. a person with more than 20 years’ experience in catering who would like to run a business
5. a catering college graduate who is now looking for his first full-time job
6. a person with many years’ experience working in hotels who is now looking for well- paid part-time employment in a hotel

Read the text below and answer Questions 7-14.

INTERCITY Sleeper between London and Scotland

Most tickets may be used for travel by Sleeper, subject to availability, and a reservation in a two- berth cabin can be made for £25, except in the case of Solo and Special tickets, which include Sleeper reservations in the fare. The price includes early morning tea or coffee and biscuits. A continental or hot breakfast can be ordered if you wish.
Choose from a range of tickets to suit your journey.

A – SuperApex
Only available for travel after 9am. Book at least 2 weeks ahead and travel between Edinburgh or Glasgow and London for the unbeatable price of £59 return. This ticket is non-refundable unless the service is cancelled.

B – Apex
Areal bargain fare. Only £69 return between Edinburgh or Glasgow and London. Great value Sleeper travel available by booking at least a week before outward travel. Ticket refundable on payment of a 25% administrative charge.

C – SuperSaver
Available right up to the day of travel and valid any day except these peak days: all Fridays, also 18-30 December, 31 March and 28 May. Departures between midnight and 2am count as previous day’s departures. London to Glasgow or Edinburgh £82.

D – Saver
This flexible ticket is valid every day and can be bought on the day of travel. Your ticket allows standard class travel on any train between 10am and midnight. No seat reservations available. London to Glasgow or Edinburgh £95.

E – Solo
Treat yourself and enjoy exclusive use of a Standard cabin. Solo is an inclusive return travel ticket with Sleeper reservations for one or both directions. Outward and return reservations should be made at the time of booking. The journey must include a Saturday night away. £140-£160 London to Edinburgh/Glasgow return.

F – Special
Special is an inclusive return travel package for two people including sleeper reservations for one or both directions. It can mean savings for both of you. Outward and return reservations should be made at the time of booking. From £120.

G – Standard
Not the cheapest option but available up to the time of travel and valid for all trains and at all times. You are advised to turn up early for travel on a Friday.

Questions 7-14

Look at the seven types of train ticket, A-G, in the previous text.

For which type of train ticket are the following statements true?

Write the correct letter, A-G, in boxes 7-14 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

7. There are advantages if you book a journey with a friend.
8. You cannot use this on a Friday.
9. This can be used without restriction.
10. This can only be booked up to 7 days before departure.
11. It’s the cheapest ticket available but there is a restriction on departure time.
12. If you decide not to travel after you have bought the ticket, you cannot get your money back.
13. This is not available if you’re travelling out on a Monday and back the next day.
14. You cannot use this ticket for departures between midnight and 10am.

Read the text below and answer Questions 15-21

Formal Dress Code For Company Employees

At Transit European, the company’s objective in establishing a formal dress code is to enable our employees to project the professional image that is in keeping with the needs of our clients and customers who seek our guidance, input, and professional services. Because our industry requires the appearance of trusted business professionals and we serve clients at our site on a daily basis, a more formal dress code is necessary for our employees.

Formal Dress Code Guidelines
In a formal business environment, the standard of dressing for men and women is a suit. Alternatively a jacket may be worn with appropriate accessories. Torn, dirty, or frayed clothing is unacceptable. Clothing should be pressed and never wrinkled. No dress code can cover all contingencies so employees must exert a certain amount of judgement in their choice of clothing to wear to work. If you experience uncertainty, please ask your supervisor for advice.

Shoes and Footwear
Conservative walking shoes, dress shoes, loafers, boots, flats, dress heels, and backless shoes are acceptable for work. Not wearing stockings or socks is inappropriate. Tennis shoes and any shoe with an open toe are not acceptable in the office.

Accessories and Jewellery
The wearing of ties, scarves, belts, and jewellery is encouraged, provided they are tasteful. Items which are flashy should be avoided.

Makeup, Perfume, and Cologne
A professional appearance is encouraged and excessive makeup is unprofessional. Remember that some employees may have allergic reactions to the chemicals in perfumes and makeup, so wear these substances in moderation.

Hats and Head Covering
Hats are not appropriate in the office. Head covers that are required for reasons of faith or to honour cultural tradition are permitted.

Dress Down Days
Certain days can be declared dress down days, generally Fridays. On these days, business casual clothing is allowed. Clothing that has our company logo is strongly encouraged. Sports team, university, and fashion brand names on clothing are generally acceptable. However, you may wish to keep a jacket in your office in case a client unexpectedly appears.

Violation of Dress Code
If clothing fails to meet these standards, as determined by the employee’s supervisor, the employee will be asked not to wear the inappropriate item to work again. If the problem persists, the employee will receive a verbal warning and may be sent home to change clothes.

Question 15-21

Complete the notes below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 15-21 on your answer sheet.

NOTES ON COMPANY DRESS CODE

Aim of formal dress code: to present a (15)……………….to clients
Acceptable types of formal clothing: jacket or suit
State of clothes: they must be (16)……………………….and in good condition
Footwear: tennis shoes and open toe shoes are not allowed
Accessories: ties, scarves, belts and jewellery may be worn
-these must be (17)………………and not brightly coloured
Make up: avoid wearing too much make up and perfume.
-these sometimes cause (18)………………………
Hats: hats should not be worn
-head covers in line with religious reasons or (19)…………………..are allowed
Dressing down: casual clothing is allowed on some Fridays
-clothing with the (20)………………………..on it is recommended
Breaking the dress code: if advice is repeatedly ignored, a (21)………………………..is given

Read the text below and answer Questions 22-27

JLP Retail: Staff Benefits

Whatever your role, your pay range will be extremely competitive and reviewed in the light of your progress. In addition to your salary, you will enjoy an array of excellent benefits from the moment you join the company.

Paid holiday
The holiday entitlement is four weeks per year, rising to five weeks after three years (or in the case of IT graduate trainees, after promotion to programmer or trainee analyst). There are further long-service increases for most staff after ten or fifteen years. Managers, including graduate trainees, receive five weeks’ holiday from the outset.

Pension scheme
We offer a non-contributory final salary pension scheme, payable from the age of 60, to most staff who have completed the qualifying period of five years.

Life assurance
Our life assurance scheme pays a sum equivalent to three times your annual salary to your nominated beneficiary.

Discounts
After three months’ service, all staff are entitled to a 12% discount on most purchases from the company’s stores. This rises to 25% after one year’s service.

Subsidised dining room
In most sites, we provide a dining room where you can enjoy excellent food at very reasonable prices.

Holiday and leisure facilities
The business owns a number of residential clubs which offer subsidised holiday accommodation for staff with at least three years’ service.

Sports clubs
We support an extensive range of sports activities including football, netball, golf, skiing, sailing, squash, riding and gliding.

Ticket subsidies
Ticket subsidies of 50% of the cost of plays or concerts are available. Staff may also take advantage of corporate membership to bodies such as the Science Museum.

Education subsidies
We give generous financial support to staff who wish to acquire leisure skills or continue their education, e.g. through the Open University or evening classes.

Extended leave
Staff who complete 25 years’ service can enjoy paid sabbatical leave of up to six months.

Health services
We have an occupational health service staffed by full-time doctors and health advisers.

Financial help, benefits and discounted deals
In cases of particular hardship, we will help staff with a loan. We have also negotiated a range of benefits for staff such as discounted private healthcare and a car purchase scheme, along with a number of one-off deals with hotels and amusement parks.

Questions 22-27

Complete the sentences below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 22-27 on your answer sheet.

22. Pay increases depend on the that each member of staff makes.
23. Employees must work a minimum of to be eligible for a pension.
24. Staff may take a holiday at one of the provided by the company.
25. The company pay half the seat price for and plays.
26. The company gives financial assistance for both educational courses and as part of staff development.
27. Employees may be entitled to a if they find themselves in difficult circumstances.

Section 3

A On the afternoon of 30th August 1989, fire broke out at Uppark, a large eighteenth- century house in Sussex. For a year builders had been replacing the lead on the roof, and by a stroke of irony, were due to finish the next day, on August 31st. Within fifteen minutes of the alarm being sounded, the fire brigade had arrived on the scene, though nothing was to survive of the priceless collection on the first floor apart from an oil painting of a dog which the firemen swept up as they finally retreated from the blaze. But due to the courage and swift action of the previous owners, the Meade-Featherstonhaugh family, and the staff, stewards and visitors to the house, who formed human chains to pass the precious pieces of porcelain, furniture and paintings out on to the lawn, 95 per cent of the contents from the ground floor and the basement were saved. As the fire continued to rage, the National Trust’s conservators were being mobilised, and that evening local stationers were especially opened to provide the bulk supplies of blotting paper so desperately needed in the salvage operation.

B The following morning, Uppark stood open to the sky. A sludge of wet charcoal covered the ground floor and basement, and in every room charred and fallen timbers lay amongst the smoke. It was a scene of utter devastation.

C After the initial sense of shock, the days which followed the fire were filled with discoveries. Helped by volunteers, the National Trust’s archaeologists and conservators swung into action, first of all marking the site out into a grid and then salvaging everything down to the last door handle. The position of each fragment was recorded, and all the debris was stored in countless dustbins before being shifted and categorised.

D There was great excitement as remnants of the lantern from the Staircase Hall were pulled out from the debris of two fallen floors, and also three weeks later when the Red Room carpet, thought to have been totally lost, was found wrapped around the remains of a piano. There was a lucky reprieve for the State Bed too. Staff who had left the scene at 3am on the night of the fire had thought its loss was inevitable, but when they returned the next morning it had escaped largely undamaged. Firemen, directed by the National Trust’s conservators from outside the Tapestry Room window, dismantled the silk-hung bed and passed it out piece by piece. Twenty minutes later the ceiling fell in.

E The scale of the task to repair Uppark was unprecedented in the National Trust. The immediate question was whether it should be done at all. A decision had to be whatever had not been damaged by the fire was exposed to the elements. Within a month, after consulting many experts and with the agreement of the National Trust’s Executive Committee, the restoration programme began. It was undertaken for three main reasons. After the fire it had become apparent just how much remained of the structure with its splendidly decorated interiors; to have pulled the house down, as one commentator suggested, would have been vandalism. Also the property was covered by insurance, so the repairs would not call upon the National Trust’s own funds. Lastly, much had been saved of the fine collection acquired especially for Uppark from 1747 by Sir Matthew Featherstonhaugh and his son Harry. These objects belonged nowhere else, and complete restoration of the house would allow them to be seen and enjoyed again in their original setting.

F The search for craftsmen and women capable of doing the intricate restoration work was nation-wide. Once the quality and skill of the individual or company had been ascertained, they had to pass an economic test, as everyjob was competitively tendered. This has had enormous benefits because not only have a number of highly skilled people come to the fore – woodcarvers for example, following in the footsteps of Grinling Gibbons – but many of them, for example plasterers, have relearnt the skills of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries which can now be of use to other country house owners when the need arises.

G In june 1994 the building programme was completed, on time and on budget. The total cost of the work to repair the house and its contents came to be nearly £20 million, largely met from insurance. In addition, it made economic sense for the National Trust to invest time and money in upgrading water and heating systems, installing modern environmental controls, and updating fire and security equipment.

H The final stages of restoration and the massive programme of reinstallation took eight months. The family and the room stewards were visibly moved when returning to their old haunts, perhaps the best testament that the spirit of Uppark had not died. But the debate will no doubt continue as to whether or not it was right to repair the house after the fire. The National Trust has done its best to remain true to Uppark; it is for others to judge the success of the project.

Note: The National Trust is a charitable organisation in Britain set up over a hundred years ago to preserve the national heritage.

Question 28-33

The text below has eight paragraphs A-H.

Write the appropriate letters, A-H, in boxes 28-33 on your answer sheet.

Which paragraphs contain the following information?

28. the procedure for sorting through the remains of the fire
29. how Uppark looked after the fire
30. improvements made to the rebuilt Uppark
31. the selection of people to carry out the repair work
32. why the National Trust chose to rebuild Uppark
33. how people reacted to the rebuilt Uppark

Questions 34-37

Answer the questions below.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 34-37 on your answer sheet.

34. On what date in 1989 should the original repairs to the roof have been completed?
35. By what method were things rescued immediately from the burning house?
36. After the fire, what did the conservators require large quantities of immediately?
37. Into what did the conservation put material recovered from the fire?

Question 38-40

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

Write the correct letter in boxes 38-40 on your answer sheet.

38. The fire destroyed
    1. all the contents of the ground floor.
    2. most of the contents of the basement.
    3. the roof of the house.
    4. all the contents of the first floor.
39. One of the reasons the National Trust decided to rebuild Uppark was that
    1. the Meade-Featherstonhaugh family wanted them to.
    2. the building as it stood was unsound.
    3. they wouldn’t have to pay for the repairs.
    4. nothing on this scale had been tried before.
40. Some of the craftsmen and women employed in the restoration of Uppark have benefited because
    1. they were very well paid for doing intricate work.
    2. their businesses have become more competitive.
    3. they were able to work with Grinling Gibbons
    4. they acquired skills they did not have previously.

Section 1 Questions 1-6 Answers

1. D
2. C
3. A
4. G
5. F
6. B

Section 1 Questions 7-14 INTERCITY Sleeper between London and Scotland Answers

7. F
8. C
9. G
10. B
11. A
12. A
13. E
14. D

Section 2 Questions 15-21 Formal Dress Code For Company Employees Answers

15. Professional IMAGE
16. Pressed
17. Tasteful
18. allergic reactions
19. cultural tradition
20. company logo
21. verbal warning

Section 2 Questions 22-27 JLP Retail: Staff Benefits Answers

22. progress
23. five years
24. (residential) clubs
25. concerts
26. leisure skills
27. loan

Section 3 Questions 28-40 Section 3 Answers

28. C
29. B
30. G
31. F
32. E
33. H
34. august 31st
35. human chain/chains
36. blotting paper
37. (countless) dustbins
38. C
39. C
40. D

Section 1

Read the text below and answer questions 1-7.

Passport Application

You will need to fill in an application for a passport in the following circumstances: if you are applying for a passport for the first time, if you wish to replace your current passport, if your passport has expired, or if it has been lost or stolen. Your application form must be completed in your own handwriting.

As proof of your citizenship and identity, you must enclose either your passport or your birth certificate. All documents must be originals; these will be returned with your passport.

The standard time to process an application is up to 10 working days. The processing begins from when we have received the completed application form. Applicants should expect delays if the Passport Office receives a form with missing information. Extra time should be allowed for delivery to and from the Passport Office.

Please provide two identical passport photos of yourself. Both photos must be the same in all respects and must be less than 12 months old.

Ask someone who can identify you to fill in the ‘Proof of Identity’ information and identify one of your photos. This person will be called your witness and needs to meet the following requirements: a witness must be aged 1 6 years or over, be contactable by phone during normal office hours and be the holder of a valid passport. A witness should fill in the ‘Proof of Identity’ page in their own handwriting. A witness must also write the full name of the person applying for the passport on the back of one of the photos, sign their own name and date the back of the same photo. Photos with this identifying information written in the applicant’s own handwriting will not be accepted.

Questions 1-7

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text above?

In boxes 1-7, write

• TRUE                if the statement agrees with the information
• FALSE              if the statement contradicts the information
• NOT GIVEN        if there is no information on this

1. A husband can fill in an application form for his wife.
2. Photocopies of documents are acceptable in some circumstances.
3. An incomplete application will affect processing time.
4. The passport photos included with your application must be in colour.
5. A witness can be a relative of the applicant.
6. Anyone acting as a witness must have a passport.
7. The passport applicant must sign their name on the back of both photos.

Read the text below and answer questions 8-14.

Auckland International Airport Services

A The second floor of the international terminal offers a view of the airfield and all incoming and outgoing flights. There is a cafe situated here as well as a restaurant, which is available for all airport visitors to use.

B We are open for all international flights and provide a comprehensive service for visitors to the city. Brochures on a range of attractions are available, and we also offer a booking service for accommodation and transport. Shuttle buses into the city centre are provided at a competitive price.

C Passengers who require urgent medical attention should dial 9877 on any public telephone in the terminal. The airport pharmacy is located on the ground floor near the departure lounge, and stocks a comprehensive range of products.

D Departing passengers can completely seal their luggage or packages in recyclable polythene to protect them from damage. Luggage storage, charged at $10 per hour, is available on the first floor. Transit passengers have free access to storage facilities.

E Every international passenger, with the exception of children under 12 years of age and transit passengers in Auckland for less than 24 hours, is required to make a payment of $25 when leaving the country. This can be arranged at the National Bank on the ground floor.

F As Auckland International Airport has adopted the ‘quiet airport’ concept, there are usually no announcements made over the public address system. Details of all arrivals and departures are displayed on the monitors located in the terminal halls and lounge areas.

G The airport caters for the needs of business travellers and has several rooms available for seminars or business gatherings. These are located adjacent to the airport medical centre on the first floor. For information and bookings please contact the Airport Business Manager on extension 3294.

Questions 8-14

The reading passage “Auckland International Airport Services” has seven sections, A-G.

Choose the correct heading for each section from the list of headings below.

8. Section A
9. Section B
10. Section C
11. Section D
12. Section E
13. Section F
14. Section G

List of Headings

1. Departure procedures
2. Observation area
3. Baggage services
4. Meeting facilities
5. Healthcare services
6. Flight information
7. Currency exchange
8. Health and safety advice
9. Departure fees
10. Tourist travel centre

Section 2

Read the text below and answer the questions 15-20.

Planning a gap year

The best reason to take a gap year between school and work or higher education is to improve your CV with experience overseas. This is why some school leavers in Britain now consider a year out to be essential. Many want to travel, with Sydney the favourite destination. Shooting Star is an organisation that helps school leavers by offering training followed by appropriate employment.

We at Shooting Star offer much more than a trip abroad. At Shooting Star you acquire skills that lead to interesting jobs both for your gap year and future holidays. Magazines are full of ‘Wanted’ adverts for washing up in a restaurant. Well, we don’t do that it’s not our idea of excitement. We offer school leavers the chance for outdoor adventure, to teach things like sailing and snowboarding. No choice, really! In your year out you train, travel and work; you can combine work with pleasure and reap the rewards. You could become an experienced yacht skipper or instructor and many people go on to spend their future holidays being paid to enjoy their favourite sport.

Australians and New Zealanders travel to Europe and North America in large numbers to gain overseas experience. Those who qualify with Shooting Star are very soon using their skills in jobs they could only dream about before, working outdoors and seeing more of the world. Wherever you come from, a gap year with Shooting Star means professional training and international adventure.

Top tips for a successful gap year:
• Design your gap year in outline before applying for a permanent job or a college place. Human Resources officers or Admissions tutors will be impressed by a thought-out plan.
• What’s more important to you – travel or work experience? You can be flexible with travel plans but you must research job opportunities in advance. Go to our website and click on Recruitment for ideas.
• Who do you know who has taken a gap year before? Shooting Star can put you in touch with someone who has just completed one.
• Sort out the admin in plenty of time – air tickets, visas, insurance and medical matters such as vaccinations for some destinations. These are your responsibility.
• Who is in charge of your affairs while you are away? There will be forms to fill and letters to answer.
• Allow plenty of time to settle back home on your return – and don’t be surprised if it takes some time to readjust to everyday life!

Questions 15-20

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text above?

In boxes 15-20, write

• TRUE             if the statement agrees with the information
• FALSE             if the statement contradicts the information
• NOT GIVEN        if there is no information on this

15. For some young British people, the purpose of a gap year is to improve their academic qualifications.
16. Shooting Star finds employment for young people in the catering industry.
17. Training with Shooting Star can be expensive.
18. New trainees find it easy to get the sort of work they want.
19. New trainees who want work experience should check out vacancies before they depart.
20. Shooting Star helps with travel arrangements.

Read the text below and answer questions 21-27.

Succeeding at Interviews

A Getting invited to an interview means you have passed the first hurdle- your application must have made a good impression. Now you need to prepare yourself for the interview to make sure you make the most of this opportunity. There are a number of things you can do.

B Firstly you can do some research. Find out about the employer and the job, ask for an information pack or speak to people you know who work for the company. Try to plan for the interview by asking who will be interviewing you and whether there will be a test to take.

C Prepare for questions you might be asked. Some common ones are the reason why you want the job, whether you have done this kind of work before, what your strengths and weaknesses are, and which leisure pursuits you enjoy.

D Another important point is never to run the risk of arriving late. For example, consider making a ‘dummy run’ in advance to see how long the journey will take. Check out public transport or, if you are going by car, the nearest parking. Aim to arrive about 10 minutes before the interview is due to start.

E It is also crucial to give plenty of thought to what you are going to wear. This will depend on the job you are going for. There is no need to buy a new outfit, but aim to look neat and tidy. Remember, if you look good it will help you feel good.

F You need to make a good impression. Interviews can vary from a relatively informal ‘one-to-one’ chat to a very formal panel situation. Whatever the circumstances, you will give yourself an advantage by being friendly and polite, by making eye contact with the interviewer and by selling yourself by focusing on your strengths.

G There are also things you should avoid doing at your interview. First of all, don’t exaggerate. For example, if you don’t have the exact experience the employer is looking for, say so and explain you are willing to learn. Don’t simply give ‘yes’ and ‘no’ answers, but answer questions as fully as you can. And lastly, don’t forget to ask questions as well as answering them.

H One final thing to remember: it is important to show good team spirit that you possess good people skills and that you are friendly and approachable. Finally, remember to be enthusiastic and show that you can be flexible.

Questions 21-27

Which section mentions the following?

The text has eight sections, A-H. Write the correct letter, A-H, in boxes 22 27.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

21. The importance of good manners.
22. Using your contacts
23. Giving adequate responses
24. Getting on well with colleagues
25. The information you may need to provide
26. Being honest with the interviewer
27. Being punctual

Section 3

Read the text below and answer the questions 28-40.

The History of Cinema

The history of the cinema in its first thirty years is one of major and, to this day, unparalleled expansion and growth. Beginning as something unusual in a handful of big cities – New York, London, Paris and Berlin the new medium quickly found its way across the world, attracting larger and larger audiences wherever it was shown and replacing other forms of entertainment as it did so. As audiences grew, so did the places where films were shown, finishing up with the ‘great picture palaces’ of the 1920s, which rivalled, and occasionally superseded, theatres and opera-houses in terms of opulence and splendour. Meanwhile, films themselves developed from being short ‘attractions only a couple of minutes long. to the full-length feature that has dominated the world’s screens up to the present day.

Although French, German, American and British pioneers have all been credited with the invention of cinema, the British and the Germans played a relatively small role in its worldwide exploitation. It was above all the French, followed closely by the Americans, who were the most passionate exporters of the new invention, helping to start cinema in China, Japan, Latin America and Russia. In terms of artistic development it was again the French and the Americans who took the lead, though in the years before the First World War, Italy, Denmark and Russia also played a part.

In the end, it was the United States that was to become, and remain, the largest single market for films. By protecting their own market and pursuing a vigorous export policy, the Americans achieved a dominant position in the world market by the start of the First World War. The centre of film-making had moved westwards, to Hollywood, and it was films from these new Hollywood studios that flooded onto the world’s film markets in the years after the First World War, and have done so ever since. Faced with total Hollywood domination, few film industries proved competitive. The Italian industry, which had pioneered the feature film with spectacular films like Quo vadis (1913) and “Cabiria” (1914), almost collapsed.

In Scandinavia, the Swedish cinema had a brief period of glory, notably with powerful epic films and comedies. Even the French cinema found itself in a difficult position. In Europe, only Germany proved industrially capable, while in the new Soviet Union and in Japan, the development of the cinema took place in conditions of commercial isolation.

Hollywood took the lead artistically as well as industrially. Hollywood films appealed because they had better-constructed narratives, their special effects were more impressive, and the star system added a new dimension to the screen acting. If Hollywood did not have enough of its own resources, it had a great deal of money to buy up artists and technical innovations from Europe to ensure its continued dominance over present or future competition.

From early cinema, it was only American slapstick comedy that Successfully developed in both short and feature format. However, during this Silent Filmiera, animation, comedy, serials and dramatic features continued to thrive, along with factual films or documentaries, which acquired an increasing distinctiveness as the period progressed. It was also at this time that the avant-grade film first achieved commercial success, this time thanks almost exclusively to the French and the occasional German film.

Of the countries which developed and maintained distinctive national cinemas in the silent period, the most important were France, Germany and the Soviet Union. Of these, the French displayed the most continuity, in spite of the war and post-war economic uncertainties. The German cinema, relatively insignificant in the pre-war years, exploded onto the world scene after 1919. Yet even they were both overshadowed by the Soviets after the 1917 Revolution. They turned their back on the past, leaving the style of the pre-war Russian cinema to the emigres who fled westwards to escape the Revolution.

The other countries whose cinemas changed dramatically are: Britain, which had an interesting but undistinguished history in the silent period; Italy, which had a brief moment of international fame just before the war; the Scandinavian countries, particularly Denmark, which played a role in the development of silent cinema quite out of proportion to their small population, and Japan, where a cinema developed based primarily on traditional theatrical and, to a lesser extent, other art forms and only gradually adapted to western influence.

Questions 28–30

Which THREE possible reasons for American dominance of the film industry are given in the text ‘The history of cinema’?

Write answers A-F in boxes 28-30.

1. plenty of capital to purchase what it didn’t have
2. making films dealing with serious issues
3. being first to produce a feature film
4. well-written narratives
5. the effect of the First World War
6. excellent special effects

28. …………………
29. …………………
30. …………………

Questions 31 – 33

Answer the questions below using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the above reading passage for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 31-33.

31. Which TWO types of films were not generally made in major studios?
32. Which type of film did America develop in both short and feature films?
33. Which type of film started to become profitable in the ‘silent period?

Questions 34 – 40

Look at the following statements (Questions 34-40) and the list of countries below.

Match each statement with the correct country. Write the correct letter A-J in boxes 34-40.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

34. It helped other countries develop their own film industry.
35. It was the biggest producer of films.
36. It was first to develop the ‘feature’ film.
37. It was responsible for creating stars.
38. It made the most money from ‘avant-garde’ films.
39. It made movies based more on its own culture than outside influences.
40. It had a great influence on silent movies, despite its size.

List of countries

1. France
2. Germany
3. USA
4. Denmark
5. Sweden
6. Japan
7. Soviet Union
8. Italy
9. Britain
10. China

Section 1 Questions 1-7 Passport Application Answers

1. False
2. False
3. True
4. NG
5. NG
6. True
7. False

Section 1 Questions 8-14 Auckland International Airport Services Answers

8. ii
9. x
10. v
11. iii
12. ix
13. vi
14. iv

Section 2 Questions 15-20 Planning a gap year Answers

15. False
16. False
17. NG
18. True
19. True
20. False

Section 2 Questions 21-27 Succeeding at Interviews Answers

21. F
22. B
23. G
24. H
25. C
26. G
27. D

Section 3 Questions 28-40 The History of Cinema Answers

28. A, D, F
29. A, D, F
30. A, D, F
31. Cartoons, serials
32. Slapstick/ slapstick comedy/ comedy
33. (the) avant-grade (films)
34. A
35. C
36. H
37. C
38. A
39. F
40. D

Section 1

Read the text below and answer questions 1-7.

Smoke Alarms in the Home

Smoke alarms are now a standard feature in Australian homes and are required by the National Building Code in any recently built properties. They are installed to detect the presence of smoke and emit a clear sound to alert you in the event of fire to give you time to escape.

There are two principal types of smoke alarms. Ionization alarms are the cheapest and most readily available smoke alarms. They are also very sensitive to ‘flaming fires’ – fires that burn fiercely – and will detect them before the smoke gets too thick. However, photoelectric alarms are more effective at detecting slow-burning fires. They are less likely to go off accidentally and so are best for homes with one floor. For the best protection, you should install one of each.

Most battery-powered smoke alarms can be installed by the home owner and do not require professional installation. For the installation of hard-wired smoke alarms, powered from the mains electricity supply, however, you will need the services of a licensed professional. Smoke alarms are usually most effective when located on the ceiling, near or in the middle of the room or hall.

Photoelectric smoke alarms in any quantity may be disposed of in domestic waste. If you have fewer than ten ionization alarms to get rid of, you may put them in your domestic waste. If you have more than ten to dispose of, you should contact your local council.

Your battery-powered smoke alarm will produce a short beep every 60 second to alert you when the battery is running out and needs replacing. Nevertheless, it should be tested every month to ensure that the battery and the alarm sounder are working. Note that the sensitivity in all smoke alarms will reduce over time.

Questions 1-7
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text? In boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet, write

TRUE                      if the statement agrees with the information
FALSE                    if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN        if there is no information on this

1. All new houses in Australia must have smoke alarms.
2. Photoelectric smoke alarms cost less than ionization smoke alarms.
3. It takes a short time to fit most smoke alarms.
4. Any hard-wired smoke alarm must be fitted by a specialist technician.
5. You should get in touch with your local council before placing any ionisation smoke alarms in household rubbish.
6. Smoke alarms give a warning sound to indicate that battery power is low.
7. Old smoke alarms need to be checked more than once a month.

Read the text below and answer questions 8-14.

Sydney Opera House Tours

A The Essential Tour brings to life the story behind the design and construction of one of the world’s most famous landmarks. Using interactive audio-visual technology, your guide will take you on a memorable journey inside the youngest building ever to be World Heritage listed.

B Afterwards, why not stay around and eat at the Studio Cafe, with its modern Australian menu? Not only can you enjoy the best views in Sydney, you can claim a 20% reduction on the total cost of your meal. (Don’t forget to show your ticket in order to claim your discount.)

C Languages: English, French, German
Takes place: Daily between 9am and 5pm
Prices: Adults $35 / Online $29.75
Concessions: Australian seniors and pensioners; students and children of 16 and under $24.50.
Prior bookings are not essential.

D The Backstage Tour gives you backstage access to the Sydney Opera House. It is a unique opportunity to experience the real-life dramas behind the stage! You might even get to stand on the concert hall stage, take up a conductor’s baton in the orchestra pit and imagine you are leading the performance. You will also get to see inside the stars’ dressing rooms. The tour concludes with a complimentary breakfast in the Green Room, the private dining area of performers past and present.

E Takes place: Daily at 7am
Prices: $155-No concessions.
To purchase: Bookings are essential.
Limited to 8 people per tour.
Online sales expire at 4.30pm two days prior.

Notes:
The tour includes up to 300 steps.
Flat, rubber-soled shoes must be worn.
For safety reasons, children of 12 years old and under are not permitted.

F Opera High Tea consists of a tour where you will walk in the footsteps of world- class singers, dancers and musicians, followed by fine food and music in the spectacular surroundings of the Bennelong Dining Room. What could be better than a treat of delicious light snacks and soft drinks followed by a live recital by a leading Australian singer? An unforgettable treat for young and old!

G Takes place: Every second Wednesday, 2pm
Duration: 1.5 hours
Prices: $145 per person
Book online or visit the Guided Tours Desk.

Questions 8-14

The text has seven sections A-G.

Which section mentions the following? Write the correct letter A-G.

in boxes 8-14 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

8. discounts available to younger visitors
9. the need for suitable footwear
10. the opportunity to pretend you are taking part in a concert
11. a restriction on the number of participants
12. a reduction that applies to purchases using the internet
13. the need to book your ticket in advance
14. the length of one of the tours

Section 2

Read the text below and answer Questions 15-21.

Using Direct Mail To Sell Your Product

When you have set up your own business, you must, of course, start selling your goods or services. One way is by using direct mail – in other words, sending a sales letter (or email) directly to companies that might want to do business with you.

One important factor is your mailing list – that is, who you contact. You can build this up from your own market research, existing clients and advertising responses, or you can contact list brokers and rent or buy a compiled list. If you are contacting a business, it is important to address the letter to the decision maker, ideally by name or at least by job title.

While the desirability and price of the product on offer will obviously influence sales, you also need to gain the maximum impact from your sales letter. To achieve that, bear the following points in mind:
• You have no more than two seconds from when the reader starts the letter to convince them to continue. If you fail, they will throw it away. The opening is crucial to attract their attention. And so that they don’t lose interest, avoid having too much text.
• Try to send each mailing in a white envelope. It might be cheaper to use a brown envelope but it doesn’t make for such good presentation.
• Include a brochure. Depending on the volume and on whether you can afford the cost, try to use at least two-colour printing for this. If practicable, it may be worth enclosing a free sample – this is a much greater incentive than photographs.
• However interested your potential clients are in buying, they will only do so if it can be done easily. So, include an order form (and of course details of how to return it) with your letter.
• When you receive your replies, assess your response rate and monitor the sales.
If necessary, the sales letter can then be amended to attract other clients on subsequent mail shots; make sure each different letter is coded so that monitoring is easy and effective.
• Ensure that each reply is dealt with quickly and professionally. If further details are requested, these must be sent out promptly. There is no point in encouraging potential customers to contact you if your service is slow or non-existent.

Questions 15-21
Complete the sentences below. Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 15-21 on your answer sheet.

15. Sales letters should be sent to the…………………in a company.
16. Your letter should make as much……………………as possible.
17. The reader’s attention needs to be caught by the……………….of your letter.
18. Letters should be sent in a…………………
19. It is best to print the…………………..in two or more colours.
20. Consider sending a…………………as this is more effective than a picture.
21. You should calculate the………………….to your letter.

Read the text below and answer Questions 22-27.

IFCES, the International Federation of Chemical Engineering Societies
Job Specification: Communications Manager

Contract: Permanent (with 3-month probationary period)
Reports to: Chief Executive
Hours: 9:15am – 5:30pm with 1 hour for lunch
Holidays: 23 days per annum + statutory public holidays

Job Summary
To raise the international profile of IFCES. To communicate our objectives, programmes and services to members, the chemical engineering community, the media and the wider public.

Key Responsibilities
• Develop and implement a programme of communications to member associations, the chemical engineering industry, sponsors and the media
• Plan and implement marketing strategies for all IFCES programmes including the World Chemical Engineering Congress
• Write and edit copy for publications intended for internal and external use including Chemical Engineer Monthly
• Work with design agencies, web developers and other external contractors to produce high quality corporate and marketing materials
• Research, write and distribute news releases as required, often at short notice and under pressure
• Deal with media enquiries and interview requests. Ensure that good relationships with both mainstream and chemical engineering media are developed and maintained
• Assist in the production of presentations and speeches for board members
• Ensure website content is up to date and consistent
• Develop a consistent corporate identity and ensure its application by all member associations and partner organisations
• Carry out specific duties and projects as directed from time to time

Employee Specification
Essential
• Degree (any discipline)
• Minimum 4 years’ experience in a communications role
• Excellent copy writing skills with strong attention to detail, a keen sense of audience and an ability to tailor writing to its particular purpose
• Demonstrable track record of producing high quality corporate publications and marketing materials
• Excellent interpersonal and organisational skills
• Sound IT skills, including working knowledge of Microsoft Office applications
• Willingness to travel internationally

Desirable
• Recognised post-graduate qualification in public relations / journalism / marketing communications
• Knowledge of the global chemical engineering industry and the production of new materials in particular
• Understanding of the concerns surrounding sustainability in chemical engineering
• Ability to speak a foreign language

Questions 22-27

Complete the notes below.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 22-27 on your answer sheet.

Position: Communications Manager
Summary of role: to improve IFCES’s (22)………………..around the world

Responsibilities include:
• writing for a number of (23)……………….., produced for both IFCES and a wider readership
• producing news releases quickly when necessary
• making sure the (24)………………….contains current information.

Employee specification (essential) includes:
• high level skill in writing appropriately
– for the (25)………………..to read
– to achieve a specific (26)………………….
• good IT skills.

Employee specification (desirable) includes:
• relevant qualification at a (27)……………….level
• awareness of issues of sustainability in relation to the industry
• knowledge of a foreign language.

Section 3

Read the text below and answer questions 28-40.

KAURI GUM – a piece of New Zealand’s history

A The kauri tree is a massive forest tree native to New Zealand. Kauri once formed vast forests over much of the north of the country. Whereas now it is the wood of the kauri which is an important natural resource, in the past it was the tree’s sap (the thick liquid which flows inside a tree) which, when hardened into gum, played an important role in New Zealand’s early history.

After running from rips or tears in the bark of trees, the sap hardens to form the lumps of gum which eventually fall to the ground and are buried under layers of forest litter. The bark often splits where branches fork from the trunk, and gum accumulates there also.

The early European settlers in New Zealand collected and sold the gum. the tree was soft and of low value but most of the gum which was harvested had been buried for thousands of years. This gum came in a bewildering variety of colours, degree of transparency and hardness, depending on the length and location of burial, as well as the health of the original tree and the area of the bleeding. Highest quality gum was hard and bright and was usually found at shallow depth on the hills. Lowest quality gum was soft, black or chalky and sugary and was usually found buried in swamps, where it had been in contact with water for a long time. Long periods in the sun or bush fires could transform dull, cloudy lumps into higher quality transparent gum.

B Virtually all kauri gum was found in the regions of New Zealand where kauri forests grow today – from the middle of the North Island northwards. In Maori and early European times up until 1850, most gum collected was simply picked up from the ground, but, after that, the majority was recovered by digging.

C The original inhabitants of New Zealand, the Maori, had experimented with kauri gum well before Europeans arrived at the beginning of the nineteenth century. They called it kapia, and found it of considerable use. Fresh gum from trees was prized for its chewing quality, as was buried gum when softened in water and mixed with the juice of a local plant. A piece of gum was often passed around from mouth to mouth when people gathered together until it was all gone, or when they tired of chewing, it was laid aside for future use. Kauri gum burns readily and was used by Maori people to light fires. Sometimes it was bound in grass, ignited and used as a torch by night fishermen to attract fish.

D The first kauri gum to be exported from New Zealand was part of a cargo taken back to Australia and England by two early expeditions in 1814 and 1815. By the 1860s, kauri gum’s reputation was well established in the overseas markets and European immigrants were joining the Maoris in collecting gum on the hills of northern New Zealand. As the surface gum became more scarce, spades were used to dig up the buried ‘treasure! The increasing number of diggers resulted in rapid growth of the kauri gum exports from 1,000 tons in 1860 to a maximum of over 10,000 tons in 1900.

For fifty years from about 1870 to 1920, the kauri gum industry was a major source of income for settlers in northern New Zealand. As these would-be farmers struggled to break in the land, many turned to gum-digging to earn enough money to support their families and pay for improvements to their farms until better times arrived. By the 1890s, there were 20,000 people engaged in gum-digging. Although many of these, such as farmers, women and children, were only part-time diggers, nearly 7,000 were full-timers. During times of economic difficulty, gum-digging was the only job available where the unemployed from many walks of life could earn a living, if they were prepared to work.

E The first major commercial use of kauri gum was in the manufacture of high-grade furniture varnish, a kind of clear paint used to treat wood. The best and purest gum that was exported prior to 1910 was used in this way. Kauri gum was used in 70% of the oil varnishes being manufactured in England in the 1890s. It was favoured ahead of other gums because it was easier to process at lower temperatures. The cooler the process could be kept the better, as it meant a paler varnish could be produced. About 1910, kauri gum was found to be a very suitable ingredient in the production of some kinds of floor coverings such as linoleum. In this way, a use was found for the vast quantities of poorer quality and less pure gum, that had up till then been discarded as waste. Kauri gum’s importance in the manufacture of varnish and linoleum was displaced by synthetic alternatives in the 1930s.

F Fossil kauri gum is rather soft and can be carved easily with a knife or polished with fine sandpaper. In the time of Queen Victoria of England (1837-1901), some pieces were made into fashionable amber beads that women wore around their necks. The occasional lump that contained preserved insects was prized for use in necklaces and bracelets. Many of the gum-diggers enjoyed the occasional spell of carving and produced a wide variety of small sculptured pieces. Many of these carvings can be seen today in local museums. Over the years, kauri gum has also been used in a number of minor products, such as an ingredient in marine glue and candles. In the last decades it has had a very limited use in the manufacture of extremely high-grade varnish for violins, but the gum of the magnificent kauri tree remains an important part of New Zealand’s history.

Questions 28-33

The text has six sections, A-F.

Which section contains the following information?

Write the correct letter, A-F, in boxes 28-33 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

28. an example of a domestic product made of high-quality gum
29. factors affecting gum quality
30. how kauri gum is formed
31. how gum was gathered
32. the main industrial uses of the gum
33. recent uses of kauri gum

Questions 34-39

Look at the following events in the history of kauri gum in New Zealand (Questions 34-39) and the list of time periods below.

Match each event with the correct time period, A-l.

34. Kauri gum was first used in New Zealand.
35. The amount of kauri gum sent overseas peaked.
36. The collection of kauri gum supplemented farmers’ incomes.
37. Kauri gum was made into jewellery.
38. Kauri gum was used in the production of string instruments.
39. Most of the kauri gum was found underground.

List of Time Periods

1. before the 1800s
2. in 1900
3. in 1910
4. between the late 1800s and the early 1900s
5. between the 1830s and 1900
6. in 1814 and 1815
7. after 1850
8. in the 1930s
9. in recent times

Question 40

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.

40. What was most likely to reduce the quality of kauri gum?

1. how long it was buried
2. exposure to water
3. how deep it was buried
4. exposure to heat

Section 1 Questions 1-7 Smoke Alarms in the Home Answers

1. True
2. False
3. Not given
4. True
5. False
6. True
7. Not given

Section 1 Questions 8-14 Sydney Opera House Tours Answers

8. C
9. E
10. D
11. E
12. C
13. E
14. G

Section 2 Questions 15-21 Using Direct Mail To Sell Your Product Answers

15. Decision maker
16. Impact
17. Opening
18. White envelope
19. Brochure
20. (free) samples
21. Response rate

Section 2 Questions 22-27 IFCES, the International Federation of Chemical Engineering Societies Answers

22. (international) profile
23. Publications
24. Website content
25. Audience
26. Purpose
27. Post-graduate

Section 3 Questions 28-40 KAURI GUM – a piece of New Zealand’s history Answers

28. E
29. A
30. A
31. B
32. E
33. F
34. A
35. B
36. D
37. E
38. I
39. G
40. B