ENGLISH LANGUAGE FRAMEWORK
LEVEL 3
SEPTEMBER 2011
WRITTEN EXAM
Time: 2 Hours 15 minutes
This paper contains sections on: Language in Use, Reading and Writing
You must complete each section.
You may complete the sections in any order.
All answers must be written in the Answer Booklet provided. Do NOT
write on this paper.
QUESTIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
SECTION A – LANGUAGE IN USE
ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS
Marks
Question 1 – Grammar – Present perfect and past simple
Complete the sentences by filling the gaps with the verb in brackets in the present
perfect or past simple.
Example: I _____________________________ (have) many jobs in my life.
I have had many jobs in my life.
1. Last week I _________________________ (go) to the cinema.
1
2. ___________________________ (you ever see) a car like that before?
1
3. He __________________________ (arrived) five minutes ago.
1
4. I know I ____________________________ (meet) her before but I don’t
remember when.
1
5. He ___________________________ (have) a lot of friends when he was at
school.
1
6. I ______________________________ (not eat) that before.
1
Question 2 – Grammar – Second conditional
Complete the sentences below using the words in brackets.
Example:What _____________ (you / do) if you ________________ (win) the lottery?
What would you do if you won the lottery?
1. What __________________________ (you say) if you ____________________
2
(meet) the president?
2. If
I ________________________ (have)
______________________ (buy) a big house.
a
million
dollars,
I
2
3. If I _______________________ (be) invisible, I _______________________
2
(go) to lots of events for free!
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English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
Marks
Question 3 - Vocabulary – make and do
Complete the sentences by adding make or do.
Example:
We need to _____ some changes if we want to be successful.
We need to make some changes if we want to be successful
1. No one can complain if you _______ your best.
1
2. It’s important to _________ a positive first impression.
1
3. I _________ a point of saying hello to everyone personally before the meetings.
1
4. He seems to always ________ the right thing.
1
5. Can you help me? I don’t know what to _____.
1
6. I need to _________ sure this is correct.
1
Question 4 - Grammar – Past perfect
Complete the sentences by putting one verb in the past simple and the other in the past
perfect.
Example:When I _______________ (arrive), they ________________ (finish) dinner.
When I arrived, they had finished dinner.
1. I realised I _____________________ (leave) my phone in the office when I
2
_______________________ (open) my bag.
2. I
_______________________ (want) to visit a
_______________________ (read) about on the internet.
3. When
I _______________ (get) to the party,
__________________ (go) home half an hour before.
museum
all
my
which
I
2
friends
2
QUESTIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
Marks
Question 5 – Grammar – Present perfect simple and continuous
Complete the sentences using the present perfect continuous where possible. Use the
present perfect simple when it is not possible to use the continuous form.
Example: I am exhausted. I ______________________ (play) football all morning.
I am exhausted. I have been playing football all morning.
1. I feel very proud because I _______________________ (finish) my degree.
1
2. _________________________ (you start) the next project yet?
1
3. We ________________________ (work) hard on this project and I hope we will
1
finish soon.
4. I _________________________ (watch) three films this month and they were all
1
great.
5. My mother ___________________________ (read) all afternoon.
1
6. You look tired. What _________________________________ (you do)?
1
Question 6 - Grammar – Reported speech
Rewrite the sentences in reported speech.
Example:
“I am staying in Paris all this week.”
He said he was staying in Paris all that week.
1. “I am excited because my party is tomorrow.”
1
She said __________________________________________________________
2. “I will be happy when I’m on holiday.”
1
He said __________________________________________________________
3. “I have never eaten in this restaurant before.”
1
He said __________________________________________________________
4. “We will call when we are ready”.
1
They said ________________________________________________________
5. “I am going to visit my grandmother”.
1
She said __________________________________________________________
6. “I was watching TV last night when the phone rang”.
1
He said __________________________________________________________
QUESTIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
Marks
Question 7. Grammar – Passives
Complete the sentences by putting the verb in brackets into the correct tense and into
the correct form of active or passive.
Example:
Shakespeare ______________ (write) over 30 plays.
Shakespeare wrote over 30 plays.
1. The telephone ______________________ (invent) in 1876.
1
2. I __________________ (find) your phone in my bag.
1
3. A banker_____________________ (robbed) by a thief on this road last night.
1
4. Somebody __________________________ (steal) your car if you don’t lock it.
1
5. Thousands of mobile phones ____________________ (steal) every year.
1
6. An emergency meeting _________________________ (hold) last night.
1
Question 8 - Grammar – Modal verbs for obligation
Rewrite the sentences so they have the same meaning. The first word is given.
Example:
It’s necessary for us to make some changes if we want to win.
We need to make some changes if we want to win.
1. It’s not necessary for you to wake up early.
1
You __________________________________________________________
2. It’s forbidden to take pictures.
1
You __________________________________________________________
3. It’s a good idea to study before your exam.
1
You __________________________________________________________
4. It’s prohibited to enter that room.
1
We ____________________________________________________________
5. My boss says it’s necessary for me to come to the next meeting.
1
My boss says I ____________________________________________________
6. It’s not a good idea to eat too many fatty foods.
1
You __________________________________________________________
QUESTIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
Question 9 - Vocabulary – People and groups
Complete the sentences by using the words below. You should use each word
only once.
Marks
family
society
people
team
generation
culture
status
Example: The younger __________________ often come into conflict with older
people.
The younger generation often come into conflict with older people.
1. People often want to improve their social ______________.
1
2. The _____________________ here are friendly.
1
3. ___________________ values are still very important nowadays.
1
4. We need to work together as a ____________________ if our business is going
1
to succeed.
5. It’s important to learn about the history and _____________________ of your
1
country.
6. Criminals are a danger to ________________________.
1
Question 10 – Vocabulary – Expressions with ‘take’
Underline the correct word in each sentence.
Example:
I’m tired so I’m going to take it break / easy / rest for a while.
I’m tired so I’m going to take it break / easy / rest for a while.
1. I think I am going to take side / part / team in the singing competition.
1
2. He takes after / care / from his father. They have similar personalities.
1
3. I have decided to take up / out / off chess.
1
4. I need to take Monday on / off / out to go to the doctor.
1
5. Who is going to take on / over / in when the boss retires?
1
6. I like to take off / on / out my shoes when I get home.
1
QUESTIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
SECTION B - READING
ANSWER ALL THE QUESTIONS
Case Study 1: Party town
Question 1
Match the headings A-F with paragraphs 1-6 below.
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
F)
Some history.
No rest.
A long build up.
Finally over.
The start of something new.
Burning expensive models.
Marks
1
1
1
1
1
1
1.
It’s March and I’m in Valencia, Spain’s third largest city, with my new friend Juan. It’s 1
am. All around us, fireworks are going off and the streets are full of noisy revellers.
“Welcome to Las Fallas,” Juan grins. “Here you’re going to see how Valencians party!”
Seven hours later, I understood what he meant.
2.
Las Fallas (the bonfire) explodes over Valencia every March from the 12th to the 19th. It
takes the whole of the previous year to get organised and everybody joins in the preparations.
The city buzzes with a festive vibe all week, but, like all good parties, it is at night when
people really get down to some serious celebrating.
3.
The tradition of Las Fallas began in the 18th century. At that time, craftsmen used special
candles to light up the dark evenings while they were working. At the end of winter they
celebrated by burning all their waste material in a ceremony that brought together people
from all the neighbouring communities. Before burning the waste material, they made it into
life-like statues, and then dressed them up to look like well-know but unpopular local
characters.
QUESTIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
4.
Nowadays the statues, some of them over 30 metres tall, are made of cardboard and represent
different aspects of modern Spanish society. A long time is spent fund-raising, planning and
constructing the monuments, some of which are worth over $200,000. But they all go up in
flames with the maximum amount of fire and noise before the end of festival.
5.
The Valencians like their guests to enjoy themselves, but after one hour’s sleep I am woken
up by the sound of firecrackers and a brass band playing beneath my window. Valencia by
day may be sleepier than Valencia by night, but during Las Fallas there’s always something
going on. From the outskirts of the city, 200,000 girls and boys, wearing traditional dress,
march into the centre of town bringing with them fresh flowers.
6.
The festival reaches its climax on 19th March, a public holiday. This is the night when the
cardboard statues are burnt. As midnight approaches, a feeling of anticipation rises up from
the streets and hangs over the city. Firecrackers go off every second or two and midnight
passes in a shower of explosions. The last statue burns down and ends Las Fallas. It is a sad
moment, but the Valencians don’t have time to mourn the end of this year’s festival. After
all, they’re too busy planning for the next one.
(Adapted from Inside Out Intermediate P.58)
Question 2
Read the following sentences and write true or false for each one.
Marks
1.
The writer has been to Las Fallas many times.
1
2.
Las Fallas lasts for about a week.
1
3.
Las Fallas has been celebrated for almost 100 years.
1
4.
People spend many months preparing for Las Fallas.
1
5.
The end of Las Fallas is a happy time.
1
QUESTIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
Case Study 2: Sleep survey report
Read the article and complete the sentences below.
According to recent medical research, sleeping more than nine hours or less than six hours a
night can shorten your life expectancy. Those who are likely to live longest are people who
regularly get between seven and eight hours a night.
A new survey of 1,000 adults conducted by the Better Sleep Council (BSC) found that few
people understand the important role sleep plays in normal daily brain functions and many
people actually reduce their brain power by getting too little sleep.
One in three adults admit that they do not get enough sleep, and lack of sleep is leaving
millions of people without the energy to work as hard as they should. Although a large
number of people say that they need to be mentally alert in their work, half of the people
interviewed say that they sleep just under seven hours a night during the week. On the other
hand, most of the people interviewed say that they sleep more than seven hours a night at the
weekend, instead of getting enough sleep during the week, when they most need it.
According to the survey, nearly half of the population believe that the brain rests when the
body sleeps. In fact, the opposite is true. Sleep allows the brain to go to work, filing and
storing most of the day’s events. “Most people incorrectly think the brain is resting or
recuperating during sleep. Actually some parts of the brain are more active when you’re
asleep,” confirms Dr Mark Mahowald, director of the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders
Center. “Your brain is like a cluttered desktop at the end of the day. At night, when you’re
asleep and no more information can be put on the desk, or in your brain, your brain can then
file away the information.”
(Adapted from Inside Out Intermediate P.107)
Marks
Complete the sentences below by filling each gap with ONE or TWO words from the text.
(Contracted words such as wasn’t count as one word.)
1.
It’s not good to sleep more than _____________________ hours per night.
1
2.
Sleep plays an _____________________ part in the functioning of our brain.
1
3.
People who don’t get enough sleep are lacking in ____________________.
1
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English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
4.
The majority of people sleep _____________________ seven hours at the
weekend.
5.
The brain doesn’t __________________ during sleep.
Marks
1
1
Case Study 3: Who’s who in Pacific Heights
Read the text and answer the questions below.
Phil Turner is an ambitious man in his early forties and he is hoping to take over as
Managing Director of DCC when Max Dalton retires. Max has a good working relationship
with Phil but is secretly jealous of his son-in-law’s youthful energy and athletic good looks.
Phil and Penny have three children who have all inherited their father’s dark hair and their
mother’s blue eyes: a stunning combination. Ella and Mara are identical twins and only their
closest friends can tell them apart. Although they’re only 16, they’re very independent.
Their 19-year-old brother, Charlie, is a surf champion whose good looks have made him
extremely popular with women. One of Ella and Mara’s friends, Becky, is his present
girlfriend, but what Becky doesn’t know is that Charlie is also having an affair with Clare,
Dave’s wife. As a sales manager for an international company, Dave often travels abroad on
business.
At the age of 24, Amy is Sarah’s youngest child. She lives with her boyfriend, 26-year-old
Mark, and they have a three-year-old son, Jack. They are both part-time students and so they
share the household chores and childcare. They also belong to an Animal Rights group
whose latest campaign involves a demonstration against tests carried out on animals at DCC.
(Adapted from Inside Out Intermediate P.77)
Marks
Write a name from the text above to answer each question below.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Who wants to be the Managing Director of DCC?
Who is Ella’s sister?
Who is Clare’s husband?
Who is Jack’s mother?
1
1
1
1
Total 20 Marks
QUESTIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011
SECTION C - WRITING
Answer ONE question in this section
Read the question below and write an answer of between 200 and 250 words. There are a
total of 20 marks available.
People should avoid sweet food such as chocolate and cakes. Do you agree with this
statement? Give reasons for your answer.
END OF PAPER
English Language Framework
September 2011
© NCC Education 2011