Baccalaureate English National Exam Arts July 2010: practise the full Moroccan national English exam for the Arts stream, session July 2010, with interactive questions, instant checking, an answer key and a free PDF with answers. For official information about national exams, visit the Moroccan Ministry of National Education.
Table of Contents
- Practice the exam online
- Answer key (Reading, Language and Writing)
- Exam tips and key vocabulary
- More Baccalaureate English national exams
Baccalaureate English National Exam Arts July 2010: Interactive Practice
English National Exam — Arts July 2010
Interactive practice: Reading (15 pts) · Language (15 pts) · Writing (10 pts)
[1] Bill Gates was born on October 28, 1955, in a family having rich business, political, and community service background. His grandfather was vice president of National Bank and his father was a lawyer. Bill strongly believes in hard work. He also believes that if you are intelligent and know how to apply your intelligence, you can achieve anything. From childhood, Bill was intelligent, ambitious, and competitive. These qualities helped him to attain top positions in the profession he chose. In school, he had an excellent record in mathematics and science.
[2] Bill’s parents noticed their son’s intelligence and decided to send him to a private outstanding school, where he was first introduced to a computer. It was a very important decision in Bill’s life. Bill and his friends were very much interested in computers and formed the “Programmers Group” in late 1968. In the next year, they got their first opportunity in Information Sciences Company where they were selected as programmers. So, they started making money although they were still students.
[3] Bill and his close friend Paul Allen started a new company of their own named Traf-O-Data. They designed a small computer to measure traffic density. From this project, they earned around $20,000. In 1973, he left home for Harvard University. There, he almost forgot about the world of computers because he spent many nights studying one of the toughest mathematics courses.
[4] Bill and his friend Paul remained in close contact even though they were away from each other. They would often discuss new ideas for future projects and the possibility of starting a business one day. At the end of Bill’s first year at the university, Paul came close to him so that they could work on some of their ideas. That summer, Paul kept on pushing Bill for opening a new software company.
[5] Within a year, Bill dropped out of Harvard. Then, he formed Microsoft. Bill’s vision is: “A computer on every desk and Microsoft software on every computer”. Bill is a visionary person and works very hard to fulfill his vision. His belief in high intelligence and hard work has put him where he is today. Microsoft is good competition for other software companies and Bill will continue to crash his competitors. His powerful beliefs have helped him increase his wealth and his monopoly in the industry.
[6] Bill is not a greedy person. In fact, he is quite a giving person when it comes to computers, the Internet, and any kind of funding. He visited Chicago’s Einstein Elementary School and donated a total of $110,000. He offered computers and provided internet connectivity to many schools. Also, Bill donated $38 million for the building of a computer institute at Stanford University. Bill plans to give away 95% of all his earnings when he is old and grey
A. Are these sentences true or false? Justify. (3 pts)
1. Bill was good at science subjects.
2. Bill neglected working on the computer when he was in Harvard.
3. Bill graduated from Harvard University.
B. Answer these questions. (3 pts)
1. Where did Bill first use a computer?
2. Who encouraged Bill to open a new software company?
3. How did Bill help Stanford University?
C. Choose the right answers from the list given. (2 pts)
Tick four qualities that best describe Bill Gates: helpful · hesitant · hard-working · greedy · competitive · wealthy
D. Pick out from the text sentences or phrases which show that: (3 pts)
1. Bill comes from an educated family background.
2. Microsoft was not the first company Bill and Paul set up.
3. Bill’s view of the future is that everybody can have a computer with a Microsoft programme.
E. Find in the text words that mean the same as: (3 pts)
1. excellent (paragraph 2):
2. computer programme:
3. achieve:
F. What is the writer’s purpose? Tick one answer. (1 pt)
A. Fill in each gap with the appropriate word from the list. (2 pts)
brain · go · take · equal · make · health · sense · turn
1. Whenever you through a crisis, remember to talk to your best friends.
2. My uncle has a good of humor; he always tells jokes.
3. All children should have opportunities to be educated.
4. The World Football Cup will place in South Africa soon.
B. Match each statement with its appropriate function. (4 pts)
1. As a result of global warming, the world climate has changed considerably.
2. A lot of people get in touch with associations in order to receive help.
3. Although Nancy went on a strict diet, she didn’t lose weight.
4. As far as I’m concerned, the Internet is very useful.
C. Correct the underlined mistakes. (3 pts)
The boy has been working on the computer since three hours. Correct word:
That’s the song who got the first rank in the ‘top ten’. Correct word:
Whenever I see this film, I can’t stop laugh. Correct word:
D. Give the correct form of the words between brackets. (2 pts)
1. NGOs receive (finance) help depending on their activities.
2. “I didn’t order all these tables; it was just a (misunderstand) ,” the secretary said.
E. Put the verbs between brackets in the correct tense. (4 pts)
1. After Nabil (retire) from work, he moved to the countryside.
2. The heavy rainfalls (damage) a lot of roads last December.
3. I stayed at home all afternoon last Sunday. If I had known about the concert, I (attend) .
4. I wish I (not miss) my friend’s wedding; he was really disappointed.
Writing: Write an article about environmental problems. (10 pts)
People in your area complain about problems of the environment. Write an article for “Environment” magazine to explain the problems in your city, town or village and suggest solutions to solve them. (Approximately 300 words)
– problems of the environment in your area – causes of these problems
– consequences of these problems – solutions
Answer key: Reading, Language and Writing
Reading
A. Are these sentences true or false? Justify. (3 pts)
- True. “In school, he had an excellent record in mathematics and science.” (paragraph 1)
- True. “There, he almost forgot about the world of computers because he spent many nights studying one of the toughest mathematics courses.” (paragraph 3)
- False. “Within a year, Bill dropped out of Harvard.” (paragraph 5)
B. Answer these questions. (3 pts)
- At the private school his parents sent him to.
- His friend Paul Allen.
- He donated $38 million for the building of a computer institute.
C. Choose the right answers from the list given. (2 pts)
helpful, hard-working, competitive, wealthy (he is not hesitant or greedy).
D. Pick out from the text sentences or phrases which show that: (3 pts)
- “His grandfather was vice president of National Bank and his father was a lawyer.”
- “Bill and his close friend Paul Allen started a new company of their own named Traf-O-Data.”
- “A computer on every desk and Microsoft software on every computer.”
E. Find in the text words that mean the same as: (3 pts)
- outstanding
- software
- attain (paragraph 1) / fulfill (paragraph 5)
F. What is the writer’s purpose? Tick one answer. (1 pt)
b. To inform the readers about Bill’s success story.
The text follows Bill Gates from childhood to the founding of Microsoft and his donations.
Language
A. Fill in each gap with the appropriate word from the list. (2 pts)
- go
- sense
- equal
- take
B. Match each statement with its appropriate function. (4 pts)
- cause and effect
- purpose
- concession
- opinion
C. Correct the underlined mistakes. (3 pts)
- for three hours (for + a period, since + a starting point).
- which (or that): we use which for things.
- laughing: stop + -ing.
D. Give the correct form of the words between brackets. (2 pts)
- financial
- misunderstanding
E. Put the verbs between brackets in the correct tense. (4 pts)
- had retired
- damaged
- would have attended
- hadn’t missed
Writing
Writing: Write an article about environmental problems. (10 pts)
Protecting the Environment of Our Town
People in my town complain about several environmental problems. In this article I will explain them and suggest some solutions.
The first problem is waste. Many people throw their rubbish in the streets and near the river because there are not enough bins. As a result, the town looks dirty, and the river is polluted. The second problem is air pollution, caused by old cars and by the smoke of factories, which makes many children ill.
Another problem is the lack of green spaces: trees are cut down to build houses.
To solve these problems, the municipality should put more bins in the streets and organize regular collection of rubbish. Factories must install filters, and old vehicles should be controlled. Finally, we should plant trees and organize clean-up campaigns in schools and neighborhoods.
If everyone makes an effort, our town can become cleaner and healthier.
Download the full exam (Reading, Language and Writing) with the answers as a PDF.
Source: Moroccan Baccalaureate English National Exam, Arts, July 2010 session. The score counts only the questions that can be checked automatically; open answers (chart, sentences, dialogues, writing) are for self-checking against the model answers. More than one correct answer is often possible.
Exam Tips and Key Vocabulary
What this exam tests
The reading text of the July 2010 Arts exam is about Bill Gates: his family, his school, his friend Paul Allen, Microsoft and his donations. The paper tests Reading, Language and Writing, so read the text twice before answering and base every answer on the text.
Key vocabulary from the text
- ambitious: طموح
- competitive: تنافسي
- attain: يبلغ
- outstanding: متميز
- software: برمجيات
- visionary: صاحب رؤية
- donate: يتبرع
- greedy: جشع
- wealth: ثروة
- monopoly: احتكار
Grammar points in this exam
- Collocations (go through a crisis, sense of humor, equal opportunities, take place)
- Language functions (cause and effect, purpose, concession, opinion)
- Prepositions of time (for / since)
- Relative pronouns (which / who)
- Word formation (financial, misunderstanding)
- Past perfect, past simple, third conditional and wishes
Revise these structures: the Language section of this exam is built on them.
Writing tips
The writing task asks for an article about environmental problems. Give it a title, name the problems and their causes, explain the consequences, then suggest realistic solutions. Use linking words (as a result, because of, to solve this problem).
FAQ
Where can I download this exam with answers?
Use the download button under the exam: the PDF contains the original exam pages and a one-page answer key.
Are the answers on this page official?
No. They are model answers written for practice; any appropriate answer is accepted.
More Baccalaureate English National Exams (Arts)
- Baccalaureate English National Exam Arts June 2010: the other 2010 session
- Baccalaureate English National Exam Arts July 2011
- All Baccalaureate National Exams
