Baccalaureate English National Exam Arts June 2010

A. Fill in the chart with the right information from the text. (3 pts)

Occupation: banker and economist (professor).
Year: 1976.
Amount: $6.38 billion.

B. Are these sentences true or false? Justify. (2 pts)

1. False. “The success of Grameen Bank has encouraged many developing countries, and even industrialized ones, to adopt this model.” (paragraph 5)
2. True. “In 2006, he received the Nobel Prize for his efforts to create economic and social development.” (paragraph 6)

C. Answer these questions. (3 pts)

1. It gives microcredit: small loans to people who are too poor to get credit from ordinary banks.
2. Because they use the money better than their husbands and are careful about paying it back.
3. It uses a system of solidarity groups: borrowers form a group, and if one member fails to pay back, the others are also responsible.

D. Complete the following sentences. (2 pts)

1. …to solve their problems for the rest of their life.
2. …help them start out as street vendors and give up begging.

E. Find in the text words that mean the same as: (3 pts)

1. obtain
2. charity
3. loan(s)

F. What do the underlined words in the text refer to? (2 pts)

1. The women (the majority of the beneficiaries)
2. Countries (industrialized countries)

A. Fill in each gap with an appropriate linking word. (2 pts)

1. because of
2. in order to

B. Fill in each gap with an appropriate phrasal verb from the list. (2 pts)

1. bring about
2. look forward to
3. find out
4. stand for

C. Give the correct form of the words between brackets. (2 pts)

emigration · professional

D. Put the verbs between brackets in the correct tense. (3 pts)

got · had joined · had been

E. Complete the following dialogue appropriately. (2 pts)

1. You should see a doctor and stay in bed. / Why don’t you take some medicine and rest?
2. I’m so sorry. It won’t happen again. / Sorry for the noise, I didn’t realize it was that loud.

F. Rewrite the sentences beginning with the words given. (4 pts)

1. He might have missed the bus.
2. Facebook was created by Mark Zuckerberg.
3. The teacher informed the students that the test would be about the first two units.
4. If I had enough money, I could buy a laptop.

Writing: Write an article about mobile phones. (10 pts)

Scoring criteria (from the official key and marking scale)

Model article (written for this site as an example; the official key gives only the scoring criteria):

Mobile Phones: Blessing or Curse?

Mobile phones are now used by millions of people all over the world. Like any invention, they have advantages and disadvantages.

First of all, mobile phones allow us to communicate freely with our family and friends wherever we are. We can send text messages, take pictures and share them in seconds, and look for information on the Internet. In emergencies, a phone can even save lives.

However, mobile phones also have disadvantages. They are dangerous when used while driving, and many accidents are caused by drivers who send messages. Besides, people spend so much time on their phones that face-to-face communication is disappearing, even inside families. Some students also waste their study time playing games.

In my opinion, the phone is a very useful tool if we use it wisely. We should switch it off in class and while driving, and spend more time talking to people directly.