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and listening for comprehension;-Including manytask types: multiple-choice, cloze tests andcompletion C: WRITING 90 minutes 3 tasks -Checking English sentence, paragraph and essay writin

THE ENGLISH PROFICIENCY TEST

Page(s)

1 Introduction

-2 Test Takers’ Characteristics

-3 Test Objectives

-4 Test Resources and

Administration -5 Test Task

Types -6 The Proficiency Test

-7 Answer Keys and Scoring Methods 36-52 8 Six Qualities of the Test

-i

The overview of the test is revealed in the following table

FEATURES

BAND SCORE

-Including many task types:

multiple choice, cloze tests andcompletion

0-9

B:

LISTENING

30 minutes 30 items - Checking

listening for gist, listening for detail

0-9

and listening for comprehension;

-Including manytask types:

multiple-choice, cloze tests andcompletion

C: WRITING 90 minutes 3 tasks -Checking English

sentence, paragraph and essay writing skills;

-Including rearrange items, paragraph, and essay writing, following familiartopics

0-9

D: 12 minutes 3 tasks -Checking the 0-9

spoken language

in English andinteractionalskills;

-Including introduction,picturedescription-

self-discussion anddialogues.

Totally, the test takes approximately 192 minutes, including 180 minutesfor Use of English and Reading, Listening and Writing and about 12 minutesfor Speaking

2 TEST TAKERS’ CHARACTERISTICS

The test takers are 1,200 non- English major students who are seniors atVan Lang University

They possess five typical characteristics:

-Most are at the intermediate level of English and learn English for theirparticular future jobs and communication;

-They follow the designed English curriculum for international certificates

at school, so they get familiar with some standardized tests;

-They are different from their current majors: some are in business; someare in technology; some are in physical science;

-They keep diverse personal interests and attitudes towards Englishlearning;

-They also take graduation exams of their own majors in addition to takingthis proficiency test

3 TEST OBJECTIVES

This proficiency test is used for measuring students‟ ability of usingEnglish in specific situations- academic and non-academic settings and for thecomponent of graduation requirement The test content is based on students‟real-life contexts, not the present English curriculum at school

The test combines all four language skills, with a reference to somestandardized tests Besides, English use is added to the part of Reading for thesake of more integrative tasks Due to the students‟ level and school supplies,there are some adjustments For example, students can listen twice for question17-21 because they have to write for their own answers The number ofquestions in reading and listening is reduced to 30, not similar as IELTSformat Writing Tasks are not very particular and broad of categories as CAE.Speaking activities are not very academic as IELTS format.

Each part aims at particular targets:

Part A: Use of English and Reading (60 minutes)

This part is projected to check learners‟ ability to use English vocabularyand grammar, to comprehend the messages via texts-journals or non-journalsand summarize key points from those

Part B: Listening (about 30 minutes)

In this part, students are expected to show their skills in listening comprehension via many activities: listening and fill in forms or notes;

listening and interpret the contexts of conversations; listening and understandthe lectures

Part C: Writing (90 minutes)

This part targets at assessing learners‟ capacity of expressing fluent andaccurate ideas in English writing via tasks of rearrange items of fixed

sentences; report or letter writing and essay writing

Part D: Speaking (about 12 minutes)

Students are hoped to perform real English speaking skills-fluency andaccuracy, via a few test tasks: individual interviews, photo description-

discussion and conversations

The test results are expected to reflect all of those criteria, and help the teachers with their interpretation on learners’ English ability and their decision

on learners’ English graduation.

English Proficiency Test-designed by Duong Thanh Hung Duc 7

4 TEST RESOURCES & ADMINISTRATION

4.1 TEST RESOURCES

All of the test resources are prepared in one month before the test Theyinclude:

-Test materials: confidential reference books with clear answer keys; audio

files; soft and hard copies of the tests; pictures and topic tickets for speaking activities; good answer keys of use of English/reading and listening; writing and speaking criteria for examiners; test folders; draft paper; candidate lists; and test result reports

Here are references for tests:

Adam, G., & Peck, T.(2001).202 useful exercises for IELTS: Practice

exercises for IELTS listening/reading/writing, International edition.

Sydney, Australia: Austen Press

Cambridge English first: Handbook for teachers for exams 2015.

(2015).Cambridge English University Press

Examinee handbook: Listening and reading.(2012).Educational Testing

Service

Examinee handbook: Speaking and writing.(2012).Educational Testing

Service

Jakeman, V., & McDowell.(2006).New insight into IELTS: Practice test.

Cambridge University Press

Jim, H (Ed.).(2015).Expert on Cambridge IELTS: Practice tests, 5 Tan

Viet Investment and Development Co., Ltd

Sunderland, P.(2013).Objective proficiency test: Practice test Cambridge

University Press

-Test facilities: test rooms with required equipment- rooms with good

volume speakers; portable personal computers or laptops for playing audiofiles; good light bulbs and electric fans; chairs and tables without seriouslybroken parts; rooms far from noise

Because there are many candidates, the number of test rooms is thirty, including 40 examinees per room, alphabetically sorted by names Moreover, there are 10 rooms for speaking activities; each room contains two segments: front and end, for two pairs of candidates.

-Labors or human resources:

+Examiners: 20 selected teachers of English who are experienced and trustworthy to rate the initial second parts; 2 experienced professors or

lecturers to evaluate learners‟ writing; and 10 pairs of experienced lecturers

to measure learners‟ speaking

+ Proctors: each test room needs two proctors One sits at the teacher‟s desk to operate all paper tests and audio files One sits at the back of the room

or moves around to observe

+ General supervisors: 5 general supervisors who are in charge of movingfrom room to room in order to take note of candidate numbers and incidentalproblems as well as support when necessary

The procedure takes place in the following order:

-Before two weeks from the test, candidates and all related partners areinformed of all test information: objectives, regulations, penalties, time,place, content, and preparation Each faculty will receive the list ofcandidate numbers of its students, and then they get their number and thetest rooms;

-During the period, the school‟s council members prepare all test resources;

6 English Proficiency Test-designed by Duong Thanh Hung Duc

-At the test day, students bring their own student cards or ID cards to enterthe test room at 7:30 a.m;

-At 7:45 a.m general supervisors will transmit the test paper (the first partonly) to each room Then, all proctors and two randomized candidates willnotify its legibility by appearance Proctor 1 recalls all regulations beforecandidates take the test;

-At 7:55 a.m., the bell goes off The test paper is transferred to allexaminees They will have about 5 minutes to pre-read the paper;

-At 8 a.m., test time is marked Proctor 1 will sign in the paper and takecandidates‟ signatures while proctor 2 administers the test;

-When there are about 15 minutes left, proctor 2 marks in the diagram onthe board;

-At 9 a.m., the bell rings, two proctors collect the paper from the end to thefront;

-There is a 10-minute break before the next section During that time, thegeneral supervisors will provide all paper and USBs to each room Proctor

1 will prepare facilities for Listening part while proctor 2 sign in the firstpaper, check the number and close it;

-At 9: 10 a.m., examinees enter the rooms Proctor 2 checks their identities,and Proctor 1 together with 2 candidates checks the legibility of the testcover;

-At 9:15 a.m., the bell goes off The papers are sent to each examinee Theyhave about 5 minutes to pre-read the content;

-At 9:20 a.m., time will be marked Proctor 1 opens the file;

- The file contains a 2-minute classical song at the end During the time,two proctors will collect the paper;

-Around 9:50 a.m., students have a 5-minute break at the room After allproctors sign in the papers and close the last test, proctor 1 receives thewriting test;

-At 9:55 a.m., candidates return their positions All proctors and 2candidates notify the legibility of the test cover;

-At 10:00 a.m., the bell rings The test is revealed;

-Proctor 2 will sign in the papers and take candidates‟ signatures;

-Around 11:15 a.m., proctor 1 highlighted the time on the board;

-At 11:30 a.m., the bell goes off Two proctors collect the papers from end

to front All candidates finish the test day Two proctors complete all

English Proficiency Test-designed by Duong Thanh Hung Duc 7

procedures left- checking the numbers, signatures, and the test covers Theysubmit the papers at the office of school‟s council.

*During the test time, if any proctors recognize any candidates cheating,he/she will remind that student for the first time when it is a small errorsuch as asking “neighbors” or glancing at others‟ For the second time, thatstudent receives a penalty 25% minus point For the third time, he/she will

be sent off However, when the student is using materials, he/she will besent off, with a notice report containing his/ her and proctors‟ signatures

5 TEST’S TASK TYPES

In general, this proficiency test employs some task types from three international standardized tests: TOEIC, IELTS and CAE The striking feature ofthe test is that most tasks appear to be more interactive and to involve more integrative skills

The test‟s task types are shown in the table below

A: Use of English and Reading

30 items-1 8

-9 14

-15 18

Integrative

(candidates combine vocabulary, grammar and reading skills in contexts simultaneously)

Integrative

(authentic texts, involvingcultural aspects and more skills rather than only reading)

Integrative

(authentic texts, involvingcultural aspects and more skills rather than only reading)

Completion Items

Multiple-choice (longer text)

Matching and scanning

English Proficiency Test-designed by Duong Thanh Hung Duc 8

(authentic texts, involvingcultural aspects and more skills rather than only reading)

Matching, skimming and scanning

Completion Items

B:

Listening

30 items-1 10 Integrative(involving listening,

writing, vocabulary and also cultural

understanding)

Completion (Understanding dialogues)

-11 16 Integrative(more skills than only

listening understanding cultural aspects, reading and understanding spokenforms)

Multiple-choice (Understanding dialogues)

-17 21 (understanding Communicative

utterances, spoken forms, cultural aspects, rather than only listening

refers to language used in communication)

Completion Items

(Understanding talks)

-22

Integrative

(more skills than only listening understanding cultural aspects, reading, vocabulary and

understanding spoken forms)

Multiple-choice (Understanding lectures)

-23 30 (more skills than only

listening understanding cultural aspects, reading, writing, vocabulary and understanding spoken forms)

Items (Understanding lectures)

C:

Writing

3 tasksTask 1 Structuralist

(primarily checking

writing isolated sentences)

Rearrangement Items

Task 2 Integrative (involving

more skills: reading diagrams and

understanding culturalaspects, rather than only writing)

(involving communicativeactivities)

Oral Interview

Task 2 Communicative

(involving communicativeactivities)

Using Visual Materials to Check Speaking

Task 3 Communicative

(involving communicativeactivities)

Conversational Exchanges

Each task is explained more particularly as the following

Part A: Use of English & Reading

Questions 1-8: examinees are hoped to spend about 15 minutes filling in eachblank of a short paragraph with an appropriate form of a given word inparentheses This test task is adapted from CAE Use of English format To answerthese questions, examinees are expected to write in the table below the text withall the answers in capital letters

 Examinees need to show their ability to use knowledge of vocabulary and grammar in a specific context of reading

Questions 9-14: examinees are required to read a given long passage and response

6 multiple- choice question items relating to its information The extracted passage

is an article To answer the questions, they simply write the correct letter in eachbox on the left of the question The recommended time for this task is about 15minutes This task type is adapted from CAE Reading format

 Examinees need to show their ability to comprehend important messages in an article

Questions 15-18: examinees are expected to spend about 10 minutes readinganother article of a different topic and scanning some details in order to matcheach name/ person/character/ object below the article with correctstatement/information They have to choose four of five given statements/ pieces

of information to match This task type is adapted from IELTS Reading format

 Examinees need to show their ability to recognize main information relating to each character/ person/ object in an article or scan important details

Questions 19-25: examinees are asked to make use of 15 minutes to read a text(each paragraph is marked by letters A-G) and fulfill the skimming exercise below.There are seven given main ideas relating to the ideas of seven paragraphs.Examinees match each main idea with each paragraph by writing the correct letternext to the idea The letter is used only once The text is a short guideline, account,review or report with genres of social life or general opinions This task type isadapted from CAE Reading format

 Examinees need to understand key point of each paragraph or skim the whole text

Question 26-30: examinees are suggested to spend about 10 minutes to scaninformation of the text and fill in the blanks of a given summary with no morethan two words This task type is adapted from IELTS Reading format.

 Examinees need to show their ability to scan important details of a short text andselect key words

 Examinees need to show their ability to recognize some specific details of ashort dialogue

Questions 11-16: examinees listen to three extracts from real-life dialogues andanswer two multiple-choice question items for each The correct letter is written inthe box on the left of each question This task type is adapted from TOEICListening format

 Examinees need to show their ability to comprehend important messages ordetails in different conversations in different contexts

Question 17-21: examinees listen to five different talks or conversations in diversecontexts, and then summarize key details to write their own answers with no morethan twelve words This model is compiled and adjusted from IELTS and CAEListening format

 Examinees need to show their ability to recognize important details and takenotes This part does not require examinees to write complete sentences, butshort correct answers

Question 22: Examinees are required to listen to a lecture and answer a followingmultiple-choice question item This question focuses on general ideas of thelecture The correct letter must be put in the box on the left of the question Thismodel is adapted from IELTS Listening format

English Proficiency Test-designed by Duong Thanh Hung Duc 15

 Examinees need to show their ability to pay attention to key idea and listen correctly.

Questions 23-30: Examinees continue with the prior lecture and fulfill completionitems They have to fill in the blanks of a given table/ report/ review or summarywith no more than three words and/or a number This model is adapted fromIELTS Listening

 Examinees need to show their ability to comprehend all important messages of the lecture and take note of them

Part C: Writing

Task 1: Examinees are required to rearrange all given chunks of each sentence,and then write each complete sentence on the dotted lines The answers should becorrect in terms of capitalization and punctuation There are five question itemsthat concentrate on one topic familiar with students The recommended time forthis part is about 20 minutes This model is adapted and adjusted from IELTSPractice Exercises

Examinees need to show their ability to apply English grammar and sentencewriting skills appropriately

Task 2: Examinees are asked to spend about 25 minutes writing about either ashort review or report of a diagram/ procedure or a response letter to a givenadvertisement or notification The report is expected to contain at least 150 words.This task type is compiled and adjusted from CAE and IELTS Writing format

 Examinees need to show their ability to understand the context of writing, write effectively (fluently, accurately, and appropriately)

Task 3: Examinees are told to spend about 55 minutes writing an essay of at least

250 words about one of three given topics This model is adjusted and compiledfrom some IELTS Writing tests

 Examinees need to show their ability to understand the context of writing, writeeffectively (fluently, accurately, and appropriately) and give appropriate,persuasive opinions

Part D: Speaking

Task 1: Examinees answer some questions about personal information, opinions,

or interests Each examinee will interchangeably make a short oral interview with

both examiners to answer the same questions This model is adapted from IELTSSpeaking format.

 Examinees need to show their confidence in conversation and their ability ofexpressing ideas appropriately, correctly and fluently

Task 2: Both examinees join photo description part Each of them receives arandomized set of pictures, chooses his/her favorite one, explain and discuss withthe partner Examiners guide examinees with hints and guiding questions andassess individual performance The photo contents are of social activities andfamiliar with students‟ life This task type is adapted and adjusted fromCAE Speaking format

 Examinees need to show their ability to give clear description and explanationsand their interactional skills

Task 3: There are six topics Both examinees randomly choose their only topic tomake a short dialogue They have one minute to prepare and then perform it Thescore is a total set, not individually Both examiners assess the pair work Thetopics are familiar with students‟ life more than future situations This part

is adapted, compiled and adjusted from TOEIC and CAE Speaking format

 Examinees need to show their ability to interact with the partner in conversation,their confidence in speaking and their appropriate use of spoken English inparticular contexts

6 THE PROFICIENCY TEST

This is the full proficiency test for graduation

PART A: USE OF ENGLISH AND READING (60 minutes)

You should spend about 15 minutes on this task.

For questions 1-8, read the text below Use each correct form of each given word

in block letters in the parentheses to fill in each blank Write your answers IN

CAPITAL LETTERS in the given table below the text Number 0 is done as an

example for you

English Proficiency Test-designed by Duong Thanh Hung Duc 17

Extract from a book about meetings

We are (0) ………by the experts that we are, as a species, designed for to-face communication But does that really mean having every meeting inperson? Ask the bleary-eyed sales team this question as they struggle(1 LABOUR)………… through their weekly teambuilding session and thatanswer is unlikely to be in the (2.AFFIRM)………… Unless you work for a verysmall business or have an (3 EXCEPT)……… high boredom threshold,you doubtless spend more time sitting in meetings than you want to Of course,you could always follow business guru Archie Norman‟s example He liked toexpress (4.SOLID)……… with customers queuing at the checkout byholding management meetings standing up Is email a realistic (5.ALTERNATE)

face-…………? It‟s certainly a powerful tool for disseminating information, but as ameeting substitute it‟s seriously flawed Words alone can cause trouble We‟re allfull of (6 SECURE)……… that can be unintentionally triggered by othersand people are capable of reading anything they like into an email There is also a(7 TEND)……… for email to be used by people who wish to avoid

„real‟ encounters because they don‟t want to be (8 FRONT)……….with any awkwardness

You should spend about 15 minutes on this task.

You are going to read an article about history For questions 9-14, write the correct

answer (A, B, C, or D) for each question relating to the information according to the text Write your answers in the box beside each question.

New ways of looking at history

Though few modern readers are familiar with LP Hartley‟s novel The Between, many will know the novel‟s often quoted opening line: „The past is aforeign country: they do things differently there.‟ In Hartley‟s novel, published in

Go-1953, the remark indicates the distance that separates an elderly narrator from thedramatic events of his youth But the phrase has since been gleefully adopted byhistorians hoping to dramatise the gulf between present and bygone ages Thisremoteness makes the past both alluring and incomprehensible It is the naturalhurdle all historians must overcome to shed lights on earlier times Since the days

of Herodotus, the father of history who lived 2500 years ago, it has had themscrambling for new ways to acquaint today‟s audiences with yesterday‟s events.Amid the current mass of works of popular historical non-fiction, the question ofhow to bring history to life seems more pressing than ever The historian IanMortimer takes a literal approach: if the past is a foreign country, then aforeigner‟s guidebook might help His book The Time Traveller‟s Guide toMedieval England is exactly that, offering „an investigation into the sensations ofbeing alive in different times‟ The resulting portrait of the era is as lively andentertaining as it is informative Yet it is worth considering his claims about hisown approach „In traditional history, what we can say about the past is dictated bythe selection and interpretation of evidence.‟ It would be foolish, however, tosuppose that Mortimer‟s own text has not relied on precisely this kind of selection.Mortimer presents events as if they were unfolding, putting the facts in the presenttense Yet the illusion of first-hand historical experience is shattered the moment

we are thrown 50 years backwards or forwards in order to provide context.

Mortimer‟s refusal to commit to a temporal point of view undermines theimmediacy he attempts to convey

Unlike Mortimer, Philip Matyszak, author of Ancient Rome on Five Denarii aDay, does not claim to tread new historiographical ground His aim is to informand amuse, and in this he succeeds The light-hearted approach pays off, though itoccasionally descends into juvenile and anachronistic humour: Oedipus is referred

to as „he of the complex‟ This raises the question of what readership the book isreally aimed at Also, the problem with time-travellers‟ guides is that they oftensay more about the people who wrote them than about the people they describe.Mortimer‟s avowal that „climate change is another factor affecting the landscape‟ in14th-century England reflects concerns more modern that medieval While

Matyszak‟s assertion that „it is a common misconception among visitors that theAcropolis is the Parthenon‟ sounds more like a complaint about the ignorance oftoday‟s tourists.

„Understanding the past is a matter of experience as well as knowledge,‟ Mortimerdeclares This may well be the manifesto for those who, not satisfied with virtualtours of history, take history into their own hands Historical re-enactors – yes,those individuals whose idea of fun is to dress up and stage mock battles – providethe most literal interpretation of history as experience Humorist Tim Moore setout to explore this world in his book I Believe in Yesterday In Berne, Switzerland,

he suffers in the name of „utter authenticity‟ during the restaged siege of Grandson,circa 1474 In the US he endures a stint of „relentless and uncompromisingimmersion with re-enactment‟s seasoned elite,‟ revisiting 1864‟s battle of RedRiver during the American Civil War

Moore‟s quest for „my inner ancient‟ is fuelled by his anxieties about our moderninability to deploy the skills that came naturally to our ancestors More often, hefinds, it is a „refreshingly simple impulse to get away from it all‟ that gets peopleinto period attire Many civil war re-enactors seek redress: „History is written bythe winners but re-enactment gives the losers a belated chance to scribble in themargins.‟ For others it‟s „a simple and truly heart-warming quest for gregariouscommunity‟

Perhaps re-enactment is the closest we can get to Mortimer‟s ideal of what historyshould be: „A striving to make spiritual, emotional poetic, dramatic andinspirational connections with our forebears‟ Interestingly, Mortimer quotes thepoet WH Auden, who remarked that to understand your own country it helps tohave lived in at least two others Perhaps the same applies to historical eras Thecentral question, for popular historians and historical re-enactors alike, is not how

to animate the past but how to make it cast light on us today

9 For the writer, a well-known quote from a novel

A. explains the strange attitude of some historians

B. has been somewhat misinterpreted by historians

C. epitomises what historians have always tried to do

D. indicates the problems in trying to popularise history

English Proficiency Test-designed by Duong Thanh Hung Duc

17

10 The phrase “thrown 50 years backwards or forwards” in bold is used as an

example of Mortimer

A. doing what he claims he is not doing

B. choosing to ignore certain evidence

C. sticking closely to historical fact

D. succeeding in doing something different

11 In the fourth paragraph, the writer implies that

A Matyszak‟s defence of his book seems to rather overstate the case

B Matyszak and Mortimer have more similarities than they acknowledge

C Matyszak‟s own opinions could have been more to the fore in the book

D Matyszak‟s book may have little appeal for those interested in history

12 With regard to historical re-enactors, the writer shares with author Tim

Moore

A. a desire to see at first- hand what motivates them

B. a sense of scepticism about what they are doing

C. doubts about the historical authenticity of all of their actions

D. concerns that the battles chosen are given undue prominence

13 What does Tim Moore say is the appeal of historical re-enactment for

some?

A. imagining that they are famous historical figures

B. the possibility of proving something to themselves

C. investigating what life would be like if history could be changed

D. the chance to pretend that they‟re influencing historical outcomes

English Proficiency Test-designed by Duong Thanh Hung Duc 21

14 The writer concludes that history as Mortimer, Matyszak and the

historical re-enactors see it

A. has more in common with literary writing

B. is a new development that will have a limited life

C. can help us learn things about modern society

D. may well be the way forward for historians in general

You should spend about 10 minutes on this task.

You are going to read an article about robots Below the text, there are four peoplenames and a list of statements For questions 15-18, match each name with the

correct statement (A-F) Write down your answers on the dotted lines given.

There is one redundant statement.

Robots with a Sense of Self

At Yale University, scientists have created a humanoid robot named Nico When Nico sits in front of a mirror and raises an arm, he recognises the arm moving

in the mirror as his own It may not sound like much of a feat, but he has just become the first of his kind to recognise his own reflection in a mirror.

The ability to recognise your reflection is considered an important milestone ininfant development and as a mark of self-awareness, sociability and intelligence in

a non-human animal Nico‟s ability to perform the same feat could pave the wayfor more sophisticated robots that can recognise their own bodies even if they aredamaged or reconfigured

The achievement is one of a cluster of recent instances in which robots have begun

to approach the major milestones in cognitive development If robots can be taught

to move from one developmental stage to the next, as infants do, they mayeventually be capable of learning more complicated tasks and therefore becomemore useful to humans „It‟s less about recreating a human than making a humancompatible being,‟ says Matt Berlin, a robotics researcher at MassachusettsInstitute of Technology

To give Nico the ability to recognise himself, Kevin Gold and his supervisor Brian Scassellati equipped Nico with a video camera behind one of his eyes They also

gave him a jointed arm with an attached computer running some clever software.When Nico points his camera eye at the mirror, the software assigns sections of theimage a probability of being „self‟, „another‟ or „neither‟ At the same time,motion sensors in Nico‟s arm tell the software when he is moving Whenever asection of the image changes at the same time as his motion sensors detectmovement in the arm, he assigns that section a high probability of being „self‟ If

a section of the image shifts and Nico detects no movement in his arm, he assignsthat image section a high probability of being „another‟, while static sections arelikely to be „neither‟ This allows him to recognise not only his own movinglimbs, but those of other robots or people To test the self-recognition software,Gold programmed Nico to move his arm for four minutes whilefilming it with his camera, allowing him to learn when movement of his arm,detected by his arm sensors, corresponded to motion of the arm in the video Nicowas then positioned so that he could see both his own reflection in a mirror andGold standing beside it Gold carried out a range of different tasks, includingjuggling balls, while Nico moved his arm around Nico‟s software was able tocorrectly classify the movements corresponding to his own reflection and those ofGold 95% of the time

The same system should also make it possible for robots to recognise their ownlimbs even if they are damaged, or wearing different clothes by correlatingmovement detected by on-board cameras with those reported by sensors on theirlimbs, says Gold This should help them carry out tasks such as manipulatingobjects or let them adapt the way they walk to a changing terrain, whenconventional vision software can be fooled by changes in appearance orenvironment

The ability to tell self from other should also allow robots to carry out moresophisticated tasks, says Olaf Sporns, a cognitive scientist and roboticist at IndianaUniversity in Bloomington For instance, researchers are investigating imitation as

a way of helping robots learn how to carry out tasks To successfully and safelyimitate someone, though, robots will need to distinguish between their own limbsand those of another person, as Nico can „The distinction between self and other

is a fundamental problem for humanoid robotics,‟ says Sporns

Meanwhile, a furry robot called Leonardo, built at MIT recently, reached anotherdevelopmental milestone, the ability to grasp that someone else might believesomething you know to be untrue You can test the capacity for „false belief‟ inchildren by showing them a scene in which a child puts chocolate in a drawer and

goes away While he is out of sight, his mother moves the chocolate somewhereelse Young children are incapable of seeing the world through the other child‟seyes, and so predict that he will look for the chocolate in the place his mother hasleft it Only when they reach four or five can they predict that the other child willmistakenly look for the chocolate in the drawer.

Leonardo, developed by Cynthia Breazeal together with Berlin and colleagueJesse Gray, uses face, image and voice recognition software running on an array ofattached computers to build a „brain‟ for himself – basically a list of objectsaround him in the room and events that he has witnessed Whenever he spots anew face, he builds and stores another „brain‟ which processes information in thesame way as his own but sees the world from the new person‟s point of view.When faced with the false-belief test, Leonardo knows that the object has beenmoved and also that a person who left the room before this would not know this It

is more than just a cute trick, however Gray found that the ability to model otherpeople‟s beliefs allows Leonardo to gain a better understanding of their goals

As well as helping to build better robots, such research could ultimately enhanceour understanding of cognitive development in infants Developmental milestonessuch as self-recognition and modelling other people‟s beliefs are believed to beassociated with the development of other important capabilities, such as empathyand sociability By performing feats associated with these milestones, such robotscould help researchers understand what capabilities infants need to reach them,says Sporns „It shows us that complex phenomena can sometimes be explained onthe basis of simple mechanisms.‟

A. suggests that robots cannot yet discriminate between themselves and others

B. thinks that research using robots can help us understand the skills young children need to develop

C. wants robots to be able to respond to varying conditions

D. is working on a number of different versions of a robot

E. is not trying to make a human being but a machine to help humans

You should spend about 15 minutes on this task.

For questions 19-31, read the text below

Unlocking the history of locks and keys

A Keys have always represented authority, security, and power Kings, emperors,

court nobles, and cities and towns across the globe have incorporated the symbol

of the key into banners, coats of arms and offi cial seals The delivery of keys to acastle, fortress or city was a symbolic event, as is the presentation of the Key-to-the-City today to a visiting dignitary It was a way of showing people that theywere both welcome and trusted

B Many centuries ago in ancient Egypt, the importance of the „head of the

household‟ was determined by the number of keys he owned These were largekeys, and were carried by slaves on their shoulders If he had several slaves, or keybearers, he was considered to be a man of great wealth and distinction And in thistradition, through the ages, the lock and its key have become an intricate part ofour culture Locking up personal property, the key symbolizes our desire forprivacy and security for our possessions

C The earliest known locks date back well over 3,000 years They were made of

wood and were large and crude in design; yet their principle of operation was theforerunner of the modern pin-tumbler locks in use today Since the earliest times,chests were secured with strong and often very large locks They were used toprotect precious metals, money, jewels, to store clothing, and church vestments,archives and arms, linens and other household articles, bridal dresses, and even forburial of important people Chest locks were ornamented for household use, or

were very plain and sturdy for chests that were to be transported So the designand appearance of a lock usually depended on the use to which that lock would beput.

D Padlocks were known to the ancient Greeks, Romans, Egyptians and other cultures

including the Chinese, and were particularly favoured because they were portable

It is generally believed that the padlock was first used as a „travel‟ lock tosafeguard merchandise from thieves along ancient trade routes and seaboards andwaterways where commerce was centred Brass and iron padlocks found in Europeand the East were popularised by the Romans and the Chinese

E Another type of padlock, the push-key padlock, was of simple construction, the

bolt being kept in locked position by the projection of a spring or springs Tounlock, the springs were compressed or flattened by the key, which freed the boltand permitted it to slide back Padlocks were often highly decorated with dragons,horses, dogs and even elephants, and were presented in pairs as gifts, withcongratulatory messages For better efficiency, letter locks, otherwise known ascombination padlocks, were later developed, which eliminated the need for anactual key and worked by aligning letters or numbers on revolving disks Padlockswere used throughout the centuries to lock up prisoners as well as possessions.They were usually made of iron, bronze or brass, and were rough in construction,but had the disadvantage of being easy to defuse

F Throughout the 14th and 15th centuries in Europe, there was little significant

improvement made in the design of locking mechanisms, although ornamentationbecame increasingly important Craftsmen at this time excelled in metal work anddesigned and produced locks for gates, doors, chests and cupboards This was theage of the „Masterpiece‟ lock, that had to be designed and produced as a one-of-a-kind by a journeyman1 locksmith, in order to qualify him as a Master Masterpiecelocks, which were never actually used on a door, were often displayed withoutcovers to show the component parts of the mechanisms, their functions, thedecoration and method of assembly

G During the era of the Renaissance in the 15th and 16th centuries in Europe, master

locksmiths were inspired to produce the most intricate and the fi nest ornamentallocks of all time This was the period when iron craftsmen and lock artisans werehighly sought after and became internationally famous They excelled in theforging, embossing, engraving, and etching of metals, and were invited to makelocks and keys for many of the great courts of Europe

Beating the burglars

When lock-picking2 became prevalent in the 18th century, the inventor met thechallenge of confounding the burglar with increasingly complicated lockingmechanisms Among the new improvements were keys with changeable bits, aswell as alarm bells and what were known as „puzzle‟ padlocks These early puzzlepadlocks had from three to seven rings of characters or letters which released thelock when properly aligned Dial locks were similar in operation, and both typeswere set to be unlocked by words or patterns of numbers known only to theowners or responsible persons The introduction of digital technology in the late20th century revolutionised the science of locks and security systems But despitethe advances made in this field, most of us still rely on conventional keys to lockour front doors or start the car, possibly because we prefer the mechanicalsatisfaction of turning a key to remembering a security number

The text has seven paragraphs, A–G.

Which paragraph contains the following information?

For questions 19-25, write the correct letter, A–G, on the given dotted lines Use the letter only ONCE.

19 the reason why a certain lock was used to protect goods for sale ………

20 an explanation of how a particular lock works ………

21 examples of the relationship between form and function ………

22 a time when locksmiths were in big demand ………

23 reference to an ancient ceremony ………

24 how certain lock-making skills were tested ………

25 the use of keys as a measure of a person‟s social status ………

Example Answer

Type of accommodation (0) Homestay

You should spend about 10 minutes on this task.

For questions 26-30, fill in the notes with NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the text for each answer.

Anti-burglar devices

According to the writer, early padlocks were (26) ………

In terms of security mechanisms, they have included:

• keys with changeable bits

• (27)………

• puzzle padlocks

• (28)………

In recent years, alternative methods of security have been made possible by (29)

……… However, people continue to prefer (30) ………

PART B: LISTENING (about 30 minutes)

Questions 1-5

Listen to the conversation and complete the notes below.

Write on the dotted lines with NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A

NUMBER for each answer You will listen to the recording ONCE.

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