TEST (B2)

READING

Part 1
You are going to read a newspaper article about the sport of inline skating. . For questions 1-
8, choose the answer (A, B, C or D) which you think fits best according to the text.
(1 point for each question)

Inline Skating
Tracy Winters is on a mission to change the image of inline skating in this country
In her skates there is no stopping Tracy Winters. She spends most of her time teaching,
consulting, examining or campaigning on behalf of this country’s ever-growing number of
inline skaters.
Busy as she is, Tracy did manage to spare an hour early one Saturday morning to give me
a lesson in the local park. The slight unease I felt at never having used inline skates before was
not helped, however, by her emphatic disapproval as I pulled a pair of brand-new skates from
my bag.
“Oh dear,” she said with a frown. “You’ve been sold what we call “aggressive” skates,
which are no good for the sort of skating that you want to do. They’re too heavy for twists and
turns and the wheels are too small. And you have no brake.”
“But I was told that all I need to do to stop was drag my leg behind me,” I protested.
“ No, no, no,” said Tracy. She explained how she was currently helping a girl who has
been off work for a year with a damaged leg after following similar advice. Tracy is drawing
up a list of guidelines for selling inline skates based on ability, budget and type of use,
which she wants to see all retailers use. She has seen the purchase of inappropriate skates all
too often before. “What you should have been sold is recreational skates,” she told me.

Ordinarily, those who turn up with the wrong skates suffer the added annoyance of
missing out on a lesson because Tracy will not teach them. I was more fortunate and, after a
small ticking off for not having knee pads, my lesson began.
Away from the critical eyes of more experienced skaters, she started me off gently,
simple skating up and down a track on the edge of the park.
“Hands out,” Tracy told me repeatedly. This was not just to help break a fall, but to prevent
my tumbling altogether. Ice skaters, Tracy pointed out, keep their arms in front not only to
look elegant: it actually keeps them balanced.
To help get rid of my fear, Tracy insisted that a fall would be good for me, but that I
would need to relax for this to reduce the chances of injury. I was not so keen, but obeyed
each time she reminded me to keep my back straight and chin up. “You don’t look at the
ground when you’re riding a bike,” she said.
Apart from ice-skating and bicycle riding, inline skating has similarities with ballet and
skiing, which makes it attractive to a wide range of people. An estimated sixty percent of
inline skate owners use them every week and more than half are recreational skaters. In this
country the sport is regarded as something for the young and as potentially dangerous. Tracy,
together with the National Inline Skating Association, is trying to change this impression, in
the first instance by emphasizing the importance of insurance and the wearing of protective
clothing in case of accidents. She would also like to see the sport more widely catered for in
sports centres and health clubs, possibly through the building of indoor skating arenas.
 Having been on wheels almost every day of her life since the age of five, Tracy is well-
versed in the virtues of skating and, she claims, she never tires of the sport. “It is the feeling of
moving, of gliding, I can’t quite pin it down, but it makes me feel good,” she says. Like the
hundreds who start skating every week, I now know what she means.

1. How did the writer feel before her inline skating lesson?
A a little nervous
B quite confident
C very frightened
D extremely excited
2. What was wrong with the skates which the writer bought?
A They were of poor quality
B They were not suitable
C They did not fit her well
D They didn’t work properly
3. Why is Tracy writing a set of guidelines?
A to help people who have been injured
B to advise people who are buying skates
C to provide information to sales staff in shops
D to tell her students what to bring to lessons
4. “ticking off” in line 19 means
A checking something
B waiting for something
C giving someone a reward
D telling someone they’re wrong
5. What does “this” in line 22 refer to?
A simple skating
B repeated instructions
C use of the hands
D avoiding falls
6.Tracy compares skating and cycling in terms of
A the fear people feel at first.
B the need to learn how to fall.
C the need to relax to keep balanced.
D the correct body position to adopt
7. How would Tracy like to change the idea people have of inline skating?
A by encouraging older people to do it
B by discouraging recreational skating
C by stressing the need for safety
D by forming a national association
8. After the lesson, the writer agrees with Tracy that inline skating
 A is easy to learn.
B is rather tiring.
C is hard to teach.
D is very satisfying.
Points
8

Part 2

You are going to read a magazine article about marathon running. Seven sentences have been removed
from the article. Choose from the sentences A-H the one which fits each gap (9-14). There is one extra
sentence which you do not need to use. There is an example at the beginning (0).
(1 point for each question)
Marathon Running --- A Recipe for Health?
If ever there was living proof that marathon running keeps you fit, Jenny Wood Allen from
Dundee is it. 0 H
She was 71 and she did not even have proper training shoes then.
At first she could only run to the end of her avenue, which is about three quarters of a
mile. She had problems getting back and had to either take a bus or ask somebody for a lift.
9
f
Scientifically speaking, human beings are perfectly tuned for jumping and running and walking
long distances. 10
c
One of them, Professor Craig Sharp says that if you are reasonably fit, you can
probably run for two hours at a medium pace and feel OK. At this point your muscles run out of
glycogen --- the best source of energy we have. This means you start using fat for energy, and
your body has to work harder to transform fat into energy. This happens at a time when you are
starting to feel 11
a exhausted.
All this is proof --- he believes --- that the body isn’t designed for long-distance
running.
Other specialists have a very different opinion. Dr Percy Brown believes that if you train
sensibly and prepare several months in advance, it could even help you live longer.
12
g
He believes the only problem you may have when running a marathon is exhaustion or a small
injury caused by falling or tripping over things.
13 b
Only 1 in 1,000 actually makes it to hospital.
Another problem may be post-race exhaustion. Surveys show most runners are much more likely
to catch colds or develop chest infections in the week after running a race.
14
e
A He argues that after 16-20 miles, you have to slow down and running gets
There is no evidence of lasting disease or an increased risk of illness. At 87, Jenny Wood Allen
will be doing thereally
Londonhard.
marathon for the 13 th time this Sunday. And she plans to go on taking
part for manyByears to come.
After a quick top up of water and a rest, most go home and make a full

recovery.

C When it comes to marathon running, however, the experts are divided.

D In spite of this, marathon running is bad for your health.

E But this weakening effect on the system is short-lived.

F Within a couple of months, however, she was managing two or three miles.

G This is because running halves your risk of getting heart disease.

H She started by running to the shops, wearing an anorak and carrying her

shopping bag.
Points 6

Part 3
You are going to read an article about wildlife photographers. For Questions (15-28), choose
from the people (A-D). The people may be chosen more than once. There is an example at the
beginning (0).
(1 point for each question). A George Fenns
B Paul Sommer
C Roger Miller
Who D Nathan Ribbs
defends a previous employer? 0 D

learnt to make something at an early age? 15 c

does not mind working in low temperatures? 16 b

earned money to buy equipment? 17 a

needs long preparations before taking photos? 18 d

completed a university course? 19 b

likes to photograph what others can’t see? 20 d

would like to work in a milder climate? 21 a

found his camera gave him confidence? 22 c

admits his profession may be dangerous? 23 c

has had something he wrote published? 24 a

wants to save animals from extinction? 25 d

turned down a well-paid job? 26 b

made his own equipment? 27 c

had an encouraging family? 28 a

Wildlife Photographers

Wildlife photographer George Fenns is a man who loves his job.”When I was three, a
neighbour’s kid taught me to climb our fence,” he recalls. “I slipped away and brought back a
snake I found on the road. I’ve been interested in wildelife ever since.” George’s parents
encouraged his enthusiasm for animals and also nurtured his appreciation of art, which led to
photography. “I sold turtles for two dollars each when I was sixteen,” he says. “That money got
me my first camera.” He now spends three months a year photographing life under water. In
1999 he braved the frigid Pacific Ocean to do a series of photos on salmon, and he also wrote an
article about it for a wildlife magazine which won him an award as a journalist. His latest job
was in the Arctic in freezing temperatures. “I’d now like a job where it’s warm and sunny,” he
says. He never complains about the rigours of his job, but would like to have time to write
articles and train young photographers who are starting out in this profession.

Photographer Paul Sommer is working in Siberia. “On bad days it can be minus 20 degrees,
with a strong wind,” he says. He protects his film from freezing by keeping it inside his gloves.
“ You get used to it,” he says. Siberia is a far cry from his childhood in north Brazil. His years at
college gave him no hint of future high adventure either: “I worked two jobs --- as a waiter and
as a restaurant manager --- to get money for college,” he says. And his efforts paid off when he
finished his degree. He was offered a job as a journalist in an award-winning newspaper, but said
no to it in order to concentrate on photography. His contract as photographer in Siberia does not
pay as much as he would have got as a journalist. However, he has no regrets. “My photos have
been used by researchers who are studying animals here. They have been the basis for important
pieces in scientific journals,” he says, “so this is a very satisfying job.”
Freelance photographer Roger Miller is on a contract to take photos of volcanoes, of the lava
that flows after an eruption and of the animal life around these areas. He is aware of the risks
involved in his assignments, but takes it all in his stride. By age 11 Roger was building his own
telescopes and photographing stars. “I was a very shy kid. The camera made me comfortable
around people,” he says. In 1970 a science instructor took Roger and his classmates to Mexico to
view a total solar eclipse. It was this experience and the help of the science teacher that prompted
him to take up photography as a career. “My parents wanted me to become a writer,”he says,
“they have not lost hope.” His parents may have to wait a long time because Roger’s newest
challenge in his next assignment is teaching astronauts how to set up their equipment to
photograph the activities around the space vehicle. After that he is planning to take a year off to
complete a degree in geology which he started years ago.

Nathan Ribbs spends a lot of his time on a 30-metre-high platform that puts him at eye level
with the nests of rare birds in the jungle. The platform is very small and the danger of falling off
it is evident to everyone except Roger. “It’s like taking pictures from a hill,” he says. For each of
his jobs, the steel structure for the platform often has to go on river canoes and along difficult
forest trails. “But it is very rewarding to see and photograph animals that few people will ever
see. I do this work because I think these creatures have to be protected so they won’t disappear
altogether.” Nathan has no intention of returning to his previous job as a photographer of animals
held in captivity. “Zoos are undergoing very positive changes,” he says, “they are now a leading
method of educating about the natural world. But I’ve done my share of that kind of
photography. This is so much more challenging.”
Points 14

Use of English
Part 1

For Questions 1-15, read the text below and decide which answer A, B, C or D best fits each space.
There is an example at the beginning (0).
(1 point for each question)

Singing for a Musical Life

According to a group called The Voices Foundation, everyone has a singing voice (0) …. a
speaking voice somewhere inside them. This, they say, should be encouraged from an early (1)
….. because it provides the best, and the cheapest, (2) ….. on which to build an understanding of
music.
(3) ….. the Foundation’s ideas, lies the teaching of the Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodaly. He
observed that song can (4) ….. a key part of the relationship between mother and child almost
from birth. This is especially (5) ….. of more traditional societies, like those of West Africa,
where some small children are (6) ….. to sing literally hundreds of songs, all of which have been
learnt by (7) ….. . But many modern children first (8) ….. to an understanding of music when
they learn to play an instrument, and (9) ….. teaching of the theory of music is usually a part of
this, their relationship with the music on the (10) ….. is often a mechanical one.
The (11) ….. of the Voices Foundation is that a natural (12) ….. for rhythm, harmony and
musical structure, the very (13) ….. we appreciate in the greatest musicians, can only be
achieved through the exploration of music with the voice from the start. The foundation has,
therefore, (14) ….. itself the task of developing a singing-centred musical education programme
that could (15) ….. junior pupils all over the world.
 1 A start B life C time D age
2 A ground B basis C root D plot
3 A Behind B Beneath C Besides D Between
4 A grow B do C form D make
5 A fact B true C real D actual
6 A able B expert C skilled D fit
7 A repeat B heart C memory D mind
8 A come B reach C go D arrive
9 A however B despite C although D whether
10 A lines B notes C book D page
11 A rule B certainty C trust D belief
12 A awareness B touch C grasp D feeling
13 A degrees B qualities C measures D practices
14 A let B set C put D cut
15 A benefit B favour C gain D profit
Points
15

Part 2

For Questions 16-30, read the text below and think of the word which best fits each space. Use
only one word in each space. There is an example at the beginning (0).
(1 point for each question)

Example:
0 was

The Birth of the T-Shirt

The T-shirt, or at least the T-shirt as we know it, (0)……………… born in the theatre.
When Tennessee William’s play A Streetcar Named Desire opened in New York in December
1941, a young actor (16) … named/called Marlon Brando went (17) ……on…stage wearing a
(18) ………pair of blue jeans and a bright, white, capped-sleeve T-shirt. It was the first time the
T-shirt (19) had been seen publicly as anything (20) but/except an item of underwear and it set
a fashion trend that was to last through (21) to/until the end of the century.
The idea of the T-shirt came (22)from Brando himself. He had worn one at rehearsals for the
play. The director was (23) …so………. impressed by the look that was created that he asked
Brando to wear the shirt in the play itself. Brando may have seen the shirt being advertised by
the American company Sears Roebuck. They had decided to market the shirt (24) …as.. a
fashionable garment in its (25) ……own….. right, rather than just something to be worn (26)
……for………… warmth beneath a denim workshirt (27) ……or……….. an army uniform.
It was Brando, however, (28) …who………… popularized it, especially with (29) …the……….
release of the film version of Streetcar in 1951. A short leather jacket completed the look that
was to be adopted (30) …by…………. Teenage rebels in many countries for decades afterwards.

Points 15

Part 3

For questions 31-40, complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first
sentence, using the word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between two and
five words, including the word given. There is an example at the beginning (0).
(1 point for each question)

Example:

0 It was the most relaxing holiday I ever had.

such

I have never . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .holiday.

The gap can be filled by the words ‘had such a relaxing’ so you write:

0 had such a relaxing

31 My intention was to phone you last night but I forgot.

going
I was going to phone you last night but I forgot.
32 He didn’t know at the time that it would be his last visit to the place.
was
He didn’t know at the time that it was his last visit to the place.
33 John and I discussed the subject last night.
discussion
I had a discussion with John about the subject last night.
34 She promised not to tell anyone my secret.
promise
She gave me a promise not to tell anyone my secret.
35 People say learning lists of words is not a good use of time.
waste
Learning lists of words is a waste of time.
36 “I find all the advertisements on TV really irritating,” said John.
nerves
“All the advertisements on TV really get on my nerves .,” said John.
37 “If you take my advice, Paul,” said Linda, “you should buy a personal computer.”
advised
Lynda advised Paul to buy a personal computer.
38 “Don’t touch the cake, Toby, it’s still hot,” said Mrs Smith.
not
Mrs Smith told Toby not to touch the cake because it was still hot.
39 After the accident Brenda was confused and did not recognise her brother.
so
After the accident Brenda so confused that did not recognise her brother.
40 We will not be able to solve this difficult problem.
impossible
It will be impossible to find/to get/to work out a solution to this difficult problem.

Points 10

Part 4
For questions 41-50, read the text below. Use the word given in capitals at the end of each line
to form a word that fits in the space in the same line. There is an example at the beginning (0).
(1 point for each que stion)

Example:
0 happiness

Happy is Healthy
Medical research has found that (0) happiness has a strongly happy
beneficial effect on health. The healing properties of (41) laughter laugh
are such that humour is now being used alongside more (42) traditional tradition
courses of (43) treatment in some hospitals. In a London children’s treat
hospital, for example, two clowns are provided for the (44) entertainment entertain
of patients. Doctors say that these clowns are (45) successful success
in making the children feel better.
It seems that when we laugh, there can be a (46) … reduction in both reduce
blood pressure and the amount of (47) tension in our muscles. tense
Although it is (48) impossible to prove it at the moment, this may also possible
mean that people who feel unhappy and who are, therefore, (49) unlikely likely
to laugh so much, suffer more often from physical (50) … illness …… . ill

Points 10
WRITING
1. The most important of all human qualities.
2. Money makes the world go round.
3. Neighbours.
4. My bad habits.
5. Deprived children.(Poverty-stricken children)
6. At six o’clock in the morning the telephone rang ...
7. Our college life needs changes
8. The most eccentric person I know.
9. Recollections.

Write one of the aforesaid composition exercises. Your composition

must contain between 120-180 words.
Points
22
Key
Sample Test B2
Reading
Part 1. Inline Skating
1A 2B 3C 4D 5C 6D 7C 8D
Part 2: Marathon Running --- A Recipe for Health?
9F 10C 11A 12G 13B 14E
Part 3: Wildlife Photographers
15C 16B 17A 18D 19B 20D 21A 22C 23C 24A
25D 26B 27C 28A

Use of English
Part 1: Singing for a Musical Life
1D 2B 3A 4C 5B 6A 7B 8A 9C 10D 11D 12D 13B 14B 15A
Part 2: The Birth of the T-Shirt
16 named/called 24 as
17 on 25 own
18 pair 26 for
19 had 27 or
20 but/except 28 who
21 to/until 29 the
22 from 30 by
23 so

Part 3
31 was going to phone
32 it was
33 had a discussion with
34 gave me a promise
35 a waste
36 get on my nerves
37 advised Paul to buy
38 told Toby not to touch
39 so confused that
40 impossible to find/to get/to work out

Part 4: Happy Is Healthy

41 laughter 42 . traditional 43 treatment 44 entertainment 45 successful
46 reduction 47. tension 48 impossible 49 unlikely 50 illness