UNIT 7: ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS

I. LISTENING
PART 1:True/False:
1. We are currently using 1.6 Earths to support our needs. (T/F)
2. Healthy ecosystems store carbon instead of releasing it. (T/F)
3. Restoring ecosystems is an easy and simple process. (T/F)
4. Planting mangroves has no financial benefits for coastal communities. (T/F)
5. Growing trees in cities can help reduce pollution and global warming. (T/F)
ANSWER : 1.T 2.T 3.F 4.F 5.T
PART 2: Mutiple choice listening
1. What could happen if we don’t act now to protect ecosystems?
A. Fishers numbers would rapidly experience strong growth.
B. Coral reefs vanish, harming fish and economies.
C. Carbon capture in nature would surprisingly improve.
D. Animal diseases would completely and suddenly disappear.
2. What percentage of the human body is made up of carbon?
A. 10% B. 15% C. 18% D. 25%
3. What are ‘Zoonotic diseases’?
A. Diseases caused by pollution and infection
B. Diseases that pass between animals and humans
C. Diseases related to unhealthy soil
D. Diseases caused by pesticide usage
4. What happens when ecosystems become weak?
A. They store more carbon and hydrogen
B. They release carbon instead of storing it.
C. They grow healthier soil and land
D. They increase biodiversity.
5. What is one benefit of restoring mangroves?
A. They reduce soil pollution.
B. They have no economic benefits.
C. They protect coastlines from storms and floods.
D. They decrease urban population growth.

II. LANGUAGE
PART 1 : PRONUNCIATION AND STRESS
Circle the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the word whose underlined part is pronounced
differently from the others.
1. A. bear B. feature C. feather D. weather
2. A. nation B. nature C. native D. natural
3. A. officer B. species C. fancies D. peaceful
Circle the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the word that has a stress pattern different from the
others.
4. A. northern B. foreign C. across D. native
5. A. radio B. volcano C. mosquito D. extinction
6. A. shower B. sunshine C. grassland D. extinct

PART 2: VOCABULARIES AND GRAMMAR

WORD MEANING
Choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence.
1. The destruction of forests can harm the entire ________, affecting both plants and animals.
A. ecosystem B. species C. solution D. adventure
2. Deforestation poses a serious ________ to many wildlife species in tropical regions.
A. spread B. threat C. poison D. fine
3. Invasive plants ________ rapidly and often disrupt the balance of native ecosystems.
A. deter B. poison C. spread D. fine
4. Industrial waste can ________ rivers, causing harm to aquatic life.
A. spread B. fine C. deter D. poison
5. The kangaroo is ________ to Australia and plays a vital role in its ecosystem.
A. native B. extinct C. illegal D. adventurous
6. The government is working on a project to protect endangered ________ in the national park.
A. ecosystems B. solutions C. species D. adventures
7. Exploring the Amazon rainforest was the most thrilling ________ of my life.
A. species B. adventure C. fine D. solution
8. Hunting endangered animals is ________ in most countries to protect biodiversity.
A. illegal B. extinct C. native D. poisonous
9. Heavy fines have been introduced to ________ illegal logging in the area.
A. spread B. deter C. poison D. threaten
10. Companies that pollute the environment should face strict ________ to prevent further
damage.
A. fines B. species C. solutions D. threats
11. Dinosaurs became ________ millions of years ago due to drastic changes in the Earth's
climate.
A. native B. extinct C. illegal D. adventurous
12. Promoting renewable energy is a sustainable ________ to reduce pollution and combat
climate change.
A. ecosystem B. fine C. solution D. poison
PREPOSITION

Choose the correct preposition (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence.

1. Things like plastic and air pollution are a threat ________ the environment.
A. for B. with C. to D. at
2. The insects spread ________ the country and can now be found in every city.
A. across B. through C. over D. into
3. If there are mice or insects in your home, you can kill them ________ poison.
A. with B. by C. from D. in
4. I am writing to you about the serious threat ________ lionfish in the Atlantic Ocean.
A. for B. with C. by D. of
5. Since then, we have been working ________ making a robot.
A. in B. on C. at D. for
WORD FORMATION
Choose the correct form of the word to complete each sentence.
1.Bản Giốc Waterfall, the widest waterfall in Vietnam offers a(n) _________ view of the natural
world.
A. Impressively B. Impression C. Impressive D. Impress
2.The food source was cut off, so the plants were _________ to produce anything.
A. Ability B. Unable C. Enable D. Abled
3.The kangaroo is ________ to Australia and cannot be found naturally elsewhere.
A. native B. natively C. nativeness D. naturing

CLOSEST AND OPPOSITE MEANING

Circle the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the word CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word
in the questions.
32. Illegal hunting in the grasslands will be effectively prevented by heavier punishments.
A. stopped B. denied C. selected D. repaired
33. It's incredible to see a rhino walking into the African sunset.
A. reliable B. unacceptable C. understandable D. unbelievable
The insects spread across the country and can now be found in every city.
A. restrict B. expand C. compress D. shrink
Circle the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the word OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word
in the questions.
34. Kangaroos are essential to the health and longevity of grassland ecosystems.
A. important B. unnecessary C. crucial D. significant
35. Vietnam still keeps its natural beauty and culture since so much of it has not been explored.
A. investigated B. discovered C. hidden D. examined
1. At the moment it is difficult to assess the extent of the damage that his company has caused to the
environment.
A. benefit B. destruction C. devastation D. extinction

GRAMMAR

E1: Choose the correct answer for each sentence in the Present Perfect Continuous tense.
1. She _________ here for five years.
A. has worked B. has been working C. is working D. worked
2. I _________ all day.
A. study B. have studied C. have been studying D. am studying
3. You _________ a lot recently.
A. have eaten B. eat C. have been eating D. are eating
4. We _________ in London for six months.
A. live B. are living C. have lived D. have been living
5. They _________ English for two years.
A. learn B. have been learning C. are learning D. learned
E2: Circle the correct answer.
1. There was lots of sunshine this weekend, but the temperature ___ got up to 10°C.
A. always B. never C. even D. only
2. ___ Timmy went swimming. No one else would go because it was freezing cold.
A. Only B. Rarely C. Even D. Sometimes
3. If you go swimming in the coral reef, you’ll get to see fish, turtles, and ___ sharks!
A. never B. possibly C. only D. even
4. You can ___ visit the temple on Friday. It’s closed during the rest of the week.
A. occasionally B. only C. even D. always
5. I couldn’t believe that it’s ___ light outside at 10 p.m. in some parts of Europe.
A. barely B. even C. always D. only

III. READING
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the correct word or
phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.
P1:
Enric Sala is a full-time conservationist as a National Geographic Explorer in Residence. In 2008, he
founded National Geographic Pristine Seas, a project that combines exploration, research, public
policy and media to inspire the creation of marine protected areas. The project aims to protect at least
30 percent of the ocean by 2030 for the benefit of nature and humanity (1) _________ less than eight
percent is currently protected.
The ongoing marine (2) _________ efforts are an expression of a lifelong passion for Sala. He says.
“The exotic places, the daring underwater explorers, the spectacular (3) _________. It was all I
wanted to do with my life,” he adds. “Sometimes dreams do come true.”
“Over the last century alone, we (4) _________ over 90 percent of the ocean’s large fish, yet less
than eight percent of the ocean is under some kind of protection. We’re still learning about the
damage from fishing activities, like bottom trawling, (5) _________ negatively affects the ocean
floor - the world’s largest carbon storehouse,” Sala writes. “But it is possible to restore the ocean’s
benefits to people and the planet. All we must do is rewild the sea. The only catch is that we can’t
wait. We have less than a decade to act.”
Adapted from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/impact/article/enric-sala-protecting-the-last-
wild-places-in-the-ocean
1. A. because B. and C. but D. although
2. A. protector B. protect C. protected D. protection
3. A. creatures B. resources C. materials D. goods
4. A. removed B. are removing C. have removed D. remove
5. A. which B. what C. that D. where

P 2:
An ecosystem is a geographic area where plants, animals, and other organisms, as well as weather
and landscape, work together to form life. Ecosystems contain living parts, as well as non living
parts. Living parts ……. plants, animals, and other organisms. Nonliving parts include rocks,
temperature, and humidity.
Every factor ….. an ecosystem depends on every other factor, either directly or indirectly. A change
in the temperature of an ecosystem will often affect what plants will grow there, for instance.
Animals …… depend on plants for food and shelter will have to adapt to the changes, move to
another ecosystem.
The whole surface of Earth is a series of connected ecosystems. Ecosystems are often connected in a
larger biome. Biomes are large sections of land, sea, or atmosphere. Forests, ponds and reefs are all
types of biomes, for example. They’re organised very ……. , based on the types of plants and animals
that live in them, within each forest, each pond or each reef, you’ll find many different ecosystems.
The biome of the Sahara Desert, ……., includes a wide variety of ecosystems. The Sahara has oasis
ecosystems which have palm trees and animals such as crocodiles, and dune ecosystems, which have
animals such as snakes or scorpions.
Adapted from https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/ecosystem/

1. A. contain B. include C. consist D. form

2. A. on B. in C. at D. with
3. A. who B. whose C. that D. whom
4. A. general B. generalize C. generally D. generality
5. A. although B. as well as C. for instance D. however
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D to indicate the correct answer to each
of the questions.

P1:

Scientists have uncovered a new threat to the world’s endangered coral reefs. They have found that
most are incapable of growing quickly enough to compensate for rising sea levels triggered by
global warming. The study suggests that reefs – which are already suffering serious degradation
because the world’s seas are warming and becoming more acidic – could also become overwhelmed
by rising oceans.

The research – led by scientists at Exeter University and published in Nature this week – involved
studying growth rates for more than 200 tropical western Atlantic and Indian Ocean reefs. It was
found only 9% of these reefs had the ability to keep up with even the most optimistic rates of sea-
level rises forecast by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. “For many reefs across the
Caribbean and Indian Ocean regions, where the study focused, rates of growth are slowing due to
coral reef degradation,” said Professor Chris Perry, of Exeter University. “Meanwhile, rates of sea-
level rise are increasing – and our results suggest reefs will be unable to keep up. As a result, water
depths above most reefs will increase rapidly through this century.”
Sea levels rose by several inches over the past century and measurements indicate the speed of this
increase is now rising significantly. Two key factors are involved: climate change is making ocean
water warmer and so it expands. And as ice sheets and glaciers melt, they increase amounts of water
in the oceans.
At the same time, reefs are being weakened by ocean warming and also by ocean acidification,
triggered as the seas absorb more and more carbon dioxide. These effects lead to bleaching events
that kill off vast stretches of coral and limits their ability to grow.
“Our predictions, even under the best case scenarios, suggest that by 2100, the inundation of reefs
will expose coastal communities to significant threats of shoreline change,” said co-author Prof Peter
Mumby of Queensland University. This point was backed by US marine scientist Ilsa Kuffner
writing in a separate comment piece for Nature. “The implications of the study are dire. Many island
nations and territories are set to quickly lose crucial natural resources.”
(Source: https://www.theguardian.com/)
Question 1: Which of the following does the passage mainly discuss?
A. Sea levels will become the main factor of bleaching.
B. Coral reefs will be overwhelmed by rising oceans.
C. Coral reefs may escape from extinction because of the increase in sea levels.
D. Global warming will cause the rise of sea levels.
Question 2: What did scientists at Exeter University find in their research?
A. Tropical coral reefs are increasing more quickly than others in Pacific Ocean.
B. The majority of tropical coral reefs cannot keep pace with the increasing rate of sea levels.
C. Many coral reefs are developing in spite of their degradation.
D. The rapid rise in sea levels does not affect the density of coral reefs.
Question 3: According to the passage, the two factors causing the rise of sea levels are
___________.
A. global warming and freeze B. severe weather and climate change
C. climate change and ice expansion D. climate change and ice melt
Question 4: What does the phrase “these effects” in paragraph 4 refer to?
A. ocean warming and ocean acidification B. reef weakening and ocean warming
C. reef weakening and ocean acidification D. ocean warming and CO2 absorb
Question 5: The word “inundation” is closest in meaning to ______________.
A. drought B. extinction C. flood D. tsunami
P2:
In the past hundred years, biodiversity around the world has decreased dramatically. Many species
have gone extinct. Extinction is a natural process; some species naturally die out while new species
evolve. But human activity has changed the natural processes of extinction and evolution. Scientists
estimate that they are dying out at hundreds of times the natural rate.
A major reason for the loss of biodiversity is that natural habitats are being destroyed. The fields,
forests, and wetlands where wild plants and animals live are disappearing. Land is cleared to plant
crops or build houses and factories. Forests are cut for lumber and firewood. Between 1990 and
2005, the amount of forested land in Honduras, for instance, dropped 37 percent.
As habitats shrink, fewer individuals can live there. The creatures that survive have fewer breeding
partners, so genetic diversity declines.
Pollution, overfishing, and overhunting have also caused a drop in biodiversity. Global climate
change - the latest rise in the average temperature around the globe, linked to human activity - is also
a factor. Warmer ocean temperatures damage fragile ecosystems such as coral reefs. A single coral
reef can shelter 3,000 species offish and other sea creatures such as clams and sea stars.
Source: https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/global-biodiversity/

Question 34: Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
A. The Impact of Global Climate Change on Biodiversity
B. Natural Processes of Extinction and Evolution
C. Human Activity and Its Effects on Biodiversity
D. The Importance of Coral Reefs in Maintaining Biodiversity
Question 35: The word “they” in paragraph 1 refers to _________.
A. scientists B. processes C. species D. habitats
Question 36: What is the main reason for the loss of biodiversity mentioned in the passage?
A. natural processes of extinction and evolution B. pollution, overfishing, and overhunting
C. global climate change D. destruction of natural habitats
Question 37: The word “shrink” in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to _________.
A. decrease B. expand C. describe D. manage
Question 38: Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Extinction is a natural process that occurs over time.
B. Climate change does not have any effects on marine animals.
C. Land is cleared to build houses and factories.
D. Pollution and overfishing have contributed to declining biodiversity.

IV. WRITING
PART 1: Circle the letter A, B, C or D to show the part that needs correction.
1. Scientists has been conducting research on the impact of climate change for over a decade.
A. has been B. conducting C. on D. change
2. The local farmers are trying to stop the invasive species from spreading for the past six months.
A. farmers B. are trying C. to stop D. spreading
3. People can only see the Northern Lights as early as 9 p.m., so we have been waiting here since
8:30 p.m.
A. only B. early C. so D. been waiting
4. Drought, rising temperatures and heat waves have been affected the food and water supply.
A. rising temperatures B. heat waves
C. been affected D. water supply
PART 2: Finish each of the following sentences in such a way that it means the same as the
sentence printed before it.
Anna started writing her report three hours ago.
→ Anna has been
David started cleaning his room at 9 a.m.
→ David has been
The children started playing in the park an hour ago.
→ The children have been
Sarah started cooking dinner at 5 p.m.
→ Sarah has been
We started waiting for the doctor 30 minutes ago.
→ We have been
FEEDBACK
Anna started writing her report three hours ago.
→ Anna has been writing her report for three hours.
David started cleaning his room at 9 a.m.
→ David has been cleaning his room since 9 a.m.
The children started playing in the park an hour ago.
→ The children have been playing in the park for an hour.
Sarah started cooking dinner at 5 p.m.
→ Sarah has been cooking dinner since 5 p.m.
We started waiting for the doctor 30 minutes ago.
→ We have been waiting for the doctor for 30 minutes.
E2: Finish each of the following sentences in such a way that it means the same as the sentence
printed before it.
1. We began waiting for the bus at 7 a.m., and it hasn't come yet.
→ We _______________________________________________________.
2. Mark started exercising in the gym at 6 a.m., and he’s still exercising.
→ Mark _______________________________________________________.
3. They started preparing for the festival weeks ago and are still preparing.
→ They _______________________________________________________.
4. I began searching for my keys half an hour ago, and I still haven’t found them.
→ I _______________________________________________________.
5. The teacher started explaining the lesson 20 minutes ago, and he hasn’t finished yet.
→ The teacher _______________________________________________________.
FEEDBACK
1. We began waiting for the bus at 7 a.m., and it hasn't come yet.
→ We have been waiting for the bus since 7 a.m.
2.Mark started exercising in the gym at 6 a.m., and he’s still exercising.
→ Mark has been exercising in the gym since 6 a.m.
3. They started preparing for the festival weeks ago and are still preparing.
→ They have been preparing for the festival for weeks.
4. I began searching for my keys half an hour ago, and I still haven’t found them.
→ I have been searching for my keys for half an hour.
5. The teacher started explaining the lesson 20 minutes ago, and he hasn’t finished yet.
→ The teacher has been explaining the lesson for 20 minutes.

E3: Combine the two sentences into one using the present perfect continuous tense
1. It’s raining. The rain started two hours ago.
It ___________________________________________________
2. Some children at the zoo are looking at a giraffe. They’ve never seen one before
It’s the first time ___________________________________________________
3. Sue is riding a horse. She doesn’t look very confident and comfortable
She ___________________________________________________
4. I’m learning Japanese. I started working there on 18 January.
___________________________________________________
5. Our friends always go to Spain for their holidays. The first time was years ago
___________________________________________________
E3: FEEDBACK
1. It’s raining. The rain started two hours ago.
It has been raining for two hours.
2. Some children at the zoo are looking at a giraffe. They’ve never seen one before.
It’s the first time they have seen a giraffe.
3. Sue is riding a horse. She doesn’t look very confident and comfortable.
She has never ridden a horse before.
4. I’m learning Japanese. I started working there on 18 January.
I have been learning Japanese since 18 January.
5. Our friends always go to Spain for their holidays. The first time was years ago.
They have been going to Spain for years.
PART 3: Write a paragraph of 120-150 words on the topic: "The Importance of Protecting the
Ecological System."
You should include:
• What the ecological system is and its role in human life.
• Major threats to the ecological system (e.g., pollution, deforestation, climate change).
• Ways people can help protect and restore the ecological system.
• The benefits of maintaining a healthy ecological balance for future generations.