General Training IELTS Reading 2
General Training IELTS Reading 2
General Training IELTS Reading 2
WHAT'S ON IN WINTER
Read the text and answer the questions 1-4.
TEXT 1
A
The Great Outdoors
ORIENTEERING
4 July
Film Frenzy
Take a trip down memory lane at the Memorable Movies gathering, held once a month.
This June the memorable movie is Roman Holiday, the 1953 classic starring Gregory
Peck and Audrey Hepburn. Then in July there is a school holiday special presentation of
The World's Fastest Indian, a true-life story of motorcycle enthusiast and world-record
breaker Burt Munro, starring Anthony Hopkins.
17 to 19 June
The Antique and Vintage Fair will showcase hidden treasures from the past, including
fascinating items from antique furniture to retro fashion. Antique valuers will also be on
the premises to give expert advice on buying and selling as attendees peruse the
various stalls underneath one giant tent.
Music Magic
29 to 30 July
A TRIBUTE TO LOUIS ARMSTRONG
Louis Armstrong revolutionised American jazz and dominated the scene for more
than 60 years. He defines the jazz style and is a legendary figure in music history.
Conductor Benjamin Northey will accompany trumpeter James Morrison to pay tribute to
the famous musician by playing some of his most well-known and beloved hits. Go to
waso.com.au for more details.
Until 18 October
WHODUNNIT? EXHIBITION
Where: Scitech
TEXT 2
New York. A motorcyclist taking part in a protest against helmet laws has died after he
went over his handlebars and hit his head on the pavement. Philip Contos, 55, probably
would have survived the accident on Saturday in Onondaga if he was wearing a helmet,
police said.
Mr Contos was riding a Harley-Davidson when he braked and lost control. New York
is one of 20 states that require motorcyclists to wear helmets. Lobbying by motorcyclist
groups has led some states to repeal helmet laws.
Source: Reuters.com
TEXT 3
Be kind. Do not disturb animals, plants or rocks. No firearms or pets are permitted
in Kennedy Range National Park.
Be responsible. Use your portable gas stove. Dead wood is habitat for wildlife.
Be clean. Take your rubbish out of the park when you leave.
Be careful. Stay on the paths and help prevent erosion. Look out for falling rocks.
Your safety is our concern but your responsibility.
Be prepared. The trails are rough and steep in places. Wear sturdy footwear and
carry your own water at all times.
Be considerate. Fossicking and collecting rocks, gemstones and fossils is not permitted.
VISITOR INFORMATION
Access
The unsealed road to the eastern escarpment is usually suitable for two-wheel drive
vehicles.
Access to the western side of the park via the Gascoyne River is recommended only for
high-
clearance four-wheel drive vehicles. Roads may be closed after heavy rain. Watch out
for wildlife.
Flights and safari tours to Kennedy Range are available through visitor centres in
Carnarvon, Denham and other local towns.
Overnight
Bush camping is permitted at Temple Gorge campground at the base of the eastern
escarpment. Accommodation is available at Gascoyne Junction (about 60km from the
park) and station accommodation can be arranged by contacting the Shire of
Upper Gascoyne.
Always carry ample supplies of fuel and water. Pastoral stations surround the Kennedy
Range National Park and access through the stations is only permitted with the
manager's approval.
FURTHER INFORMATION
Conservation, WA
Questions 1-4
Answer the questions below. Look at texts A-F above from a 'What's On in
Winter· guide.
Write the correct letter A-F in boxes 1-4 on your answer sheet.
Questions 5-10
Do the following statements agree with the information in the article?
10
Protests in the USA against compulsory use of
motorcycle helmets have at times been successful.
Questions 11-14
Answer the questions below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for the text for each answer.
Using wood for campfires in the park is not encouraged, so campers are
Visitors can stay overnight at the camping ground near the Gorge, or can
14 to other accommodation at Gascoyne Junction.
READING PASSAGE 2
TEXT 1
Someone who wants to become a home tutor makes initial contact with one of the
Home Tutor Scheme staff. The home tutor applicant then completes an application form
and undergoes a reference check and a police check, paid for by Polytechnic West
AMEP. Home tutors who work with young people under the age of eighteen also
undertake a Working With Children Check (WWCC), paid for by Polytechnic West AMEP.
All home tutors are required to undertake a training program. Home Tutor Scheme
staff then match home tutors with a student, based on a range of factors such as
previously stated preferences, locations and availability, or assign home tutors to
centre-based activities, such as classroom support or conversation groups.
All home tutor matches are reviewed each term. The home tutor can request a review
of the match at any time.
Polytechnic West AMEP provides opportunities for volunteers to meet with each
other and Home Tutor Scheme staff and to network and exchange ideas.
PRINCIPLES OF VOLUNTEERING
2 Delhi Street
Position objective
Reporting line
The Home Tutor Scheme Coordinator is the manager for all home tutors and directs the
activities of all home tutors.
The position is unpaid and voluntary. Reimbursement for travel and out-of- pocket
expenses is not provided.
Essential requirements
• program needs
• satisfactory Working With Children Check (WWCC) for those working with
young people under the age of eighteen
Duties
• keep a record of visits, activities completed, and achievements on the forms supplied
by the Home Tutor Scheme
• a non-judgemental attitude
Time commitment
Qualifications
Meeting places
• regular newsletters
Dress code
TEXT 2
We have already discussed how to organise a group written assignment. We will repeat
some of this information below, applying it to the oral presentation.
First clarify with your lecturer how your group oral presentation will be assessed:
• Will you be assessed on the group processes, or just on the product of your team? Will
you all be given the same team mark, or is there an individual component within the
mark? Has the lecturer put in place any procedures to deal with assessing students who
do not do their fair share of the work?
• Must all group members make the same contribution to the task ( e.g. each
member must speak for five minutes; each member must contribute to a group
PowerPoint), or must you all make equivalent contributions to the task? In the
latter case, for example, one member might put together the entire group
PowerPoint, then speak for less time than the others during the group's oral
presentation.
As soon as you are given your group assignment, meet as a team very briefly to work
through the following steps.
STEP 1
STEP 2
Brainstorm the task you have been given. Clarify together the exact purpose of the
presentation. Argue and talk until you all agree about the objective and
the requirements. If the instructions seem ambiguous, talk to the lecturer and
make sure you are all aware of any specifications or expectations of this assignment.
STEP 3
Look at the chart of Belbin's team roles. (If you haven't talked about this chart yet in
class, you may need to spend some time discussing it in your group, or perhaps agree
that you will all look at it at home and discuss it at your next meeting.) Talk about the
roles each of you tends to play in teams, and consider the balance of roles you have in
this team. Given the combination of roles you have, what strengths and problems do
you anticipate your team might have?
STEP 4
It's time to be honest and tell each other about your own skills-those that are relevant
to this team assignment. For example:
• I am good at following through research, and getting all the details correct.
• My critical reading skills are good-I give useful feedback on other people's ideas. I
have lots of creative ideas.
Try to be open about your capabilities and expectations of the assignment. However,
note that none of you can shirk the responsibility of being part of a team-you must all
do an equal amount of work. Look back at the section on teamwork and conflict
resolution.
It is also a good time to talk about whether you are aiming for a High Distinction or a
mere Pass. If there are discrepancies in the group on this point, try to resolve these in
an adult manner. For example, if you are the only group member aiming for a High
Distinction, consider these issues:
• How will you feel if other team members get a higher mark than they deserve thanks
to your effort?
STEP 5
Plan-and write down-all the tasks and roles you think are required for this assignment,
and start to organise and volunteer for particular tasks. (But be aware that the tasks
may change as you all start working on the assignment.) You will need to do more work
at the next meeting to clarify exactly what you need to do to complete the assignment
successfully. Consider all practical issues, such as obtaining equipment and
preparing visual aids.
If this is your first group work assignment, accept that this process may be imperfect,
but as time passes you will all get to know each other more and know who does what
job well. If this is the first time you have met your peers, try to use consensus to assign
tasks or roles.
STEP 6
Organise at least two meeting dates now, and decide on some deadlines. Make the first
meeting date soon-within the next seven days. Discuss the possibility of simultaneous
chat time together. If you're going to make a team PowerPoint or set of overhead
transparencies, make decisions about when you must email attachments to each other
so that you can share information and make team layout decisions.
Questions 15-21
Complete the sentences below using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS
from the text.
Questions 22-27
Complete the notes below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE
WORDS from the text for each answer.
First, ask your tutor how your team 22 . This will determine whether the
whole team is to be assessed equally or whether individual marks will
be awarded.
After exchanging contact details with other members of your team, brainstorm
the task and decide as a team what the purpose of the task is and 23
Due to the balance of roles within your team, consider the 24 of your
team, as well as the problems your team might face.
Decide which personal skills you each have that might be most helpful to your
team. These could include computer skills, speaking ability, creative skills or being
Plan and make a list of all tasks required for the presentation, and start to
26 for particular tasks. Consider all issues, including who will obtain
equipment and prepare visual aids.
Organise early meeting dates and decide on deadlines. If you plan to make a
27 or slides, decide when you will all need to email attachments to each
other so you can share information and decide on layout.
READING PASSAGE 3
Read the passage below and answer questions 28-40.
DRIVEN TO DISTRACTION
A
Distracted driving may not get the publicity given to alcohol, drugs and speed,
but it is thought to play a role in one third of fatal and serious injury crashes on
roads. And while there is a strong community opposition to drink drivers or
people who speed, our attitude towards making phone calls or reading text
messages is much more relaxed. Surveys for the Office of Road Safety have
found that while 96 per cent of people believe reading and sending
text messages is distracting, 54 per cent admit reading texts and 3 5 per cent
have sent them while driving. About 85 per cent of people think mobile phone
use is distracting but 46 per cent said they take calls on the road and 36 per
cent concede making them.
Then there are all the other distractions, from resolving arguments between
the kids to trying to navigate with a map book on your lap. Acting Sergeant
Chris Green, from the Police Traffic Enforcement Group, said distracted driving
is extremely common-even in plain sight of the police.
'Map books are very common but you see people with all sorts of
documents. They have busy lives so they might have their information out for a
doctor's appointment, not just at traffic lights but driving along.
'If there is a marked police car, lots of people will change their behaviour,
but with some of this behaviour, they are so caught up they don't notice the
police car right next to them.'
Acting Sgt Green said drivers can feel falsely confident about the
road conditions, particularly on familiar routes, but an accident can occur in
seconds.
'On the roads the environment changes every day. You could drive down that
street a hundred times but on the 101 st time, there could be road works or a
pedestrian that steps out-anything can happen,' he said.
Despite recent changes to laws regarding the use of mobile phones-with a fine
and three demerit points for people using them illegally-Acting Sgt Green said
drivers still flout the law.
Police are handing out an average of 225 infringement notices a week, down
on past years' figures, but still very high.
'We are out there enforcing it but people are still using the phones on a daily
basis and as they become more sophisticated, they are reading emails,
sending messages, watching videos,' he said. 'If you are on the phone, you are
not concentrating on what is going on around you.'
Identifying the exact role of distraction in crashes is difficult but the RA.C's
Glen Walker said people making or def ending claims are quick to point out
when the other driver is at fault. 'When you speak to someone to settle a claim
they will say "the other driver was too busy putting on lipstick and rear-ended
me,"' said Mr Walker, Manager of the Technical Claims Unit. 'Getting distracted
while changing a CD is a very common one. So is reaching into the glove box.
There was one guy who drove into a house because he was getting a bit
amorous with the woman in the car.' Mr Walker said some of the stories of
distracted driving can be amusing but in his previous work as a police officer
he had seen fatal accidents caused by a momentary lapse of attention. 'It only
takes just a little bit of distraction and things get very dangerous very fast.'
'There have been laboratory studies that have shown that if you have a
driver holding a conversation with a passenger, the passenger will moderate
the conversation because they are scanning the scene in front of the vehicle
and they can see the situation changing for the driver,' Professor Stevenson
said.
'If you are at a complex intersection with a lot of traffic, lots of things
around, what happens is that the passenger will moderate the conversation
and not get into a heated debate right at that moment. That doesn't happen on
the phone.' The pressure of maintaining a conversation in tricky road
conditions reduces the driver's ability to react.
'It is the cognitive processing that's delayed-and that means reaction time and
the manoeuvres required all
slow down as a result of the phone conversation,' he said.
'We know from our research that it still increases the risk of crashing almost
four-fold,' Professor Stevenson said.
If mobile phone use has been problematic for driver distraction, the next wave
of in-car technology could be worse. In the US, the issue has received
considerable public debate in the wake of high-profile cases, including a state
police officer who crashed and killed two sisters after travelling at 200km/h
while talking on the mobile and emailing from his laptop. In January, the US
Transportation Secretary met with American carmakers, asking them to limit
the use of distracting technology in vehicles. At the same time, however,
struggling manufacturers hope that bundling technology into cars might boost
sales, particularly among young drivers.
Car manufacturer Ford is updating a system that will allow text messages
and Facebook updates to be read to the driver, while other manufacturers are
looking for ways to give drivers updates about nearby amenities and expand
the dashboard display with USB ports, bigger maps and wi-fi access.
'Are these things truly there to benefit us or are they just increasing
the distraction factor for drivers?'
'There is potential down the track with in-vehicle technologies that you
could block any transmission while the car is in motion,' he said.
'We want cars to be comfortable and user-friendly, but the safety of the
driver and other road users has to be the top priority,' he said.
'You wouldn't go to a factory floor and clutter it up with devices that would take
the worker's mind off the machinery. What happens in a car is no different.'
'In fact the law requires employers to remove any potential hazards.'
An open driving track with just a few orange cones to navigate doesn't sound
like much of a challenge-but the mother and son who navigated the course for
the RAC found it much tougher once they were asked to do something else at
the same time.
Kim, 52, said she was used to using a mobile phone in her own car through
a Bluetooth system and found concentrating on buttons and the road at the
same time difficult. 'I don't even dial my phone normally; it's voice activated
and I just tell it to call the person and it does,' she said. 'It is really difficult to
try to dial and talk and manage the phone and drive through the obstacles at
the same time.' Kim found talking hands-free on the mobile relatively easy but
struggled with texting and said programming the car's G PS system was
almost impossible.
Kim's son Matt, 21, was a bit more confident that he would be able to
text while driving but negotiating the orange-cone chicanes and then a tight
lane, designed to represent driving over a bridge, proved too difficult. 'I clipped
the bridge and if it was real I guess I would have been getting wet,' he said.
'Texting
was definitely harder than I expected and programming the GPS was very
difficult.'
RAC driver trainer Dave Meinen, who conducted the assessment, said the tests
proved that even minor distractions could compromise a motorist's ability to
drive. 'We tested the drivers against a range of distractions and every single
one of them had an impact on core driving competencies, including driver
attention, accuracy, lane control, speed control, hazard perception and reaction
time,' Mr Meinen said. 'At the end of the day good drivers just drive; they don't
get distracted.'
June 2011
Questions 28-34
The passage on the previous pages has six sections labelled A-F.
A Section A
B Section B
C Section C
D Section D
E Section E
F Section F
Which section contains the following information?
Write the correct letter A-F in boxes 28-34 on your answer sheet.
28
Different driver conversations carry different accident
risks.
29
With new in-car technologies there are new driver
dangers.
30
There are different types of driver distractions, and
statistics show how frequently drivers engage in them.
31
The role distraction plays in causing accidents can be
seen from accident insurance claims.
32
The relationship between driving on familiar roads and
distracted driving.
33
Development of in-car technology and how it could be
used to block distracted driving behaviour.
34
The results of a measured test showing the impact on
driving ability of specific distractive behaviour.
Questions 35-40
Do the following statements agree or disagree with the information given
in the passage?
35
Research shows that a driver speaking to a passenger
is less dangerous than a driver speaking on a mobile phone, because the
passenger wilt automatically moderate the conversation depending on the
surrounding driving conditions.
36
On a familiar route for a driver, research shows that
fewer accidents happen.
37
To encourage sales of new cars, car manufacturers
constantly develop new in-car technologies (such as USB ports and wi-fi
access), and researchers believe that this development could contribute
to further driver distraction and higher accident rates.
38
Although most people agree that the use of mobile
phones while driving is distracting, nearly half admit they take calls, and
around a third admit they make calls while driving.
39
Male drivers engaging in distracted behaviour such as
texting or talking on a phone usually change their behaviour when they
see a police car next to them; however, female drivers often continue with
the behaviour or don't notice the police car.
40
A measured test showed that not every example of
distractive behaviour has an impact on core driving competency.
Solution:
1 A,B 2 E
3 C 4 F
5 TRUE 6 FALSE
9 FALSE 10 TRUE
28 D 29 E
30 A 31 C
32 B 33 E
34 F 35 TRUE
40 FALSE