Name of Candidate: ___________________________ ( ) Class: ______

Preliminary Examination
SECONDARY 4 EXPRESS / 4 & 5 NORMAL (ACADEMIC)

ENGLISH LANGUAGE Click here to enter text.

: Click here to enter a date.
Paper 2

Read these instructions first.

Write in dark blue or black ink.
Do not use staples, paper clips, highlighters, glue or correction fluid.

Answer all questions.

Write your answers in the spaces provided in the Question Booklet.
The Insert contains the texts for all the sections.

The number of marks is given in brackets [ ] at the end of each question or part
question.

______________________________________________________________________________________________
Setters: [Turn over]

This paper consists of 11 printed pages.

 Section A [5 marks]

Text 1

Refer to the poster in the Insert for Questions 1 to 5.

1 Who is the target audience of this poster? [1]

________________________________________________________________________

2 Refer to the image at the top left of the poster. What is the effect of the words ‘Saving [1]
Gaia’ on the reader?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________

3 How does the image of the tree at the top of the poster complement the text? [1]

______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________

4 Refer to the text in the poster. State one way in which the writer involves the reader in this [1]
poster.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________

5 Pick out the phrase in paragraph 3 which shows the consequence of failing to save Gaia. [1]

______________________________________________________________

Section B [20 marks]

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 Refer to Text 2 in the Insert for Questions 6 to 16.

6 In paragraph 2, what does the word ‘flushed’ tell us about Eckels’ reaction towards
Travis’ words? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

7 In paragraph 2, Lesperance repeated his instruction, ‘Stay on the Path. Stay on the
Path!’
What is the purpose of this repetition? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

8 (i) Who does ‘His Royal Majesty’ (line 13) refer to? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

(ii) Why is he being referred to as ‘His Royal Majesty’? [1]

__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

9 In paragraph 3, how does the writer create the dramatic effect of the arrival of the
dinosaur? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

10 (a) In paragraph 4, the writer states that the dinosaur might examine ‘men like toys’.
What does this description suggest about how the men appeared to the dinosaur? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

10 (b) In paragraph 4, the writer describes the dinosaur in detail.

Explain how the language used in lines 25 to 27 shows how intimidating the
dinosaur was.
Support your ideas with three details from these lines. [3]

(i) __________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

(ii) __________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

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 (iii)
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

11 In paragraph 4, the writer states ‘It ran with a gliding ballet step, far too poised and
balanced for its ten tons.’
What does this sentence tell us about how the dinosaur moved? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

12 (a) Identify two expressions, each of not more than seven words, in paragraph 5
which tell us that the dinosaur could not be killed. [2]

(i) __________________________________________________________________

(ii) __________________________________________________________________

12 (b) Why do you think the writer describes the rifle as ‘a toy gun’ (line 33)? [1]
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________

13 In paragraph 6, which word suggests that the dinosaur could not be killed easily? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

14 The writer describes the dinosaur to be ‘crusted with slime’ and ‘in the slime, tiny
insects wriggled’ (line 39). What does the writer want the reader to feel towards
the dinosaurs with these descriptions? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

15 What does ‘the first motion’ (line 49) refer to? [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

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16 The structure of the text reflects Eckels’ main feelings as the events unfold.
Complete the flow chart by choosing one word from the box to summarise the
main feeling described in each part of the text. There are some extra words in the
box you do not need to use. [4]

Eckels’s feelings

confident worried high-spirited terrified awed regret anguished

Flow chart

Paragraph 2: (i) ______________________________

Paragraph 3: (ii) ______________________________

Paragraph 5: (iii) ______________________________

Paragraph 7: (iv) ______________________________

Page 5
 Section C [25 marks]

Refer to Text 3 in the Insert for Questions 17 – 23.

17 What is suggested by the writer when he uses the word ‘befell’ in line 1? [1]

__________________________________________________________________

18 Pick out the expression in paragraph 1 that shows the writer’s uncertainty of the
cause of the plight of the little people. [1]

__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

19 (i) Identify the expression in paragraph 4 that tells us that the existence of the
Kingdom of the Little People has more critics than visitors. [1]
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

(ii) Explain the expression in your own words. [1]

__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

20 Why do you think the Little People are often “isolated, ridiculed or even driven to
suicide” (lines 27-28) in their own villages? [1]

__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

21 “In contrast, the bright mushroom-shaped homes in the park …” (line 40)
What is the writer’s purpose of showing the contrast between the dwarves’
working place and their homes? [1]

__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

22 Here is part of a conversation between two students, Alice and Alan, who have
read the article.

Alice Alan
I think the Kingdom of the Little But here the dwarves are confined in the
People is home for the dwarves. Kingdom to serve as entertainers.

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 (i) Identify two examples from paragraphs 3 and 6 to support Alice’s views. [2]

__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

(ii) Using your own words, state what Alan said to support his stand. Look [2]
specifically at paragraphs 10 and 12.

__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________

23 Using your own words as far as possible, summarise the arguments made by the [15]
supporters and the critics of the Kingdom of the Little People.

Use only the information from paragraphs 5 to 10.

Your summary must be in continuous writing (not note form).

It must not be longer than 80 words, not counting the words given to help you
begin.

At the “Kingdom of the Little People” the performers are …

__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Word count: ________

*** End of Paper ***

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NAME : _____________________________ ( ) CLASS : ______

BUKIT PANJANG GOVERNMENT HIGH SCHOOL

PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION 2016
SEC 4 EXPRESS / 4 & 5 NORMAL (ACADEMIC) ENGLISH LANGUAGE PAPER 2

INSERT
Section A
Text 1

Study the poster below and answer Questions 1 to 5 in the Question Paper booklet.

Gaia is our Mother Earth. The very world in which we live. Our wise elders have long
recognized that we do not inherit the Earth from our forefathers. We merely borrow it from
our children.

Gaia is facing severe challenges in our times. Perhaps, we have not fully appreciated the
problems that Gaia is facing. Do we do nothing now? What sort of world will we hand back
to our children and their children?

There is hope. We can all do our part in Saving Gaia. You may not believe that Gaia is
dying. You may believe that Nature will find a way, a new balance. Well, that new
equilibrium and new world may not be what our children want. If we do nothing today, it will
surely hasten Gaia’s demise. So let’s do what we can today now. Do your part in Saving
Gaia. It is the only Earth we have.

You are the One who Matters!

You Can Make A Difference!

Gaia. Mother Earth. Our environment. Without which, our existence will not
be possible.

WILL YOU HELP SAVE GAIA?

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 Section B
Text 2

This passage is about a group of men who travelled back to the time of dinosaurs to hunt a
tyrannosaurus rex.

Read the text carefully and answer Questions 6 to 16 in the Question Paper Booklet.

1 They were ready to leave the Machine. The jungle was high and the jungle was broad
and the jungle was the entire world forever and forever. Sounds like music and sounds
like flying tents filled the sky, and those were pterodactyls soaring with cavernous grey
wings, gigantic bats of delirium and night fever.

2 Eckels, balanced on the narrow Path, aimed his rifle playfully. "Stop that!" said Travis. 5
"Don't even aim for fun, blast you! If your guns should go off …" Eckels flushed.
"Where's our Tyrannosaurus?" Lesperance checked his wristwatch. "Up ahead. We'll
bisect his trail in sixty seconds. Look for the red paint! Don't shoot till we give the word.
Stay on the Path. Stay on the Path!" They moved forward in the wind of morning.
"Safety catches off, everyone!" ordered Travis. "You, first shot, Eckels. Second, 10
Billings. Third, Kramer." "I've hunted tiger, wild boar, buffalo, elephant, but now, this is
it," said Eckels.

3 "Ah," said Travis. Everyone stopped. Travis raised his hand. "Ahead," he whispered. "In
the mist. There he is. There's His Royal Majesty now." The jungle was wide and full of
twitterings, rustlings, murmurs, and sighs. Suddenly it all ceased, as if someone had shut
a door. Silence. A sound of thunder. Out of the mist, one hundred yards away, came 15
Tyrannosaurus Rex. "It," whispered Eckels. "It...”
“Sh…”

4 It came on great oiled, resilient, striding legs. It towered thirty feet above half of the
trees, a great evil god, folding its delicate watchmaker's claws close to its oily reptilian
chest. Each lower leg was a piston, a thousand pounds of white bone, sunk in thick ropes 20
of muscle, sheathed over in a gleam of pebbled skin like the mail of a terrible warrior.
Each thigh was a ton of meat, ivory, and steel mesh. And from the great breathing cage
of the upper body those two delicate arms dangled out front, arms with hands which
might pick up and examine men like toys, while the snake neck coiled. And the head
itself, a ton of sculptured stone, lifted easily upon the sky. Its mouth gaped, exposing a 25
fence of teeth like daggers. Its eyes rolled, ostrich eggs, empty of all expression save
hunger. It closed its mouth in a death grin. It ran, its pelvic bones crushing aside trees
and bushes, its taloned feet clawing damp earth, leaving prints six inches deep wherever
it settled its weight. It ran with a gliding ballet step, far too poised and balanced for its
ten tons. It moved into a sunlit area warily, its beautifully reptilian hands feeling the air. 30

5 "It can't be killed," Eckels pronounced this verdict quietly, as if there could be no
argument. He had weighed the evidence and this was his considered opinion. The rifle in
his hands seemed a toy gun. "We were fools to come. This is impossible."
"Shut up!" hissed Travis. "Turn around," commanded Travis. "Walk quietly to the
Machine. We'll remit half your fee." 35
"I didn't realize it would be this big," said Eckels. "I miscalculated, that's all. And now I
want out."

6 The Tyrant Lizard raised itself. Its armored flesh glittered like a thousand green coins.
The coins, crusted with slime, steamed. In the slime, tiny insects wriggled, so that the
entire body seemed to twitch and undulate, even while the monster itself did not move. It 40
exhaled. The stink of raw flesh blew down the wilderness.

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7 "Get me out of here," said Eckels. "It was never like this before. I was always sure I'd
come through alive. I had good guides, good safaris, and safety. This time, I figured
wrong. I've met my match and admit it. This is too much for me to get hold of."
"Don't run," said Lesperance. "Turn around. Hide in the Machine." 45
"Yes." Eckels seemed to be numb. He looked at his feet as if trying to make them move.
He gave a grunt of helplessness. He took a few steps, blinking, shuffling.
"Eckels, not that way!"

8 The Monster, at the first motion, lunged forward with a terrible scream. It covered one
hundred yards in six seconds. The rifles jerked up and blazed fire. A windstorm from the 50
beast's mouth engulfed them in the stench of slime and old blood. The Monster roared,
teeth glittering in the sun.

Adapted from ‘A Sound of Thunder’ by Ray Bradbury

Section C

Text 3

This article is about a theme park in Yunnan that features comic performances by people with
dwarfism.

Read it carefully and answer Questions 17 to 23 in the Question Paper Booklet.

1 Rumour has it, according to those who live in Yangsi, that a mysterious disease befell the little
village more than 60 years ago. Young children between the ages of five and seven were most
affected, and the disease caused them to simply stop growing. As if the mystery affliction was
not bad enough, some of the children struck by it started suffering from a variety of disabilities.
As adults, some of the afflicted gave birth to children who also only grew to around 1 metre in 5
height.
2 At the Kingdom of the Little People, a cast of entertainers and staffers exclusively shorter than
51 centimetres dance and sing in exotic outfits for twice-daily shows.

3 This community of Chinese little people ranging in age from 19-49 live together in dorms with
specially designed amenities for their small statures, sharing meals in a communal dining hall.
Visitors to the park can watch their performances on a terraced stage and tour the whimsical, 10
mushroom-like structures of the “kingdom” where they work and live.

4 Opened in 2009, the Kingdom of the Little People, in the countryside near Kunming, has
arguably drawn more ferocious barbs of criticism than it has visitors, with overseas pressure
groups labelling it cruel and exploitative.

5 However, the Kingdom of the Little People’s creator and its residents have convincingly argued 15
that the park provides the only opportunity for acceptance and economic prosperity available in
China. The workers are treated respectfully and are able to earn a self-reliant living. Performers
speak of an equality and acceptance in the “kingdom” that is not practised in the outside
community.

6 More importantly, the performers say that working in the “kingdom” gives them an opportunity 20
to earn a living in a country where the disabled get little help from society and are more
commonly teased and cruelly neglected. The harsh truth, they say, is that most dwarves in China
live miserable lives on the fringes of society, often begging or playing instruments in the street.
At the Kingdom of the Little People, they have the unique opportunity to find not only gainful
employment but comradeship and even love. 25

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7 New recruits are plentiful more so than paying visitors. One or two a day arrive at the
“kingdom” full of hope. Many are from rural villages, where, they say, they are often isolated,
ridiculed and even driven to suicide.

8 To say the public reception given to the park has been mixed would be an understatement,
however. 30

9 When it was featured in online English Language magazine, one reader labelled the park
“grotesque and abhorrent” and commented, “I can’t believe anyone with any sense can endorse
this sort of thing. Furthermore, these people have been forced to live a life which is massively
degrading. The whole venture should be boycotted.”

10 Other disability campaigners argue that by isolating and showcasing the dwarves, the “kingdom” 35
is reinforcing rather than diminishing prejudice towards little people.

11 On the other hand, another reader who is short said that the only time he felt at ease was among
other short people. He thinks that it is a good idea to have these people have a place of their
own.
12 In the evening, the dwarves pile into golf buggies that shuttle them to the dormitory blocks that
are their real homes. In contrast to the bright, mushroom-shaped homes in the park, the 40
dormitory blocks are grimly basic and similar to dwelling places of the mainland factory
workers. Some dwarves here moan that the park is claustrophobic. They complain that life in the
“kingdom” is like being “kept in a cage”.

13 For others, however, friendships have flourished in an environment where, for the first time in
their lives, they say, they are treated as normal human beings. Some dwarves found their 45
spouses here too. Whatever the next chapter of the story brings, the creator of the “kingdom” and
many of the dwarves believe they have already found their Happy Ever After.

Adapted from ‘It’s a Small World: the Kingdom of the Little People’
South China Morning Post

***** End of Paper *****

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