Corrección de Exámenes de Inglés B2: Convocatorias de Setembro y Xuño 2014-2016 con Respuestas Sugeridas

CONVOCATORIA DE SETEMBRO 2016

SUGGESTED ANSWERS OPCIÓN A

1. Parkour, or Freerunning, which originally prepared French soldiers for war, is an activity where people have to run, jump and climb in different territories. People can only use their brains and physical skills, and need to coordinate them. It is good because it makes people more agile, determined, confident and responsible. (50 words)

2. a) warrior b) terrain c) principally d) environment

3. a) The worldwide movement popular among many young people today was begun by David Belle. b) Parkour not only reveals one's limits but (also) offers ways to overcome them. c) The writer said that Parkour was a way of looking at any environment and believing that there was no obstacle in life that could not be overcome. d) Although no two people will come up with the same solution, there is a "way through" for us all.

4. a) The connection is that the activity was originally used to prepare French special forces for war. (It develops similar skills as military training, such as discipline and cooperation, and it improves physical abilities.) b) The physical advantages are that Parkour helps young people to be strong and fit, and improves your balance and coordination. Mentally, it makes them more confident, determined, humble, cooperative, respectful and responsible.

5. I agree with this sentence. Practising a sport makes you healthy, attractive and physically strong. You can control and coordinate your body better, which helps you in your life every day. For example, you can carry heavy things and run to catch the bus or the train. Besides, if you play sport in a team, it helps you in other ways: you cooperate better with other people and respect them more. However, I do not believe that it is a good idea to be obsessed with practising sport. Some people only live for sport in competitions; they are depressed if they lose, and they can be aggressive with their opponents. This often happens in football. Also, sometimes it can be dangerous and frustrating. (123 words)

OPCIÓN B

1. Oprah Winfrey became successful, a producer of magazines, films and musicals, a person with great power and generosity. She says she was helped by her difficult childhood, when she suffered abuse and was lonely. Also, when she was a teenager she had a baby who died soon after it was born. (51 words)

2. a) single b) media star c) priority d) topic

3. a) Although she was lonely and conditions were poor, her grandmother taught her to read. b) When Oprah went to live with her mother she was six (years old). c) Her 19-year-old cousin, who raped her, often cared for her. d) She said that her greatest discovery was that a person could change his future.

4. a) I think that her father treated her best, because he made her education the most important thing. Her grandmother had taught her to read, so she was not too bad either. Her mother and especially her mother's boyfriend and her cousin, who raped and abused her sexually, were definitely the worst. b) Oprah says that her hard life when she was a child helped to make her successful. She also thought positively, showing that people can change their lives if they change their attitudes. She was educated by her grandmother and her father, who had a positive influence, and she was very talented and creative.

5. Children are influenced by their grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles because they are with them every day, and children are very vulnerable. They listen to them, talk to them, and often follow their example. This example can be positive, so that in the future they enjoy nature, study hard or develop an interesting hobby. Or their example can be negative, so that they are always alone, they become addicted to something, or they treat other people badly. They can be influenced by their siblings and cousins, because they can become more communicative, and they can learn how to share toys and other things. If they are friends with their brothers and sisters, this can be a friendship for the rest of their lives. (123 words)

LISTENING TEST (letters are given here for reasons of space, but are unacceptable as an exam answer) 1.a; 2.c; 3.c; 4.b; 5.b; 6.c; 7.b; 8.a; 9.c; 10.a.

CONVOCATORIA DE SETEMBRO 2015

Opción A

1. The text talks about fashion, which today is not based on any specific centre of creation, but international. Young people take little notice of fashion design, mostly creating their own styles, and dressing in ways that reflect their attitudes and feelings. Often their "street styles" inspire fashion design.

2. a) talented b) take no notice of c) jewellery d) employers

3. a) Paris used to be the centre of the fashion world. b) These "street styles", which come and go, are not the creation of the big fashion designers. These "street styles", which are not the creation of the big fashion designers, come and go. c) Boys with very long hair are expected to have left-wing politics. d) The ideas of a girl who wears Laura Ashley dresses will probably be middle-class (ones).

4. a) Fashion designers frequently get ideas from "street styles" for their creations. b) The writer says that there isn't really any centre of fashion nowadays. It used to be Paris, but now fashion design is international.

Opción B

1. The text talks about a place called Kirkland, in Western Seattle, which has been voted the best place to live in the USA. It describes all the good features of the place and explains why people like to live there.

2. a) lively b) hotspot c) proximity d) reasonably-priced

3. a) The Seattle skyline can be seen from Kirkland's beaches. b) You don't need to go to the big city to have fun / You needn't go to the big city to have fun. c) Kristi said that they were going to send their daughter to a high school which was going to open right next to their house. d) Google, which now employs about 800 people, has announced plans to double the size of its Kirkland offices by 2016. / Google, which has announced plans to double the size of its Kirkland offices by 2016, now employs about 800 people.

4. a) That it has a lively downtown with restaurants, a market, shops, a swimming pool and a library. It also has good schools, parks, some of them with beaches on Lake Washington, and attractions for children, and all of this within walking distance. Another good feature is that there is plenty of work available. b) Google is going to increase the size of its offices, offering more jobs, and new, cheaper housing is going to be built.

Listening: 1) b; 2) c; 3) b; 4) b; 5) c; 6) c; 7) b; 8) a; 9) a; 10) a

CONVOCATORIA DE XUÑO 2014

Opción A

1. Michelle Obama's family was not rich, but it was closely united. It was also very interested in education, so Michelle became an excellent student, graduating from Princeton University and Harvard before she met Obama during her first job as a lawyer at the firm Sidley Austin.

2. a) look after b) accelerated c) took part (in) d) demanding

3. a) M.O. was brought up in Chicago in an apartment which had only one bedroom. b) The family not only read together, but they also played games / The family not only read, but they also played games together. c) Although their parents were not well off, both children were brought up with an emphasis on education. d) After taking various accelerated courses, she went on to attend ….

4. a) That they lived in a very small apartment, and that Michelle and her brother had to sleep in the living room, separated only by a curtain. b) What was special was that her parents were very interested in their children's education, so she went to a special school for gifted children and then to some of the best universities in the USA.

Opción B

1. Real Gap is a company that arranges journeys for young people who want to travel in between school and university. These journeys are made-to-measure; they are as cheap, long and adventurous as young people want and cover more than 30 countries and all sorts of possible activities and occupations.

2. a) duration; b) abroad; c) cash; d) suit

3. a) You can go on your own mini-adventure because/since/as our trips start from a one-week duration. b) Before moving / you move on to South East Asia, you could work in Australia. c) It's easy to plan your adventure. d) She told them that if they were sensible they would be safe / they would be safe if they were sensible.

4. Real Gap is a company that organises trips in over 30 countries during the gap year between school and university for all sorts of people, whether they are interested in sports, culture, art or parties. b) They offer the possibility to work, volunteer, learn and travel while you are abroad in many different countries. They offer all sorts of trips around countries with a guide, working and travelling, trips including sports, culture, art or parties.

Listening: 1. b; 2. b; 3. b; 4. c; 5. a; 6. c; 7. a; 8. b; 9. a; 10. c.

CONVOCATORIA DE SETEMBRO 2014

OPCIÓN A

1. The text talks about unhealthy eating habits which make us put on weight. Although there exist genetic factors that influence how our bodies deal with food, we should avoid skipping breakfast, binge eating, or eating while doing other activities which prevent us from controlling how much we eat.

2. a) put on weight; b) skipping; c) rush; d) continue

3. a) The genes you inherit from your parents can determine how your metabolism deals with particular foods. How your metabolism deals with particular foods can be determined by the genes you inherit from your parents. b) Do you fill yourself with junk food during the weekend after a week of dieting? The author asks the reader whether he/she fills him/herself with junk food during the weekend after a week of dieting. c) Eating several small meals in a day will help you to avoid bingeing. You can avoid bingeing if you eat several small meals a day. d) You should have a specific time and place for eating. The writer advises us to have a specific time and place for eating.

4. a) In what ways can you try to avoid putting on weight? By not skipping breakfast / always having breakfast, not bingeing / eating small meals during the day, and not eating while (you are) doing something else / other things / having a fixed time and place to eat / for eating. b) Why is it a good thing to have a specific time and place for eating? Because if you eat when you are doing other things it is difficult to control how much you eat, with the result that you / so that you overeat without knowing it.

5. Do you think it is important to pay attention to your personal appearance? Why? Why not?

OPCIÓN B

1. The text is about two girls from Birmingham who visited the United Nations. There they met Malala Yousafzai and were impressed by her confidence and courageousness. They also heard Ban Ki-Moon describe his education and were shocked at how poor it had been. The experience convinced them of the importance of education.

2. a) recovered; b) power; c) courageous; d) highlight.

3. a) She was shot in the head by Taliban gunmen while returning home. While she was returning home, she was shot in the head by Taliban gunmen. b) "I didn't learn the importance of education from a book, I lived it," he said. He said that he hadn't learnt the importance of education from a book but (that he) had lived it. c) His school experience was similar to that of many of the other young delegates. Many of the other young delegates (had) had a similar school experience to his (one) / (had) had a school experience similar to his (one). d) Pupils today have access to specialist technology but Ban Ki-Moon began with very little. Whereas pupils today have access to specialist technology, Ban Ki-Moon began with very little.

4. a) I know it was an important event because it took place in the United Nations. The UN Secretary General was there and spoke. There were over 500 delegates, and some of them, like Holly and Lauren, had flown there from a long distance. b) She is brave, and confident in herself. She is interested in education for everybody and believes it is very important. She is strong, because she survived when she was shot by the Taliban.

LISTENING: 1-c; 2-b; 3-b; 4-a; 5-b; 6-c; 7-c; 8-b; 9-a; 10-c