Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.

        Jack Jones took a gap year before starting university, and that was how he caught the bug for travelling.  

       Many teenagers choose to take a year off before starting their degree courses at university, a gap year, to have a break from years of (26) _________ study.

       Jack had saved (27) ________ money after doing various jobs and decided he needed to learn about other cultures by visiting America and Asia. Usually, the way people spend their gap years depends on their personalities. Somebody (28) ________ is very adventurous is likely to do something more challenging than somebody who is quieter. Jack went for extreme adventure and has never looked back.

        As soon as his university course finished, he set off on a three-year trip around the world. (29) ________, he decided only to use transport which was powered by natural energy, which meant relying on bicycles and his legs. When he had to cross water, he decided to work on ships to pay for his passage.

        His reason for this decision was to tell his message about environmental change. He made sure to (30) _______ his message on to all the people he met along the way.

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the sentence that best combines each pair of sentences in the following questions.

Beatrix is not here. She is the only person who can tell me what to do now.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 31 to 35.

ARE SPORTS BAD FOR KIDS?

       People think children should play sports. Sports are fun, and children stay healthy while playing with others. However, playing sports can have negative effects on children. It may produce feelings of poor self-esteem or aggressive behavior in some children. According to research on kids and sports, 40 million kids play sports in the US. Of these, 18 million say they have been yelled at or called names while playing sports. This leaves many children with a bad impression of sports. They think sports are just too aggressive.

       Many researchers believe adults, especially parents and coaches, are the main cause of too much aggression in children’s sports. They believe children copy aggressive adult behavior. This behavior is then further reinforced through both positive and negative feedback. Parents and coaches are powerful teachers because children usually look up to them. Often these adults behave aggressively themselves, sending children the message that winning is everything. At children’s sporting events, parents may yell insults at other players or cheer when their child behaves aggressively. As well, children may be taught that hurting other players is acceptable, or they may be pushed to continue playing even when they are injured. In addition, the media makes violence seem exciting. Children watch adult sports games and see violent behavior replayed over and over on

television.

       As a society, we really need to face up to this problem and do something about it. Parents and coaches

should act as better examples for children. They also need to teach children better values. They should teach children to enjoy themselves whether they win or not. It is not necessary to knock yourself out to enjoy sports. Winning is not everything. In addition, children should not be allowed to continue to play when they are injured. Sending a child with an injury into a game gives the child the message that health is not as important as winning. If we make some basic changes, children might learn to enjoy sports again.

What is the main idea of the reading?