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 34 to 38.
Nepal has made important progress over the past few years to promote equality, but the country still has one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world. 41% of Nepalese girls are married before the age of 18. Poverty is both a cause and consequence of child marriage in Nepal. Girls from the wealthiest families marry 2 years later than those from the poorest, who are seen as an economic burden, and who drop out of school and earn little money. Food insecurity plays an important role, too. Nepalese families that do not have enough food to eat are more likely to marry their daughters at a young age to decrease the financial burden. One study shows that 91% of people who had secure access to food married over the age of 19. Dowry is also common practice in many communities. Parents marry their daughters as soon as possible because the money they have to pay to the groom's family is higher if their daughter is older. Since 2010, the legal age of marriage is 20 for both men and women, or 18 with parental consent, according to the Nepalese Country Code. The law states that punishment for child marriage is imprisonment for up to three years and a fine of up to 10,000 rupees (£102). But reports suggest that this law is rarely applied. There has been quite a lot of progress in Nepal over the past 3 years with a clear government commitment to ending child marriage and civil society cooperation. The Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare is currently developing Nepal's first national strategy on child marriage in collaboration with UNICEF Nepal and Girls Not Brides Nepal. However, the post-earthquake and post-fuel crisis environment has meant progress is slow and the national strategy has been delayed. (Adapted from http://www.girlsnotbrides.org/)
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 39 to 45.
Think about the last test you took. How much of what you learned for the test do you still remember? Many people take tests to pass a course or get a promotion, but they often forget the information afterward. This is especially the case for people taking large international tests like TOEFL or IELTS. These tests usually involve multiple-choice questions, and people often study to increase their scores, not to learn important information. In fact, educators are divided on whether these kinds of tests are the most effective way to assess a person's abilities. Those who support such tests say they are the only way for educators and employers to compare people based on their test scores. However, there are people trying to reform this system. They believe that standard tests aren't the best way to measure a person's ability. These reformers also believe that intelligent people are not always good at taking tests or memorizing facts. A multiple-choice test cannot always tell what people have learned, or whether they can apply that knowledge in the future. Reformers believe that other types of evaluation achieve better results. Tests that contain a mix of written and spoken questions give a more complete assessment of what the person is capable of. A portfolio, or a collection of work done throughout a course, can show how much the student has improved individually. Group interview, where a group of people are interviewed at the same time, can also be useful for employers, since they show how people interact with others. Alternative educational institutions such as Montessori and Waldorf schools don't believe that education should be focused on testing. At these schools, the classroom is very relaxed and "free" with students learning from each other as much as they learn from teachers. Some of these schools even allow students to choose what they study. Teachers create activities designed to let students show their abilities or knowledge of a certain subject. In these schools, the focus is on learning by experiencing and doing things. The debate on testing continues, and educators have yet to find a perfect method of evaluating learning. Until that day comes, old test methods will be used and new test methods will continue to develop. But one thing's for sure, testing will continue to play an important part in our lives - so study hard!
Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.
Teen spending
A large-scale study has been done by advertisers on the spending habits of today's teenagers. It has come up with some fascinating results. Girls across Europe ranging in age from 15 to 18 were interviewed. The researchers discovered that these girls want to be successful and sophisticated and are willing to spend to (29) __________ the look they want - when they have the money, that is! Feeling confident is the most important factor when it comes to buying clothes. (30) __________ interesting piece of information coming out of the study is that German teenagers go for clothes that are pract and comfortable, while British and French teenagers are more concerned about appearance (31) ________________ they all agreed that the clothes should fit them properly. All the girls (32) _____________ were interviewed shop for clothes regularly, half of them buying something from a department store or a large clothes shop at least once a month. They also see it as a social (33) _____________ and going round the shops with their friends is the main way they learn what the latest trends are. (Adapted from "Laser B2" by Malcomn Mann and Steve Taylor-Knowles)
