SPRINGBOARD EDUCATION KỲ THI THỬ HỌC SINH GIỎI QUỐC GIA

———————— TRUNG HỌC PHỔ THÔNG

ĐỀ THI CHÍNH THỨC NĂM HỌC 2024 - 2025
——————————

Môn thi: TIẾNG ANH

Thời gian: 180 phút (không kể thời gian giao đề)
Ngày thi: 01/12/2024
Đề thi gồm có 19 trang
● Thí sinh KHÔNG được sử dụng tài liệu, kể cả từ điển.
● Giám thị KHÔNG giải thích gì thêm.
________________________________________________________________

I. LISTENING (5.0 points)

HƯỚNG DẪN PHẦN THI NGHE HIỂU
● The listening section is in FOUR parts. You will hear each part TWICE. At the beginning of each part,
you will hear a sound.
● There will be a piece of music at the beginning and at the end of the listening section. You will have
TWO minutes to check your answers at the end of the listening section.
● All the other instructions are included in the recording.
Part 1. For question 1-5, listen to part of a discussion in which two economists, Rita Manning and
Paul Mason, are discussing the implications of global trade, and decide whether each of the following
statements is True (T), False (F) or Not Given (NG) according to what you hear. Write T, F, or NG in the
corresponding numbered boxes provided.
1. Rita thinks globalization has enabled worldwide access to familiar brands and transformed industries
like fast fashion, though there's growing resistance to disposable consumerism.
2. According to Paul, local customs are the main drivers in product adaptations for specific markets by
global companies.
3. Due to information about ethical purchasing being few and far between, today's consumers solely
focused on prices of the good.
4. Prior to globalization, scientific research and technological innovations were primarily developed
through regional collaboration.
5. Diversity in opinions resulting from global integration can bring people around to a single viewpoint.
Your answers:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Page 1 of 19 pages
Part 2. For questions 6-10, listen to part of a talk about plastic trash and answer the following
questions. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS taken from the recording for each answer in the
spaces provided.
6. In marine environments, plastic trash is concentrated in what geographical description?
__________________________________________________________________
7. What fundamental factor is ruled out when it comes to plastic development?
__________________________________________________________________
8. Beyond recyclability, which adjective is used to describe another desirable characteristic for plastic
materials?
__________________________________________________________________
9. What marine phenomena deprive oxygen in aquatic ecosystems?
__________________________________________________________________
10. In agricultural practices, what element do farmers seek to increase?
__________________________________________________________________

Part 3. For questions 11–15, listen to two racing drivers, Eddie and Jenny, discussing their
profession and write the answer A, B, C, or D in the numbered boxes provided to indicate the correct
answer to each of the following questions according to what you hear.
11. How does Eddie’s perception of the leading figure differ from that of Jenny?
A. He took that position completely for granted.
B. It did not prevent him from becoming one of the greatest of all time.
C. He wore this badge with honor rather than being pressured by it.
D. This is crucial because Eddie wanted to lead by example.
12. What conclusion did both speakers reach on the criticisms by Brian the journalist?
A. It fuelled Jenny to emerge victorious.
B. The opinion is heavily biased against Jenny due to personal reasons.
C. It reflected the state of mind of the journalists as a whole on Jenny’s career.
D. Jenny was emotionally distressed by Brian’s disparaging comments.
13. What are the mutual opinions of the speakers on friendship among racers compared to the past?
A. They form much stronger bonds.
B. People are more thoughtful of their counterparts, on and off the track.
C. There is hardly an element of camaraderie among racers these days.
D. Modern day pressures have driven a wedge between racers.
14. Which of the following words can be used to describe Eddie’s feelings on simulators?
A. in awe
B. surprised
C. discriminatory
D. skeptical
15. Discussing his complete detachment from racing after retirement, Eddie

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 A. took up race-related professions to continue pursuing his passion.
B. is reminiscent of his days as a racer.
C. is relieved now that he broke free from such a stressful career.
D. regretted that he was a racer as he could have gone into a more lucrative career.
Your answers:

11. 12. 13. 14. 15.

Part 4. For questions 16–25, listen to part of a talk about Edvard Munch, and complete the following
summary. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS taken from the recording for each blank. Write your
answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
Edvard Munch's iconic painting "The Scream" symbolized the (16) _____________ of the modern European
era. This Europe that Munch lived in was one that was plagued with anxieties and experienced tribulations
such as obsessions, fear, social unrest, (17) _____________, and diseases following industrialization.

Against the backdrop of personal tragedy and ill health, Munch turned to art as an emotional outlet. Initially
discouraged by his obsessively religious father, who viewed painting as (18) _____________ and the
premature death of his family members as (19) _____________, Munch later evolved his artistic style thanks
to the newfound inspiration in the (20) _____________ founded by the (21) _____________ writer Hans
Jaeger, which encouraged breaking from traditional artistic norms and (22) _____________ moral principles.

His artistic style was profoundly shaped during a brief period in Paris, where he encountered impressionist
works. In particular, his style was greatly influenced by Van Gogh color use as well as Vincent's emotionally
articulate (23) _____________. Recognizing that the artist's (24) _____________ mostly came from his
tragic life narrative, Munch deliberately cultivated an image of the "crazy artist." He uniquely blended
post-impressionist techniques with his own (25) _____________, creating deeply personal and emotionally
charged artworks that often challenged Norwegian artistic conventions.
Your answers:

16. 17.

18. 19.

20. 21.

22. 23.

24. 25.

Page 3 of 19 pages
II. LEXICO – GRAMMAR (2.0 points)
Part 1. For questions 26–35, write the letter A, B, C, or D in the numbered boxes provided to indicate
the correct answer to each of the following questions.
26. Her sharp criticism during the meeting really took the _______ out of his _______ and made him hesitate
before presenting the rest of his ideas.
A. wind-sails B. fire-spirit C. air-lungs D. steam-engine
27. The company’s streaming service has become a cash _______, generating consistent revenue with
minimal ongoing investment.
A. buffalo B. goose C. chicken D. cow
28. The new manager spent his first week on the ___ to know the workers and understand the production
process firsthand.
A. control room B. office suite C. factory floor D. assembly desk
29. The designer handbag she bought cost _____, but she insisted it was worth every penny.
A. a bomb B. a bank C. a castle D. a land
30. After presenting clear evidence to support her claims, she felt completely ___ and relieved of all
accusations.
A. vindicated B. condemned C. reprimanded D. vilified
31. The speaker struggled to continue as members of the audience began to ___ him with interruptions and
jeers.
A. interrogate B. heckle C. extol D. laud
32. The new sales team was trained in ___ calling to reach potential customers who had not shown prior
interest in the product.
A. direct B. cold C. warm D. soft
33. The professor's teaching style was so ___ that students felt discouraged from sharing their own ideas
during class discussions..
A. empathetic B. pragmatic C. dogmatic D. dynamic
34. The final moments of the match were so _______ that even the calmest fans were on the edge of their
seats.
A. nail-biting B. hair-raising C. mind-numbing D. thought-provoking
35. After losing his job and struggling to pay the bills, he said he was tired of living a _____ life.
A. whale’s B. horse’s C. cat’s D. dog’s
Your answers:

26. 27. 28. 29. 30.

31. 32. 33. 34. 35.

Part 2. For questions 36–40, write the correct form of each bracketed word in the numbered space
provided in the column on the right to complete the passage. The first one has been done as an
example.
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In an era defined by (GLOBE) __________ and rapid technological Your answers:
advancements, education systems are under increasing pressure to adapt and E.g. globalization
evolve. Education can no longer be seen as a __________ (36. STAND) 36. ______________
institution, isolated from the influences of __________ (37. PROFIT) motives.
Increasingly, schools and universities are shaped by market demands, which leads
37. ______________
them to prioritize programs that promise high returns rather than foster
well-rounded intellectual growth.
At the same time, the __________ (38. STAR) of prestigious institutions draws 38. ______________
__________ (39. POCKET) donors, creating an uneven playing field. Smaller
schools that cannot compete financially are left to __________ (40. JOIN) their 39. ______________
communities to rally for support. How can we balance profitability with the need to
ensure equitable access and meaningful learning for all? That is the question
40. ______________
which will remain for a long time.

Part 3. The passage below contains 05 grammatical mistakes. For questions 41–45, UNDERLINE the
mistakes and WRITE YOUR CORRECTIONS in the numbered space provided in the column on the
right. The first one has been done as an example.

Education system worldwide face unprecedented challenges as they attempt to Your answers:
adapt to the fast-changing demands of the modern workforce. Governments and E.g. system → systems
institutions alike emphasize the importance of ensuring every student have access 41. ______________
to quality education, but systemic issues persist. For example, the criteria for
assessing students’ performance remains unclear, leading to inconsistencies
42. ______________
across regions. Furthermore, while technology has become a milestone of
education, many schools have fallen short in bridging the digital division. This
consequently puts underprivileged students at a disadvantage. Critics argue that 43. ______________
reforms often prioritize short-term results for long-term sustainability. Similarly,
excessive focus on test scores and rankings frequently overshadow the holistic 44. ______________
development of students, such as creativity, emotional intelligence, and
problem-solving skills. Teachers, already overburden by administrative tasks, often
45. ______________
lack sufficient time and resources to foster deeper learning experiences.
Addressing these challenges requires collaborative efforts from policymakers,
educators, and communities to create a more equitable education system.

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III. READING (5.0 points)
Part 1. For questions 46–55, read the passage and fill in each of the following numbered blanks with
ONE suitable word. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
About 442,000 people in the United States die each year from illnesses caused by cigarette smoking.
Smoking accounts for nearly 90 percent of lung cancer deaths. Additionally, smokers are at increased risk for
cancer of the larynx, oral (46) __________, esophagus, bladder, kidney, and pancreas. One-third of
smoking-related deaths are caused by coronary heart disease or chronic airway (47) __________. Smoking
also increases the risk of stroke by 50 percent - 40 percent among men and 60 percent among women.
Other research has shown that mothers who smoke give (48) __________ more frequently to premature or
underweight babies as (49) __________ as not because of a (50) __________ in blood flow to the placenta.
Babies born to mothers who smoke during (51) __________ are also at increased risk for sudden (52)
__________ death syndrome.

Even nonsmokers are at risk from smoking. Recent research has focused on the effects of (53)
__________ tobacco smoke (ETS) that is, the effect of tobacco smoke on nonsmokers who must share the
same environment with a smoker. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that
exposure to ETS, which contains all the toxic agents (54) __________ by a smoker, causes 3,000 lung
cancer deaths and an estimated 35,000 deaths from heart disease per year among nonsmokers. (55)
__________ smoke can aggravate asthma, pneumonia, and bronchitis, and impair blood circulation.

Your answers:

46. 47. 48. 49. 50.

51. 52. 53. 54. 55.

Part 2. Read the following passage and do the tasks that follow.
SHOW ON THE ROAD
There are moments when you realise that the entire national consciousness has shifted slightly. Why?
Because something happens that would previously have been insanely impossible, but now passes almost
without comment. Take, for example, the newly completed London headquarters of the fashion retailer,
Monsoon. Another glittering high-tech business park building? No way. This is real, full-blooded, original
1960s architecture, brought back from the dead. And it sings.
We've known for a while that some previously hated 1960s concrete architecture was coming to be
regarded with affection, especially by the cognoscenti. But Monsoon shows that 'historic' modernist
architecture can now command reverence bordering on awe. This successful company could have moved
anywhere it wanted. And it did but not the way you'd expect. It chose to buy, restore and convert the
derelict, long-abandoned Paddington maintenance depot, which looms over the elevated urban motorway
of the Westway like an ocean liner.
The result is electrifying. This was a building designed in the early 1960s with the then unbuilt motorway
in mind. It's in love with the motorway, one curving wing slides underneath it, another virtually kisses it. At

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its prow are two heroic funnels. It is set on a rising bend in the road, from which it seems to be sailing
towards you on a collision course. It would be inconceivable for such a building to be built today. It would
not be allowed to come so close to vehicles that, from inside, you can make eye contact with the drivers.
The staff restaurant is right by the road it's called, with dark humour Bangers and Crash.
The building's original architect was Paul Hamilton, of the practice Bicknell and Hamilton. Today it has
been rejuvenated by a new generation, notably Ceri Davies, of Allford Hall Monaghan Morris. Some of their
own work harks back to this period. But here they have dealt with a real, glorious period one-off.
Hamilton, who's still around, aged 77, somehow managed to make an exceptional building from a dull
brief in incredibly constrained surroundings. He was given a patch of land left over from the swirl of
proposed motorway and roads. This patch happened to be on the far side of the motorway from the railway
goods yard it was intended to serve, though it was linked up beneath the elevated road. On the southern
motorway/goods yard side, all is industrial desolation. The goods yard, its railway lines long gone, is now
part of the vast, frenzied construction site surrounding Paddington. But on the northern side, with that
abrupt change of scale, pace and texture at which London excels, you are immediately in a different world.
This is the leafy world of Little Venice, where canals flow between trees, where stuccoed villas abound,
where people sip frothy lattes at open-air cafes. Hamilton's building mediates between the two worlds.
He was in his thirties when the commission came in. So, in architectural terms, it's a young man's
building. He relates how it took just four weeks from getting the commission to getting planning permission.
Moreover, he had a totally free hand. 'The budget was left to me,' he recalls. “I knew it would get no
maintenance, so I designed it to last. Everyone agreed they would take my word for it.”
And today? Davies and her colleagues have made some fairly hefty alterations. They have inserted a
mezzanine floor on the ground level, where the parcel trucks used to drive in and out, and added some new
windows. But the only parts of the building that had decayed to the point of needing replacement were the
bands of projecting metal-framed windows.
For new items such as the main reception desk and the moveable furniture in the staff restaurant,
Davies has kept in touch with the curved lines of the original building. Fortunately, Monsoon, which employs
about 200 designers, pattern-cutters and office staff, is an open-plan organisation, so there was little need
to divide up the spaces. The interior is clearly of 2001 rather than of 35 years ago - pastiche is avoided - but
it is sympathetic to the architecture.
There have been some losses. But you have to bear in mind that only a few years back it was all slated
for demolition. Monsoon has shown imagination and no little courage in taking the place on at all, spending
about £10 million to convert it when many another such organisation would merely have rented an existing
block.
Such buildings, when they are out of fashion, are strangely invisible. Brought back to life for a new use
they suddenly become landmarks. Nobody paid the old Bankside power station much heed until it became
the Tate Modern art gallery. In its very different way, this other industrial building has now emerged from its
long sleep. It looks absolutely fresh.
Adapted from article by Hugh Pearman - The Sunday Times

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For questions 56-62, decide whether the following statements are True (T), False (F) or Not Given
(NG). Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
56. The architecture of the building is described as high-tech and modern.
57. The original architect, Paul Hamilton, is not involved in the current rejuvenation of the building.
58. Paul Hamilton had full control over the budget and planning decisions for the Paddington maintenance
depot.
59. The passage tells us that there is no information provided about the number of stories in the Monsoon
building.
60. The restoration of the Paddington maintenance depot involved minimal changes to the original design.
61. The building's transformation into a headquarters was inspired by the success of the Bankside power
station’s conversion into the Tate Modern.
62. The reimagined interior of the Paddington maintenance depot eschews stylistic replication of the
original period while subtly aligning with the architectural character.

For questions 63-68, read the following summary and fill in each blank with NO MORE THAN THREE
WORDS taken from the passage. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes
provided.
The newly completed Monsoon headquarters in London stands as a resurrected 1960s architectural
masterpiece, challenging the usual design associated with (63) _____ parks. Indicating a cultural shift, the
revival of this building not only serves to (64) _____, embodying appreciation for historic modernist
architecture. The structure, designed with the (65) _____ in mind, defies contemporary construction
limitations, given its daring proximity to the motorway. Visionary architect Hamilton faced (66) _____ as he
led the rejuvenation project, making (67) _____ to the space while preserving its essence. The building
successfully forms a link between a world characterized by industrial desolation and the leafy world of Little
Venice with abundant (68) _____ and open-air cafes. Monsoon's courageous approach and a sizable
investment have turned a previously neglected structure into a landmark, echoing the transformative impact
seen in Tate Modern's conversion of the Bankside power station.

Part 3. In the passage below, seven paragraphs have been removed. For questions 69-75, read the
passage and choose from paragraphs A-H the one which fits each gap. There is ONE extra paragraph
which you do not need to use. Write the letters A-H in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
Time moves forward. This is so obvious that we take it for granted, and the rule seems to apply everywhere
we look. Observable phenomena only ever unfold in one temporal direction. We get older, not younger. We
remember the past, not the future. Stars clump in galaxies rather than dispersing, and radioactive nuclei
decay rather than assemble.

69

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I have a different idea, or rather two. The first is that time goes both ways – that the big bang isn’t an origin
for time, but a midpoint from which two parts of one universe play out, running in opposite directions. We
can never see the one unfolding in the other temporal direction, yet it is there, I suggest, as a consequence
of a fundamental law of nature.

70

Physicists’ current ideas about time owe much to Albert Einstein. His general theory of relativity merged the
three dimensions of space with one of time into space-time, the all-encompassing backdrop against which
events play out. In principle, if not always in practice, we can move in space as we wish. Not so in time.
Time insists on a direction of travel: we have no choice but to be swept along from past to future.

71

To explain this, physicists have instead turned to a law that isn’t considered fundamental, but which
emerges from more basic laws. The second law of thermodynamics says that in a closed system, overall
disorder, characterised by a statistically defined quantity called entropy, always increases. It does so
because there are many more possible states of disorder than of order. Thus, a small ice cube in the corner
of a large box will melt and become liquid water, spreading the molecules out and increasing disorder.
Entropy has increased. Note the “statistically defined” bit: the laws of physics don’t rule out this process
being reversed, but just say that event is statistically hugely unlikely.

72

For my part, I don’t doubt the robustness of thermodynamics. Einstein described it as “the only physical
theory of universal content which I am convinced that, within the framework of applicability, its basic
concepts will never be overthrown”. I wouldn’t be so bold as to disagree.

73

That alone is reason to question the application of thermodynamics more or less unchanged to cosmology.
But there is another reason. With the entropic arrow of time, physicists assume that the universe began at
the big bang with very low entropy, a special state of extraordinarily high order. That is arbitrarily imposed.
One of the most profound aspects of existence is attributed to a special condition put in by hand. This has
been called the past hypothesis and in my view it isn’t a resolution to the issue of time, but an admission of
defeat.

74

Lagrange’s result, which extends to any number of particles, showed that if a system’s total energy
(potential plus kinetic) is either zero or positive then its size, essentially its diameter, passes through a
unique minimum at just one point on the timeline of its evolution. This process runs just as well backwards

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as forwards, Newton’s gravity being time-symmetric. And with one fascinating exception to which I will
return, the size of the system grows to infinity both to the past and future.

75

Missing Paragraphs:
A. My second idea is even more radical. It could transform our understanding of the very nature of time.
The consequences might even reach beyond the realm of classical physics, the world we can easily see,
and offer fresh clues to the quantum nature of gravity – the elusive theory that marries general relativity with
quantum mechanics.
B. The big question is, where does this forward-facing arrow of time come from? The most popular
explanation relates to entropy. In this picture, the flow of time is essentially a manifestation of the universe’s
inescapable inclination towards disorder.
C. In this picture, the direction of time is created by the increase in disorder. If snapshots showing the
position of the molecules in that box were shuffled out of order, my 4-year-old granddaughter could put
them back in order. For many scientists, this is enough: entropy puts direction into time.
D. This flow of time isn’t dictated by the fundamental laws of nature. All but one of these are
time-symmetric: they work equally well towards the past or future. Take the collision of two billiard balls,
governed by one of these laws: a film of what happens doesn’t look odd when played backwards or
forwards. The one time-asymmetric law we know of is one that dictates the decay of certain elementary
particles, an oddity that prevented the complete mutual annihilation of matter and antimatter in the early
universe and ensured that we, being made of matter, are here today. But there is no way it can explain the
onward flow of time.
E. But Einstein’s caveat is important, and leads to a question: does the “framework of applicability” of
thermodynamics include our universe? It doesn’t appear to be a closed system. It might be infinite in size
and is certainly expanding, possibly without impediment. If so, it isn’t in a box. But a box, physical or
conceptual, is crucial for the interpretation of entropy.
F. In fact, an alternative to the past hypothesis may have been staring us in the face for more than two
centuries. In 1772, mathematician Joseph-Louis Lagrange proved something about the behaviour of a
system of three particles that interact according to Isaac Newton’s law of gravitation. This says that every
particle attracts every other with a force proportional to their masses and inversely proportional to the
square of the distances between them.
G. Interestingly, the uniformity with which the particles are distributed is greatest around the point of
minimum size. It has long been known that a uniform distribution of particles is gravitationally unstable and
breaks up into clusters. What nobody seems to have realised, however, is that when you run the evolution
of the particles’ motion backwards from the clustered state to the minimum, most uniform state and then
take it beyond this point, it goes on to become clustered again.
H. If we take this exception seriously, we cannot say time has two opposite directions but, significantly, it
doesn’t rule out complexity giving time a direction.

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Part 4. For questions 76-85, read a passage on the Decameron and write A, B, C or D in the
corresponding numbered boxes provided to indicate the correct answer which fits best according to
what is stated or implied in the text.
1. Boccaccio‘s donnée is of an upper-class milieu where girls and young men can meet socially at
ease and move—thanks to wealth—out of plaguestricken Florence. In fact, it daringly reverses the
standard form of morality, well summed up nearly contemporaneously by Traini‘s famous Triumph of
Death fresco in the Campo Santo at Pisa. There, an upper class, amorous, hedonistic group of
young people is depicted as doomed to die. Boccaccio‘s group consists very much of stylish
survivors.
2. [A] Seven girls who have met by chance at Mass at Santa Maria Novella plan their adventure and
then co-opt three young men who happen to enter the church. [B] The three are already known to
them, but it is the girls who take the initiative, in a tactful, well-bred way, making it clear from the
start that this is no invitation to rape. [C] One has only to try to imagine a Victorian girl in fiction or in
fact—behaving with such a degree of sophistication to see that society by no means advances
century by century. [D] Boccaccio is a highly complex personality who, like many other writers, may
have felt that his most famous work was not his best. But the Decameron became famous early on,
and was avidly read and frequently translated throughout Europe.
3. The Decameron is a thoroughly Florentine book and a thoroughly social one, down to its structure.
After the poetry of the Divine Comedy, it is very much prose, in every way. It glories in being
undidactic, entertaining and openly—though by no means totally—scabrous. Eventually it shocked
and frightened its creator, who thus unwittingly or not recognized the force of its literary power. He
repented and turned moralist and academic, leaving Florence for the small Tuscan town of Certaldo
where he had probably been born and where in 1375 he died.
4. Part of his religious repentance was perhaps expressed by commissioning two altarpieces (sadly,
not extant) for a local church. Whatever the medievalism enshrined in the Divine Comedy, the
Decameron speaks for a robustly changed, relaxed vision, one set firmly upon earth. It is the
opposite of lonely and ecstatic. It is a vision closer to that of Canterbury Tales than to the spiritual
one of Piers Plowman.
5. It has female protagonists who seem mundane if not precisely modern compared with the real
women mystics and saints of central Italy of a few generations before, women whose fierce, intense,
sometimes horrifyingly palpable and semi-erotic visions read like real-life cantos from Dante‘s poem.
No doubt Boccaccio has idealized a little, but he puts forward a calm, sane case for freedom and
humour and good manners between the sexes which, however palely, foreshadows the
Shakespearean world of Beatrice and Benedick.
6. The theme of the stories his group exchange is human behaviour—often as it is manifested under
the pressure of lust or love. But the group is also shown indulging in chess and music and dancing

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 (even bathing though separated by sex). The ladies frequently laugh and occasionally blush, while
never losing their self-possession and their implicit command of the situation.
7. That the diversions of the Decameron are set brightly against the gruesome darkness of the Black
Death is effective and also realistic. The plague is seen working psychologically as well as
physically, horribly corrupting manners and morals, in addition to destroying life. Diversion and
escape seem not frivolous but prudent, especially when provided by a pleasantly sited, well-stocked
villa outside Florence, with amenities that extend to agreeable pictures in its rooms.

76. Which of the following best encapsulates the underlying tension between the characters' social privilege
and the morality in Boccaccio's Decameron, as discussed in paragraph 1?
A. The characters deliberately subvert the notion of moral integrity by indulging in luxuries while maintaining
an outward appearance of virtue in a time of crisis.
B. The juxtaposition of their elite status and the moral transgressions depicted in the narrative reflects an
implicit critique of both social hierarchies and conventional morality.
C. Through their fashionable survival in the face of the plague, the characters present a critique of the
spiritual and physical decay represented by traditional notions of virtue.
D. The characters, by virtue of their wealth and social standing, employ an underlying moral flexibility that
allows them to both indulge in pleasure and subtly challenge prevailing ethical norms without overtly
rejecting them.
77. What does the word donnée in paragraph 1 mostly mean?
A. The explicit moral framework that the characters consciously contest throughout the story.
B. The implicit set of societal and ethical premises that underlie the narrative and inform the characters'
actions.
C. The narrative’s structural elements that influence the sequence and organization of events.
D. The ethical and philosophical assumptions that subtly shape the story's thematic progression and
character development.
78. Which of the following square brackets [A], [B], [C] or [D] best indicates where in paragraph 2 the
sentence “The code of behaviour they assume and also promulgate is impressively liberal, civilized and
un-prudish.” can be inserted?
A. [A] B. [B] C. [C] D. [D]
79. Which of the following statements best summarizes the author‘s opinion in the passage regarding
Boccaccio‘s view of his own work?
A. Boccaccio admired the widespread popularity of the Decameron, yet came to regret the boldness of its
themes.
B. Boccaccio felt that Dante was a literary figure worthy of high regard.
C. Boccaccio was later unsettled and disturbed but nonetheless convinced by the literary power of the
Decameron.
D. Boccaccio was heartened by the reception of The Decameron
80. The word scabrous in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ______.
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A. immoral
B. crude
C. inappropriate
D. scandalous
81. The phrase "the opposite of lonely and ecstatic" serves to contrast:
A. The solitary spirituality of medieval ideals with the communal, social nature of The Decameron.
B. The religious isolation of medieval thought with the group-based secularism of The Decameron.
C. The ascetic solitude of medieval figures with the shared pleasures found in The Decameron.
D. The solitary devotion in medieval life with the active social life of Boccaccio’s characters.
82. Based on paragraphs 4 and 5, how is The Decameron described in relation to The Divine Comedy?
A. Unlike The Divine Comedy, The Decameron presents a vision firmly rooted in the physical world and
human experiences.
B. The Decameron centers around social and human themes, while The Divine Comedy explores spiritual
themes in greater depth.
C. The Decameron is more concerned with religious themes and less with the material world than The
Divine Comedy.
D. The Decameron offers a more nuanced spiritual perspective, closely mirroring The Divine Comedy's
theological depth, but through a more socially engaged narrative.
83. Which of the following statements represents societal values and human behavior, is closest to the
views expressed in the passage regarding The Decameron and its depiction of life?
A. Like a fleeting moment caught between dusk and dawn, the narrative should embrace the contradictions
of human nature, where virtue and vice coexist, allowing for an honest portrayal of society without
moralizing.
B. If there’s room for storytelling in this world, its purpose must be to reflect the complexities and
indulgences of the present age, showing how individuals navigate pleasure, power, and morality without
being bound by the strictures of tradition.
C. My method is simple: to create stories that reflect only the noble pursuit of idealistic love and the pursuit
of spiritual fulfillment, leaving behind the petty concerns of earthly pleasures.
D. True storytelling finds its strength not in the portrayal of social decorum or spiritual virtue but in
uncovering the raw, untamed desires of human beings, where each tale becomes a symbol of the internal
conflicts that drive us to face our own contradictions.
84. Which one of the following statements can be made about the writer of The Decameron?
A. The writer highlights the characters’ moral development through their interactions with each other.
B. The writer presents his characters as intensely conflicted about their desires.
C. The writer believes the naturalistic behavior of the characters contrasts with the spiritual striving in
medieval literature.
D. The writer looks at human behavior through a lens of sophistication and controlled emotional expression.
85. With which of the following conclusions does the reviewer mostly agree?

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A. The societal conditions of the 14th century are highlighted to underscore the narrative’s moral
implications.
B. The portrayal of death and its inevitability reflects the author's criticism of existential despair.
C. The depiction of the plague illustrates the book's grounding in the social conditions of its time, avoiding
an overly romanticized view.
D. The book presents a stark contrast between religious ideals and the practical realities of human
behavior.

Part 5. The passage below consists of seven paragraphs (A-E). For questions 86-95, read the passage
and do the tasks that follow. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
How Minds Change review: The science of persuasion in a divided world
A. Amid increasingly entrenched views on politics, economics and how to deal with the pandemic, there
seems to be a growing tally of potential conversational minefields to navigate. More than ever, it seems as if
we are stuck in our own ways, unable to see another point of view - let alone trying to bring someone round
to our own argument. But don't give up hope yet, is the message of science journalist David McRaney's
second book, How Minds Change. His first, You Are Not So Smart, was based on a popular blog and
spawned an associated podcast. This time, McRaney is arguing that even though it may seem as if we are
unable to find common ground with those who hold diametrically opposed viewpoints, we can do this. And
more than that we are able to get such people to see our point of view McRaney tries to unpick the science
and synaptic responses that go on behind Damascene conversions - for example, the everyday words and
deeds that can trigger a change of mind in someone who believes strongly that members of the LBGTQ+
community shouldn't have the same rights as straight people.
B. He does so mostly not by running through a dry list of scientific research, but by fly-on-the-wall insight:
some of the most compelling chapters follow canvassers supported by University of California, Los Angeles
(UCLA), neuroscientist-as they campaign for LBGTQ+ rights in California, working on scripts and prompts
to successfully persuade people to loosen their opposition to equal rights for all. Those accounts are some
of the most interesting, not least because - as in real life - they aren't black and white. The UCLA research
is tainted by missteps in the procedure that nullifies the results scientifically, those on the ground still swear
it works, however, and it seems to, but the exact salient steps are difficult to discern because of procedural
issues.
C. The book is full of such vignettes: McRaney spends time with former members of the Westboro Baptist
Church in the US, described by the Southern Poverty Law Center as "arguably the most obnoxious and
rabid hate group in America", learning how they came to disavow their vitriolic beliefs and become more
beneficent towards others. The answer, he finds, isn't willing people to come around to your point of view,
but letting them realise the folly of their ways. We also encounter less significant, but more foundational,
errors in judgement that humankind has previously made. Through these shifts in beliefs, we can see how
today we can learn to admit our misconceptions of the world and how it works. For example, until around
1000 years ago, people truly thought that certain geese didn't hatch from eggs, but grew on trees, birthed

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from barnacles that looked a lot like a goose's head. That is an indication of just how much firmly held
beliefs about how the world works can change with more information.
D. The concept - that, with more knowledge, long-held hypotheses can be disproved - isn't likely to be news
to readers. But it doesn't make McRaney's book any less interesting. Indeed, his writing is a tonic for those
who might scratch their head at how others could be so nonsensical as to distrust vaccines, believe the
Earth is flat or subscribe to any other number of conspiracy theories. It helps shift perceptions from the
unhelpful attitude of "this person is stupid and beyond help" to "this person has a different frame of belief,
and they can be encouraged to think more deeply about the issue".
E. Because that is the big discovery of those Californian campaigners and the neuroscientists behind them:
simply shouting facts at disbelievers doesn't change their minds, rather it entrenches their belief - as
anyone who has tackled a tricky dinner table conversation will know. Instead, to change minds, you have to
not change minds at all. You have to let people come to their own conclusions - though, of course, you can
help them get there by posing the right questions.
Adapted from article by Chris Stokel-Walker - the New Scientist

In which sections are the following mentioned? Your answers:

• Changing what could not be changed is difficult. 86. _________
• Changing what remained unchanged is difficult. 87. _________
• Problems arising during research. 88. _________
• a favourable change in perceptions. 89. _________
• a better solution to overcoming divisive views. 90. _________
• an approach that exacerbates the situation. 91. _________
• an example of past misunderstandings. 92. _________
• a reference to fascinating reports. 93. _________
• an example of a new approach used. 94. _________
• an opposing viewpoint presented by a scientific writer. 95. _________

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IV. WRITING (6.0 points)
Part 1. Read the following extract and use your own words to summarise it. Your summary should
be between 100 and 120 words.
Simone de Beauvoir begins with a simple question: “But first, what is a woman?”. The answer Beauvoir
offers is that women are not born women—they are made women by society and culture. Further, Beauvoir
argues women are defined by their relationship to men. Traditionally, men have been considered the default,
meaning men’s experiences and concerns are treated as universal for humanity. Meanwhile, women are “the
Other”, defined in relation to men and not in their own right. Beauvoir writes, “Humanity is male, and man
defines woman, not in herself, but in relation to himself; she is not an autonomous being”. The Second Sex
seeks to explain this state of women’s identity, how it came about, and how it might change in the future.

In the first volume Facts and Myths, Beauvoir discusses past writings and debates over the biology,
history, and psychology of women. She suggests there are biological differences between women and men,
stemming from women’s reproductive role. However, this alone does not explain why women are
marginalized across the world. Instead, Beauvoir argues a woman’s “body alone is not enough to define her”.
Biology may provide a basis for women’s oppression and justify it, but it is society that defines what it means
to be a woman. This is what oppresses women.

Turning to history, Beauvoir argues that, despite women’s role in human reproduction, she has never had
a privileged place in society. Even among prehistoric societies that could be described as “matriarchal,”
women were still limited and dominated by men. Women’s power was never fully political; it was only
advisory, spiritual, and symbolic: “She only mediates the law; she does not possess it”. Even the goddesses
in ancient societies were created by men and made subordinate to masculinity.

As societies changed with the rise of private property, women’s condition worsened. Women’s rights were
restricted by concerns over property and inheritance. Often, women were treated like property themselves.
Beauvoir argues that women fared better and enjoyed more rights in societies like ancient Sparta and Rome,
where the government had significant power and the rights of individual families were limited. Even there,
however, the state claimed paternal authority over all women.

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Part 2. The chart and table below show the average number of children born to one woman and the
average age of women when they had their first child in two countries between 1920 and 2019.
Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons
where relevant. You should write about 150 words.

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Part 3. Write an essay of about 350 words on the following topic.

With the rise of social media, charitable work has gained greater visibility. Some believe this reflects genuine
altruism, where individuals and organizations aim to serve meaningful causes selflessly. Others argue that
this trend masks ulterior motives, as motivations behind these actions are difficult to discern and may include
personal gain or reputation building.
Discuss both viewpoints and give your own opinion.
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(You may write overleaf if you need more space.)

- GOOD LUCK, AND DO NOT CRY -

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