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MODEL TEST - ACADEMIC IELTS
(Time: 90 minutes)
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Section 1
Script:
Receptionist: Good afternoon, Italiabreaks. My name's Margaret. How can I help you? John: Hi. I'd like to book a short break in Italy - hotel and flights combined. Receptionist: Anywhere in particular? John: Yes. Venice, if possible. We've been looking at some of your brochures and I want to check if you have any special deals. Receptionist: Right. Let's have a look and see what we've got. Right, mmm. Okay ... I've got the screen up. Can you just give me a few personal details? John: Sure. Receptionist: First, can I just take your name please and a contact telephone number? John: Certainly. It's John Framlington. That's F-R-A-M-L-I-N-G-T-O-N and I'll give you my mobile number ... I can't always remember it.... Yes, here it is ... It's 07987 44 11 92. Receptionist: ... 44 11 92. John: That's it. Receptionist: And how many people is it for? John: Just two adults. Receptionist: Okay. Any particular price range? John: It's our first wedding anniversary and... Receptionist: Congratulations! John: Thank you. So we wanted somewhere nice, but not too expensive. We would like to make it something to remember. Maybe, in the medium price range. Receptionist: Okay. How many nights do you plan to stay? John: Five nights only. That gives us plenty of time to do sight-seeing and to relax. Receptionist: Right, that's five nights only. And what type of hotel? John: We initially thought of going for a five star, but that might be too expensive. So we've been looking at four star hotels. Receptionist: We've got quite a few in our brochure, but the one I would recommend is the Hotel Scotland. It's four star and I know there are rooms available because I have just made a booking for another client there. John: I didn't notice that one. I don't know how I didn't see it. Receptionist: It's easy to miss them. I've also stayed there myself as we sometimes have to go and check out the hotels and of all the ones I visited this was my favourite. John: Oh, right.
Complete the notes below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
1.
Framlington
4 / four
5 nights / five nights / 5 nights only / five nights only
44 11 92 / 441192
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Script:
John: What's the hotel like? Receptionist: It has a courtyard for breakfast. It's got 50 rooms. It's just been renovated and so it's very stylish. John: Is it in the brochure? Receptionist: It's on page 63. John: Ah yes! I can see it's right next to the railway station, ...mmm, but what appeals to me most of all is that the hotel's very convenient for all the water buses. And the idea of having a terrace with the room I really find very appealing. These are big plusses! Receptionist: It's probably the most central hotel we have. You might think it would be a bit noisy as it's in the main commuter area and a place where tourists go. But from experience I can assure you the hotel is very quiet. Most of the rooms are facing away from the main thoroughfare. Can you tell me when you'd like to leave? John: 17th March coming back on the 22nd. Receptionist: Okay. I'll just check again if there are places available. Two adults sharing, Hotel Scotland.... Yes. That's gone through. John: Okay. And how much is the break including flights? Receptionist: There's a special rate at the moment because it's off-season. For five nights, let's see, it's £716 for a double room and flights. That includes airport taxes, but not insurance. John: Each? Receptionist: No. For two adults sharing. John: That doesn't sound too bad at all. What reductions do you have at the moment? Receptionist: Well, if you make the booking before the 17th February you get a further 15% reduction subject to availability. John: That's a big saving. Receptionist: Yes. It makes the price very reasonable indeed. Do you need travel insurance? John: Yes I suppose we better had. Receptionist: For seven day cover for both of you it's £17. 88. John: Okay. Receptionist: Do you want to book today? John: I think we should, but can I just check with my wife? Can you hold the booking for me? Receptionist: I can hold it until 1pm. John: Okay. That's fine. I'll get back to you immediately. Receptionist: I'll just give you a reference for the reservation. John: Okay. Receptionist: It's FAPSJM15. John: Thanks. I'll get back to you as soon as I can and definitely before 1pm. This is too good an offer to miss.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.
1.
15 / fifteen
17th March
FAPSJM15
716
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Script:
John: What's the hotel like? Receptionist: It has a courtyard for breakfast. It's got 50 rooms. It's just been renovated and so it's very stylish. John: Is it in the brochure? Receptionist: It's on page 63. John: Ah yes! I can see it's right next to the railway station, ...mmm, but what appeals to me most of all is that the hotel's very convenient for all the water buses. And the idea of having a terrace with the room I really find very appealing. These are big plusses! Receptionist: It's probably the most central hotel we have. You might think it would be a bit noisy as it's in the main commuter area and a place where tourists go. But from experience I can assure you the hotel is very quiet. Most of the rooms are facing away from the main thoroughfare. Can you tell me when you'd like to leave? John: 17th March coming back on the 22nd. Receptionist: Okay. I'll just check again if there are places available. Two adults sharing, Hotel Scotland.... Yes. That's gone through. John: Okay. And how much is the break including flights? Receptionist: There's a special rate at the moment because it's off-season. For five nights, let's see, it's £716 for a double room and flights. That includes airport taxes, but not insurance. John: Each? Receptionist: No. For two adults sharing. John: That doesn't sound too bad at all. What reductions do you have at the moment? Receptionist: Well, if you make the booking before the 17th February you get a further 15% reduction subject to availability. John: That's a big saving. Receptionist: Yes. It makes the price very reasonable indeed. Do you need travel insurance? John: Yes I suppose we better had. Receptionist: For seven day cover for both of you it's £17. 88. John: Okay. Receptionist: Do you want to book today? John: I think we should, but can I just check with my wife? Can you hold the booking for me? Receptionist: I can hold it until 1pm. John: Okay. That's fine. I'll get back to you immediately. Receptionist: I'll just give you a reference for the reservation. John: Okay. Receptionist: It's FAPSJM15. John: Thanks. I'll get back to you as soon as I can and definitely before 1pm. This is too good an offer to miss.
1. Which TWO good things about Hotel Scotland are mentioned?
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Explain: John asks: What's the hotel like? The Receptionist describes it. Then John says: what appeals to me most... hotel's very convenient for all the water buses. And...a terrace with the room I really find very appealing. These are big plusses! The other items are not given. |
Section 2
Script:
You will hear part of a radio program about the opening of a new local sport shop. Andrew: Now we go to Jane who is going to tell us about what’s happening in town this weekend. Jane: Right, thanks Andrew, and now on to what’s new, and do we really need yet another sports shop in Bradcaster? Well, most of you probably know Sports World - the branch of a Danish sports goods company that opened a few years ago - it’s attracted a lot of custom, and so the company has now decided to open another branch in the area. It’s going to be in the shopping centre to the west of Bradcaster, so that will be good news for all of you who’ve found the original shop in the north of the town hard to get to. I was invited to a special preview and I can promise you, this is the ultimate in sports retailing. The whole place has been given a new minimalist look with the company’s signature colours of black and red. The first three floors have a huge range of sports clothing as well as equipment, and on the top floor there’s a cafe and a book and DVD section. You’ll find all the well-known names as well as some less well-known ones. If they haven’t got exactly what you want in stock they promise to get it for you in ten days. Unlike the other store, where it can take up to fourteen days. They cover all the major sports, including football, tennis and swimming, but they particularly focus on running and they claim to have the widest range of equipment in the country. As well as that, a whole section of the third floor is devoted to sports baas including the latest designs from the States - if you can’t find what you want here, it doesn’t exist!
Complete the notes below. Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer. SPORTS WORLD | - a new (1).......... of an international sports goods company - located in the shopping centre to the (2).......... of Bradcaster - has sports (3).......... and equipment on floors 1-3 - can get you any item within (4).......... days - shop specialises in equipment for (5).......... - has a special section which just sells (6).......... |
1.
west
running
branch
clothing
bags
10 / ten
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Script:
Jane: The shop will be open from 9.00 am this Saturday and if you go along to the opening then you’ll have the chance to meet the national 400 metres running champion Paul King, who’s coming along to open the shop, and he will be staying around until about midday to chat to any fans who want to meet him and sign autographs. Then there will be a whole range of special attractions all weekend. There will be free tickets for local sporting events for the first 50 customers, and also a special competition open to all. Just answer fifteen out of twenty sports questions correctly to win a signed copy of Paul King’s DVD ‘Spring Tips’, while the first person to get all the questions correct gets a year’s free membership of the Bradcaster Gym. All entrants will receive a special Sports calendar with details of all Bradcaster fixtures in the coming year. One of the special opening offers is a fitness test - a complete review of your cardiac fitness and muscle tone, actually done in the shop by qualified staff. This would normally cost £30.00 but is available at half price for this month only. There are only a limited number of places available for this, so to make a booking phone 560341. In addition, if you open an account you get lots more special offers including the chance to try out equipment at special open evenings ...
Choose correct answer choices for the following questions.
1. A champion athlete will be in the shop
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2. The first person to answer 20 quiz questions correctly will win
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3. Which TWO pieces of information does the speaker give about the fitness test?
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Section 3
Script:
You will hear two students, Jenna and Marco, discussing a Business Studies project they have to do. Jenna: Come on Marco. We’ve got to get on and sort out this project for Professor Barclay. Marco: Hang on. I want to make sure we’ve got all the information. Now .. (sitting down) ... where are we? Jenna: Well, today we need to sort out exactly what we’re going to do and how we’re going to divide the work up. Marco: OK. How long have we got, by the way? Jenna: Um .. the end of term is April 6th and he said to hand it in on week 8, so that’s March 25th at the latest because the beginning of that week is 21st. So not long! Marco: Right. Have you got the notes there? Jenna: Yes, he wants us to do a fairly small-scale study, like the last one, on whether or not businesses were offering more benefits to staff. We’ve now got to look at the rise in older workers. Should be fairly straightforward. Marco: Yeah, as long as we keep it small. Who’s marking it? Jenna: Don’t know - sometimes he gets the PhD students to mark it for him. Marco: Oh actually it just says here ‘a senior lecturer’. I suppose it’s too much for Professor Barclay to do them all. Jenna: Yeah. Anyway, how are we going to go about this? Marco: Well, we have to decide how big we want it to be and who we’re ... Jenna: (cutting him off) ... Yeah, but I think we must sort out a timetable for the project otherwise nothing will get done. Marco: OK. Do you want to do that? Jenna: Alright. I’ll do it as soon as we finish here. OK - what do we have to do now for the project? What’s the best way to go about it? Marco: Um ... well, Professor Carter suggested we set up a focus group to get some in-depth interviews but I think that’ll take a lot of time. Jenna: Yeah, I agree. If we did a focus group, we’d have to spend time deciding who to include in it and it’s not necessary to do one anyway. Marco: Oh, fine. Jenna: And. if you agree. I think we should get in touch with the businesses on the list Professor Carter save us and ask them if they’re prepared to participate. Marco: Sounds good - then we can go there, give them questionnaires and collect them later. Jenna: Exactly. Marco: OK. Then do we need to book one of those study rooms in the library so we can work together to input the data? Perhaps not, as I guess just one of us could just sort it out, actually. Jenna: Yes, that would be easier. A lot of what we’re doing is qualitative, so it’ll be writing up rather than statistics. No software for that I’m afraid! Marco: And I think it would look better if we had actual shots of some of the staff because we’re citing appearance as a factor in employability, aren’t we? Jenna: Yeah. OK. I’ll factor that all in when I sort everything out tonight.
Complete the sentences below. Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS OR A NUMBER for each answer.
1.
senior lecturer/ a senior lecturer
older workers
March 25th/25th of March/ March 25
timetable
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Script:
Marco: I’m glad we decided to work together. I think it’s going to work out well. Jenna: Yes, well, given that we had to work in pairs on this project, I think we were right to choose each other. We complement each other academically as we’re each good at what the other isn’t! In fact, we should have tried working together before! Marco: Yes! Now, how shall we split the work? I’ll do the analysis, shall I? Jenna: Oh - OK. Marco: It’s just that it might be faster because I’m used to doing it - although your English is better than mine. I need more practice at reading, really. Jenna: OK. I’ll do the presentation then. If that’s OK with you? Marco: Yeah, sure. I don’t mind speaking in public but I hate preparing all the notes for them. Jenna: Thing is. the tutor said one person should do the whole presentation and he’s said he expects me to do it because I haven’t done one vet. Marco: No, that’s fine. Now ... (fade) ...
1. What THREE things do Marco and Jenna have to do now for the project?
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2. Why did Jenna and Marco agree to work together?
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3. Why does Marco suggest that he writes the analysis?
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4. Why does Jenna offer to do the presentation?
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Section 4
Script:
You will hear part of a lecture on the current and future use of mobile phones. Lecturer: OK, now today we’re looking at changes in communication, and specifically changes that have just happened or are likely to happen in the next few years. Key to this is the mobile phone, which is increasingly being seen as an all-purpose system rather than just a phone. If you only use your phone for texting and making calls now, you will be amazed at how you will be using it in the future. The technology has been developed for a range of other uses. For example, phones could be used so that if you are meeting someone and they get lost you could send them a map of your location to help them. This will save all those complicated explanations over the phone and our poor friends or colleagues trying to drive and find out where they are at the same time. And, if you get bored waiting, or if you are travelling for example, you will soon be able to see TV news on your phone as it is actually being broadcast. This means that you won’t have to miss any of your favourites if you are away for a few days. Most people have got used to texting now, and young people send pictures to each other but, what is exciting, is the possibility of putting music with them before you send them. And it’s not all frivolous. Phones are going to become even more critical in business and education. Some recent developments have a highly practical usage so, for example, as lecturers we will be able to send everybody a text to let them know if lectures have been cancelled. And the new phones could have a further use in education, as well as business, as they will enable us to go to any destination - such as when we are doing a field trip for instance - and from there to send data directly to a computer so that we can access it when we get home. This means we will no longer be limited by what the phone can store.
Complete the sentences below. Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS for each answer.
1.
data
cancelled
a map
TV news / television news
music
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Script:
And it’s interesting to look at the different ways that men and women use phones now, as that does affect how the technology will develop. Some research has been done on how people use phones and some of the results are surprising. One of the increasing usages of mobile phones is to get all sorts of data such as phone numbers, the weather, train times, etcetera and, while there’s been an attempt to set up connections with things that women might be interested in accessing, it is overwhelmingly men who do this. But what about the traditional use of a phone - to speak to people! I suppose we would predict that it is mainly women who use phones as a method of contact for friends and family but, in fact, the genders exploit this facility equally. I’ve spoken about the increased business usages that phones will offer and I suppose we would associate this usage with men. The survey picked up though that women are often working from home or catching up with work in the evenings so they use phones in this wav as much as men do. Most of us are aware we can store photos on our phones - it’s an ideal method of capturing a moment, wherever you are. Women tend to be the group that keep photos on their phones, but it seems that men use their phones to actually take pictures much more than women do. And, of course, all this knowledge affects the marketing that the companies will do ... (fade) ...
Which group of people are the main users of mobile phones for the following purposes?
1. to access information
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2. to stay in touch
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4. to store personal photos
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Passage 1
The Rufous Hare-Wallaby The Rufous Hare-Wallaby is a species of Australian kangaroo, usually known by its Aboriginal name, ‘mala’. At one time, they may have been as many as ten million of these little animals across the arid and an semi-arid landscape of Australia, but their populations, like those of so many other small endemic species, were devastated when cats and foxes were introduced – indeed during the 1950s it was thought that the mala was extinct. But in 1964, a small colony was found 450 miles northwest of Alice Springs in the Tanami Desert. And 12 years later, a second small colony was found nearby. Very extensive surveys were made throughout historical mala range - but no other traces were found. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, scientists from the Parks and Wildlife Commission of the Northern Territory monitored these two populations. At first it seemed that they were holding their own. Then in late 1987, every one of the individuals of the second and smaller of the wild colonies was killed. From examination of the tracks in the sand, it seems that just one single fox had been responsible. And then, in October 1991, a wild-fire destroyed the entire area occupied by the remaining colony Thus the mala was finally pronounced extinct in the wild. Fortunately, ten years earlier, seven individuals had been captured, and had become the founders of a captive breeding programme at the Arid Zone Research Institute in Alice Springs; and that group had thrived. Part of this success is due to the fact that the female can breed when she is just five months old and can produce up to three young a year. Like other kangaroo species, the mother carries her young – known as a joey – in het pouch for about 15 weeks, and she can have more than one joey at the same time. In the early 1980s, there were enough mala in the captive population to make it feasible to start a réintroduction programme. But first it was necessary to discuss this with the leaders of the Yapa people Traditionally, the mala had been an important animal in their culture, with strong medicinal powers for old people. It had also been an important food source, and there were concerns that any mala returned to the wild would be killed for the pot. And so, in 1980, a group of key Yapa men was invited to*S the proposed réintroduction area. The skills and knowledge of the Yapa would play a significant and enduring role in this and all other mala projects. With the help of the local Yapa an electric fence was erected around 250 acres of suitable habitat about 300 miles northwest of Alice Springs so that the mala could adapt while protected from predators By 1992, there were about 150 mala in their enclosure, which became known as the Mala Paddock However all attempts to reintroduce mala from the paddocks into the unfenced wild were unsuccessful so in the end the reintroduction programme was abandoned. The team now faced a situation where mala could be bred, but not released into the wild again. Thus, in 1993, a Mala Recover Team was established to boost mala numbers, and goals for a new programme were set: the team concentrated on finding suitable predator-free or predator-controllcd conservation sites within the malas known range. Finally, in March 1999, twelve adult females, eight adult males, and eight joeys were transferred from the Mala Paddock to Dryandra Woodland in Western Australia. Then, a few months later, a second group was transferred to Trimouille, an island off the coast of western Australia. First, it had been necessary to rid the island of rats and cats - a task that had taken two years of hard work. Six weeks after their release into this conservation site, a team returned to the island to find out how things were going. Each of the malas had been fitted with a radio collar that transmits for about 14 months, after which it falls off. The team was able to locate 29 out of the 30 transmitters - only one came from the collar of a mala that had died of unknown causes. So far the recovery programme had gone even better than expected. Today there are many signs suggesting that the mala population on the island is continuing to do well.
Complete the flow chart below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer. THE WILD AUSTRALIAN MALA
1.
cats and foxes/foxes and cats
extinct
fire
monitored
10 million/ten million
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Answer the questions below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER from the passage for each answer.
1.
15 weeks/fifteen weeks
strong medicinal powers/ medicinal powers
skills and knowledge/knowledge and skills
5 months/five months
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Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage? TRUE if the statement agrees with the information FALSE if the statement contradicts the information NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this
1. Natural defences were sufficient to protect the area called Mala Paddock.
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2. Scientists eventually gave up their efforts to release captive mala into the unprotected wild.
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3. The mala population which was transferred to Dryandra Woodland quickly increased in size.
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4. Scientists were satisfied with the initial results of the recovery programme.
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Passage 2
History of Fire Fighting and Prevention More than two thousand years ago, Roman emperor Augustus organized a group of watchmen whose job was mainly to look out for fires and sound an alarm in the event of one. For many centuries that followed, fire equipment was limited to buckets of water that got passed from person to person. The ax was later found to be a useful tool both for removing fuel in large fires and for opening holes to allow smoke and flames to escape from burning buildings. Watchmen also learned to create firebreaks with long hooked poles and ropes in order to pull down structures that provided fuel for a fire. In 1066, in order to reduce the risk of fire in thatched-roof houses, King William the Conqueror made a ruling: Citizens had to extinguish their cooking fires at night. His term couvre-feu, meaning “cover fire,” is the origin of the modern day term curfew, which no longer carries a literal translation. The event that had the largest influence in the history of fire fighting was the Great Fire of London in 1666. The devastating blaze originated at the King’s Bakery near the London Bridge. At the onset, Lord Mayor Bludworth showed little concern for the fire, assuming it would extinguish itself before he could organize a group of men to attend to it. However, the summer of 1666 had been uncharacteristically hot and dry, and the wooden houses nearby caught fire quickly. Within a short time, the wind had carried the fire across the city, burning down over 300 houses in its path. Although the procedure of pulling down buildings to prevent a fire from spreading was standard in Britain, the mayor grew concerned over the cost it would involve to rebuild the city and ordered that the surrounding structures be left intact. By the time the king ordered the destruction of buildings in the fire’s path, the fire was too large to control. It was not until the Duke of York ordered the Paper House to be destroyed in order to create a crucial firebreak that the London fire finally began to lose its fuel. When it became clear that four-fifths of the city had been destroyed by the fire, drastic measures were taken in London to create a system of organized fire prevention. At the hands of architects such as Christopher Wren, most of London was rebuilt using stone and brick, materials that were far less flammable than wood and straw. Because of the long history of fires in London, those who could afford to build new homes and businesses began to seek insurance for their properties. As insurance became a profitable business, companies soon realized the monetary benefits of hiring men to extinguish fires. In the early years of insurance companies, all insured properties were marked with an insurance company’s name or logo. If a fire broke out and a building did not contain the insurancemark, the fire brigades were called away and the building was left to burn. The British insurance companies were largely responsible |