E.O.I.

SAN FERNANDO
READING TEST

NAME:

4th Year
September 2015

GROUP:

Read texts PART 1 and PART 2 and answer the questions about them

MARK: ____________

PART 1:

Read the article. For questions 1-5, choose the correct answer (A, B, C, or D).

Beach heroes
There is no more welcome sight on beaches all over the world than a lifeguard.
You can spot the lifeguards a mile off which is, of course, half the point. Not only do they wear
highly conspicuous red-and-yellow uniforms, but somehow they manage to look better than the rest
of us too.
Last year, we only had to make five rescues, says head lifeguard Rod Terry, 22. Another year, we
helped 29 people in the space of three hours. You never know what youre going to be called upon
to do, which is why you need lifeguards who can cope with any situation. Youd think, of course,
theyd all be keen to perform some public heroics, but Rod is quick to rebuff any such suggestions.
As far as were concerned, wed far rather stop someone getting into trouble than have to get them
out of it. One of the lifeguards in Rods team is 24-year-old Rebecca Surridge. She says, One
minute you can find yourself dealing with minor cuts and grazes, and the next with a situation
where one group of people on the beach is annoying another group. You have to handle things
sensitively too. Even if they do talk tough, the lifeguards have no legal authority with which to back
up their words. We can only advise, adds Rod. If someone wants to ignore a red flag, theyre free
to do so. A red flag is what the lifeguards put out when the seas too rough for swimming. Exactly
when that moment is reached is something that Rod alone decides. A lifeguard since the age of 14,
first as a volunteer, hes now a paid member of the town councils leisure services department. You
take into account a variety of things: you listen to the weather reports and forecasts and you
assess the strength of the wind. Other factors to be considered, depending on location, of course,
are he dangers that may be lurking in the water.
The vast majority of swimmers take notice of a red flag, but there are always those who dont, and
long before they start really getting into trouble, lifeguards will be on their way out to them, dragging
with them a torpedo buoy, which is a long sausage-shaped inflatable on the end of a rope. This
can help them bring in swimmers suffering from cramp, brought on by swimming too soon after a
meal, or fatigue caused by swimming out too far. Then you get the silly ones who jump off the
harbour wall, sighs Rod. Mostly, though, swimmers stick within our exclusion zone.
This is a 100 m x 100 m patch of sea. The prime rule of the exclusion zone is that boats are
forbidden to enter it and humans forbidden to leave it. Even a rubber ring is pursued and
retrieved. If found floating out at sea, it could set off a coastal-wide emergency search.
At any one time, there are eight lifeguards on duty, either scanning the waves or patrolling the
beach (lifebelts need checking, telephones need to be kept working in case of emergency calls).
The team works five days a week, and constantly has to rotate tasks as this facilitates maximum
degrees of attention. The other thing that keeps the lifeguards alert is the fact that they all get on
well together. Its not as if were all sitting there in silence, says Lisa. Were always talking to each
other, either in person or down the two-way radio.
In fact, each summer season is something of an old friends reunion; this is the seventh year Pete

has worked here, while its the fifth for Rebecca. Come wintertime, they go off round the world
Petes been surfing in Mexico and Rebeccas just back from Bali, Hawaii and New Zealand. Its a
case of not yet wanting to give up their seasonal, sunlit round of beaches. Theres plenty of time
for a proper job later, says Rebecca.

1
A
B
C
D

According to Rod Terry, lifeguards need to be ...

athletic.
flexible.
attentive.
hardworking.

2
A
B
C
D

Rebecca Surridge says that lifeguards ...

operate in limited areas.
have limited powers over people.
are trained to deal with limited injuries.
watch over a limited number of people.

3
A
B
C
D

According to the text, which factor affects a lifeguards decision to put up a red flag?
the presence of something dangerous in the sea
the quality of the water in the sea
the environmental conditions
the number of swimmers

4
A
B
C
D

In order to maintain their concentration levels, lifeguards ...

sometimes ask their colleagues for feedback.
regularly change the duties they perform.
usually take several days off each week.
often take long breaks during the day.

5
A
B
C
D

Its common for a group of lifeguards ...

to have another job at the same time.
to meet up when theyre not working.
to work together in the same location.
to go travelling together when the summer is over.

2 Match five of the UNDERLINED words / phrases to the definitions.

Example: to bring or get something back retrieve
1
2
3
4
5

easily seen
an unkind refusal of an offer or suggestion
a sudden pain in your body when your muscles contract
feeling of being extremely tired because of hard work or exercise
the main or most important thing

PART 2: Read the article about television viewing habits. Five sentences have been
removed. Choose from the sentences AG the one which fits each gap (15). There is one
extra sentence which you do not need to use.

A nation of TV addicts?
The rise of the internet was predicted to kill off television. 0 G Television there is actually going from strength to
strength.
According to a report on modern TV viewing habits, one third of people in the UK admit to watching 50% more TV than
five years ago. 1

Saturday-night favourites such as X Factor, for example, attract 17 million viewers each week.

Strictly Come Dancing and Doctor Who regularly have audiences of more than 12 million each.
Although TV viewing was once seen as an anti-social activity, many people now say it helps them to develop their
relationships and make them more sociable. 2

As well as that, nearly half of the people who took part in the survey

said that TV shows have helped them to make new friends. And each week, hundreds of thousands of X Factor and
Strictly Come Dancing fans post their comments on the results on social media sites.
The report by Dr Brian Young of the University of Exeter suggests that modern TV viewing habits are not creating a
generation of couch potatoes, that is, lazy people. Far from it, in fact. Instead, TV is encouraging viewers to take up
hobbies and visit new places. 3

And 85% say travel programmes have encouraged them to book a holiday to

somewhere they havent been before.

Entertainment and travel are not the only areas to benefit, however. Around 80% of people taking part in the survey said
they now cook more and increasingly entertain friends at home. 4

Programmes such as Come Dine with Me also

allow viewers the chance to see how home entertaining should, or in many cases should not, be done.
The survey also found that parents are no longer as strict about how much TV their children can watch. 5

However,

although the amount of time may have increased, parents are still careful to recognize the 9 p.m. watershed the time
after which TV channels show programmes more suitable for adults. According to Dr Young, the television, once
considered to be an electronic box in the corner of the room, is no longer a piece of furniture that the family gathers
around a few times a year. Now, thanks to the digital age and greater channel choice, it is increasingly changing lives.
Television in the 21st century is about improving friendships and encouraging people to have new adventures. And
theres nothing bad about that.
A More than third of those interviewed admit to spending several hours a week discussing their favourite
programmes.
B The popularity of advice given by TV chefs is largely responsible for this.
C Apparently, after watching a TV show, as many as four out of five people have become interested in
new ways of relaxing.
D Typically, young people nowadays spend up to three hours a day in front of the TV.
E The report says that women are in charge of the remote control in more than half of houses.
F This increase is due to a few popular programmes.
G However, that doesnt seem to be the case in the UK.

KEY READING 1
1 1
2
3
4
5

B
B
C
B
C

2 1
2
3
4
5

conspicuous
rebuff
cramp
fatigue
prime

KEY READING 2
1
2
3
4
5

F
A
C
B
D