ANSWER KEY

Section A [10 marks]

Carefully read the text below, consisting of 12 lines, about creating additional land in
Singapore. The first and the last lines are correct. For eight of the lines, there is one
grammatical error in each line. There are two more lines with no errors.

If there is NO error in a lineSXWDWLFN¥ ) in the space provided.

If the line is incorrect, circle the incorrect word and write the correct word in the
space provided.
The correct word you provide must not change the original meaning of the sentence.

Examples:

I arrived to my destination at 2pm. _at________

_at__
My mother always wears beautiful clothes. _
_¥_________
¥____

Mr Shinichi Takiguchi looks out of the

he windows
win
in
ndowss o
off his
his hotel
hi ho
hotte
el room
roo
room
m and
and all
all he
he

can see is a sea. He believes

ves tha
that
at will
willll cchange
wi hang
ha nge in time.
tim
me. He is in
n a team
am 1__the___
1__the

working for construction

truction giant
gia
ant
nt S
Shimizu
himiizu Corporation
Cor
orrpo
o p rati
t on
ti n to
to build
build a fl
floa
floating
oa
ating
ng city
citiy 2 BBBB¥BB

for at least
ast 50 0
00
000
00 pe
people.
eop
ople. They
They
Th
hey
ey have
hav
ave been
en p
en poring
o in
or ng through
tth
hroug
ug
gh maps
m ps of
ma 3__over__

Singapore,
re, discussed
diis
d sc
cus
usse
s d po
potential
po
ote
tent
ten ial lo
llocations.
occa
atio
ttiions. They
They
he
ey are
are sure
sure what
w they call the 4 _discussing_

Green Floatt will

wil oone
ne
e day
ayy be
be part
pa
parrtt of
of the
e sea
sea vi
view
iew b
because they have the 5 BBBB¥BB

technology required
quire
re
ed to
o realise
rea
e lise
e it.
it. Building
Building on water is one of the possibility 6_possibilities__

for Singapore as it looks

lo
ook
okss for
fo new
ne spaces when people can live, work and 7____where__

play. According to the

he Land Use Plan, about 6 000 more hectares of land is 8 _are _

needed by 2013 for a population expect to be 6.9 million. The city state is 9 __expected__

leaving no stone unturn in these efforts. Other land-scarce cities are also 10_unturned __

using unusual locations to overcome limited land.

SMSS MY2019
 1

St Margaret’s Secondary School

Mid-Year Examinations 2019

English Language

Secondary 4 Exp/5NA

Mark Scheme

Please note:

- Major grammatical errors should be penalised.

- Minor grammatical errors and obvious slips of the pen should not be penalised.
- Lifting from the passage is acceptable unless the question cannot
an be answered in
such a way or the question forbids it by stating that candidates
candidate must answer in
their own words. However, lifting must be accuratee and succinct.
suc
ucci n t. The inclusion of
cinc
chunks of irrelevant information should be penalised.
enalised..
- For “in your own words” questions, keyey words a are
re sselected
electe
el ted
te for
d fo substitution. No
or sub
marks are awarded for derivatives..

Section
cttion A [5 marks]
Sect mar
arkks
s]

Refer to the webpage (Text 1) on page

1) on page 2 off the
age h Insert for
the for Questions
Ques
esti
tions
ti s11-4.
-4.

1 Which
ch sentence
Whic se
ent
nten e gives
e ce giv ess the
ives
ve he main
tth main message
ma me
es
ssa
sag
ge
eooff the webpage?
e we
webp
bpage?
bp

“Half
“H a f of food
Hal foo produced
od pr
prod
o uced
ed
dgglobally
llo
oballlly for
ba for human
fo huma
human co
ma consumption is wasted every
year”.
year
yearr”. [1]

2 Look att the

okk a he section
tth sse on on
eccttiio o thehe “FOOD
“FO
FOOOD VALUE
VA CHAIN”. Explain how the information
presented
esen
en
nte
ted inn the
he section
the ecct on ccomplements
sec
ecti ompl the photo.

The photo shows

show
shows diff
ow different stages of the food value chain while the text
explains how
ns how
o food loss and wastage occur at all stages.
w foo [1]

3 What does the word “challenge” suggest about the task faced by individuals and
schools with regard to the problem of food waste?

It is a difficult task/ It is a task that will require a lot of determination on the

part of individuals and schools. [1]

4(a) “Shop realistically”. How would an individual do this to reduce food wastage?

This would be possible by buying only the amount of food one can
eat/needs. [1]
 2

(b) How can schools contribute to the community in the process of trying to reduce
food wastage?

Any excess whole food following mealtimes could be donated to charitable

organisations. [1]

Section B [20 marks]

Refer to Text 2 on page 3 of the Insert for Questions 5-18.

5 At the beginning of the text, the writer arrives on the island.

nd Explain how the
language used in Paragraph 1 shows how he found certain ertain features
fe in discord
with the place he was visiting.
Support your ideas with two details from Paragraph
agraph 1.

ņ³«YLOODV ZLWK XQOLNHO\ (QJOLVK QDPHV«´ WHOOV WHOO

WH OOV
OO V XV
XV WKDW
KDWW WKH
WKD KH UHVLGHQFHV/
WK UH
homes were given names thatt did not sound so
oun very
nd ve
verry English/British.
y En
ngl
glis
ish/
is h/B
h/ British
ņ³«SDUNVIHURFLRXVO\OLWWHUHGZLWKKLELVFXVDQGERXJDLQYLOOHDWKHPRVW
HUHGZL
ZLLWWK
K KLELE
ELV
LVFX
FXV DQ
DQG ER E XJ
XJDLDLQY
DL QYLOOHDWKH
QY
un-English of flowers” shows
s show
ows how
ows
ow w the
the gardens
gard
garden
ens we
ens werere filled
fil
ille
led
le hibiscus
d with hibis
and bougainvillea,
ea, flowers
flo
owe s not
werrs ott usually
no usual allly
a y found in/associated
in
n/as
associciat
ci ate
at ed w with
ith
it h the
the
English/British landscape.
tish land
dssccap
pe.
e. [2]

6 “…every
e y absurdity
“…evver absu
abs rdditty was
was condoned…”
wa condo
cond
n doned d……”” (line ne 10).
(lliine 10
0).
From
m Paragraph
F om
Fr Parag
agra
ag h 1,
raph
raph 1, which
which “absurdity”
hic “abs
“absurdi
urd
ur y” did
diity d d the
di the writer
writititer
wr e find particularly odd?

In
n the
the iinterest
he nte
nt erre
es quaintness,
st of q
qu
uai
aint
aint
ntne
ntne s , it w
ness was
as ffelt that cars should be narrowed rather
elt tha
than
an streets
an streetts widened.
wiid
w de
ene
ned.
ned.
d. [1]

7 According
ccord
rd
diin
ng to
oPParagraph
arag
gra
raph
ph 2,
2, how did the writer intend to spend his time on the
island?
nd?
?

ņ+HKRSHGWRDWWHQG
RSH
HG WR
W DWW as little of the convention as possible and
ņNeep up
p wi
with his reading. (equip himself with books X) [2]

8(b) In Paragraph 2, how was the writer able to tell that Mrs Stubbs was West Indian?

It was because of the lilt in her voice. [1]

(a) What characteristic of Mrs Stubbs in Paragraph 2 did the writer seem to find
familiar?

It was the manner in which Mrs Stubbs chattered on.

(chatty/talkative X) [1]
 3

9 In Paragraph 3, we are told that the writer found his room at the guesthouse
“barely adequate.” Explain what he means by this.

The furnishing was sparse./The room was minimally furnished./ The room
was poorly furnished/The room was not well furnished.
(underfurnished X) [1]

10 “…being bombarded by the inanities of pop music or the attention of middle-aged

Americans who had parasitised the earth” (lines 26-27).
What does this suggest about the writer’s attitude to pop music and middle-aged
Americans?

He loathed both./He was contemptuous of both./He was critical of both./It

was one of disgust/He had a disapproving attitude./He had a negative
attitude towards both./He despised both./He hated both./He th./H had an attitude
of disdain.
(not fond/disliked/strongly
disliked/displeased/hostile/distasteful/unfavourable/resentful/annoying
ourable/rressen
enttfful
ul/l/annoy X) [1]

11 In Paragraph 3, what made the writer

ter curious about
ab
a ut the
bou
bou th sounds
so
oun
unds he
ds he heard?
he

It was the fact that the sounds wwere

ere repetitive
ere
er repe
repeti
titi
tive
ti but
ve bu not
ut ot regular
e ular enough
reg eno to
suggest that a machine
hine wass producing
as produ
uc n them.
ciing the
hem.
m. [1]

12 “Still apparently
ntly engrossed
engros sed in
ossse
o in this
hiis odd
th od
o dd left-right
f -right duel
left
le el with
with herself…”
hers
rsself…”” (lines
elf…
f… (line 33-34).
Why doesoes the wwriter
ritte
ri er use
se the
se he word
the ord “apparently”?
wor “apparen
“a ently”?
ent
en

It is to
to show
how that
sho that Leda
hat Led was
eda w as aware
s aw
awar of his
are of s presence
es nce and only appeared
pre
rese
absorbed
a
ab soorb
r ed iin
n th
the
he game.
g me
ga e. [1]

13 What
W a
Wh att does
doe
oes “uncompromising”
“un
“uncom
mpr
pro
om
mis
isin
siin
ng” in Paragraph
P ra
Pa agr
g aph 4 suggest about the type of person
Leda
da
da was? ?

She
he wa
w
wasas rre
relentless/unyielding/determined/persistent/persevering/did
elle
ent
n less
ss/u
ss /uny
/unyieldin
ny not
give
e upp ea
e
easily/did
asily y/did
/d
did n
not
ot giv
give in easily.
(resilient/stubborn/strong-willed/competitive/tenacious/made
ient/s
/stu
/s tubbor
bbo n/st
bb sure she got her
way X)) [1]

14 Explain the writer’s kind gesture in Paragraph 4.

He offered Leda many easy lobs as he felt that the game meant more to her
than to him. [1]

15 In Paragraph 4, why did Leda have a “tiny smile of triumph” despite having lost
the game to the writer?

It was the writer who was tired and wanted to stop. Leda saw this as a
concession defeat occasioned by his age. [1]
 4

16 According to Paragraph 8, why did Leda not want to work in a hotel or travel
agency?

She did not want to humiliate herself by pandering to the whims of tourists.
(She had humiliated herself pandering to the whims of tourists. X) [1]

17 “…the people on the island could only relate to each other through the tourist”
(lines 56-57).
What does this suggest about the relationship between the people on the island?

They were not close/found it difficult to interact with each other/distant

relationship/poor relationship/superficial relationship/not close-knit/not
good/did not get along well/had nothing in common/strained/not
friendly/weak/not bonded.
(cold/not sincere/tense/indifferent/fragile/not fond of each other/only
othe interacted
with each other for business X)
[1]

The structure of the text reflects the writer’s different

iter’s diff
fer entt feelings
eren
en feelin
fe ings
in g during
u ing his time on
dur
the island. Complete the flow chart by choosing g one
o e word
on w rd to
wo to show
show how the writer
was feeling at different stages of his
iss stay.

The writer’s feelings

gs
18
remorseful baffled
ba
baffffle
led indifferent
nt unfazed
unf
unfazed

contented
ontente
tte
ed disappointed
diisa
d s p
pp
poi
oint
ntted
n ed ssympathetic
ympath

Flow
F
Fl ow
w Chart
Chart
rt

Paragraph
Pa
ara
agr
g aph 1:
1 ((i)
(i
i) un
u
unfazed
faze
zed
zed

Paragraphs
raph
hs 2 & 3:(ii) contented

Paragraph 4: (iii) baffled

Paragraphs 5-9: (iv) grateful

 5

Paragraph 10: (v) sympathetic

[4]

Section C [25 marks]

Refer to Text 3 on pages 5-6 of the Insert for Questions 19-28.

19 “…an assault on the senses” (line 1).

What senses is the writer referring to?

They are the sense of smell, taste, hearing and sight.

nd sigh
ght.
gh t
(do not award the mark if ‘sound’ is listed
d as one of the
of th senses)
he sen
[1]

20 From Paragraph 1, give an example

ample to show
sh w how
how ow ttradition
how tion and
raditti
tion and modernity
mod can
be seen on the streets of Bangkok.
Bangko
okk..

Open-air markets
ts are
arre surrounded
surr
suro ou
und d by
n ed air-conditioned
by air-co
c ndit
itio
it oned shopping
d sh
shoppi malls.
p ng m alls [1]

…can see ee both

bot
oth
otth open-air
open n-aiir markets
ma
m arrkke
etts an
and
nd air
air-conditioned
r-co
conditio
one
ned shopping
shhoppi
oppi
op ping
ng malls
mall X
..leafy
afy avenues
avvenue
ues lined
ue lliined
ne
ne w wi
withith
t wwooden
oo
oden houses
hou
ho us
ses
es have turned
tu
urn
rned
nedd into
into Manhattan-style
M
thoroughfares
thorro
ou
ugh
ghfa
hfa
faress with
wiith
w th towering
tow
ower
eriinng sksskyscrapers
yysscr
craap
per
ers X

21 IIn Paragraph
Paragra aph
ph 2,2, how
h w do
ho do “wo
“wooden
wo
wood
odeenn shacks”
sh
ha ackks” and
and
d “gle
“gleaming Mercedes cars” show
the
th
he contrast
cco
ont
ntra
rastt between
be
ettwe
een
en two
tw
wo
o different
n lifestyles?
lififes
esty
es t les?
ty

Th
The
he ‘wooden
‘w
woo
oode
den
en ssh
shacks”
ha
ac
cks” re
repr
represent
pre
pr esent the poverty of the villagers while the
“gleaming
“gle
ea
ammin
ing Mercedes
Me
M erced
des c
cars”
a s” represent the affluence of those living in
ar
Chinatown.
hinat
ato
at ow
wn. [1]

22 In Paragraph
rag
gra
raph
ph 2, what
wh is one unique feature of the Chatuchak Weekend Market?

A variety of caged animals are sold. [1]

Apart from usual market goods, a variety of caged animals are sold. X
 6

23 Here is part of a conversation between two students, Siew Leng and Arvind.

Siew Leng
Tourists enjoy visiting
the floating markets in
Bangkok.

That’s probably
because they can learn
something about the
culture of the people. Arvind
Ar
Arvi
vind
nd

From Paragraph 2, what can Arvind

nd sayy to
Arvin o support
sup
upportt his view?
po view
vi w?

Tourists can learn about the he culture

tth ure through
cultur
ur th
hrough the
oug he local
th lo l food traditional
foo and tradi
Thai souvenirss sold
daatt th
tthe
he floating
he floa
fl oating
gmmarkets.
arkets. [1]

24 According
ding to Paragraph
Par
arag
a ra
ap
phh 3,
3, why
why might
wh migh
might it be
be easy for
for one
e to
to ex
experie
experience a ride on
the
he tuk-
tukk- tuk?
ttu
uk? A
Answer
Annsw
swwer
e in
in your
yo
your
ur own
own w
words.
ords
or
ords
ds.

The
Thhe tuk-tuk
tuk-tu tuk
tuk can
caan be ffound
ou
o unnddaall
llll o
over
ve
ver BBangkok.
ang
ngko
kok.
kok.
Tuk-tuks
Tuk-tu
Tu tuks are
arre
e easy
eas
a y too ffind
in
nd ass there
the
h rre
eaare
re many
many tuk-tuks
t in Bangkok.
The
The tu
Th ttuk-tuks
uk-tu
tuk
tu ks
s are
ee easily
asiilly accessible
as a cess
ac sib
ible
le and easily found on any street in the
city.
city
ciitty
y.
The
Thhe tuk-tuks
ttu uk-tu
tuk
kssaare
re commonly
re comm
mmon
mm only
on l seen
ly see in Bangkok.
The
he tuk-tuk
ttuuk-tu
tu
uk is
is a co
comm
common
mmon tr transport in Bangkok that many people ride on.
(fromom passage
passag
pa ag
ge – “…the
“…the ubiquitous tuk-tuk…) [1]

The tuk-tuks
uk-tu
tu
uks
k are common in Bangkok. X
Riding the ttuk-tuk is a more efficient/ convenient way to travel through traffic. X
They are found anywhere in Bangkok. X

25 From Paragraph 3, what does “legendary” suggest about the traffic jams in
Bangkok?

They are very popular/ well-known. [1]

Traffic jams in Bangkok are famous X
 7

26 From Paragraph 4, give two examples of activities the Thais in Bangkok engage
in to avoid the stresses of life.

They are kite-fighting contests/watching motion pictures/attending art

exhibitions.
(any 2 of the above) [2]

27 In Paragraph 5, which phrase tells us that Bangkok had a complex waterway

system?

It is “maze of canals”. [1]

28 Using your own words as far as possible, summarise the environmental

challenges that Bangkok has faced and the measures adopted to resolve them.

Use information only from Paragraphs 5 and 6.

Your summary must be in continuous writing

iting (nott note
note form).
orm). It
for I must not be
longer than 80 words (not counting the
e words given
giv en to
iven to help
elp you
he ou begin).
be

The city of Bangkok

k has faced
face
ced
ced environmental
envi
viirro
onmental problems,
ntal
ta prob
ble one off ……………….
m , one
ems ………
… …

Verbatim
erbatim from
fro om Passage
rro Pass
Pa ssag
age Own wo
words
1 …traffic…close
…tra aff
fficc…closse to
o gridlock,
grriiidl
dllocck,
d k, which
h is airr ppollution
ollu
ol l tion caused by
ccausing
ca usin
in
ng air
air pollution.
ai po
pollllut
lu
uttiio
on.
n. (lines
(lin
nes
e 45- 45-
5- severe
s vere
se re tr
traf
traffic
afffic congestion…
co (P)
46)
46
46) (P
(P)
P)

2 …S
…Skytrain
Skyytr
trai
an as
as well
well as While
Whi the Skytrain and
underground
un
nde
d rggro oun
und train
trai
tr ain service
ai servicice
ic e ha
h
have
ave underground train system have
had
d so
ssome
om
me eppalliative
allliativve ef
a effe
effect.
fecct. (lines
fe (lin helped alleviate this problem,
47-48)
4
47
7-4
48
8) (S
((S)
S)
(S)

3 …e
…efforts
eff
ffor
orts
or ts to improve
im air quality there are also harsher controls
iinclude
includ
clude stricter controls on on vehicle emissions. (S)
ud
vehicle emissions. (lines 48-49)
vehicl
(S)
(S

4 Canals which used to traverse Canals which prevented

the city have been replaced by flooding have been replaced by
intricate road networks. …the roads. (P)
waterway system had served to
drain the waterlogged delta;
flooding of the lower-lying parts
of the city has thus become
increasingly frequent. (lines 49-
53) (P)
 8

5 …nearly forty percent of Severe rainfall and weather

Bangkok will also be changes exacerbate the
inundated…due to extreme problem of flooding. (P)
rainfall and changes in weather
patterns. (lines 54-55) (P)

6 The government has scrambled To resolve this, the government

to ameliorate the problem by has built a complex municipal
constructing a municipal canal canal system to drain water. (S)
network of up to 2,600 kilometres
with pumping stations and eight
underground tunnels to evacuate
water. (lines 55-58) (S)

7 …extraordinary amount of trash Meanwhile,

anwhile,e, the
the e exceptionally
xcep
that the city’s residents throw large amou
am
amounts
ountts
ou o
of trash
away. (line 61) (P) residents
reside n s dispose
ent diispos
se (P)
(P)

8 The city’s garbage disposal

disposa s l poses
po
p os
se
es a prp
problem
rob
oble
lem
m to Bangkok
Bangkok’s
system is already
dy overburdened
overbu burd
burd
bu rdened
d trash
tras
as
sh disposal
disp
spo osall s
system
ystem and
and landfills…are
s…arre insufficient.
iin
nssu
uff
fficcie
ient
n. landfills.
l ndfills. (P)
la (P)
(lines 64-65) (P))

9 The e BM
B
BMA A een
encourages
nco
cour
uaag
ges
es residents
re
essiden
enntss To
To ame ameliorate/lessen/manage
eli
lior
orat
or a e/les
to practise
to praactisse the
th
he 4Rs:
4Rs: reduce,
4R re
edduc
u e,e, this
this problem,
th pro
robl
bllem
e , c citizens practise
rreuse,
euse,
e,, recycle
r cy
recycl
c e andd re
rrepair.
ep
pa
air
ir. (lines
(liin
(l ne
ess the
th
he 4Rs.
4Rs
4R s. (S)
65-66)
6
65
5-66) (S((S)
S)

10
0 …city’ss sa
…city’s
… ng me
ssaleng
ale
leng men…comb
m n…
…cocomb
mb
b the while the saleng men purchase
sstreets.
st
tre
reet
etts.
e s. They
The
h y buy
bu old old items which can be
newspapers,
ne
ew wsspa
papers, plastic,
pl glass, recycled. (S)
cardboard
ca
ardrdbo
b ard d and
and metal
metals which they
sell ttoo recycling
recy
re c clin plants… (lines
67-69)
7-69 9) (S)

[15]
.