SAHODAYA PRE-BOARD EXAMINATION, [2023-24]

(SET-02)
MARKING SCHEME
ENGLISH CORE (Code No. 301)
CLASS-XII
SECTION A : READING (22 marks)
1. Answer the following questions, based on the passage above. 12 m
i. A. everything being fast, easy and comfortable. 1
ii. The mindset of having everything instantaneously, makes people break traffic rules with 1
impunity and impatience.
iii 1. The young lady wanted to learn piano fast and easy. 2
2. She wasn’t ready to spend a lifetime in meticulous practice.
iv. C. Excessive effort and time make us unruffled. 1
v. The author labels the journey of every endeavour in life ‘arduous’ because excellence 2
demands perseverance, patience, and meticulousness for a lifetime.
vi. Adopting a ‘bread-making’ attitude in life guarantees real success because making good
bread does not mean just kneading; one has to wait patiently to go through different stages 2
that take a few hours to get the perfect loaf.
vii. emphasize that most of us are guilty of wanting results quickly. 1
viii. A.(ii), (v), (vi) 1
ix. D. The Mirage of Instant Results 1

2. Answer the following questions, based on the passage above. 10 m

i. Wants to highlight the task of every organization to reach its potential audience. They want 2
to expand their network of sales (Any other relevant points)

ii. B. Creation of a new and attractive way in which the world has become a global entity. 1

iii. A. The modern-day consumers especially millennials are increasingly using online tool 1
iv, The rise in internet accessibility and availability of smartphones along with new technology 2
innovations and social media provides users with a variety of communication tools at their
disposal.
v. 17% 1

vi. D. All of the above 1

vii. EWOM stands for Electronic World of Mouth. The rise in internet accessibility and 1
availability of smartphones has led to EWOM.
viii. Instagram and Snapchat (Only 1%) 1

SECTION B : CREATIVE WRITING SKILLS (18 marks)

3. Attempt ANY ONE of two, in about 50 words. 4
A. NOTICE : Format – 1 Content - 2 Accuracy of spelling and grammar - 1

Name of the Organisation

NOTICE

Date

Heading
 [Details]

Signature
Name (issuing authority)
Designation

→ Correct format (as listed)

→ Drawing attention—students (Std VIII-XII)
→ Mentioning the event (Date, Time & Venue)
→ Giving details - purpose of tree plantation drive etc.
→ Details of activities
→ Line with reference to the undersigned
(Any other relevant details)

OR
B.
→ Correct format (as listed)
→ Drawing attention— office bearers of the English Language Club
→ Stating the information
→ Giving details
→ organize English Week
→ Line with reference to the undersigned

4. Attempt ANY ONE of two, in about 50 words. 4

INVITATION:
Format – 1 Content -2 Accuracy of spelling and grammar -1
A.
Letter type- Formal
→ Sender’s Address, Date, Receiver’s Address, Subject and Salutation/Salutation and
subject, Body, Complementary Close with signature

OR
B. Note/Letter Type- Formal Reply
Value points:
 Purpose of invitation
 Date /time of event
 Venue (address)
 Third Person to be used for note type or first person to be used for letter type
 Acceptance
 Complimentary close
5. Attempt ANY ONE of two, in about 120-150 words. 5
FORMAL LETTER:
Format – 1 Content -2 Organization -1 Accuracy of spelling and grammar -1
Format- Sender’s Address, Date, Receiver’s Address, Subject, Salutation, Body,
Complementary Close (Yours sincerely, truly etc.)

A. Content
→ Covering Letter
→ Reference to the advertisement
→ Conveying suitability for the position
 → Submission of application
Bio data as separate enclosure
→ Profile of self
→ Educational Qualifications (include advertised requirements)
→ Work experience/s (if relevant)
→ References
Any other relevant information
OR
B. LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Suggested value points
- Use of plastic harms environment & stray animals
- Increases pollution
- Reuse and Recycle single used plastic carry bags
- Banning single used plastic carry bags
- Laws to be implemented strictly
(Any other relevant points)
6. Attempt ANY ONE of two, in about 120-150 words. 5
ARTICLE WRITING / REPORT WRITING :
Format – 1 Content -2 Organisation -1 Accuracy of spelling and grammar -1
A.
Article Writing
Format
• Title & By line
Organisation & Content:

The article should be crafted in this manner:

Name/ designation of Title Illustrate thematic connect,

the writer (use fictitious Byline eye catching
information if Q does
not display) Introductory para. relevant topic sentence +
expansion
Discussion of various Development of
aspects of the topic- Topic (for 2 paras.)
causes, effects etc.
presented strongly with Concluding para. Writer’s option/ comments +
evidence recommendations/ solutions
+ hope/ call for action/
warning

Note: An article is not boxed. A box has been used here, as a tool for clear illustration.

Value points:
Suggested title: The Evils of Hitch-Hiking (Accept any other suitable title)
A.
 Hitch-hiking may seem to be a thrilling adventure at first, but the habit of taking free
lifts from the passing cars is fraught with dangerous consequences.
 In their zeal to enjoy the fun of a free ride the young school boys and girls do not
know who the persons offering them lift are.
 Everyday we read so many cases of kidnapping, molestation, sexual abuse, rape and
murder.
 Gone are the days when face used to be an index of the mind. Now one may smile
and smile and yet be a villain.
  This practice of seeking free lift should be discouraged by all the elders and well-
wishers by educating the youth about the moral, physical and ethical aspects.
 Many boys and young girls have been duped and ill-treated by anti-social elements by
offering them free lifts, outings and entertainments.
 Although most of the victims bear the trauma silently, some of them are bold enough
to inform the police and local authorities.
 This acts as an eye-opener to others and also helps the authorities to curb crimes by
nabbing the anti-social elements.

OR
B.
Report Writing
Format
• Headline & By line
• Reporting place and date
• Paragraphing organisation (Introductory paragraph + one or two Body paragraphs including
event details + Concluding paragraph inclusive of witness accounts)

Organisation & Content:

The report should answer these questions:

WHO? WHERE & WHAT & WHAT DID THOSE

WHEN? HOW? PRESENT THINK?
name of event date, time, place- events/ programme observations/
sponser/ town/ city + venue details comments
organiser special
guests, if any

Format- headline, by line

Suggested Title: VILLAGE ADOPTION- A STEP TOWARDS BEING SOCIALLY

RESPONSIBLE (Please accept other suitable title)

 The school has taken the responsibility of educating the people residing in the village.
 Selected students from each standard are taken there every weekend, during school
hours to impart knowledge.
 The first 6 month motive is to make each and every person capable of reading and
writing. Free books and stationery is being provided for quality education.
 Children are given time to spend with each other, play games and interact. Apart from
the educational needs, special care is devoted to hygiene and sanitation.
 Girls are being given awareness on the importance of menstrual hygiene as well.
Various talent hunts have been organised which left everyone overawed.
 The immense enthusiasm and zeal in the people to learn is the main driving factor.
 A family kind of environment is being created. The school treats the people of the
village as its own students and is unbiased.

By adopting a village, the school is making its students sensitive towards the needs of the
environment at a young age.

((Accept other relevant ideas answered by the students)

 SECTION C : LITERATURE TEXTBOOK AND SUPPLEMENTARY READING TEXT (40 marks)
7. Read the given extracts and answer the questions for ANY ONE of the two. 6
A. i. A. Urging 1
ii. FALSE 1
iii. Peace of mind, brotherhood and harmony, discards language barrier, tranquility, scope for 1
self-introspection (any other relevant points)
iv. Silence 1
v. D. (2) is the reason for (1) and can be inferred from the extract. 1
vi. It would be an unusually strange moment when there will be no rush, no engine work and an 1
absolute silence will prevail all over the globe.
OR
B. i. i. because the greedy good doers have promised to take care of them. 1
ii. greedy good doers and beneficient beasts of prey 1
iii. C. Only option 3 1
iv. FALSE 1
v. unemployment/ providing them benefits instead of jobs 1
vi. A. overwrought 1

8. Read the given extracts and answer the questions for ANY ONE of the two, given. 4
A. i. A.Solemn and Surprising 1
ii. The station has grown over the years and has undergone many renovations and expansions to 1
accommodate the increasing number of passengers. It also refers to its complicated and
intricate structure.
iii. Simile 1
iv. Feeling its way 1
OR
B. i. D- 1, 3 and 4 1

ii. Sickness/illness 1

iii. Relieved/unblemished/free of guilt (Any other word with same meaning) 1

iv. Dr. Sadao understood it was due to General’s own carelessness/forgetfulness that the 1
American soldier escaped unhurt despite his promise to Dr. Sadao about killing the man.

9. Read the given extracts and answer the questions for ANY ONE of the two, given. 6
A. i. A. Ragpickers 1
ii. It means their livelihood depends on scrounging garbage. 1
iii. B. Transit homes 1
iv. Over the years, the rags became a source of treasure for the rag pickers. The more skilled the 1
rag picker was, the better things he/she would get when rummaging through the rags.
v. For adults garbage is a meaning of survival/their daily bread/a roof over their heads but for 1
children it is wrapped in wonder/a world of hope/excitement.
vi. Their parents 1
OR
B. i. Day Dreamer, Lover of Fantasy & dream, wants to explore the world beyond her reach (Any two) 1
ii. A. He thought she was too young and naive 1
iii. B. Both 1 and 2 are correct but 1 is not the correct explanation of 2 1
iv. She thought Geoff knew about things and had been to places she had never been to and this 1
fascinated her. She longed to know more about these things from her brother and, thus,
craved for his affection.
v. advent, appearance, entry, approach ( any synonym of the word ‘arrival’) 1
vi. the theme of adolescent fantasizing and hero worship. 1
10. Answer ANY FIVE of the following six questions, in about 40-50 words. 5x2=10
Content -1
→ Full credit for appropriate inclusion of all content asked for
→ Partial credit ½ for relevant but incomplete content
Expression – 1
→ Full credit for effective organisation
→ Partial credit ½ for some semblance of organisation of ideas
Deduct ½ mark from the overall score if the error density is high (more than a total of 2
spellings and/or grammatical errors).
The given detailed reference points can be drawn upon to structure the desired response:
i. Gemini Studio was producing films, cinema where S S Vasan, the Boss was busy giving a hit
in his upcoming movies, very specifically he didn’t have any interest in poets unless they had 2
any fascination towards anti-communism! But the writers' dissatisfaction with and rejection
of communism is a common theme in the essays in ‘The God that Failed’. (Any other
relevant points)
ii. It was exactly when Gandhiji got a handsome support from the influential lawyers-Brij
Kishore Babu, Maulana Majrhul Huq and Dr. Rajendra Prasad who consented to continue the
freedom struggle for the champaran despite the arrest of Gandhiji. This moral support 2
emboldened the spirit of Gandhiji, and in fact it was right to say the battle of Champaran was
won. (Any other relevant points)
iii. Aunt Jennifer found her day-to-day life very difficult…burdened by marital responsibilities--
----------women in the house need our attention and cooperation--- they should not be 2
oppressed –must have voice and dignity in the family. (Any other relevant points)
iv. Most celebrity writers hate to be interviewed because interviewers intrude into their personal
space sometimes crossing the boundaries and ethics. They see themselves as the victims and 2
feel interview somehow diminishes them. Some feel wounded by the interview and lose a
part of themselves. (Any other relevant ideas)
v. The poet could not believe how quickly time passed and the mother in her senility. Before
she thought of ignoring that time should not be so cruel snatching her mother, she was aware 2
of the fact that she only could give a hope to her mother through her smile and understood
that reality cannot be changed, though it was hard to accept. (Any other relevant points)
vi. The peddler as a philosopher has described the whole world as a rattrap, and a time came
when he got enticed at the pork i.e. three wrinkled ten kronor bills, he was trapped. And Edla
as faithful friend, guide and philosopher made him understand that love, care and affection
are more precious and valuable than money. Her sobriety and truthfulness in her behaviour
2
treating him as a captain even knowing the fact that he was a beggar indicated that what we
think and do speaks about our mentality. (Any other relevant points)

11. Answer ANY TWO of the following three questions, in about 40-50 words. 2x2=4
Content -1
→ Full credit for appropriate inclusion of all content asked for
→ Partial credit ½ for relevant but incomplete content
Expression – 1
→ Full credit for effective organisation
→ Partial credit ½ for some semblance of organisation of ideas
Deduct ½ mark from the overall score if the error density is high (more than a total of 2
spellings and/or grammatical errors).
The given detailed reference points can be drawn upon to structure the desired response.
i. Tiger King is about the insensitivity of powerful rulers who kill animals for pleasure and show no
care about them. Man is cruel towards innocent animals for his own selfish gains. Man should realize 2
the fact that the sustainability of his own life is directly or indirectly dependent on the sustainability
of other species on the planets. So, man need not risk his own life by killing these innocent lives.
 (Any other relevant points)
ii. Derry’s mother was overprotective about Derry and never allowed him to face the world with
confidence. She did not encourage him to make friends outside and be sociable to forget his physical 2
impairment. She knowingly or unknowingly harmed him as he was shut out from the society. (Any
other relevant points)
iii. Antarctica is a crucial element in the debate on climate change because it is the only place in
the world which has never sustained a human population and thus remains relatively pristine.
Moreover, it holds in its ice-caves half-million-year-old carbon records trapped in its layers
of ice. The world’s climate is changing fast and is at present one of the most hotly debated
issues. Antarctica is the ideal place to study the effect of these environmental changes as it 2
has a very simple ecosystem and lacks biodiversity. If global warming makes Antarctica
warmer, it will have disastrous consequences elsewhere. Increasing global temperature,
burning of fossil fuels, rise in the pollution around the world, increasing carbon dioxide are
quite harmful for Antarctica. (Any other relevant points)
12. Answer ANY ONE of the following two questions, in about 120-150 words. 5
Content - 2
→ Full credit for sustained, clear, well-developed personal response to the task that
appropriately justifies any arguments
→ Partial credit of 1 ½, 1 and ½ as per the response clarity and relevance
Expression – 2
→ Full credit for effective organisation -structure, relevant vocabulary and effective relay of
ideas → Partial credit of 1 ½, 1 and ½ as per the level of coherence and cohesion
Accuracy- 1
→ Full credit for none to minimal errors
→ Partial credit of ½ for spellings and/or grammatical, largely accurate
→ No credit for error density causing impediment in understanding
[Content, in suggested responses, may be above the recommended word limit, as it aims to
share content points that can be drawn upon to structure the final desired response.]
A. Dear Sneha,
I appreciate your inquisitiveness about how a shabby shop referred to in the poem "A
Roadside Stand" could be considered a thing of beauty. I understand that you are confused
about the concept of beauty and how it can be found in seemingly insignificant things. Let
me try to explain my thoughts on this.
Beauty is not just about the external appearance of things. It is also about the emotions and
feelings that they evoke in us. In Keats' poem "A Thing of Beauty," he talks about how
beauty has the power to take away our sorrows and provide us with a sense of peace and
tranquillity. Similarly, in Frost's poem "A Roadside Stand," the seemingly insignificant fruit
shop may not be beautiful in the traditional sense, but it has a profound significance.
The fruit shop represents the hopes and dreams of the poor people who run it. It gives them
hope that the city folk have stopped by to buy something from their roadside stand and that
they will receive some city money. The beauty of the fruit shop lies in the fact that it
represents the resilience and determination of the people who run it. It is a symbol of their
hard work and perseverance in the face of adversity. In essence, beauty is not just about the
external appearance of things. It is about the emotions and feelings that theyevoke in us. The
fruit shop may not be beautiful in the traditional sense, but it is beautiful in the way that it
represents the hopes and dreams of the people who run it.
I hope this explanation helps you understand the concept of beauty better. Remember that
beauty can be found in the most unexpected places, and it is up to us to recognize it.
Although I wish to explain this in person, I have no better option than to explain it to you
through this letter. I hope this explanation would be helpful to you. Please let me know if you
still have doubts.
Warmly, Dad (Any other relevant points)
OR OR
B. Life cannot be imagined without challenges. It’s all in our attitude. We need to face
adversities head-on……Good morning dear friends.
In our lives, fear has many manifestations. It destroys peace of mind, engulfs our life with
miseries. We need to identify the fear in us and address it with proper plan and strategies. We
need to fight fear and overcome it with self-confidence. We need to face it, fight it and
finally beat it through practice. We should face it and bit by bit, shed it in stead of running
away from it. We should remember that the uninitiated usually succumbs to its pressure. It
neutralizes our goals and achievements, and devours our fun and joys in life. We must learn
to overcome fear systematically as done by Douglas (Any other relevant points)
13. Answer ANY ONE of the following two questions, in about 120-150 words. 5
Content -2
→ Full credit for sustained, clear, well-developed personal response to the task that
appropriately justifies any arguments
→ Partial credit of 1 ½, 1 and ½ as per the response clarity and relevance
Expression – 2
→ Full credit for effective organisation -structure, relevant vocabulary and effective relay of
ideas
→ Partial credit of 1 ½, 1 and ½ as per the level of coherence and cohesion
Accuracy-1
→ Full credit for none to minimal errors
→ Partial credit of ½ for spellings and/or grammatical, largely accurate
→ No credit for error density causing impediment in understanding
[Content , in suggested responses, may be above the recommended word limit, as it aims to
share content points that can be drawn upon to structure the final desired response.]
A. Today I found a reflection of myself in that lad who had landed in my garden today. I could
feel a sense of bond with him as we both are victims of life's hard times. I lost a leg in war,
while he burned a side of his face with acid. The only difference we had was in our
perception of the world. What connected the young boy Derry with me was the feeling of
comfort that he found in me as I did not treat him differently because of his disability. I could
literally feel the pain he was undergoing and tried to inculcate a positive attitude in him. My
effort was to apprise him that the confidence that our flaws become impediments to our
success only if we allow them to be. Since I have learnt to take things in my stride, I tried
using my experiential knowledge to educate him for his revival. I made Derry believe that he
had two arms, legs, ears, and eyes plus a tongue and brain which meant that he was no less
than all the rest. And that if he chose and set his mind to it, then he could get on better than
the rest. If he chose and set his mind to it, then he could get on better than the rest. Our
difficulties or flaws should not become the governing factors of our life because then
bitterness and disappointment would seep into everything. (Any other relevant points)
OR
B. Good morning ladies and gentlemen,

I'd like to begin today's discussion by quoting James Baldwin, who said, "Not everything that
is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced." These words resonate
deeply with the themes we find in the stories "Memories of Childhood," specifically, "The
Cutting of My Long Hair" and "We Too Are Human Beings." These narratives exemplify the
profound impact of oppression and discrimination on individuals, particularly children.

In "The Cutting of My Long Hair," we witness the cultural suppression faced by Zitkala-Sa,
a Native American child. She was forcibly stripped of her cultural identity through the
cutting of her long hair, an act that symbolized the erasure of her heritage. Her story reminds
us of the importance of cultural diversity and the consequences of oppressing it.

Similarly, "We Too Are Human Beings" sheds light on the struggles of Bama, a Dalit girl,
facing discrimination in India. Her story highlights the resilience of marginalized
communities in the face of systemic oppression.

Both narratives teach us that tolerating oppression in any form is detrimental to society. It is
our collective responsibility to confront and challenge these injustices. As we discuss
"Oppression and Its Evils" today, let us remember that change can only begin when we
acknowledge and address these issues head-on, just as these stories have done. It's time for us
to face the evils of oppression and work towards a more just and inclusive world. Thank you.
(Any other relevant points)