Listening test audioscript & answer key

Starter Ben Yeah. And the problem is I signed the contract to rent
Audioscript the flat for a year, which means I can’t move out.
Oh, excuse me – I’ve just got a message! It’s from
Exercise 3 Eric – he moved out this morning!
Presenter Welcome to the show! Today we’re talking about
relationships with flatmates, yes – flatmates. It’s not Answer key
always easy sharing a flat or house with people who 3 1 B
you don’t know very well. Some flatmates become 2 C
best friends, but others are not so lucky. We’re going
3 A
to hear from two young people, Zoe and Ben, who are
having a challenging time with their flatmates. Zoe, 4 C
let’s hear about your situation first. 5 C
Zoe Well, I’ve been sharing a flat with Gina for about three 6 C
months now but I’ve already had enough! I’d move out 7 C
tomorrow if I could. 8 B
Presenter Oh dear, this doesn’t sound good at all.
Zoe It’s like living with a messy six-year-old, not a
responsible adult! Look, I work really long hours and
it’s hard to come home late and find food all over the
place – chocolate cake on the sofa, dirty plates in the
kitchen. One morning I found a slice of cold pizza in
the shower! I mean, who eats pizza in the shower!
Presenter It sounds awful! Have you spoken to Gina about this?
Zoe Yes, I’ve tried to. She promised to help with the
housework, but nothing has changed. It’s still the
same mess every day. I’ve already started looking for
another place and I’ll move out as soon as I can.
Presenter And hopefully with no more pizza in the shower! So,
Ben, what about your flatmate? Do you have the same
problem as Zoe?
Ben No, not at all! OK, so I’ve known my flatmate, Eric, for
years – since we were children, in fact. I wouldn’t say
that we were close friends. He used to hang out with
my brother and his friends. To be honest, I didn’t know
him very well, but he always seemed like a friendly,
cheerful person. Anyway, about six months ago I
heard he was looking for a place to live and I’d just
rented a flat and needed a flatmate. So, I got in touch
with him and he moved in the same day.
Presenter And how are things going?
Ben Not very well! It’s nothing like Zoe’s situation with her
messy flatmate. In fact, the place is never untidy and
he seems to share the chores; actually, I feel like I’m
living with an invisible person.
Presenter An invisible person? What do you mean?
Ben Well, I’m beginning to wonder if my flatmate even
exists! In the entire time we’ve shared the flat I’ve
only seen Eric once in person! Just once, and he was
rushing out of the door to work. He didn’t even stop
to say ‘Hello’ or ‘Good Morning’. I’ve forgotten what he
looks like! When he isn’t at work, he stays in his room.
We’ve never had dinner together – not once in all
these months. And on the evenings when I’m at home,
he eats alone in his room. Then, the other night I put
on some music and suddenly I got a message from Eric
on my phone.
Presenter What did it say?
Ben He asked me to turn the music down. I don’t mind
that, but the point is he’s only three metres away.
I just have no idea why he can’t talk to me face
to face. That’s pretty weird, if you ask me. I hope I
haven’t upset him. Personally, I’d prefer to live with
people who enjoy hanging out together, you know –
people who cook dinner together or watch a film in
the evenings.
Presenter So, basically you either have to live with the situation
or ask Eric to leave.

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Listening test audioscript & answer key
Unit 1 Answer key
Audioscript 3 1 C
Exercise 3 2 D
Faye I didn’t think you were the sort of person who would stay 3 C
in a remote cottage. I saw the photo you posted! I thought 4 B
you’d be on holiday skiing at a popular resort. 5 B
Dan Well, I had originally planned to go skiing but then I 6 B
decided to buy a guitar instead so I didn’t have enough 7 A
money for a holiday. Then Maggie invited me to go 8 D
wwoofing with her.
Faye To do what?
Dan Wwoofing! It means ‘Willing Workers On Organic Farms’.
Wwoof, Wwoofing. They have them all over the world.
Basically, you work on an organic farm, and in exchange,
you get free food from the farm and somewhere to sleep.
Some of the farms have animals, like chickens or horses,
and you can learn new skills. The place I was staying at
was amazing. It was next to a lake and a huge forest. It
was like the place I used to go on holiday when I was a
child. Anyway, we picked fruit and planted vegetables and
when we arrived they were building a barn, so we helped
them finish it using green woodworking skills which they
taught us.
Faye Hmm … that sounds like hard work. What’s
green woodworking?
Dan It’s when you make things using the wood from trees that
have just been cut down. The wood is still soft – it’s called
‘green’ – so it’s easy to work with. When the wood starts
to lose water, it becomes harder and makes the building
really strong.
Faye Wow, it sounds as if you really enjoyed living in
the countryside!
Dan Well, we did venture out of the farm too. There was plenty
of time to wander around. The owners let us borrow their
bikes and kayaks and we visited an amazing medieval castle
nearby. We were really lucky because the week we were
there, there was a medieval festival at the castle, which
was great. We saw people dressed up in medieval clothes,
heard medieval music, tried medieval food and watched
jousting tournaments.
Faye That sounds fun – it’s more my kind of thing.
Dan Yes, it was very cool. The jousting was quite exciting. One
of the men fell off his horse. I don’t think it was meant
to happen. Luckily, he wasn’t hurt. Oh, and there were
medieval musical instruments which Maggie tried, and
making things out of wood using medieval tools.
Faye You and your woodworking! What about the medieval food.
Have you recovered yet?
Dan Hey, it wasn’t that bad! I think medieval people used to
cook with a lot of spices. They had really delicious sweets
with nuts and honey and a mutton dish, which was
pretty good.
Faye Mutton! Isn’t that old sheep? That doesn’t sound very nice!
Dan Actually, I think they used lamb not mutton at the festival …
but yes, maybe back then the meat was a bit tough. You’d have
enjoyed the mead though, for sure! It’s a drink which medieval
people used to make from honey. Anyway, the whole trip was
really great – the wwoofing, the woodworking, the kayaking,
the festival. We had a lot of fun. You should try it.
Faye Well, I probably wouldn’t go wwoofing, but the festival
sounds like it’s worth visiting.

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Listening test audioscript & answer key
Unit 2 Answer key
Audioscript 3 1 D
Exercise 3 2 B
Lecturer Continuing our series of talks about new technologies 3 C
and the effect they are having now – and will have in 4 C
the future – on the lives of people all around the world, 5 D
today I want to talk about the global digital divide. 6 B
The global digital divide – what is it? The best way 7 A
to define it is as the differences around the world in 8 B
how many people have access to information and
communication technology and know how to use it in
their daily lives. The main difference, that is, the biggest
division, is between developed and developing nations.
But that’s not the only division. For example, even
the richest countries, such as the United States, have
a digital divide within them. In the USA, around 10%
of people do not have access to high-speed internet
because of low income. That is 34 million people.
So how do we work out who is affected by the divide?
Recently, there has been a huge increase in the sales
of devices such as smartphones, tablets, e-readers and
video-game consoles. All these devices connect people
with the internet. Also, nowadays, most people around
the world have a mobile phone, so we know that the
majority of people have at least one device. However,
there is still inequality between men and women,
between rich and poor, between old and young and
between people who live in cities and in rural areas. The
differences relate to who has better devices and who
knows how to use them more effectively.
But without a doubt, the main cause of the digital
divide both globally between rich and poor nations,
and within individual countries, is wealth. People with
high incomes, who have money to spend, are more
likely to have a number of different devices for home
and work, such as the latest smartphone or tablet, and
have a better, faster internet connection and better
knowledge of how to use smart technology for a wide
range of activities. People with greater wealth are
also more likely to give their children access to these
devices, and, in this way, the inequalities are transferred
to the next generation as well.
But why does it matter if some people don’t have
access to the internet? It matters because technology is
changing so fast that everyone will need to know how
to use computers and devices in almost every area of
their life – at work, at home, for leisure, shopping and
other activities, too. If too many people are excluded
from the technological revolution because of wealth
inequality, it will prevent nations from developing and
could mean that large numbers of people won’t have
the skills to get jobs in tomorrow’s world.
So, what are governments and international
organisations doing to deal with the problem and
find solutions to it? Well, many of them recognise
that exclusion from information and communication
technology is a growing problem around the world.
There are social programmes, such as the One Laptop
Per Child project, where children in developing
countries each get their own individual laptop. But we
need to do much more, such as making the internet
cheaper to access. If we don’t solve this problem, the
result will be a world of ‘haves’ – people who have skills
and access to ICT – and ‘have-nots’, people who don’t.

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Listening test audioscript & answer key
Unit 3 Gemma Well, I thought the same at first, but most customers
Audioscript really love it. And the owners are really against wasting
food so we give away all the food that is left at the end
Exercise 3 of the day. All the food that is still fresh goes to families
Gemma Alfie, you should come and see the café where I work. who can’t afford to buy meals for their kids. A special
It’s really interesting. It’s called The E Café. organisation calls us every night, and if we have food left
Alfie The E Café? It certainly has a strange name – I mean, over, they come and pick it up.
what does the letter E stand for? Alfie What a great idea! This café sounds amazing, Gemma. I
Gemma It stands for ‘ethical’ – The Ethical Café. want to see it for myself! I’ll bring some friends there for
Alfie Ethical? Really – I’ve always thought it stood for lunch tomorrow, so book us a table for six people!
electronic or excellent. But I don’t understand – how does Gemma Great! See you then!
a café become ethical? You mean they pay you above
the minimum wage? Answer key
Gemma In fact, they do pay me above the minimum wage, but 3 1 D
that’s not what it means. OK, let me explain. So, what do 2 D
you find in a café? Coffee, hot chocolate, tea, sugar, yes?
3 C
But listen to this, Alfie, did you know that most brands
of those four products still use child labour or forced 4 B
labour today? 5 D
Alfie What? Forced labour? You mean the workers don’t have 6 C
a choice about whether they want to work or not? You 7 C
can’t be serious. 8 A
Gemma I am very serious. OK, so you need cocoa to make
chocolate, right? Just go online and you’ll find loads of
videos that show kids working on cocoa plantations. Most
of the time those kids aren’t paid at all, it’s dangerous
work and they should be at school, as well. Anyway,
at The E Café we only use coffee, chocolate and so on
from companies that do not use forced labour in their
products. The E Café serves food too, and all the fruit
and vegetables come from organic farms in this area.
Alfie So how is that ethical?
Gemma Well, organic farms don’t use toxic chemicals that
could poison people or might have a harmful effect on
the environment.
Alfie You mean like dangerous pesticides?
Gemma Exactly. And the owner of the café even goes out to the
local farms himself and checks that they really aren’t
using toxic chemicals. Luckily, he’s never seen anything
that has upset him. The farmers are really careful about
that. I’m not sure where the farms are, but I’d really like
to visit one myself one day. Oh, and there’s another way
the café is ethical – with the furniture in the café.
Alfie You must be joking! How can furniture be ethical?
Gemma Well, all the tables and chairs are made of wood and
then they are painted with non-toxic paint – paint that
doesn’t harm the environment. Amazing, eh? I would
never have thought of that. And all the fabric used on
the chairs and sofas is made from cotton that is ethical.
Alfie Cotton? Fabric? What are you talking about?
Gemma I didn’t know about this either, but in some countries
people, including little kids, are forced to work on cotton
plantations and they often don’t earn any money at all.
Alfie Seriously? I’ve never thought about that.
Gemma Nor had I! I was so shocked. So, the owners make sure
that we only use fabric from ethical sources. Oh, I
completely forgot. There’s an amazing photography
exhibition in the café at the moment. You should
come and see it. Some of the photos are really sad
and depressing. They show kids working in fields and
factories. But the owners don’t want the customers to
feel guilty. The photos are there so people can learn
more about ethical products. I think it’s a brilliant idea.
Alfie But don’t customers get upset? I mean they’ve come to
relax and chat with their friends, not look at photos of
children working.

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Listening test audioscript & answer key
Unit 4 Jessica The boxing training is very similar to any boxing
Audioscript training, really, with exercises that are designed to
build fitness, strength and speed. The training for
Exercise 3 chess consists of studying games, playing against a
Presenter Good morning, and welcome to the show. Now, we computer, things like that. You have to remember that
all know how important it is to get regular exercise, the whole of the chess game in chessboxing lasts for
even if we sometimes find it hard to make time for it. 18 minutes, so it’s important to learn to think fast,
And we also know how important it is to keep your even when your body is hurting and in pain. To help
brain fit and active. But is there any way you can do with that, we often do what we call ‘track chess’,
both of these things at the same time? We sent our which is three minutes of chess followed by running
reporter Jamie Watson off to find out about something 400 metres around a track before more chess.
called chessboxing. Jamie Thanks, Jessica and Lucy. I’ll let you finish your match.
Jamie Hello! I’m in a gym somewhere in London and behind So, if you’re fit, both physically and mentally, why not
me two women are boxing in a boxing ring. They look give chessboxing a go?
strong, well-built and agile as they move around the
ring. It looks like a really tough, physical fight, the Answer key
kind of thing you can see in boxing rings all around 3 1 C
the country. There’s something different about the 2 B
situation here, though. Next to the ring, on a table,
3 D
there’s a chessboard with chess pieces on it, and two
timers. It looks as if the game is in progress because 4 A
quite a few of the pieces have been moved already. 5 C
That’s the end of the round, and both boxers are 6 A
leaving the ring and sitting at the table. They look 7 C
exhausted, but now they’re starting to play chess! This 8 D
is the crazy world of chessboxing, and I’m going to go
to talk to the players and find out a bit more about
the sport. Hello, there. I know you’re Lucy and you’re
Jessica. Jessica, could you just tell me a bit about the
sport of chessboxing?
Jessica The idea is that it’s supposed to be the ultimate test of
physical and mental strength – it challenges both your
body and your mind. The players do 11 alternating
rounds of boxing and chess, with three minutes for
each round. You get one minute between rounds to
rest. There are usually 11 rounds, six of chess and five
of boxing, so you get to start with the mental sport
before you go on to the physical contest. There are a
few different ways of winning, including knocking out
the other person in the ring and winning the game
of chess. You can also lose if you can’t finish the chess
game in the time you have or if you decide to stop
either the chess game or boxing.
Jamie Lucy, what skills do you need to take part
in chessboxing?
Lucy You can do chessboxing either as an amateur or as
a professional. If you’re an amateur, you need to be
physically fit to do five rounds of boxing, but you don’t
necessarily need a lot of experience. And you can be
any level at chess above a basic level. If you want to
take part in competitions as a professional, though,
the rules are that you need to have had a minimum of
50 amateur fights before you become a professional
player, but this can be in other martial arts, like judo
or karate, as well as boxing. That proves you are fit
enough to be able to play a whole match. And you
need to have a rating of at least 1600 at chess. That’s
about the level of a good club player, which is fairly
high, so even though some of us might look like we’ve
spent a long time in the gym working on our bodies,
we’re also very fit mentally. You have to be or you
won’t be able to go very long in this sport.
Jamie And how do you train, Jessica?

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Listening test audioscript & answer key
Unit 5 Presenter So what’s your next project?
Audioscript Nell I’ve got a lot of teaching commitments this year,
working with young people in the community. I fully
Exercise 3 expect to be the one doing the most learning. But I
Presenter Thanks for coming in today, Nell Friel. You’ve said also have a major exhibition on in Manchester on the
repeatedly that you consider yourself a visual artist transformation of northern industrial landscapes into
and that what you do has as much artistic merit as any modern environments. It’s a social history of northern
painter or sculptor. Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration? England in our post-industrial world.
Nell First of all, thanks for having me here. No, I don’t
think it is at all. The camera is a creative tool. It is the Answer key
artist’s task to manipulate it. My eye and artistic vision 3 1 B
are what creates art with a camera – art that has as 2 C
much value as any other form. I don’t understand why
3 A
people look down on one of the most dynamic art
forms of the 21st century. 4 D
Presenter You started as a painter though, didn’t you? 5 B
Nell I started studying fine arts at Edinburgh College of 6 D
Art but switched to photography in my first year. 7 A
We did study painting and sculpture in the first year 8 C
because learning the techniques of other art forms
helps to develop the way you see the world. You
learn how to interpret what you see and show what
your perspective is. I think it’s essentially elitist to see
painting as a higher art form. It’s just different.
Presenter I’m sure you’ll agree a camera isn’t a way to produce
art in everyone’s hands. Most pictures, nowadays, are
just snapshots.
Nell I love the fact that the digital revolution has made
photography so much more accessible. There’s no
need to develop or print film, everything can be stored
on a computer and there are so many apps to help
edit and manipulate images. Everyone has a camera,
even if it’s just on their phone. Photography has
become a grassroots movement and I’m a big fan of
snapshots and selfies.
Presenter Really? I thought you’d be disappointed by the
simplification of your art form by so many millions
abusing it!
Nell I think it’s exciting. People are much more conscious of
visual imagery these days, even if it’s their own image
in a self-portrait. Not everyone is uniquely creative
when producing photographic images but a surprising
number of amateurs take brilliant photos. Sometimes,
the untrained eye is the freshest because people look
at the world without an art degree to make them
doubt themselves. They just see and click. That’s
amazing.
Presenter I take it you prefer digital cameras rather than
film then?
Nell Well, that would be a bit simplistic. I recognise
that digital cameras and editing software have
revolutionised both amateur and professional
photography. I use a lot of digitally produced images.
But I also love film. I like developing film in a darkroom
and working with old black and white film. I know
that all cameras can be made to lie but I find images
on film more ‘true’ somehow. I have a nostalgic and
romantic attachment to film.
Presenter Many people were surprised you didn’t go into
cinematography, weren’t they?
Nell I did think about it and worked on some TV projects
at the beginning of my career. And while I have great
respect for many cinematographers, I just felt too
limited by having to do what the director wants. It’s
a loss of ultimate control for me, so I prefer to work
by myself.

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Listening test audioscript & answer key
Unit 6 The three stunt performers seem to be flying, don’t
they? They are being carried through the air by
Audioscript
extremely strong, very thin metal wires. Today they
Exercise 3 are still rehearsing the stunt, which is why they are
Tour guide Welcome to the Stunt Action Studio Tour! Today you wearing sports clothes and not the full costumes. You
are going to see professional stunt women and stunt might notice that all the performers are quite small
men doing stunts for three very different films. Stunts in size – and here’s why. This stunt is for a fantasy film
can be extremely dangerous, so please be quiet as about three teenagers who have special powers and
we watch the performers and please avoid making can fly. Because we do not allow children to do their
sudden movements. So, let’s begin the tour! own stunts, we always hire stunt performers who are
a similar height and body size to the young actors.
Stunt people need to be extremely fit and athletic.
All stunt women and men must be highly skilled So, finally let’s see what is going on in the
in gymnastics and in a martial art, such as judo combat studio!
or taekwondo. Most stunt performers already do All the stunt people are wearing their full costumes,
extreme sports like mountain climbing or scuba which means that this is not a rehearsal – it’s actually
diving. Every stunt action performer we see today being filmed today. They look like knights from
has completed a very challenging two-year training hundreds of years ago, don’t they? This sword fight
course that includes combat, wire flying, high falls, has been rehearsed for weeks and if one person
fire and driving. moves just a few seconds too soon it could be very
OK, so the first stunts today will take place in this dangerous. It is even more dangerous when there are
enormous outdoor studio. horses in the scene – but luckily no animals are being
used today.
Welcome to the world of stunt driving! This huge
studio has been designed like a sports stadium – with The performers will come out of the castle and the
the stunt actions happening down in the centre of fight will take place on those rocks. Look at the
the stadium and the seats up here for us to watch knight with the red and gold costume – he is actually
from a safe distance. All those cars down there will the lead actor. Actors do not usually do their own
crash into each other and we need to keep far away stunts, but he is an expert in sword-fighting and
from the action. Several vehicles are involved – five really wanted to be in this fight scene. The director
cars, two large lorries – oh, and three motorcycles. wasn’t too happy about this, but after a lot of
discussion, they finally let him. OK, let’s take our seats
As you can see, this film set is built to look like a busy
and watch the final stunt of the tour!
city street and that large building is a bank where
some men and women have just stolen a lot of Answer key
money. The robbers will run out of the building, jump
into that red car and then the crash stunts will begin! 3 1 C
There are several cameras set up in different places 2 A
to shoot the scene – some are high up on buildings 3 B
and others are down on the street. We are very lucky 4 C
because today, in addition to the crash stunts, we 5 A
are going to see a fire stunt. And here’s a surprise!
6 D
The driver of the black car looks like one of the male
robbers, doesn’t he? Well, that stunt driver is actually 7 D
a woman and, with ten years’ experience behind her, 8 C
she’s the most experienced fire-stunt performer on
the set.
Let me warn you – it can be frightening if you haven’t
seen a fire stunt before. When the stunt woman gets
out of that car, she’ll look as though she’s on fire.
Her clothes will be completely covered in flames. Of
course, safety is very important so we always have
an ambulance and several firefighters on the set. OK!
The action is going to begin now, and the drivers
have been told to get ready. Watch carefully – it all
happens very fast and the scene will be finished in
just 30 seconds!
Now, let’s move on to the high-flying stunt studio.
You’ve probably noticed this set has no scenery and
all the walls are painted green. This is called a ‘green
screen’. In the final film, the actors will be flying over
forests and mountains, and after filming, computers
will be used to create wonderful scenery on top
of this green screen. Computers are also used to
completely cover up all the metal wires that can be
seen now. The final effect will be magical when the
audience is sitting in the cinema.

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Listening test audioscript & answer key
Unit 7 Finally, cyberbullying can be a big problem for young
Audioscript people. This is when people try to hurt others online.
This can take many forms, such as insulting someone,
Exercise 3 saying bad things about them or making up lies about
Speaker Good morning, everyone. And I’d like to begin by them. It can even involve not including someone in a
thanking your headteacher for the opportunity to come group chat or in messages. All of these hurt people’s
here and speak to you. I’m sure that some of you here feelings and it can become a crime if it involves
today have been victims of crime at one time or another. threatening behaviour. It’s best not to respond in the
Perhaps you’ve had your bike stolen, or perhaps you’ve same way, since that often makes a situation worse. You
been mugged. My aim today is to ensure that more of you should ignore most of it, but if threats are made against
don’t become victims of crime and to give you tips on the you and you think you may be in danger, then please
kind of things that you can do to keep yourself safe. tell a parent, a teacher or a police officer.
Let’s consider one of the most common forms of crime to Remember that the chances of you being a victim of
affect young people, bicycle theft. Bicycles are attractive to crime are very small, especially if you follow my advice.
thieves because they’re relatively easy to take. In fact, once Thank you all very much for listening to me today – and
you’ve stolen one, you can often get away on the bike stay safe.
itself! They’re also easy to sell. Lots of people want a cheap
bicycle! It’s your job to make it harder for the thieves. Invest Answer key
in a good bike lock and always make sure that you lock 3 1 D
your bike to something that is very secure, preferably in a 2 D
public place so that people can see what’s going on. When
3 B
you’re at home, make sure you lock it in a place where it
can’t be seen, like in the hallway of your home or in a shed 4 A
in the garden. If your bike is stolen, then you need to be 5 D
able to identify it, so good-quality photos of it that show 6 A
the brand and colour really help. Another tip is to engrave 7 C
or write your name or your address onto the frame of 8 B
the bike.
OK. Now, hands up who has a mobile phone. Right,
that’s everyone in this room. Thieves like mobile phones
because they’re small, are easy to take and are expensive.
Make sure you’ve turned on all the security features of
your phone so that you need to know a code to unlock
it. That will at least stop anyone from using it if they do
manage to steal it. In order to prevent it being taken in
the first place, the most important thing is to be aware of
your surroundings. There are a few places where people
often take out their phones to check for messages or
missed calls, and thieves know this. These include train
stations, especially underground stations. Be careful in
these locations and check who is near you when you use
your phone. And, of course, you should never leave your
phone unattended in a public place.
When you’re out shopping, it’s very easy to become a
victim of crime. You are thinking about what you are
buying and it’s easy to become distracted. When your
attention is on the shoes, or the video game, or the
clothes you’re thinking of buying, that’s when a thief
will strike. If you’re carrying a bag, make sure that your
purse or wallet is at the bottom. That makes it harder to
see. It also means that you’re more likely to be aware of
someone trying to get into your bag. And never carry
your wallet or your cash in your back pocket. It’s too
easy for someone to reach in and take it.

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Listening test audioscript & answer key
Unit 8 Rebecca Many don’t. Like all older generations, today’s are as
Audioscript resistant to change as their own parents were. Some will
actively reject change and could find themselves out
Exercise 3 of a job as a result. Others will try to conform but may
Peter For today’s show I’m lucky to have here an old friend, find the changes confusing and difficult. Those who are
Rebecca Foyle, a professor of social sciences at the already of a more flexible character will adapt.
University of London. Hello, Rebecca. You’ve been doing Peter It’s the speed of these changes that is shocking for
some research into trends in job markets and the way people who grew up at a time when changes took place
technology is influencing what employers now look for slowly over decades rather than from year to year. I
and how employees are responding to that. Is that a suppose that in any kind of technological or industrial
fair summary? revolution there are always going to be sections of
Rebecca It is, Peter. What’s really surprising is how the kinds of society that fall behind.
skills we valued most in the past are now seen as a Rebecca Yes, but we should try to minimise the damage as
hindrance to employment. much as we can because we’re talking about people,
Peter I think, as someone with no knowledge of this subject, not machines.
that I’m going to need a fuller explanation, Rebecca.
Rebecca Right. In the past, it was expected that people would Answer key
train in one area to work in it for their whole working 3 1 C
lives. They were expected to be conscientious and 2 A
disciplined and to follow a routine for the whole of
3 D
their working lives. Of course, you had to keep up
with developments in your field but you didn’t usually 4 B
change jobs. Technology has changed that career model 5 C
very dramatically. 6 A
Peter How? And what does that mean for people’s jobs in 7 D
the future? 8 A
Rebecca OK. First of all, workers need to be much more flexible
and adaptable because technology is moving so fast
that an area of work that’s viable now could be obsolete
soon. You only have to look at how the music business
has changed to see that. In the past, parents would
complain their kids never stuck to doing one thing but
were always starting new hobbies or projects. That’s
exactly the kind of people society needs nowadays.
Peter What you’re basically saying is that people need to be
prepared to retrain many times over the course of a
working life and that being hard-working and reliable
isn’t enough in the world of employment now?
Rebecca Exactly. The new economy needs people who can think
outside the box and find new innovative ways of doing
things, who can adapt to changing environments and
are flexible enough to upgrade old skills or retrain.
Peter So, employers are now actively searching for people
who can easily change direction and who demonstrate
a willingness to learn new skills continuously over the
period of their working life?
Rebecca Yes. That’s what our new technological reality demands.
As technology is developing at incredible speed, so
must humans adapt to those changes at the same
speed or be left behind. Of course, that doesn’t mean
that all the old career models are entirely dead. We still
need teachers, doctors, lawyers and engineers.
Peter But they will need to be much better at changing their
working methods and adopting new technologies
and new ways of doing things, I imagine. What kind
of psychological effect will this have on people do
you think?
Rebecca For the younger generation brought up with
technology and used to its rapid changes, it’s exciting.
They’ve already evolved with the technology and are
well suited to this new flexible working environment.
For them, it’s better than just doing the same work for
35 years, day in, day out.
Peter What about older generations? I don’t suppose they see
it in the same way.

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