HSC Model Test 2020
English First Paper
Part I: Reading (60 Marks)
- Read the following text and answer the questions A and B
[Unit—8; Lesson—5 (2)]
Kuakata, locally known as Sagar Kannya (Daughter of the Sea) is a rare scenic spot located on the southernmost tip of Bangladesh. Kuakata in Latachapli union under Kalapara Police Station of Patuakhali district is about 30 km in length and 6 km in breadth. It is 70 km from Patuakhali district headquarters and 320 km from Dhaka. An excellent combination of the picturesque natural beauty, sandy beaches, blue sky and the shimmering expanse of water of the Bay of Bengal and the evergreen forest makes Kuakata a much
sought after tourist destination. The name Kuakata takes its origin from the story of a ‘Kua’—or well—dug on the seashore by the early Rakhaine settlers for collecting drinking water. The Rakhaines had landed on Kuakata coast after being expelled from Arakan by the Mughals. Following the first well, it became a tradition to dig wells in the neighbourhood of Rakhaine homesteads for fresh water supply. Kuakata is one of the unique spots which allow a visitor to watch both the sunrise and the sunset from the beach. That perhaps makes Kuakata one of the world’s most attractive beaches. The long and wide beach at Kuakata has a typical natural setting. This sandy beach slopes gently into the Bay and bathing there is as pleasant as is swimming or diving. Kuakata is truly a virgin beach and a sanctuary for migratory winter birds. Fishing boats plying in the Bay of Bengal with colourful sails, surfing waves and the lines of coconut trees add to the vibrant colours of Kuakata. The indigenous culture of the Rakhaine community and hundred year old Buddhist temples indicate the age-old tradition and cultural heritage of this area. Kuakata is also a holy land for the Hindus and Buddhists. Each year thousands of devotees come here to attend the festivals Rash Purnima and Maghi Purnima. On these two days, pilgrims take holy bath and enjoy going to the traditional fairs.
A. Choose the correct answer from the following alternatives. 1×5= 5
(a) Why is Kuakata a much sought after tourist destination?
(i) For an excellent combination of the picturesque natural beauty
(ii) Because of sandy beaches and blue sky
(iii) For the shimmering expanse to water of the Bay of Bengal
(iv) All of the above answers are correct
(b) What does the phrase ‘indigenous culture’ mean?
(i) Native culture (ii) Foreign culture (iii) Both native and foreign culture (iv) Neither native and foreign culture
(c) ‘Kuakata is truly a virgin beach and a sanctuary for migratory winter birds.’ What does the statement imply?
(i) It is an unused beach (ii) It is a habitat for migratory birds (iii) It is an abode of winter birds (iv) All the above statements
(d) The word ‘locally’ means? (i) regionally (ii) internally (iii) vividly (iv) truly
(e) Kuakata is a holy land for the – (i) Hindus (ii) Muslims (iii) Buddists (iv) Both i and iii
B. Answer the following questions. 2×5=10
(a) How does the name ‘Kuakata’ come?
(b) What the reason, according to the text, that worked behind the coming of Rakhains to Kuakata?
(c) Describe the beauty of Kuakata in your own words.
(d) How are bathing, swimming and diving for the visitors in the beach of Kuakata? Give reasons for your answer.
(e) What does the expression ‘Kuakata is one the unique spots’ signify?
2. Read the passage and complete the table below with the given information: 1×10=10
[Unit—12; Lesson—5(2)]
A peace movement is a social movement that seeks to achieve ideals such as the ending of a particular war (or all wars), minimize inter-human violence in a particular place or type of situation, including ban of guns, and is often linked to the goal of achieving world peace. Means to achieve these ends include advocacy of pacifism, non-violent resistance, diplomacy, boycotts, demonstrations, peace camps; supporting anti-war political candidates and banning guns, creating open government, direct democracy; supporting people who expose war-crimes or conspiracies to create wars, and making laws. Different organizations involved in peace movements may have some diverse goals, but one common goal is sustainability of peace.
| 1. Ending of war | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
3. Summarize the following text. 10 [Unit—12; Lesson—5(2)]
A peace movement is a social movement that seeks to achieve ideals such as the ending of a particular war (or all wars), minimize inter-human violence in a particular place or type of situation, including ban of guns, and is often linked to the goal of achieving world peace. Means to achieve these ends include advocacy of pacifism, non-violent resistance, diplomacy, boycotts, demonstrations, peace camps; supporting anti-war political candidates and banning guns, creating open government, direct democracy; supporting people who expose war-crimes or conspiracies to create wars, and making laws. Different organizations involved in peace movements may have some diverse goals, but one common goal is sustainability of peace. Peace movement is basically an all-encompassing “anti-war movement”. It is primarily characterized by a belief that human beings should not wage war on each other or engage in violent conflicts over language, race, natural resources, religion or ideology. It is believed that military power is not the equivalent of justice. The peace movement tends to oppose the proliferation of dangerous technologies and weapons of mass destruction, in particular, nuclear weapons and biological warfare. Moreover, many object to the export of weapons including hand-held machine guns and grenades by leading economic nations to lesser developed nations.
4. Read the following text and fill in the blanks with suitable words from the box. There are more words than necessary. You may change the form of the words if necessary. 05
| spiritual | proper | learn | educate | develop | Well-mannered | but | and | do | he | make | of |
A student or learner can improve all his latent talents through the channel of proper education. Proper education aims at (a) —— him not only physically (b) —— also mentally. Such education (c) —— him an ideal man, (d) —— can lead both himself (e) —— society to the way (f) —— happiness and prosperity. A (g) —— educated man is sympathetic, (h) —— and kind. Indeed proper (i) —— makes him mentally and (j) —— developed.
5. Fill in the blanks with appropriate word in each gap. 1×10=10
Traffic jam is one of the major problems of our time. It is a very (a) —— affair in big cities and towns. Our population has (b) —— very fast over the last fifty years or so. The (c) —— of vehicles has also gone up. But our roads are not broad (d) —— to accommodate so many busses, trucks and cars. Slow moving vehicles (e) —— rickshaws and baby taxies have added complications to the problem. On top of that our drivers are not very willing to (f) —— traffic rules. They often (g) —— impatient and look to go (h) —— of one another (i) —— traffic signals. Sometimes they (j) —— recklessly and meet horrible road accidents.
6. Rearrange the following sentences to make a coherent order. 10
(i) “Please let me go to my country.”
(ii) An English boy was making a small boat.
(iii) “I shall cross the sea and go to my country by this boat.”
(iv) He made all arrangements to send him to his country.
(v) Suddenly he noticed a wonderful thing.
(vi) Napoleon was charmed by the words of the small boy.
(vii) “I haven’t seen my mother for a long time.”
(viii) The boy said, “My country is on the other side of the sea.”
(ix) One day Napoleon, the king of France, was walking along the seashore.
(x) The boy was brought before him and he asked him what he would do with such a small boat.