Feedback reading test 04.04

• English
• Upper Secondary (Key Stage 4)
• BTEC

Hello Everybody!

Today

• Feedback Reading Test 
• Learnbeat  

General impression 

It was either really good 

or

Really bad 

Vraag 1 

Sesame Street and the broader world of children’s programming has

taken an economic hit from the rise of streaming video options on

smartphones, tablets and internet-connected televisions. Children and

teenagers are showing increasing preference for on-demand viewing, and

many parents prefer the advertising-free environs of subscription services,

such as HBO

1 Wat wordt duidelijk uit dit artikel?

A De huidige generatie kinderen kijkt nauwelijks nog naar programma’s

zoals Sesamstraat.

B Het kinderprogramma Sesamstraat is volgens de producenten niet

meer winstgevend genoeg.

C Het kinderprogramma Sesamstraat wordt voortaan door een commerciële zender uitgezonden.

Vraag 2 

The pair say it will revolutionise the way tea and coffee drinkers think

about mugs – and expect one to be in every home soon. They turned to

crowdfunding and within days of listing the project it had received almost

£25,000. The mug is now available from Floatingmug.com for £22.

2 ‘Coasting to success’ (titel)

 Uit welke zin blijkt dat er, behalve de ontwerpers zelf, meer mensen

verwachten dat dit ontwerp een succes wordt? 

Tekst 5

DNA tests have confirmed that three Nile crocodiles have been found 

living in Florida’s swamps. It is not known for certain how they reached

the US. “They didn’t swim from Africa,” said University of Florida

herpetologist Kenneth Krysko. One likely possibility was that they were

brought in illegally by unlicensed collectors. Owners sometimes fail to

keep them secured or set them free on purpose, Mr Krysko told the

Associated Press news agency. 

7 Which of the following can not explain why there are Nile crocodiles in

Florida according to paragraph 1?

A accidental escape

B deliberate release

C natural migration

D unlawful import 

Vraag 8

The Nile species can grow to up to 6m (20ft), significantly larger than local

alligators, which commonly grow up to 4m. They are known to prey on

shrimp, fish, insects, birds and mammals, including humans. They are

also known to attack livestock. Florida wildlife experts are concerned that

the African species will unbalance the state’s ecosystem if they breed in

the Everglades wetlands. 

8 What is the main point made in paragraph 2?

The Nile crocodiles are

A a possible threat to the local environment.

B difficult to keep in captivity.

C in danger of becoming extinct.

D of great interest to wildlife researchers. 

Vraag 9

shrimp, fish, insects, birds and mammals, including humans. They are

also known to attack livestock. Florida wildlife experts are concerned that

the African species will unbalance the state’s ecosystem if they breed in

the Everglades wetlands.

3 Alien wildlife can severely damage an unprepared ecosystem. The

Burmese python was first sighted in the Everglades in the 1980s and

there is now an established population of the snake. When the Burmese

python turned up far from home in the Florida Everglades it bred fast,

sustaining its reproduction by feasting on endangered local wildlife,

including alligators. There are now thought to be about 30,000 of the

formidable snakes in the area. 

9 How does paragraph 3 connect to paragraph 2?

A It summarises what is said in paragraph 2.

B It supports what is said in paragraph 2.

C It weakens what is said in paragraph 2. 

Vraag 10 

4 But invading species aren’t always large. The Indian Silverleaf – or

Sweetpotato – whitefly, even though it is just a millimetre long, is

estimated to have seriously damaged crops across California, Texas and

Arizona in the 1980s. 

Welk nieuw punt over ‘invading species’ wil de schrijver maken met het

voorbeeld van ‘The Indian Silverleaf whitefly’ (alinea 4)? 

Geef antwoord in het Nederlands. 

voor antwoorden met de volgende strekking:

Het kunnen kleine beestjes zijn. / (Ook) kleine beestjes kunnen (veel)

schade aanrichten. / Een dier hoeft niet groot te zijn (om gevaarlijk te zijn

voor de omgeving waar het terechtkomt).

Vraag 11

5 Sometimes the species don’t even have to invade, they are invited. Cane

toads, native to South and Central America, were introduced to Australia

in the 1930s in an attempt to keep the grey-backed cane beetle in check,

which was destroying cane crops. But with no natural predator, the

poisonous toads spread like wildfire, killing native species as they went.

1 What is the main point made in paragraph 5?

A Efforts to interfere in nature might go wrong.

B Farmers are in favour of biological pest control.

C It is impossible to domesticate wild animals.

D The harm that insects can do is underestimated. 

Vraag 12 

6 And invasive species aren’t always obviously menacing either. In 1859,

Thomas Austin had 24 ordinary rabbits shipped to Australia for hunting

purposes. “The introduction of a few rabbits could do little harm,” he

reportedly said at the time. But Austin underestimated the habit of rabbits

to reproduce like, well, rabbits. Soon there were tens of millions and they

killed off local plant species, having a devastating effect on Australia’s

ecosystem. 

p 12 ‘the habit of rabbits to reproduce like, well, rabbits’ (alinea 6)

Wat maakt de toevoeging ‘well’ in deze zin duidelijk?

Het gaat hier om een

A met tegenzin gegeven bevestiging.

B moeilijk uit te leggen argument.

C voor de hand liggend punt. 

reproduce/breed like rabbits 

1

to have a lot of children

Vraag 27 

4 Some people consider buying a second dog to keep the first dog

company, but this is not a reliable way to stop dogs barking. Your

neighbours may end up having to endure twice the noise if the two set

each other off! Rather, if you are a dogowner, consider getting your dog

company in the form of a dog walker or a sitter when you are away. Also,

make sure that your dog has plenty of exercise and enough to eat. A well-

fed, physically tired dog is much more likely to be a quiet dog. If it’s dark,

leave a light on – and consider leaving on a TV or radio, as the sound of

humans, even recorded voices, is known to make dogs more relaxed. 

7 Geef van elke van de volgende beweringen aan of deze in

overeenstemming is met alinea 4.

Omcirkel ‘wel’ of ‘niet’ in de uitwerkbijlage.

1 Honden blaffen harder als ze samen zijn met een andere hond.

2 Luie honden blaffen minder dan honden die fit en getraind zijn. 

Vraag 29

kopje vanaf alinea

a) Hoe mensen het beleven      (alinea) 1

b) Verklaringen voor het blaffen    (alinea) 3

c )Praktische tips en oplossingen    (alinea)4

Vraag 31 

In de tekst komen drie deskundigen aan het woord:

1 Peter Donnelly (alinea 2)d De ontwikkeling van kunstmatige intelligentie gaat snel vooruit. 

2 Zoubin Ghahramani (alinea 3) a Computers worden al gebruikt om menselijk gedrag te beïnvloeden. 

3 Paul Newman (alinea 4) b Computers zullen voorlopig slechts bepaalde taken van mensen 

overnemen. 

Vraag 38 

2. According to media reports this week, the school introduced the scheme

in November last year for 49 students in an elite programme aimed at

grooming them for entry into US colleges. So far, 13 students have taken

part in the scheme. They incur a debt when they ‘borrow’ marks, and are

expected to repay it with marks scored in subsequent tests. To encourage

students to improve in their subjects, they can be charged ‘interest’ if they

do not repay their loans quickly enough. Students can also be ‘blacklisted’

from borrowing if they fail to repay their loans on time. And just like in a

real bank, the students will be given ‘credit scores’, based on their

behaviour records, school attendance and fulfilment of classroom cleaning

duties. 

‘giving opportunities to diligent (ijverig) students’ (alinea 5)

 In welke alinea werd al eerder duidelijk dat werkhouding kan meetellen

voor de ‘marks bank’? 

Vraag 41

Why do paper cuts hurt so much? Skin expert Dr Hayley Goldbach believes the pain is

partly because fingertips are one of the most sensitive areas of the body. This sensitivity is caused by nerve endings that can warn the brain, through pain, of any danger – for example, the risk of being burnt by hot things. Another possible reason why paper cuts hurt so much is because they are not usually deep enough for the body’s healing mechanisms (such as scabbing) to be triggered. This means that the nerves are left exposed for longer and keep sending danger messages to the brain. In addition, the edges of paper aren’t often as smooth as they look – they can actually be quite rough, which means that they do more

damage than you’d expect. Finally, your hands are often in use, meaning

the cut is pulled and stretched. This means it can take longer to heal than

if it were elsewhere on your body. 

41 ‘Why do paper cuts hurt so much?’ (titel)

 Hoeveel mogelijke redenen hiervoor worden in dit artikel genoemd?

Noteer het aantal in de uitwerkbijlage. 

Vraag 42

What’s more, it’s feared that basic cooking and food preparation skills are being lost as parents turn to ready meals and pre-prepared convenience

foods. The well-known cookery writer, Prue Leith, applauds the initiative. “If we’d

done this thirty years ago we might not have the crisis we’ve got now about obesity and lack of knowledge about food and so on. Besides, every child should know how to cook, not just so that they’ll be healthy, but because it’s a life skill which is a real pleasure and we deny children that

pleasure.”

The renewed interest in cooking is primarily a response to the level of obesity in Britain which is amongst the highest in Europe, and according to government figures half of all Britons will be obese in 25 years if current trends are not halted. 

42 Welke reden om kooklessen op school in te voeren wordt niet genoemd in de tekst?

A de jeugd laten ervaren hoe leuk het is om een maaltijd te bereiden

B jongens leren dat zij thuis ook mee kunnen helpen met koken

C jongeren stimuleren te kiezen voor een gezonder eetpatroon