PUBLIC EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES

Public Education in the United States, programs of instruction (1) _______ to children, adolescents, and adults in the United States through schools and colleges (2) _______ by state and local governments. (3) _______ the nationally regulated and financed education (4) _______ of many other industrialized societies, American public education is (5) _______ the responsibility of the states and individual school districts.

(2) ________

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She was able to ...... all the tasks assigned to her.

There is plenty of money in our account so those cheques ______ to  the bank today.

(401)______

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Will you remind me .................... this letter at the post office?

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John and Lisa have a lot in __________ with each other.

Read the reading below carefully, and then complete it with the best option A, B, C or D given below:
Joanne Rowling became famous almost overnight. She is the (1)_____of a highly successful series of books for young people. Joanne has dreamt of being a writer for as long as she can remember. In fact, she has been(2)_____ stories and characters ever since she was a schoolgirl. When she was still quite young, the family moved to a town called Chepstow. A family who lived (3) ____were called Potter, and she used their name for the hero of her books. She and her sister, Di, (4)_____a state school in town. At school, she was hard-­‐working and rather reserved. She was (5)_____good at English and languages. Her talent for telling stories made her popular figure in the school. During breaks between (6) _____she was often surrounded by a crowd of friends, excited to hear the (7) _____story she had written. She often included her classmates in her stories though they were not always aware of this! When she left school, Joanne succeeded in getting a place at university. After graduating, she got a(8) _____in French. Then Joanne started to work as a teacher in a school in Portugal. She married a journalist but, sadly, the couple soon (9)_____and she moved to Edinburgh. She had (10) _____and couldn’t even afford a plastic folder to send her new book to potential publishers. However, one wonderful day a publisher said “yes”. It was the greatest day of her life.

Read the following passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, D):
From the seeds themselves to the machinery, fertilizers and pesticides - The Green Revolution regimen depend heavily on technology. One (1) ________, however, depends much more on technology - organic farming. Many organic farmers use machinery, but (2) _______ chemical fertilizers or pesticides. (3) ________ chemical soil enrichers, they use animal manure and plant parts not used as food - natural, organic fertilizers that are clearly a renewable (4) _______. Organic farmers also use alternatives for pesticides; for example, they may rely (5) _______ natural predators of certain insect pests. Then, the need arises, they can buy the eggs and larvae of these natural predators and introduce them into their crop fields

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The Brain: Myths and Facts
There are a lot of myths about the human brain. We are going to tell you a little about these myths, and we are also going to give you the truth. One of the biggest myth is that we only use 10 percent of our brains. The next part of that myth is that if we can learn to use the rest of our brains, then we will be much smarter. People say this all the time, but it is absolutely not true. The truth is that although we don’t know everything about the human brain, we know that each part of it has an important function. Modern scientists call the “10 percent myth” ridiculous. The other most popular myth is about being “right brained” or “left brained”. According to this myth, people who use the right side of their brains tend to be more artistic and creative. People who use the left side of their brains tend to be better at maths and science. This myth is as popular as the 10 percent myth, and it is also wrong. In 2013, a study at an American university examined the right brain and left brain myth. According to the study, we use both sides of our brains equally. It is true that we use different parts of our brains for different things: We use our left side for language more, and our right side when we need to pay attention. But there is no evidence that creative people use the right side more, or that scientific people use the left side more. We have talked about myths, so let’s look at a few interesting facts about the brain. First of all, the brain feels no pain. Second, about 75 percent of the brain is made of water. It is also the fattest organ in your body. Another interesting fact about the brain is that around the time you turn 18 years old, it stops growing.
1. According to the myth, what is true about the left side of our brains?

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Ever since it was first possible to make a real robot, people have been hoping for the invention of a machine that would do all the necessary jobs around the house. If boring and repetitive factory work could be (1) ________ by robots, why not boring and repetitive household chores too? For a long time the only people who really gave the problem their attention were amateur inventors And they came up against a major difficulty. That is, housework is actually very complex It has never been one job it has always been many. A factor robot (2) ________ one task endlessly until it is reprogrammed to do something else. It doesn’t run the whole factory. A housework robot on the other hand, has to do several different (3) ________ of cleaning and carrying jobs and also has to cope (4) ________ all the different shapes and positions of rooms, furniture, ornaments, cats and dogs. (5) ________, there have been some developments recently. Sensors are available to help the robot locate objects and avoid obstacles. We have the technology to produce the hardware. All that is missing the software- the programs that will operate the machine.

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If it rained , I_________.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct word or phrase that best fits each of the numbered blanks.
Amy Tan was born on February 19, 1952 in Oakland, California. Tan grew up in Northern California, (1)............when her father and older brother both died from brain tumors in 1966, she moved with her mother and younger brother to Europe, where she attended high school in Montreux, Switzerland. She returned to the United States for college. After college, Tan worked as a language development consultant and as a corporate freelance writer. In 1985, she wrote the story "Rules of the Game" for a writing workshop, which laid the early (2)............... for her first novel The Joy Luck Club. Published in 1989, the book  explored the (3)............. between Chinese women and their Chinese–American daughters, and became the longest–running New York Times bestseller for that year. The Joy Luck Club received numerous awards, including the Los Angeles Times Book Award. It has been translated into 25 languages, including Chinese, and was made into a major motion picture for (4)...............Tan co–wrote the screenplay. Tan's other works have also been (5)................. into several different forms of media.
(1)............................

Read the passage below carefully, and then choose the best answer:
Tantalizing Teas from around the Globe
There are few things in life as refreshing as a cup of hot tea. However, few people realize the wide variety of teas available. Here are some more options to try the next time you are in the mood for a cup of tea. The most famous tea in the West is Earl Grey. Although it is classified as a black tea, Earl Grey contains some citrus qualities as well. The tea gets its name from a 19th century prime minister of England, Charles Grey. According to the legend, Grey saved the life of a drowning man in China. The man he rescued was reportedly a tea blender, so as a reward he instructed Grey how to flavour black tea with a special type of oil. Many tea historians doubt this tale and insist that the only reason the tea is named after Grey is that he was a famous politician. Another famous black tea is Assam tea. It comes from the mountains of India and it is named after the region where it is produced. Assam tea is known for its strong and bitter flavour. It is sometimes called the breakfast tea, because it is an invigorating brew to enjoy in the morning. Although Assam tea is cultivated in the East, it immediately became a big hit once it was introduced to the West. Some people enjoy drinking Assam tea straight, but others feel it is best with a little bit of milk and sugar added. It has been known to go perfectly with sweets as well as more pungent foods like cheese. Chamomile tea has a light, pleasant taste that some people have described as a mix between flowers, herbs, and apples. Yet, it is the potent health benefits of the tea that cause most people to buy it. For starters, it is the best tea to have at the end of a long day when you are looking to relax. In fact, it has been used as a cure for insomnia for hundreds of years. In ancient times, it was also used by the Romans, Greeks, and Egyptians to help wounds heal faster. Chamomile has anti-­inflammation properties, so it can also help to clear up skin issues such as allergies and acne as well. So the next time you are sitting down for afternoon tea, be sure to have a close look at the menu. You may even discover a new variety that becomes your favourite.
7. In addition to drinking chamomile tea, it is also useful when __________

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Parents/ not/ allow/ children/ play/ computer games/ long period of time.

Read the following passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, D):
According to Vietnamese legend, (1) ____ giant turtle in Hanoi's Hoan Kiem Lake reclaimed a magic sword given to King Le Loi in the 15th century that he used to win independence (2) ____ China's Ming Dynasty. The lake was thereafter named 'Ho Hoan Kiem', or 'Lake of the Returned Sword', and Hanoi has been built up (3) ____ it. Margie Mason of Associated Press wrote: "(4) ____ once was a magic golden turtle that lived in Hanoi's most enchanted lake. The giant turtle was believed so powerful, it snatched a divine sword from a warrior king and returned it to the gods of the depths nearly six centuries (5) ____. That tale has long been a (6) ____ among young and old Vietnamese living in the capital city, but folklorists soon may have to rewrite the story to (7) ____ a very sad ending. In real life, the last giant soft-shell turtle (8) ____ in Hoan Kiem Lake probably will die alone, and at least one biologist says the species (9) ____ then be extinct. The elusive creature - with a shell as big as a desk - occasionally pokes its wrinkled head out of the murky waters of the downtown lake to (10) ____ a breath, but few Vietnamese are lucky enough to glimpse it. And certainly no one knows its age."

Choose the word or phrase among A, B, C or D that best fits the blank space in the following passage.

The Emergence of Megacities

The urban shift over time has led to the emergence of the megacity – a city with a population of 10 million or more. New York City and Tokyo were the first (21)______megacities, both (22)________an urban population of over 10 million by the 1950s. But today they are (23)_________alone in their size. In 2014, there were 28 megacties across the planet – from Sao Paulo, Brazil to Lagos, Nigeria and London, England to Shanghai, China – and all major global regions except Oceania are (24)_______with megacities.

Most of the megacities in recent years are located in Asia and Africa. In fact, it is where seven of wight newest megacities can be found and where 10 of the 12 (25)_________megacities in 2030 will be located. From 2010 to 2015, Kinshasa’s population grew (26)________   over 23 percent, and today over half of 11.6 million residents are under 22 years old. A (27)________of factors has led to this growth including migration from rural areas, high fertility rates, and widening of the city’s boundaries. The population is (28)________almost all support structure in the city (29)_______the threat of food shortages, traffic (30)__________, and insufficient education facilities have become an obvious reality.

Question 30: ...............

William Sydney Porter (1862-1910), who wrote under the pseudonym of O. Henry, was born in North Carolina. His only formal education was to attend his Aunt Lina’s school until the age of fifteen, where he developed his lifelong love of books. By 1881 he was a licensed pharmacist. However, within a year, on the recommendation of a medical colleague of his Father’s, Porter moved to La Salle County in Texas for two years herding sheep. During this time, Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary was his constant companion, and Porter gained a knowledge of ranch life that he later incorporated into many of his short stories. He then moved to Austin for three years, and during this time the first recorded use of his pseudonym appeared, allegedly derived from his habit of calling “Oh, Henry” to a family cat. In 1887, Porter married Athol Estes. He worked as a draftsman, then as a bank teller for the First National Bank.

   In 1894 Porter founded his own humor weekly, the “Rolling Stone”, a venture that failed within a year, and later wrote a column for the Houston Daily Post. In the meantime, the First National Bank was examined, and the subsequent indictment of 1886 stated that Porter had embezzled funds. Porter then fled to New Orleans, and later to Honduras, leaving his wife and child in Austin. He returned in 1897 because of his wife’s continued ill-health, however she died six months later. Then, in 1898 Porter was found guilty and sentenced to five years imprisonment in Ohio. At the age of thirty five, he entered prison as a defeated man; he had lost his job, his home, his wife, and finally his freedom. He emerged from prison three years later, reborn as O. Henry, the pseudonym he now used to hide his true identity. He wrote at least twelve stories in jail, and after re-gaining his freedom, went to New York City, where he published more than 300 stories and gained fame as America’s favorite short Story writer. Porter married again in 1907, but after months of poor health, he died in New York City at the age of forty-eight in 1910. O. Henry’s stories have been translated all over the world.

(88)________

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the sentence that best combines each pair of sentences in the following questions.
She is an honest person. She is also a very friendly one.

Read the following passage and choose the best answer (A, B, C, D):
Although noise, commonly defined as unwanted sound, is a widely recognized form of pollution, it is very difficult to measure because the discomfort experienced by different individuals is highly subjective and, therefore, variable. Exposure to lower levels of noise may be slightly irritating, whereas exposure to higher levels may actually cause hearing loss. Particularly in congested urban areas, the noise produced as a by-product of our advancing technology causes physical and psychological harm, and detracts from the quality of life for those who are exposed to it.Unlike the eyes, which can be covered by the eyelids against strong light, the ear has no lid, and is, therefore, always open and vulnerable; noise penetrates without protection.Noise causes effects that the hearer cannot control and to which the body never becomes accustomed. Loud noises instinctively signal danger to any organism with a hearing mechanism, including human beings. In response, heartbeat and respiration accelerate, blood vessels constrict, the skin pales, and muscles tense. In fact, there is a general increase in functioning brought about by the flow of adrenaline released in response to fear, and some of these responses persist even longer than the noise, occasionally as long as thirty minutes after the sound has ceased.Because noise is unavoidable in a complex, industrial society, we are constantly responding in the same way that we would respond to danger. Recently, researchers have concluded that noise and our response may be much more than an annoyance. It may be a serious threat to physical and psychological health and well-being, causing damage not only to the ear and brain but also to the heart and stomach. We have long known that hearing loss is America’s number one nonfatal health problem, but now we are learning that some of us with heart disease and ulcers may be victims of noise as well. Fetuses exposed to noise tend to be overactive, they cry easily, and they are more sensitive to gastrointestinal problems after birth. In addition, the psychic effect of noise is very important. Nervousness, irritability, tension, and anxiety increase affecting the quality of rest during sleep, and the efficiency of activities during waking hours, as well as the way that we interact with each other.
2. According to the passage, what is noise?

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Inside a 4D Film
A lot of people think that 3D films are pretty cool. When you watch a 3D film, it sometimes feels like you can reach out and touch the things that you see. In the future, however, 3D might be replaced by something even more advanced: 4D. What you see in a 4D film is the same as what you see in a 3D film. The screen is the same, and the glasses are the same. 4D films are different because they don’t use 3D technology. People in the audience also feel physical things during the films. Let’s look at a few examples. Let’s say that you are watching a film about earthquakes. If you are watching a 4D film, maybe your seat will suddenly start to shake. It will feel like you are in the middle of an earthquake, but you are not. The 4D effects make your seat shake. Or perhaps during the film, one of the characters gives flowers to another character. The people in the cinema might suddenly smell flowers. The point of 4D films is to make people feel like they are in the film. When we watch films these days, we only use two senses: our sense of sight and our sense of hearing. If we use our other senses, the film might feel more real to us. 4D films already exist. The film Avatar was released everywhere in 3D, but in Korea and Hong Kong, it was also released in 4D. People who watched Avatar in 4D feel wind and rain. They also smelled smoke from the weapons in the film, and sometimes their seats moved. Will 4D replace 3D films? It is possible, but we can’t be sure yet. One problem with 4D films is that it is very expensive to show them in theaters. Before a theater shows a 4D film, it has to buy a lot of special equipment. However, 4 films are catching on. Other films shown in 4D include Shrek 4-D, and Iron Man 3.
6. The phrase “_catching on_” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to _________

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The representative of the company is explaining the benefit of _________ fluid.

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Our seats were _____ far from the stage that we couldn't see the actors and actresses clearly.