HỘI CÁC TRƯỜNG CHUYÊN KỲ THI HỌC SINH GIỎI CÁC TRƯỜNG THPT

KHU VỰC DH & ĐBBB CHUYÊN

TRƯỜNG THPT CHUYÊN THÁI KHU VỰC DUYÊN HẢI VÀ ĐỒNG BẰNG BẮC
NGUYÊN BỘ
LẦN THỨ XVI, NĂM 2024
ĐỀ ĐỀ XUẤT

(Đề thi gồm 22 trang) ĐỀ THI MÔN: TIẾNG ANH 11

Thời gian: 180 phút (Không kể thời gian giao đề)
Ngày thi: 16/6/2024
(Thí sinh viết câu trả lời vào bảng cho sẵn trong đề)
SECTION A: LISTENING (5.0 PTS)
PART 1. For questions 1-5, listen to part of an interview and decide whether the
statements are True (T), False (F), or Not Given (NG) according to what you
hear. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
1. Disney spearheaded an extensive recruitment campaign transpiring in the US.
2. Suboptimal investment strategies have impacted the profitability of the company.
3. Disney intends to prioritize the development of original content.
4. The subpar performance of stock corresponded with the termination of the CEO's
contract.
5. Iger is pressured into a collaboration with Disney’s higher-ups after his inauguration.
Your answers:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
PART 2. For questions 6-10, listen to part of a news report and answer the questions.
Write NO MORE THAN FOUR WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER taken from
the recording for each answer.
6. How is the incident involving the Saudi Arabian diplomat characterized?
__________________________________________________
7. What factors could potentially undermine the efficacy of diplomatic functions?
__________________________________________________
8. To what is the breach of diplomatic immunity compared?
__________________________________________________
9. From which jurisdictions does diplomatic immunity exempt diplomats?
__________________________________________________
10. Which example of minor violations by diplomats under diplomatic immunity is cited?
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__________________________________________________
Your answers:
6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
PART 3. For questions 11-15, listen to a talk, and choose the correct answer A, B, C, or
D which fits best according to what you hear. Write your answers in the
corresponding numbered boxes provided.
11. One effect of air pollution in the capital is
A. that it causes the quality of life to deteriorate.
B. that hospitals are becoming increasingly overcrowded.
C. that it can hasten the death of someone who is already gravely ill.
D. that more people are becoming allergic to traffic fumes.
12. Linda Grey suggests that the government is not solving the traffic problem because
A. it doesn't want to antagonize car owners.
B. it fears job losses in the car manufacturing industry.
C. it doesn't think it's a pressing problem.
D. it cannot get local authorities to cooperate.
13. According to Linda, the problem of traffic pollution can only be solved
A. if the government gets involved.
B. with the cooperation of the public.
C. if cars are banned from city centers.
D. once industrial pollution has been dealt with.
14. Noise pollution differs from other forms of pollution in that
A. no one ever reports it.
B. its effects can't be measured.
C. people have learnt to live with it.
D. it doesn't cause health problems
15. There are still relatively few fish in Britain's lakes and streams because
A. too many plants in the water leave little space for fish.
B. pesticides in the water are killing the insects that fish feed on.
C. there is an increase in chemical waste in the water.
D. there are not enough plants in the water for the fish to eat.

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Your answers:
11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
PART 4. For questions 16-25, listen to a lecture and complete the following summary.
Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS taken from the recording for each
blank. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
● Madonna, recently discharged from 16. __________ for a 17. __________ , will postpone
her tour pending full recovery.
● The Commons Privileges Committee is poised to censure MPs critical of its 18.
__________ .
● Boris Johnson's supporters argue that the committee's chair, having indicted him for 19.
__________ , should not have presided.
● David Campbell Bannerman lambasted the probe as Stalinist, asserting it damages the
image of 20. __________ .
● The Appeal Court will soon decide on a challenge to the government's plan to 21.
__________ migrants to Rwanda.
● Experts are analyzing human remains from a crushed 22. __________ .
● Buckingham Palace revealed using 23. __________ to counterbalance increased costs
from inflation for 24. __________ and __________ , despite stable taxpayer funding.
● The British Geological Survey recorded a 3.3 magnitude earthquake in Staffordshire,
recording its 25. __________ in Teen village, 15 miles from Stoke-on-Trent.
Your answers:
16. 17.

18. 19.

20. 21.

22. 23.

24. 25.

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SECTION B: LEXICO-GRAMMAR (3.0 PTS)
PART 1. For questions 26-45, choose the correct answer A, B, C, or D to each of the
following questions. Write your answers in the corresponding numbered boxes
provided.
26. Tom kicked and tried to beat the _____ , but he was one second too slow.
A. canon B. knife C. gun D. dagger
27. He blows _____ about this. I wish he’d make up his mind.
A. up and down B. dry and wet C. on and off D. hot and cold
28. We’ve fought for so long that we’ve forgotten what the _____ of contention is.
A. bone B. thread C. flesh D. skull
29. If you don’t stop trying to dig some _____ up on me, I’ll get a lawyer and sue you.
A. dust B. dirt C. soil D. land
30. When it became clear that they had arrested the wrong person, the police had to eat
_____ .
A. eagle B. pigeon C. owl D. crow
31. The moon was hidden and the night had grown very dark; she had to _____ to see.
A. blink B. strain C. mask D. stress
32. The August Revolution was not, as most of us have been taught, a _____ rising of
individual farmers, but was instead a tightly organized, well-planned event.
A. premeditated B. cautionary C. coordinated D. spontaneous
33. The book will arouse antagonism, disagreement, and animosity among theologians
because it will undermine many _____ rituals and beliefs.
A. iconoclastic B. accepted C. established D. pious
34. What made Ann such a fine counselor was her _____ , her ability to put herself in her
client’s place and feel his emotions as if they were her own.
A. integrity B. empathy C. tenacity D. impartiality
35. The text brims with details, but there are no overarching theses to _____ them.
A. specify B. confound C. unify D. modify
36. The true historian finds the facts about Marlowe and Shakespeare far more interesting
than people’s unfounded _____ .
A. evidence B. conjectures C. qualms D. faith

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37. Tom prided himself on knowing the latest news, the secrets of the rich and the poor; it
_____ him that there was something he did not know about his friend.
A. obfuscated B. galled C. reassured D. delighted
38. Uncertain which suitor she ought to marry, the princess _____ , saying now one, now
the other.
A. improvised B. vacillated C. compromised D. divulged
39. During the last four decades of Tennyson’s long life, his creative powers never _____ ,
some of his most remarkable work coming after the age of 70.
A. recovered B. flagged C. blossomed D. broadened
40. Today employers no longer speak of firing or discharging employees; instead, according
to the latest _____ , they simply “effect a separation.”
A. digression B. overstatement C. euphemism D. paradox
41. The curriculum is basically _____ ; there needs to be major adjustment before
implementation is possible.
A. in-public B. on-the-shelf C. off-the-peg D. on-the-house
42. Countless national debates and costly environmental campaigns, yet they can’t spare
time to _____ the sudden increase of pollutants in the local rivers.
A. think over B. come up with C. look into D. get round to
43. Although he stood to gain nothing at all, he helped us out of the _____ of his heart.
A. benevolence B. generosity C. charity D. goodness
44. It took the parents a long time to _____ their children’s games.
A. catch up with B. catch up C. catch on to D. catch out
45. International sports events should be _____ for creating important opportunities for local
economies.
A. gratified B. pleased C. ingratiated D. commended
Your answers:
26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35.

36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45.

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PART 2. For questions 46-55, write the correct form of each bracketed word in each
sentence in the numbered space provided in the corresponding numbered boxes
provided.
46. The audience was completely ____ by the magician's captivating performance. (FIX)
47. By using chemical stains, ____ helps identify specific tissue components for diagnosing
diseases. (CHEMICAL)
48. Diverse phenotypic variations arise from ____ in genetic expressions. (GENE)
49. How different social groups utilize language is the focus of ____ research.
(LANGUAGE)
50. To aid those with lower incomes, the scholarship program employs ____ . (MEAN)
51. To maintain security, information during the military operation was restricted to a ____
basis. (KNOW)
52. Economists are working to ____ environmental harm from economic growth. (COUPLE)
53. Behaviors that are ____ in childhood can create social issues in adulthood. (ADAPT)
54. Skewing the overall results, an ____ stood out significantly in the data analysis. (LIE)
55. Welfare policies must adapt to address the socioeconomic ____ from environmental
degradation. (FALL)
Your answers:
46. 47. 48. 49. 50.

51. 52. 53. 54. 55.

SECTION C: READING (6.0 PTS)
PART 1. For questions 56-65, read the passage and fill each of the following numbered
blanks with ONE suitable word. Write your answers in the corresponding
numbered boxes provided.
In spite of the fact that it might not always seem 56. ____ it, humans are actually pretty smart.
57. ____ to other animals, we have a large brain proportional 58. ____ our body size.
Consequently, we have intellectual abilities that 59. ____ us apart from the other members of
the 60. ____ kingdom.

There are obviously evolutionary advantages to being intelligent. At the 61. ____ least, being
able to analyze situations and consider 62. ____ options will help a species to overcome many
everyday problems.

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So why haven’t other species also got large brains? Well, for one thing, in terms of energy use,
brains are very expensive. In order to develop a larger brain, a species needs to save energy
63. ____ . The latest scientific research suggests that 64. ____ allowed humans to do this was
the way in which we move around. It turns out that walking on two legs is very efficient. Once
humans 65. ____ to do this, they had an excess of energy which ultimately led to an increase
in the size of their brains.

Your answers:
56. 57. 58. 59. 60.

61. 62. 63. 64. 65.

PART 2. Read the following passage and do the tasks that follow.
MEASURES TO COMBAT INFECTIOUS DISEASE IN TSARIST RUSSIA
A. In the second half of the seventeenth century, Russian authorities began implementing
controls at the borders of their empire to prevent the importation of plague, a highly
infectious and dangerous disease. Information on disease outbreaks occurring abroad was
regularly reported to the tsar’s court through various means, including commercial channels
(traveling merchants), military personnel deployed abroad, undercover agents, the network
of Imperial Foreign Office embassies and representations abroad, and the customs offices.
For instance, the heads of customs offices were instructed to question foreigners entering
Russia about possible epidemics of dangerous diseases in their respective countries.

B. If news of an outbreak came from abroad, relations with the affected country were
suspended. For instance, foreign vessels were not allowed to dock in Russian ports if there
was credible information about the existence of epidemics in countries from whence they
had departed. In addition, all foreigners entering Russia from those countries had to
undergo quarantine. In 1665, after receiving news about a plague epidemic in England,
Tsar Alexei wrote a letter to King Charles II in which he announced the cessation of
Russian trade relations with England and other foreign states. These protective measures
appeared to have been effective, as the country did not record any cases of plague during
that year and in the next three decades. It was not until 1692 that another plague outbreak
was recorded in the Russian province of Astrakhan. This epidemic continued for five
months and killed 10,383 people, or about 65 percent of the city’s population. By the end
of the seventeenth century, preventative measures had been widely introduced in Russia,
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 including the isolation of persons ill with plague, the imposition of quarantines, and the
distribution of explanatory public health notices about plague outbreaks.

C. During the eighteenth century, although none of the occurrences was of the same scale as
in the past, plague appeared in Russia several times. For instance, from 1703 to 1705, a
plague outbreak that had ravaged Istanbul spread to the Podolsk and Kiev provinces in
Russia, and then to Poland and Hungary. After defeating the Swedes in the battle of Poltava
in 1709, Tsar Peter I (Peter the Great) dispatched part of his army to Poland, where plague
had been raging for two years. Despite preventive measures, the disease spread among the
Russian troops. In 1710, the plague reached Riga (then part of Sweden, now the capital of
Latvia), where it was active until 1711 and claimed 60,000 lives. During this period, the
Russians besieged Riga and, after the Swedes had surrendered the city in 1710, the Russian
army lost 9.800 soldiers to the plague. Russian military chronicles of the time note that
more soldiers died of the disease after the capture of Riga than from enemy fire during the
siege of that city.

D. Tsar Peter I imposed strict measures to prevent the spread of plague during these conflicts.
Soldiers suspected of being infected were isolated and taken to areas far from military
camps. In addition, camps were designed to separate divisions, detachments, and smaller
units of soldiers. When plague reached Narva (located in present-day Estonia) and
threatened to spread to St. Petersburg, the newly built capital of Russia, Tsar Peter I ordered
the army to cordon off the entire boundary along the Luga River, including temporarily
halting all activity on the river. In order to prevent the movement of people and goods from
Narva to St Petersburg and Novgorod, roadblocks and checkpoints were set up on all roads.
The tsar’s orders were rigorously enforced, and those who disobeyed were hung.

E. However, although the Russian authorities applied such methods to contain the spread of
the disease and limit the number of victims, all of the measures had a provisional character:
they were intended to respond to a specific outbreak, and were not designed as a coherent
set of measures to be implemented systematically at the first sign of plague. The advent of
such a standard response system came a few years later.

F. The first attempts to organize procedures and carry out proactive steps to control plague
date to the aftermath of the 1727- 1728 epidemic in Astrakhan. In response to this, the
Russian imperial authorities issued several decrees aimed at controlling the future spread
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 of plague. Among these decrees, the ‘Instructions for Governors and Heads of Townships’
required that all governors immediately inform the Senate - a government body created by
Tsar Peter I in 1711 to advise the monarch - if plague cases were detected in their respective
provinces. Furthermore, the decree required that governors ensure the physical examination
of all persons suspected of carrying the disease and their subsequent isolation. In addition,
it was ordered that sites where plague victims were found had to be encircled by
checkpoints and isolated for the duration of the outbreak. These checkpoints were to remain
operational for at least six weeks. The houses of infected persons were to be burned along
with all of the personal property they contained, including farm animals and cattle. The
governors were instructed to inform the neighboring provinces and cities about every
plague case occurring on their territories. Finally, letters brought by couriers were heated
above a fire before being copied.

G. The implementation by the authorities of these combined measures demonstrates their

intuitive understanding of the importance of the timely isolation of infected people to limit
the spread of plague.

For question 66-71, choose the correct heading for sections A-F from the list of headings
below.
List of Headings
i Outbreaks of plague as a result of military campaigns.
ii Systematic intelligence-gathering about external cases of plague.
iii Early forms of treatment for plague victims.
iv The general limitations of early Russian anti-plague measures.
v Partly successful bans against foreign states affected by plague.
vi Hostile reactions from foreign states to Russian anti-plague measures.
vii Various measures to limit outbreaks of plague associated with war.
viii The formulation and publication of preventive strategies.
66. Paragraph A
67. Paragraph B
68. Paragraph C
69. Paragraph D
70. Paragraph E
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71. Paragraph F
For questions 72 – 73, choose TWO letters, A-E.
Which TWO measures did Russia take in the seventeenth century to avoid plague outbreaks?
A Cooperation with foreign leaders
B Spying
C Military campaigns
D Restrictions on access to its ports
E Expulsion of foreigners
For question 74 – 75, choose TWO letters, A-E.
Which TWO statements are made about Russia in the early eighteenth century?
A Plague outbreaks were consistently smaller than before.
B Military casualties at Riga exceeded the number of plague victims.
C The design of military camps allowed plague to spread quickly.
D The tsar’s plan to protect St Petersburg from plague was not strictly implemented.
E Anti-plague measures were generally reactive rather than strategic.
Your answers:
66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74. 75.
For question 76 – 78, complete the sentences below. Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the
passage for each answer.
An outbreak of plague in 76 _____ prompted the publication of a coherent preventative
strategy.
Provincial governors were ordered to burn the 77 _____ and possessions of plague victims.
Correspondence was held over a 78 _____ prior to copying it.
For questions 73-78, read the following sentences and fill in each blank with NO MORE THAN
THREE WORDS taken from the passage. Write your answers in the corresponding
numbered boxes provided.
Your answers:
76. 77. 78.

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PART 3. In the passage below, seven paragraphs have been removed. For questions 79-
85, read the passage and choose from paragraphs A-H the one which fits each
gap. There is ONE extra paragraph which you do not need to use. Write your
answers in the corresponding numbered boxes provided.
THE PLAY
Briony Tallis was one of those children possessed by a desire to have the world just so.
Whereas her big sister's room was a stew of unclosed books, unfolded clothes and unmade
bed, Briony's was a shrine to her controlling demon: the model farm spread across a deep
window ledge consisted of the usual animals, but all facing one way- towards their owner- as
if about to break into song, and even the farmyard hens were neatly corralled. In fact, Briony's
was the only tidy upstairs room in the house.

79.
Another was a passion for secrets: in a prized varnished cabinet, a secret drawer was opened
by pushing against the grain of a cleverly turned dovetail joint, and here she kept a locked
diary, and a notebook written in a code of her own invention. An old tin box hidden under a
removable floorboard beneath her bed contained treasures that dated back four years to her
ninth birthday. But all this could not conceal from Briony the simple truth: she had no secrets.

80.
The unfortunate truth was that nothing in her life was sufficiently _ If this was supposed to be
a joke, Briony ignored it. She was on course now, and had found satisfaction on other levels;
writing stories not only involved secrecy, it also gave her all the pleasures of miniaturization.
interesting or shameful to merit hiding. None of this was particularly an affliction; or rather, it
appeared so only in retrospect, once a solution had been found. At the age of eleven she wrote
her first story- a foolish affair, imitative of half a dozen folk tales and lacking, she realized
later, that vital knowingness about the ways of the world that compels a reader's respect.

81.
Even writing out the she saids, the and thens, made her wince, and she felt foolish, appearing
to know about the emotions of an imaginary being. Self exposure was inevitable the moment
she described a character's weakness; the reader was bound to speculate that she was
describing herself.

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82.
Her efforts received encouragement. In fact, the Tallises soon realized that the baby of the
family possessed a strange mind and a facility with words. The long afternoons she spent
browsing through dictionaries and thesaurus made for constructions that were inept, but
hauntingly so. Briony was encouraged to read her stories aloud in the library and it surprised
her parents and older sister to hear their quiet girl perform so boldly, unapologetically
demanding her family's total attention as she cast her narrative spell. Even without their praise
and obvious pleasure, Briony could not have been held back from her writing.

83.
If this was supposed to be a joke, Briony ignored it. She was on course now, and had found
satisfaction on other levels; writing stories not only involved secrecy, it also gave her all the
pleasures of miniaturization.

84.
Her passion for tidiness was also satisfied, for the unruly aspects of our existence could be
made just so. A crisis in a heroine's life could be made to coincide with hailstones and thunder,
whereas nuptials were generally blessed with good light and soft breezes. A love of order also
shaped the principles of justice, with death and marriage the main engines of housekeeping,
the former being set aside exclusively for the morally dUbious, the latter a reward withheld
until the final page.

The Trials of Arabella, the play Briony wrote for her brother's homecoming, was her first
excursion into drama. She had found the transition quite effortless. It was a relief not to be
writing out the she saids, or describing the weather or the onset of spring or her heroine's face-
beauty, she had discovered, occupied a narrow band.

85.
The play may have been a melodrama, but its author had yet to hear the term. The innocent
intensity with which Briony set about the project made her particularly vulnerable to failure.
She could easily have welcomed her brother with another of her stories, but it was the news
that her cousins were coming to stay that had prompted this leap into a new form.

Missing paragraphs:

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A. An entire world could be created in five pages, and one that was more pleasing than a model
farm. The childhood of a spoiled prince could be framed within half a page, a moonlit dash
through sleepy villages was one rhythmically emphatic sentence, falling in love could be
achieved in a single word- a glance. The pages of a recently finished story seemed to vibrate
in her hand with all the life they contained.

B. Aroom near Briony's had been dusted down, new curtains had been hung and furniture
carried in from other rooms. Normally, she would have been involved in these preparations,
but they coincided with her two-day writing bout.

C. Only when a story was finished, all fates resolved and the whole matter sealed off at both
ends so it resembled, at least in this one respect, every other finished story in the world,
could she feel immune, and ready to bind the chapters with string, paint or draw the cover,
and take the finished work to show to her mother or her father.

D. In any case, she was discovering, as had many writers before her, that not all recognition is
helpful. Cecilia's enthusiasm, for example, seemed a little overstated, tainted with
condescension perhaps, and intrusive too; her big sister wanted each bound story cataloged
and placed on the library shelves, between Rabindranath Tagore and Quintus Tertullian.

E. What was unpleasant and distasteful, on the other hand, had infinite variation. A universe
reduced to what was said in it was tidiness indeed, almost to the point of nullity, and to
compensate, every utterance was delivered at the extremity of some feeling or other, in the
service of which the exclamation mark was indispensable.

F. But this early attempt showed her that the imagination itself was a source of secrets: while
she was writing a story, no one could be told. Pretending in words was too tentative, too
vulnerable, too embarrassing to let anyone know.

G. Her straight-backed dolls in their many-roomed mansion appeared to be under strict

instructions not to touch the walls; the various thumb-sized figures to be found standing
about her dressing table suggested by their even ranks and spacing a citizen's army awaiting
orders. This taste for the miniature was just one aspect of an orderly spirit.

H. Her wish for a harmonious, organized world denied her the reckless possibilities of
wrongdoing. Mayhem and destruction were too chaotic for her tastes, and she did not have
it in her to be cruel. Her effective status as an only child, as well as the relative isolation of
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 the Tallis house, kept her, at least during the long summer holidays, from girlish intrigues
with friends.

PART 4. For questions 86-95, read a passage and choose the answer A, B, C, or D which
fits best according to the text. Write your answers in the corresponding
numbered boxes provided.
Medieval Europe abounded in castles. Germany alone had ten thousand and more, most of
them now vanished; all that a summer journey in the Rhineland and the southwest now can
show are a handful of ruins and a few nineteenth-century restorations. Nevertheless, anyone
journeying from Spain to the Dvina, from Calabria to Wales, will find castles rearing up again
and again to dominate the open landscape. There they still stand, in desolate and uninhabited
districts where the only visible forms of life are herdsmen and their flocks, with hawks circling
the battlements, far from the traffic and comfortably distant even from the nearest small town:
these were the strongholds of the European aristocracy.

The weight of aristocratic dominance was felt in Europe until well after the French Revolution;
political and social structure, the Church, the general tenor of thought and feeling were all
influenced by it. Over the centuries, consciously or unconsciously, the other classes of this
older European society—the clergy, the bourgeoisie and the “common people”—adopted
many of the outward characteristics of the aristocracy, who became their model, their standard,
their ideal. Aristocratic values and ambitions were adopted alongside aristocratic manners and
fashions of dress. Yet the aristocracy were the object of much contentious criticism and
complaint; from the thirteenth century onwards their military value and their political
importance were both called in question. Nevertheless, their opponents continued to be their
principal imitators.

In the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the reforming Papacy and its clerical supporters, although
opposed to the excessively aristocratic control of the Church (as is shown by the Investiture
Contest), nevertheless themselves first adopted and then strengthened the forms of this control.
Noblemen who became bishops or who founded new Orders helped to implant aristocratic
principles and forms of government deep within the structure and spiritual life of the Church.
Again, in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, the urban bourgeoisie, made prosperous and
even rich by trade and industry, were rising to political power as the servants and legal protégés
of monarchy. These “patricians” were critical of the aristocracy and hostile towards it. Yet
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they also imitated the aristocracy and tried to gain admittance to the closed circle and to
achieve equality of status.

Even the unarmed peasantry, who usually had to suffer more from the unrelieved weight of
aristocratic dominance, long remained tenaciously loyal to their lords, held to their allegiance
by that combination of love and fear, amor et timor, which was so characteristic of the
medieval relationship between lord and servant, between God and man. The castles and
strongholds of the aristocracy remind us of the reality of their power and superiority. Through
the long warring centuries when men went defenseless and insecure, the “house,” the lord’s
fortified dwelling, promised protection, security, and peace to all whom it sheltered.

From the ninth to the eleventh centuries, if not later, Europe was in many ways all too open.
Attack came from the sea, in the Mediterranean from Saracens and Vikings, the latter usually
in their swift, dragon-prowed, easily maneuvered longboats, manned by some sixteen pairs of
oarsmen and with a full complement of perhaps sixty men. There were periods when the
British Isles and the French coasts were being raided every year by Vikings and in the heart of
the continent marauding Magyar armies met invading bands of Saracens. The name of
Pontresina, near St. Moritz in Switzerland, is a memento of the stormy tenth century; it means
pons Saracenorum, the “fortified Saracen bridge,” the place where plundering expeditions
halted on their way up from the Mediterranean. It was recognized in theory that the Church
and the monarchy were the principal powers and that they were bound by the nature of their
office to ensure peace and security and to do justice; but at this period they were too weak, too
torn by internal conflicts to fulfill their obligations. Thus more and more power passed into
the hands of warriors invested by the monarchy and the Church with lands and rights of
jurisdiction, who in return undertook to support their overlords and to protect the unarmed
peasantry.

Their first concern, however, was self-protection. It is almost impossible for us to realize how
primitive the great majority of these early medieval “castles” really were. Until about 1150 the
fortified houses of the Anglo-Norman nobility were simple dwellings surrounded by a mound
of earth and a wooden stockade. These were the motte and bailey castles: the motte was the
mound and its stockade, the bailey an open court lying below and also stockaded. Both were
protected, where possible, by yet another ditch filled with water, the moat. In the middle of the
motte there was a wooden tower, the keep or donjon, which only became a genuine stronghold
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at a later date and in places where stone was readily available. The stone castles of the French
and German nobility usually had only a single communal room in which all activities took
place. In such straitened surroundings, where warmth, light and comfort were lacking, there
was no way of creating an air of privacy. It is easy enough to understand why the life of the
landed nobility was often so unrestrained, so filled with harshness, cruelty and brutality, even
in later, more “chivalrous” periods. The barons’ daily life was bare and uneventful, punctuated
by war, hunting (a rehearsal for war), and feasting. Boys were trained to fight from the age of
seven or eight, and their education in arms continued until they were twenty-one, although in
some cases they started to fight as early as fifteen. The peasants of the surrounding countryside,
bound to their lords by a great variety of ties, produced the sparse fare which was all that the
undeveloped agriculture of the early medieval period could sustain. Hunting was a constant
necessity, to make up for the lack of butcher’s meat, and in England and Germany in the
eleventh and twelfth centuries even the kings had to progress from one crown estate to another,
from one bishop’s palace to the next, to maintain themselves and their retinue.

86. According to the passage, class conflict in the Middle Ages was kept in check by
A. the fact that most people belonged to the same class
B. tyrannical suppressions of rebellions by powerful monarchs
C. the fact that all other classes admired and attempted to emulate the aristocracy
D. the fear that a relatively minor conflict would lead to a general revolution
87. According to the author, the urban bourgeoisie was hostile to the aristocracy because
A. the bourgeoisie was prevented by the aristocracy from seeking an alliance with the
kings
B. the bourgeoisie saw the aristocracy as their rivals
C. the aristocrats often deliberately antagonized the bourgeoisie
D. the bourgeoisie felt that the aristocracy was immoral
88. According to the passage, castles were originally built
A. as status symbols
B. as strongholds against invaders
C. as luxurious chateaux
D. as recreation centers for the townspeople

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89. One of the groups that invaded central Europe during the Middle Ages from the ninth
century on was the
A. Magyars
B. Franks
C. Celts
D. Welsh
90. It can be seen from the passage that the aristocracy was originally
A. the great landowners
B. the king’s warriors
C. merchants who became wealthy
D. slaves who had rebelled
91. The reform popes eventually produced an aristocratic church because
A. they depended on the aristocracy for money
B. they themselves were more interested in money than in religion
C. many aristocrats entered the structure of the church and impressed their values on it
D. the aristocrats were far more religious than other segments of the population
92. According to the passage, hunting served the dual purpose of
A. preparing for war and engaging in sport
B. preparing for war and getting meat
C. learning how to ride and learning how to shoot
D. getting furs and ridding the land of excess animals
93. The phrase amor et timor in line 54 is used to describe
A. the rivalry between the bourgeoisie and the aristocracy
B. the Church’s view of man and his relationship to God
C. the peasant's loyalty to the aristocracy
D. the adaptation of aristocratic manners and dress
94. The passage indicates that protection of the peasantry was implemented by
A. the king’s warriors
B. the Magyar mercenaries
C. the replacement of wood towers by stone donjons
D. the princes of the Church
95. According to the passage, the effectiveness of the Church and king was diminished by
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 A. the ambition of the military
B. conflicts and weaknesses within the Church and Royal house
C. economic instability
D. the inherent flaws of feudalism
Your answers:
86. 87. 88. 89. 90. 91. 92. 93. 94. 95.
PART 5. The passage below consists of seven paragraphs marked A-G. For questions 96-
105, read the passage and do the task that follows. Write your answers in the
corresponding numbered boxes provided.
THINKING OF STUDYING HISTORY?
We asked four graduates to talk about directions they have followed
A. On graduating, I challenged conventional notions that teaching is the only feasible option
open to history graduates and chose to become an art crime investigator with the police.
The job involves conscientious research on my part to track down works of art stolen from
sites, museums and churches, which are particularly vulnerable and cannot always
safeguard their treasures. The loot is smuggled abroad with the sole intent of being sold to
the highest bidder. A collection of sculptures, once constituting a single entity, may be
shamefully fragmented and just scattered across the world, so art crime squads in different
countries constantly exchange information on illicit trafficking. A recent case of mine
involved the repatriation of three paintings taken from an Italian church. Seized during a
raid on a London hotel where dealers in illicit antiquities were meeting, these paintings
were returned to their rightful owners. In my experience, I'd estimate some of the priceless
art in museums may have been acquired under dubious circumstances, and some could
actually be forgeries! Retrieving stolen art is a long, drawn-out process. This is painstaking
and not always rewarding, so I'm under no illusions about happy endings. In the worst-case
scenario, thieves try to destroy the evidence before we can confiscate it, often causing
irreversible damage. Sometimes, sadly, pieces are lost forever.

B. Studying for a history degree taught me to gather, assess and collate information — skills
which are invaluable in many walks of life. And having been fascinated by programmes on
the History Channel, I made what seemed like a natural choice and became a television
research assistant. Creating a historical series requires meticulous study, and that's where I

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 come in. Above all, it's essential that I examine and verify the factual background on
costumes, furniture and jewellery. I also skim through images to provide inspiration for the
scenery and props. Researchers conflict original ideas to expand on the life of a character
such as Thomas Cromwell in WolfHall or Queen Victoria. I'm not an authority on any
particular period, but I do a lot of reading. My work requires a high degree of accuracy and
I pay strict attention to detail to avoid glaring errors - like double parking lines in a 19th-
century village! Historians have discredited certain series for "fudging" the facts, yet they
do spark an interest in history, even if they stray into the realm of fiction on the odd
occasion' Period dramas like Vikings are in many respects deemed historically accurate.
The Viking hairstyles and clothing are as authentic as possible -- inspired by mediaeval
manuscript.

C. There's an acute shortage of people choosing to study history. I think this is probably the
result of the misguided assumptions that it leads nowhere career-wise. Nothing could be
further from the truth, though. History develops your competence to research and present
information coherently in a range of formats, from brochures and guidebooks to
informative films. Such skills can pave the way for many careers, including mine. As a
heritage manager, I am responsible for developing interest in ancient monuments and
historic buildings, such as Highclere Castle, which is a prime example of 19th century
architectural style. One important task of mine is to market the building with events and
tours to increase visitor numbers. All our activities have to be profitable to support the
building's conservation. Another aspect of the job is to do research and provide information
for a reference book or an official history of the site. It's astounding how misinformed many
people are, often having learned their history from highly inaccurate sources like
Hollywood films.

D. People often confuse the work of a historian with that of an archaeologist. First and
foremost, a historian's work involves investigating and analysing data in written form —
from stone engravings to books and letters — in order to validate information alleged to be
facts. As an archaeologist, I try to understand the legacy of the ancient world by excavating
physical relics, such as coins or statues. Despite what is often assumed, much of my work
is done not on site, but in a lab, where we determine the age of artefacts and their place of
origin, using scientific techniques like carbon dating. At a dig, we use cameras, 7 tablets

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 and laser scanners to digitally record the site and every find. Another intrinsic part of my
work is to catalogue every item carefully in order to comply with local laws. It may sound
tedious, but sometimes it is actually a welcome relief from digging. Archaeology and
history have a reciprocal relationship. While I try to make a valid case about the culture of
a preceding civilization, I rely on a historian to verify my hypothesis or prove it untenable
by using a vast array of written evidence. But conversely, for example, when the lost
remains of England's King Richard Ill were unearthed, it would have been impossible to
confirm they were indeed his without the methods we archaeologists utilize, even though
his reign was fully documented.

Which person …
96. expresses gratitude for aspects of work that nurture their innovative ideas?
97. censures the reckless manner in which antiquities are sometimes handled?
98. clarifies a misconception about the nature of their work?
99. confesses unpleasant aspects they sometimes stumble in their work?
100. explains that finding flaws is a feature of their work?
101. underscores the practical need to appeal to the general public?
102. explains the role of myriad devices in their work?
103. questions the authenticity of certain artefacts?
104. comments on the scarcity of graduates in their field?
105. mentions the need to follow existing regulations?
Your answers:
96. 97. 98. 99. 100.

101. 102. 103. 104. 105.

SECTION D: WRITING (6.0 PTS)
PART 1. Read the following extract and use your own words to summarize it. Your
summary should be between 100 and 120 words.
A few years back, Sir James Munby, who was the President of the Family Division of the High
Court at the time, pointed out how the council's support for vulnerable children in need of
intensive residential care was seriously lacking. Other senior figures, including the children's
commissioner for England, have also expressed concerns about the lack of suitable
placements, echoing this criticism. The scarcity has led to a notable surge in the utilization of

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deprivation of liberty orders, with cases skyrocketing from 102 in 2017-18 to 1,238 in 2023-
24. These orders, which were once seen as a last resort, are now commonly utilized to place
children in unregulated accommodations like rented flats. Unfortunately, these children may
endure distressing conditions, including physical restraints and isolation.

The crisis has escalated to the point where children from England are occasionally placed in
facilities located far away from their homes, such as Scotland, which results in their separation
from their families and support systems. Staff responsible for these vulnerable youths often
lack the necessary qualifications and experience, which worsens the situation.

There has not been much focus from politicians and the public on this issue. Take last year as
an example. Education Secretary Gillian Keegan refused to testify in family court, stating that
she had no additional information to provide regarding the shortage of secure placements.
However, her department allocated £259 million for approximately 50 new spots, which is far
from enough. Sir James Munby has once again emphasized the urgent need for a
comprehensive overhaul, particularly with another election on the horizon. He highlights the
importance of a strong and effective strategy to tackle the social care challenges faced by both
children and adults in the UK.

The deficiencies in care arise from a range of factors, such as an excessive dependence on the
market and substantial reductions in council budgets, which have put a strain on the capacity
of local authorities to deliver satisfactory services. Given the various challenges at hand,
including the impact of poverty and the lack of adequate family support services, it is clear
that a thorough overhaul of public policy is necessary. This involves reassessing the utilization
of foster care and market-driven solutions, which have resulted in a decline in the quality of
residential homes for children. The upcoming government should make it a top priority to
ensure that councils receive sufficient funding to fulfill their legal responsibilities in promoting
the well-being of the children under their care.

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PART 2. The charts below show the internet use in different purposes in Australia in
2010, 2011 and the percentage by users. Summarize the information by selecting
and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. You
should write about 150 words.

PART 3. Write an essay of 350 words on the following topic.

“Art should only be considered legitimate if it is profitable.”
Discuss the statement and give your opinion.
(You may write overleaf if you need more space)
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Người ra đề: Nguyễn Tuấn Hưng+ Nguyễn Anh Tuấn
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