SPEAKING Work in pairs. Read the task below and discuss questions 1-3. Write notes.

Some people believe that doing sport at school is a distraction from more important work. Write an essay in which you give your own opinion about this issue and propose ways for students to do more sport at school without causing problems for their studies.

1 Which sports do you do at school? How often?

2 Are there other subjects that are more important than sport? Which ones? Why?

3 How could more sport be added to the school timetable without affecting other subjects?

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 28 to 34.

   One of the most difficult questions to answer is how much a job is worth. We naturally expect that a doctor’s salary will be higher than a bus conductor’s wage. But the question becomes much more difficult to answer when we compare, say, a miner with an engineer, or an unskilled man working on an oil-rig in the North Sea with a teacher in a secondary school. What the doctor, the engineer and teacher have is many years of training in order to obtain the necessary qualifications for their professions. We feel instinctively that these skills and these years, when they were studying instead of earning money, should be rewarded. At the same time we recognize that the work of the miner and the oil-rig laborer is both hard and dangerous, and that they must be highly paid for the risks they take.

   Another factor we must take into consideration is how socially useful a man’s work is, regardless of the talents he may bring to it. Most people would agree that looking after the sick or teaching children is more important than, say, selling secondhand cars or improving the taste of toothpaste by adding a red stripe to it. Yet it is almost certain that the used car salesman earns more than the nurse, and that research chemist earns more than the schoolteacher.

   Indeed, this whole question of just rewards can be turned on its head. You can argue that a man who does a job which brings him personal satisfaction is already receiving part of his reward in the form of a so-called “psychic wage”, and that it is the man with the boring, repetitive job who needs more money to make up for the soul-destroying monotony of his work. It is significant that that those jobs which are traditionally regarded as “vocations” - nursing, teaching and the Church, for example - continue to be poorly paid, while others, such as those in the world of sport or entertainment, carry financial rewards out of all proportion to their social worth.

   Although the amount of money that people earn is in reality largely determined by market forces, this should not prevent us from seeking some way to decide what is the right pay for the job. A starting point for such an investigation would be to try to decide the ratio which ought to exist between the highest and the lowest paid. The picture is made more complicate by two factors: firstly by the “social wage”, i.e, the welfare benefits which every citizen receives; and secondly, by the taxation system, which is often used as an instrument of social justice by taxing high incomes at a very high rate indeed. Allowing for these two things, most countries now regard a ratio of 7:1 as socially acceptable. If it is less, the highly-qualified people carrying heavy responsibilities become disillusioned, and might even end up by emigration (the so-called “brain-drain” is an evidence that this can happen). If it is more, the gap between rich and poor will be so great that it will lead social tensions and ultimately to violence.

(Adapted from: "How much is job worth? ")

As far as rewarding people for their work is concerned, the writer, believes that ________.

A. qualified people should be the highest paid

B. we should pay people according to their talents

C. we should pay for socially-useful work, regardless of the person’s talent

D. market forces will determine how much a person is paid

 It is common for all of us to take more tasks than our desired potential. This can often result in stress and tiredness. Learn the art of sharing work with your partners based on their skills and abilities. Before the start of the day, make a list of tasks that need your immediate attention as unimportant tasks can consume much of your precious time. Some tasks need to be completed on that day only while other unimportant tasks could be carried forward to next day. In short, prioritize your tasks to focus on those that are more important. Carry a planner or notebook with you and list all the tasks that come to your mind. Make a simple “To Do” list before the start of the day, prioritize the tasks, and make sure that they are attainable. To better manage your time-management skills, you may think of making 3 lists: work, home, and personal. Stress often occurs when we accept more work than our ability. The result is that our body starts feeling tired which can affect our productivity. Instead, share tasks with your partners and make sure to leave some time for relaxation. Most of the successful men and women have one thing in common. They start their day early as it gives them time to sit, think, and plan their day. When you get up early, you are more calm, creative, and clear-headed. As the day progresses, your energy levels start going down, which affects your productivity and your performance as well.

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 28 to 34.

   One of the most difficult questions to answer is how much a job is worth. We naturally expect that a doctor’s salary will be higher than a bus conductor’s wage. But the question becomes much more difficult to answer when we compare, say, a miner with an engineer, or an unskilled man working on an oil-rig in the North Sea with a teacher in a secondary school. What the doctor, the engineer and teacher have is many years of training in order to obtain the necessary qualifications for their professions. We feel instinctively that these skills and these years, when they were studying instead of earning money, should be rewarded. At the same time we recognize that the work of the miner and the oil-rig laborer is both hard and dangerous, and that they must be highly paid for the risks they take.

   Another factor we must take into consideration is how socially useful a man’s work is, regardless of the talents he may bring to it. Most people would agree that looking after the sick or teaching children is more important than, say, selling secondhand cars or improving the taste of toothpaste by adding a red stripe to it. Yet it is almost certain that the used car salesman earns more than the nurse, and that research chemist earns more than the schoolteacher.

   Indeed, this whole question of just rewards can be turned on its head. You can argue that a man who does a job which brings him personal satisfaction is already receiving part of his reward in the form of a so-called “psychic wage”, and that it is the man with the boring, repetitive job who needs more money to make up for the soul-destroying monotony of his work. It is significant that that those jobs which are traditionally regarded as “vocations” - nursing, teaching and the Church, for example - continue to be poorly paid, while others, such as those in the world of sport or entertainment, carry financial rewards out of all proportion to their social worth.

   Although the amount of money that people earn is in reality largely determined by market forces, this should not prevent us from seeking some way to decide what is the right pay for the job. A starting point for such an investigation would be to try to decide the ratio which ought to exist between the highest and the lowest paid. The picture is made more complicate by two factors: firstly by the “social wage”, i.e, the welfare benefits which every citizen receives; and secondly, by the taxation system, which is often used as an instrument of social justice by taxing high incomes at a very high rate indeed. Allowing for these two things, most countries now regard a ratio of 7:1 as socially acceptable. If it is less, the highly-qualified people carrying heavy responsibilities become disillusioned, and might even end up by emigration (the so-called “brain-drain” is an evidence that this can happen). If it is more, the gap between rich and poor will be so great that it will lead social tensions and ultimately to violence.

(Adapted from: "How much is job worth? ")

The author mentions “brain-drain” as an evidence to show that _____________.

A. high taxation is a useful and effective instrument of social justice

B. people with jobs or responsibility expect to be highly paid

C. the poor are generally more patriotic than the rich

D. well-educated people are prepared to emigrate whenever they can get a better paid job