English Progress Test

Name:__________________________________ Number:_______ Class:______

Activity A
1. Complete the following text with the correct word. 24 points

read series tabloid social networks research spend watch

magazine soap operas news popular e-mails

1.
Most young people _____________ TV for more than an hour a day. Favourite programmes are
2.
___________ such as Eastenders, which go on and on and are very sentimental. Teens also like
3.
______________ such as Friends or Bones. About half watch a 4. _________ programme regularly, but most
are not interested in documentaries.
Most young people read a Teen 5. _________ regularly, and about half read a newspaper. The most
read is “The Sun” which is a 6. ____________ newspaper that is written in 7. ________ format. Most do not use
the school library, and half do not 8. ___________ books for fun.
Young people surf the Internet, but perhaps not as much as we think. Most 9. ____________ up to an
hour on the Internet, and send a few 10. ____________ every day. They think the Internet is useful to do 11.
__________ work for school. They also use the 12. ________ quite a lot to communicate.

Activity B
1. In no less and no more than 50 words write about your favourite social
media. 15 points

2. Read the following text carefully.

And as for the future…
In a world of ever-increasing choice, do today’s children still watch TV in the same way we did? Today’s
young viewers are the most media-savvy generation ever. They are more demanding, better informed about
how broadcasting works and streets ahead in understanding the new technologies. With so many cable and
satellite channels dedicated to their day-long entertainment, they have an incredible choice. This has made
them more critical than previous generations.
“They are far less tolerant of poor programmes,” says Nigel Pickard, the BBC’s controller of children’s
programmes. “They vote with their fingers very quickly if something is not engaging them.” What they lack is
brand loyalty. They follow individual programmes with no sense of what channel they are on. Conducting a
survey among my own children and their friends, I found they would happily get rid of the BBC so long as they
could download Blue Peter. They were unanimous that The Simpsons was the key programme for their
generation and the only one that every child has in common.

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 According to the Independent Television Commission’s latest report, TV: The Public’s View, 52 per cent
of children have a television in their bedroom. “That’s kind of scary, even for someone like me, whose job is
getting them to watch television,” says Pickard.
There is, however, a surprising difference between what children actually watch and what they think
television should be like, as Moira Messenger-Davies ar Cardiff University has found. Her forthcoming book,
Dear BBC: Children, Television, Storytelling and the Public Sphere, is based on the questioning of 1,300 children
in England and Wales aged between 6 and 12. When asked to name their favourite programme they gave
dozens of different replies. While this might suggest a breakdown of consensus viewing, she does not draw
this conclusion. “The interesting thing is that they all have conventional expectations of what TV should be
like. They all want diversity, news and balance.” This generation, however, is so lively that television is not
even their main entertainment medium- it’s too passive. Boys prefer computer games, girls the mobile phone.
Either way, they are perfectly placed to deal with the increasingly interactive changes in TV that may well
baffle their elders over the next few years.
Source: news.bbc.co.uk

A. Find in the text evidence for the following: 20 points

1. Nowadays children know a lot more about the media than their parents do.
2. They are not loyal to any particular channel but have their favourite shows.
3. Children no longer regard TV as their main source of entertainment.
4. TV is adapting in order to appeal to this new generation of viewers.

B. Answer the following questions on the text using your own words as far as possible. 15 points

1. Explain what the author means with the statement: “They vote with their fingers very quickly if
something is not engaging them.”

2. “…52 percent of children have a television in their bedroom. “That’s kind of scary, even for someone
like me, whose job is getting them to watch television,” says Pickard.”

Do you also consider this scary? What is your opinion on the subject?

C. Reread paragraphs 1 and 2 and find equivalent words or expressions for the following: 12 points

1. advanced 2. captivating 3. fidelity 4. eliminate

D. What do these words refer to? 12 points

1. they (l.2) 2. they (l.8) 3. me (l.11) 4. this (l. 16)

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 Activity C 45 points

Choose one of the topics and write a text about it (between 120-150 words).

Topic A
How has media affected our society? Which media has had a bigger impact? Which have been its benefits and
drawbacks?

Topic B
State your views about the advantages and disadvantages of television.