social network 2

PART ONE:Reading(15pts)

A/ Comprehension

Read the text carefully then do the activities

Social networking  websites like Facebook have negative effects on learners, and those who frequently use such websites are more likely to get lower marks in school, says a new American study. Such students are also likely to have behavioural problems and 'narcissistic tendencies' from spending toomuch time logged on to such sites, according to the research by the California State University.

 Psychology professor Larry Rosensaid researchers watched as students spent 15 minutes studying something that was important to them. The research team was left astonished as the students' concentration failedbecause of the need to check their Facebook page. “The more media they consumed per day, the worsestudents they were. Ifthey checked Facebook just once during 15 minutes, they were worse students.”

 The negative effects of over-using social mediainclude making students unsuccessful, aggressive and anti-social. Children under 13 who overuse social sites on a daily basis are also more likely to be prone to periods of anxiety,depression, sleeping problems and stomach aches. Theycan become fat.

 Thestudy also found that social networks had some positive effects as well. They helped shy children interact more.

1- Are the following statements true(T) or false (F)

a-      Learners who use Facebook score well ate school.

b-Students rarely check their Facebook pages.

c-Researchers were satisfied with the results they found

d-Social media help children to interact.

2- Answer the following questions according to the text

a-  Does Facebook improve learners’ level?

b- How does the use of social media affect learners’ health?

c- What makes learners check their Facebook accounts so badly?

3- Fill in the following table with information from the text:

Social Networks
Positive Effect	Negative Effect
-……………………………..	-…………………………….

4-What or who do the underlined words refer to in the text?

 a.who(§1)       b.them(§2)  c.they(§4)  

B/ Text Exploration:

1- Find words in the text whose definitions follow:

a-      An institution of higher learning to grant academic degrees(§1)

b-      The act of giving attention to a single object or activity (§2)

2-Divide the following words into roots and affixes.

Frequently- behavioral – unsuccessful- unlikely

prefixes	roots	suffixes

3- Rewrite sentence B so that it means the same as sentence A:

1-a-An American study says: “Learners get lower marks”.

b-An American study says that………………………….

2-a-Researchers team was astonished by the study.

b-The study………………………………………………

3-a-Students failed because of the need to check their Facebook pages.

b-Since students……………………………………………….

4- Circle or write the silent letter in each of the following words:

psychology- neighbour- taught- knowledge.

PART TWO:WRITTEN EXPRESSION (05pts)

Choose only one of the following topics:

Topic1:

Using the notes below develop the following statement to write an opinion article:

Negatives

(Some researchers argue that social media networks are a cause to failure at school)

·         Lack of concentration.

·         Low markers.

·         Behavioural problems.

·        

Positives

Health problems.

·         Encourage interaction.

·         Cooperation.

·         Share activities.

Topic2:  

Suppose you were going to participate in the coming local elections, what would you do to fight nepotism                   .           ( The favouring of relatives or friends )?

Social networking

THIRD YEAR ASSESSMENT

PART ONE :

A-Comprehension : (7pts)

Read the text carefully then do the activities.

    Social networking websites like Facebook have negative effects on learners,and those who frequently use such websites are more likely to get lower marks in school,says a new American study.Such students are also likely to have behavioural problems and ‘narcissistic tendencies’ from spending too much time logged on to such sites,according to the research by the California State University.

     Psychology professor LarryRosen said researchers watched as students spent 15 minutes studying something that was important to them.The research team was left astonished as the students’ concentration failed because of the need to check their Facebook page. ‘The more media they consumed per day,the worse students they were.If they checked Facebook just once during 15 minutes,they were worse students.’

     The negative effects of over using social media include making students unsuccessful,aggressive and anti-social.Children under 13 who overuse social sites on a daily basis are also more likely to be prone to periods of anxiety,depression,sleeping,problems and stomach aches.They can become fat.

     The study also found that social networks had some positive effects as well. They helped shy children interact more.

1-The text is a    

 a) letter         b)conversation         c)report

2-Read the text and put the following ideas in the order they appear in the text.

 a- The survey’s findings were surprising.

b-The excessive use may result to health problems.

c-The benefits of social network on timid children.

   d-School failure maybe the result of social networks.

3-Answer the following questions according to the text.

a-      Are attitude concerns the result of social networks?

b-      Why were researchers surprised about the findings of their research?

c-       Do you agree with the results of the survey? why or why not ?

4-Who or what do the underlined words refer to in the text.

     Them (§2)………                              They(§4)……………

B-Text exploration (8pts)

1-    Find in the text words that are closest in meaning to the following.

  a-research(§1)                               b-learners( §2)                      c-failed(§3)

2-    Divide the following words into roots and affixes.

behavioural-unsuccessful-aggressive

prefix	root	suffix

3-    Combine each pair of sentences with the connector given between brackets.Make the necessary changes.

a-      Students record better results in school. They reduce the use of social  networks(providing that)

b-      Social networks have negative effects on learners.They keep using them( despite)

4-    Classify the following words according to the pronunciation of the final ‘S’

problems-tendencies-effects-researches

/s/	/z/	/iz/

PART TWO : Written expression :(5pts)

            Choose ONEof the following topics.

Either topic1 :

As a social media user and not being convinced by the findings of the research.Use the following notes to write a composition of 70 to 80 words in favour of social media .

   -Social media makes our world a global village.

   -Exchanging ideas

   -Developing people’s self-confidence and social skills.

   - It can increase productivity

Or topic 2 :

Write a composition of 70 to 80 wordson the following topic.

    Since piracy is defined as a form of theft and it may deceive the proprietor or the creator.What solutions would you suggest to fight such unethical behaviour?

school leaving age

School leaving age set to rise to 18

Part one: Reading (15pts)

Read the text  carefully then do the activities:

The British government is soon to pass legislation that would raise the school leaving age to 18. The new plans will come into effect by 2013. Pupils will have the choice of staying in formal classroom education that covers academic lessons, or of receiving vocational training. It is the first major revision of the compulsory education age limit since 1972, when it went up to the present 16 years old. The government hopes the additional two years of schooling or training will bolster the quality of young Britons and ensure more British youth have qualifications or workplace skills. If successful, Britain may be able to boast the best educated and most highly trained school leavers in the world, which is bound to have positive knock-on effects for industry and the economy. It should also bring down levels of crime.

Britain’s Minister for Education Alan Johnson told The Times newspaper that it was "repellent that a youngster of 16 is not getting any training". He lamented on his mistakes of the past, saying: "I regret not staying on in education... when I left school there were loads of jobs you could walk into without qualifications. That's not going to be the case in the future." The leader of Britain’s teaching union Steve Sinnott concurred. He described the upcoming legislation as "inevitable". He warned: "We cannot afford to neglect those young people who currently leave school at 16 unprepared for the rigors and demands of life in the 21st Century." Toby Ashford, a 16-year-old student from Londonwasn’t as enthusiastic. He complained that: “It is another example of politicians trying to be Big Brother with young people.”

A- Comprehension /Interpretation ( 7pts):

1- Are the following statements true or false according to the text:

a-The British government plans to reduce the compulsory education age.

b- There have been several revisions for school leaving age since1972.

c- In the future people without qualifications will find jobs easily.

2-In which paragraph is it mentioned that :

“Politicians should not discard those young people who left school unprepared for the demands of life”.

3- Answer the following questions according to the text

a- What are the choices that pupils will  have thanks to the new legislation?

b- What does the British government hope when passing this legislation?

c- How didThe leader of Britain’s teaching union, Steve Sinnott, describe the new legislation?

4-What or who do the underlined words in the text refer to:

                                                              c-he(§2)                                        b-who(§ 2)                      (§1)      a- it

B/ Text Exploration (8pts):

1- Find in the text words closest in meaning to the following ones:

    a- professional  (§1)                  b- obligatory   (§1)                 c- agreed      (§2)                                         

                                                           

2-Divide the following words into roots and affixes:

   Education     -    government    - unprepared 

suffix	root	Prefix

3- Rewrite sentence ( b) so that it means the same as( a)

 a- He said : “ I regret not staying on education”

b-  He said that………………………………………………………………………..

a- The new law should bring down the level of crimes

b- The level of crimes……………………………………………………………………………

4- Fill in the gaps with only four words from the list given

Decreases- education- training -attend- pupils

Pupils have to ………………….school regularly to benefit from their………………….. Missing out on lessons leaves …………………to achieve less and ……………..their chances of success.

Part two : wtitten expression : (5pts)

Choose one of the following topics:

Topic one:

Using the following notes write a composition of about 70-80 words  about the causes that can make teenagers leave their schools.

-pupils academic failure/ levels

- wrong decisions

-family financial problems / economic realities

-pupils want to help their families

Topic two:

Do you think that the study of ancient civilizations is so important? Justify……