Modelo examen 4 – Listening

LanguageCert C1 Listening Model 4 audio script

Part 1: 

Number one:

• Hey, Stephanie. How’s it going?

• Okay, thanks. Guess what, I’m trying a no-sugar diet for a month. I miss chocolate though.

Number two:

• you’re so good at the guitar, Megan. Where did you learn?

• Well, I taught myself, actually.

• Really? that’s amazing.

Number three:

• Hey, Helena. I’m having a party at mine on Saturday do you want to come? 

• Yeah, that sounds great. What time?

• Anytime from 8:00 o’clock.

Number four: 

• I didn’t see you in the office last week, I was wondering where you were. 

• Actually, I was on holiday all week in Portugal.

Number five: 

• Did I tell you about my nightmare day last week? 

• No, I don’t think so. What happened? 

• I locked myself out of my house!

Number six: 

• oh by the way. Are you coming to the mountains with everyone? 

• I’m not sure yet. I mean, I’d love to go but I don’t know if I can get time off work.

Part 2

Conversation one: 

A: I think that a relationship with a twin sister would be very important because you would probably be very close and tell her stuff you wouldn’t tell other people.

B: Yes, that’s very true, even if I argue with my brother we are still very close but don’t you think grandparents have a big influence on your life too? because… 

A: I suppose so but it depends how often you see them I didn’t see mine very often but I did learn a lot from them and they were very patient and kind to me.

B: So were mine, even if there was a generation gap. What’s your view on the father-son relationship?

A: I’m not sure, but I imagine perhaps, they would share hobbies together like well learning to drive or playing football together 

B: I suppose so, my father was much older than most fathers but I suppose it depends on your personality too and if you have things in common. 

A: I see what you mean if you get an inspirational teacher they have a huge effect on your life too. I know somebody who took up a drama and became an actor because of the encouragement a teacher gave them.

B: then there’s the relationship… 

Conversation two:

D: You look at bit grumpy! What’s up? 

E: I’ve just been told off for wearing trainers to school instead of black shoes. 

D: Well, you know the rules, Eva. The school’s always been strict about school uniform. 

E: But they’re black trainers! Anyway, how did you get on in the maths test? 

D: Not bad. I actually got 85% which was one of the best results in the class. 

E: Well done, Dan. How did you manage that aft er your last disaster? 

D: Well, the teachers added an extra hour of maths on Thursday afternoons this term and I guess I just needed it. 

E: Brilliant! I’m really loving history this year – we’re doing some amazing topics including American history … and Mr. Bates, the teacher, is awesome. 

D: I know, I’ve got him for geography. Last week he demonstrated how clouds are formed by putting a freezing cold metal dish on top of a glass of warm water. It worked too! 

E: Oh, yeah, I’ve seen that. Mind you, he gives a lot of homework, doesn’t he? 

D: But at least it’s interesting! I’m just going to see him now. He gave us a task on a piece of paper but I lost mine so I need to get a copy of it. 

E: OK, I’ll see you later. By the way, are you going to the meeting about the school trip? 

D: Of course! The teachers are hoping everybody will be there so that we can go through costs and travel plans. Everybody I know is going – I can’t wait!

Conversation three:

A: Did you see that thing in the paper about Bliss Simone?

B: No, what was that? 

A: Apparently she splitting up with what’s his name… I mean there was all that nonsense of a trial separation but you know what that means. 

B: It doesn’t surprise me. Weren’t they like together since school? 

A: Yeah, Imagine going from that quiet life to suddenly being attached to this huge star.

B: I know, it must be tough being in the public eye all the time but with no real purpose. I’d hate it myself.

A: Yeah.

B: So, is that why she’s postponed her tour?

A: Who knows? Apparently, she’s also had a big falling out with her family.

B: Really? Wasn’t her brother managing her?
A: Yeah, but there is some story that he might have been… shall we say… a bit “inaccurate” in his accounting.

B: Really? Mind you, I’m sure there are others trying to push their way in and get their hands on the money.

A: Isn’t it awful how money causes all these problems? I should say, it can’t be easy for everyone involved when life changes so radically, there are so many pressures on everyone.

B: Yeah, no it doesn’t appeal to me, Fame and Fortune. 

Part 3:

Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a dream’; Winston Churchill’s ‘This was their finest hour’. ‘John F Kennedy’s ‘We choose to go to the moon’. What do these speeches all have in common? They live on in our memories of course, but they also employed techniques considered to be persuasive. 

When making a persuasive speech, the first thing we need to consider is what our aim is. The second thing is who our audience is. Once we’re clear about those two things, we can get the content of our speech right. 

The third consideration is persuasion strategies. We can appeal to people’s sense of logic, their emotions or their sense of what’s right, or all three – these are what Aristotle referred to as logos, pathos and ethos. 

Of course, it’s not just what we say that’s important. It’s also how we say it. And that’s my fourth and final consideration – the language we use. Employing certain linguistic techniques can make our speech more masterful, memorable and motivating. Techniques such as KISS, the power of three and repetition are very helpful. KISS means Keep It Short and Simple. The power of three involves listing ideas, reasons or examples in threes as they stick in our minds better, and repetition involves repeating key ideas or words so they stick too. Repetition of sounds is also effective. 

Descriptive language is useful in the art of persuasion. Adjectives, metaphors and imagery all give listeners the opportunity to visualise something in a way they hadn’t before, and we can use rhetorical questions where we clearly believe the answer is obvious to make our point. No one can argue with us then, can they? 

Finally, we can use the right pronouns. Use ‘you’ rather than ‘people’ to make the audience feel you’re speaking directly to them. Use ‘we’ to make them feel like you’re all in the situation together. 

So, whether you’re giving a formal civic speech or trying to persuade your boss to give you a pay rise, choose your aim, know your audience, decide whether to appeal to their sense of logic, ethics, or their emotions, and then select the right language to deliver it. That way, you’ll produce a persuasive speech that will get you the results you want.  

Part 4:

A: Right, so the next item on the agenda is, er … roadside verges. Not much to say there, I guess – presumably we’ll just do what we always do: keep them neat and safe, right Sonia? 

S: Well, not necessarily, Angus. This year, I wonder if we could try something new. I’d like to plant some wildflower seeds and dramatically reduce the amount of grass-cutting we do each year. 

L: I’m sorry, Sonia, but that’s a terrible idea. We’ve spent years and years, not to mention a small fortune, trying to beautify our verges, so I don’t want to do anything that undermines all that good work. Without regular cutting, the quality of our verges will deteriorate really quickly. They’ll look terrible after a few months. 

S: Well, actually, no. According to opinion polls, wherever it’s been tried before, the vast majority of local residents have agreed that it’s actually enhanced the appearance of the verges, because … 

A: I know, Sonia. I’ve seen the photos too. It’s called ‘rewilding’, isn’t it? I know some of our neighbouring councils have tried it, but I’m afraid we’re under extremely tight budget constraints. We’ve got enough financial problems already, which we’re working hard to rectify. I don’t want to exacerbate those problems by trying expensive experiments. 

S: Well, according to a recent report, one of our neighbours has managed to reduce its grass-cutting costs by £40,000, having spent only £17,000 buying and planting wildflower seeds. 

A: OK, OK, but it’s not just a question of going out and buying wildflower seeds and sprinkling them around randomly, is it? You need to know what you’re doing and, frankly, we don’t have that kind of expertise here. We want to simplify things as much as possible this year. 

S: There’s a local agency that can manage everything for us, all for a reasonable one-off price. The £17,000 I mentioned earlier actually included £7,500 in consultation and management costs. The seeds themselves cost next to nothing. So having paid those high fees once, we’ll have much lower costs in future years. 

L: That’s all well and good, but our priority has to be safety, doesn’t it? On blind corners, tall grass and thick clumps of weeds can really impair people’s ability to see clearly. So your rewilding project could really hinder our efforts to make our roads safer. 

S: That’s why I said we should dramatically decrease the amount of grass-cutting, not do away with it entirely. We absolutely need to put safety first, which means maintaining excellent visibility at all costs. Having said that, the vast majority – 97% – of the area of those verges has no impact whatsoever on visibility and safety. 

A: 97%? It sounds like you’ve been doing your research. Very impressive. 

S: Well, the 97% is just an estimate, based on extrapolating from a random sample of roads. But I think it’s certainly a reasonable ballpark figure. All things considered, rewilding makes total sense for us. 

L: I’m not so sure. What about litter? Keeping the grass short really facilitates the process of collecting litter. Litter is hard enough to keep under control at the best of times, but that problem would be compounded by long grass. 

S: That’s actually a good point. The litter-collecting process can be hampered by long grass, but my research suggests it only adds around 10% to the time required. 

A: OK, I’ll tell you what we’ll do. I’ll call a meeting of the council executive committee to discuss this matter in greater detail. I’d like you to research rewilding as deeply as possible in order to justify your proposal and deal with whatever objections might arise. We’ll need to convince the committee that we’re alleviating problems, not aggravating them. Can you do that in time for, say, this time next week? 

S: Absolutely. Thanks, Angus. I’ll get to work on it immediately.