Comprehension - Discover Seychelles - Exercise 1

Exercise 1

Read the following information about Seychelles and then answer the questions on the opposite page.

Discover Seychelles

The Republic of Seychelles is a group of 115 islands of truly striking beauty, lying in the Indian Ocean 1800 km east of Kenya. Popular with tourists, Seychelles is also a natural sanctuary for an amazing diversity of bird and animal life, such as the world’s smallest frog, the heaviest land tortoise and the only flightless bird of the Indian Ocean.

Culture and cuisine
The Seychellois, numbering around 80,000 people, are a colorful and harmonious blend of different races. People from almost every race on earth have at one time or another contributed something of their own customs and cultures to the islands. This diversity is clearly reflected in Seychellois cooking. From Asian influences come delicious stir fries and fiery curries, while the European influence, especially French, is apparent in the use of herbs and garlic. Some of the best fish in the world can be found here-the popular red snapper or ‘bourzwa’ is a favorite with both locals and tourists.

Environment
Unique plants and animals have evolved in Seychelles to produce some of the rarest examples of flora and fauna in the world. Seychelles also boasts two world Heritage Sites: Aldabra Atoll and the Vallee de Mai, where the magnificent coco demer palm grows. The government has declared 46% of the total land mass (452 sq km) as national parks, nature reserves or protected areas. A further 228 sq km have been designated as Marine National Park to safeguard marine creatures and habitat. As land is scarce, waste disposal can be a problem. Where possible, therefore, rubbish such as toothpaste cartons and empty shampoo bottles should be taken back to the visitor’s country of origin.

The weather
Seychelles enjoys a pleasant tropical climate with an average humidity of 75%. The islands lie outside the cyclone belt and there are no extremes of weather. When the south-east trade winds blow between May and September, there is generally less rainfall, but rougher seas. The north-west trade winds, which blow from March to May and September to November, the seas are calmest, with the best visibility and conditions.

Average maximum temperature (°C)
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
30 30 31 31 30 29 29 28 29 29 30 30
Average monthly rainfall (mm)
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
379 271 169 178 101 51 6 101 117 210 217 283

Regulations for tourists
For immigration clearance, tourists need a valid passport, a return or onward ticket, proof of accommodation, and sufficient funds for the duration of their stay. A valid yellow fever vaccination certificate is also required from travellers who have recently come from an infected area.
1. What unique specimens of wildlife can be found on the islands?
Give two examples.

............................................................................................................. [1]

2. Why is the food eaten in Seychelles so varied?

.............................................................................................................. [1]

3. What action has been taken to protect sea life?

.............................................................................................................. [1]

4. What are visitors asked to do to avoid pollution on the islands?

............................................................................................................. .[1]

5. What is the main influence on the climate?

.............................................................................................................. [1]

6. What are good times of the year for visitors interested in diving and other water sports?

............................................................................................................. [1]

7. Which are the two driest months of the year in Seychelles?

............................................................................................................. [1]

8. What evidence is required to prove that visitors from certain areas are not infected by disease?

.............................................................................................................. [1]


[Total: 8]

Comprehension - Royale Hotel Anse - Exercise 1

Here is a notice from a hotel. Study the notice carefully and answer the questions which follow.

Royale Hotel Anse

Dear Guests

The Royale Hotel Anse in Seychelles is an environmentally-conscious hotel, and is dedicated to the protection of the environment within the travel and tourism industry.

Water – did you know?

• 97% of the earth’s water supply is contained in oceans, and 2% is frozen. This leaves 1% of drinkable water. Wherever you are in the world, it is easy to see that this represents a very limited water supply.
• Showers use 20-30 litres of water per minute.
• Each toilet flush uses about 15 litres of water.
• After drinking a glass of water, we use up to two more glasses of water to wash it.
• Even a small, slow drip from a tap can waste more than 70 litres in 24 hours.
• A running tap uses up to 20 litres per minute. Letting a tap run while brushing your teeth wastes more water than one person needs to drink in a week.

The Royale Hotel Anse is a water-conscious hotel. How?

• Our chefs wash all vegetables with the plug in the sink.
• All water used in the hotel for cleaning and washing is recycled through our water-treatment equipment.
• The hotel gardens are watered using recycled water from the water-treatment equipment.
• All the hotel’s taps, pipes, toilets, showers and baths are regularly checked for leaks by our engineers, and immediately repaired if necessary.
• In order to save electricity and water, dishwashing machines are switched on when they are full.
• Our staff undergo regular training in environmental issues.










1. How limited is the world’s water supply?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

2. Which uses more water per minute: a shower or a running tap?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

3. What is the result of letting a tap run while you brush your teeth?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

4. How do the hotel’s chefs save water?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

5. When would the hotel’s pipes or taps need to be repaired by the engineers?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

6. Why are the hotel staff water-conscious?

…………………………………………………………………………………………[1]

[Total 6]

Comprehension - Email sends coded warning to English teachers

Exercise 2

Read the following article on the changing language and answer the questions that follow.
Email sends coded warning to English teachers

Children are inventing a new lexicon for electronic communication with a range of jargon and symbols that adults find hard to understand. Although educators and politicians were once concerned about sloppy pronunciation, it seems that ‘email English’ poses a greater threat to the language.

For example, the symbol : -( represents a sad face (if you turn your head and look at it sideways) and is widely used to signify sympathy, disappointment or bad news. The symbols have evolved to keep down the cost of mobile phone text messages and emailing, speed up the response time and inject emotion into concise missives.

Teachers say that the new shorthand style associated with emails is making their job of improving literacy skills even harder. Researchers from the McCann-Erikson advertising agency, who interviewed more than 100 children aged 5-11, concluded that traditional letter-writing will be of no more use later in life than the history lessons pupils learn in schools.

Robin Laufer, who led the research, said that symbols used in text messages represented new ways of expressing emotions. ‘You need intonation if you are going down to the shortest possible form of communication. So if you put a smiley face next to a sarcastic comment, it shows you are joking and not being nasty. We are witnessing a communications revolution which children have adapted to very quickly. Our language is changing in front of our eyes.’

More than half a billion text messages are sent by mobile phone every month. The growing trend coincides with concern over standards in formal writing. Just 54 per cent of 11-year olds achieved the expected level in writing in last summer’s national tests compared to 78 per cent in reading.

Nigel de Gruchy, general secretary of the NASUWT teachers’ union, said that we should now be far more concerned about the influence of email than any failings of teaching. ‘Dropping grammar and replacing sentences with abbreviations will damage the language,’ he said.

Ms Laufer added: Kids have always had some coded language of their own which separated them from grown-ups, but the internet and mobile phones have given them the ability to do this much more. Writing a longhand letter is going to have to be something that is taught at school and, while they will know how to do this, the question is, will they want to?”


1. What do adults find difficult to understand in the new lexicon?

……………………………………………………………………………………[1 mark]

2. What worried people in education before the arrival of ‘email English’?

……………………………………………………………………………………[1 mark]

3. What three reasons are given for the development of email symbols?

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………[3 marks]
4. According to teachers, what is making their job harder?

……………………………………………………………………………………[1 mark]

5. Why is it suggested that, in the future, traditional letter-writing will no longer be of any use?

……………………………………………………………………………………[1 mark]

6. Why are symbols so important in electronic communication?

…………………………………………………………………………………….[1 mark]

7. What does a smiley face symbol represent, according to the text?

…………………………………………………………………………………….[1 mark]

8. How many text messages are sent each year?

…………………………………………………………………………………….[1 mark]

9. What percentage of 11-year old children failed to reach the expected level in writing?

…………………………………………………………………………………….[1 mark]

10. According to Nigel de Gruchy, what is going to harm the English language?

…………………………………………………………………………………….[1 mark]

11. What does Ms Laufer say that the internet and mobile phones have given children?

…………………………………………………………………………………….[1 mark]

Exercise 1 - Are you a poor talker

Read the text ‘Are you a poor talker?’ and answer the questions that follow.

Are you a poor talker?



A simple technique for acquiring a swift mastery of everyday conversation and writing has been announced. It can pay you real dividends in both social and professional advancement. It works like magic to give you added poise, self-confidence and greater popularity. The details of this method are described in a fascinating book, Adventures in Speaking and Writing, sent free on request.

Many people do not realize how much they could influence others simply by what they say and how they say it. Those who realize this radiate enthusiasm, hold the attention of those listeners with bright, sparkling conversation that attracts friends and opportunities wherever they go. Whether in business, at social functions, or even in casual conversation with new acquaintances, there are ways in which you can make a good impression every time you talk.

After all, conversation has certain fundamental rules and principles – just like any other art. The good talkers and whom you admire know those rules and apply them whenever they converse. Learn the rules and you can make your conversation brighter, more entertaining and impressive. Then you could find yourself becoming more popular and winning new friendships in the business and social worlds.

To acquaint all readers of this newspaper with the easy-to-follow rules for developing skill in everyday conversation and writing, we, the publishers, have printed full details of this interesting self-training method in a fascinating book, Adventures in Speaking and Writing, sent free on request. No obligation. Just telephone 0800 298 7070 free, or fill in and return the coupon on page 13 (no stamp needed). Or write to: Effective Speaking Programme, Dept MGS10T, FREEPOST 246, London WC1A 1BR.


1. In what situation can the new technique improve your conversation skills?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

2. Where can you get more details about the method for improving your speaking and writing skills?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

3. In what two ways does the text say that you can influence others?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….[2]

4. In what ways is conversation like any other art?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

5. Why have the publishers printed details of the training methods in a book?

………………………………………………………………………………………….[1]

6. How can you obtain more information? Give three ways.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….[3]

[Total 9]

A day with the rainbow trout

One of the best memories I’ve had of my adventuresome life were the fishing trips with my friends - Paul, Stanley, Franky, Solomon and Kingsley.

Ooty was always cold even when the sun shone. The cold made you want to creep into yourself. We studied in a Government Arts College that was well known for its strikes and shortage of teachers. The college was situated on a hill. It had been a sanatorium for the convalescing soldiers in the British Raj and then became the first secretariat for Ootacamund and then finally the Government College. The hill on which the college was situated is called Stone Hill. The classrooms were bone chilling and it was there we studied Emily Dickinson and all the dried-up, cold characters in English Literature. There was a stone chimney in our class in which we had tried once to light a fire but we immediately put it out when we heard the flap of pigeon wings. The college was well known for its strikes and shortage of teachers and nobody cared whether you attended class or whether you ‘cleared’ the semester papers. A fishing trip was what we needed.

Solomon was responsible for the fishing poles as he stayed in Kandhal - close to our fishing spot. It would be easier to transport the rods from there instead of carrying it with us or trying to bring a 6 foot rod on the bus. Anyway the bus conductor would never have allowed us in with it. Paul, Stan and Franky took care of the bicycle hiring. They would hire cycles from Finger Post and Kandhal. There were three cycle renting shops and we would hire from all three shops as no single shop would want to give 6 cycles to one party. The rent was minimal and we hired it for the entire day.

Right in the centre of Ooty market is this quaint small shop that sells everything from pins to rice to balloons, The shop ‘uncle’ – everybody is ‘uncle’ in the hills – likes us a lot and enquires about the trip. We buy hooks, line and float from him. He throws in a few extra hooks along with his blessings. We dump everything into Paul’s faded reddish pink rucksack and rush to catch a bus from Ooty to Kandhal, a 15 minute trip. Solomon awaits us impatiently and bombards us with expletives as soon as he sees us waving at him from the bus window which rattles to a final halt. We trudge happily to his house where his mother and father greet us with cups of piping tea which we gratefully hold in our cold hands.

Paul sets to work immediately. He gets Kingsley and Franky to make the floats first. Franky shaves the peacock feather off its feathers and then Kingsley cuts it 3 inch-wise. They make 6-8 floats and then tie thread at one end of the float which will be attached to the line later. Paul, in the meantime would be busy tying the hooks to the line and attaching small pieces of lead to lend weight. This would ensure that the line sinks into the water. The line is then unraveled and wound onto a small stick so that it doesn’t get tangled. Floats are tied 1 metre from the hook. The distance of the floats from the hooks can be adjusted depending on how deep you want your hook to sink into the water. Next the whole apparatus is attached to the rod which is then securely tied to the 6 cycles stacked nearby. We are ready to leave.
However, there is one last purchase to be made. Before entering the ‘fishing zone’ we need to make the dough. Stanley, the previous evening would have had already bought a small amount of ‘besan maau’ which we will mix with hot water borrowed from a tea shop that also sells porottas and potato bondas. Franky and Kingsley buys Porottas and bondas for the trip while Paul mixes the dough. It's already 11 by the time we cycle out to ‘the spot’.

‘The spot’ is located on the old Mysore road. The road long ago disappeared into the water. Motor vehicles are not allowed into this area and it is a protected area though film crews come here occasionally to shoot their famous romantic ‘tree dances’ and leave the residue of colour powder – velvet, yellow, green, red, mauve on the trees and the ground. The greenish water is divided into miles and our ‘spot’ is called the Fourth Mile. With the last few houses of Kandhal village disappearing, we now crawl under the checkpost that marks the beginning of protected jungle area. Sentinels of gnarled Eucalyptus trees greet us everywhere. We whoop in joy as we race each other down the slope on the remaining vestige of the British-tarred road. The nettles with yellow flowers that hug the edge of the road look on in silent disapproval at the unbridled joy we proclaim with our maniacal shouts.

The waters play hide and seek offering glimpses of themselves between the trees. We reach the place where we have to dismount and cross the stream carrying our cycles. Carefully we navigate the cycles over the rocks. It’s still a stream at this point and the waters aren’t that deep but who wants to become wet in that icy water. We are climbing now – carrying our cycles over a steep hillock. We pass an occasional trout-fisher staring intently at his float and we creep past in complete silence. We hurry to our ‘spot’ and Paul casts the first line while the others stack the bicycles. We make small balls with the dough and quickly spit on it and cast our lines and wait.

Fishing is a game in patience and if you aren’t patient you can get bored quickly. You need to sit there patiently and stare at your float till you feel that tug or see your float dip in and out and then completely disappear into the water. Sometimes you never see anything or feel any tug – at those times you can easily feel disheartened. Paul keeps encouraging us with a ‘beedi’ in his mouth. Sometimes everyone around you would be pulling in fish and not a single trout wants to have anything to do with your bait. At those times we exchange poles - with someone who has been having ‘all the luck’. Sometimes we would be catching fish so fast but most times we would sit there quietly staring at our floats, with the sun on our heads and the wind whistling through the weeping-willows, lost in our thoughts and the silence of the hills in front of us – till, with a shout of pure joy, someone pulls out - a trout glistening like the rainbow in the sunlight.