LISTENING: (2.5 pts)

PART 1: For question 1 to 5, listen to an interview about Halloween. Decide if the following sentences are true (T) or false (F). You will listen TWICE.

Question 1. Minh is helping his classmates make a Halloween haunted house.
A. False
B. True

Question 2. Halloween is celebrated at the New Era Secondary School in Ha Noi once a year.
A. False
B. True

Question 3. Halloween is believed to originate from an ancient festival in England.
A. True
B. False

Question 4. Mai thinks that wearing scary costumes and the Halloween custom of trick or treating are childish.
A. True
B. False

Question 5. Mai worries that Vietnamese culture will be ruined by international festivals.
A. False
B. True

PART 2: For questions 6 – 10, listen to the life story about Nellie Bly, an American journalist. And then, choose the best option among A, B, C or D. You will listen TWICE.

Question 6. Where and when was Nellie Bly born?
A. in 1864 in Pennsylvania
B. in 1885 in Pennsylvania
C. in 1864 in New York
D. in 1885 in New York

Question 7. What was the name of the article which she wrote an angry response to?
A. the Pittsburgh Dispatch.
B. the United States.
C. What Girls Are Good For.
D. Elizabeth Jane Cochran.

Question 8. Why was Nellie rejected from jobs after leaving the Pittsburgh Dispatch?
A. Because newspapers wouldn’t hire a woman.
B. Because she argued that not all women needed to get married.
C. Because she wanted to have better opportunities.
D. Because she finally got a job at the New York World.

Question 9. Which is NOT MENTIONED as an impact of her report about a mental asylum?
A. most of difficult issues she wrote in the report are in support of women’s lives.
B. Her report exposed the asylum’s conditions.
C. The mental asylum was forced to improve its patient care.
D. She pretended to be mentally unwell.

Question 10. When did she complete the trip around the world?
A. At the age of 57.
B. In 1889.
C. After 72 days.
D. In 1922.

LANGUAGE: (2.5 pts)

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word which has the underlined part pronounced differently from the others

Question 11.
A. group
B. pound
C. sound
D. proud

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the word that differs from the other three in the position of the primary stress

Question 12.
A. enemy
B. achievement
C. resistance
D. impression

Mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the following questions

Question 13. From a young age, she was determined to _______ her youth and whole life to the preservation of endangered species.
A. direct
B. expose
C. devote
D. open

Question 14. Students should learn as much as they can about the new culture, _______ will help them avoid culture shock in different situations.
A. who
B. which
C. whose
D. that

Question 15. The documentary highlighted his _______ genius as it followed his journey from a young talent to a world-renowned artist.
A. creative
B. creation
C. creativity
D. create

Question 16. While the band _______ on the stage, the fans _______ along.
A. was performing – have sung
B. was performing – were singing
C. performed – sang
D. performed – were singing

Question 17. Dang Thuy Tram’s diary _______ a lot of interesting information about the life and career of heroine Dang Thuy Tram.
A. takes up
B. brings up
C. consists of
D. thinks of

Question 18. The Trung Sisters, who were military leaders more than 2,000 years ago, are considered national _______ of Viet Nam.
A. heroes
B. geniuses
C. youths
D. scientists

Question 19. Marie Curie was admired _______ her achievements in physics and chemistry.
A. with
B. of
C. for
D. by

Mark the letter A, B, C, or D to indicate the word(s) CLOSEST in meaning to the underlined word(s) in each of the following questions.

Question 20. Mark Zuckerberg attended Harvard University, but never completed his degree.
A. resigned
B. studied at
C. graduated from
D. worked at

READING: (2.5 pts)

PART 1: Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet to choose the word or phrase that best fits each other numbered blanks.

THE BORYEONG MUD FESTIVAL

The Boryeong Mud Festival is an annual festival which (21) _______ place during the summer in Boryeong, a town around 200 km south of Seoul, South Korea. The first Mud Festival was staged in 1998 and, by 2007, the festival (22) _______ 2.2 million visitors to Boryeong.

The mud is taken from the Boryeong mud flats, and trucked to the Daecheon beach area, where it is used as the centrepiece of the ‘Mud Experience Land’. The mud is considered rich (23) _______ minerals and used to manufacture cosmetics. The festival was originally conceived as a marketing vehicle for Boryeong mud cosmetics and other cosmetic brands.

(24) _______ the festival occurs over a period of around two weeks, it is most famous for its final weekend, (25) _______ is popular with Korea’s western population. The final weekend of the festival is normally on the second weekend in July.

Question 21.
A. gets
B. takes
C. has
D. makes

Question 22.
A. captivatingly
B. captivation
C. captivating
D. captivated

Question 23.
A. with
B. of
C. at
D. in

Question 24.
A. Although
B. Because
C. Despite
D. Due to

Question 25.
A. which
B. whom
C. that
D. when

PART 2: 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.

Elon Musk was born on June 28, 1971, in Pretoria, South Africa. From a young age, he showed his interest in technology and taught himself computer programming at the age of 12. He also sold his first software, a video game called Blastar, at the age of 12.

While he was attending Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada in 1995, he was already thinking about his next steps. When he transferred to the University of Pennsylvania, where he was earning degrees in both economics and physics, Musk continued to explore his passions. After completing his studies, Musk moved to California to pursue a Ph.D. in energy physics at Stanford University. However, he dropped out after just two days to pursue his ambition.

Musk’s first major success came with the creation of Zip2, a software company that provided business directories and maps for newspapers. In 1999, he co-founded X.com, an online payment company that later became PayPal. While PayPal was developing well, Musk was already setting his sights on the next project: space exploration. In 2004, Musk founded SpaceX (Space Exploration Technologies Corp.), with the goal of reducing space transportation costs and enabling the colonization of Mars. Musk is also the CEO and lead designer of Tesla, Inc., an electric vehicle and clean energy company.

Elon Musk’s ambitious vision for the future, together with his strong determination, has made him one of the most influential figures in technology and innovation.

Question 26. What is the best title for the passage?
A. Elon Musk’s Journey in the Automotive Industry
B. Elon Musk’s Contribution to Space Exploration
C. The Rise of Tesla in the Modern Era
D. The Life and Career of Elon Musk

Question 27. The word “ambition” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to _______.
A. desire
B. success
C. failure
D. achievement

Question 28. The word “that” in paragraph 3 refers to _______.
A. X.com
B. Elon Musk
C. newspapers
D. directories

Question 29. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Musk’s goal with SpaceX is to reduce space transportation costs.
B. Elon Musk sold his first software at the age of 12.
C. Musk co-founded X.com, which later became PayPal.
D. Musk completed his Ph.D. at Stanford University.

Question 30. According to the passage, what was Musk’s first major success in business?
A. Creating Zip2
B. Founding SpaceX
C. Selling PayPal
D. Becoming CEO of Tesla

WRITING: (2.5 pts)

PART 1: Mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the underlined part that needs correction in each of the following questions. (0.5 pt.)

Question 31. While my brother was studying in the room, someone played the piano next door.
A. played
B. the
C. While
D. was studying

Question 32. Brazil is home to a largest population in Latin America, of more than 215 million people.
A. a
B. more than
C. home
D. in

PART 2: Finish each of the following sentences in such a way that it means the same as the sentence printed before it. (0.5 pt.)

Question 33. My mother came home in the middle of my sleep.
→ When _________________________________________________________________

Question 34. My father didn’t finish secondary school because of the war. (Rewrite the sentence by using the verb with OUT)
→ My father ______________________________________________________________

PART 3: Combine the two sentences as directed in brackets. Write your answers on your answer sheet. (0.5 pt.)

Question 35: People today put advertisements on TV. This makes it possible to produce more things to sell. (Using “Which” as a connector)
→ ____________________________________________________________________

Question 36: They were visiting some poor villages. At that time, they decided to help build a community centre for young children. (Using “While”)
→ ____________________________________________________________________

PART 4: Write an opinion essay (120 – 150 words) on the following topic. Use the outline below to help you. (1.0 pt)

Nowadays, more and more young Vietnamese people celebrate festivals such as Christmas and Halloween. Some people think there is nothing wrong with this while others are worried about the influence of foreign cultures. What is your opinion?

Outline:

• Nowadays, more and more young people…. In my opinion, this has positive/negative impact on young Vietnamese people.
• Firstly,…
• Secondly,…
• Finally,…
• In conclusion,…

Đáp Án

Thầy Võ Văn Ngọc

(Người kiểm duyệt, ra đề)

Chức vụ: Trưởng ban biên soạn môn Tiếng Anh THPT

Trình độ: Cử nhân Sư phạm Tiếng Anh, IELTS 6.0, Chứng chỉ hạng II, Chứng chỉ E-learning

Kinh nghiệm: 8+ năm kinh nghiệm tại Trường THPT Trưng Vương