THE MOROCCAN BACCALAUREATE ENGLISH EXAM

THE MOROCCAN BACCALAUREATE ENGLISH EXAM

For Geordie lad who used to help his dad with his milk round, he’s achieved more than he ever thought possible. But in spite of his phenomenal success as a musician and actor, he’s only just coming to terms with his childhood…

Sting recalls life with his parents. "They were very smart. In another era they could have gone to university, done well. But when I’d see things on television as a kid-like people skiing, flying, the good life – I’d ask them about it and they’d say it was for posh people. We were the wrong class. Not that there’s anything wrong with being working class. But there is something wrong with being poor. I’ve been poor and I never want to be poor again. I was given the means to escape, though – by education, having a talent and a desire to leave – and that sets up all kinds of pressure within a family, knowing that someone wants to break out. It started for me when I passed my primary school exam, travelled into town to the posh grammar school, wore a uniform, left my friends behind."

He helped his father on his milk round…" Picking up the empty bottles was my speciality," he remembers. "I had big hands and could carry 10 at a time. We ran from house to house, just to get it done in live or six hours and be back for breakfast."

But he was still looking for some recognition. "Dad had a couple of older kids working with him, too, and I always felt that they were his favourites. I was just the son; I had to fight for acceptance. It was typical of his generation. You didn’t show your feelings; you didn’t even hug your children, I saw that and grew up thinking it was the proper way to behave. Now I’ve forced myself to go the other way with my kids and my friends. I hug them all now. I didn’t use to show affection for my mother, but luckily, before she died, I learned how to. It’s such a simple idea, touching people."

"I wasn’t aware of what was going on at the time, of course, but I’m sure my ambition was to get noticed by my father. I remember going home with the county junior sports trophy – you know, ‘look what I’ve won! ‘– and he said, ‘yeah? and looked out the window."

When asked about his birthplace, Sting says: "The truth is. I’m fiercely proud of coming from Newcastle. All the same, I still say it wasn’t a great place to grow up. Basically, it’s a love-hate relationship I have."

One of the questions he’s been asked most often is: Where’s the Geordie accent gone?" His answer is totally honest: "I realised very young that the guy reading the news wasn’t speaking Geordie. The key to power and success had to mean changing the way I spoke."

I- COMPREHENSION:

BASE ALL YOUR ANSWERS ON THE TEXT

A/ ARE THESE SENTENCES TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY:

1. As a child Sting had no access to TV

…………………………………………………………

2. Sting's father treated his son and his assistants equally.

…………………………………………………………

B/ ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS:

1.Why was Sting trying to be the best?

…………………………………………………………

2.How did Sting’s relationship with his mother change?

…………………………………………………………

3.What elements made it easy for Sting to change his condition?

…………………………………………………………

C/ FIND IN THE TEXT WORDS OR EXPRESSIONS THAT MEAN THE SAME AS:

1.remembers (paragraph 2): ………………………

2.High-class (paragraph 2): ……………………….

3.Put one’s arms round someone (paragraph 4): ……………………….

4.A cup given as a prize (paragraph 5): ……………………….

D/ PICK OUT FROM THE TEXT SENTENCES OR EXPRESSIONS WHICH SHOW THAT:

1.Sting’s attempt to change his condition was not well accepted by his family.

……………………………………………………………..

2.Sting’s father’s behaviour was not different from that of other parents.

……………………………………………………………..

3.Keeping his local accent would have made it difficult for Sting to succeed.

……………………………………………………………..

E/ WHAT DO THE UNDERLINED WORDS IN THE TEXT REFER TO? ( WORDS IN BOLD TYPE AND ITALICS )

1. They (paragraph 2): ……………………….

2. It (paragraph 2): …………………………

3.10 (paragraph 3): …………………………..

II- LANGUAGE:

A/ FILL IN THE BLANKS WITH THE APPROPRIATE WORDS FROM THE LIST:

during – consequently – because – specially - apart from – as a result – despite - whereas-

1. The injured man died ________________all the doctor’s efforts.

2. All the students passed the final exam ___________Ahmed who was never expected to fail.

3. A number of soldiers were seriously wounded ________a sudden aircraft attack.

renowned – launched – reflected – appointed – financed – stimulated – elected- adjusted

4. The Prime Minister is ________________by the King.

5. The first commercial satellite was ___________in 1965.

6. Not all TV channels are ____________by governments nowadays.

B/ WHAT DO YOU SAY IN THE FOLLOWING SITUATIONS?

1.Students: "Do we have to do all the exercises in this chapter?"

You: (Expresses lack of obligation) ……………………….

2.Your friend: "How about spending next weekend with my uncle in the countryside?"

You: (Refuse the invitation and give a reason) …………………

C/ GIVE THE CORRECT FORM OF THE WORDS BETWEEN BRACJETS:

1. I never count on him. He is (rely) _______________

2. Said Naciri amused the audience with his exciting (perform) ___________

3. "We should put an end to rain forest (destroy) __________" an environmentalist

said.

4. To get a job in a multinational company, you must be well-qualified (energy) ___________

5. The government should encourage (skill) ________carpenters to promote traditional arts.

D/ REWRITE THE SENSENCES BEGINNING WITH THE WORDS GIVEN:

1."Our parliament representative is honest and hardworking," people said.

People described their parliament representative …………………..

2.A very sophisticated mobile phone is very expensive.

The ……………………………., the ………………………………

3.I couldn’t get in touch because I didn’t have your phone number.

If ………………………………………….

4.He ran very fast. However, he couldn’t catch the bus.

No mater …………………………………

5.I t was wrong of them to hide the truth.

They shouldn’t…………………………..

III- WRITING

A meeting has been arranged to discuss ways of making your town, or village, more attractive. You know what is wrong with your town or village and you have some ides about how to improve the look of it.

Write an article to be published in your local newspaper about what you intend to do.