Listening and Speaking 4.

Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
Name: ______________________________________ Date: _____________

Mid-term Test Purposes

 Comprehend the main ideas and details in a listening passage (Listening)
 Review note-taking techniques from Units 1–4 (Note-taking Skill)
 Choose and use target vocabulary from Units 1–4 (Vocabulary)
 Identify inference in listening texts (Listening Skill)
 Match causes and effects in listening texts (Listening Skill)
 Identify linking sounds /w/ and /j/ in listening texts (Pronunciation Skill)
 Use suffixes to aid understanding of unfamiliar words (Vocabulary Skill)
 Use context clues to identify meaning (Vocabulary Skill)
 Choose and use phrases to give and support opinions (Speaking Skill)
 Choose and use the vocabulary of taking conversational turns (Speaking Skill)
 Use the grammatical forms from Units 1–4 (Grammar)
 Describe personal experiences, with examples, in response to interview questions

I. Listening
Learning objective: Comprehend the main ideas and details in a listening passage

In this section you will hear a talk about an organization that wants to reduce global food waste. You
will hear the talk twice. Choose the correct answer.

Imagine this. You’re at a busy shopping mall in Singapore. The central space of the mall is filled with
thousands of people. But they’re not shopping. They’re eating a delicious, free meal. Yes, that’s right …
free food for thousands of people! This really happened on March 25th, 2018, at an event called Feeding
The 5000. In fact, Feeding The 5000 is a regular series of feasts giving free meals to members of the
public. The really interesting part is that all the meals are cooked using food waste. In other words, 5000
people in City Square Mall were eating food that had been thrown away.

How was all this possible? Well, for several weeks before March 25th, volunteers contacted and visited
farms and supermarkets to obtain leftover fruit and vegetables. There is a lot of food waste if you know
where to look for it. And on March 25th, in another part of the mall, hundreds of volunteers cooked
vegetable curry and noodles.

There have been over 40 Feeding the 5000 events in cities around the world, from New York to Warsaw.
They were the idea of two friends: Tristram Stuart and Niki Charampopoulou. It all started when
Tristram, an English literature graduate, wrote a book about the history of being a vegetarian in 2006.
When he was completing his research for the book, Tristram was shocked by what he learned about
food waste around the world. So he decided to find out more. He went on to write another book called
Waste which was published in 2009, winning several awards. Later that year, Tristram and Niki
organized the first Feeding the 5000 event in London. Together they founded a charity designed to raise
awareness of food waste in all its forms.

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
Households produce food waste, but that is not the biggest problem. For example, large amounts of
land are used to grow food for farm animals. Forests are chopped down in order to grow soybeans for
animal food. Meanwhile, all farms lose around a quarter of their produce before it even leaves the field.
Mostly, this is due to problems like storage and refrigeration: the food simply goes bad before it reaches
the stores. Why, Tristram argues, can’t these two problems help each other out? Why can’t the animals
eat the food waste created by farms and homes?

All of this waste has a major financial impact, too. To give you just one example, in Singapore, overall it
is estimated that each household loses around 1400 Singaporean dollars per year because of the
country’s food waste.

Of course, supermarkets and so-called Big Food companies also have a role to play. Consider the issue of
“ugly” food. Supermarkets say that consumers demand perfect fruit and vegetables. But consumers can
only buy the products that are in the stores. We’re all involved in this crazy cycle where edible food is
thrown away because it is too bumpy, or too small, or a bit bruised. After all, an ugly apple tastes just as
good as a “perfect” apple.

Tristram Stuart, of Feeding the 5000, says that his hobby is unofficial inspection of dumpsters around
the world—in other words, looking in the trash areas outside supermarkets and factories. Most
supermarket dumpsters, he says, contain perfectly good food. And higher up the food packaging
process, the amount of waste increases further. Have you ever had a sandwich from a café or a
supermarket that used the crust—the end section of a loaf of bread? I expect the answer for everyone
listening is “no”. In one industrial unit in Britain, Tristram found 13,000 crusts of bread created as waste
during a normal day’s work at a sandwich company.

Finally, it’s important to remember that the beginnings of food waste were a sign of human success.
Humans are great farmers. In many developed countries, like Japan and the USA, there is so much food
that the entire population is protected from hunger many times over. But our success story has gone
wrong. We cut down forests to grow food when we already have enough. And yet there are over a
million people in the world who are hungry today. It’s time to make a change.

1. What were the 5,000 people in the shopping mall eating?

A. free bread
B. free meals
C. free fruit and vegetables
Answer: B
“They’re eating a delicious, free meal.” Also, early on in the audio we learn that they are eating curry
and noodles. NB This is a gist question which could be answered on a first listening.

2. Before March 25th, what did the volunteers do to prepare for the event?
A. The volunteers found free ingredients at farms and supermarkets.
B. The volunteers cooked for the 5,000 people.
C. The volunteers educated local farmers and shops about food waste.
Answer: A

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
Students will need to listen to time markers for this question. Option B happened on March 25th. Option
A happened before March 25th and is the correct answer. Option C is, in fact, true but is not mentioned
in the audio.

3. Why did Tristram Stuart become interested in food waste?

A. Because his friend, Niki, told him about it.
B. Because he became a vegetarian.
C. Because he was researching a book.
Answer: C
“When he was completing his research for the book, Tristram was shocked by what he learned about
food waste around the world. So he decided to find out more.” NB This question uses the language of
cause and effect.

4. When did Tristram and Niki organize the first Feed The 5000 event?
A. 2006
B. 2009
C. 2018
Answer: B
Students need to listen for time markers. Stuart’s second book was published in 2009 and the first Feed
the 5000 event took place “Later that year”.

5. According to Tristram, which of the following would solve two problems?

A. Farm animals should eat food waste instead of soybeans.
B. Farms should build better storage.
C. Farms should stop cutting down forests and grow more soybeans.
Answer: A
The two complementary problems explained in this section are food waste and animal fodder: “Why
can’t the animals eat the food waste created by farms and homes?”

6. What is the effect of Singapore’s food waste on households?

A. Water problems are becoming more common.
B. Around a quarter of all food is lost.
C. Each home loses around S$1400 per year.
Answer: C
“…each household loses around 1400 Singaporean dollars per year because of the country’s food
waste.”

7. According to the lecturer, who is responsible for the problem of “ugly” fruit and vegetables?
A. supermarkets, food companies, and consumers
B. supermarkets and farmers
C. consumers only
Answer: A
The lecturer explains the role of supermarkets, food companies, and consumers in this problem: “We’re
all involved in this crazy cycle.” NB This is a gist question which could be answered on a first listening.

8. What is Tristram’s hobby?

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
A. Eating food normally given to farm animals.
B. Eating food from supermarket trash areas.
C. Checking trash areas to see what is being thrown away.
Answer: C
Students may be interested to know that Stuart has advocated all three of these actions. Only Option C
is explained in this audio: “looking in the trash areas outside supermarkets and factories”.

9. What does the sandwich example show us?

A. Supermarkets create more bread waste than cafés.
B. Even a simple sandwich from a shop can create huge amounts of waste.
C. People can reduce food waste by buying bread from bakeries not supermarkets.
Answer: B
Options A and C are too specific for the information provided. Option B is correct: “13,000 crusts of
bread created as waste during a normal day’s work at a sandwich company.”

10. What is lecturer’s opinion on farming?

A. Farming in the USA and Japan causes the destruction of forests in other countries.
B. Farming is a human success story that has gone wrong.
C. Farming techniques need to change more quickly than they are today.
Answer: B
“Humans are great farmers. […] But our success story has gone wrong.”

II. Note-taking skills

Learning objective: Review note-taking techniques from Units 1–4
Read the statements. Write T (true) or F (false).

11. ___ A summary is a shorter version of the main text that leaves out some of the main ideas.
12. ___ Putting key ideas in your own words will help you to remember them.
13. ___ The same words and phrases are used to introduce causes and effects.
14. ___ An H-chart is a good way to record causes and effects.
15. ___ Organize key events into the correct order after you have noted them down.
16. ___ Mind maps are helpful for organizing several different topic areas.

Answers: 11. F, 12. T, 13. F, 14. F, 15. T, 16. F

III. Vocabulary
Learning objective: Choose and use target vocabulary from Units 1–4

A. Complete the sentences with the correct nouns from the word bank. There are three nouns that
you don’t need.

claim degree mystery reaction resource risk taste trait wage

17. This sports hall is an excellent __________ for our students.

18. What do you think of his _________ that most phones are designed to stop working after two years?

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
19. Today, phones are so thin that there’s a __________ they’ll break more easily.
20. The site knew my __________ in holidays and showed me ads for adventure travel breaks.
21. When we saw the mess, our __________ was mostly one of shock.
22. Our employees earn a high __________, but the work is demanding.

Answers: 17. resource, 18. claim, 19. risk, 20. taste, 21. reaction, 22. wage

B. Complete the sentences. Choose A, B, or C.

23. It is difficult to __________ with unemployment, unless you have financial savings.
A. struggle B. cope C. quit

24. We __________ and bought the children new bikes.

A. formed an impression B. gave in C. put together

25. I __________ you two already know each other.

A. assume B. assess C. account for

26. Superhero films have an enormous __________ audience.

A. rare B. informed C. worldwide

27. Portchester __________ why coastal towns in this region are so popular with tourists.
A. illustrates B. concentrates C. regulates

28. You didn’t answer, so I __________ that you weren’t interested.

A. introduced B. criticized C. inferred

Answers: 23. B, 24. B, 25. A, 26. C, 27. A, 28. C.

IV. Listening Skill: Listening for inference and causes/effects

Learning objective: Identify inference in listening texts

29. Oh no! Jacinda left her sunglasses! Can you give them to her when you see her tomorrow?
30. Milos came into the meeting room wearing an extraordinary orange tie and green jacket. He looked
like a carrot!
31. I know that last hotel had a lovely view, but this one is cheaper and closer to the train station.
32. Excuse me, but would you mind turning your music down? My baby is asleep.

A. Listen to the speakers. Choose the correct description of the speakers’ opinion.

29.
A. Jacinda often forgets things.
B. The speaker will not see Jacinda tomorrow.
Answer: B

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
The speaker does not imply any prior examples of Jacinda leaving things behind. We can infer option B
because otherwise the speaker would pass them on personally.

30.
A. The speaker did not approve of Milos’ clothes.
B. No one in the meeting approved of Milos’ clothes.
Answer: A
We can only infer option A. Although the speaker uses fairly general terms (no use of the first person)
we cannot infer other people’s opinions from these opinionated remarks.

31.
A. They have not decided which hotel to book yet.
B. The speaker does not think a lovely view from the hotel is important.
Answer: A
The speaker clearly thinks the price and location are more important than the view in this instance, but
not necessarily in all cases. We can infer option A because no conclusion is drawn about the hotels. The
speaker is inviting further discussion.

32.
A. The speaker does not like the music that is playing.
B. The speaker does not know the person she is talking to.
Answer: B
The speaker uses formal language from which we can infer option B. We can only tell that the speaker
dislikes the volume of the music—so option A is too general.

Learning objective: Match causes and effects in listening texts

B. Listen to four people who have changed the way they shop for food. Match the speaker to the
correct cause. Write the letter. There are three causes that you don’t need.

33. I recently changed the food I buy because I want my kids to have a healthier lifestyle. They were
eating too many cookies and potato chips.
34. Food waste leads to destruction of our forests and to pollution. I want to stop our damage of the
planet. That’s why nowadays I always write a shopping list before I shop.
35. A couple of months ago I started shopping twice a week at my local market. I needed to lower my
cholesterol, so I decided to eat more fresh produce. The market’s great for fresh fruit and vegetables.
36. Last month a new bakery opened just down the street from my office. It’s good to see an
independent store trying to compete with the big cafés, so I decided to buy my lunch there every day.

33. Speaker 1 ___

34. Speaker 2 ___
35. Speaker 3 ___
36. Speaker 4 ___

A. To follow a special diet

B. To avoid supermarkets

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
C. To save money
D. To cut down on junk food
E. To protect the environment
F. To help other people
G. To support a local business

Answers: 33. D, 34. E, 35. A, 36. G

V. Pronunciation Skills: Listening for /w/ and /j/ sounds, and intonation

Learning objective: Identify linking sounds /w/ and /j/ in listening texts

A. Listen to the sentences. Which linking sound do you hear: /w/ or /j/ ?

37. Who is going to finish this bread?

38. Shall we go over to that table by the window?
39. I actually don’t eat meat.

37.
A. /w/
B. /j/
Answer: A
The initial vowel in is follows the /uː/ in who, so a /w/ is used.

38.
A. /w/
B. /j/
Answer: A
The initial vowel in over follows /əʊ/ in go, so a /w/ is used.

39.
A. /w/
B. /j/
Answer: B
The initial vowel in actually follows /aɪ/ in I, so a /j/ is used.

VI. Vocabulary Skill: Suffixes and context clues

Learning objective: Use suffixes to aid understanding of unfamiliar words

A. Complete the sentences. Choose A, B, or C.

43. The farming industry has too much __________ on chemicals.

A. rely
B. reliance

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
C. reliable

44. The details of this meeting are highly __________ . You cannot tell anyone what you hear today.
A. confide
B. confidence
C. confidential

45. We had a __________ conversation about nano particles. She had some very interesting ideas.
A. stimulate
B. stimulating
C. stimulation

46. Please can you help me __________ this bottle cap?

A. tighten
B. tightly
C. tightness

Answers: 43. B, 44. C, 45. B, 46. A

Learning objective: Use context clues to identify meaning

B. Match the underlined words to the definitions. There are four definitions that you don’t need.

47. The manager’s argument was completely specious. He only wanted to protect himself.
48. Josh and Harvey don’t really get on. But at least they’re civil to each other during classes. They only
argue when there are no teachers around.
49. Carlotta has some off-the-wall ideas about studying. Did you know she studies for each of her
subjects in a different place? She does all her history work in the bathroom!
50. The machine was idle between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.

A. aggressive D. tedious F. untrue but H. handsome

B. polite E. strange sounds convincing
C. not being used G. broken

47. ___ 48. ___ 49. ___ 50. ___

Answers: 47. F, 48. B, 49. E, 50. C

VII. Speaking Skill: Supporting opinions and taking turns

Learning objective: Choose and use phrases to give and support opinions
A. Complete the sentences with the correct items from the word bank. There are three items that you
don’t need.

as As far as I’m concerned, For example, I don’t think My opinion That’s your view therefore

Jo: This bread is getting a bit old. I’m putting it in the trash.

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
Madison: Wait! (51) _____ we should throw it away. Let’s use it instead. (52) _____ we could make
some breadcrumbs or some panzanella.
Jo: (53) _____ Madison, that’s a lot of effort for some old bread. I’m putting it in the food waste
bin—it’s not an environmental disaster.
Madison: Well personally, (54) _____ it’s still edible, I think we should eat it.
Jo: Oh, OK, have it your way. What is panzanella anyway?

Answers: 51. I don’t think, 52. For example, 53. As far as I’m concerned, 54. as

Learning objective: Choose and use the vocabulary of taking conversational turns

B. Complete the conversation. Write one word only in each gap.

Ross: Some people say that soy companies are like the oil companies of the twenty-first century.
Do you (55) ______ ?
Ish: I don’t think that comparison is helpful. We should focus on solutions, not argue about
describing the problem. You (56) ______ ?
Ross: Yes, you’re right. I’d like to see better labeling on meat products. The labels could tell us, for
example, if the chicken ate soy or a more varied diet. (57) ______ do you think?
Ish: Hmm. Yes. But I never check the label on the meat I buy. How (58) ______ you?
Ross: Oh yes. I check to see what country the meat is from. I only buy meat from here in New
Zealand.

Answers: 55. agree, 56. know, 57. What, 58. about

VIII. Grammar Revision

Learning objective: Use the grammatical forms from Units 1–4.

A
1 takes
2 I prefer
3 Are you watching
4 I don’t usually have
5 isn’t working
6 we often cycle

B
1 Did you remember
2 Have you ever borrowed
3 has / ’s just gone
4 fell
5 have / ’ve broken
6 have you known
7 met

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
C
1 have you been saving up
2 been learning
3 been planning
4 known
5 been crying
6 disliked
7 had

D
1 the most modern
2 the quickest
3 as expensive
4 more economical
5 better
6 as tiny
7 the worst
8 more slowly

E
1 could / was able to
2 can’t / won’t be able to
3 to be able to
4 couldn’t
5 can
6 Can / Could
7 been able to
8 can’t
9 be able to
10 has been able to

F
1 have to
2 shouldn’t
3 should
4 mustn’t
5 don’t have to
6 ’ll have to
7 must / should
8 don’t have to
9 must / have to
10 have to

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
G
1 were studying, met
2 was getting
3 won
4 ordered
5 were winning
6 was thinking, rang
7 said

H
1 used to watch
2 used to be
3 usually goes
4 Did you use to work
5 used to play
6 didn’t use to like
7 usually eats
8 isn’t usually

I
1 must
2 can’t
3 might
4 can’t
5 might
6 must
7 must
8 can’t

1a
2 the
3 The
4 the
5 the
6a
7 the
8 an
9 the
10 –

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 Listening and Speaking 4. Midterm Test
Teacher’s Assessment Guide
11 a
12 –

IX. Speaking
Learning objective: Describe personal experiences, with examples, in response to interview questions

You are going to interview your partner about their food shopping habits. Then swap roles.

You will be given a list of questions to ask and answer.

 Describe your own experiences and opinions. You could include financial, environmental, or
health-related ideas.
 Give examples where possible.

Make notes to prepare for the interview. Each half of the interview will last for 3–4 minutes.

Preparation:
Give students time to prepare for their role as interviewee and interviewer. Distribute the following list
of questions.

Student A Student B
Ask these questions to your partner: Answer these questions:
 What kinds of food shops do you use?  What kinds of food shops do you use?
 How do you travel to the shops?  How do you travel to the shops?
 How much food packaging waste do you  How much food packaging waste do you
create in your kitchen? Is this create in your kitchen? Is this
good/bad/OK? good/bad/OK?

Answer these questions: Ask these questions to your partner:

 What kinds of food shops do you use?  What kinds of food shops do you use?
 How often do you eat out?  How often do you eat out?
 How much food waste do you create in  How much food waste do you create in
your kitchen? Is this good/bad/OK? your kitchen? Is this good/bad/OK?

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