CCHY 2023 Prelims

Name: Class: Register Number: PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION 2023 SECONDARY 4 ENGLISH LANGUAGE 1184/02 Paper 2 Comprehension Friday 25 August 2023 INSERT 1 hour 50 minutes READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST This Insert contains Text 1, Text 2, Text 3 and Text 4. This document consists of 6 printed pages. [Turn over

2 2023 Preliminary Examination/CCHMS/Secondary 4/English Language/1184/02 Section A Study the online poster (Text 1) and the social media post (Text 2) and answer Questions 1–4 in the Question Paper. Text 1 is taken from an online campaign poster on animal abuse. Text 2 is taken from a social media post on animal abuse. We've been sharing this planet with animals for centuries, but animal cruelty is still a brutal reality . It absolutely shatters my heart to witness the alarming rise in animal cruelty incidents. Our beloved pets, our furry companions, depend on us completely. They trust us with their lives, and it's devastating to admit that sometimes our carelessness leads to acts of cruelty. Whether we unintentionally delay their meals or ignore their cries of pain, it's unacceptable! Animals are being beaten and starved every day and die each year because of heartless owners. They are at the mercy of humans.

3 2023 Preliminary Examination/CCHMS/Secondary 4/English Language/1184/02 [Turn over Section B Text 3 The text below describes the writer and his party of companions, which includes Ollendorff and Ballou, on their horses, as they struggle to reach Carson City in the snow. Read the text carefully and answer Questions 5–16 in the Question Paper. 1 The next morning it was still snowing furiously. The wind howled like a pack of wolves, whipping the snow into a frenzy. We mounted the horses and started. The snow lay so deep on the ground that there was no sign of a road perceptible, and the snowfall was so thick that we could not see more than a hundred metres ahead, else we could have charted our course by the mountain ranges. The trail looked dubious, but Ollendorff said his instinct was as sensitive as any compass, and that he could “strike a beeline” for Carson City* and never diverge from it . He asserted that if he were to deviate even slightly from the correct path , his instinct would assail him like a relentless storm, sweeping away all doubts and hesitation. Consequently, we followed him, feeling happy and content. For half an hour, we plodded along before we found somebody’s tracks that we thought would lead the way for us without any trouble. “Let’s hurry up and join company with the party.” I exclaimed. 5 10 2 3 4 Before long, it was evident that we were gaining on our predecessors, for the tracks grew more distinct. We hurried along, and at the end of an hour the tracks still looked new and fresh — but what surprised us was that the number of travellers ahead of us seemed to steadily increase. We wondered how so large a party came to be trave lling at such a time and in such solitude. However, the tracks still multiplied. Ballou stopped his horse and said, “Boys, these are our own tracks, and we’ve been circling round for more than two hours!” Then he called Ollendorff all manner of hard names and ended with the exceptionally hostile opinion that he lacked knowledge. We certainly had been following our own tracks. Ollendorff and his “mental compass” fell into disgrace. We seemed to be on a road, but th ere was no proof. We seemed to be walking off in various directions — the regular snow-mounds and the regular avenues between them had convinced each man that he had found the true road. Clearly, the situation was desperate. We were freezing and stiff, and the horses’ once proud gallop was now reduced to a languid trot. If we were wandering from the right road and the snowstorm continued another day, our situation would be next to hopeless if we kept on. 15 20 25 5 We decided to build a campfire and camp out till morning . All agreed that a campfire was what would come nearest to saving us now and so we set about building it. We could find no matches, and so we tried to improvise with the pistols. We huddled together on our knees in the deep snow, and the horses put their noses together and bowed their patient heads over us. While the feathery flakes swirled around and turned us into white statues, we proceeded with the momentous experiment. We broke twigs from a bush and piled them on. All was ready. 30 35 * the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada.

4 2023 Preliminary Examination/CCHMS/Secondary 4/English Language/1184/02 6 As conversation ceased and our pulses beat low with anxious suspense, Ollendorff positioned his pistol, pulled the trigger, and scattered the pile all over! It was the flattest failure that ever was . This was distressing, but it paled before a greater horror — the horses were gone! I had been appointed to hold the bridles, but in my absorbing anxiety over the pistol experiment, I had unconsciously dropped them, and the released animals had walked off in the storm. Their footfalls made no sound, and one could pass within two metres of the creatures and n ot see them. We gave them up without an effort at recovering them and cursed the manuals that said horses would stay by their masters for protection and companionship in a distressful time like ours. 40

5 2023 Preliminary Examination/CCHMS/Secondary 4/English Language/1184/02 [Turn over Section C Text 4 In the article below, the writer compares the traditional strict Chinese parenting style to a more liberal Western approach. Read the article carefully and answer Questions 17–26 in the Question Paper. 1 2 3 4 A lot of people wonder how Chinese parents raise such stereotypically successful children. They wonder what these parents do to produce so many math whizzes and music prodigies, and above all, whether they could do it too. Amy Chua, author of a book Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother tells them that she has done it. She said, “My daughters were never allowed to a sleepover, watch television or play computer game, get any grade less than an ‘A’ and play any instrument other than the piano or violin.” Despite our squeamishness about cultural stereotypes, there are tons of studies out there showing marked differences between Chinese and Westerners when it comes to parenting. To the Chinese, to excel in something, one must work hard. Chinese parents must control the desires of children. This is why it is crucial to override their preference. This often requires fortitude on the part of the parents because the child will resist; things are always hardest at the beginning. Tenacious practice is crucial for excellence. Rote repetition is underrated in America. Regrettably, as a consequence of their preoccupation with attaining success, there is a possibility that creativity and independent thinking may be overlooked. Once the child starts to excel at something - whether it is math or pian o – it should be followed by praise, admiration, and satisfa ction. In essence, social recognition is attained by accomplishing something noteworthy. On the other hand , Western parents argue that by directing the important aspects of the child’s life, it stifles the child’s individuality. Children are led to disastrously conclude that they need to impress, rather than befriend, the individuals around them to gain social acceptance and inclusion. Most Western parents are anxious about their children's self -esteem, worrying about how their children will feel if they fail at something. They constantly try to reassure their childr