2023 TKSS PRELIM P2 MS

CANDIDATE NAME CLASS INDEX NUMBER ENGLISH LANGUAGE 1184/02 Paper 2 Comprehension 11 August 2023 1 hour 50 minutes Candidates answer on the Question Paper Booklet. Additional Materials: Insert READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST Write your Centre number, index number and name in the spaces at the top of this page. Write in dark blue or black ballpoint pen. Do not use staples, paper clips, glue, correction fluid/tape or highlighters. Answer all questions. Write your answers in the spaces provided on the Question Paper. The Insert contains the texts for all the sections. The number of marks is given in brackets [ ] at the end of each question or part question. Sections A & B Mark Scheme Prepared by Chng Woei Ling TANJONG KATONG SECONDARY SCHOOL Preliminary Examination 2023 Secondary 4

2 Section A [5 marks] Refer the online advertisement (Text 1) and the social media post (Text 2) on page 2 of the Insert for Questions 1 – 4. 1 Look at Text 1. Tick (✓) the most effective title for the image in this advertisement.  No place for ageism at work ☐ An inclusive society, Our priority ☐ Equal worth, Equal respect [1] Two-thirds of the candidates chose the correct option. It is worrying that almost a third of the candidates chose the two other wrong options. Candidates need to unpack the image carefully. The image show s two old people holding cards with words showing discrimination at the workplace. It is clear that they are discriminated for being old. The image is further explained by the second paragraph of Text 1. In the third paragraph, there is a call for action to end workplace discrimination. Options ‘ An inclusive society, Our pr iority’ and ‘ Equal worth, Equal respect ’ are overarching and generic aims of the TAFEP. 2 The advertisement states that ‘it could happen to your parents or grandparents too’. What effect is this intended to have on the reader? It is to create empathy/concern or personal relevance for the reader so that he or she will support the fight against ageism at the workplace too. [1] Only the stronger candidates were able to gain the mark for this question. This is a more challenging question as the candidates must identify the emotion evoked or impact on the reader before linking it to the action the writer wants the reader to take . Majority of the candidates simply skipped to the action required of the reader without explaining the effect of the sentence. Others were inaccurate in identifying the impact of the sentence. Accepted alternatives for creating empathy or personal relevance: makes reader feel personally involved, emotionally invested, relate to the problem Inaccurate explanations which are not accepted include: make reader feel emotional, warn/alert/shock/anger the reader, make the reader feel compelled/obliged to take action, make reader realise the severity of the situation, show how serious the issue is, make reader feel a sense of urgency, make reader feel a part of the discrimination, create relations with the reader, sentence is intended to relate to the reader, get reader to understand the relevance of the issue Generic explanations which are not accepted: get reader’s attention, get reader to take action 3 Identify a word in Text 2 which reflects the experience in Text 1 of facing ‘discrimination’. The word is ‘prejudice’. [1] Sadly, a significant number of candidates lost the mark for this straightforward question. They fell for the distractors ‘injustice’ and ‘indignities’ which are less specific terms which may not include the idea of treating different categories of people, especially based on preconceived notions due to their ethnicity, age, sex, or disability etc. ‘Injustice’ means a situation in which there is no fairness ‘Indignities’ means something that causes a loss of respect for someone or for yourself A small handful of candidates did not read the question carefully and chose the word ‘bias’ which is found in Text 1 instead of Text 2.

3 4 Look at both Texts 1 and 2 and statements (a) and (b) below. Decide whether the following statements refer to Tex1, Text 2, both texts, or neither text. Circle the answer you have chosen for each statement. a) Readers are asked to join the writer in taking action. Text 1 / Text 2 / Both / Neither b) The tone suggests the writer and reader are of the same status. Text 1 / Text 2 / Both / Neither [2] It is disappointing to note that despite having done practices for this question type, many candidates were not able to score two marks. For part (a), the clues pointing to both texts asking the readers to take actions are: ‘ Together, let’s do our part to create a fair and inclusive workplace for all.’ (Text 1) and ‘Such injustice could happen to anyone. Let’s not back down until change happens.’ (Text 2) For part (b), while both texts call for the same action, Text 1 is from an official organisation TAFEP while Text 2 is from a layman. Hence, the reader is of the same status as the writer of the social media post and not the advertisement from an organisat ion which is the authority on workplace fairness. Section B [20 marks] Refer to Text 3 on pages 3 and 4 of the Insert for Questions 5 – 13. 5 In Paragraph 1, the writer describes the traffic on the roads . Explain how the language used in this paragraph makes the traffic seem intimidating. Support your ideas with two details from Paragraph 1. ‘its traffic rushed with ferocity’ (metaphor) suggests the cars were moving at a high speed with great power, threatening the safety of pedestrians. ‘(cars which) snarled and roared forward’ (personification/ onomatopoeia) suggests the loud and hostile/frightening noises the cars were making Possible expansion: ‘as though into a storm’ (simile) suggests being exposed to the danger of chaotic traffic. (idea of exposure to the elements) [2] (Accept any two answers. Students are not required to name the literary devices. However, they are required to identify the quotations and explain them clearly. Each explanation must be distinct – one focusing on great speed and power while the other focusing on loud sounds.) Majority of the candidates were able to identify the correct quotations. However, they were not able to explain them succinctly and precisely. Most explanations were generic and repeated either the word ‘intimidating’ or key words in the quotations.

4 For ‘its traffic rushed with ferocity’, candidates must unpack ‘rushed’ and ‘ferocity’ which indicated both speed and power/intensity respectively. Unfortunately, majority of the candidates only managed to identify the speed and did not explain the metaphoric use of ‘ferocity’. Some who tried to explain ‘ferocity’ used another metaphor to do so which did not help them obtain the mark. Answers that are not accepted include: ▪ cars were moving fiercely, aggressively, violently, recklessly ▪ there was heavy traffic ▪ traffic was charging like an animal For ‘(cars which) snarled and roared forward’, candidates need to realise that the cars in this scenario were stationery and waiting at the zebra crossing. Hence, any explanations indicating that the cars were moving very quickly or speeding are incorrect. Exceptions were made when candidates suggested cars were accelerating, showing that they understood the cars were not moving in the first place. The candidates need to unpack the personification/onomatopoeia ‘sna