2021 SASS EL TYS P2 Ans

2021 O Level Paper 2 1. The phrase is “your creative journey.” MR: The majority of candidates responded correctly to Question 1, which asked how the wording of the first paragraph supported the possibility of personal development. 2. (i) Using oils (ii) Installations MR: Question 2 required candidates to state which two of the Art Activities listed in the text were aimed at beginners; they were also usually identified correctly. 3. The photograph shows the illumination of major buildings with nocturnal images commissioned by well-known artists on the closing night of the Art Week festival. MR: Almost all candidates also recognised, for Question 3, the feature of the Art Week shown by the photograph. 4, (i) Organisers planned a hundred exciting art events. (ii) Organisers spread events over five different districts. MR: The responses to Question 4, which asked for two ways in which the organisers of the Art Week were trying to attract participants, were a little less certain, in that they often suggested answers that were too close to each other to be considered as separate ideas.

2021 O Level P2 5. The phrase “suddenly cut herself off from the world, family and friends” suggests that she unexpectedly isolated herself from everybody including her loved ones. The phrase “dress like a monk” suggests that Alma’s attire changed to something very plain/austere. The phrase “short circuit in the brain” suggests that Doris thought Alma was mad/not thinking straight due to her sudden dramatic changes. MR: The text begins with a factual account of the changes she introduced into her lifestyle, but described by her grandson and daughter-in-law. The first question in this section, Question 5, focused on those changes and asked how the language emphasises how big they were. Most candidates were able to identify at least two of the changes and give a suitable comment on them. Finding the third one seemed to cause more difficulty, and even when identified was not often explained satisfactorily, indicating that she had changed how she dressed but not how . 6. (a) It suggests that Alma’s thoughts are not focused on the present moment but something distant in the past/ OR she was completely absorbed in her thoughts. MR: The text then narrates what was said and done on the evening when Alma revealed her decision to her family. First, Alma was found by her daughter-in-law (Doris) standing at the window staring out into the mist, and Question 6(a) asked what this behaviour showed about her thoughts. The writer does not tell the reader what those thoughts were, but, clearly, they were absorbing , and nearly half the candidates recognised this. The weaker responses showed that candidates were misled by the mention of the mist into suggesting that her thoughts were also misty or unclear. 6 (b) It supports Doris’s view that Alma is mad as Alma is not actually looking at anything in particular. MR: Question 6(b) continued by asking how this behaviour supported Doris’s opinion of Alma. This was more challenging, as candidates had first to look back to the earlier paragraph to remind themselves what Doris’s opinion was, and then understand that she had expected Alma to be doing something completely different. The text goes on to give Alma’s nnouncement of her decision and Doris’s reaction. 7 (a) Alma felt absolutely certain about her decision and was very firm about it. (b) Their relationship was not close/intimate but rather distant/cordial. MR: Question 7(a) asked what Alma’s tone conveyed about her decision, and a majority of the candidates recognised how certain she was. For Question 7(b), they were less sure about the overall relationship suggested by the fact that Doris did not try to argue or persuade Alma to change her mind, apparently not recognising the dominant character and position of the older woman. The next paragraph describes what Alma should have been doing instead, with details of the charity reception to be held by the family’s Foundation that evening.

8 They prepared a banquet and hired a chamber orchestra for the reception. MR: Question 8 asked for two details that show that the family spent a lot of money on the reception. 9. The crucial donors who donated the most amount of money to their charity. MR: Question 9 asked what is meant by ‘the most important benefactors’. The majority of candidates answered these straightforward questions correctly, although the exact meaning of ‘benefactors’ caused problems for some. 10 (i) Alma handed the rest of her wealth over to Larry without instructions as to how he should spend it. (ii) Alma decided that she would be going to live at Lark House. MR: The text then moves on to the next day when Alma began to put her decision into practice. Question 10 asked for the two dramatic changes that she made to her lifestyle. Almost all the candidates were able to take a step back from the preliminary details and identify these two major changes. 11 (i) Larry was shocked because Lama’s decision to live at a nursing home is too unexpected / sudden as no one in their family had even heard of the residential home called the Lark House. OR Larry was shocked as he could not understand the reason behind her decision. (ii) Doris was worried about her own image/reputation as she was concerned about how other people would judge them. MR: Question 11 probed the reactions of two members of the family to Alma’s actions; the correct answers were not straightforward, as in the text they are implied by what the two say in a short piece of dialogue. Question 11(i) asked why Larry, her son, was startled. Candidates mostly recognised and re-stated Larry’s surprise but a substantial number did not go on to explain it. Question 11(ii) asked what Doris was worried about and here a majority of candidates did understand her concern and gave the correct answer. Those who did not tended to focus too closely on the immediate context of the reception and its disappointed guests. 12 (a) As she had not driven in decades. (b) The car was in an inverted position, just like an upended tortoise that is also upside down lying on its shell with its legs in the air. (c) Alma is a considerate person. MR: The final paragraph of the text describes Alma’s move to the residential home and her actions after she started living there, centred around the small car that she bought. Question 12(a) asked why it was surprising that she bought a car, and the majority of candidates found the correct sentence to explain it. Question 12(b) focused on the simile which the writer uses to describe the car. Only a very small number of candidates were able to comment successfully on its effect. Question 12(c) asked what impression of Alma was given in

the paragraph. Here, candidates were generally more successful, and a significant number suggested a plausible impression. 13 (i) Leaving familiar things behind (ii) Refusing to do what was expected (iii) Taking practical actions (iv) Taking positive steps MR: Question 13 related to the overall structure of the text. In stronger responses, candidates were able to take a step back from the detail and look at what is generally conveyed by the indicated paragraphs about the stages in Alma’s move to a different life. Weaker responses tended to present them in the wrong order.

14 (a) The word suggests that robots are functioning to serve or provide help to humans, which reflect its present-day job of performing tasks for humans. (b) Robots are used in tightly controlled environments. MR: Question 14(a) asked candidates to explain how the present-day use of the word ‘robot’ links to its original meaning. The answer was clear in the text; those who did not respond correctly mostly omitted one of the two halves of the l