IES Clara Campoamor

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Reading Grammar Vocabulary Listening Writing

15% 15% 15% 15% 40%

READING

The Decline of Crime

In the 1990s, experts predicted that crime would continue to rise in the western world. Yet they were wrong. In fact, the
opposite seems to be true. According to crime figures, people appear to be safer today than they were in 1970. In Estonia, a
small country in eastern Europe, the murder rate has dropped by 70% since 1995, and in the UK, there were only 69 armed
robberies of banks and post offices in 2013 compared with 500 in the 1990s.
So what has caused the decline? It has been suggested that because most crimes are committed by men between the ages
of 16-24, any reduction in crime is the result of smaller numbers of these young men in society. Since people in western
societies are living longer than ever before, young men now make up a smaller proportion of the population.

In addition, policing has improved in recent years, especially in big cities like London and New York. Today, police officers are
trained to talk to and get to know the people whose neighbourhoods they patrol. What’s more, police forces target
problematic neighbourhoods, sending large numbers of officers to these areas. This “hotspot” method is credited with
successfully reducing crime.
Finally, criminals have fewer opportunities to commit crimes and are more likely to get caught. Security measures like
window locks, alarms and car immobilisers make it harder for people to break into buildings or to steal cars. Shops and
businesses employ guards to protect their property. Detectives have access to DNA databases, mobile phone location
technology and recordings from surveillance cameras. In addition, as crime becomes increasingly risky, the motivation to
commit these crimes decreases, since electronic goods – a popular target – have become cheaper.

Although there can be no doubt that certain crimes are decreasing, police forces and individuals must remain on guard.
Crimes like fraud and tax evasion continue to grow and cybercrime is widespread. While it may be true that you are less
likely to return home one evening to find that your home has been burgled, you may wake up one day to find that your
credit card details have been stolen online.

1 Write T (true) or F (false). Find evidence in the text a. online crime is decreasing
to justify your answers. (3 x 3 points) b. fraud and tax invasion are on the increase
...... 1. Experts predicted that there would be a decline c. people no longer need to worry about home
in crime in the 21st century. burglaries
........................................................................................................
d. police forces are no longer as important as they used
...... 2. A longer life expectancy has affected crime to be
rates in the western world. 3 Find words or phrases in the text that mean:
........................................................................................................
(5 points)
...... 3. The “hotspot” method has brought crime down 1. decreased (paragraph I) _______________
in certain neighbourhoods. 2. give someone a job (paragraph IV) ______________
........................................................................................................
3. dangerous (paragraph IV) _______________
2 Choose the correct answer. (1 point) 4. stay alert (paragraph V) _______________
The writer believes that ...... . 5. common (paragraph V) _______________

VOCABULARY
Complete the sentences with the words below and the suffix -ful or -less. Make any necessary changes.
Some words are used more than once. (8 points)
defence • harm • skill • help • care • hope
1. The …………………… detective solved many crimes.
2. Smoking is …………………… to your health.
3. A …………………… criminal leaves fingerprints.
4. She didn’t want to feel …………………… , so she learned karate.
5. He felt sad because he felt the situation was …………………… .
 6. She’s a …………………… , optimistic person.
7. The snakes here are …………………… . They can’t hurt you.
8. The police gave us some …………………… tips for keeping our neighbourhood safe.

GRAMMAR

1. Complete the passage with the verbs in brackets. Use the Present Perfect Simple, Past Perfect Simple
or Past Simple. (9 points)
News for Teens, By Teens
1.
…………………… you ever …………………… (hear) of Teen Kids News (TKN)?
It’s a weekly half-hour news programme that millions of teens in the US and abroad
2.
…………………… (watch) for years on television and online. TKN 3. …………………… (be) around since 2003. Albert Primo 4.
…………………… (come up with) the idea for the show several years after he 5. …………………… (create) a popular adult news
programme. What 6. …………………… always …………………… (make) TKN so special is its young reporters. They’re all between 10 and
20 years old. In fact, they have to leave the show by age 20. For example, Mwanzaa, the boy who 7. …………………… (report) the
news for TKN since its very first programme, 8. …………………… (leave) the show in September 2013 due to his age. It’s kids like
Mwanzaa who 9. …………………… (help) TKN win an Emmy Award that same year.

2 Complete the sentences with the words below. Use the Present Perfect Simple, Past Perfect Simple
or Past Simple. (3 points)
1. work / for a tabloid / since 2010
My mum ............................................................................................... .
2. the ambulance / arrive / two people / give the man / first aid
By the time ........................................................................................... .
3. the police / not arrest / a suspect / yet
Why ..................................................................................................... ?
3 Rewrite the sentences using the words in brackets. (3 points)
1. He became a reporter ten years ago. (for)
He ......................................................................................................... .
2. The witness called the police. Then she tried to help the victim. (after)
The witness .......................................................................................... .
3. The burglar alarm went off a moment ago. (just)
The burglar alarm ................................................................................ .
LISTENING
You are going to hear a teacher talking on the radio about teenagers involved in illegal downloading and computer hacking. For questions
1-10, complete the sentences. (10 x 1 = 10 points)
1. Many teenagers don’t …………………… to the warnings about illegal downloading.
2. The teacher mentions a 17-year-old who had to pay …………………… for illegally downloading a film.
3. A California teen hacker spent 30 days in …………………… .
4. A survey of the computer habits of …………………… students from San Diego produced worrying results.
5. In the survey, …………………… of the students admitted copying programs instead of buying them.
6. The teacher thinks that most teen hackers do it because they’re looking for …………………… .
7. CyberQuest is a competition that tests the participant’s knowledge about computer systems’ …………………… .
8. At the CyberQuest camp, participants get trained by specialists whose expertise is…………………… .
9. The camp instructors use activities and …………………… to teach the campers.
10. CyberQuest has got a …………………… where you can find out more information.

WRITING
Choose the correct connector of purpose. (5 POINTS)
1. To / So that find the safe, the thief needed a plan of the house.
2. The policeman came to the house so that / in order to he could look for evidence.
3. Everyone in the bank stood very still to / so that the robber wouldn’t hurt them.
4. The president held a press conference so that / in order to talk to the journalists.
5. Listen to the news bulletin so that / in order to find out what has happened.

Complete the chart with the phrases below to show the correct plan for a news report. (5 POINTS)
Gives more detail about important information • Presents important facts
Gives comments • Explains why event is significant • Summarises main events

Opening:
 Body:

Closing:

Reorder the following news report

1. ___________________ 6. ___________________
2. ___________________ 7. ___________________
3. ___________________ 8. ___________________
4. ___________________ 9. ___________________
5. ___________________ 10. ___________________

A. The court heard he was so angry that he got his mother’s gun from her bedroom and shot her eight times. Ms Madrid’s
partner, Alfonso Munoz, witnessed the shooting.

B. Munoz told the court he taught the boy how to use the weapon for emergencies and for self-defense. Local
newspapers reported that Ms Madrid did not get on with her son.

C. He cannot be named because he is still a juvenile.

D. The future of the boy is now in the hands of an Arizona judge, James L. Conlogue. He will be 12-year-old on January the
23rd. Prosecutors want the boy to receive the same sentence as an adult.

E. He said the boy handed him the empty gun after he had finished shooting.

F. He said the boy did not intend to kill his mother and that he only wanted to get back at her for scolding and slapping
him. The judge ruled the boy should stay in the juvenile court after a psychologist said the boy had suffered physical
and mental abuse from his mother.

G. A 12-year-old boy in the United States has been found guilty of murder. The child shot and killed his mother, Sara
Madrid, 34, after an argument over his chores.

H. Her sister told the court that Madrid had a quick temper and often yelled at, scolded and slapped the boy.

I. U.S. child guilty of mother’s murder

J. However, this is impossible under U.S. law, which states a juvenile can only be held until he becomes 18. The boy's
lawyer, Sanford Edleman, argued that the boy could not be tried as an adult because he was so young. Edleman said
the boy did not even understand what was going on.