Test 6 Key

Reading and Use of English (1 hour 15 minutes)

Part 1
1 A    ​2 C    ​3 D    ​4 B    ​5 C    ​6 B    ​7 D    ​8 B

Part 2
​ at/during/in    ​10 was/became    ​
9 11 course    ​12 it    ​13 in    ​14 more    ​15 and    ​
16 which/that

Part 3
17 enjoyable    ​18 fortunate    ​19 difference    ​20 excitement    ​21 height    ​
22 unlike    ​23 choice    ​24 spectacular

Part 4
25 the only PERSON | that/who did    ​
26 CONCERNS me | is    ​
27 had/’d stayed/waited/remained | UNTIL the end    ​
28 was an | INCREASE in    ​
29 CATCH up | on/with (all) your/the    ​
30 few meals | AS good as

Part 5
31 B    ​32 B    ​33 A    ​
34 B    ​35 C    ​36 B

Part 6
37 D    ​38 A    ​39 G    ​40 C    ​41 F    ​42 E

Part 7
43 C    ​44 A    ​45 D    ​46 D    ​47 B    ​48 D    ​49 B    ​50 A    ​51 C    ​
52 D

Writing (1 hour 20 minutes)

Candidate responses are marked using the assessment scale on pages 107–108.

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Listening (approximately 40 minutes)

Part 1
1 A    ​2 C    ​3 B    ​4 C    ​5 A    ​6 A    ​7 B    ​8 B

Part 2
​ cousin    ​10 roof    ​11 sport(s)    ​12 singer    ​13 violins    ​14 magazine    ​
9
15 museum    ​16 typing    ​17 canteen    ​18 radio station

Part 3
19 C    ​20 A    ​21 G    ​
22 D    ​23 F

Part 4
24 C    ​25 B    ​26 B    ​
27 A    ​
28 A    ​29 C    ​30 B

Transcript This is the Cambridge English: First Listening Test. Test Six.
I am going to give you the instructions for this test. I shall introduce each
part of the test and give you time to look at the questions. At the start of
each piece you will hear this sound:
tone
You will hear each piece twice.
Remember, while you are listening, write your answers on the question
paper. You will have five minutes at the end of the test to copy your
answers onto the separate answer sheet.
There will now be a pause. Please ask any questions now, because you
must not speak during the test.
[pause]
Now open your question paper and look at Part One.
[pause]

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PART 1 You will hear people talking in eight different situations. For questions 1
to 8, choose the best answer (A, B or C).
Question 1 You hear a psychologist talking about green spaces in cities.
[pause]
tone
I’d like to start my talk today about green spaces in cities by acknowledging
the fact that more and more governments are coming to accept that they are
a vital element of a healthy society. Whether you’re an adult, a teenager, or a
young child, parks play a crucial role in ensuring our wellbeing. Yet too few
of us really understand that, and as a society, we tend not to make enough
use of the ones we already have. So when it comes to planning decisions,
there just isn’t enough pressure on local authorities to incorporate them in
the future development of our cities. The consequences are potentially very
serious.
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
Question 2 You hear part of an interview with a singer.
[pause]
tone
I play a lot of tennis because staying in good physical shape is absolutely vital
if you’re a singer or a musician. When I’m playing tennis, I always think how
much it has in common with singing. For example, playing tennis, you learn
how to concentrate, develop self-control and of course how to pace your
breath and maximise the use of your energy. Before I have a big concert in
the evening I’ll often have a quick game of tennis just to relax. It can’t be too
energetic though or I wouldn’t be able to give a good performance!
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]

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Question 3 You hear an actor talking about how she met her husband.
[pause]
tone
Well, Jonny, my husband, happened to hear me being interviewed on the
radio and thought I’d be good for the part of the heroine in a play he was
about to appear in. So he persuaded the director to send me the script. I liked
it, we met on stage at the rehearsals, fell in love, and the rest is history. I’d
seen Jonny perform before and admired his work but I didn’t accept the part
just because he was in it. I did know he was a nice person though, because
a friend of mine had sat next to him at a film premiere and had told me about
him.
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
Question 4 You hear two people talking about a bus service.
[pause]
tone
Man: Do you ever use the bus between Boroughbridge and Malton?
Woman: No, is it any good?
Man: Could be worse, I suppose, but I can’t say it’s cheap. You can save a bit by
buying a season ticket, but not actually that much.
Woman: Really?
Man: Well what it does have in its favour is that it’s very rarely late. Although it’s a
shame it only runs every three quarters of an hour.
Woman: I’ll stick to my motorbike, then!
Man: You can’t read your book on that, though, can you?
Woman: No, true, but I like to get to places quickly!
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]

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Question 5 You hear a retired ballerina comparing dancers today with dancers in
the past.
[pause]
tone
Nowadays, ballet is much more acrobatic than in the past. The audience
wants to see internationally famous dancers doing lots of jumps and legs
going remarkably high. It’s a bit more like a circus now, and the depth of
feeling that we tried to convey in the past isn’t always there in modern ballet.
You only find it in one or two dancers. I’d love to see less focus on technique.
I usually come away from watching a ballet feeling impressed with what I’ve
seen but it hasn’t moved me.
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
Question 6 You hear a chef talking about making a TV series.
[pause]
tone
I was approached to do a TV cookery series, where I had to compete
against another chef every week. Never having met him before, I was a bit
apprehensive about working with him. But we got on like a house on fire. It’s
rare for me to spend ten hours a day with someone for five weeks and like
them more by the end of it than I did at the beginning. Halfway through filming
the producer had to ring me up and ask if we could be less friendly with one
another on camera, because it was supposed to be a competition!
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]

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Question 7 You hear two friends talking about an art course.

[pause]
tone
Woman: So are you enjoying the art course?
Man: I am, I think. I mean, what we’re actually learning about is interesting – what
inspired the nineteenth-century French painters and that sort of thing.
Woman: I feel I’ve heard it all before – I’d hoped the teacher would tell us more about
their actual techniques. But at least there aren’t too many of us on the course.
Man: That certainly helps when it comes to group discussions and stuff. And the
teacher’s amazing, don’t you think?
Woman: He certainly thinks he is – I’m not convinced! I just don’t feel very motivated at
the moment, to be honest.
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
Question 8 You hear a swimmer talking about a competition she took part in.
[pause]
tone
I had such a good time at the championships, better than I expected. The
atmosphere was incredible with everyone cheering. I didn’t expect so many
people to turn up to the event, though I don’t suppose they were there
to see me. I hadn’t been too happy with my performance in the previous
competition, so to turn things round like that was very satisfying. The
pressure started to get to me at one point, but I had a talk with myself and got
things into perspective. I must work on my nerves before the next big event,
but I can’t wait to get back in the pool and start training for it.
[pause]
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
That is the end of Part One.
Now turn to Part Two.
[pause]

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PART 2 You will hear a man called Sid Holmes talking about a journalism course
he attended. For questions 9 to 18, complete the sentences with a word or
short phrase.
You now have forty-five seconds to look at Part Two.
[pause]
tone
Hi, my name’s Sid Holmes, and I’m here to talk about my experiences
studying journalism at Kramer’s College.
I decided to do journalism because my aunt, who’s a newspaper reporter
herself, advised me to do it. And I heard all about how good the Kramer’s
course was from my cousin, who’d been a student on it.
On the first day of the course we did some reporting exercises which I just
couldn’t get my head around. How do you write in fifty words about someone
getting stuck on a roof and having to be lifted off by helicopter? But that was
what I had to try and do! Another group had to do the same thing – about
someone being stuck in a tree and rescued by boat.
We also met someone called Lisa on the first day. She works on a local paper
and gave us some very informative talks throughout the course on what life is
really like as a journalist. She’s an assistant editor – every newspaper section
has one. She started off in the fashion section as a junior reporter, but is now
in sports and enjoying that more. Her aim is to run the news section one day.
Our main tutor on the course, Jim Tyler, who did most of the teaching, was
great – I was particularly impressed to find out that not only was he an
experienced journalist but also an accomplished painter, who’d had his work
in quite a few local exhibitions. And he’d actually written a book too – about
the life of a singer who’s well known internationally, but is actually originally
from our area.
Jim asked us to come up with ideas for articles, and then we all discussed
them as a group. Someone mentioned this guy who makes watches and
sells them online – that reminded me I’d heard about a retired teacher who’d
taken up making violins. He doesn’t sell them but lends them to talented
schoolchildren. Jim said he thought that was a great idea. He said he’d
recently written about a craftsman too – a man who makes shoes.
So off I went to write my first article! I finished it in a day, and emailed it to a
few people, you know – newspapers, websites and so on, as we’d been told
to do. Amazingly, one magazine got back to me just a week later and said
they’d put it in their next issue! So a month later, my work was in print!

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Because you have to do lots of work experience on the course, we were each
sent off to report on different council meetings in the town hall. Not exactly
exciting, but good practice I suppose. Some of the others had to write about
the town park or even the shopping centre. I went to one about a community
group’s plans to make the museum more attractive to visitors – it would be
great for the town if their proposals were adopted, so I actually enjoyed that.
Although on the whole, the course was fantastic, there were inevitably a few
things that were less so. I mean, compared to learning all about photography,
the typing lessons were pretty dull! I know they will come in useful, though, so
I suppose I shouldn’t complain.
The other students on the course were cool – we got on very well, and after
lessons we’d often meet up. If a few of us were around at lunchtime, we’d get
together in the canteen – the food was pretty good, made with produce from
the college garden. We’d discuss what we were working on and that was a
great help when I was stuck for inspiration.
So now, I’m doing a bit of freelance stuff and looking for a job! It’s tough,
and I’ve already been turned down for three jobs on news websites. I’ve got
another interview next week, though, as a junior reporter for a radio station.
It’d be amazing if I got that!
So, have any of you got any questions? …
[pause]
Now you will hear Part Two again.
[Teacher, repeat the track now.]
[pause]
That is the end of Part Two.
Now turn to Part Three.
[pause]

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PART 3 You will hear five short extracts in which people are talking about
collecting things as a hobby. For questions 19 to 23, choose from the list
(A to H) why each speaker collects the things. Use the letters only once.
There are three extra letters which you do not need to use.
You now have thirty seconds to look at Part Three.
[pause]
tone

Speaker 1
I collect toys from all over the world, and have done for about five years now.
I spend a lot of time on it, trawling the internet for rare ones and going to toy
fairs at the weekend. Some of the toys I’ve found are very beautiful. I have a
busy job, so it’s hard to make time for it sometimes. But it’s great because
there are so many different collectors out there, from all walks of life, who are
fascinating to talk to. It’s the social side of it that appeals to me, really. And
it’s taught me so much about how parents in different countries bring up their
children.
[pause]

Speaker 2
My passion is coins. I’ve met a few people who’ve been surprised when I told
them that! It takes up most of my spare time, but I don’t mind – I get such
a sense of achievement when I’ve finally tracked down a really rare coin. It
wouldn’t be nearly so much fun if there was less effort involved. Sometimes
I give one or two away – to friends, you know – if I have two or three of the
same type, then it’s a nice thing to do. Some of the coins in my collection are
hundreds of years old.
[pause]

Speaker 3
My magazine collection’s getting bigger all the time. I read every one of them
from cover to cover, which is time consuming and unfortunately means I have
less time to spend with my children. The magazines are all about things I’m
keen on, of course, like sports and cars. I’m very interested in how attitudes
to sports have changed over time, and like to feel that link between life, say,
fifty years ago, and the present day. It’s quite a valuable collection now, so I
keep it in a locked room to be on the safe side. I certainly have no plans to
give my collection away, and I don’t want to lose it!
[pause]

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Speaker 4
Postcards are amazing things to collect, and I have over a thousand now.
I know people tend to communicate online, but a surprising number of
people still send them! It’s not just about the pictures on the front, but what’s
written on the back, too. Lots just have the usual stuff, like ‘Weather good,
food great’, but I look out for ones with a story, or glimpses of a story. My
collection is relatively modern, but I imagine historians in the future could
learn a lot from them. That’s my aim really, to make them available to the
public one day – I’ll donate them to my local museum.
[pause]

Speaker 5
I’m crazy about hats: smart men’s hats, caps, anything like that. They aren’t
beautiful, like some women’s hats, but wherever I go in the world, and I’ve
travelled quite a lot, I bring another one home with me. It’s quite a large
collection now, and I’ve been told it’s worth quite a lot. That’s mainly why I
keep on adding to my collection. It’s good to know I can sell it one day if I’m
short on funds. I’d also like to make them myself and I’m looking for someone
who can teach me – I have lots of ideas but none of the right skills.
[pause]
Now you will hear Part Three again.
tone
[The recording is repeated.]
[pause]
That is the end of Part Three.
Now turn to Part Four.
[pause]

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PART 4
You will hear an interview with a scientist called Peter Crane, who is
talking about an ancient tree called the gingko. For questions 24 to 30,
choose the best answer (A, B or C).
You now have one minute to look at Part Four.
[pause]
tone
Interviewer: Thank you for coming into our studio today, Peter, to tell us about your
research into an ancient species of tree called the gingko. First of all, how did
you develop an interest in it?
Peter: I think that anyone who’s seriously interested in plants inevitably comes
across the gingko tree pretty early in their training, because very unusually,
it’s a single plant species with no known living relatives; what particularly
fascinated me was the fact that it’s been essentially unchanged for more than
two hundred million years. Other people are attracted by its distinctive leaf –
once you see it, you don’t forget it.
Interviewer: When was the gingko first cultivated?
Peter: Our best estimate is about one thousand years ago in China, which is
somewhat late. There’s a lot of Chinese literature from before that time, and
it doesn’t mention the gingko, while it does mention a lot of other plants. The
evidence points to the fact that the gingko was probably always a rather rare
tree, until it first attracted the attention of people about a thousand years ago,
when they realised it could be cultivated as a source of nuts.
Interviewer: And does the gingko tree have medical uses?
Peter: The plant itself has long been valued for its healing properties. The medicinal
uses in the East and the West have gone in different directions, using two
different parts of the plant: mainly the seeds in the East, and mainly the leaves
in the West. In the West, work has been done on the leaves to see whether
they contain substances that might help improve people’s memories. The
results, however, have shown no strong evidence for such powers.
Interviewer: What else do humans use the gingko tree for?
Peter: Well, it’s a very popular tree in city streets all over the world. It’s incredibly
tough, so can tolerate conditions that might kill other types of tree. It’s hard to
know exactly why, but the leaves are particularly unattractive to insects that
harm other trees. And it seems to survive in a street setting: its roots aren’t
getting much oxygen, they’re getting a lot of salt and goodness knows what
else is getting poured on them, but it seems relatively resistant to that.
Interviewer: You’re interested in the benefits of street trees in general, aren’t you, Peter?

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Peter: That’s right, I am. They’re important for a number of reasons. One advantage
is that trees along a street make it feel narrower and cause drivers to go more
slowly. And obviously they provide shade, making people feel a lot more
comfortable; they don’t mind being outside if they can be in the shade. And
so trees help bring all the benefits that come from that: kids playing outside,
neighbours keeping an eye on each other’s houses, people encouraged to
linger in a shopping area that they would otherwise walk right through.
Interviewer: Do you think there are lessons we can learn from the gingko about preserving
other plant species?
Peter: Well, because humans have distributed gingko around the planet, they have
helped ensure the species’ long-term survival. There are probably a couple
of wild original populations of gingko tree still left in China, but even those
may have been aided by people. Obviously, we should try to preserve animals
and plants in their native habitats, but in the same way that we’ve used
other methods for conserving large mammals, I think conservation through
widespread cultivation is essential for preserving plant diversity for the future.
Interviewer: And finally, does working on such an ancient tree species affect your view of
the world?
Peter: Yes, as humans, one of our biggest shortcomings is that we can’t see the
long term. So reflecting on a plant like gingko that was around in very different
ecosystems hundreds of millions of years ago, really makes our own species
seem very young.
[pause]
Now you will hear Part Four again.
[Teacher, repeat the track now.]
[pause]
That is the end of Part Four.
There will now be a pause of five minutes for you to copy your answers
onto the separate answer sheet. Be sure to follow the numbering of all the
questions. I shall remind you when there is one minute left, so that you
are sure to finish in time.
That is the end of the test. Please stop now. Your supervisor will now collect
all the question papers and answer sheets.

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