JS3 BECE Practice Tests – English Studies – Set 1

Read the passages below and answer the questions that follow by choosing the most appropriate of the options lettered A-E.

PASSAGE 1

A country’s human population can grow beyond available resources such as food, water and shelter. This leads to problems such as overcrowding and starvation.

Many countries have found it essential to regulate their national populations so that they have populations that they can cater for. Catering for a human population does not involve only food and shelter but many other requirements such as education, medical services, employment and transportation.

A country regulates its population through family planning. Family planning means that parents voluntarily limit their children to the number they want.

An average girl is capable of becoming a mother at the age of about 15, and may continue bearing children until the age of 45.

If she bears children at the rate of one in two years, and all of them remain alive, she may have a total of 15 children. If most of the women in a particular generation did this, the country’s population would explode.

Today, educated parents voluntarily limit the size of their families because they know that by so doing they can better provide for the children they choose to have.

Some people argue, especially on religious grounds, that family planning is wrong because it often involves the termination of the life of a baby. But, in fact, there are several family planning methods and the emphasis in family planning is on the prevention of conception rather than the termination of life. One can therefore choose a method of birth control that agrees with one’s religious beliefs.

Culled from Senior Secondary Biology 2 by Ndu et al. .

According to the passage, family planning is ______

A. catering for a human population in a country.
B. consciously limiting the number of births.
C. preventing conception.
D. preventing overcrowding and starvation.
E. termination of the lives of babies.

The word “resources” as used in paragraph one means

A. amenities.   B. attributes.   C. capacities.   D. features.   E. liabilities.

The main focus of this passage is ____

A. methods of birth control.
B. religious beliefs.
C. terminating lives.
D. the age limit of child birth.
E. why countries regulate their human population.

According to the passage, countries regulate their population in order to ___

A. ascertain the number of people in the country.
B. come up with proper family planning methods.
C. create awareness of the number of children a woman should have.
D. encourage population growth.
E. have a population they can control.

Which of the following is a negative effect of over-population?

A. Hunger and overcrowding
B. Improper family planning methods
C. Lack of disease control
D. Limiting the size of families
E. Negative religious practices

Read the passages below and answer the questions that follow by choosing the most appropriate of the options lettered A-E.

PASSAGE II

From the time of its birth, the newborn needs tender care, including gentle strokes and close skin contact. Some physicians believe that the first 12 hours after birth are crucial. They say that what mother and child require and want most right after the delivery is “not sleep or food, but to stroke and snuggle and to look and listen to each other.”

Instinctively, parents reach out, cuddle, stroke, and snuggle their baby. The baby, in turn, becomes securely attached to its parents and responds to their attention. The power of this bond is so strong that parents will make sacrifices to care for the infant without letup. ,

On the other hand, without a loving parental bond, an infant may literally wilt and die. Therefore, some doctors believe it is important that a baby be given to its mother immediately after the delivery. They suggest that at least 30 to 60 minutes of early contact between parent and infant should be provided.

Despite the emphasis some put on bonding, early contact may be difficult, if not impossible, in some hospitals. Often, newborns are separated from the mother because of the danger of transmission of infection to the child. Some evidence indicates, though, that the rate of fatal infections may actually drop when newborns stay with the mothers. So more and more hospitals are open to early extended contact between the mother and the newborn.

Some mothers do not become emotionally attached to their baby the first time they see it. So they wonder, ‘Will I have trouble bonding?’ Admittedly, not all mothers fall in love with their baby at first sight. Yet, there is no need to be anxious. Even when maternal affection for the baby is delayed, it can develop fully later. “There’s no one birth circumstance that makes or breaks your relationship with your child,” observes an experienced mother. Still, if you are expecting a baby and have concerns, it may be wise to have a discussion with your obstetrician in advance. Be clear about your wishes on when and how long you want to interact with your newborn.

Adapted from Awake

According to the passage, one of the following is not a way mothers establish parental bond with their newborn babies.

A. Cuddling them
B. Listening to them
C. Lying down with them
D. Rocking them
E. Snuggling them

According to the passage, early contact between the mother and the newborn is important because it

A. creates a bond between them.
B. makes the baby healthy.
C. makes the baby sleep well.
D. prevents infection.
E. prevents the baby from death.

Sometimes, the newborn is separated from its mother in order to ______

A. enable doctors take good care of it
B. enable the mother sleep well.
C. give it fresh air.
D. prevent disease transmission.
E. prevent parental bond.

The main aim of this passage is to ____

A. analyse.     B. criticise.     C. educate.     D. entertain.     E. persuade.

The word ‘affection’ as used in the last paragraph can be replaced with ______

A. dislike.     B. joy.     C. love.     D. regard.     E. sentiment.

Complete each of the following questions with the most appropriate of the options lettered A— E

A _____ of people gathered at the accident scene.

A. colony     B. crowd     C. horde     D. host     E. team

The boy who is a drug ______, died after an overdose.

A. addict      B. administrator     C. baron     D. peddler     E. specialist

She _____ over the price of the item before paying for it.

A. argued      B. debated     C. discussed     D. fought     E. haggled

The young man plans to learn a _______ after leaving college.

A. career      B. hobby     C. skill     D. trade     E. vocation

All the traders met to review the _______of their commodities.

A. items     B. payment     C. prices     D. prizes     E. stock

Every member of the congregation listened attentively to the ______as he delivered his sermon.

A. cleric     B. orator     C. presenter     D. speaker     E. teacher

I don’t often travel by air because the cost of ______ is very high.

A. diving     B. flying     C. plying     D. rafting     E. surfing

Having served the organization meritoriously for 35 years, Mrs. Mohammad will be ______next month.

A. benched      B. demoted      C. promoted      D. retiring      E. suspended

The bank manager asked the man to provide a/an______ before he could access the loan.

A. cheque     B. collateral      C. interest     D. liability     E. principal

Politicians often ignore opinion _____

A. figures.     B. numbers.     C. polls.     D. speculations.     E. votes.

Adamu has no parents, so he is ____

A. a bastard.   B. a destitute.   C. an imbecile.   D. an orphan.   E. an outcast.

To avoid air pollution, the ______has advised against bush burning.

A. environmentalist    B. neurologist   C. ophthalmologist   D. psychiatrist   E. psychologist

Mrs. Adamu bought fresh meat at the _____

A. abattoir.   B. cafeteria.   C. canteen.   D. greengrocer   E. restaurant

The labourers were provided with the necessary farm _____ to do the work.

A. apparatus   B. equipment   C. items   D. materials   E. tools

The accused person was _______in prison.

A. detained   B. punished   C. remanded   D. reprimanded   E. tried

The gap(s) indicate missing words.  Fill each gap with the most appropriate of the options lettered A — E.

The breast _______ has been described as a three course _______ .

A. fluid, dessert
B. liquid, dinner
C. milk, meal
D. secretion, food
E. water, lunch

The milk the _____ produces after delivery, which is yellowish in ______, is called ______ and should not be discarded as some women do.

A. babysitter, appearance, concoction
B. maid, complexion, mixture
C. mother, colour, colostrum
D. nanny, form, nutrient
E. nurse, nature, syrup

The first milk during breast _____ is lighter which is more _____.

A. expression, condense
B. feeding, nutritious
C. sucking, solid
D. surgery, tasty
E. treatment, watery

This is the foremilk, the water provided for ______ in the breasts is found here.

A. babies    B. children   C. foetus   D. teens   E. toddlers

The latter milk from the same breast is thicker, the hind milk, higher in_____ , high-energy portion of the milk-the main course of the breast “meal”.

A. Calorie    B. mineral    C. nutrition   D. protein   E. vitamin

Mothers must feed babies long enough like ten to fifteen minutes on a breast at each --------for the baby to get to this main meal.

A. diet     B. feed     C. gulp     D. portion     E. ration

Complete the questions with the most appropriate of the options lettered A — E.

That is the boy ______I have been talking about.

A. of whom     B. which     C. who     D. whom     E. whose

The principal has nominated _____and ______to represent the school.

A. he/I      B. he/me     C. him/me     D. us/me     E. we/him

Was it _____ you were talking about?

A. be     B. in     C. himself     D. his     E. them

The two friends hugged _____ at the party.

A. each one     B. each other     C. one another     D. their selves     E. themselves

The children were told to share the sweets _______ the three of them.

A. against      B. among     C. between     D. for     E. to

Toyin’s sister is more beautiful than _____

A. her.     B. hers.     C. herself.      D. she.     E. them.

Thank you _____ much for the moral support you have given me.

A. quite     B. so     C. such     D. too     E. very

Doo is ______ young to marry the rich old man.

A. quite     B. so      C. such      D. too      E. very

This is _______cup.

A. Amo’s     B. Amos     C. Amos’     D. Amos’s     E. Amoses

The retired soldiers were honoured for serving the country _____ for thirty-five years.

A. faithfully     B. hopefully     C. joyfully     D. kindly     E. peacefully

“Does everyone in this class speak French?” the teacher asked, in indirect speech form becomes: The teacher asked if anyone in that class _____French.

A. has spoken   B. is speaking   C. speaks   D. spoke   E. used to speak

The rain ______have stopped by the time the meeting ends.

A. could   B. must   C. should   D. will   E. would

The choir_______ melodiously during the Christmas carol.

A. sang   B. sing   C. sings   D. sung   E. was singing

The sentence, The robbers are being taken away by the police, rewritten in active voice form becomes: The police _____ the robbers away.

A. are taking   B. had taken   C. have been taken   D. have taken   E. took

He ______out of the Council before his car stopped.

A. drives   B. drove   C. had driven   D. has driven   E. have driven

Tina has ____ the baby on the bed.

A. laid   B. lain   C. lay   D. lays   E. lie

The statement “I will travel to Kano tomorrow”, Amina said, rewritten in the reported speech form becomes:

Amina said that she _____

A. is about to travel to Kano.
B. will travel to Kano tomorrow.
C. will travel to Kano the following day.
D. would travel to Kano the following day.
E. would travel to Kano the previous day.

She _____ for the National Examinations Council.

A. were working    B. work    C. working   D. works   E. would work

The teacher _____ writing on the blackboard when I entered the classroom.

A. had been   B. has been   C. have been   D. is   E. was

The statement, The dog was chasing the rat, rewritten in the passive voice becomes, The rat _____ by the dog.

A. had been chased
B. has been chased
C. is chased
D. is chasing
E. was being chased

No sooner had the robbers left _____ the police arrived.

A. after   B. before   C. than   D. that   E. when

The children wanted to play in the park,

A. did they?   B. didn’t they?   C. do they?   D. don’t they?   E. isn’t it?

The generous rich man____ gives alms.

A. frankly   B. grudgingly   C. hardly   D. reluctantly   E. willingly

The students were asked to ____ up for food.

A. cue   B. cueue   C. que   D. quee  E. queue

The staff of the department presented a ____ to the retired director.

A. souvanire   B. souvenir   C. souviner   D. sovanir  E. soveni

Our parents will return today, ______

A. aren’t they?   B. can’t they?   C. shouldn’t they?   D. will they?   E. won’t they?

Mary _____ her last month’s salary on jewellery.

A. squanda   B. Skwandered   C. skuandered   D. squandered   E. sqandered

The weather is _____ cold in winter.

A. extremely   B. highly   C. seriously   D. so   E. too

We had hardly settled down after arriving from the city _____ the mob stormed the village.

A. and   B. so    C. that   D. when   E. while

Rose scaled _____the screening successfully.

A. along   B. down   C. for   D. off   E. through

Choose from the options lettered A—E, the one that contains the given phonetic symbol.

/a:/

A. duty     B. nail     C. party     D. soap     E. tune

/ ɔ:/

A. album     B. body     C. divorce     D. expose     E. flow

/θ/

A. bath      B. bottle     C. date     D. float     E. this

/w/

A. sword      B. wall     C. who     D. wrapper     E. wrong

/əʊ/

A. ball      B. crop     C. one     D. proof     E. toad

/e/

A. ewe     B. heed     C. said     D. stand     E. teat

/ð/

A. begged      B. dance      C. father      D. path     E tin

/ɜ:/

A. cart     B. feather     C. mesh     D. shell     E. shin

/h/

A. band   B. honour   C. sheep   D. switch   E. that

/ei/

A. angle     B. belch     C. fray     D. high     E. plank

/ai/

A. bride   B. care   C. frame   D. glass   E. maid

/ ʌ /

A. block   B. mute   C. pound   D. tough   E. vase

/tʃ/

A. case
B. chair
C. chronic
D. judge
E. sure

/k/

A. cheap   B. cite    C. knee    D. knit   E. talk

/s/

A. rise    B. shop    C. sit    D. vision    E. Zinc