Examiner:      Good morning!  Take a seat, please.

                   How are you feeling at the moment?

                   How did you feel this morning when you woke up?

                   What will you miss most now that you’re leaving school?

                   Would you stay one more year?  Why (not)?

Now I’m going to ask you a few questions.  If you can’t understand me, I can repeat the question once.  Let’s get started.

A

What annoying habit does your best friend have?

Hmm, let me think about that for a moment…  As I see it, If you are a real best friend you don’t care about annoying habits.  However, If I have to say something, I think my best friend can be in a bad mood or can be careless.  For one thing, when I have a problem and I try to tell my friend about it, sometimes she doesn’t really follow my story, which can be disappointing.

Does someone in the family usually do thing that annoy you?

I can answer this question easily.  We have a dog and she does many things that really annoy me.  For example when she makes the flat dirty and when she tears something into little pieces.  But luckily we have solved this problem, because now that the weather is better, she can stay in the garden when we are not at home.  But she likes being there, so that’s okay.

         What is your pet peeve?

I simply hate if someone touches me when they are hands are wet.  I know it’s silly, because I wash my hands several times every day, but I can scream and run if someone wants to touch me with wet hands.  My boyfriend of course knows this only too well and wouldn’t miss a single chance to try and touch me when he has washed his hands, or try to give me a kiss on the cheek when he has washed his face.  Yuk!

How do you feel when you have a hunch someone's not paying attention to what you have to say?

I usually feel nervous because if I'm talking to someone then I expect his/her attention.  But if I have a hunch that he/she is not paying attention I getting nervous because I'm a bit hot-tempered.  So after a little time I usually break off and ask the person whether they are paying attention to what I’m saying.

         Do you have an annoying habit?

Well, I’m not sure annoying the right word, but it’s definitely embarrassing.  I tend to laugh out really loud when I find something funny in the cinema, and often at times when I’m the only person laughing.  But my friends know this about me so they know what to expect if we go to the cinema together.

I see.  Now let’s move on to the next topic, which is celebrities.

B

Have you ever seen a celebrity in person? What did you do?

Yes, once I saw Rúzsa Magdi on the tram, and it was very exciting.  She was wearing no make-up but I recognized her immediately.  I wanted to go up to her, but I couldn’t think of anything interesting to say, so I just got off the tram and went home.

Do you think famous people have the right to have a private life?

Why wouldn’t they?  Nowadays I think the press and the media are very rude and they don’t let the stars live a normal life.  I don’t want to be a well-known person, because I couldn’t tolerate the insolence of paparazzis and the false news of the tabloids.  I think they have overstepped the mark.

What is your attitude to gossip newspapers?

I hate these newspapers because I’m not interested in others’ personal and private life.  I think those people who spread gossip are disgusting.  These things simply aren't their business.  Actually, I suppose this is not more than a waste of time and also money.

Which celebrity would you like to meet and why?

Well that’s a difficult question, because I am not that kind of person who is enthusiastic about anything or anyone.  However, if I could met with a celebrity then I would meet with Chris Martin, who is the singer of Coldplay.  The reason why I would choose him is that I’m always wondering about how they write a song or how they get inspiration to compose a melody.

         If you could meet your favourite celebrity, how would you spend your time with him or her?

Well, as I said I’m not horribly enthusiastic about anything or anybody, so I think I would prefer to sit and watch what they are doing – I mean, I wouldn’t want to have dinner with him or go for a drink or something.  I think the best thing would be to watch him at work and see how he goes about writing a song.

Well, I see.  Now, let’s change the topic.  We’re going to talk about changing weather patterns.

C

Do you think weather patterns are changing? If so, why do you think this is?

The weather patterns are changing, this is true.  For instance, in Hungary, spring seems to be disappearing.  The main reason is global warming, because there are lots of cars and factories that pollute the air.  And it has caused plenty of problems in the weather, so we have to decrease pollution, because in the future we will have even more problems if we do not.

Have you ever been caught in really bad weather? If so, what did you do?

Yes, once when I was on a big trip with my class, we were walking towards the place where we were going to spend the night, when suddenly it started raining.  So we started to run, but unfortunately, we still got very wet.  It was horrible back then, with all your clothes soaking wet on the first day of a trip, but looking back to it now, it was really funny.

Where do you get your weather information?

Usually I watch the weather forecast in TV, because it begins after the news, and I usually watch that.   Sometimes I search on the internet, for example when I know I’m going to travel somewhere.  But I don’t always believe what they say.  The weather forecast doesn’t influence me too much, because when I get up in the morning and look out through the open window, I can feel how warm it is outside.

What’s your favourite kind of weather?

I actually like all kinds of weather, for different reasons.  I love it when it’s sunny, because you can go outside and do something for fun, and the colours are really beautiful, and when you come back in your clothes are going to smell of sun.  But I think rain can also be good, especially if it’s a warm summer rain.  And I’m sure everybody loves snow, it’s so beautiful!

         What is the ideal weather for studying?

Well, it either needs to be something that will make you feel okay about staying at home, like heavy rain or thick snow or gusty winds, or something that looks beautiful from the inside, like a sunny autumn day.  I’m lucky because we have a balcony where I can sit outside and study, while looking at the trees or even sunbathing.

Thank you, that’s the end of the first part of the test.

TASK 2

Now look at this situation.  You can study the sheet for half a minute.  When you are ready, start a conversation with me.  I am your friend.

You would like to rent a flat and have an appointment today with the owner.  However, you’re feeling ill and won’t be able to make it.  Ask your friend to meet the owner instead of you and discuss with him/her the following:

Ø       when you can move in

Ø       whether the flat is furnished

Ø       rent money

Ø       any special rules

-        Can I ask you a favour?  You know I made an appointment with the owner of the flat where I’d like to move to, but I’m feeling too weak to go.  Could you go in my place?

-        Sure, no problem.  What should I ask him about?

-        First I’d like you to find out about the price.  I can’t really afford more than 50,000 a month, so try to haggle if it’s possible.

-        No worries, you know I drive a hard bargain.

-        Great.  Then can you ask him when I could move in.  I have to move out from my present flat in about a month, so that would be ideal.

-        OK.  What else?

-        Well, can you find out about furniture?  I mean, whether the flat is furnished or not.  I need to know whether I should start looking or furniture.

-        OK.  Is that it?

-        Actually, just one more thing.  Could you ask the owner if there are any special rules, about being noisy in the evening, or pets, or anything?  I want to stay there for a long time, so I want to make sure everything is okay.

-        Alright, all remembered.

-        Thanks a lot.  You’re brilliant.

-        No problem.

Thank you, that’s the end of the second part of the test.

TASK 3

In the last part of the test, you will compare and contrast some pictures.  Now you have half a minute to look at these pictures and the prompts below them.  When you are ready, you will have three minutes to talk.

The pictures below show scientists doing different things as part of their job.  Compare and contrast them, including the following points:

I think the second picture is much closer to the stereotype about scientists than the first one.  I guess when people hear the word “scientist”, they think of a lonely someone, probably a man, who spends a lot of time in his laboratory doing things that are absolutely incomprehensible for normal people, and would take at least half an hour to explain.

This is one of the reasons why it’s so important to popularize science, to make sure people know what scientists are doing and that they take an interest.  Lectures like the one shown in the first picture, especially if accessible for the public, are very important for science to flourish and in order to train the next generation of scientists.

Similarly important is to provide up-to-date appliances for scientists.  However difficult a country’s economic situation is, I think it is vital to allocate some money to science and updating the equipment scientists work with.  Once that’s done, the next thing would be to make sure the equipment in labs in primary and secondary schools are up-to-date too, so that children find science interesting enough to choose it as a major at university. 

As I see it, at the moment science is not taught in the best way – I can only remember a couple of times when we had lessons in labs and did some experiments.  Most of the time it’s just dry theory, which will not help me like chemistry more, or know more about the world around me.  I think we would need more hands-on experience.

Thank you, that’s the end of your test.