HSC Examination
Rajshahi Board
English (Compulsory) First Paper
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Time: 3 hours: Full Marks:100
[N.B. The figures in the margin indicate full marks.]
Part I: Reading Test (60 marks)
1. Read the passage and answer the questions A and B:
Kuakata, locally known as Sagar Kannya (Daughter of the Sea) is a rare scenic spot located on the southernmost tip of Bangladesh. It is 70 km from Patuakhali district headquarters and 320 km from Dhaka. An excellent combination of the picturesque natural beauty, sandy beaches, blue sky and the shimmering expanse of water of the Bay of Bengal and the evergreen forest makes Kuakata a much sought after tourist destination.
The name Kuakata takes its origin from the story of a 'Kua'–or well dug on the seashore by the early Rakhaine settlers for collecting drinking water. The Rakhaines had landed on Kuakata coast after being expelled from Arakan by the Mughals. Kuakata is one of the unique spots which allow a visitor to watch both the sunrise and the sunset from the beach. That perhaps makes Kuakata one of the world's most attractive beaches. Kuakata is truly a virgin beach and a sanctuary for migratory winter birds. Fishing boats plying in the Bay of Bengal with colourful sails, surfing waves and the lines of coconut trees add to the vibrant colours Kuakata. The indigenous culture of the Rakhaine community and hundred year old Buddhist Temples indicate the age-old tradition and cultural heritage of this area.
[Unit -8, Lesson-5, Page-108]
A. Choose the correct answer from the alternatives: 1×5=5
(a) 'Scenic spot' refers to __
(i) a place having multiple scenes
(ii) a place having a calm atmosphere
(iii) a place of unparalleled natural beauty
(iv) a place having untidy spots
(b) The word 'shimmering' in the text could be best replaced by __
(i) shivering (ii) shining
(iii) significant (iv) glaring
(c) The Rakhaines originally came from __
(i) Patuakhali district
(ii) Latachapli union
(iii) Kuakata coast
(iv) Arakan district
(d) The best synonym of 'vibrant' is __
(i) thrilling (ii) colourful
(iii) gorgeous (iv) brilliant
(e) 'Kuakata is truly a virgin beach and a sanctuary for migratory winter bird's ....... what does it imply?
(i) Kuakata is a beach in its original pure condition and a rare abode for guest birds.
(ii) Kuakata is a place of rare beauty and world's longest beach.
(iii) Kuakata is untouched by human habitation.
(iv) Kuakata is a natural habitat.
Answer to the question No. 1.A
(a) iii. a place of unparalleled natural beauty; (b) iv. glaring; (c) iv. Arakan district; (d) iv. brilliant; (e) i. Kuakata is a beach in its original pure condition and a rare abode for guest birds.
B. Answer the following questions: 2×5=10
(a) What does the expression 'a much sought after tourist destination' mean?
(b) Where does the name 'Kuakata' come from?
(c) What makes Kuakata an attractive tourist spot?
(d) Why would one visit Kuakata?
(e) 'Kuakata' upholds an ancient tradition'. How?
Answer to the question No. 1.B
a. The expression “a much sought after tourist destination” means that Kuakata, with its picturesque natural beauty, sandy beaches, blue sky and the shimmering expanse of water of the Bay of Bengal, is an attractive and favourite tourist spot where the tourists from home and abroad often come to relax and enjoy the beauty of the beach.
b. The name Kuakata takes its origin from the story of ‘Kua’— or well dug on the seashore by the early Rakhaine settlers for collecting drinking water.
c. Kuakata is one of the unique spots, which allows the visitors to watch and enjoy both the sunrise and the sunset from the beach. It has also sandy beaches, blue sky and the shimmering expanse of water. These unique characteristics of Kuakata make it an attractive tourist spot.
d. One would visit Kuakata for several reasons. First, Kuakata has sandy beaches, evergreen forests and shimmering expanse of water of the Bay of Bengal. Secondly, it allows the visitors to watch both sunrise and sunset from the beach. Third, it is a sanctuary for migratory birds and one could enjoy surfing waves and line of coconut trees.
e. Indigenous Rakhaine community live in Kuakata. They have their own culture and tradition, which they have been celebrating since ages. The Rakhaine community landed in Kuakata way back in the Mughal period. Hundred years old Buddhist temples can also be found in Kuakata. Through all these, Kuakata upholds an ancient tradition.
2. Read the following text and make a flow chart showing the situation of adolescent girls in Bangladesh. 2×5=10
In Bangladesh, the legal age of marriage for girls is 18. However, 33% of our girls get married before they are 15 and 60% of them become mothers by the time they reach 19.
When an adolescent girl gets married, she usually drops out of school and thus loses her mobility. She gets confined to full-time work in her in-law's household. She loses social status and all the opportunities of economic independence. In her in-law's house, she gets marginalized. She becomes vulnerable to all sorts of abuse, including dowry-related violence. In our country, it is still a common practice for the bride's family to pay dowry. Dowry demands can continue even after marriage. An adolescent bride, even if her in-laws are supportive, faces enormous health risk during pregnancy and child birth. Majority of our people are uninformed or insufficiently informed about contraception and reproductive health. This leads to increased mortality rates among adolescent brides during childbirth.
[Unit-5, Lesson-2, Page-5]
1. Getting married early Providing economic benefits | → | 2 | → | 3 | → | 4 | → | 5 | → | 6 |
Answer to the question No. 2
1. Getting married early |
↓ |
2. Dropping out of school |
↓ |
3. Getting confined to full time work in their in-law’s house |
↓ |
4. Becoming vulnerable to all sorts of abuse |
↓ |
5. Becoming mothers by the age of 19 |
↓ |
6. Facing health risk during child birth and pregnancy |
3. Write a summary of the following text: 10
My name is Amerigo. I am 13 years old and I live on the street, alone. My mother, who is separated from my father, doesn't want me. She told me to go away. Now she is married to another man. My father lives very far away. I want to go to him, but he won't take me either.
The streets are now my home. Sometimes I find work. I used to collect trash and sell it to a vendor. I stopped doing that after I had a serious infection and a doctor told me to stay away from the trash dump. Once I worked for an ice-cream shop owner and sold ice-cream on the beach. But I got no money in return. The owner of the shop gave me something to eat, and let me sleep in his hut at night. The work was difficult and painful. The ice-cream box was quite heavy when it was full. I had to walk for hours, offering my ice-cream to whoever wanted to buy. There were days when I could not even sell one ice-cream.
In a way, I am lucky because I am alive. One of my friends was recently killed after he fell into a hole that opened up in the pile of trash. A boy I know lost one of his eyes after a piece of hot glass flew into his eye at the glass factory where he worked. The owner refused to pay for medical treatment.
For me, like all other street children, life is very hard. I am looking for work. I am always hungry, and I don't know where I will sleep at night.
[Unit -17; Lesson-4, Page-87]
Answer to the question No. 3
The passage describes the miserable condition of a street child named Amerigo. He had been abandoned by his parents. He makes his shelter in streets. With many other street children, he is leading a very miserable life. He used to collect and sell trash, but due to the bad impacts of such work on health he left that job. Then he began to work under an ice-cream shop owner. That job was also too difficult for him. Like many other street children, he is deprived of basic human rights. His life is very hard as he has no food or shelter.
4. Read the following text and fill in the blanks with suitable words from the box. There are more words than necessary. You may change the form of the words if necessary: 0.5×10=5
call | among | define | deaths |
cause | interpersonal | nature | serious |
within | economic | armed | aggressive |
Conflict can be (a) __ as clash of value and ideas among other things and the most serious form of conflict is (b) __ clashes that results in lots of (c) __ and casualties. There can be conflict (d) __ us, which is (e) __ intrapersonal conflict. The conflict between or (f) __ persons is called (g) __ conflict. Constraint of resources is also a (h) __ of conflict and it is known as (i) __ conflict. Conflict is a very common phenomenon, but sometimes it takes (j) __ forms.
Answer to the question No. 4
a. defined; b. armed; c. deaths; d. within; e. called; f. among; g. interpersonal; h. cause; i. economic; j. serious/aggressive.
5. Fill in the gaps using suitable words: 1×10=10
Sincerity is the best way of achieving success. One can go a long way if one does anything with sincerity. People who are sincere in their work are (a) __ of making anything success. The great men are also sincere because they (b) __ that sincerity is the (c) __ to success. Those who are not (d) __ can never (e) __ a long way in the world. The poor people are not always sincere because they do to know the (f) __ of sincerity. If they knew it, they would (g) __ a good use of it. Sincerity means not only to do work (h) __ but also with dutifulness, honesty, modesty and good behaviour. If all of us (i) __ sincere, our country will (j) __ be prosperous.
Answer to the question No. 5
a) capable; b) know; c) key; d) sincere; e) go; f) value/importance; g) make; h) property; i) become; j) definitely.
6. Rearrange the following sentences to make a coherent order: 10
(i) As a result, he studied under a great thinker Plato.
(ii) He also wrote books on Biology, Literature, Economics and Comparative Politics.
(iii) Plato taught Aristotle according to his own way.
(iv) Aristotle was born in Greece.
(v) His father wanted him to be a physician but he never cherished to be so.
(vi) Later on, Aristotle took the pen to write on topics suitable for human civilization.
(vii) He is called the father of Biology because of his creativity.
(viii) 'Politics' is one of his famous books which exposes fullest development of his wisdom.
(ix) He was the son of a royal physician.
(x) He wanted to be a free thinker.
Answer to the question No. 6
(iv)→ (ix)→ (v)→ (x)→ (i)→ (iii)→ (vi) → (viii)→ (ii)→ (vii)
Aristotle was born in Greece. He was the son of a royal physician. His father wanted him to be a physician but he never cherished to be so. He wanted to be a free thinker. As a result, he studied under a great thinker named Plato. Plato taught Aristotle according to his own way. Later on, Aristotle took the pen to write on topics suitable for human civilization. 'Politics' is one of his famous books which exposes fullest development of his wisdom. He also wrote books on Biology, Literature, Economics and Comparative Politics. He is called the father of Biology because of his creativity.
Part II: Writing Test (40 marks)
7. Write a paragraph on 'Environment Pollution' on the basis of the answers to the following questions in about 200 words: 10
(a) What do you mean by pollution? (b) What happens to people when air is polluted? (c) What is the present condition of our mighty rivers? (d) How do people pollute river water? (e) What precautionary measures can you suggest for preventing these pollutions?
8. The following is the beginning of a story. Complete it in your own words: 7
It was late at night. I was taking preparation for my ensuing examination. All the members of my family were sleeping. All on a sudden, my phone rang and it was an unknown number. I got frightened ........
9. Suppose, you are a student of class XII. Now, write a letter to your younger brother advising him to refrain from smoking. 5
10. The graph below shows the gradual rate of the internet users in Bangladesh. Describe the graph in at least 80 words. You should highlight the information and report the main features given in the graph. 10
Gradual Rate of the Internet Users (in crore)
11. Write down the theme of the following poem. (Not more than 50 words) 8
I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made;
Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honey bee
And live alone in the bee loud glade.
And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight’s all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet’s wings.
I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart’s core.
HSC English 1st Paper Board Question with answer: Comilla Board
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