Reading Practices-Past Year Question [PDF]

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The Ultimate Delivery Service I

Every day in chaotic Mumbai, a logistical miracle takes place. Teams of men wearing white hats deliver thousands of home-cooked lunches to office workers in the city. The lunch is contained in aluminium buckets called ‘dabbas’, and the men who deliver them are known as Dabbawallahs. What is amazing is that each dabba changes hands at least three times on its way.

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The system originated because there are so many different ethnic groups and castes, each with its own specific dietary needs and preferences. So instead of finding a restaurant, people prefer to have a hot midday meal sent from their homes directly to their offices. It is also up to fifteen times cheaper than eating out. II

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The Dabbawallahs are part of a sophisticated supply chain of deliverymen. They have no qualifications and are mostly illiterate. Yet despite this, and without computers or mobile phones, they deliver thousands of Dabbas to their hungry clients without fail, using a system of colour-coding and symbols on the tins. The network is so efficient that the business magazine, Forbes,

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gave it a six sigma performance rating, making it as reliable as Motorola or General Electric. All this despite the fact that a team of Harvard statisticians said that it was virtually impossible.

III

So how does it work? Let us take the case of Mr Rahman, an office worker. His Dabba has a black swastika, a yellow dot and a red slash. Elsewhere

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there is a white cross and black circle. The first symbols tell the Dabbawallahs the train station to go to, the line to take, and where to get off. The remaining ones indicate the district and the building and floor where they need to be delivered. At 10 a.m. the first Dabbawallah turns up to collect Mr Rahman’s dabba from his wife at home. The dabba sets off on its journey. In the next

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half hour it is taken to a collection point and put into the correct batch according to its code. It is fast and accurate work.

IV

Twenty minutes later, Dabbawallah 2 sorts them out, takes the dabbas marked with a black swastika, and cycles off to the station where Dabbawallah 3 picks up the ones with a yellow dot. He loads them onto a tray

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and boards the train at 11.05. The tray weighs fifty kilos and has room for 39 dabbas. V

The red slash tells him where to get off, eighteen minutes later. Dabbawallah 4 is waiting at the station and takes the ones with his symbol, a white cross for his sector. We have now narrowed the delivery zone down to a single small

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district. The black circle on the tin tells him the exact details of the government building it has to go to. He goes up four flights of stairs and drops off the dabbas in their place in the canteen. By 12.30 Mr. Rahman is tucking into his lunch. VI

To become a Dabawallah you have to pay 30,000 rupees to the tiffin wallahs

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union. Afterwards you can earn just under eighty pounds a month – a good salary by Indian standards. It is a hazardous occupation riding a bicycle with a huge tray of dabbas, or rushing across busy roads to get to an office building on the other side. During the monsoon season Dabbawallahs have to wade through water to get to their customers. Sometimes there are awful

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accidents. Recently, a Dabbawallah was killed but his colleagues made sure that his dabba deliveries were only held up by half an hour. Adapted from Reading Files, 2nd Edition Intermediate Glossary *slash = a / *swastika = a symbol that means ‘good luck’ in India

1.

Which city is the article about? _____________________________________________________________________ (1 mark)

2.

What is a dabba and who is a Dabbawallah? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ (2 marks)

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3.

Why do office workers use the services of the Dabbawallah network? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ (2 marks)

4.

Decide whether the following statements are TRUE (T) or FALSE (F). Circle the correct answer. a)

Each dabba changes hands three times to reach to the target customer. T / F

b)

Most Dabbawallahs can read and write.

T/F

c)

They manage without sophisticated technology.

T/F

d)

They exploit a system of colours and shapes.

T/F

e)

They are as efficient as some top western companies.

T/F (5 marks)

5.

In your own words, what does the writer mean by ‘a Dabbawallah was killed but his colleagues made sure that his dabba deliveries were only held up by half an hour’ (paragraph VI, line 46-47)? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ (2 marks)

6.

Do you think the Dabbawallah concept can be adapted for your city or country? Justify your answer. _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ (3 marks)

7.

List out ONE (1) advantage and ONE (1) disadvantage of this job. a)

Advantage: ____________________________________________________

b)

Disadvantage: __________________________________________________ (2 marks)

8.

Match the bold words from the passage to definitions a – c. a)

________________ : a class within Indian society you are born into

b)

________________ : reduced

c)

________________ : the time of year when it rains a lot (3 marks) 3

PASSAGE B I

8,500 laptops or other mobile devices are lost by UK business travellers every year. That figure, incredible as it may seem, is a worrying statistic. It is not just the cost of the hardware but the loss of data that is worrying for the forgetful or unlucky traveller. In another development more and more US citizens are reporting having their laptops confiscated or data copied during security

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checks at airports. II

To help the business traveller we have compiled a list of Do’s and Don’ts for those who travel with their laptops. a. Keep your laptop with you at all times, from the time you are dropped off at the airport until the time the taxi picks you up at the other end. Do not

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let it out of your sight even if you are just going to freshen up. b. There is no need to worry about your laptop being X-rayed – the radiation is not strong enough to harm your hard drive. If you look worried about the X-ray process the security officers might decide to do a hand check as well. However, laptops are not supposed to pass through metal 15 detectors. If a security guard asks you to pass through with your laptop, ask politely if he or she can help to hand check instead. c. Sometimes you have to take your laptop out of its case to pass it through the X-ray machine. Make sure all other equipment is secure so you don’t lose your mouse or webcam, etc.

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d. Sometimes you will be asked to turn the laptop on to prove that it is a laptop (a ‘hand check’). Don’t argue, turn it on and do what is asked of you. It is a good idea to leave your computer on standby mode so it opens up quickly. e. Avoid attracting attention to yourself by keeping a low profile. Security officials are more likely to search you more thoroughly if they have noticed you before you go through security.

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f.

Don’t use your laptop unless you really need to. If you need to use it at the airport, look around for somewhere quiet to use it. Don’t use it in busy areas where it would be easy for someone to see what you are

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doing without you noticing. g. If someone is taking an interest in your laptop stop using it and move away from the scene. They may be looking for something to steal. h. You are supposed to carry the original receipts with your passport. If you cannot prove that the computer was bought in your home country rather 35 than overseas, you may have to pay customs duty or might have your laptop confiscated. i.

Keep your back-up discs or thumbdrives in a different bag. If you lose your laptop then you still have the back up and can still do your business.

j.

A final piece of advice is to think about buying a second laptop that you 40 use specifically for travelling. You don’t have to spend lots of money on it, perhaps think about buying a second-hand one. Then only put what you need on your travel laptop.

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Hopefully with these tips we can help you keep your laptop safe and have an enjoyable and profitable journey.

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Adapted from Reading Files, 2nd Edition Intermediate

1.

Suggest the best title for this passage. _____________________________________________________________________ (1 mark)

2.

What is the main purpose of the passage? _____________________________________________________________________ (1 mark)

3.

Why shouldn’t you use your laptop at the airport? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________

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(2 marks) 4.

Why should you try not to draw attention to yourself? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ (2 marks)

5.

Do you think the tips listed in the passage are good? Justify your answer. _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ (3 marks)

6.

In your opinion, which is the best tip that you would like to follow? Why? _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ (2 marks)

7.

Based on the text, what do these words refer to? a)

he or she (paragraph II, line 17) ______________________________________________________________

b)

it (paragraph II, line 31) ______________________________________________________________ (2 marks)

8.

Match the words in bold in the passage to the correct definition a – c.

a) To go through something b) The taxes that must be paid to the government when goods are brought in from other countries c) To make oneself cleaner, cooler / to feel more pleasant.

(3 marks)

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9.

Decide whether the following statements are TRUE (T) or FALSE (F). Circle the correct answer. a)

Passengers should not ask the security to hand check their

T/F

laptops. b)

Stay cautious of your surrounding when using your laptop at the

T/F

airport. c)

Do not power on your laptop during a hand check.

T/F

d)

Original receipt must be kept as proof to avoid paying custom

T/F

duty.

(4 marks)

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