LISTENING PART 1

You will hear a man who is looking for a new apartment to rent, talking to a landlady
who is showing him round an apartment.
Listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 5.

Mary: Hello, Andrew, isn’t it?

Andrew: Hi, yes that’s right. And you must be Mrs. Jones.
Mary: Yes I am, but please call me Mary. Come in and I’ll show you the apartment.
Andrew: Great, thanks. I’ll just make a few notes as we go around, if you don’t mind?
Mary: That’s fine. So first, a few general points, Andrew. You probably saw in the
advert that the apartment is partly furnished.
Andrew: That’s OK – I’ve got a bit of furniture myself.
Mary: And also, please, pets are not permitted in the apartment.
Andrew: No problem – I don’t have any.
Mary: Well, shall we start in the kitchen, it’s through here.
Andrew: Oh, it’s nice and big, isn’t it?
Mary: Yes, a good size for a one-bedroom apartment. It’s got everything you’ll need.
The dishwasher is quite old now but it’s very reliable. And I’ve just replaced the fridge,
so that’s never been used.
Andrew: Great. It all looks really good.
Mary: Well, follow me through into the lounge, Andrew. Here we are.
Andrew: I like the wooden floorboards. But I might want to put down a rug on the floor
as well, if that’s OK.
Mary: Oh yes, of course.
Andrew: I’ve also got lots of books.
Mary: Well, as a matter of fact, I’ve just arranged for a builder to come and put up a
set of shelves on that wall there. So that’ll be convenient for your books.
Andrew: That’ll be great. Then, is that the bedroom through there?
Mary: Yes, that’s right. Come through.
Andrew: There’s a nice big wardrobe, and a chest of drawers.
Mary: Yes, plenty of storage.
Andrew: But if I wanted a lamp beside my bed, I guess I’d need to provide that
myself?
Mary: Yes, you would.
Andrew: That’s no problem, I’ve got one that’d do.
Mary: And then this is the bathroom. It’s only a small space, so there’s no bath, just a
shower.
Andrew: And the water heating, that looks like it’s gas, right?
Mary: Yes, electricity is more expensive in my view.
Andrew: You’re probably right.

Now listen and answer questions 6 to 10.

Andrew: Well, I really like the apartment, Mary, and I’d like to take it if that’s OK with
you?
Mary: Yes, absolutely Andrew, I’d be delighted. So why don’t we have a look at the
tenancy form. We’re supposed to fill that in together.
Andrew: Yeah, sure.
Mary: Now, I’ve got a form here. So first of all, I need some of your details. What’s your
full name Andrew?
Andrew: It’s Andrew Connaught. That’s spelt: C-O-N-N-A-U-G-H-T.
Mary: Great, got that. And what’s the best way to contact you Andrew?
Andrew: Well, you’ve got my mobile number.
Mary: Yes, I know. But an email address would be good as well, in case I need to send
you documents.
Andrew: Oh right, I see. Well my email is andrew171 at interglobe.com – spelt: I-N-
T-E-R-G-L-O-B-E
Mary: Great, OK thanks. Then, I really need an identification number of some sort.
Andrew: Oh, dear. I haven’t got my passport with me.
Mary: A driver’s licence number will do.
Andrew: Oh right, I’ve got that, hang on. It’s: E 738 2991 TP
Mary: Right, good. So, now just a few tenancy details. When would you like to move in?
Andrew: Well, as soon as possible, really.
Mary: Right, well like I mentioned, there’s a builder coming, that’s on the 4th of April.
So, really, any time after that’s fine.
Andrew: The 4th is a Friday, isn’t it? And that weekend I’m going away. So how about
the 7th of April?
Mary: Yes, that works well. Now, you’ll have seen from the advertisement that the rent
is $315 per week.
Andrew: Yes, that’s OK.
Mary: And there’s also a bond to pay before you move it. It’s like a deposit – and you’ll
get it back at the end of your tenancy.
Andrew: How much is that?
Mary: Well, I try to be reasonable. A typical bond for a 1-bedroom in this part of the city
is $500. But I only ask for $450.
Andrew: OK, that should be fine.
Mary: Now what I’ll do Andrew is email you my bank account details and you can…
LISTENING PART 2

You will hear a radio announcer talking about entertainment events that are taking place
this weekend.

Now listen carefully and answer questions 11 to 15.

Melanie: OK so, next up on this morning’s show – Dan Johnson’s going to tell us what’s
on in the city this weekend. Dan.
Dan: Well thanks Melanie and there’s certainly a great program of entertainment this
weekend – something for everyone. So first, it’s the Writers’ Festival again, and just like
last year the Festival has attracted more than 250 writers from around the world. The
writers will be talking about their latest books and there’s always an opportunity for
audience members to ask the writers about their work. In the past the Festival has been
based at the Victoria Theatre, which wasn’t really big enough. So this year they’re
going to be using a number of other venues as well.
More information and tickets are available from the website.

Now something I’m really looking forward to is Wearable Art on Saturday evening. This
fashion show’s always been held in the capital, so it’s very exciting that it’s coming to
our city for the first time and I’ve already got my ticket. And they’ve just announced a
20% discount on all tickets, to encourage a good turnout. Tickets can be bought online,
or at the door.

Something slightly different is Ocean Times – that’s on Sunday morning at Bright’s

Beach. Now you might be thinking it’s the wrong time of year to go to the beach for a
swim or build sandcastles with the kids, and you’d be right. But what’s happening is,
there’s going to be a number of large tents put up on the beach, for workshops, displays
and presentations. It’s a chance for the whole family to learn about the science of the
ocean and marine eco-systems and how to protect them.
Sounds like a good way to spend your Sunday.

Now, you may already have seen the advertising for the Artscape Exhibition. This is an
outdoor exhibition of sculptures and installation art that officially opens this evening and
you can go along whenever suits you over the weekend. It’s being held up at the
Sanctuary Reserve and the idea is, you wander wherever you want around the Reserve,
enjoying the artworks in a natural environment. I’d recommend you take a warm coat,
though, because it can get quite windy up there.

Now, the Civil Theatre is open for tours this weekend, too. This is a great chance to go
backstage at the city’s largest theatre and see all its secrets. This event is only held once
a year so these opportunities to tour the Civil aren’t too frequent. I went last time and
can tell you it’s well worth it.
Now later this afternoon it’s Stand Up For Kids. This is a stand-up comedy show aimed
particularly at children aged from 5 to 10. This is being held in the hall at Swanson
College at 4 p.m. today.
Just bear in mind that the roads around the college can get pretty congested at that
time on a Friday, so allow plenty of time to get there. But it’s bound to be a great show
and the hall at Swanson is huge so you shouldn’t find it hard to get a seat.

Then it’s Sunday Unplugged on Sunday afternoon, with a number of local bands playing
at the old post office building in Morningside. There’s a great range of acts this week –
check online for details.
Though it’s the usual issue with the old post office venue – no parking at all in that
part of the central city. And the train service is suspended on Sunday for repairs, so if
you’re taking the bus, leave early.

And on Saturday evening it’s the Ignite Dance Finals. This is the final of the inter-
school dance competition so I know there’ll be a huge turnout.
If you haven’t already got your ticket I’d do so without delay to avoid
disappointment.
It’s being held in the Ridgeway Theatre, same as last year, so there’ll be a great
atmosphere.

Now one other…

LISTENING PART 3

You will hear two early education students called Maia and Daniel talking about
research into how babies and children learn.

Now listen carefully and answer questions 21 to 26.

Maia: So, Daniel, shall we compare a few ideas for our assignment on how babies and
children learn?
Daniel: Good idea, I’ve started the reading. One thing I read about was these ‘learning
videos’.
Maia: Oh yeah, I read about learning videos. The baby watches a short film with some
basic vocabulary, maths and science, and they learn as they watch – that’s the idea.
Certainly, babies will pay attention to videos for long periods of time.

Daniel: Yeah, but there’s been research to show that babies don’t learn effectively from
screens.
Actually, they learn by interacting with their parents and other caregivers – that’s
the best approach.
Maia: Mmm, it’s interesting. Another issue with learning videos is that babies ought to
have play time.
Daniel: You mean in a group?
Maia: Not necessarily, it can be alone, actually. But what’s important is that they
investigate their own environment.
They should examine the objects around them and experiment. So they discover
information for themselves. And they don’t get that sitting in front of a film.
Daniel: That’s a good point. Then, I also thought I’d write about the ‘present research’ in
my assignment.
Maia: Oh yeah, I read a bit about the present research. And it’s true, isn’t it? When you
give a baby a present or gift, some of them are more interested in the wrapping paper than
the present itself.
Daniel: But it’s not some of them. The research shows that pretty much every baby
prefers the paper to the present, whether male or female – it’s just a human
characteristic.
Maia: Really? I’d thought there’d be more exceptions.
Daniel: Apparently not. It seems that playing with the paper, or ribbons, or box,
stimulates the baby’s senses. They touch everything, climb into the box, put the ribbon
into their mouths. And brain scans have shown that sight, sound, touch, smell and taste
are all stimulated in this way.
Maia: It’s amazing the research has produced so much specific information, just
from studying presents! I hadn’t expected that. The results cover so many different
aspects of baby behaviour.
Daniel: Yeah, exactly. But it shows us that babies learn by playing.
Maia: So we shouldn’t stop wrapping up babies’ presents.
Daniel: No, definitely not!
Maia: Then I also read about babies and second languages. There was a really interesting
bilingual experiment in Spain. They tried teaching English to a group of 280 Spanish
children in different preschools.
Daniel: So the research subjects were in different schools?
Maia: Yes, but the researchers deliberately selected teachers who all had the same
education. They’d been trained to use a style that focused on play and social
interaction. So because of that, the experiment was standardised across all the schools,
that’s really important.
Daniel: Yeah, I agree, that was a great idea.
Maia: The subjects were aged between 7 months and 3 years old. And the children were
given a one-hour English lesson for 18 weeks.
Daniel: Did they seem to enjoy the lessons?
Maia: I don’t have any information on that. But at the end of the experiment, each child
could produce an average of 74 English words or phrases.
Daniel: But did they remember them?
Maia: Well, follow up testing showed that the classes had a long-term benefit, yes.
Daniel: Wow, that’s remarkable, especially considering some of the children were so
young.
Maia: I think so too. It really shows how babies and small children can learn through
playing.
Daniel: Yeah, I wonder if other schools will try the same thing in future.
Maia: It’ll be interesting to see what happens.

Now listen and answer questions 27 to 30.

Daniel: So, Maia, let’s discuss some more ideas about how babies learn. What other
research have you read about?

Maia: Well, I read about Dr Pritchard’s study. In her experiment, babies were given toys
to play with. And their caregivers sometimes repeated the same movements as the baby,
and sometimes did something different. And Dr Pritchard monitored the baby’s electrical
brain activity.
The results showed that babies were happiest when parents or caregivers imitated
their behaviour. (Q27)

Daniel: Maybe that could be used as a teaching tool?

Maia: Yeah, absolutely.
Daniel: Then I read about a study of 3-year-olds. This was interesting. The researchers
experimented by doing things like dropping a pen or knocking something off a desk.
Maia: And did the children do the same thing?
Daniel: No, what they often did though, was pick up the pen. They wanted to give
someone assistance if they could, if they thought someone else had a problem. (Q28)
So I think that shows how babies are more likely to learn by working with caregivers and
teachers, rather than in isolation.
Maia: Then have you heard of Professor Michelson?
Daniel: Is he a linguist?
Maia: You’re thinking of someone else. Professor Michelson did a study where babies
had to push buttons. Some buttons switched on a light and some didn’t. And after a little
experimentation, the babies nearly always pushed a button that switched on a light.
Daniel: You mean, they knew the light would come on?
Maia: Professor Michelson thinks so. He believes they recognised that a certain thing
would happen, as a result of a certain action. (Q29)
So maybe that has implications for learning.

Daniel: Interesting. I also looked at a study in the United States. This showed that
babies as young as 16 months have some knowledge of how language is structured.
(Q30)
In a simple sense, they seemed to know the function of nouns and verbs. And the
researchers believe this is linked to the way they learn the meaning of new words.
Maia: Oh, really? Amazing they start so young. I’d like to read about that…