Free CXC English A Paper 2 May/June 2017 past paper from 2017. Includes a worked answer key. Open the PDF, take a timed test, and study with AI on Caribbean AI.
Answer keys are free on Caribbean AI. View the answers to every past-paper question at no cost - no payment needed - with step-by-step worked solutions and instant AI marking available on Premium.
CSEC English A Paper 2 May/June 2017 - Free CXC Past Paper with Answers
Free CXC English A Paper 2 May/June 2017 past paper from 2017. Includes a worked answer key. Open the PDF, take a timed test, and study with AI on Caribbean AI.
Opening the interactive papers…
Every question from this paper as text. See the answers and worked solutions. Questions are the property of the Caribbean Examinations Council; Caribbean AI is not affiliated with CXC.
Read the following magazine article on drug testing carefully and then write a summary of it in NOT MORE THAN 120 words. If this limit is exceeded, only the first 120 words of your summary will be read and assessed. As far as possible, use your own words. Your summary should be in continuous prose.
In your answer you will be assessed on how well you
Most of us know that cancer, heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death in the West. But many people would be surprised by the next biggest killer: the side effects of prescription medicines. Adverse drug reactions kill more than 110 000 people a year in the United Kingdom, and more than 100 000 in the United States of America.
Many studies published in the scientific literature comparing drug side effects in humans and animals have found animal tests to be unlikely to predict any more accurately than if you had simply tossed a coin. One review of human-animal correlation in drugs that has been withdrawn found that animal tests predicted the human side effects only six out of 114 times. Hundreds of drugs used to treat strokes have been found safe and effective in animal studies, and then injured or killed patients in clinical trials.
Dr Richard Klausner, former director of the US National Cancer Institute lamented that the history of cancer research has been a history of curing cancer in the mouse. “We have cured mice of cancer for decades, and it simply did not work on humans.” Cigarette smoke, asbestos, arsenic, benzene, alcohol and glass fibres are all safe to ingest, according to animal studies. Penicillin, the world’s first antibiotic, was delayed for more than 10 years by misleading results from experiments on rabbits, and would have been shelved forever had it been tested on guinea pigs, which it kills. Even the Handbook of Laboratory Animal Science admits that uncritical reliance on the results of animal tests can be dangerously misleading and has cost the health and lives of tens of thousands of humans.
So why use animals to test new drugs? It has been known among scientists and the pharmaceutical industry for decades that animal testing is scientifically unreliable. But in 1964 Dr J. Gallagher, medical director of Lederle Laboratories, admitted that animal studies are done for legal, and not scientific reasons. So, pharmaceutical companies conduct animal tests simply to satisfy government regulations. Most importantly, animal data also provide liability protection when drugs kill or injure people. The industry can point to rigorous animal tests they have performed, and claim that they have done their best to ensure against tragedies occurring.
There is no getting away from the fact that people have to be the ultimate guinea pigs for testing new treatments. Clearly, the health and safety of research volunteers and patients should be paramount and the best safeguards should be in place to protect them.
Adapted from Kathy Archbald, “It’s Time to Test the Testers”. In Caribbean English A, Hodder Education, 2008, pp. 58–59.
Write your answer on the RULED PAGE provided. There is a space on page 6 for any notes you may want to make. This will NOT be marked.
[30 marks]
Read the poem below carefully and then answer all the questions that follow. Write your answer on the ruled lines provided after each question.
I watched the island narrowing, the fine Weaving of foam around the shore, clear The roads as simple and casual as twine Between the mountains; I looked until the plane Turned to the final north and turned above The wide channel, and then a quiet space between The fisherman’s tales, until all that I love Was lost in cloud. I watched the shallow green That marked the places where there must be reef, The silver glinting on the fuselage*, each mile Dividing us, and all fidelity remained Till space would break it, and then after a while I thought of nothing, nothing I knew would change. When we arrived at Seawell, it had rained.
fuselage: part of an aircraft
Derek Walcott, “Tales of the Islands”. In Selected Poems, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1964.
(i) What does the speaker mean by the word “narrowing” in line 1?
Why is the island described as “narrowing”?
[2 marks]
Identify ONE literary device used between lines 1 and 5.
[1 mark]
Quote the words for the device chosen.
[1 mark]
What is the location from which the speaker describes the experience?
[2 marks]
What is the last feature of the island the speaker notices?
[2 marks]
What is meant by “until all that I love / Was lost in cloud” (lines 7–8)?
[2 marks]
The speaker’s journey is described in three parts. Identify these parts by giving the appropriate line numbers.
Part 1: Part 2: Part 3:
[3 marks]
YOU MUST ANSWER THIS QUESTION.
Read the passage below and then answer all the questions that follow.
Family members develop a healthy foundation when they learn to communicate with each other in an honest and open way. When conflict does arise, the family that has developed healthy communication habits can work through and resolve the issues that develop. This means that family members are able to listen quietly and understand most, if not everything another family member is saying, verbally and nonverbally. When these conditions exist, the chance of misunderstanding is lessened.
Families are important in our lives because they create, clarify and develop our first concepts of relationships. They provide a sense of belonging and support, encourage learning about relationships, provide mental models of friendship, and help to shape views of romantic relationships. But like all relationships, families experience conflict which can be a source of frustration.
There should be appreciation for each relationship individually, but all family members should be seen as important people in life. Improving communication in families requires listening and oral communication skills. Conflict should be handled constructively and openly with realistic expectations. When conflict does arise, it is critical to manage differing opinions and opposing views sensitively.
Family communication plays a significant part in building and nurturing a family. Good communication between husband and wife, between parents and children, as well as between siblings, fosters a harmonious and loving family relationship.
Several things today can make communication more difficult. Many families grow apart; people do not always live close by. Divorce interferes with the structure in some families by introducing new relationships, and because the individual members become wrapped up in their lives, they forget to come to talk about the world around them. Fragile new relationships can be problematic in emotional times.
Trusting in family members by communicating will foster the love you share and tighten your bonds. When problems do surface, if you’ve established a strong communicative base with your family, you’ll feel as though your family is a safe place to seek shelter.
Adapted from Kanu Alusine, “The Importance of Communication in Families”, Next Generation Issue No. 14, Fall-Winter 2015, Carib Creative Solutions Ltd, p. 16.
[15 marks]
According to paragraph 1, what is ONE condition that must exist for families to work out their problems?
[2 marks]
What is meant by “healthy communication habits” (line 3)?
[2 marks]
According to paragraph 2, what are TWO benefits of families?
[2 marks]
What are the TWO main forms of communication identified in the passage?
[2 marks]
Based on paragraph 3, identify TWO skills needed to settle conflict.
[2 marks]
Explain the following expressions used in paragraph 6: (i) “foster the love you share” (line 25) (ii) “tighten your bonds” (lines 25–26)
[2 marks]
“foster the love you share” (line 25)
[1 mark]
“tighten your bonds” (lines 25–26)
[1 mark]
In line 27, the writer states that your “family is a safe place to seek shelter”. Quote ONE expression from paragraph 2 which conveys the same idea.
[2 marks]
Identify the paragraph that BEST sums up the message of the passage.
[1 mark]
Write a story based on the picture below.
Your answer in this section should be approximately 400 to 450 words in length. You MUST write in Standard English. However, dialect may be used in conversation.
Write your answer on the RULED PAGES provided. You are expected to adhere to the word limit. There is a blank page for any notes you may want to make. This WILL NOT BE MARKED.
In your answer you will be assessed on how well you
EITHER
[35 marks]
He looked. He wiped his eyes. He looked again at the screen and was sure he was not seeing right. "No!" He screamed. "It is not true!"
Write a story which includes these sentences.
OR
[35 marks]
As far as the eye could see there were long lines of people from all over the neighbourhood heading down the hill towards the town centre.
Follow one stream of the crowd, and describe what you saw and heard as they walked and describe, in particular, what you saw and heard as the stream reached the destination.
[35 marks]
"We do not need to be concerned about global warming or climate change. The environment needs no help from us. It can take care of itself."
Write an essay either SUPPORTING or OPPOSING this view.
[35 marks]
"If the youth today appear lost, then the previous generations have somehow failed in their responsibilities to nurture their own offspring."
Write an essay giving your views on this statement.
[35 marks]