AHSEC| CLASS 11| ENGLISH| QUESTION PAPER - 2024| H.S. 1ST YEAR
2024
ENGLISH
Full Marks: 90
Pass Marks: 27
Time: 3 hours
The figures in the margin indicate
full marks for the questions.
SECTION-A
(Reading)
1. Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:
1. The old lady
was glad to be back at the block of flats where she lived. Her shopping had
tired her and her basket had grown heavier with every step of the way home, In
the lift her thoughts were on lunch and a good rest; but when she got out at
her own floor, both were forgotten in her sudden discovery that her front door
was open. She was thinking that she must reprimand her daily maid the next
morning for such a monstrous piece of negligence, when she remembered that she
had gone shopping after her maid had left, and she had turned both the keys in
their locks. She walked slowly into the hall and at once noticed that all the
room doors were open, yet following her regular practice, she had shut them
before going out. Looking into the drawing room, she saw a scene of confusion
over by her writing desk.
2. It was as
clear as clear as daylight then that burglars had forced an entry in her
absence., Her first impulse was to go round all the rooms looking for the
thieves, but then she decided that at her age it might be more prudent to have
someone with her, so she went to fetch the porter from the basement. By the
time her legs were beginning to tremble, so she sat down and accepted a cup of
very strong tea, while she telephoned the police. Then her composure regained,
she was ready to set off with the porter's assistance to search for any
intruders who might be still lurking in her flat.
3. They went
through the rooms, being careful to touch nothing, as they did not want to
hinder the police in their search for fingerprints. The chaos was
inconceivable. She had lived in the flat for thirty years and was a veritable
magpie at hoarding; and it seemed as though everything she possessed had been
tossed out and turned over and over. At least sorting out the things she should
have discarded years ago was now being made easier for her. Then a police
inspector arrived with a constable and she told them of her discovery of her
ransacked flat. The inspector began to look for fingerprints, while the
constable checked that the front door locks had not been forced, thereby
proving that the burglars had either used skeleton keys or entered through the
balcony.
4. There was no
trace of fingerprints, but the inspector found a dirty red bundle that
contained jewellery which the old lady said was not hers. So their entry into
the flat was apparently not the burglars' first job that day and they must have
been disturbed. The bris inspector then asked the lady to try to check what was
2smo missing by the next day and advised her not to stay not alone in the flat
for a few nights. The old lady thought that he was a fussy creature but since
the porter agreed with him, she rang up her daughter and asked for her help in
what she described as a little spot of bris bother.
Questions:
(a) Why did the
old lady feel glad to be at her flat? 2
(b) Why was the
old lady surprised to find her front door open? 2
(c) What made
her realize that burglars had entered her flat? 2
(d) Why did she
go to the basement? 1
(e) Why did the
inspector conclude that the thieves had used the skeleton keys? 2
(f) What did the
police inspector find while searching for fingerprints? 1
(g) Pick out the
words/phrases from the passage which are the synonyms of the following: 2
(i) enormous
(Para 1)
(ii)
indication (Para 4)
2. Read the passage given below and answer the questions that
follow:
Today, India is
one of the fastest growing economies in the world. A key contributor to this
success story is the growing middle class. The liberalization in 1990s opened
the gates to foreign goods and services, investments and technologies. This led
to a growth in disposable incomes and a burgeoning middle class with rising
consumption levels.
There are many
aspects which can be looked at when discussing increasing consumption of the
middle class. One of the key aspects is the rise in globalization and exposure
to a vast range of products and services. In addition, access to
telecommunications and internet has provided new avenues for consumers with
online retailers offering a mindboggling choice at low prices. Moreover, a rise
in incomes, social media and awareness is leading to an increased expenditure
on health, education, communication, transport and entertainment. Increasing
urbanization too is a factor affecting increased consumption. Another aspect de
leading to higher consumption is the rise in nuclear families, which spend more
per person than joint families.
The growth of
middle class consumption is good news for economists as this leads to demand
led growth resulting in creation of jobs and higher incomes. At the same time,
increasing incomes and exposure to global media are leading to changes in
consumption behaviours. The younger affluent middle class is spending more on
aspirational goods such as branded apparel and gadgets leading to lesser
investment in assets. Another fallout of the changing consumer behaviour is the
increased use of online purchasing resulting in losses for small neighbourhood
shops.
While the
industry continues to adapt to changes in consumption patterns, an increase in
overall consumption by middle class is a sign of higher income and prosperity.
Moreover, it can certainly lead to creation of more jobs and be an engine for
growth in the future.
Questions:
(a) On the basis
of your reading of the above passage, make note on it, and add a suitable title
to it. 5
(b) Make a
summary of the above passage in about 80 words.
SECTION-B
(Writing)
3. You are arranging a picnic party to Kaziranga next
Sunday. Describe your arrangement of the picnic party to your classmates in
about 100 words. 6
OR
You are Partha/
Prarthana, Cultural Secretary of XYZ Public School, Tezpur. Your school observed
National Unity Day to recognize the endeavours of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel to
unite the country. Prepare a report in about 100-125 words for your school magazine.
6
4. You are really worried about environmental degradation. Pollution
is increasing day-by-day and is posing a great threat to the environment and
mankind. Ozone layer is getting depleted. Write an article on ‘Environmental Pollution-a
Global Problem’ for your school magazine in about 150-200 words 6
OR
To enforce
strict discipline in schools and colleges is a great problem these days when
cases of indiscipline have become quite frequent. Write a speech to be delivered
at the morning assembly of your school/ college on the topic, ‘The importance
of discipline in student’s life’. 6
5. You are Chetan/Chetana Sarma, a commerce graduate from
Gauhati University. You are seeking a suitable job. You came across an
advertisement in The Assam Tribune, inviting young and dynamic fresh graduate
as sales assistant in a reputed company. Write an application with complete
bio-data to the Manager of the company. 8
OR
Recently there
have been a number of reports in newspaper about students of classes X and XII
suffering from nervous breakdown. Write a letter to the Editor of The Assam
Tribune, Guwahati, appealing to the authorities to ease the pressure on
children. You are Pragyan/Pragati, a class XI student in New Guwahati HS School.
8
SECTION—C
(Grammar)
6. (a) Fill in the blanks with suitable determiners (any
two): 0.5x2=1
(i) He thinks
that he is _______Sarat Chandra.
(ii) Do you have
a ______bun left?
(iii) She gave a
cookie to _____child.
(b) Rewrite
any two of the following sentences with the correct forms of the verbs given in
the brackets: 0.5x2=1
(i) If I (know) his
address, I would have contacted him.
(ii) They (live)
in Guwahati for five years.
(iii) Look,
there (go) the bus.
(c) Fill in
the blanks with appropriate modal auxiliaries: 0.5x2=1
(i) You _______take
regular exercise. (advice)
(ii) I ________go
out for a walk but now I don’t. (past habit) 0.5x2=1
(d) Correct
the following: 0.5x2=1
(i) There is no
remedy of this.
(ii) He was
invited at the meeting.
7. (a) Complete the following piece of conversation by
choosing the correct alternatives from the brackets: 2
He said, “Mother,
(why/ what) don’t you use the new woolen shawl? (Don’t/ Haven’t) you like it?”
Mother replied, “(Many/ Much) of my sons haven’t got anything for use in
winter. (How/ Why) can I use mine?”
(b) Rearrange
the words in the following to form meaningful sentences: 1x2=2
(i) this/ is/
buildings/ that were/ one of the/ in/ the/ earthquake/ destroyed.
(ii) his age, /
considering/ made/ much/ he/ has/ progress.
8. Rewrite the following sentences as directed: 1x2=2
(a) You must go
there to escape being fined. (Change it into complex sentence)
(b) I am glad
that you have come. (Change it into compound sentence)
SECTION – D
(Textual Questions)
9. Read any one of the stanzas given below and answer the
questions that follow:
(a) “Father
and son, we both must live
On the same globe
and the same land,
He speaks: I cannot
understand
Myself, why
anger grows from grief
We each put out
an empty hand,
Longing for
something to forgive,”
(i) Where must
the father and son live together? 1
(ii) Can the
father understand his son? Why? 1+1=2
(iii) What makes
the father angry? 2
(iv) How do they
try to fill up the gap that separate them? 2
(v) Find a word
from the stanza that means ‘world’. 1
OR
(b) “A sweet
face,
My mother’s,
that was before I was born.
And the sea,
which appears to have changed less,
Washed their
terribly transient feet.”
(i) Whose
sweet face is referred to here? 1
(ii) Who is ‘I’
in the second line? 1
(iii) What is
that has not changed? 1
(iv) Find out
the word in the stanza that means ‘transitory’. 1
(v) Compare
the change that comes in the mother and the sea. 4
10. Answer any three of the following questions: 2×3=6
(a) Describe the
three girls with particular reference to the 'Big girl' in the poem, A
Photograph.
(b) What does
the poet mean by the line, "Both wry with the laboured ease of loss"?
(c) What happens
when the rain descends in the form of showers?
(d) Describe the
things that receive the blessings of the rain.
(e) What is the
central theme of the poem, Childhood?
(f) What does
the poet realize of Heaven and Hell?
(g) What is the
father's problem in the poem, Father and the Son?
11. Answer any five of the following questions: 2×5=10
(a) What did Wu
Daozi want to show the Emperor through his painting?
(b) What is Nek
Chand's contribution to the world of art?
(c) Why was it
hard for the author to believe that his grandmother had a divine beauty?
(d) How did the
sparrows mourn the grandmother's death?
(e) Why was a
mirror put inside a cage in the zoo at Lusaka?
(f) How are
croplands and grasslands being converted into wasteland and deserts?
(g) Why,
according to Verrier Elwin, should wood carving be taught and encouraged in our
educational institutions?
(h) Why did
Verrier Elwin say that he was an unconventional visitor?
12. What appeal does Verrier Elwin make to the scholars of
Assam concerning the songs and poems of the State? Why does he make this appeal?
4+2=6
OR
Give a character
sketch of the author's grandmother. 6
13. Answer any one of the following questions: 6
(a) "The
best way of getting to know a place is to visit it." Which place does the
narrator refer to? What does he say about the place?
(b) What factors
made Einstein's life in Munich miserable? What did he realize after six months?
14. Answer any two of the following questions in brief:
2×2=4
(a) How did
Ranga and Ratna react at their unexpected encounter?
(b) Why was the
narrator impressed with Ranga?
(c) How did Yuri
help Albert in getting a medical certificate?
(d) What was
Einstein's idea of education?
***
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