🎧 Master IELTS Listening with English and Me! CD1 🚀

track one hey Jenny oh hi Steve nice to see you good to see you too how's it going fine thanks I'm so glad the exams have finished me too so are you going on a holiday this summer yes I've decided to go to Mexico for the whole summer vacation 6 weeks in total that sounds great what are you going to do there well actually it's a working holiday I'm going to work at a school teaching English to Children what about you you I'm going to Paris for 2 weeks are you going with your family no

I'm going with my best friend we've enrolled in a language school to study French that sounds like fun have a good trip you too track two good afternoon Royal Mount Hotel how may I help you hello um I'd like to book a twin room please for next week one minute please I'll just check if we have one available yes we do sir now I just need to take down a few details if I may yes of course what name is the booking under my name Duncan Jeffrey that's GE EO F re e y g e

o f r e y uhhuh and could I have a contact telephone number please yes 5762 23821 when will you be arriving sir sometime on the evening of the 19th of September yes and we'll be leaving on the 23rd how much will that be in total so that's a twin room for a twin it would normally be £235 but I can give you a special rate as its low season £210 for the six nights great thank you and how would you like to pay sir we accept cash check or credit card I'll pay cash on

arrival if that's okay of course sir we look forward to seeing you track three so what are the differences between these four hotels well the main difference is in the facilities they offer the hotel Sunshine is the only one which has a gym and it's also got one of the top health spars in the area it's next to a lake so you can do water sports there but if you really like sailing or water skiing then the Highland Hotel would probably be the best place because it offers great great instruction programs in these Sports actually

I'm not a sporty person okay um well what about the hotel CIA it's a brand new hotel and it Prides itself on its Cinema and multimedia Center and then there's the Royal this one has a conference room a meeting room and free computer access but it's not really appropriate for children there's not much in the way of entertainment well I'm going on holiday not to work and it's just my wife and me so I think we'll book with the hotel carmenia please track four so there's a great walking tour tomorrow morning or tomorrow night we

could go on the cruise around the harbor what do you think John well we've got theater tickets for tonight so we'll be too tired for the walking tour in the morning but I don't fancy the cruise either why not it'll be fun look it's a dinner cruise and it's only only $12 each I hate the sea and I'll be sick with fear if the waves are big and dinner on a boat I just couldn't but we'll be in the harbor still now what about this there's a bus tour tomorrow evening it's only $550 and goes

all around the main tourist sites yeah that sounds okay but I'd much rather track five where shall we eat tonight where well there are plenty of options the guide says this city has hundreds of restaurants what kind of food would you like to have John well I quite like seafood there's the Captain's Table on fth Street the guide gives it four stars H I don't know the hotel receptionist told me the service is slow but if you like seafood there are a couple more places in the guide ah yes Mangin or Joe's Cafe what about

those Sam Mangin could be a good option it's nice than Joe's Cafe and there are fantastic views as well we'd probably pay a bit extra Joe's Cafe is much cheaper but we're on holiday I think we should Splash out that sounds great oh no hold on it's closed tonight what a shame should we go to Joe's Cafe then yes I suppose we'll have to I'll give them a call and book a table can I use your phone uh no sorry I've left my phone in the hotel we can ask the receptionist to do it let's

go back now and sort it out we can get changeed and have a drink before dinner if you like okay good idea track six section one you will hear a tourist asking for information at a tourist office first you'll have some time to look at questions 1 to 4 in the exam there will be a pause of 20 seconds you will see that there is an example which has been done for you on this occasion only the conversation related to this will be played first hello how can I help you um hello is it possible

to book a bus tour of the city here of course sir when would you like to take the tour there are tours in the morning afternoon and evening sometimes it's nice to see the city at night with the buildings lit up we'll be going out for dinner tonight so we prefer to go this afternoon oh and it's for two people The Tourist says that the tour is for two people so the number of passengers has been written in the notes as two now we shall begin you should answer the questions as you listen because you

will not hear the recording a second time listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 4 hello how can I help you um hello is it possible to book a bus tour of the city here of course sir when would you like to take the tour there are tours in the morning afternoon and evening sometimes it's nice to see the city at night with the buildings lit up we'll be going out for dinner tonight so we prefer to go this afternoon oh and it's for two people right now I just need some details can you give

me the names of the two people please yes Susan field and James Carter Susan field and James sorry can you spell your surname for me please it's Carter C a r t e r thank you and can I have a contact telephone number why' you need one just in case we have to cancel the tour and need to contact you I see well my mobile number is 0798 6361 97 that's 0798 6361 97 now can you also tell me which hotel you're staying at the Crest Hotel oh uh no sorry that's the hotel we're staying

in next week it's the Riverside Hotel oh the Riverside is a Lovely Hotel are you enjoying your stay yes we are very much we' definitely recommend it to others oh I am glad now I can book you on the tour at 400 p.m. would that suit you alternatively there is one at 2 two would be better for us please right that's booked for you sir two people at 2:00 p.m. today August the 14th you pay the bus driver when you get on and it's £4 per person thank you very much track seven before you hear

the rest of the conversation you have some time to look at questions 5 to 10 in the exam there will be a pause of 20 seconds now listen and answer questions 5 to 10 can I also ask you about the museum in the main Square I was reading about it in my guide book and was shocked to see that the entrance price is £10 why does it cost so much well the museum has the largest collection of Latin American Art in Europe people come from all over the world to see it but that's not the

reason why it's so expensive to get in you see the building is very old and it needs repairs the £10 ticket cost will go towards repairing the roof and the walls I see well I suppose it's worth paying £10 to see the collection yes I think so too is there anything else else I can help you with actually there is I was wondering if you knew of any good restaurants in the area well there are a few restaurants near the harbor and a couple on the beach which are nice the problem is that the smell

of the fish market is quite strong down there I don't think my girlfriend would be very pleased I know what you mean it's not very romantic is it my advice would be to go to the next town it's bigger and the restaurant selection is wider you can get there by taxi and it only takes about 10 minutes the town is quite picturesque is it for a special occasion yes it's my girlfriend's birthday so I'd like to go somewhere special uh do you know any of these restaurants well enough to tell me about them well I

know about a few of them and there are pictures in this leaflet here oh this one here is lovely the Bell View and it's extremely popular it has a famous chef so it's not cheap but the standard of the food is very high it's right by the Sea and there are wonderful views if you get a good table then there's the Lighthouse Cafe you can see the picture here which isn't really a cafe at all in fact it's a great restaurant and a lot of TV celebrities and actors eat there the place has been going

for over a hundred years it's quite an institution around here I'm not sure about those two they sound too expensive to me I was thinking of somewhere small not too up Market but with good food in that case what about Harvey the same family has run this restaurant for over a century and it's reasonably priced and really popular with local people oh and there's another family run restaurant Stone Croft house new owners took over a month ago and they're getting good reviews there's a new Chef there and the food is meant to be very good

this leaflet has the contact details for all the restaurants so you can just call them if you'd like to book a table great thanks you've been very helpful that is the end of section one you now have half a minute to check your answers Track eight hello everyone sorry to interrupt your class I just want to make a quick announcement about our summer timetable Shimmer's dance school will be offering new classes this spring due to strong demand Angela Stevenson will be back this term running the ballet class this class will be on Tuesdays and instead

of the normal hour from 6:30 to 7:30 we'll be running the class for an hour and a half so it'll continue until 8:00 this means we have to charge higher fees but only slightly higher from £850 to £150 that's only £2 for the extra half hour next next Janine Davis will still be teaching the Tango classes instead of being on Mondays these classes will be on Wednesday nights from 7:00 to 8:00 the fee will still be £750 for the hour last but not least Andrew is taking over the tap class this class is for early

Rises as it starts at 8:30 on Saturday morning and finishes at 10:00 we expect this class to be very pop po as tap is a great way to get fit while learning new dancing skills this will cost £1 all the other classes remain the same as the winter timetable we hope there's something for all of you at shimmers track nine Internet safety is a big concern nowadays and to protect your children and teenagers online it's a good idea to monitor the sites they visit don't be put off from letting your kids use the internet it's

essential for their education and can help them make friends too now let me tell you a bit about some sites we found for children of course there's a limited number of sites for the very young but we would suggest one called playtime online it's designed for children from 4 to 6 years old it's really colorful and helps children learn skills for games children love it and it helps them when they begin school then from say 5 until about 10 years of age there's a really useful website called moving up this takes playtime online a step

further and enhances the maths and language skills of the child teachers speak highly of this site for Child Development when children get into their teens the internet can be a more dangerous place net aware for the 12 to 16e age group makes young people more aware of online dangers it's a good site for your child to look at before they start surfing on their own now all teenagers love chatting and chat electric is a site designed specifically for teens from 13 to 16 to make friends online with people their own age the last site is

invaluable for teens studying for exams 16 to 18 year olds love test doctors which is a site designed to help students revise for their exams and is full of Handy hints and tips the is run by subject Specialists so it's packed full of information track 10 the health and education summer camp in the county of cork in southern Ireland is ideal for young people who'd like to learn new sports and activities it has a beautiful location near a river and occupies 5 Acres the camp has two types of accommodation tents and cabins both of which

are modern and comfortable the cab cabins are by the river and the tents are on Higher Ground away from the river and next to the washrooms there are two washroom blocks fully equipped with showers as well as toilets we also have facilities for cooking here we provide all the pots pans and utensils all cooking is done in the cooking area which is situated in the center of the camp this gives the camp a real social focal point track 11 the Duke of edinburgh's award is a program of activities designed to help young people from all

backgrounds develop personally there are three levels bronze silver and gold and for each level participants have to complete a series of activities in four categories volunteering physical skills and Expedition this talk will explain what you have to do in order to get a Bronze award the first thing you need to do is find a Duke of Edinburgh center near you this could be your school college or youth club then you'll need to pay a small fee to enroll in the program once you've enrolled you'll get a welcome pack which explains the four categories in more

detail then you can start planning what to do you can do many different types of activity for each category but you must get them approved by your Duke of Edinburgh coordinator before you start so you don't waste time doing something which is not approved the other important person is your assessor this is the person who will certify that you've completed each activity by signing your record book after you've completed all the activities in the time given your assessor will send your record book results to the operating Authority who will check it if everything is satisfactory

you'll get your certificate and badge to confirm you've completed the award and after that you can start working on the silver award track 12 section two you will hear a talk about facilities for teenagers at a Leisure Center first you will have some time to look at questions 1 to 4 in the exam there will be a pause of 20 seconds now listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 4 good morning everyone and thank you for coming to find out more about the new Teen program here at the Park Hill Leisure Center I'd like to

take you through the program the classes available describe the building itself and then give you some information about how to register and sign up for the sports and activities we offer afterwards you'll have an opportunity to take a tour of the center we also have some taster sessions with our instructors which we hope you'll enjoy and which will motivate you to sign up let's go through the classes first as you can see from the Teen program handout in your pack we have lots of classes on offer our instructors are highly qualified and have lots of

experience training young people Diana is our dance instructor and she gives classes in jazz and Selsa on Wednesday and Thursday evenings respectively Jim usually takes the football practice sessions but this year he is branching out into American Sports and will be running the baseball club on Saturday afternoons we think this will be very popular so Steve will now run the football practice this class has been changed from Saturday to Sunday afternoons Steve will also take the skateboarding class on Monday evening the roller skating course is for beginners and this will be taken by Stella who

was last year's under 21 London roll a skating Champion so you'll be in good hands with her expert advice the day of this course is still to be arranged but it's likely to be Tuesday we'll confirm the day by the end of this week before you hear the rest of the talk you have some time to look at questions 5 to 10 in the exam there will be a pause of 20 seconds track 13 now listen and answer questions 5 to 10 now some of you won't have been to Park Hill Leisure Center before so

let me just tell you a little about the layout as you can see the reception area here is very spacious and there is plenty of room to meet your friends and have a drink we also have brand new dance studios with floor to ceiling mirrors and the latest audio equipment the dance studios are to the left of the reception area behind the swimming pool no sorry I meant opposite the swimming pool both the roller skating and skateboarding classes will be held in the skate arena this has also been refurbished and we have a new 5

m ramp in there which is proving to be popular the arena is behind the changing rooms which you can see behind us between the gym and Tennis Courts the tennis courts are on the right of the Arena you'll see both of these new spaces on the tour later now the final thing I want to talk about is how to join the Park Hill Leisure Center and enroll for the classes first you need to complete an enrollment form with some of your personal details including your address and telephone number and the name of your school if

you're under 16 years old then you'll also be required to get your parents permission to take part in the classes please ask one of your parents to sign the authorization form attached to the enrollment form you'll find the form in your information pack when you've done this you just hand the forms to reception you can pay an annual subscription of £20 or alternatively you can pay each time you use the facilities there is a160 admission fee in this case whether you decide to pay in one go or with each visit you still need to complete

the forms in your pack and become a member once we have the forms we'll send your membership card to your home address all you need to do is show this card every time you come to the center and if you want to book a class you just need your membership number on your card that is the end of section two in the exam you will have half a minute to check your answers track 14 one glaciers it is assumed that glaciers move slowly but occasionally they have surges and move up to 50 times faster than

normal two salinity the Dead Sea is famous for the salinity of its water three humidity the humidity in tropical areas can make you very tired four kilometers the oceans can reach depths of 11 km in places five pressure altitude sickness is due to a reduction in air pressure six evaporation rain is mainly caused by evaporation from the Oceans Seven environment we need to look after the environment around us eight biology biology is a branch of the Natural Sciences nine brightness our perception of the brightness of the sun changes with the seasons track 15 hi everyone

how are you all I'm fine thanks Linda actually I'm not feeling so well I think I've got a cold oh no Steven I'm sorry to hear that what about you Joanne I'm fine but I'm very busy with my biology course oh me too there's so much work to do in that case we should get started on our essay John do you want to start okay let me start by telling you my ideas for the essi track 16 we've really got to decide who does what for our Natural Earth Project okay Alice well we've got all

our Cloud research so let's decide how to break it down well we should probably start by saying how clouds are formed good idea and then maybe move on to the different types of clouds we can separate it into low-lying medium level and high clouds what do you think Jenny yes I think that's a good idea and we should also make a PowerPoint to make it a bit more interesting and put in pictures of the different clouds good idea Jenny we should probably have q cards too I'm useless at remembering what to say without them yes

me too well I'm quite happy to organize everything we found out about clouds and make sure it fits into our presentation times actually I'd better do that I've got all the research on my computer so it makes sense how about if you make the presentation slides Carl okay Alice that's fine by me well if you guys are going to do that then I'll look on the internet for pictures of the different types of clouds that'll be great Jenny I'll also make the prompt card so we don't forget what we're saying during the presentation sounds great

let's have a run through on Tuesday what sections does everyone want to talk about I don't really mind I hate speaking in front of people so I'd prefer not to do the introduction I don't mind I'll do that if you don't want to talk much then why don't you just do the middle bit about the medium level clouds yes I can do the low-level and highlevel clouds part I'm sure Jenny can handle the summarizing too thanks guys we can all take questions together track 17 hi Roger Debbie Hi how are you oh I've been struggling

with my natural Earth assignment it's proving to be really difficult the one for Professor black me too I'm writing about volcanic activity what are you doing yours on acid rain I thought that would be okay but the process is really complicated well I can help you with it I know a lot about acid rain I stud did the causes and effects last year really oh that's great I've done some work on the causes I'm going to write that acid rain is caused by sulfur dioxide from power plants and smelters basically this reacts in the atmosphere

to form acid rain ah but it's not just sulfur dioxide it's also nitrogen oxides really yes from things like car exhausts but aren't nitrogen oxides also caused by natural events too yes they're a minor Factor but I think they're worth mentioning but sorry carry on thanks I might add that so anyway these emissions react in the atmosphere with water oxygen and oxidants to form acidic compounds like sulfuric acid these compounds Then Fall to Earth are you going to mention the different ways they return to the ground do you mean wet and dry deposition yes so

you've done a bit of background reading then yes so if I've got it right acid rain often comes down as rain but also as snow or fog this is wet deposition I'm also going to Define it as any form of precipitation that removes acids from the atmosphere yes I think that's a good term to Define it dry deposition well I think that's when the pollutants stick to the ground through dust I'm not really sure how to define it though compared to deposition just think of it as any pollutants that are not caused through precipitation that's

probably the best way did you know that sunlight can enhance the effects of acid rain as well no I didn't there's so much to think about I'm sure I'll go over my word limit well you sound like you know a lot about the subject just try and keep your focus I've had the same problem writing about volcanoes there's just so much track 18 do you want to make a start on our Natural Earth Project I think our idea of a lightning safety presentation is great don't you Rachel yes I think it'll be really good I

have a few ideas already oh great me too I think we should divide it into two parts what to do if you're inside when lightning strikes and what to do if you're outside what do you think that's good but we need more something about planning for this kind of event and also what to do if someone gets hit by lightning oh I can't believe I forgot that of course well what should we talk about in the first part I think we should say it's important to be aware lightning is always before rain so don't wait

until it rains as soon as you hear thunder or lightning you should get inside okay yes and then if you're indoors you should avoid water stay away from doors and windows and don't use the telephone or any electrical equipment in fact if you can switch it off first and you should wait half an hour after the last clap of Thunder before going back outside and if you're outside when it's storms you also need to avoid water try and get inside as soon as possible there are certain things you should avoid Open Spaces anything large and

made of metal and of course the obvious one trees but we should mention that if lightning strikes very near you you need to crouch down oh is that right I thought you had to stand still no that's actually wrong you're supposed to crouch down and put your hands over your ears the noise can damage your hearing if you don't okay I think we've got quite a lot here only the last part to go now what to do if someone gets hit I think we should say that it's very rare for someone to get hit by

lightning our talk sounds as if there's danger all around we should try and make it sound a bit more reassuring yes you're right we'll say it doesn't happen often it's just better to be safe than sorry but what should we say about getting hit by lightning well I think we should say it's safe to touch people who've been hit by lightning they don't have any electrical charge if there's a first aider around then they should help them otherwise it's just best to call for an ambulance and we should remind our audience that 80% of lightning

victims don't get fatally injured that should calm everyone's nerves track 19 section three you will hear three students discussing a group project on weather conditions first you will have 20 seconds to look at questions 1 to 7 now listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 7 so I think we'd better start planning what we're going to do for our group project have you guys had any ideas I was thinking we should do something on extreme weather events but I think Alex had some different ideas yes maybe we should look into more localized weather conditions and

the effects on the immediate environment that's a good idea Alex but I don't think we'd be able to get much data on that and we don't really have time to do our own research what about do doing something about the seasons I think the seasons might be a bit too wide reaching you know when we take into account the wind patterns and pressure systems maybe you're right well how about Tom's idea of extreme weather conditions yes that sounds like a good idea it's easy to break down into separate parts and it certainly sounds more interesting

I'd quite like to cover monsoons I've been doing some reading on them and they're quite interesting well that sounds good we should maybe take two areas each that would make it easier for us to focus well we've got lots to choose from we could do blizzards heat waves droughts Cyclones there are loads why don't you do blizzards too Tom I don't fancy doing them but I wouldn't mind doing something on floods they're linked to monsoons I think so it will be an easy transition what do you fancy doing Alex well I could always cover winds

but that isn't really extreme enough I could do hurricanes they're pretty exciting how about doing Cyclones Emma I'd rather do heat waves and droughts I think I know a bit about them I don't know anything about Cyclones Cyclones are really interesting I can cover them that sounds great I was thinking about doing Cyclones but I'm happy for you to do them before you hear the rest of the talk you have 20 seconds to look at questions 8 to 10 now listen and answer questions 8 to 10 track 20 right shall we get started on some

of the content yes we haven't got that much time does anyone know anything about their topics I know quite a lot about Cyclones do you well I studied them at high school you know Cyclones usually start near the equator they need quite warm water to form above the warm water The Vapor in the air forms clouds and if there is low pressure then these clouds will start to rotate isn't it also the fact that the Earth rotates too which makes the cloud spin more yes that too once they begin rotating they can either lose momentum

or keep Gathering momentum until they hit land these ones are called mature Cyclones luckily as soon as they hit land they start to lose momentum and fade away just because they don't have the warmth of the ocean underneath well that's a relief they can still be really destructive they are like a big circle of wind they blow strongly until the eye of the storm passes you know the center where everything is really quiet no wind or anything but then the other side hits and the winds blow just as strongly but in the other direction it's

just amazing yes I would really like to cover that well it looks like we've got it all arranged then that is the end of section three in the exam you will have half a minute to check your answers Track 21 my family isn't very big there's just my son and me I'm a single parent for the last 10 years I've been concentrating on looking after my son James who's now 14 but now I've met someone special and we've just got engaged my fiance has four kids of his own and we're going to get married in

July James is really excited about it he's looking forward to having brothers and sisters in his new Step family we live as one big extended family there are seven of us in our household besides my husband and me and our children there's my aunt and two of my cousins I stay at home and care for my mother because she's quite old and can't look after herself obviously we suffer from a lack of space in the house but we all get on well track 22 one firstly I am going to talk about the role of the

parent secondly I'll discuss the role of the child and lastly we'll look at the family unit as a whole two parenting is a difficult job because no two children are ever the same three families are important because they form the basis for socialization additionally they educate and protect the next generation four the family structure has varied greatly over time that is different times have had different views of what a traditional family structure is five many argue that less traditional structures are not as effective how however there is little evidence to support this six many people

are having families later in life consequently the rise in the number of single people may only be temporary seven families in other parts of the world differ from the Western Norm for instance In some cultures having multiple husbands or wives is the norm eight although there are many arguments for trying to keep the traditional family structure strong I feel the key issue is the economic necessity of having a normal family structure Track 23 as we have seen changes in the structure of the family are constantly occurring extended to nuclear patrifocal to a more equal footing

between the Sexes and dual parenting to single parenting however a recent phenomenon in the UK which is changing the traditional family is the increasing number of adults who continue to live with their parents until their 30s or sometimes even their 40s the UK has traditionally been a society where Offspring leave the family home in their late teens or early 20s to set up their own home and families but in in the last 25 years this has decreased official statistics released by the office of national statistics show that today 10% of men in their early 30s

still live with their parents this Compares with 5% of women in this age range the reasons for this are complex and varied it cannot be denied that some people are choosing to stay at home living with parents can be an easy option food is provided Heating and electricity are paid for and rent if any is minimal however a third of those surveyed claimed they are living with their parents because it is too difficult to get on the property ladder house prices in the last few decades have risen dramatically property is now five times the average

annual salary whereas it was only three times the average annual wage in the 198s this fact coupled with high unemployment amongst young people makes it virtually impossible for a single person to buy a home or even rent the number of students going onto higher education has also been steadily increasing many of these students return home after finishing their studies as a result of the student debt they have accumulated it can take many years to pay this off and if the burden of rent or a mortgage is added to that it can be just too much

for a young adult's pocket however help is now at hand the government is tackling some of the problems that cause people to remain with their parents with a new scheme the affordable housing scheme this aims to help people part by a house or flat by making housing more affordable for firsttime buyers and possibly taking the strain away from elderly parents track 24 the family is a topic which we will look at in great detail this term for sociologists the family is often seen as the beginning of socialization indeed it is the seed of society itself

in recent decades many old people have no longer been able to rely on their offspring for support which was common 50 years ago many children are brought up by only one parent something virtually unheard of before the 1960s we can certainly say that during the last half century we have seen an enormous change in traditional family structures the extended family lasted well into the early 1900s and this kind of strong family unit was essential due to property ownership housing often was scarce and it was necessary for people to live with parents and take over the

property when their parents died of course people still benefit from their family line still today people generally inherit any money that their mother or father might have in the UK the last 50 years has also seen a decrease in the number of Offspring parents have whereas in the 1950s only 10% of Offspring were only children this number has risen nowadays this is the case for just over a third of children track 25 in Victorian times the upper classes made up less than 3% of the entire population of Britain yet this class held more than 90%

of the country's wealth this shows the massive Gap there was between rich and poor a gap which has shrunk considerably in the last century today we're going to look at the wide differences in Family Life between rich and poor in Victorian times let's begin with the upper classes the upper classes of the Victorian period were generally the the nobility or the clergy most of their servants were very poorly paid but were always accommodated within the homes of upper class Victorian families so they didn't have to pay for accommodation food and often clothing the money which

they did earn they normally send home to their families many Victorian servants came from the countryside where the effects of the industrial revolution had resulted in job losses amongst these servants were Cooks housemaids stable hands and butlers the family would also employ a nanny who although employed by the family was not traditionally seen as a servant an Nan's primary role was to care for the children she was responsible for teaching the children how to behave looking after them when they were ill and instilling discipline into them nannies did not however educate the children generally children

from wealthy families did not attend school outside the family home tutors would come to the house to do this and although on occasion mothers taught their children to read and fathers gave their children some instruction in Latin this was not a common occurrence now the Victorian upper classes had the reputation of being quite cruel but this wasn't always the case they were also quite charitable ragged schools were set up with funding from the upper classes so that poor children could have some form of Education additionally most Victorian parents were very proud of their children who

were often seen as prized possessions this goes against the common idea that parents were very hard on their children in fact the opposite was generally the rule however the situation for lower class families was very different in the lower classes child labor was Rife children as young as eight earned a living as chimney sweeps for wealthy houses now let's move on to looking at the lower class families in more detail you'll find that very often track 26 section four you will hear a lecture on changes in family structure first you will have 20 seconds to

look at questions 1 to 10 now listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 10 we are all familiar with the nuclear family which has been the dominant family structure in the UK for the last 60 years at least however recent changes show that our idea of the traditional nuclear family as the Cornerstone of British family life is changing there have been emerging patterns which are eroding this structure namely the rise of Step families cohabitation lone parenting and the rapid increase in those living alone we are going to explore these areas in turn and look at

their effect in terms of the family firstly step families are becoming more and more common step families are created when one or both Partners have a child or children from a previous relationship in 1980 the percentage of children under 13 who were living with one parent and their new partner was just 4% in 2008 this figure had increased to 20% the USA has seen an even greater Rise new statistics show that almost half of under 13s are living in a step family now we can still call the step family structure a nuclear family as it

does follow the structure of two parents and dependent children however it also creates somewhat of a nuclear blur step brothers and sisters may belong to two family units so where do we draw the line at which family they belong to cohabitation when Partners do not marry yet live together as a family has also increased in 2006 of the 17.5 million families in Britain nearly 3 million of these comprised unmarried couples what does this mean to the nuclear family firstly the traditional view of a nuclear family requires married parents so we can't put these types of

family under this umbrella St statistics show that even if cohabiting couples have children they are more likely to separate than their married equivalents lastly we need to look at the rise of the dinks which stands for dual income no kids as Clark and Henwood outline many cohabiting couples are choosing a life without children putting consumer spending first lone parenting is a relatively recent family structure which has rapidly grown in the last half century in 1972 only one in 14 children lived in a lone parent family when we compare this with today's figure of one in

four we can see that this is a rapid increase in the past lone Parenthood was overwhelmingly the result of a death of a parent nowadays however it is increasingly a choice some sociologists argue that this increase is due to the Outlook of women women where women once were willing to accept an unhappy or abusive marriage now many will choose lone Parenthood often this can be just a transitory phase before they find a new partner this view of women's attitudes and lone parenting is highly debated because some figures show that the largest group of Lone parents

are mothers who have never married you can find counterarguments for these ideas in Butler and Jones one difficulty for single parents is that they are a social group who are much more likely to suffer from poverty and hardship they are more likely to live in rented accommodation and have child care issues lastly an increasing number of people are choosing to live alone the number of people living alone in Britain has more than doubled in the last 20 years in 1990 just over 4 million people lived alone now this figure has reached 8.5 million an incredibly

rapid growth which has had enormous effects on the traditional nuclear family this number represents a great chunk of the population who either by choice or necessity are outside the traditional family unit some think that these changes may not help the community in fact there are many arguments that this rise in alternative household structures will create a more isolationist and less community-based Society where close bonds which are usually formed within the family have no place leaving aside whether or not the housing even exists for this boom an important factor which must be looked at is the

disproportionate expense for those living on their own by this I mean the burden of all costs is shouldered by one wage instead of two and of course one person is using the energy which could be shared between a group having a greater impact on the environment too however on a more positive note people especially women are proving to be extremely that is the end of the listening test in the exam you will have half a minute to check your answers track 27 hi Dad how are you I'm fine Sally how's the course going it's going

well actually I'm really enjoying my Math course at the moment mainly because it's not that difficult compared to the other modules good and what about the tutors what do they like well I've got four and they're all highly knowledgeable but Professor Jones is my favorite I really respond well to the way he teaches and are your fellow students nice too yes I've made lots of new friends and everyone seems to be very hardworking the course has lots of group work but to be honest this isn't really the way I like to study I prefer to

study alone oh well I suppose not everything can be perfect I know Dad you're right in fact there is one thing I'm a bit concerned about my statistics module I think I might not pass it well let's wait and see shall we there's plenty of time to improve don't worry about it yet okay thanks Dad I'll try not to track 28 a excuse me me can you tell me where the bank is please it's opposite the cinema next to the supermarket B excuse me can you tell me where the bank is please it's around the

corner from the supermarket C excuse me can you tell me where the bank is please it's up the road from the supermarket beside the cinema D excuse me can you tell me where the bank is please it's at the opposite end of the street from the cinema e excuse me can you tell me where the bank is please it's behind the supermarket which is near the cinema Track 29 hi Jane how are you settling into life at University fine except I don't really know what there is to do in town I haven't had time to

look around yet you've been here for a year could you give me some ideas of course there's lots of places for students firstly if you go across the bridge over the river outside the campus and turn left oh no sorry that's the garage turn right then you'll get to the bowling alley which is really popular at the weekends because it's so close to the campus on Friday nights they have a special discount for students oh that's great I love bowling so do you like sports Jane yes I go running and swimming and I play badminton

in that case there's a running track behind the University campus and I think they have a badminton court at the sports center actually I'm happy just to run in the park well there's a large Park in town too if you go down the road opposite the bowling alley and take the first right then you'll get to the park it's quite big and there's a lake in it you can take a boat hat on it the university rowing team practice there what about places to eat out are there any good student Hangouts absolutely there's the elmtree

cafe which is down the road from the post office in the opposite direction from the river the cafe is on a fork in the main road and it's quite an institution around here okay well I'll have to check it out I'm looking for a part-time job so maybe I'll be able to find work there m you should try they're always looking for new staff and they often hire students now have I forgotten any other important places oh yes you like sport so I should mention the Leisure Center don't get it confused with the swimming baths

which are down the road from the supermarket the Leisure Center is opposite there aren't any swimming baths there but you can get a student Leisure card which will let you into both so you see there is quite a lot to do in this town it seems like there is well thanks for all the information Sophie no problem see you soon track 30 1 78a high trees Street Sydney 2316 two 354 Castle Avenue Edinburgh e57 hu three 86 the Drive New York 45 08 track 31 hello have you come to enroll for your course or pay

your fees um both actually okay that's fine you can enroll here with me and then go to the next desk for fee payment so first of all can I have your name yes it's Peter Taylor that's Taylor with a Y so it's t a y l o r that's right do you need my middle name no just your first and last names thanks and what course are you doing I'm taking a BSC in economics okay that's in the faculty of mathematics Oh I thought it was in The Faculty of business and management it was last

year but the course has moved to the mathematics faculty this year oh thanks for letting me know no problem now where are you going to be living on campus or in private accommodation ation University accommodation I'm in room 112 Ashley residence did you say Ashley residence the one in Duke Street it's just that there's another residence called asy residence so it's confusing sometimes I don't want to make a mistake on the computer records otherwise you won't receive any University mail it's definitely Ashley a s h l e y great and what about your home address

on our records it says 56 Grove Street Manchester M1 9ja is that correct actually there's a small mistake it's M4 not M1 the rest is correct 9ja a okay I think that's all you're enrolled on your course so you can go and pay your fees now thanks bye track 32 hi there can I help you yes I'd like to find out more information about the services here at the students union of course we're here to help you throughout your time at University so what kind of help can you give me exactly well our job focuses

on three main areas giving advice and information to students arranging social events and campaigning for students rights right and what about help with things relating to Everyday Life well we we have a team of six advisers who work part-time and have expertise in certain areas including accommodation and travel oh that's great and how can I contact the advisers right there are several ways you can come into this office and speak to an adviser in person or email us if you can't come in and there's also a 24-hour helpline you can find the helpline number on

your student card and you can call us at any time of day or night with any questions or worries you have okay and thanks for your help you're welcome track 33 section one you will hear a student asking for information at the University Library first you will have 20 seconds to look at questions 1 to 4 you will see that there is an example which has been done for you on this occasion only the conversation related to this will be played first hi how can I help you I'd like to register to use the library

please okay that's fine now can I have some details from you what's your name and student ID number Simon Anderson that's a n d e r s o n the student says that his name is Simon Anderson so the answer on the form is Anderson now we shall begin you should answer the questions as you listen because you will not hear the recording a second time listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 4 hi how can I help you I'd like to register to use the library please okay that's fine now can I have some

details from you what's your name and student ID number Simon Anderson that's a n d e r s o n and ID number uh hold on let me look it's a n D1 05763 a n d10 15769 no it's a n D105 763 thank you and what course are you studying Simon geography is that in the faculty of environmental science or earth science it's in the earth science faculty right now are you living in University Halls of residence no I'm in private accommodation do you need my address yes please it's flat 3 24 lavender Gardens

London sw12 3 a g can you spell the street name for me yes it's l a v e n d e r Gardens and do you have a contact telephone number is my mobile number okay yes that's fine just let me find my phone all right the number is 07985 6341 let me just check that 07985 6341 so Simon did you have a tour of the library facilities during your induction unfortunately I'm missed it could you give me a quick tour now before you hear the rest of the conversation you have 20 seconds to look

at questions 5 to 10 track 34 now listen and answer questions 5 to 10 I can't give you a tour now I'm afraid I have to stay here at the help desk but I can show you places on this map of the library that would be helpful thanks okay so we're here at the help desk next to the service desk where you go to borrow and return books the maximum number of books you can borrow at any one time is 10 yes I see opposite the service desk is the training room which is used by

Library staff to give demonstrations of the computer systems to staff and students but the entrance is around the other side is the training room beside the quiet room yes that's right with the entrance around the front too it's important to remember that all mobile phones must be switched off in this room of course and what about books where can I find the books for my course good question you're studying geography so if you walk past the service desk turn right no sorry turn left and continue on past the philosophy section you'll find the geography section

the copying facilities are on the left now one more important thing is the group study room and the booking system if you're working on a project with other students and you want to discuss things with each other you can go to the room in the corner at the opposite end of the library from the copers that's the group study room it's between the sociology section and the TV room the group study room must be booked 48 hours in advance right thanks can I keep this map actually this is the last one I have but I

can make a copy for you that would be great thanks oh I should also explain how you book the group study room oh yes so how do I do that you can only book this room using the online reservation system the same one you Ed to reserve books that are currently on loan I thought it was called the online catalog system no that's for searching for things in the library the reservation system is what you use to make a room booking and can I access that from outside the Library yes via the library website you

will need to enter the name and student number of each student in the group too so make sure you have these to hand when you make the booking but all this is explained on the homepage of the website once you've made your reservation request you'll receive a confirmation email from the library to say whether your booking has been successful or not if not you can try to arrange another time well that sounds fairly easy yes you'll be fine if it's all quite straightforward really thanks that is the end of section one in the exam you

will have half a minute to check your answers track 35 now not only do we have lots of historical architecture here in the town of tanbridge we also have a rich variety of famous residents of course everyone has heard of the famous writers Jim Harmon Anna Collins and Ian cheritan or IH cheritan as he is better known and they have all lived in our small town in fact Anna Collins the celebrated romance novelist spent all her life in this town she lived by the Town Square where there is a plk to commemorate her she died

in 1968 and you can see her gravestone in tambridge Cemetery you may know Anna from her most famous work the pride of angels which won numerous Awards and for which she was a runner up for the Herald prize in 1950 James Harmon also lived here between 1975 and 1990 a bestselling horror writer he got many of his themes for his haunting novels from this very town he passed away a year after leaving tanbridge and although he isn't buried in the town we do have a statue of him on the roundabout as you enter the town

now IH cheritan has been the poet laurate for 3 years and he lives in tanbridge today his host is the red house by the river not only a poet he has also written 10 novels that have topped the book sales charts he always does a lot of work for local charities and is quite a gem in this town lastly another famous resident of tanbridge is Sylvia Daniels she grew up in tanbridge and went to the local comprehensive here you can see her childhood home just across the river by the post office now I am sure

you all know her for her latest film Planet d which has just reached number one at the cinema box office but she wasn't always an actress before she headed for Hollywood you could have seen her waiting tables in the dorage restaurant here in town she often comes back to visit as her family all still live here if you're lucky you may even catch a glimpse of her track 36 welcome to the latest episode of film finest with me Liz O'Donnell the the films I'll be reviewing in this episode are what happens in the night the

new horror film by Acclaim director Yanda neighber and happy is Larry a new romance comedy starring Harrison Wyatt and Sonia Smith let's start with what happens in the night said in a Convent School in the 1950s this film tells the story of two boys who are haunted by apparitions of monks the film has the feel of a comic book as it sh in black and white with occasional shots of vivid color Denberg the director said he wanted some elements to stand out and he has used color to do it I would say quite effectively he

claims his inspiration for the film is his own experiences growing up in 1950s Liverpool a believer in ghosts himself he thought he saw ghosts in his school years ghosts or not this film is certainly haunting what happens in the night is a film that will scare you I wouldn't say it's the best horror film to come out this year but it's certainly shot beautifully and it's not hard to follow so unlike some recent horror films you don't have to sit in dedicated concentration for 2 hours trying to keep up with a complex plot an enjoyable

film I would give it four stars in happy as Larry Sonia Smith and Harrison Wyatt play two people who fall in love but cannot be together because of their families the buildup to the film has certainly been epic with gossip about both co-stars in the papers rumor has it that Smith and Wyatt aren't the best of friends in fact on the set they barely spoke to each other I have to say though this doesn't come across in the film and they look like a great couple happy as Larry is a move away from the usual

film Sonia makes she is better known for her roles in action films FMS but she has shown herself to be a capable comedy actress however I'm not sure this is the finest film to do it in both men and women alike can get something from this film but the romance angle is overplayed and the laughs are few and far between if you want romance this film is fine but if you want comedy I would recommend seeing something else I would give it three stars now there are some new video releases which are going to be

coming out in the next month track 37 so we have Phyllis Bailey here to talk to us about Fame her new book famous for 15 minutes is coming out on Monday so Phyllis welcome what do you think Fame means to us these days well famous people are everywhere and although we know nearly all there is to know about these people their lives are splashed all over magazines and television they've retained their mystery the public are always eager to find out more about them and this fuels the paparazzi to photograph them it's true that there are

more celebrities around than ever before but the number of really important famous people probably hasn't changed greatly this is because people became famous for only a short time Andy Warhol once famously said in the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes and I think there's some truth in that one day a person is famous and the next they are forgotten take for example contestants on reality television shows after maybe 6 months we never see them again this also highlights another characteristic of Fame in the past people became famous because of something they had done

or because of their talent nowadays these things aren't necessary I personally think this is a great pity is Fame particularly beneficial now well let's look at the winners and losers when it comes to fame many people think that celebrities are the losers in this new media world but that isn't necessarily the case take for example actors and actresses they often complain about a lack of privacy but privacy is possible there are many celebrities who aren't constantly in the papers much as they complain they chase the publicity and then blame it on the media in fact

the paparazzi who photographed the rich and famous are often seen as figures of hate for this they come off much worse in the end because they are so disliked by the public and celebrities but in reality they are making the celebrities and their managers even richer in fact because of the cult of Fame nowadays we can see media Executives making even more money and celebrities signing multimillion pound deals and who pays for this well all of us Cinema and concert ticket prices have risen and DVDs cost more than ever merchandising makes a fortune for the

famous these days and although we are paying for it the rewards go to only a small Elite the big players the stars and the executives but they miss a lot of the creative talent in the industry like the people who write the screen plays they are still on the same salary they were on 10 years ago Executives certainly have a difficult job managing their clients but they get rewarded well for doing so I for one think these rewards should be more fairly spread how could this be done are you suggesting track 38 section two you

will hear a talk about the yellow plaque scheme in Sydney first you will have 20 seconds to look at questions 1 to six now listen carefully and answer questions 1 to six thank you for coming belong to the cultural Sydney talk I'm going to start by telling you about the yellow plaque scheme which has been running in Sydney for over 40 years and has been incredibly successful when you're walking around the city you'll see some buildings with a small round yellow plaque on them if you take a closer look you'll see the name and details

of a famous person who lived in that very place we have at present 130 plaques up in the city the scheme has been great for tourism but it was really started to raise awareness of the rich history of Sydney both locally and nationally and we think we've managed to do this we also wanted to make people aware of the impressive list of important people who have lived in this city and we've certainly achieved that but that's not all although not part of our original aims the scheme has also helped preserve some of the Elder and

more important buildings in Sydney because people now know that these buildings are a link to our past some of the buildings are actually over 180 years old which for Australia is ancient we actually think that this is where the scheme has achieved the most success in raising the profile of our Rich history of course it has helped tourism but not only that locals also walk around looking at the plaques it has been really wonderful in highlighting our past some people are quite surprised to see who has lived here take aial R Flynn for example he

was married in Sydney we are planning on putting more plues up and a common question is how can people nominate a figure to be put on a plaque it's quite a simple process applications can be downloaded from our website if you want to nominate someone for a plaque you just need the person's name where they left and you need three signatures to approve your application our panel then checks that all the data you've submitted is correct and hopefully within a year a new plaque will be erected but you can't nominate just anyone a plaque can

only be given to a person who is famous and has achieved something out of the ordinary like an important politician or world record-breaking Sportsman for example we aim to have 50 new plugs up within the next 3 years and we have plenty of funding to do so our funding comes from three sources the local Council Community donations and the tourist board whereas in the past the tourist board put in the majority of funding now public donations count for 65% of all total funds in fact our funding is so healthy now there are plans to expand

the scheme before you hear the rest of the talk you will have 20 seconds to look at questions 7 to 10 track 39 now listen and answer questions 7 to 10 at the moment we only have yellow plaques for all the famous people but we are aiming to produce different colored plaques so that people can do specific walks for example if they are interested in famous sports personalities they can do a tour following the red plaques the color we are aiming to use for these people we are looking at introducing gray white and green plaques

as well we are thinking of using gray PLS to signify people who have done important work within the government and white plugs for those who have done good works in the community lastly our green plugs we think will be very popular these will be for painters and sculptors leaving our yellow ones for writers actors and other people of night we do hope you enjoy looking at the plaes around the city we have guide books on sale in the gift shop where you can find all the plaques these are priced at $1.99 that is the end

of section two in the exam you will have half a minute to check your answers