Kerala State Board New Syllabus Plus Two English Previous Year Question Papers and Answers.
Kerala Plus Two English Previous Year Question Paper Say 2018 with Answers
| Board | SCERT |
| Class | Plus Two |
| Subject | English |
| Category | Plus Two Previous Year Question Papers |
Time: 2 1/2 Hours
Cool off time: 15 Minutes
Maximum: 80 Score
General Instructions to candidates:
- There is a cool off time’ of 15 minutes in addition to the writing time of 21/2 hours.
- You are not allowed to write your answers or to discuss anything with others during the cool off time’.
- Read questions carefully before answering.
- All questions are compulsory and only internal choice is allowed.
- When you select a question, all the sub-questions must be answered from the same question itself.
- Electronic devices except non-programmable calculators are not allowed in the Examination Hall.
(Question Nos. 1 – 6): Answer all the questions as directed (Total Scores: 14)
Read the excerpt and answer the questions that follow.
The program developed very organically, over years. Like a soup made by chefs tossing in what’s needed, after each tasting. A blend all its own. The stock ingredients were basic English and Maths – to that, a dash of values, self-esteem and confidence.
Question 1.
Which program is referred to here? (1)
Answer:
Akanksha
Question 2.
Who are referred to as the ‘chefs’? (1)
Answer:
The chefs referred to here are the instructors or volunteers who supported Shaheen Mistri.
Question 3.
Pick out the word from the excerpt that means ‘naturally’. (1)
Answer:
Organically
Question 4.
Drug abuse is a great threat to our society. Many youngsters get addicted to drugs. The authorities of your school have decided to collect suggestions from students to create a school campus that is free from this menace. As a higher secondary student, what suggestions would you give? Draft 3 suggestions using expression like The authorities should ………., It would be better ………, We could, etc. (3)
Answer:
a) The authorities must ensure that sensual drugs are not easily available to students or young people.
b) It would be better if parents are asked to monitor their children to prevent them from getting addicted to drugs.
c) We could conduct awareness programmes to inform the public and especially the youth about the dangers of drug abuse.
Question 5.
Your class is conducting a debate on the topic ‘Is entrepreneurship the best way to tackle unemployment?’
Write four arguments either in favour of, or against the topic. (4)
Answer:
Entrepreneurship is the best way to tackle unemployment because:
- The government can’t provide jobs for everyone.
- There will be more job opportunities if there are more entrepreneurs.
- Being entrepreneurs, one can reach greater heights.
- By being an entrepreneur, one can contribute significantly to the growth of the national economy.
Question 6.
Edit the passage given below for errors: (4)
A beggar had been sitting by the side of a road for over thirty years. One day a stranger walked on. “Spare some change ?” mumbled the beggar, mechanical holding out his baseball cap. “I have nothing to give you,” said the stranger. Then he asked: “What’s that you are sitting on ?” “Nothing”, replied the beggar. “Just an old box.” “Ever look inside ?” asked the stranger. “No”, said the beggar. “Have a look inside”, insisted the stranger. The beggar was astonished to see that the box was fill with gold.
Answer:
i) walked on – walked by
ii) mechanical – mechanically
iii) Ever look inside? – Ever looked inside?
iv) fill with gold. – filled with gold.
(Question Nos. 7 – 12): Answer any 5 questions. Each question carries 4 scores. (5 × 4 = 20)
Question 7.
The postal assistant in ‘Post Early for Christmas’ quits her job commenting, “I am going down the road to work at the animal dispensary. Animals don’t do such silly things.” Do you think it was an appropriate remark on the part of a responsible official like the postal assistant? Express your opinion in a paragraph.
Answer:
The remark made by the postal assistant is not all appropriate. People are of different kinds and they don’t behave in a uniform manner. When one works in a public place like the post office, he/she may meet so many different kinds of people – people who are deaf, blind, stammering, or unable to express themselves properly. You have to be patient with all such people. Such workers must learn to cope with different situations and do their best to serve people. They are paid for that.
Question 8.
Robert Baldwin accepts the job offered by Mr. Marshall in the Third National Bank. When Baldwin comes to report for work, Mr. Marshall introduces him to the other colleagues. What would Mr. Marshall say about Mr. Baldwin? Draft the introductory speech for Mr. Marshall.
Answer:
Dear Colleagues, let me introduce to you Robert Baldwin who is joining us at the Third National Bank. He was previously working for Mr. Gresham. You all know that Gresham is currently in jail for misappropriation of a huge amount of money. Mr. Gresham promised Mr. Baldwin 100,000 dollars just to say “I don’t remember” in the court. Such a statement by Mr. Baldwin would save Mr. Gresham from getting punished. But Baldwin refused the offer because he is such an honest man and he values his principle more than 100,000 dollars. It was Gresham himself who told me about it. We all should be like Robert. We are proud to have him in our midst as our colleague.
Question 9.
The story ‘Matchbox’ begins like this: “I always comapre women to matchboxes.” What qualities of a woman are highlighted byAshapurna Debi in this comparison? Attempt the answer in a paragraph.
Answer:
In the story “Matchbox”, Ashapurna Debi compares women to matchboxes. Matchboxes contain enough gunpowder to make a hundred Lankas burn. But these matchboxes, these women, sit around meek and innocent in the kitchen, in the pantry and in the bedroom or any other place at home. They have fire inside but they don’t burn or explode. They are compassionate and loving by nature. See how mothers love their children and wives love their husbands. They are patient and are willing to wait endlessly for their rewards. They are hard-working and that is why homes become such a pleasant and comfortable place. We should remember that “Without a woman a man is nothing”.
Question 10.
Your class is doing a project on ‘Social Entrepreneurship’. As the leader of the class, you are given the opportunity to interview Shaheen Mistri. What would you ask her? Frame four relevant questions for the interview.
Answer:
1. Madam, what kind of problems did you face when you decided to settle in India?
2. According to you, what is the biggest problem that India faces?
3. In your view why did many Principals refuse to give you a place to teach the slum children?
4. You said Indian education is ‘bookish’. What are your suggestions to change it?
Question 11.
Ratna’s patience and empathy left a lasting impression on Sudha Murthy’s heart. What are her other notable qualities? Attempt a character sketch of Ratna in about 60 words.
Answer:
When Sudha Murty was working in Mumbai, one of her colleagues was Ratna. She was a senior clerk, middle aged and always smiling. She is a graduate and she had been working in that company for nearly 25 years. Every day during lunch hour she would sit with some person in one of the rooms, chatting with him/her. When Sudha asked Ratna what she talked about she said people shared her troubles with her. Ratna knows she can’t solve the problems of the people who talk to her. She hears people with sympathy and no judgement.
When somebody talks about his worries it relieves him a lot. Ratna never reveals the things she has heard from people. Ratna is like the grandfather of Sudha sitting on the stone listening to the people. Both her grandfather and Ratna are “horegallus” or “bench stones” where people can unburden themselves by talking about them and their worries to others. Ratna is not a counsellor but her willingness to listen to the problems of people definitely relieves them.
Question 12.
Elaborate the idea in the line given below:
“And this, O Fate, is I think the most vicious circle that thou ever sentest”.
Answer:
This line is taken from the poem “This is Going to Hurt Just a Little Bit” by Ogden Nash. The poet says that before the dentist your mouth is like a section of the road on which repair work is going on. The dentist coats your mouth with something very harsh. You see the dentist with different tools like drills for polishing your teeth. You are worried if he will make a mistake. Then finally it is over and you think you can go. But then the dentist says you should go back to him before the end of three months.
The poet thinks that Fate sends this most vicious circle to man. Man has to go to the dentist continually to keep his teeth in good condition. The man wants his teeth in good condition because he does not want to go to the dentist. It is a real paradox.
(Question Nos. 13 – 18): Answer any 5 questions. Each question carries 6 scores. (5 × 6 = 30)
Question 13.
Wangari Maathai’s speech has motivated you to take up the challenge of preserving nature for future generations. You have decided to share your ideas on nature conservation with your friend in an e-mail, Draft the e-mail.
Answer:
rajm@amail.com
Dearest Raj,
Got your letter. Thanks for letting me know of your vacation plans.
Today I want to tell you something about the challenge of preserving nature for future generations. In August 2018, we had the horrible flood and now in April, as I write this letter, we are getting baked by heat with temperatures going higher than 40°C. Why do these things happen? They happen because we fail to conserve our environment. Commercial farming has destroyed the local bio diversity. The forests are cleared for cultivation. Trees are cut down for buildings and furniture. So the soil can’t hold the moisture and even the underground water level is dangerously going down. We quarry in the most unscientific manner and the mines spoil our landscape.
We collect a lot of sand from the rivers, causing them to dry up. We pollute the land, air and water in all possible ways. You know what happened in Kasargod where they sprayed a lot of Endosulfan. It is a poisonous chemical and when people inhale it they become sick. Children are born with all kinds of deformities. So we are destroying nature. We should conserve our earth by mining less, allowing rivers to run their course naturally and by planting trees wherever possible as they provide us with shade, oxygen, flowers and fruits. They also help in soil conservation. So plant a tree today and ask your friends to do the same!
Say Hi to your parents. Bye for now!
Ali
Question 14.
Christine Lagarde emphasizes the importance of learning, labour and leadership in Women Empowerment. Draft a speech to be delivered in the school assembly on the topic ‘Educated women lead the nation to progress and prosperity’, based on your reading of the speech. The 3Ls of Empowerment’.
Answer:
Respected principal, teachers and my dear students,
Today I am asked to speak about “Educated women lead the nation to progress and prosperity.” It is very true that educated women can lead the nation to progress and prosperity. We should know that roughly half of the population is women. Naturally, they can’t remain idle in the march towards progress. Gone are the days when women stayed within the four walls of the home controlled by a patriarchal society. Today, women are equal to men in all respects. Today she drives buses and trucks, pilots airplanes, fights battles and goes to the space.
Progress and Prosperity for the nation can be achieved by women through 3 Ls – Learning, Labour and Leadership. Learning helps the woman to know about her rights and duties. Labour or employment gives her the economic power to assert herself. A woman without any income has to depend on her father, husband or son for her needs. Leadership makes woman powerful. She should be able to lead so that the world becomes a better place to live in.
Women make better leaders than men. They tend to make decisions based on consensus building, inclusion, compassion and sustainability.
Women have to change their mindset and should be ready to “dare the difference”, to take risk and step outside their comfort zones. Indira Gandhi and Kalpana Chawla came out of their comfort zones and that is why we respect them and remember .them even today.
I ask the girls present here to take charge of their lives. You have a lot to gain and nothing to lose by trying to make yourself equal or even better than a man!
I wish you success in your endeavors!
Question 15.
Your class has decided to visit an organic farm named ‘Samrudhi’ to know more about the production of pesticide-free vegetables, cattle rearing and the cultivation of indigenous crops. Write a letter to the owner of the farm enquiring about the practices in the farm and seeking permission to visit it.
Answer:
GOVERNMENT HIGHER SECONDARY SCHOOL,
IRINJALAKUDA
ENVIRONMENTAL CLUB
4 February 2019
Ref. No. GSSI/XII/4
Mr. Kumaran Thazhath
Samrudhi Farm Irinjalakuda
Dear Sir,
Sub: Permission to visit your Farm.
First of all the Environment Club of this school says to you a big “Thank you!” for giving the people of this town pesticide free vegetables and good milk. We have heard a lot about your farm where you grow pesticide free vegetables and rear cattle without any use of unnecessary hormones and other artificial growing techniques. We also are happy to learn that you grow a lot of indigenous crops which are most important for a healthy diet.
We have many doubts in our minds. How is that you can grow vegetables free from pesticides? We hear that in the vegetables brought from outside the State, there are a lot of pesticides which poison our bodies. We also hear that the milk we get from outside the State is often mixed with dangerous liquids that can destroy our health. We want to come and meet you in person to clarify our doubts and to see for ourselves how things are done in your farm.
If it is okay with you our club members would like to visit the place on the, 10th of February. If the date is not suitable for you, you may suggest an alternative date. We will come by 10 ‘o’clock and will spend the whole day there. We are bringing along our lunch.
We are sure you will grant us our request. Please give us a reply at your earliest convenience or call on our phone No. 2828805.
Thank you once again,
Yours sincerely,
(NishadAli)
Secretary
Question 16.
Prepare a write-up on the socio-cultural changes satirised by Chemmanam Chacko in the poem ‘Rice’.
Answer:
In his poem “Rice”, Chemmanam Chacko has vehemently satirised the socio-cultural changes especially among the farmers. The poem is laced with scorn and sarcasm. The son of a farmer goes to North India to do a research on making toys with rice husk. He works hard for four years, eating chapati day after day. Finally at the end of four years he succeeds in getting a doctorate. He must have thought of doing research on the possibilities of husk because as the son of a rice farmer, he had plenty of husk at home and also in the homes nearby. By using husk for toy making, a lot of people could find employment in a State notorious for unemployment.
But then there is an anticlimax. When the son returns home with his hard-earned doctorate on making toys with husk, there is no husk at all in his house or in the houses around. The farmers there had shifted to cash crops like rubber as they found rice cultivation inconvenient and non-profitable. Moreover a lot of incentives were given by the promoters to cultivate cash crops. The son finds his father watching people setting up a machine for making rubber sheets. All the paddy fields are gone and in their places what he sees are the rubber trees and deal-wood trees.
There is biting sarcasm in the description of the Chief Minister flying to the Centre to request for more food grains to feed the people here. The son comes home to eat rice after getting fed up with chapatis made of wheat flour. But his wish can’t be fulfilled because here also he has to eat things made of wheat flour as there is no rice. His doctoral degree is now useless as there is no husk to make toys.
Question 17.
You are the reporter of a local daily in Manhattan. You visited the place a week before the fight between the Amigo brothers. You could find matters of new interest in the preparations for the fight. Draft a news-paper report.
(Hints : Large posters on the walls – heated discussions in cafes – specially designed caps and t-shirts – betting by the fans – housewives and small children too involved.)
Answer:
Manhattan is in a great frenzy. There is still another week to the much publicised fight between Antonio Cruz and Felix Vargas. The venue of the fight is Tompkins Square Park. The large posters on the walls show the pictures of Antonio Cruz and Felix Vargas punching at each other. The biggest boxing match of the 20th century was between Muhammad AN and Joe Frazier held on Monday, March 8, 1971, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The people of Manhattan say this fight would be nothing less than that fight.
People all over Manhattan had only one thing to talk – the fight coming after a week. In the cafes, in the buses and trains people go on arguing as to who will win. Some say it would be Antonio while others say it would be Felix. The strangest thing is that people are betting heavily on both sides. Everywhere the talk is about the Fight. Some even say it would be a bigger fight than the Muhammed Ali Vs. Joe Frazier fight. Not only men, but even the women and children are discussing the course and the possible outcome of the fight. The entire Manhattan is in the grip of the Fight and Antonio and Felix are the heroes.
Question 18.
Effective use of humour in depicting ordinary situations is what makes ‘Crime and Punishment’ an interesting story. Prepare a write-up on the element of humour in ‘Crime and Punishment’.
Answer:
In his story “Crime and Punishment”, R.K. Narayan has brought humour in ordinary situations. In the story we see the parents of a boy want him to get double promotion and so they have engaged a tuition master to coach him in Mathematics. The teacher does his best but the boy is bored with the lessons and he wants to get away. So when the teacher asks him for the result of 16 multiplied by 3, the boy answered 24. There was a wicked smile on the lips of the boy.
The teacher again asks him and the boy repeats the wrong answer not because he does not know the right answer but because he wants to provoke his teacher. Then the teacher slapped him on the cheek. The boy burst into tears. The teacher asked the boy not to tell his parents about the slapping. To the parents the boy was an angel, all dimples, smiles and sweetness. He was their only child and they loved him dearly. The parents gave the boy all the things he wanted and they did not want to restrict him in anything.
The teacher wanted the money the parents gave him as the tuition fee. So he asked the boy not to tell about the beating to his parents. If he tells them, they will surely dismiss the teacher. The boy wants the lessons to stop for the day and the teacher says no. The boy then blackmails his teacher. The teacher then allows him to play with his toy train. The teacher acts as the station master. When the train reaches the station, the teacher should whistle. After sometime the train would not move.
The boy asks the teacher to repair it, but the teacher does not know anything about repairing a toy train. Then the boy wanted the teacher to tell him a story. When the teacher refused he again blackmailed him. So the teacher had to tell the story of a bison and a tiger and then he said the story of Ali Baba and the 40 thieves. Then he told the story of Aladdin’s Lamp. The boy wanted to hear the story of the bison again. When the teacher refused, the boy runs home and the teacher runs behind him.
Then the parents of the boy came out of the house and saw the chase. They were surprised. When they asked the teacher about the boy’s studies he said he was doing fine. The boy was grateful to the teacher and did not tell his parents about the slap he got. The teacher told the parents that they had finished the lesson earlier and so they were just playing to keep up the spirit of the boy.
(Question Nos. 19 – 21): Answer any 2 questions. Each question carries 8 scores. (2 × 8 = 16)
Question 19.
Ratna and Sudha Murthy’s grandfather served the society by devoting their precious time to listen to others. These living examples have inspired you to contribute an essay to the newsletter of your school. Write the essay on the topic ‘Role of good listeners in creating healthy minds’.
Answer:
ROLE OF GOOD LISTENERS IN CREATING HEALTHY MINDS
Recently I read a story titled “Horegallu” by Sudha Murty. In that story she talks about two people who helped others in their own particular ways. One was her grandfather and the other was her colleague Ratna. The story did inspire me and I feel there should be more people like the grandfather and Ratna in our world to reduce the problems people face in this world.
As a child Sudha Murty spent her days in a small village. There was large banyan tree right in the middle of the village. The tree was like a big umbrella. It gave much needed shade and comfort. Travellers spent some time sitting under it, taking some rest, before they continued the journey. To make them comfortable, there was a ‘horegallu’ under the tree. Horegallu means ‘a stone that can bear weight’. It was a flat stone placed horizontally over two vertical stones. It was a stone bench.
People could sit on it, chat with a fellow traveller and exchange news of the road. Cool water was kept in earthen pots and travellers could drink the water. Sudha’s grandfather was a retired school teacher. He would spend hours sitting under the banyan tree talking to those resting there. They would tell him about their lives and worries. Her grandfather told Sudha that a horegallu is essential in any journey. We all carry burdens in our different ways. Once in a while we need to stop, put down that burden and rest. Only then we will be refreshed to carry the load again.
Later Sudha met Ratna in her work place. Ratna was a senior clerk, middle aged and always smiling. She is a graduate and she had been working in that company for nearly 25 years. Every day during lunch hour she would sit with some person in one of the rooms, chatting with him/her. When Sudha asked Ratna what she talked about she said people shared her troubles with her. Ratna knows she can’t solve the problems of the people who talk to her. She hears people with sympathy and no judgement.
When somebody talks about his worries it relieves him a lot. Ratna never reveals the things she has heard from people. Ratna is like the grandfather of Sudha sitting on the stone listening to the people. Both her grandfather and Ratna are “horegallus” or “bench stones” where people can unburden themselves by talking about them to others. Ratna is not a counsellor but her willingness to listen to the problems of people definitely relieves them. Good listeners create healthy and peaceful minds.
Question 20.
The pie-diagram given below shows the changing mindset of youth in the selection of their careers and fields of study.
(Hints: Chefs – hospitality management, creative artists – dancers, musicians, painters, etc.)
What helps you decide your choice of a career? What are the reasons for these varied preferences? Prepare a write-up on the career choices of the present generation.
Answer:
The pie-diagram very clearly shows the changing mindset of the youth in the selection of their careers and fields of study. In the past the two areas of concentration were medicine and engineering. But now the choice has become much wider and diversified. New career openings are in place and students have a much wider choice today.
The pie-diagram shows that the favourite fields of career and fields of study remain Medicine, Engineering and MBA which attract nearly 45% of the youths. Each of the three has 15% youth opting for it. The next segment is Defence personnel with 11%-youths choosing it. Teaching is the next field, with 10% opting it. 8% like skilled jobs whereas 7% each go for Journalism and Animation. Creative arts and hospitality management get 5% each. Only 2% opt for photography. Thus the chart shows the preferred choices of the youths remain Medicine, Engineering and MBA, followed by Defence Personnel and Teaching.
Youths choose their careers mainly for success in life, status in the society and to live a comfortable life. In fact these desires are instilled into them by their parents, teachers and the society at large. Parents feel proud to say that their children are doctors, engineers of business managers. But the trend is changing with more options available to the youth in their careers and fields of study.
Question 21.
Read the poem given below. Compare the poem with ‘Mending Wall’.
Quiet Morning
Stone walls seem gathered not by men
But by some older force,
As if the hills had driven them
In slow flocks from the grass.
And since the heavy boulders come
of low and ancient birth
They never learn the will of men
To stand aloof from earth
But peacefully disintegrate
Under the orchard boughs
And up and down the pastures
Beside the dozing cows.
– Elizabeth Bohm
Answer:
“Mending Wall” by Robert Frost is a delightful poem. He once said: “A poem begins in delight and ends in wisdom.” He starts the poem in a delightful way saying that there is something that does not like a wall. That something makes the ground under the wall swell which results in cracks in the wall. Gradually the stones that make the wall fall to either side.
The fallen stones have lost their shapes. It is not easy to keep them back in their place. The gaps are so big that even two people can walk abreast through them. The poet strongly feels there is no need for a wall between him and his neighbour because he grows apple trees and the neighbour grows pine.
Apple trees won’t go and eat the pine and pines won’t come to eat the apples. A wall was fine if they had cows as they could get mixed up without a wall. When the poet says there is no need for a wall between them, the neighbour tells him “Good fences make good neighbours.” Thus the poem ends in wisdom.
In “Mending Wall”, the poet has used many poetic devices such a metaphor, simile, personification and repetition. The language is simple and the imagery is exquisite. It gives a fine message, a priceless truth.
The Poem “Quiet Morning” by Elizabeth Bohm also speaks about walls. The poet says that stone walls seem to be gathered not by men but by some older force. It looks as if the hills had driven them in flocks into the grass. The stones have low and ancient birth and they will never learn the will of man. Man wants them to stand aloof from the earth but they fall on to it. These stones peacefully disintegrate under the branches of trees or in the pastures as they lie beside the grazing cattle.
“Quiet Morning” is a fine lyric poem of just 12 lines. It is in rhyme and the rhyming scheme is abcb. There is personification in the poem when the poets says the “hills had driven them in slow flocks”. The hills are shepherds and the stones are sheep. The stones came from earth and they want to return to the earth. Man tries to build walls with it and separate them from the earth. In spite of the efforts of man to keep the stones away from the earth, they somehow find their way back to their source of origin.
The poem reminds us of our destiny in a symbolic way. “You are made of earth and to earth you shall return.” Here also we find the poem begins in delight and ends in wisdom. Between the two poems I prefer “Mending Walls” as it is more humorous and dramatic.