CBSE Class-12 Question Papers for IOP/Comptt Examination 2017

All India Scheme, (English Core)

CBSE Class-12 Question Papers for IOP/Cmptt Examination :  English Core (Set-1)

ENGLISH (Core)

Time allowed : 3 hours

Maximum Marks : 100
General Instructions :
(i) This paper is divided into three sections : A, B and C. All the sections are compulsory.
(ii) Separate instructions are given with each section and question, wherever necessary.
Read these instructions very carefully and follow them faithfully.
(iii) Do not exceed the prescribed word limit while answering the questions.

SECTION – A
Reading 30 MARKS

1. Read the passage carefully : 12
The Art of Living
1. The art of living is learnt easily by those who are positive, observant and optimistic. From humble and simple people to great leaders in History, Science or Literature, we can learn a lot about the art of living, by having a peep into their lives, autobiographies or biographies. The daily routines of these great men not only reveal their different, may be unique life styles but also help us learn certain habits and practices they followed. Here are some : read, enjoy and follow in their footsteps as it suits you.

2. A private workplace always helps. Jane Austen asked that a certain squeaky hinge should never be oiled so that she always had a warning whenever someone was approaching the room where she wrote. William Faulkner,
lacking a lock on his study door, detached the doorknob and brought it into the room with him. Mark Twain’s family knew better than to breach his study door – they would blow a horn to draw him out. Graham Green went even further, renting a secret office; only his wife knew the address and the telephone number. After all, everyone of us needs a workplace where we can work on our creation uninterruptedly. Equally we need our private space too!

3. A daily walk has always been a source of inspiration. For many artists, a regular stroll was essentially a creative inspiration. Charles Dickens famously took three hour walks every afternoon, and what he observed on them fed directly into his writing. Tchaikovsky made do with a two – hour jaunt but wouldn’t return a moment early;, convinced that doing so would make him ill. Ludwig van Beethoven took lengthy strolls after lunch, carrying a pencil and paper with him in case inspiration struck. Nineteenth century composer Erik Satie did the same on his long hikes from Paris to the working-class suburb where he lived, stopping under street lamps to jot down ideas that came on his journey; it’s rumoured that when those lamps were turned off during the war years, his music declined too. Many great people had limited social life too. One of Simone de Beauvior’s close friends puts it this way: “There were no receptions, parties. It was an uncluttered kind of life, a simplicity deliberately constructed so that she could do her work.” To Pablo the idea of Sunday was an “at home day”.

4. The routines of these thinkers are difficult. Perhaps it is because they are so unattainable. The very idea that you can organize your time as you like is out of reach for most of us, so I’ll close with a toast to all those who worked with difficulties. Like Francine Prose, who began writing when the school bus picked up her children and stopped when it brought them back; or T.S. Eliot, who found it much easier to write once he had a day job in a bank than he had as a starving poet and even F. Scott Fitzgerald, whose early books were written in his strict schedule as a young military officer. Those days were not as interesting as the nights in Paris that came later, but they were much more productive – and no doubt easier on his liver.

5. Being forced to follow someone else’s routine may irritate but it makes it easier to stay on the path. Whenever we break that trail ourselves or take an easy path of least resistance, perhaps what’s most important is that we keep walking.

1.1 On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, complete the correct answer to each of the statements given below with the help of options that follow : 1 x 4 = 4
(a) The passage is about :
(i) how to practise walking.
(ii) walking everyday.
(iii) the life of a genius.
(iv) what we can learn from the routines of geniuses.

(b) The writers in the past :
(i) followed a perfect daily routine.
(ii) enjoyed the difficulties of life.
(iii) can teach us a lot.
(iv) wrote a lot in their books.

(c) In their daily routines :
(i) they had unique life styles.
(ii) they read books and enjoyed them.
(iii) they did not get any privacy.
(iv) they did not mind visitors.

(d) Some artists resorted to walking as it was :
(i) an exercise.
(ii) a creative inspiration.
(iii) essential for improving their health.
(iv) helpful in interaction with others.

1.2 On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following questions : 1 x 6 = 6
(e) What did Jane Austen like ?
(f) Why do you think Graham Green hired a secret office ?
(g) What was the rumour about Erik Satie’s productivity ?
(h) How did her limited social life affect Simone de Beauvior ?
(i) In what way did T.S. Eliot’s day job help him to write ?
(j) What makes it easier for one to stay on the path ?

1.3 Find words from the passage which mean the same as the following : 1  2 = 2
(k) glance/look (para 1)
(l) noisy (para 2)

2. Read the passage carefully : 10
1. Amomon means “fragrant spice plant” in Arabic and Hebraic and in Italian, canella means “little tube”. These are a few of the many terms given to the popular spice known as cinnamon. Dating back as far as 2800 B.C., Chinese writings describe cinnamon as an important part of the culture, so much so that over the years this spice was traded right up there with silver. Now-a-days we find it in sweetened cereals, baked goods and sprinkled on various foods such as yogurt. Yet, many do not consider its wealth of healing capabilities including the potential as a weight loss remedy.

2. Cinnamon is derived from the inner bark of the cinnamon tree grown and harvested mostly in Sri Lanka but also found in Brazil, Indonesia, Vietnam, China and Burma. After a cinnamon tree grows for about six to eight years it is cut down leaving a stump to allow it to grow again making it a very sustainable practice. It is then stripped from the bark, dried and packaged as sticks for export.

3. Several studies have been published regarding the weight loss properties of cinnamon which include its unique ability to be used for type-2 diabetes which is a disease often resulting from obesity. When eaten, the spice seems to slow down glucose absorption within the intestines while stimulating insulin production. This normalizes blood glucose levels which in turn can indirectly decrease weight gain.

4. “The results of a study demonstrate that intake of 1, 3, or 6 g of cinnamon per day reduces serum glucose, triglyceride, LDL cholesterol, and total cholesterol in people with type 2 diabetes and suggest that the inclusion of cinnamon in the diet of people with type 2 diabetes will reduce risk factors associated with diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.”

5. A study from the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, called, “Effect of ground cinnamon on after meal blood glucose level in normal-weight and obese adults,” found that cinnamon may be effective in moderating post meal glucose level in normal-weight and obese adults.

6. Columbia University nutritionist Tara Ostrowe comments to Reader’s Digest on the benefits of this spice, “Cinnamon really is the new skinny food…Scientists already credit cinnamon in helping lower blood sugar concentration and improving insulin sensitivity. When less sugar is stored as fat, this translates into more help for your body when it comes to weight loss.”

7. Talk to your doctor about adding daily cinnamon into your healthy diet and exercise program. Add it to your tea, oatmeal, fruit, toast or anything else you can think of as a small amount will go a long way and potentially assist in your weight loss mission.

2.1. On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, complete each of the statements given below with the help of options that follow : 1 x 2 = 2
(a) Cinnamon is called ______ in Hebraic.
(i) little tube
(ii) canella
(iii) Amomon
(iv) fragrant spice plant

(b) In ‘Yet, many do not consider its wealth of healing capabilities .........’, the writer refers by the word ‘wealth’ to :
(i) the payment in silver
(ii) the cost of cinnamon
(iii) health of people
(iv) the healing power of cinnamon

2.2 On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer the following : 1 x 6 = 6
(c) Which country produces most of the cinnamon in the world ?
(d) Pick out the phrase from the passage (para 1) which shows that cinnamon was much in demand in China.
(e) From what is cinnamon derived ?
(f) How is it used today ?
(g) How does cinnamon help people suffering from type-2 diabetes ?
(h) How is cinnamon helpful in weight loss ?

2.3 Find words from the passage which mean the same as the following : 1 x 2 = 2
(i) sweet smelling (para 1)
(j) reaped/cultivated (para 2)

3. Read the passage given below : 8
The Great Wall of China was built to link existing fortifications into a united defense system and better keep invading Mongol tribes out of China. It is the largest manmade monument ever to have been built and it is reputed that it is the only one visible from space. Many thousands of people must have given their lives to build this huge construction.
The Great Wall of China is a series of towers made of stone, brick, earth, wood, and other materials, generally built along an east-to-west line across the historical northern borders of China to protect the Chinese states and empires against the raids and invasions of the various nomadic groups of the Eurasian Steppe. Several walls were being built as early as the 7th century BCE; these, later joined together and made bigger and stronger, are now collectively referred to as the Great Wall. Especially famous is the wall built (220-206 BCE) by Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. Little of that wall remains. Since then, the Great Wall has on and off been
rebuilt, maintained, and enhanced; the majority of the existing wall is from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Other purposes of the Great Wall have included border controls, allowing the imposition of duties on goods transported along the Silk Road, regulation or encouragement of trade and the control of immigration and emigration. Furthermore, the defensive characteristics of the Great Wall were enhanced by the construction of watch towers, troop barracks, garrison stations, signaling capabilities through the means of smoke or fire, and the fact that the path of the Great Wall also served as a transportation corridor. The Great Wall stretches from Dandong in the east to Lop Lake in the west, along an arc that roughly delineates the southern edge of Inner Mongolia. A comprehensive archaeological survey, using advanced technologies, has concluded that the Ming walls measure 8,850 km. This is made up of 6,259 km sections of actual wall, 359 km of trenches and 2,232 km of natural defensive barriers such as hills and rivers. Another archaeological survey found that the entire wall with all of its branches measures out to be 21,196 km.

King Zheng of Qin conquered the last of his opponents and unified China as the First Emperor of the Qin dynasty (“Qin Shi Huang”) in 221 BCE. Intending to impose centralized rule and prevent the resurgence of feudal lords, he ordered the destruction of the sections of the walls, however, he ordered the building of new walls to connect the remaining fortifications along the empire’s northern frontier. Transporting the large quantity of materials required for construction was difficult, so builders always tried to use local resources. Stones from the mountains were used over mountain ranges, while rammed earth was used for construction in the plains. The Great Wall concept was revived again under the Ming dynasty in the 14th century, to gain a clear upper hand over the Mongolian tribes.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it, using headings and subheadings. Use recognizable abbreviations (wherever necessary – minimum four) and a format you consider suitable. Also supply an appropriate title to it. 5
(b) Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words.

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Courtesy: CBSE