Cambridge IELTS 8 Test 4 — Listening Dictation Practice
Part 1: Inquiry about the West Bay Hotel's Temporary Staff Advertisement
Section 1, you will hear a man telephoning to ask about a job in a hotel. First, you have some time to look at questions 1 to 4. You will see that there is an example that has been done for you. On this occasion only, the conversation relating to this will be played first. Hello, West Bay Hotel. Can I help you? Oh, good morning. I'm ringing about your advertisement in the Evening Gazette. Is that the one for temporary staff? That's right. The advertisement is for temporary staff, so temporary has been written in the space. 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, West Bay Hotel. Can I help you? Oh, good morning. I'm ringing about your advertisement in the Evening Gazette. Is that the one for temporary staff? That's right. Yes, I'm afraid the person who's dealing with that isn't in today, but I can give you the main details if you like. Yes, please. Could you tell me what kind of staff you're looking for? We are looking for waiters at the moment. There was one post for a cook, but that's already been taken. Oh, right. Um. What are the hours of work? There are two different shifts. There is a day shift from 7 to 2, and a late shift from 4 to 11. And can people choose which one they want to do? Not normally, because everyone would choose the day shift, I suppose. You alternate from one week to another. OK, uh, I'm I'm just writing all this down. What about time off? You get one day off, and I think you can negotiate which one you want. It's more or less up to you. But it has to be the same one every week. Do you know what the rates of pay are? Yes, I've got them here. Uh. You get £5.50 an hour. And that includes a break. Do I have to go home to eat or? You don't have to, you can get a meal in the hotel if you want to, and there's no charge for it, so you might as well. Oh, good. Yes, so let's see. I'd get er, two hundred and twenty one, no, no, two hundred and thirty one pounds a week. You'd also get tips. Our guests tend to be quite generous. Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 5 to 10. Now listen and answer questions 5 to 10. Is there a uniform? What about clothes? Yes, I forgot to mention that. You need to wear a white shirt, just a plain one, and dark trousers, you know, not green or anything like that. And we don't supply those. That's OK, I've got trousers. I just have to buy a couple of shirts. What about anything else? Do I need a waistcoat or anything? You have to wear a jacket, but the hotel lends you that. I see. Uh. One last thing. I don't know what the starting date is. Hmm. Just a minute. I think it's some time around the end of June. Uh. Yes, the 28th in time for the summer. That's great, I'm available from the 10th. Oh, good. Well, if you can call again, you need to speak to the service manager. Her name's Jane Urwin, that's URWIN. And she'll probably arrange to meet you. OK, and when's the best time to ring? Could you call tomorrow? Um. She usually starts checking the rooms at midday, so before then, if you can, so she'll have more time to chat. I'll just give you her number, because she's got a direct line. Thanks. It's 832009. 823009. 832. Oh, OK, uh, yes, I'll do that. And by the way, she will ask you for a reference, so you might like to be thinking about that, you know, just someone who knows you and can vouch for you. Yes, no problem. Well, thanks very much for your help. You're welcome. Bye. Bye. That is the end of section 1. You now have half a minute to check your answers.
Part 2: Improvement Plan for Red Hill Suburb
Section 2. You will hear a man being interviewed on local radio about a plan to improve a suburb called Red Hill. First, you have some time to look at questions 11 to 13. Now listen carefully, and answer questions 11 to 13. Good morning, and welcome again to Your City Today. With me today is Graham Campbell, a councillor from the city council. He'll be telling us about the plan to improve the fast growing suburb of Red Hill. Good morning Graham and welcome to the show. Good morning Carol. Now Graham, I understand that there has been a lot of community consultation for the new plan. Yes, we've tried to address some of the concerns that local groups told us about. People we've heard from are mainly worried about traffic in the area, and in particular the increasing speed of cars near schools. They feel that it's only a matter of time before there's an accident as a lot of children walk to the school. So, we're trying to do something about that. Another area of concern is the overhead power lines. These are very old, and a lot of people we spoke to asked if something could be done about them. Well, I'm happy to report that the power company have agreed to move the power lines underground at a cost of $800,000. I think that will really improve the look of the area, as well as being safer. Hmm, that's good to know. But will that mean an increase in rates for the local businesses in that area? Well, the power company have agreed to bear the cost of this themselves after a lot of discussion with the council. This is wonderful news, as the council now has some extra funds for us to put into other things like tree planting and artwork. Before you hear the rest of the interview, you have some time to look at questions 14 to 20. Now listen and answer questions 14 to 20. We've also put together a map, which we sent out to all the residents in the area, and on the map we've marked the proposed changes. Firstly, we'll plant mature pine trees to provide shelter and shade just to the right of the supermarket in Days Road. In order to address the traffic problems, the pavements on the corner of Carberry and Thomas Street will be widened. This will help to reduce the speed of vehicles entering Thomas Street. We think it's very important to separate the local residential streets from the main road, so the roadway at the entrance to Thomas Street from Days Road will be painted red. This should mark it more clearly, and act as a signal for traffic to slow down. One way of making sure that the pedestrians are safe is to increase signage at the intersections. A 'keep clear' sign will be erected at the junction of Evelyn Street and Hill Street, to enable traffic to exit at all times. Something we're planning to do to help control the flow of traffic in the area is to install traffic lights halfway down Hill Street where it crosses Days Road. Now, we haven't only thought about the cars and traffic of course, there's also something for the children. We're going to get school children in the area to research a local story, the life of a local sports hero perhaps, and an artist will incorporate that story into paintings on the wall of a building on the other side of Hill Street from the supermarket. And finally, we've agreed to build a new children's playground, which will be at the other end of Hill Street, close to the intersection with Carberry Street. Wonderful. Now, uh, what's the next stage? Well, the final plan will... That is the end of section 2. You now have half a minute to check your answers.
Part 3: College Life and Studies Discussion
Section 3. You will hear two students called Dan and Jeannie discussing their studies at university. First, you have some time to look at questions 21 to 26. Now listen carefully, and answer questions 21 to 26. Hi, Jeannie, how's it going? Oh, hello, Dan. Pretty well, thanks. Have you managed to get the money for the course yet? Yes, that's all sorted out now, thanks. It took long enough though. It was practically a year ago that I applied to my local council for a grant, and it took them 6 months to turn me down. That's really slow. And I thought I was eligible for government funding, but it seems I was mistaken. So then I asked the boss of the company I used to work for if they would sponsor me, and much to my surprise, he said they'd make a contribution. But what about college grants and scholarships? There must be some you could apply for. Yes, there are, but they're all so small that I decided to leave them until I was desperate. Uh-huh. And in fact, I didn't need to apply. My parents had been saying that as I already had a job, I ought to support myself through college. But in the end, they took pity on me. So now I've just about got enough. That's good. So now I can put a bit of effort into meeting people. I Haven't had time so far. Any suggestions? What about joining some college clubs? Oh right. You joined several didn't you? Yes, I'm in the drama club. It's our first performance next week, so we're rehearsing frantically. And I've got behind with my work. But it's worth it. I'm hoping to be in the spring production too. I've never liked acting. Are you doing anything else? I enjoyed singing when I was at school. So I joined a group when I came to college. I don't think the conductor stretches us enough though, so I'll give up after the next concert. And I also joined the debating society. It's fun, but with all the rehearsing I'm doing, something has to go, and I'm afraid that's the one. Do you do any sports? Yes, I'm in one of the hockey teams. I'm not very good, but I'd really miss it if I stopped. I decided to try tennis when I came to college, and I'm finding it pretty tough going. I'm simply not fit enough. Nor me. I think I'll give that a miss. I'm hoping it'll help me to build up my stamina, but it'll probably be a long haul. Good luck. Thanks. How are you finding the course? I wish we had more seminars. What? I'd have thought we had more than enough already, all those people saying clever things that I could never think of. It's quite interesting, but I wonder if I'm clever enough to be doing this course. I find it helpful to listen to the other people. I like the way we're exploring the subject, and working towards getting insight into it. How do you get on with your tutor? I don't think I'm on the same wavelength as mine, so I feel I'm not getting anything out of the tutorials. It would be more productive to read a book instead. Oh, mine's very demanding. She gives me lots of feedback and advice, so I've got much better at writing essays. And she's helping me plan my revision for the end-of-year exams. Do tell me, I always struggle with revision. Before you hear the rest of the discussion, you have some time to look at questions 27 to 30. Now listen and answer questions 27 to 30. Well, the first thing is to find out exactly what's required in the exams. Would it help to get hold of some past papers? Yes. They'll help to make it clear. Right, I'll do that. Then what? Then you can sort out your revision priorities based on what's most likely to come up. I put these on a card and read them through regularly. Uh-huh. But that isn't enough in itself. You also need a timetable to see how you can fit everything in the time available, then keep it in front of you while you're studying. I've done that before, but it hasn't helped me. Maybe you need to do something different every day, so if you break down your revision into small tasks and allocate them to specific days, there's more incentive to tackle them. With big topics, you're more likely to put off starting. Good idea. And as I revise each topic, I write a single paragraph about it. Then later, I can read it through quickly. And it helps fix things in my mind. Well, that's brilliant. I also write answers to questions for the exam practice. It's hard to make myself do it though. Well, I'll try. Thanks a lot, Jeannie. That's a great help. No problem. See you around. Bye. That is the end of Section 3. You now have half a minute to check your answers.
Part 4: Australian Aboriginal Rock Art: Styles, Content, and the Rainbow Serpent
Section 4. You will hear a lecturer giving a talk about Australian rock art to a group of archaeology students. First, you have some time to look at questions 31 to 40. Now listen carefully and answer questions 31 to 40. Good morning everyone. I've been invited to talk about my research project into Australian Aboriginal rock paintings. The Australian Aborigines have recorded both real and symbolic images of their time on rock walls for many thousands of years. Throughout the long history of this tradition, new images have appeared, and new painting styles have developed. And these characteristics can be used to categorize the different artistic styles. Among these are what we call the dynamic, yam, and modern styles of painting. One of the most significant characteristics of the different styles is the way that humans are depicted in the paintings. The more recent paintings show people in static poses. But the first human images to dominate rock art paintings over 8,000 years ago were full of movement. These paintings showed people hunting and cooking food, and so they were given the name dynamic to reflect this energy. It's quite amazing considering they were painted in such a simple stick-like form. In the Yam period, there was a movement away from stick figures to a more naturalistic shape. However, they didn't go as far as the modern style, which is known as x-ray, because it actually makes a feature of the internal skeleton, as well as the organs of animals and humans. The yam style of painting got its name from the fact that it featured much curvier figures that actually resembled the vegetable called yam, which is similar to a sweet potato. The modern paintings are interesting because they include paintings at the time of the first contact with European settlers. Aborigines managed to convey the idea of the settlers' clothing by simply painting the Europeans without any hands, indicating the habit of standing with their hands in their pockets. Size is another characteristic. The more recent images tend to be life size or even larger. But the dynamic figures are painted in miniature. Aboriginal rock art also records the environmental changes that occurred over thousands of years. For example, we know from the dynamic paintings that over 8,000 years ago Aborigines would have rarely eaten fish, and sea levels were much lower at this time. In fact, fish didn't start to appear in paintings until the Yam period, along with shells and other marine images. The paintings of the Yam tradition also suggest that during this time, the Aborigines moved away from animals as their main food source, and began including vegetables in their diet, as these feature prominently. Fresh water creatures didn't appear in the paintings until the modern period from 4,000 years ago. So these paintings have already taught us a lot, but one image that has always intrigued us is known as the Rainbow Serpent. The Rainbow Serpent which is the focus of my most recent project, gets its name from its snake or serpent like body, and it first appeared in the Yam period 4 to 6,000 years ago. Many believe it is a curious mixture of kangaroo, snake and crocodile, but we decided to study the rainbow serpent paintings to see if we could locate the animal that the very first painters based their image on. The Yam period coincided with the end of the last ice Age. This brought about tremendous change in the environment, with the sea levels rising and creeping steadily inland. This flooded many familiar land features, and also caused a great deal of disruption to traditional patterns of life, hunting in particular. New shores were formed, and totally different creatures would have washed up onto the shores. We studied 107 paintings of the rainbow serpent, and found that the one creature that matches it most closely was the ribboned pipefish, which is a type of seahorse. This sea creature would have been a totally unfamiliar sight in the inland regions where the image is found, and it may have been the inspiration behind the early paintings. So, at the end of the Ice Age, there would have been enormous changes in animal and plant life. It's not surprising then that the Aborigines linked this abundance to the new creatures they witnessed. Even today, Aborigines see the rainbow serpent as a symbol of creation, which is understandable given the increase in vegetation and the new life forms that featured when the image first appeared. That is the end of Section 4. You now have half a minute to check your answers.