By Ajarn Helen Jandamit
Photos courtesy of Bangkok Post
University Tips is here to help you prepare for the English exams and tests that are coming your way. It gives you practise answering questions similar to those you may have at school and also on the University Entrance Examination.
Read the following story by Anchalee Kongrut from the Bangkok Post. Then, answer the questions that follow.
The Skytrain walkway in front of the Bangkok Art and Cultural Centre is usually noisy and bustling with human traffic. But on a recent Sunday afternoon, the atmosphere there was unusually tranquil. A group of youngsters were standing around, silently reading.
After one hour, the group dispersed. There left no posters or pamphlets to explain their action, and they didn’t pin up a manifesto. There was no donation box to solicit funds.
The young people were protesting against the huge budget set aside by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to finance its World Book Capital publicity efforts.
“We don’t want to organise a campaign,” Sakrapee Rinsarn, one of those responsible for organising a theatrical demonstration named Standing and Reading Quietly, said. “We just want to raise the question of why the BMA thinks it’s necessary to spend 1 billion baht on the Bangkok World Book Capital campaign.
“We are not a formal organisation. We just designed a campaign to show that reading is a simple activity that shouldn’t cost much,” 24-year-old Sakrapee said. Sakrapee graduated from Burapha University with a major in book publishing.
The reference to reading quietly is a dig at the World Book Capital slogan coined by the BMA — Reading Out Loud Across The City.
In 2011, Bangkok was designated by UNESCO as World Book Capital 2013, a move intended to give international recognition to a city which promotes a culture of reading and has good facilities for book enthusiasts.
The Reading Quietly campaign began during a discussion between Sakrapee and some friends who love reading. They were disturbed by the BMA’s lavish spending on the World Book Capital project and decided to do something simple to make the general public question this use of tax-payers’ money.
The friends used social media sites to publicise their event, and asked which area in the city they thought most suitable for an attention-grabbing stunt. The Skytrain walkway read-in was their second event.
Another person involved in the protest was Rapi Songkuntham, a Matayom 5 student at Triam Udom Suksa.
“I think the BMA’s spending for Bangkok World Capital runs counter to the reality of books and how you get people interested in them,” Rapi said.
While the BMA’s campaign is due to wind up soon, Sakrapee, Rapi and their friends are determined to continue their efforts by launching Library In Your Hands, a campaign and challenge to the BMA’s plan to build more public libraries.
Exercises
Section 1
Read the story. Then, answer the following multiple choice questions.
1. Why was a group of people standing and reading on the Skytrain walkway in front of the BACC?
a. They had just bought some books and couldn’t wait to read them.
b. They were studying for upcoming exams.
c. They were protesting against the huge budget set aside by the BMA to publicise its World Book Capital campaign.
2. When was Bangkok chosen by UNESCO to be World Book Capital 2013?
a. On a recent Sunday afternoon.
b. Earlier this year.
c. In 2011.
3. Who organised the silent reading event outside the BACC?
a. UNESCO.
b. Sakrapee, Rapi and their friends.
c. The Bangkok Art and Cultural Centre.
4. What was the slogan invented by the BMA for Bangkok World Book Capital 2013?
a. Library In Your Hands.
b. Standing and Reading Quietly.
c. Reading Out Loud Across the City.
5. When is the BMA's campaign due to finish, according to the story?
a. In 2011.
b. Soon.
c. When UNESCO declares Bangkok the World Book Capital.
Section 2
Read through the story again. Then, decide whether the following statements are true or false.
6. The public read-ins were used by students to make money.
……………………….
7. The group stood reading on the Skytrain walkway in front of the Bangkok Art and Cultural Centre for an hour.
……………………….
8. Sakrapee Rinsarn is 25 years old.
……………………….
9. Rapi Songkuntham is a Matayom 6 student at Triam Udom Suksa,
……………………….
10. The BMA has not spent enough money on the World Book Capital project, according to the protesters.
……………………….
Section 3
Read the following sentences and underline the grammatically correct words from the choices given.
11. Young people were quietly/quiet reading while standing around.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
12. The city was designated/designating by UNESCO as World Book Capital 2013.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
13. Rapi Songkuntham was also involved for/in the protest.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
14. Their second public read-in taken/took place on the Skytrain walkway.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
15. The friends used social media sites to publicise/publicity their project.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Section 4
Select the definitions of the following words from the choices given that best suit how the words are used in the story.
16. major
a. an officer of middle rank in the army, the marines or the US air force
b. important, serious, large, or great
c. the main subject or course of a student at a university
d. a type of musical scale
17. dig
a. to make a hole in earth or sand using your hands, a machine, or a tool
b. to try to find out information about somebody, especially when they do not want you to
c. the activity of digging in the ground in order to find ancient objects
d. a remark or joke that you make in order to criticise somebody or annoy them
18. wind up
a. to tease somebody
b. to turn a handle to increase tension on a spring
c. to bring a business, an activity, etc. to an end
d. to deliberately annoy somebody
19. atmosphere
a. the mixture of gasses that surrounds the earth
b. the air inside a room or other place
c. the mood or feeling that you have in a particular place or situation
d. a unit for measuring pressure
Section 5
Read the following passage. Then, fill in the blanks with the correct words from the choices given.
The BMA is reportedly spending 1.5 billion baht on developing the …..20….. libraries. They plan to acquire more books, run book-reading activities and run …..21….. public relations campaign for a whole year in order …..22….. show that Bangkok is worthy of the World Book Capital title. The …..23….. authorities are also planning to spend another 200 million baht to construct …..24….. new library on Ratchadamnoen Road.
20.
a. city
b. cities
c. city’s
21.
a. a
b. an
c. the
22.
a. too
b. to
c. two
23.
a. municipality
b. municipal
c. municipality’s
24.
a. and
b. an
c. a
Vocabulary
- novel (adj): new, interesting and often seeming slightly strange
happening (n): an event
bustling (adj): full of people moving about in a busy way
tranquil (adj): quiet and peaceful
manifesto (n): a written statement in which a group of people, especially a political party, explain their beliefs and say what they will do if they win an election
solicit (v): to ask somebody for something, such as support, money, or information
read-in (n): an organised event where people come to a place to read books together
