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General Training Reading Practice Test #1

Time: 1 hour

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES

Read the instructions for each part of the paper carefully. Answer all the questions. Write your answers on the answer sheet. Use a pencil. You must complete the answer sheet within the time limit (one hour only).

INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES There are 40 questions on this question paper. Each question carries one mark.

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SECTION 1

Questions 1 -13

Read the advertisements below and answer Questions 1-6

A

B

Experienced Waiting staff

Experienced Store Manager  Full Time Role  Immediate Start Needed  40 hours per week Grocery store based in Melbourne’s CBD requires experienced Store Manager. Daily duties will include but not be limited to:  Monitoring daily operations  Opening and closing the store  Hiring and assigning staff  Conducting training  Completing stock take and control

Shangri-la Eating House is expanding and looking for passionate and dedicated waiting staff to join our service team. Desired skills and experience:  Experience in fast paced environment  Excellent English and Mandarin language skills  Certificate 4 in Hospitality Must be available to work Thursday to Saturday evenings. Current driver’s license desirable but not essential

Please send CV and cover letter to [email protected]

Forward a cover letter and CV to [email protected]

C

Data Entry/Admin position Short term project, 2-4 weeks in eastern suburbs, Melbourne. Admin/Data Entry, $26.58 - $29.76 per hour. You MUST be available to work within the range of hours 8am – midnight. Call (03) 9745 8390 or email Dan Oliphante ([email protected])

D A

Community Volunteer Visitor with IT skills (Heidelberg) Are you looking to give back to the community? At North-East Care we think about aged care a little differently. We believe that older people can still lead meaningful lives. You will be teaching the basics of ipad use to our older clients. This volunteering role is on a short term basis, possibly 10 weeks. For more information please email [email protected]

E

2nd Chef (Hospitality) Central Highlands Food is looking for a 2nd Chef to join our team producing local, seasonal, fresh food for our busy restaurant and catering business in Ballarat.  Primarily weekday shifts; occasional weekend functions  Award rates, penalty rates  Must be able to self-manage

F

Nanny wanted For 2-year-old and 4-year-old brothers. Single father, professional, Kew, 5 days a week. Some flexibility possible with hours. Driver’s licence and excellent references essential. Knowledge of French language and cooking skills desirable but not essential. Call 0499 752 300

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Questions 1 – 6 Look at the six job advertisements, A-F, on page 2. For which advertisements are the following statements true? Write the correct letter, A-F, in boxes 1-6 on your answer sheet. NB

You may use any letter more than once. 1

Which TWO jobs are in restaurants?

2

Which advertisement is for someone to look after children?

3

Which TWO jobs would be suitable for a person who does not need longterm work?

4

For which job is a driver’s licence essential?

5

Which job involves supervising other staff?

6

For which TWO jobs would another language be useful?

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Read the text below and answer Questions 7 - 13

BURGOYNE CITY COUNCIL

News

What’s on

Truck Curfew information sessions Wednesday 5, 19 August, Saturday 29 August | 7PM – 9PM

The Helping Homes Foundation – Monthly Morning Coffee First Monday of the month | 10:00AM – 2:00PM

Information sessions will be held throughout August to convey information from VicRoads about plans to reduce heavy vehicle traffic (10pm – 6am) on major roads, including High St. See Council Home page for more details. All information sessions will be conducted in Council chambers.

The Helping Homes Foundation, situated at 11 Cohen St, Battersby West, provides short term residential accommodation for patients and their carers coming from rural areas to city hospitals for serious or urgent treatment. The Helping Homes Foundation is a notfor-profit organisation. Each month the home holds a morning tea. Learn more about the Helping Homes Foundation. Donations very welcome.

Central Park Community Reference Group In order to provide a formal mechanism for Council to consult with key stakeholders on the use, maintenance and development of Central Park, a community reference group is being established. Email expressions of interest to [email protected]

Request for inclusion in 2016 Community Calendar Submit your community group’s event for publishing in the 2016 Community Calendar. If your community group is based in Burgoyne and has a special event in 2016, you should include it in the calendar. Submissions must be made on the official form by 28 August. Email Ozlem Adakale at [email protected]

Burgoyne Banner July-August The latest edition of the Burgoyne Banner should have arrived last week in your mail boxes. The JulyAugust Banner is also available online, containing a variety of articles on what we are doing and what activities you can get involved in, including highlights of last month’s Burgoyne Day celebrations, the budget 2015-2016, and Building a Better Burgoyne. Find back copies from the last 12 months by visiting the Banner page.

Battersby North Uniting Church Preschool Music Every Tuesday | 10:00AM – 11:00AM Music session for preschool aged children. Children must be accompanied by a parent or carer. Parents are encouraged to participate. $6.00 per session/per child. Concession rates available. Refreshments are offered at the end of every session. All sessions will be conducted in the church hall, 25 Bond St, Battersby.

Spring Fair, Anglemont Village Sat 29 Aug | 11:00AM – 4:00PM Experience all the excitement and friendly atmosphere of the annual Anglemont Village Spring Fair! No booking required and all welcome! Enjoy a funfilled day out with a variety of attractions including an animal farm, jumping castle, abseiling wall, inflatable shark slide, live music, sausage sizzle, roving balloonist and much more!

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Questions 7 – 13 Complete the sentences below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS AND/OR NUMBERS from the text for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 7-13 on your answer sheet. 7

The council plans to stop trucks using main roads between the hours of ... … … …and … … … …

8

The deadline for submitting your event for the 2016 calendar is … … … …

9

You can read the Burgoyne Banner that was delivered to your home or read it …………

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You must live in … … … … to use the services of the Helping Homes Foundation.

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During the preschool music session, a child’s … … … … must be present.

12

A fair is held every … … … … in Anglemont.

13

To attend the fair, it is not necessary to have a … … … …

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SECTION 2

Questions 14 – 27

Read the text below and answer Questions 14-19

SUMMARY OF UNIVERSITY TELEPHONE SERVICES The Office of Information Technology (OIT) provides telephone services required by the campus. We are open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon and 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Refer to the following list of extension numbers for specific OIT services. DIAL EXTENSION

General enquiries

5123

Telephone repair 5321 In many instances, the trouble can be quickly resolved by phone. However, if we are unable to resolve the problem remotely, we will dispatch a technician to your location within one working day. We will determine the cause of the problem and correct it within two working days from receiving your call. Voicemail options 5444 OIT’s telephone and voicemail systems offer many different options for different uses. Detailed information can be found in our training guides. For a hard copy of this guide, please call 5444. Telephone & Voicemail Training Classes 5222 OIT offers free hands-on telephone and voicemail training classes. Telephone classes are offered the 2nd Friday of every month from 9:00 – 10:30 a.m. Classes are held on campus in Building 593 Physical Sciences. For more information or to register, call 5222. Requesting Telephone Installations 5344 Requests for a new installation must be authorised by the Head of Department and submitted on the OIT Service Request Form. For more information, please call 5344. Conference Calling Services 5345 The campus telephone system includes conference call facilities. You may place a conference call from any campus telephone. Conference calls are an economical way to meet with people, both on and off campus. Portable Conference Telephone Units can be rented for $10 per day. Call 5345 to reserve a unit or for help with organising a conference call. Campus Directory Assistance 5011 The campus operator switchboard is staffed Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time. The main campus telephone number is (959) 874-5011. Make sure you have the full name and/or department of the person you want to reach. Campus operators can give you a number but will not connect calls for on-campus users. A call-controller is available when the switchboard is closed to assist callers with some frequently-called numbers. Billing 5346 OIT encourages departments to review billing statements online through the WebPortal. Paper billing was discontinued in January 2015. Call 5346 for answers to billing questions. This includes information about charges related to TIMED CALLS, TRANSFERRED CHARGE CALLS, INTERNATIONAL CALLS, and which calls are FREE CALLS. Emergency Campus security is available 24/7. Inform the operator which emergency service is required.

5555

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Questions 14 – 19 Answer the questions below. Write the correct extension numbers to dial in boxes 14 –19 on your answer sheet. NB

You may use any number more than once.

What number should you dial if 14 you want several people on and off campus to join you for a telephone meeting? 15

you want to know how much it costs to call a foreign country?

16

there is something wrong with your telephone?

17

you want to contact someone on campus but don’t know their number?

18 You need someone to show you how to use the different features of the telephone system? 19

You need information about connecting a new telephone?

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Read the text below and answer Questions 20 – 27.

Leave Entitlements This document outlines the current types of leave that employees are entitled to throughout the state Annual Leave Under the National Employment Standards, all employees are entitled to four weeks of annual leave. Certain shift workers are entitled to an additional week’s leave. Annual leave is now accrued on a regular basis. This means that an employee does not have to complete twelve months of service to take annual leave. By mutual agreement, an employee may take a portion of their leave, once they have accrued an entitlement to it. For example, after 3 months of service, an employer may allow an employee to take one week of their leave.

Personal/carer's and compassionate leave Sick leave is now called personal/carer’s leave. The ten day per year entitlement of each worker accrues on a regular basis. This leave can be used when the employee is sick or when an immediate family member is sick and needs to be cared for by the employee. The leave entitlement keeps accruing for as long as a person is employed. The untaken leave is not paid out on termination of employment. Two days of paid compassionate leave applies on each occasion when an immediate family or household member has a serious illness, serious injury or dies. Casual employees have access to two days of unpaid compassionate leave in these circumstances.

Public holidays Standard public holidays continue to apply to all employees, plus any day nominated by the state government as an additional public holiday. For example, local show days and additional days at Christmas. Employees are entitled to a paid day off work if a public holiday falls on the day they would normally work. An employer may ask an employee to work on a public holiday if the request is reasonable. However, an employee may also refuse to work on reasonable grounds such as family responsibilities.

Parental leave Twelve months of unpaid parental leave is an entitlement under the National Employment Standards for employees who have at least 12 months of continuous service. This may also include some casual employees who work on a regular basis with the expectation of ongoing employment. An employee also has a right to request an additional 12 months of leave, which can only be refused on reasonable business grounds.

Long service leave Employees in the state are entitled to two months of long service leave after ten years’ service, with an additional month of leave after every five year period. Got a question regarding your Long Service Leave in the building industry? Contact the Long Service Corporation on 131 441 or visit their website.

Community service leave Community service leave is a new entitlement under the National Employment Standards. It is to cover eligible community service activities such as dealing with an emergency or natural disaster. An eligible employee is entitled to unpaid leave for the period of the actual activity and associated reasonable travel time and/or rest time immediately following the activity. This leave also applies when an employee is called up for jury service. An employee must give suitable notice to their employer as soon as reasonably practicable and indicate how long they expect to be absent from work.

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Questions 20 – 27 Complete the notes below. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the text for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 20 – 27 on your answer sheet.

Annual leave 

An employee who has been employed for three months is entitled to 20 .................. of annual leave.

Personal/Carer’s and Compassionate leave 

A casual employee may take 21 ..................days Compassionate leave whenever someone in their household is seriously ill but this leave is 22 ……………… .

Public holidays 

When asked by their employer to work on a public holiday, an employee can refuse to work with a 23 ……………… excuse.

Parental leave 

In order to receive twelve months of parental leave, an employee must have been employed continuously for 24 ……………… or more.

Long Service leave 

If an employee has worked for 25 ……………… they can take 2 months of Long service leave.

Community Service leave 

An employee is entitled to Community Service leave if there is an emergency in the community such as a 26 ……………… . This type of leave is also taken when an employee must serve on a 27 ……………… .

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Questions 28 – 40

SECTION 3

Read the text on pages 10 and 11 and answer Questions 28 - 40 Questions 28 - 34 The text has seven paragraphs, A-G. Choose the correct heading for each paragraph from the list of headings below. Write the correct number, i-ix, in boxes 28-34 on your answer sheet. List of Headings i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. viii. ix.

Reacting to different types of criticism What you are is more than what you do Denying the criticism Praise or criticism Improved performance Most criticism is valid Why we don’t like criticism Our first reaction to criticism A complete response

28

Paragraph A

29

Paragraph B

30

Paragraph C

31

Paragraph D

32

Paragraph E

33

Paragraph F

34

Paragraph G

Our Reaction to Criticism

A

Norman Vincent Peale, the author of “The Power of Positive Thinking”, once famously said, “The trouble with most of us is that we’d rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism”. While Peale might rightly be accused of somewhat overstating his case, there is more than a grain of truth in what he says. No one wants to be criticised. If given a choice, most of us would rather get compliments than critical comments. We often find it difficult to accept criticism, even if it is positive. Why should this be the case, and do we in fact risk our own ruin by our desire to seek praise rather than to accept criticism?

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B

One of the problems we have in acknowledging criticism maturely and in a considered way is that to accept criticism is to admit that we have done something wrong. Believing in the rightness of our actions is a powerful element in how most of us construct our sense of self. In many instances, if not most, our behaviour is a strong expression of our sense of identity. When this behaviour is questioned we become very sensitive and easily agitated. This is because we are being asked to reassess our own sense of who we are. As a consequence, we often tend to simply deny the criticism rather than risk the potential trouble such a reassessment might bring. Peale’s point, of course, is that continuing in our old ways may be comfortable in the short term but closes us off to the longterm benefits that a serious assessment of ourselves can produce.

C

So what does a mature response to criticism look like, and how can we develop it? Basically we need to develop three habits of mind. We can quite simply characterise these skills as the Three Cs: calmness, consideration and constructive action. We may have already developed one or two of these habits, but it’s important that we use all three when dealing with criticism. Let’s look at them in turn.

D

Whether or not someone has intentionally hurt our feelings, it’s important to stay cool. Acknowledge your thoughts and how you feel. For example, if you begin feeling annoyed, say “I’m feeling annoyed” to yourself silently. Practise deep breathing. This stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, which controls restfulness. Make forgiveness a habit. Practising these responses will mean a bad situation will not get worse, and very importantly, it allows us to move on to the next phase in reacting maturely to criticism, namely, consideration.

E

When giving honest consideration to personal criticism, it’s important to differentiate between comments that are only intended to hurt our feelings and those that are well-intentioned. In other words, you should calmly distinguish between destructive and constructive criticism. Examine the criticism from all angles and respond gracefully. Acknowledge those parts that may be valid. For example, if you are told you never contribute to group work, concede, “Yes, it’s true I didn’t contribute much last week”. If you feel the criticism is completely unfair, try using humour to redirect the discussion to areas of common interest and agreement, but make sure the joke is not at the other person’s expense!

F

In order to properly consider criticism, it’s wise to separate ourselves from the criticism. One part of our behaviour does not define the whole of us. Think of the many people who achieved greatness after being initially rejected. If, for example, a teacher criticises an essay, don’t imagine that it means you will never be able to write a good essay. Ask questions of your critic: is there anything else you need to work on? Can they suggest some strategies?

G

Constructive criticism is a challenge to action. Be thankful for advice that can lead to improvement. Make a sincere effort to correct mistakes and to improve behaviour. Recognise the improvements and acknowledge the resulting lift in your own confidence and self-respect. Remember to personally thank whoever it was who gave you good advice. Check with them whether they too can recognise any change. It may be that they won’t! Don’t worry; real change takes time. Remember also to be patient with yourself if you don’t become an expert in accepting criticism with grace and appreciation the first time you try. It takes time to change old habits of mind. You may find that some criticism is especially hard to deal with because it takes you back to childhood emotions of

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feeling inadequate and vulnerable. But remember, while praise is rarely an unpleasant experience, it will forever be true that constructive criticism is our best friend if our intention is self-improvement.

Questions 35 – 40 Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text? In boxes 35 – 40 on your answer sheet, write TRUE

if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE

if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN

if there is no information on this

35

Many people see criticism as threatening their sense of identity.

36

When dealing with criticism, it is not enough to simply stay calm.

37

It is only necessary to respond graciously if the criticism is constructive.

38

One should not use humour when responding to constructive criticism.

39

Criticism of something you do is usually an indication that you will never be very successful at that thing.

40

Criticism you received as a child is the hardest to deal with.

END OF TEST