[IELTS 16] General Training Reading Test 2

[IELTS 16] General Training Reading Test 2: This GT Reading Test comprises of How to choose your builder, Island adventure activities, Barrington Music Service: Business and Development Manager, Health and safety in small businesses, Jobs in ancient Egypt paragraphs with answer key and free pdf download.

This General Reading test is divided into three sections consisting of five medium to long length texts.

Reading Text 1 is about How to choose your builder.

Reading Text 2 is about Island adventure activities.

Reading Text 3 is about Barrington Music Service: Business and Development Manager.

Reading Text 4 is about Health and safety in small businesses.

Reading Text 5 is about Jobs in ancient Egypt.

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How to choose your builder

Cambridge IELTS 16 General Training Reading Test 2

SECTION  1         

Questions 1-14

Read the text below and answer Questions 1- 7

Building a new home is a significant  investment, and it’s essential to  find the right builder for the job. Before you look for a builder, it’s important to develop a comprehensive budget and have clear plans. Once you have a design in mind, it is time to start narrowing down your builder shortlist, and this starts with assessing how qualified each builder is. In Australia, this means checking that the builder holds a residential building licence. Most states have their own building authority who you can contact to check a builder’s licence.   You can also check if the builder is a member of an industry association such as the Housing Industry Association (HIA), and whether they have won any industry awards. For instance, the HIA runs a state and national awards programme, with a category that recognises the level of customer service that a builder delivers.   Most experts agree that display homes (homes constructed by the builder that are open to the public) offer a great opportunity to study their work up close. Display homes are usually offered by major project builders who work on a large scale and can deliver good quality and value . You can also talk to the salesperson and find out about the home design and what is and isn’t included in the sale price. And it may be possible to talk to other customers you meet there and ask their opinion of the workmanship in the display home.   Finally, avoid signing any business contract before you have read and understood it thoroughly. Ask your builder to use a standard building contract that has been designed to comply with the Domestic Building Contracts Act, and to be fair to both client and builder. You have five business days within which you may withdraw from the contract after signing it.

Questions 1-7

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the text above?

In boxes 1-7 on your reading 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

1) After selecting a builder, you should decide on the design of your new house.	……………….
2) In Australia, you can make sure that a builder has the appropriate license.	……………….
3) The best builders usually belong to the Housing Industry Association.	……………….
4) The HIA gives an award to builders whose standards of customer service are very high.	……………….
5) Builders who work on smaller projects are more likely to have display homes.	……………….
6) It is advisable to have a contract which is in accordance with the Domestic Building Contracts Act.	……………….
7) A contract is legally binding from the time it has been signed.	……………….

Questions 8-14

Read the text below and answer Questions 8- 14.

A        Rib riding Conquer stormy seas on a high-speed rid e in an RIB (Rigid Inflatable Boat ). These powerful boats cut through choppy waters with ease. You’ll need to hold on tight as the boat bounces across the wake of awesome cruise liners in one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. B        Horse riding Experience the thrill of riding on horseback along peaceful country  lanes and secluded  bridleways with the  help of  expert guides.  Even  a  novice can quickly take the reins and feel the thrill of riding one of nature’s most magnificent beasts. C        Kayaking Test your kayak nerves paddling around a deserted military fort built on a rocky outcrop out at sea, then explore the island’s busy harbours before gliding back to dry land where a hot shower and a cup of tea await. D       Cycling Test your endurance on the famous Round the Island Cycle Route . Grit your teeth and tackle the brutal hills in the south of the island, or for something less challenging, discover our car-free cycle tracks on former railway lines. E        Segway riding Have you got what it takes to master a Segway? In theory, these quirky electric machines are simple to control, with users leaning forwards to go faster and back to slow down. In reality, you’ll need some practice before you can master the  skill and glide around the island. F        Tree climbing A climb into the canopy of a  25-metre  oak tree is an  amazing  experience. Supported by a rope and harness, you can stand on branches no  bigger than  your wrist, and swing out  between the boughs, or simply take the opportunity to lie in a tree-top hammock and absorb the stunning bird’s eye views. G       Coasteerin Tackle the spectacular coast in the north of  the  island. Scrabble over the  rocks around cliff edges as the waves crash around you,  dive through  submerged  caves and emerge onto a beach once used by smugglers . This is a thrilling  experience, but not an adventure to attempt alone . H       Mountain boarding First developed as an off-season alternative  to  winter sports and  now a sport in its own right, mountain boarding has the  speed of snowboarding  but with a harder landing when you fall. After a bit of practice and a few bruises, you’ll learn to control the ride and can join the few people who can call themselves mountain boarders

Look at the eight advertisements for adventure sports on an island, A- H.

For which adventure sport are the following statements true?

Write the correct letter, A- H, in boxes 8- 14 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any letter more than once.

8) You will be provided with safety equipment. ➡️	……………….
9) You may get some minor injuries doing this activity. ➡️	……………….
10) You can see a disused, isolated building. ➡️	……………….
11) You can relax and look down from above in an unusual location. ➡️	……………….
12) You will take an exciting trip in rough water close to big ships. ➡️	……………….
13) You can choose easy options or more difficult ones. ➡️	……………….
14) You may find this more difficult than you expect. ➡️	……………….

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Barrington Music Service: Business and Development Manager

IELTS 16 General Training Reading Test 2

SECTION  2         

Questions 15-20

Read the text below and answer Questions 15- 20.

Barrington Music Service organises a wide range of music activities for children and young people resident in and around Barrington. It provides singing and specialist instrumental lessons in schools, and it owns a collection of instruments for use in schools, some of which are available for hire by the parents of children having lessons. The Service also arranges a number of music-related events, including festivals bringing together choirs and soloists from schools in both Barrington and other areas. The Music Service provides administrative and financial support for the Barrington Youth Orchestra, which takes part in workshops with professional artists and gives performances. Barrington Music Service is seeking to recruit a Business and Development Manager to manage the administrative function and build on the success of the Service. We are looking for an individual with a passion for delivering the best possible music provision for the benefit of our children and young people. As the Business and Development Manager, you will be responsible for managing the administrative and financial systems of the Music Service, ensuring it does not exceed its budget, which is currently around £1m a year. You will take the lead on marketing the Service and ensuring the generation of new income. The Music Service is involved in several partnerships with schools and with music and community organisations in the district, and you will be expected to increase the number and scope of these, as well as take the lead in fundraising. The Service recently embarked on a programme to broaden what is taught in school music lessons, to include instruments and musical styles from around the world, and you will be required to further develop this emphasis on diversity. You will need to improve systems for ensuring that the records of the Service’s activities are accurate, and maintain a database of all music teachers, students, and instruments belonging to the Service. The person appointed will have experience of a supervisory role and the skills to motivate members of a team. You will have an understanding of accounting, at a non-specialist level, and of standard financial procedures. High-level IT skills and excellent verbal and written communication skills are essential. Although experience in music education is not crucial, good knowledge of the field, or of other areas of arts management, would be an advantage.

Complete the notes below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the text on page 42 for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 15-20 on your answer sheet.

Health and safety in small businesses

Questions 21-27

Read the text below and answer Questions 21- 27 .

The rate of accidents at work is almost 75% higher in small businesses than in larger companies. One possible reason is chat many managers of small businesses have an inadequate knowledge of health and safety issues. Many managers of small businesses claim their situation is made worse by bureaucracy, arguing that the huge number of regulations – not just on health  and  safety bur  also on  tax, the minimum wage, and much, much more – makes their work difficult. Many managers are simply not aware of their responsibilities. They are too busy running their companies to read manuals, employ consultants or go to seminars . Moreover, the average business person doesn’t know where and how to get information. The Federation of Small Businesses argues that the special nature of small businesses should be recognised by health and safety inspectors, with an emphasis on education and how to comply with the law, rather than simply on enforcement. For  instance,  inspectors could make employers aware of what they really need to know, rather than swamping them with mountains of leaflets which may not be relevant. Improvements are being made, however. The Health and Safety Executive has issued a free guide to the most important health and safety laws for employers. All employers must have their own health and safety policy statement and, for businesses with more than five employees, this must be in writing. It should be specific to the business and clear about the arrangements for and organisation of health and safety at work. We should state a strategy, detail how it will be implemented and by whom, and say when it will be reviewed and updated. It is advisable to involve employees in this process, as they have direct experience.   Assessing and identifying risks is the starting point. But to comply with the law, businesses must train their employees about health and safety, and provide information to others who need to know, such as the contractors working for them. These are often smaller companies that carry out most of the dangerous work.  Helping  them  to  get into good safety  habits makes it easier for them to tender for work from big companies. Other advice from the Health and Safety Executive for small businesses tackles specific issues, such as helping small companies to deal with work-related stress.

Questions 21-27

Complete the notes below.

Choose ONE WORD ONLY from the text for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 21-27 on your reading answer sheet.

21) One cause of health and safety problems in small businesses is that managers do not have enough relevant ……………………………………………. .

22) Managers complain they have too many…………………………….. to deal with.

23)    Managers may not fully understand their .. …………………………………………… .

24)  Businesses sometimes feel that inspectors give them far too many

25)   Businesses above a certain size must produce a written ………………………………………………

of their health and safety policy.

26) A company’s health and safety policy is relevant to both its employees and its ………………………………………………. .

27) The Health and Safety Executive can advise small businesses on problems of      among their employees.

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Jobs in ancient Egypt

SECTION  3         

Read the text below and answer Questions 28- 40.

In order to be engaged in the higher professions in ancient Egypt, a person had co be literate and so first had to become a scribe. The apprenticeship for this job lasted many years and was tough and challenging. It principally involved memorizing hieroglyphic symbols and practicing handwritten lettering. Scribes noted the everyday activities in ancient Egypt and wrote about everything from grain stocks to tax records. Therefore, most of our information on this rich culture comes from their records. Most scribe s were men from privileged backgrounds. The occupation of scribe was among the most sought-after in ancient Egypt. Craftspeople endeavoured to get their sons into the school for scribes, but they were rarely successful.   As in many civilizations, the lower classes provided the means for those above them to live comfortable lives. You needed to work if you wanted  to  eat, but  there was no  shortage of jobs at any time in Egypt’s  history. The commonplace  items taken for granted  today, such as a brush or bowl,  had  to be made by hand; laundry  had  to  be washed  by hand, clothing sewn, and sandals made from papyrus and  palm leaves. In order to make  these and  have paper co write on, papyrus plants had to be harvested, processed, and distributed and all these  jobs needed workers. There were rewards and sometimes difficulties . The reed cutter, for example, who harvested papyrus plants along the  Nile, had  to bear in  mind  that he worked  in an area that was also home to wildlife that, at times, could prove fatal.   At the bottom rung of all these jobs were the people who served as the basis for the entire economy: the farmers . Farmers usually did not own the land they worked. They were given food, implements, and living quarters as payment for their labor. Although there were many more glamorous jobs than farming, farmers were the backbone of the Egyptian economy and sustained everyone else.   The details of lower-class jobs are known from medical reports on the treatment of injuries, letters,  and  documents written on  various  professions, literary  works,  tomb  inscriptions, and artistic representations. This evidence presents a comprehensive view of daily work in ancient Egypt – how the jobs were done, and sometimes how people felt about the work. In general, the Egyptians seem to have felt pride in their work no matter what their occupation. Everyone had something to contribute to the community, and no skills seem to have been considered non-essential. The potter who produced cups and bowls was as important to the community as the scribe, and the amulet-maker as vital as the pharmacist. Part of making a living, regardless of one’s special skills, was raking part in the king’s monumental building projects. Although it is commonly  believed  that  the great  monuments and temples of Egypt were achieved through slave labor, there is absolutely no evidence to support chis. The pyramids and ocher monuments were built by Egyptian labourers who either donated their time as community service or were  paid  for  their labor, and  Egyptians  from every occupation could be called on to do this.   Stone had to first be quarried and chis required workers to split the blocks from the rock cliffs. It was done by inserting wooden wedges in the rock which would swell and cause the stone to break from the face. The often  huge  blocks were then  pushed onto sleds, devices better suited than wheeled vehicles to moving weighty objects over shifting sand. They were then rolled to a different location where they could be cut and shaped. This job was done by skilled stonemasons working with copper chisels and wooden mallets. As the chisels could gee blunt, a specialist in sharpening would take the tool, sharpen it, and bring it back. This would have been constant daily work as the masons could wear down their tools on a single block.   The blocks were then moved into position by unskilled labourers. These people were mostly farmers who could do nothing with their land during the months when the Nile River overflowed its banks. Egyptologists Bob Brier and Hoyt Hobbs explain: ‘For two months annually, workmen gathered by the tells of thousands from all over the country to transport the blocks a permanent crew  had  quarried  during  the rest of the year. Overseers  organized the men into teams  to  transport  the stones on  the sleds.’ Once the  pyramid  was complete, the inner chambers needed to be decorated by scribes who painted elaborate images on the walls. Interior work on tombs and  temples also  required sculptors  who could expertly cut away the stone around certain figures or scenes that had been painted.   While these artists were highly skilled, everyone –  no  matter what  their  job for  the  rest of the year – was expected to contribute co communal  projects. This practice  was in  keeping with the value of ma’at (harmony and balance) which was central to Egyptian culture. One was expected to care for others as much  as oneself and  contributing  to  the common  good was an expression of this. There is no doubt there were many people who did not love their job every day, bur the Egyptian government was aware of how hard the people worked and so staged a number of festivals throughout the year to show gratitude and give them days off to relax.

Answer key

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Ans 1 ➡️  FALSE

Ans 2 ➡️  TRUE

Ans 3 ➡️  NOT GIVEN

Ans 4 ➡️  TRUE

Ans 5 ➡️  FALSE

Ans 6 ➡️  TRUE

Ans 7 ➡️  FALSE

Ans 8 ➡️  F

Ans 9 ➡️  H

Ans 10 ➡️  C

Ans 11 ➡️  F

Ans 12 ➡️  A

Ans 13 ➡️  D

Ans 14 ➡️  E

Ans 15 ➡️  FESTIVALS

Ans 16 ➡️  BUDGET

Ans 17 ➡️  PARTNERSHIPS

Ans 18 ➡️  DIVERSITY

Ans 19 ➡️  DATABASE

Ans 20 ➡️  ACCOUNTING

Ans 21 ➡️  KNOWLEDGE

Ans 22 ➡️  REGULATIONS

Ans 23 ➡️  RESPONSIBILITIES

Ans 24 ➡️  LEAFLETS

Ans 25 ➡️  STATEMENT

Ans 26 ➡️  CONTRACTORS

Ans 27 ➡️ STRESS

Ans 28 ➡️  B

Ans 29 ➡️  A

Ans 30 ➡️  C

Ans 31 ➡️  B

Ans 32 ➡️  D

Ans 33 ➡️  C

Ans 34 ➡️ F

Ans 35 ➡️  B

Ans 36 ➡️  A

Ans 37 ➡️  COMMUNITY SERVICE

Ans 38 ➡️  SHIFTING SAND

Ans 39 ➡️  COPPER

Ans 40 ➡️  FARMERS

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About IELTS 16 General Training Reading Test 2

This General Training(GT) Reading Test 2 has been taken from IELTS 16 official booklet. The reading difficulty is classified as ‘Moderate’. So, if you are scoring 30+/40 in this practice test and verified your answers, you are highly likely to hit band 7 and above in the real exam setting.

I hope you find this test of our online ‘READING 📖 Practice Test Series’ useful. If you need a PDF copy of this test, tell us in the comment section below.