Subject: English Core
Class XII
Time Allowed: 3 hours
Maximum Marks: 80
General Instruction:
1. The Question Paper contains 3 sections
2. Reading, Writing and Literature
3. All questions are compulsory
4. Separate instructions are given with each section and questions, wherever necessary.
5. Read these instructions very carefully and follow them.
6. Do not exceed the prescribed word limit while answer the questions.
Section – A (Reading)
1. Read the passage given below:
Teresa said, “By blood, I am Albanian. By citizenship, an Indian. By faith, I am a Catholic nun. As to my calling, I belong to the world. As to my heart, I belong entirely to the Heart of Jesus.” Fluent in five languages – Bengali. Albanian, Serbian, English and Hindi – she made occasional trips outside India for humanitarian reasons. At the height of the Siege of Beirut in 1982, Teresa rescued 37 children trapped in a front-line hospital by brokering a temporary cease-fire between the Israeli army and Palestinian guerrillas. [61] Accompanied by Red Cross workers, she travelled through the war zone to the hospital to evacuate the young patients. When Eastern Europe experienced increased openness in the late 1980s, Teresa expanded her efforts to Communist countries which had rejected the Missionaries of Charity.
She began dozens of projects, undeterred by criticism of her stands against abortion and divorce: “No matter who says what, you should accept it with a smile and do your own work.” She visited Armenia after the 1988 earthquake and met with Nikolai Ryzhkov, Chairman of the Council of Ministers. Teresa travelled to assist the hungry in Ethiopia, radiation victims at Chernobyl and earthquake victims in Armenia. In 1991 she returned to Albania for the first time, opening a Missionaries of Charity Brothers home in Tirana. Y 1996, Teresa operated 517 missions in over 100 countries. Her Missionaries of Charity grew from twelve to thousands, serving the “poorest of the poor” in 450 centres worldwide. The first Missionaries of Charity home in the United States was established in the South Bronx area of New York City, and by 1984 the congregation operated 19 establishments throughout the country. Teresa had a heart attack in Rome in 1983 while she was visiting Pope John Paul II. Following a second attack in 1989, she received an artificial pacemaker. In 1991, after a bout of pneumonia in Mexico, she had additional heart problems. Although Teresa offered to resign as head of the Missionaries of Charity, in a secret ballot the sisters of the congregation voted for her to stay and she agreed to continue.
On the basis of your understanding of the above passage, answer ANY TEN questions from the eleven given below. (1 x 10 = 10)
1. “At the height of the Siege of Beirut in 1982, Teresa rescued 37 children.” This shows that mother Teresa is
a) Humanitarian
b) Indifferent
c) Self-seeker
d) Recipient
2. Who travelled through the war zone to the hospital?
a) Red Cross workers
b) Teresa
c) Both (a) and (b)
d) Only (b)
3. Teresa along with Red cross workers travelled through the war zone to the hospital because they wanted to ___________
a) evacuate the young patient
b) accompany the Red Cross Workers
c) rescued 37 children
d) fight the enemy on war front
4. Choose the correct sequence of events. Teresa travelled to assist
i) earthquake victims in Armenia
ii) the hungry in Ethiopia
iii) radiation victims at Chernobyl
a) iii, I, ii
b) ii, iii, i
c) I, ii, iii
d) ii, i, iii
5. Find the word in the passage which mean “a group of people assembled for religious worship”
a) Humanitarian
b) Congregational
c) Brokering
d) Pacemaker
6. Teresa took a stand against _______ in her projects.
a) abortion and divorce
b) men freedom
c) religious freedom
d) Armenian freedom
7. Which counties had rejected the Missionaries of Charity?
a) Armenia
b) Missionaries
c) Communist Countries
d) Ethiopia
8. Why did Teresa return to Albania in 1991?
a) For security reasons
b) For fun
c) To help her sister
d) For opening a Missionaries of Charity
9. Why did Teresa travel to Ethiopia? (Chernobyl, Armenia)
a) To help the radiation victims
b) To assist the hungry
c) For a live show
d) To go to United States
10. What was the motto of her Missionaries of Charity?
a) Save the poor
b) Save the child
c) Serve the nation
d) Serve the poorest of the poor
11. Who voted secretly for Teresa?
a) Ethiopian people
b) sisters of congregation
c) Missionaries
d) Albanian people
2. Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:
National Education Policy, 2020
The National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 was approved by the Union Cabinet on 29th July 2020. NEP 2020 is the first education policy of the 21st century, which aims to address the many growing developmental imperatives of our country and is aligned to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The National Education Policy, 2020 is built on the foundational pillars of Access, Equity, Quality, Affordability and Accountability. NEP 2020 recommends many transformational ideas for school education. The New Education Policy emphasized to ensure universal access to high-quality ECCE across the country in a phased manner. Special attention and priority will be given to districts and locations that are particularly socio-economically disadvantaged. A 5+3+3+4 curricular and pedagogical structure based on cognitive and socio-emotional developmental stages of children has been proposed
It also seeks to ensure foundational literacy and numeracy in a mission mode and a host of curricular changes and reduced content load in school education curriculum as well as assessment reforms for holistic development of students. There will be no hard separations between arts and sciences, between curricular and extra-curricular activities, between vocational and academic streams, etc. NEP 2020 promotes active pedagogy, development of core capacities and life skills, including 21st century skills, experimental learning at all stages , low stake board exams, holistic progress card, transformation in assessment to promote critical and higher order thinking among students, mainstreaming of vocational education and reforms in teacher education. NEP also puts focus on empowerment of teachers and improving their recruitment, service conditions, transfer policy and career progression opportunities at all levels. The National Professional Standards for Teachers (NPST) will specify norms and standards for different levels of teachers. Recommendations are also made for using un-utilized capacity of school infrastructure to promote social, intellectual, and volunteer activities for the community and to promote social cohesion during non-teaching /schooling hours and schools to be used as a “Samajik Chetna Kendra”. NEP 2020 recommends mother tongue/home language/local language, as medium of instruction at least till Grade 5 and at later stages, wherever possible. Policy envisages separation of regulatory, administrative and policy making functions to eliminate conflicts of interest and setting up of a State School Standards Authority. There is also a greater emphasis on technology to improve multiple aspects of education including learning, assessment, planning and administration.
NEP recognizes the importance of teachers, as teachers truly shape the future of our children – and, therefore, the future of our nation.
On the basis of your understanding of the passage, answer ANY Ten questions from the eleven that follow. (1 x 10 = 10)
1. Which of the following is not one of the foundational pillar of NEP?
a) Equity
b) Affordability
c) Accountability
d) Magnanimity
2. NEP does not ensure
a) foundational literacy
b) numeracy
c) reducing content load
d) spoken English
3. In how many stages is school education divided according to NEP?
a) three
b) four
c) two
d) five
4. Which of the following is not part of NEP?
a) No clear separation between Arts and Science
b) No separation between curricular and extracurricular activities
c) No segregation between vocational and academics streams
d) No separation between curricular and assessment
5. NEP does not promote
a) Active pedagogy
b) Developing life skills
c) 21st century skills
d) Experimental learning
6. NEP does not put focus on which of the following:
a) Empowerment of teachers
b) Service conditions of teachers
c) Improvement in the recruitment of teachers
d) Seminars and workshops for teachers
7. Which of the following options is incorrect?
a) Schools can be utilized as Samajik Chetna Kendra
b) Local language can be used as the medium of instruction
c) Social interaction with the community during off time promoted
d) Mother tongue is to be the medium of instruction only up to std. V
8. Which of the following options is correct?
a) In NEP, emotional development of children has been disregarded
b) Socio-economically disadvantaged children have been ignored
c) NEP recognizes the importance of teachers
d) As per NEP, teachers play a minor role in the nation building.
9. In the whole passage which profession has been given top-most importance for shaping the future of our children?
a) Engineering
b) Politics
c) Medical
d) Teaching
10. Which of the following words in the paragraph – 1 is the synonym of the word ‘fairness’?
a) Accountability
b) Affordability
c) Equity
d) Aligned
11. Which option does not represent the CORRECT focus of NEP?
a) active pedagogy Role learning
b) 21st century skills experimental learning
c) low stake board exams holistic learning
d) higher order thinking critical thinking
(Literature)
3. Read the extracts given below and attempt ANY Two of the three given by answering the questions that follow: (4 + 4 = 8)
(A) Then, as I hurried by as fast as I could go, the blacksmith, Wachter, who was there, with his apprentice, reading the bulletin, called after me, “Don’t go so fast, bub; you’ll get to your school in plenty of time!” I thought he was making fun of me, and reached M. Hamel’s little garden all out of breath.
(i) The phrase ‘called after me’ here refers to
a) tease someone
b) shout at
c) Summon or request something
d) To cause embarrassment
(ii) Who was called ‘bub’ here?
a) Franz
b) M. Hamel
c) Villagers
d) Postmaster
iii) What was M. Hamel’s little garden been referred to in the extract?
a) His country
b) His home
c) His garden
d) His school
(iv) Which word in the passage means same as ‘sufficient’?
a) breath
b) plenty
c) fast
d) hurried
4. Read the extracts given below and attempt ANY ONE of the two given by answering the questions that follow: (1 x 4 = 4)
(A) All lovely tales that we have heard or read: An endless fountain of immortal drink, Pouring unto us from the heaven’s bring
i) Which lovely tales does poet mention here?
a) the mythological stories
b) glorious stories of ancestors
c) the stories of bravery
d) the folk tales
ii) What image does the poet use in these lines?
a) ‘endless fountain of joy’
b) ‘lovely tales’
c) ‘immortal drink’
d) ‘heaven’s drink’
iii) Which device is used by the poet in “An endless fountain of immortal drink, pouring unto us from the heaven’s brink”?
a) personification
b) allegory
c) imagery
d) metaphor
iv) From where is this ‘Immortal drink’ pouring?
a) from the river
b) from the mountains
c) from the angel’s palms
d) from nature’s endless fountain
5. Attempt ANY Eight questions from the ten given below (1 x 8 = 8)
i) According to M. Hamel ‘French’ is the most beautiful language in the world because
a) it is the easiest to learn
b) it is the most pleasing to hear
c) it is his mother tongue
d) it is the clearest and the most logical
ii) In the poem ‘Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers’ the tigers are different from Aunt Jennifer in terms of
a) beauty and elegance
b) courage and strength
c) cruelty and shrewdness
d) food habits and movement
iii) According to Pablo Neruda there would be ‘Victory with no survivors’. The phrase inmplies
a) Huge loss of human life
b) Celebration after winning the battle
c) Huge loss of property
d) No one left alive to celebrate
iv) Gandhi’s battle for poor sharecroppers in Champaran imply?
a) The authority of lawyers
b) The power of effective leadership
c) The power of money
d) The power of unity
v) What was being taken for granted by the people of Alsace?
a) value of school teachers
b) education and value of time
c) power and politics
d) money
vi) What was the peddler’s cherished pastime?
a) to think highly of the world
b) to think of plans to rob people
c) to think of people whom he knew caught in the dangerous snare
d) to think richly of himself
vii) In the poem ‘A thing of Beauty’ poet refers to clear rills as ‘cooling covert’ as they
a) are crystal clear
b) absorb negativity
c) provide protection from hot weather
d) give pure water
viii) Choose the statement that is NOT TRUE with reference to the poem ‘An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum’
a) Sensitivity towards the underprivileged
b) Lack of interest in learning among underprivileged
c) Educating the underprivileged can bring dynamic charges in their lives.
d) Social injustice and class inequalities
ix) “I crossed to oblivion, and the curtain of life fell”. What does ‘oblivion’ mean?
a) stupefied
b) awareness
c) unconsciousness
d) death
x) In the poem ‘My Mother at Sixty – Six’ the poetess was hiding her feelings from her mother so that
a) She could catch her flight at the earliest
b) She was very secretive about her feelings
c) She didn’t want her mother to know about her pain and feel sad
d) She wanted to keep her mother in dark.
Section – B (Writing)
6. Attempt ANY ONE of the following (1 x 3 = 3)
(A) You are Leena/Arshad, Head girl/Head boy of Global School, New Delhi. Your school is organizing Remedial Classes for the students of classes X and XII. Write a notice to be displayed on the notice board.
OR
(B) Miss Jyotika Rani had received an invitation from Mr Jaidev Babu for his house warming party. Write a formal reply on her behalf accepting the invitation.
7. Attempt ANY ONE of the following:
(A) The principal of your school is retiring this month. The students and the teachers want to give him a farewell party. Draft a formal invitation for the same in not more than 50 words
OR
(B) You are Krishna/Shivani resident of B-465, Rohini. You read the following advertisements in a news paper. Draft an application in response to the advertisement giving your detailed resume.
Ans.
B-465, Rohini
Delhi
16 December, 2019
The Manager
NCR Group of Hotels
Delhi
Subject: Application for the post of receptionist
Sir,
In response to your advertisement in the Hindustan Times dated December, 2019 for the post of receptionist, I hereby offer my candidature for the same.
I possess requisite qualifications and experience. I want to join your hotels to full utilize my potential.
You may call me for an interview on any date as per your convenience. I shall be able to join my duties at one month’s notice if appointed. I am inclosing my detailed resume for your perusal.
Thank You
Krishna/Shivani
Enclosure: Detailed Resume
Resume/Bio Data
- Name: Krishna / Shivani
- Father’s Name: Mr. Rahul
- Age: 25 Years
- Address: B-465, Rohini Delhi
- Hobbies: Music, Net Surfing, Photography, sports
- Language Known: Hindi, English
- Nationality: Indian
Educational Qualifications:
- Passed Secondary Exam from CBSE with 8.5 CGPA
- Passed Senior Secondary Exam from CBSE with distinction
- Passed Graduation from Delhi University with first division.
- Professional Qualification: Diploma in computers from Aptech with first division.
Experience: Worked as Receptionist with ABC group of companies for 2 years.
Expected Salary: Negotiable
References:
1. Dr. Nandlal (Surgeon), GTB Hospital, Delhi
2. Mr. Vikas Principal AB Public School, Delhi
8. Attempt ANY ONE of the following: (1 x 5 = 5)
Athletic events, colourful and lively drills and honouring students who excelled in sports were some of the highlights of your school’s Sports Day meet. Adding other interesting and relevant details write a report for your school magazine in about 150 words. You are Naveen/Noorie of Greenglades Public School, Dehradun
OR
You are Swetha/Shivam head of history Club of ASN Public School Janakpuri Delhi. Your school organized Heritage awareness program in your school to create awareness regarding our monuments. Write a report on this program in about 120-150 words
Ans.
By Shweta/Shivam
Heritage awareness program was organized by the history Club of ASN Public School Janakpuri Delhi on 9 August 2020 from 10 A.M to 2:00 P.M in the school Auditorium the school was well decorated with posters of various historical important monuments.
Mr Nandlal Prajapati dean of history department of JNU was the chief guest around 2000 students and parents attended the program.
The program began by lighting of the ceremonial lamp by the Chief Guest after that a skit was presented by the student of class 12 showing the importance of our heritage and monuments the history club presented and engrossing documentary giving a brief detail of hundred monuments from different part of India. In the end the chief guest gave a very motivative speech about the role of youth in preserving our national heritage. The principal presented vote of thanks after which light refreshment was served.
9. Attempt ANY ONE of the following (1 x 5 = 5)
Make in India an initiative by government of India, intends to create employment for the youth of India and help bring best practices to Indian business. Write an article in about 120-150 words for a business magazine on its impact to create employment for the youth of India. You are Neha
OR
Now a days Teenagers are losing track of the real world and are getting immersed in the virtual world of internet. Write an article in 150-200 words on Effect of Internet on Teenagers. You are Namita/Navin of Sarvodaya Vidyalaya.
Ans.
MAKE IN INDIA
By: Neha
Make in India is the name of the initiative by government of India to give more incentive to business (both in India and abroad) to manufacture goods (eg. Automobiles) in Indian shores.
To lure businesses to set shop in India, government of India plans to cut excessive formality and routine which involves setting a business in India. Make in India intends to create employment for the youth of India and help bring best practices to Indian business. The initiative also aims at high quality standards and minimizing the impact on the environment. The initiative hopes to attract capital and technological investment in India. Already we observe that India’s rank in ease-in-doing business has improved. Further, manufacturing sector has seen an upswing with key sectors such as defence seeing huge participation from foreign investors. ‘Make in India’s success lies in making the small and medium enterprises foster. Thus, ‘Make in India’ should not only focus on big business but also to the neglected small and medium enterprises (SMEs) so that rural India can reap the benefit as much as the developed parts of India. Further, domestic business must be protected from big multi national chains, so that an equitable growth is ensured at all fronts.
Section – C (Literature)
10. Attempt ANY FIVE out of the six questions given below, in 30-40 words each (2 x 5 = 10)
i) How did Gandhiji react after receiving summon to appear in court the next day?
Ans. Gandhiji received a summon to appear in the court but disobeyed the order. He remained awake all the night. He telegraphed Rajendra Prasad to come from Bihar with influential friends. He sent instructions to the ashram. He wired a full report to the Viceroy.
ii) Why is Rajkumar Shukla described as firm?
Ans. Rajkumar Shukla is an indigo drive from the Champaran, Bihar. He wants Gandhi Ji assistance to the injustice carried out on driving farmers. Gandhi ji has another engagement. He followed Gandhi ji for several weeks and managed to make Gandhi Ji visit the Champaran.
iii) How is a thing of beauty a joy forever?
Ans. A thing of beauty is eternal. Its beauty increases with time and it always gives pleasure to the beholder. It gives everlasting joy.
iv) What is the message of the story ‘The Rattrap’?
Ans. a) Edla treated the peddler as if he was a captain.
b) The peddler got the power to clear himself
c) Message-Love and kindness are powerful reformers.
v) Why does Derry go back to Mr. Lamb in the end?
Ans. Actually Mr. Lamb has taught Derry, the most important lesson of life. He advises him not to care about the comments made by others. He now no longer cares about his burned face or looks. He is more concerned what he thinks and feels, what he wants to hear and see. He returns to Mr. Lamb
vi) How did synthetic Indigo become a problem for poor peasants?
Ans. i) The peasants used to pay Indigo as rent to the British Landlords
ii) Synthetic Indigo was developed meanwhile
iii) British Landlord wanted money as compensation.
11. Attempt ANY TWO out of the three questions given below in 30-40 words each (2 x 2 = 4)
i). Why did Mr. Lamb keep the door of his home open?
Ans. Mr. Lamb projected as the other side of the coin, in sharp contrast of reclusive and cocooned Derry. Mr. Lamb was a forthcoming fellow with open personality despite his physical impairment. He had many friends and welcoming attitude towards one and all. His open personality is represented by the open doors and curtain less windows of his home.
ii) What was the main problem of Sharecroppers in Champaran?
Ans. The land was divided into large estates that were owned by Englishmen. The Chief commercial crop was indigo. The landlord forced all the tenants to plant 15 percent of their holdings with indigo and surrender the entire indigo harvest as rent. This was done by a long term contract.
iii) What image does the poet use to describe the continuity in beautiful bounty of the earth?
Ans. i) Everlasting
ii) Leaves an indelible print on our mind
iii) Like fountain of immortal drink
12. Attempt ANY ONE of the following questions in 120-150 words (1 x 5 = 5)
i) Why did Gandhiji consider the Champaran episode to be a turning point in his life?
Ans.
- Gandhiji felt perturbed to see the plight of Indian peasants.
- Share croppers in Champaran were morally and economically shattered.
- Gandhiji fought successfully to get justice for the Champaran peasants.
- Gandhiji explained that what he did was an ordinary thing.
- But Champaran did not begin an act of defiance
- It grew out an attempt to alleviate the distress of large number of poor peasants.
- Gandhiji tried to mould a new free Indian who could stand on his fact.
OR
What steps were taken by Gandhiji to solve the problems of Social and cultural backwardness in the villages of Champaran?
Ans.
– Gandhiji never restricted himself to political or economic solutions only.
– He wanted to bring about some socio-cultural transformation.
– He appealed for teachers. Primary schools were opened in six villages.
– Many disciples of Gandhiji volunteered to teach in Champaran and adjoining villages.
– Kasturba Gandhi taught ashram rules on Cleanliness and Community Sanitation.
– To improve the miserable health conditions, Gandhiji got a doctor who volunteered to render his services for six months.
– Three medicines were made available – Castor, quinine and sulphurointment.
– The filthy state of women’s clothes was also noticed by Gandhiji
– He was not a loyalty to abstractions, it was a loyalty to human beings.
13. Attempt ANY ONE out of the following questions in 120-150 words. (1 x 5 = 5)
i) How does the story, ‘Rattrap’ highlight the importance of community over isolation?
Ans.
- The rattrap seller undergoes change in his personality as he experiences the shift from isolation to community.
- – Rattrap seller is devoid of family and friends; he is depicted as a loner.
- Instances that depict his engagement with community – hospitality of the old man, the Christmas episode
- His experience of friendship leading to a change in his persona.
OR
Self –reliance, Indian Independence and help to sharecroppers were all bound together. Elucidate with reference to the lesson “Indigo”
Ans.
- Champaran-turning point
- Urge the departure of the British
- An attempt to make the sufferings of large numbers of poor peasants less severe.
- Analysed the root cause of the problem fear
- Beginning of the end of the fear
- Taught lawyers-a lesson in self-reliance
- Opposing the involvement of C.F Andrews
- Their cause was just and must rely on themselves