ISC Class 12 English Language Board Exam Question Paper 2018 with Solutions

ISC Class 12 English Language Board Exam Question Paper with Solutions

Question 1. Write a composition (in approximately 450-500 words) on any one of the following subjects : [30 Marks]
(You are reminded that you will be rewarded for orderly and coherent presentation of material, use of appropriate style and general accuracy of spelling, punctuation and grammar.)
(a) You have recently moved to a new neighbourhood in your city. Describe the new neighbourhood, comparing it to the one you have just left.
(b) Relate something unpleasant that happened to you during your childhood that nevertheless helped you to grow up and mature.
(c) 'The end justifies the means.' Argue for or against the statement.
(d) 'Appearances can be deceptive'. Give your views on this topic.
(e) Dreams
(f) Write a short story that ends with the words "I really doubt if things could have turned out any better."

Answer:
(a) Moving to a new neighbourhood has been quite a new and refreshing experience for me. My previous locality was plagued by constant friction among residents; people were excessively self-centered, narrow-minded, and quarrelsome. In stark contrast, my new neighbourhood is a vibrant community where residents are social, accommodating, and well-mannered. It is a mixed lot comprising both rich and poor, highly educated and less educated individuals, all living together in remarkable harmony. The people here are open-hearted, always willing to sacrifice their convenience for others, and deeply supportive. I am quite happy in this new neighbourhood, as it offers a peaceful and positive environment that was sorely missing in my previous residence.

Teacher's Note:
a) For descriptive and comparative essays like option (a), ensure clear paragraph transitions between the past experience and the current reality.
b) Students must strictly adhere to the word limit of 450-500 words and maintain a consistent tone throughout.

Question 2. You are the editor of your school magazine. You have recently attended a cultural programme in your city. Write an account of this programme (in approximately 300 words) using the points given below : [20 Marks]
Date and venue - occasion - Chief Guest - other invitees - inauguration - events - other important features - highlights - reaction of audience - conclusion

Answer:

A Cultural Programme

A very interesting and enlightening cultural programme was held on the eve of Independence Day in the Desh Bhagat Yadgar Hall in Jalandhar. It was organised by the artists of the Tagore Dramatic Club on the request of the Deputy Commissioner of our city. Navjot Singh Sidhu, the Minister for Local Bodies, who is himself a talented poet and artist, was the chief guest. Among the other invitees were principals of schools and colleges, leading doctors, lawyers, and prominent industrialists.

Punctually at 6 p.m., the programme started with a devotional song by Hans Raj Hans. After this, the function was formally inaugurated by the Chief Guest, followed by a welcome address by the Deputy Commissioner. The first item was a highly enjoyable skit presented by the members of the Tagore Dramatic Club on the theme of patriotism, highlighting the sacrifices made by freedom fighters.

This was followed by soulful patriotic songs and an hour-long poetic competition filled with humour, satire, and comedy. Comic sketches presented by Dr. Nagpal sent the audience into guffaws of laughter. The grand finale was a magnificent dance and Bhangra performance by the artists of D.A.V. College, Jalandhar, which was undoubtedly the highlight of the evening. The energetic beats compelled young boys and girls to dance in their seats. In his presidential remarks, Sidhu ji entertained the audience with relevant verses and poems. The show concluded with a vote of thanks by the Deputy Commissioner, marking it a grand success.

Teacher's Note:
a) Ensure all prompt points (date, venue, occasion, chief guest, highlights, audience reaction) are explicitly covered in a report or article.
b) Maintain formal journalistic language and avoid colloquialisms in school magazine reports.

Question 3. Answer sections (a), (b) and (c).

(a) In each of the following items, sentence A is complete, while sentence B is not. Complete sentence B, making it as similar as possible to sentence A. Write sentence B in each case. [10 Marks]

Answer:
(1) No other girl in the class is as beautiful as Ashita.
(2) Hardly had she reached home when she learnt that she had to leave for London.
(3) Ramesh requested Rajive to bring his physics book to school the next day.
(4) The boys had eaten some of the cakes before the party began.
(5) Unless you come with me, I will not go.
(6) It is too wonderful an opportunity to miss.
(7) Little did we know that Mr. Francis was retiring and leaving for Ooty.
(8) Although he knew the culprit yet he did not admit it.
(9) I am afraid you cannot be admitted to the college without clearing the admission test.
(10) Had Rita finished her work earlier, she would have gone to the market.

Teacher's Note:
a) Transformation of sentences requires strict adherence to grammatical rules without altering the original meaning.
b) Watch out for spelling and tense consistency, especially with words like 'admission' and reporting verbs.

(b) Fill in each blank with a suitable word. (Do not write the sentence.) [5 Marks]

Answer:
(1) after
(2) into
(3) down
(4) up
(5) into
(6) for
(7) over
(8) after
(9) with
(10) for

Teacher's Note:
a) Prepositions and phrasal verbs must be chosen based on standard idiomatic usage.
b) Students should write only the corresponding word and number as instructed to avoid negative marking.

(c) Fill in the blanks in the passage given below with the appropriate form of the verb given in brackets. Do not write the passage, but write the verbs in the correct order. [5 Marks]

Answer:
(1) asked
(2) had
(3) is
(4) asked
(5) told
(6) have
(7) shall stay
(8) need
(9) stays
(10) is

Teacher's Note:
a) Sequence of tenses must be maintained according to the narrative framework of the passage.
b) Pay close attention to direct speech excerpts embedded within narrative passages when determining verb forms.

Question 4. Read the passage given below and answer the questions (a), (b) and (c) that follow :

(1) I could hear the squeaking that heralded the evening arrival of the bats. I listened to the noises of the approaching night. Every day my hearing grew sharper. I was learning to filter out whatever I did not need to listen to, and giving no sign that I could hear everything that went on in the house.
(2) I could not sleep. The air was heavy and still, the moon hidden behind thick banks of cloud. Lord Otori was sound asleep. I did not want to leave the house I'd come to love so much, but I seemed to be bringing nothing but trouble to it. Perhaps it would be better for everyone if I just vanished in the night.
(3) Now I heard the hiss of hot water as the bath was prepared, the clatter of dishes from the kitchen, the sliding sigh of the cook's knife, a dog barking two streets away, and the sounds of feet on the wooden bridges on the canals. I knew the sounds of the house, day and night, in sunshine and under the rain. This evening I realized I was always listening for something more. I was waiting too. For what?
(4) I began to wonder if I could get out of the house without setting the dogs barking and arousing the guards. I started consciously listening for the dogs. Usually I heard them bark on and off throughout the night, but I'd learned to distinguish their barks and to ignore them. I set my ears for them but heard nothing. Then I started listening for the guards : the sound of a foot on stone or a whispered conversation. Nothing. Sounds that should have been there were missing from the night's familiar web.
(5) Now I was wide-awake, straining my ears to hear. There came the slightest of sounds, hardly more than a tremor, between the window and the ground.
(6) For a moment I thought it was the earth-shaking, as it so often did. Another tiny tremble followed, then another. Someone was climbing up the side of the house.
(7) My first instinct was to yell out, but cunning took over. I rose from the mattress and crept silently to Lord Otori's side. I knelt beside him and whispered in his ear, "Lord Otori, someone is outside."
(8) He woke instantly, and then reached for the sword and knife that lay beside him. I gestured to the window. The faint tremor came again.
(9) Lord Otori passed the knife to me and stepped to the wall. I moved to the other side of the window. We waited for the assassin to climb in.
(10) Step by step he came up the wall, stealthy and unhurried, as if he had all the time in the world. We waited for him with the same patience.
(11) He paused on the sill to take out the knife he planned to use on us, and then stepped inside. Lord Otori took him in a stranglehold. The intruder wriggled backwards. I leaped at him, and the three of us fell into the garden like a flurry of fighting cats.
(12) The man fell first, across the stream, striking his head on a boulder. Lord Otori landed on his feet. My fall was broken by one of the shrubs. The intruder groaned, tried to rise, but slipped back into the water.
(13) "Get a light," Lord Otori said.
(14) I ran to the house, took a light that still burned in one of the candle stands and carried it back to the garden.
(15) The assassin had died without regaining consciousness. It turned out he had a poison pellet in his mouth and had crushed it as he fell. He was dressed in black, with no marking on his clothes. I held the light over him. There was nothing to tell us who he was.
Adapted from Tales of the Otori by Lian Hearn

(a) (i) Given below are four words and phrases. Find the words which have a similar meaning in the passage : [4 Marks]
(1) Coming near
(2) Disappeared suddenly
(3) Awakening from sleep
(4) Moved slowly and gradually

Answer:
(1) approaching
(2) vanished
(3) woke
(4) stealthy

Teacher's Note:
a) Vocabulary questions require scanning the text for synonyms that match the exact part of speech and context.
b) Check spelling carefully against the original passage words.

(a) (ii) For each of the words given below, write a sentence of at least ten words using the same word unchanged in form, but with a different meaning from that which it carries in the passage : [4 Marks]
(1) Bats (line 1)
(2) Sign (line 4)
(3) Banks (line 6)
(4) Back (line 43)

Answer:
(1) All the cricket players in our school team were provided with brand new bats.
(2) Experiencing severe headaches constantly may be a clear sign of underlying stress.
(3) There are numerous private and public sector banks operating across our country.
(4) My back has been aching persistently since I lifted that heavy box yesterday.

Teacher's Note:
a) Ensure sentences meet the minimum word length requirement (at least ten words) and clearly establish the alternate context of the homonym/polyseme.
b) The word form must remain entirely unchanged.

(b) Answer the following questions in our own words as briefly as possible:

(i) What could the narrator hear as he was lying down? [3 Marks]

Answer:
As the narrator was lying down, he could hear the squeaking of bats arriving for the evening, the hiss of hot water being prepared for a bath, the clatter of dishes from the kitchen, the sliding sound of the cook's knife, a dog barking two streets away, and footsteps on wooden bridges over canals.

Teacher's Note:
a) Extract specific auditory details mentioned in the early paragraphs of the passage.
b) Answers should be concise and framed in the candidate's own words where possible.

(ii) Why couldn't the narrator sleep? [2 Marks]

Answer:
The narrator could not sleep because the air was heavy and still, the moon was hidden behind thick clouds, and he felt a lingering sense of unease and a strange anticipation that something unusual was about to happen.

Teacher's Note:
a) Identify the atmospheric and psychological reasons causing the narrator's insomnia.
b) Keep answers direct and focused on the text.

(iii) When did he realise that there was something wrong? [2 Marks]

Answer:
He realised something was wrong when he noticed that expected nighttime sounds, such as the barking of dogs and the footsteps of guards, were completely missing, followed by feeling a faint tremor or vibration as someone climbed up the side of the house.

Teacher's Note:
a) Note the sudden silence of familiar sounds and the tactile sensation of the tremor.
b) Combine both elements for full credit.

(iv) How did the narrator and Lord Otori overpower the intruder? [3 Marks]

Answer:
Lord Otori caught the intruder in a stranglehold as he stepped inside. The intruder wriggled backwards, whereupon the narrator leaped at him, causing all three of them to tumble into the garden, resulting in the intruder striking his head and falling into the water.

Teacher's Note:
a) Describe the sequence of physical action during the ambush.
b) Mention both Lord Otori's stranglehold and the narrator's leap.

(c) Describe the incident of the assassination attempt that took place during the night, in not more than 100 words (Paragraphs 4 to 15). Failure to keep within the word limit will be penalised. You will be required to:

(i) List your ideas clearly in point form. [6 Marks]

Answer:
1. The narrator noticed unusual silence and sensed an intrusion.
2. He felt tremors and realised someone was climbing the house.
3. He quietly alerted Lord Otori about the danger.
4. They waited patiently for the intruder to enter through the window.
5. Lord Otori grabbed the intruder in a stranglehold and the narrator leaped at him.
6. The scuffle caused them to tumble into the garden where the assassin fell into the stream and died from a crushed poison pellet.

Teacher's Note:
a) Points must be concise, sequential, and capture the core narrative arc from paragraphs 4 to 15.
b) Avoid excessive detail or direct quotation from the text.

(ii) In about 100 words, write your points in the form of a connected passage. [6 Marks]

Answer:
Noticing a strange silence and unusual tremors in the dead of night, the narrator suspected an intruder and immediately woke Lord Otori. They silently positioned themselves by the window and waited as a stealthy figure climbed up the wall. When the assassin stepped inside, Lord Otori seized him in a stranglehold while the narrator leaped to assist. Their combined attack sent all three tumbling into the garden. The intruder struck his head and fell into the stream. When a light was brought, they discovered the intruder was dead, having bitten down on a hidden poison pellet.

Teacher's Note:
a) The summary passage must be coherent, fluid, and strictly within the 100-word limit.
b) Check that all main events from the point form summary are seamlessly linked.