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GAT Section A samples

This page provides sample questions for Section A of the GAT.

For Section B, the questions and writing task are similar to the format of Writing Task 2 in Past GAT papers.

 

Reading

Question 1

The following text is a case study of a young person planning to move out of home.

Lisa is in her third year of TAFE, and currently lives with her family. She wants to move into a share house with some friends. Most of them do not have cars, so they need a house that is close to a train station and other facilities like supermarkets. Lisa has worked out that her share of rent will probably be between $140 and $170 a week. Lisa receives some money from Youth Allowance and also has a part time job, so she thinks she can manage this amount.

Lisa discusses it with her family, who help her create a budget. They discuss other expenses that Lisa hasn’t taken into account, such as bills, transport expenses, food costs and TAFE study materials. Lisa also forgot about the repayments on the loan she had taken out last year for a holiday.

After going through the budget, Lisa realises that her income wouldn’t cover all her current expenses plus rent. She does not want to take on extra hours at work because she is already working hard at TAFE. She decides to wait a few months to finish paying off her debt and save some more money. When she does move out, she will have less stress about her financial situation.

 

What is the source of Lisa’s debt?

  1. unpaid rent
  2. credit card purchases
  3. overdue bills
  4. loan

Answer

D

Question 2

Questions 2 and 3 are about the following text from a hotel review website.

 

‘The team member … offered you the opportunity to upgrade to a “park view” suite at a heavily discounted rate and, unfortunately, you declined this offer.’

In this sentence, the manager is

  1. expressing his displeasure at having failed to obtain further revenue from Benjo01.
  2. acknowledging that his team member could have been more polite to Benjo01.
  3. suggesting that Benjo01’s disappointment with his room was his own fault.
  4. expressing his regret at having been unable to give Benjo01 a better offer.

Answer

C

Question 3

‘Austin Hotel was built in 1910 and is on the National Heritage Register. Consequently, many of our building’s features (such as our original, antique elevators) are protected and cannot easily be changed.’

Which of the following phrases could best replace the word ‘Consequently’?

  1. in addition to this
  2. to illustrate this
  3. as a result of this
  4. in spite of this

Answer

C

Question 4

Questions 4 and 5 are about the following text from a popular discussion website.

 

What reason does JerryJules give for seeking advice on his apprenticeship?

  1. He has no experience with commercial jobs.
  2. He is finding the role of apprentice difficult and exhausting.
  3. He wants to impress his supervisors enough for them to keep him on.
  4. He feels that TAFE has not prepared him properly for his apprenticeship.

Answer

C

Question 5

Figurative language is language that means something different from its literal meaning.

Which of the following phrases from the text is an example of figurative language?

  1. ‘ask a stupid question’
  2. ‘on the bottom rung’
  3. ‘keep quiet about it’
  4. ‘within reason’

Answer

B

Question 6

This is a ticket that Taylah bought for a concert.

 

Which one of the following questions can be answered by the information on the ticket?

  1. What is the address of The Music Centre?
  2. Will there be an interval between concert performances?
  3. What is the name of the company promoting the concert?
  4. Do audience members need to arrive early to find their seats?

Answer

C

Question 7

Questions 7–9 are about the an email below from a restaurant manager to his staff.

 

What is the main purpose of this email?

  1. To ensure that staff comply with closedown procedures.
  2. To inform staff about the upcoming stocktake.
  3. To brief staff on a future visit from the CEO.
  4. To determine staff availability in January.

Answer

A

Question 8

‘Last year, the place was left in a “less-than-ideal” condition.’

In the context of the whole email, which statement best captures what the manager means in this sentence?

  1. The condition last year was unacceptable and things had better improve this year.
  2. The condition last year was good, but I think there is room for us to do even better this year.
  3. The condition last year was fine, but my bosses are pressuring us to improve this year.
  4. The condition last year was not good, but we can probably do the same thing this year.

Answer

A

Question 9

‘Anything that will still be good after we reopen must have the date clearly labelled ….’

Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word ‘good’ in this sentence?

  1. exceptional
  2. significant
  3. acceptable
  4. valuable

Answer

C

Question 10

 

What would you expect to find at the website shown above?

  1. suggested recipes and shopping lists
  2. details on how to order Meals in a Box
  3. information about takeaway food deliveries
  4. the address from which Meals in a Box can be collected

Answer

B

Writing

For writing, students will be assessed across a range of criteria including audience, ideas, structure and cohesion, vocabulary, grammar, punctuation and spelling. A sample writing prompt is presented below.

Question 1

Part A

Your school council has provided a $5,000 grant to improve facilities. Senior students have been invited to send in their recommendations.

Write an email to the school council president in which you outline what you think the money should be spent on.

Give reasons for your recommendations.

 

Dear School Council President,

 

Part B

The improvements you recommended have been made.

You have been asked to write a short report for the school website.

Write a report about the improvement the grant has made to your school and its students.

Numeracy

Question 1

A total of 230 players participated in an Under 18 Hockey season.

This table shows data for the top five goal scorers.

PlayerNumber of goalsNumber of games
A2714
B2610
C248
D136
E1013

Text description

 

Which player had the highest average number of goals per game?

  1. Player A
  2. Player B
  3. Player C
  4. Player D

Answer

C

Question 2

A sample of adults was asked to record the number of hours they spent online using smartphones each day of December 2019.

The graph below shows the average number of hours per person for the whole month.

Which of the following is closest to the difference in average online smartphone use between the 18–24 age group and the 45–54 age group?

  1. 30 hours per person
  2. 35 hours per person
  3. 40 hours per person
  4. 65 hours per person

Answer

B

Question 3

Water is being pumped from a farm dam to be stored in a cylindrical water tank.

The water can then flow down to a water trough.

The pumping rate is 120 litres per minute.

Which of these is closest to the time it would take to pump 10 000 litres of water?

  1. 1 and a half hours
  2. 2 hours
  3. 7 hours
  4. 8 and a half hours

Answer

A

Question 4

John is a casual adult worker in a shop. His hourly rate of pay is 20% more than the normal hourly rate of pay for permanent adult workers.

The normal hourly rate of pay for permanent adult workers is $22.

What is John’s hourly rate of pay?

  1. $23.10
  2. $24.20
  3. $26.40
  4. $27.50

Answer

C

Question 5

The table below shows a range of download speeds for three different internet services. Each provider has three different plan options of varying speeds.

Internet speed is measured in megabits per second (Mbps).

Service ProviderPlan 1 (Mbps)Plan 2 (Mbps)Plan 3 (Mbps)
Provider A5–1516–2021–25
Provider B5–3031–4041–50
Provider C5–6061–8081–100

Text description

 

Here are two statements about the table.

Statement 1:
A speed of 45 Mbps is only possible with Provider C.

Statement 2:
For each plan option, the maximum speed of Provider C is four times the maximum speed of Provider A and double the maximum speed of Provider B.

Which option is correct?

  1. Only statement 1 is true.
  2. Only statement 2 is true.
  3. Both statements are true.
  4. Neither statement is true.

Answer

B

Question 6

A farmer uses 54 hectares of land to produce hay.

The farmer sows 20 kilograms of seed per hectare.

The cost of the seed is $6 per kilogram.

What was the total cost of the seed?

  1. $1,080
  2. $1,200
  3. $3,240
  4. $6,480

Answer

D

Question 7

The cost of a taxi fare is the flag fall plus a cost based on the distance traveled in kilometres (km) .

The table below shows taxi fees and rates for Melbourne at different times of the day in 2019. The flag fall is a fee charged as soon as the taxi is hired.

Day-time (09:00–16:59)
Flag fall Distance rate
$4.20$1.622/km
Night-time (17:00–8:59)
Flag fall Distance rate
$5.20$1.804/km
Peak-time (22:00–3:59)
Flag fall Distance rate
$6.20$1.986/km

Text description

 

Which amount is closest to the difference between the Day-time distance rate and the Peak-time distance rate?

  1. 18 cents/km
  2. 19 cents/km
  3. 36 cents/km
  4. 37 cents/km

Answer

C

Question 8

Kim is starting an apprenticeship.

The tuition fee is $2,400 and the toolkit costs $1,500.

Kim’s employer will pay one-third of the total cost.

Kim will pay the rest.

 

What amount will Kim pay?

  1. $1,000
  2. $1,300
  3. $1,600
  4. $2,600

Answer

D

Question 9

The table below shows the number of points scored in five basketball games by four players.

PlayerGame 1Game 2Game 3Game 4Game 5
Lina1917222316
Kia2520182211
Sarita2012181713
Sophie1420151118

Text description

 

After five games, Lina is the highest point scorer with 97 points.

In Game 6, Lina scores 20 points.

What is the least number of points that Kia needs to score in Game 6 to be the highest point scorer after six games?

  1. 21
  2. 22
  3. 26
  4. 32

Answer

B

Question 10

This is a site plan for Jack’s new home. The block of land is rectangular.

 

The dashed line shows the boundary fence. What is the total length of the boundary fence?

  1. 28.5 metres
  2. 43.2 metres
  3. 46.0 metres
  4. 54.2 metres

Answer

D