DSE 2026 Paper 3 Part A — Interactive Tapescript

This is the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination, 2026. English Language. Paper Three. Listening and Integrated Skills.

Instructions to candidates. You should have on your desk a Part A question answer book. Do not open it until you are told to do so. I repeat, do not open the question answer book until you are told to do so.

Now, write your candidate number in the space provided on page one of your Part A question answer book.

Now look at the Part A question answer book. Check that the Part A question answer book has no missing pages. Look for the words, End of Part A, on the last page.

Now, stick your barcode labels in the spaces provided on pages one, three and five. Close your Part A question answer book when you have finished.

You are reminded that all examination materials will be played once only. For Part A, you should use a pencil to answer all questions. Put up your hand now if you have any difficulties. It is not possible to handle complaints after you have taken the paper.

The listening component is about to begin. Keep your earphones on until you are told to take them off.

Open your Part A question answer book at page two. Part A is about to begin.

Part A. Situation. You will hear three recordings about life in Hong Kong: a radio programme about university open days, a technology podcast, and a community meeting about the MTR. In Part A, you will have a total of three tasks to do. Follow the instructions in the Question-Answer Book and in the recording to complete the tasks. You will find all the information you need in the Question-Answer Book and the recording. You now have two minutes to familiarise yourself with Tasks one to three.

Task one. You are listening to a radio programme about university open days. First, you will hear a presenter introduce the University of Hong Kong's Information Day. Then you will hear a conversation between two students, Amy and Ben, who are discussing their plans to attend the event. You now have thirty seconds to study the task. At the end of the task, you will have one minute to tidy up your answers.

Welcome to Campus Life, your weekly guide to universities across Hong Kong. Today, we're focusing on the University of Hong Kong's annual Information Day, which is coming up on Saturday, the sixteenth of November. HKU, ranked among the top thirty universities in the world, will be opening its doors to prospective students and their families. Let's hear more from two secondary school students, Amy and Ben, who are planning their visit.

Hey Ben, have you seen the schedule for HKU Info Day? I'm so excited! They've got faculty presentations, campus tours, and even a chance to talk to current students.

Yeah, I checked the website last night. The Faculty of Engineering is doing a demonstration of their robotics lab at two fifteen. I definitely want to see that. What about you? Which faculty are you interested in?

I'm torn between the Faculty of Arts and the Faculty of Education. The Arts faculty has a talk at eleven thirty about their new interdisciplinary programme, which combines linguistics with digital humanities. But the Education faculty is running a workshop on teaching with AI at the same time. I can't do both, can I?

Well, the Education workshop is only forty-five minutes, so you could attend that first and then head to the Arts talk. According to the map, the Education Building is right next to the Main Building, so it's only a five-minute walk.

Oh, that's a great idea! I didn't think of that. By the way, did you notice they're offering a special scholarship for students who apply during Info Day? It covers up to fifty percent of tuition fees for the first year.

Really? That's generous. But I think you need to submit an expression of interest form before the fifteenth of November to be eligible. The form is available on the admissions website. Also, they mentioned that the student accommodation information session starts at three thirty in the Rayson Huang Theatre.

Perfect. So here's what I'm thinking: we arrive at ten in the morning, go to the Education workshop at eleven thirty, grab lunch at the student canteen around twelve fifteen, then catch the Arts talk after that. We can check out your robotics demo at two fifteen, and finish with the accommodation session at three thirty. Does that work for you?

Sounds like a plan! Oh, and don't forget to bring your student ID card. They're giving away free HKU tote bags to visitors who register at the welcome desk. See you Saturday then!

That is the end of Task one. You now have one minute to tidy up your answers.

Task two. You are listening to a technology podcast. First, you will hear the host introduce a topic about artificial intelligence safety. Then you will hear an interview with a researcher who discusses the work of Anthropic, an AI company, and its approach to building safe AI systems. You now have thirty seconds to study the task. At the end of the task, you will have one minute to tidy up your answers.

Welcome to Tech Frontiers, the podcast that explores the cutting edge of technology and its impact on society. I'm your host, Sarah Chen. Today, we're diving into one of the most important conversations of our time: artificial intelligence safety. My guest is Dr James Park, a researcher who has spent the last five years studying AI alignment. James, thanks for joining us.

Thanks for having me, Sarah. It's a pleasure to be here. I think this is exactly the kind of conversation we need to be having more often, because the pace of AI development is accelerating so rapidly.

Absolutely. So let's start with Anthropic. For our listeners who may not be familiar, could you explain what makes Anthropic different from other AI companies?

Of course. Anthropic was founded in twenty twenty-one by a group of researchers who left OpenAI. Their central mission is to build AI systems that are safe, beneficial, and understandable. The company is probably best known for Claude, which is their family of AI assistants. What sets them apart is their focus on what they call Constitutional AI, or C-A-I for short. This is a training method where the AI learns to follow a set of principles, almost like a constitution, rather than relying solely on human feedback for every decision.

That's fascinating. So how does Constitutional AI actually work in practice?

Great question. The process has two main stages. In the first stage, called supervised learning, the model generates responses and then critiques its own outputs against a set of written principles. These principles might include things like 'be helpful and harmless' or 'avoid generating biased content.' In the second stage, reinforcement learning, human evaluators rate the revised responses, and the model improves over time. The key innovation is that much of the feedback comes from the AI itself, which makes the process more scalable and consistent.

But surely there are risks. Some critics argue that AI systems could become too powerful or unpredictable. How does Anthropic address those concerns?

That's a very valid concern, and Anthropic takes it seriously. They've developed what they call the Responsible Scaling Policy, or R-S-P. This means they evaluate their models at every stage of development for potential risks, including the ability to self-replicate or deceive users. If a model exceeds certain risk thresholds, development is paused until safety measures are improved. They also publish regular transparency reports and collaborate with governments on AI regulation. In fact, their CEO, Dario Amodei, has testified before the US Congress about the need for AI safety legislation.

It sounds like Anthropic is trying to lead by example. What do you think the future holds for AI safety?

I'm cautiously optimistic. The fact that companies like Anthropic are investing heavily in safety research, and that governments are starting to regulate, gives me hope. But we need more international cooperation. AI doesn't respect borders, so safety standards need to be global. I'd say the next three to five years will be critical in determining whether we get AI safety right.

That is the end of Task two. You now have one minute to tidy up your answers.

Task three. You are listening to a conversation between a transport officer and a group of commuters at a community meeting. The officer is explaining changes to the MTR East Rail Line following its extension to Admiralty station. You now have thirty seconds to study the task. At the end of the task, you will have three minutes to tidy up your answers.

Good evening, everyone. Thank you for coming to this community information session. My name is David Wong, and I'm a senior officer with the MTR Corporation. Tonight, I'd like to walk you through the key changes to the East Rail Line now that it has been extended to Admiralty station. This is a significant milestone for Hong Kong's transport network.

Mr Wong, I take the East Rail Line every day from Sha Tin to work in Central. Before the extension, I had to change at Hung Hom. Can you explain how the new route works?

Of course. The East Rail Line now runs directly from Lo Wu and Lok Ma Chau all the way down to Admiralty, passing through the new Exhibition Centre station. You no longer need to change at Hung Hom to reach Hong Kong Island. The journey from Sha Tin to Admiralty takes approximately thirty-five minutes, which is about ten minutes faster than the old route with the interchange.

That's great news. What about the frequency of trains? I sometimes wait quite a long time during off-peak hours.

Good question. During peak hours, trains run at intervals of approximately three to four minutes. During off-peak hours, the interval is about five to six minutes. On weekends and public holidays, we maintain a frequency of about four to five minutes throughout the day. We've also added extra services during the morning rush, between seven thirty and nine o'clock.

What about fares? Has the price gone up because of the extension?

The fare structure has been adjusted, but most commuters will find the increase is modest. For example, a journey from Sha Tin to Admiralty costs twenty-seven dollars and eighty cents using an Octopus card, compared to twenty-four dollars and fifty cents for the old route to Hung Hom plus the cost of crossing the harbour. So in many cases, the total cost is actually lower.

I've heard the Exhibition Centre station is quite impressive. What facilities does it have?

The Exhibition Centre station is a state-of-the-art facility. It has direct connections to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, as well as the Wan Chai waterfront promenade. The station features platform screen doors for safety, real-time passenger information displays, and improved accessibility with lifts and tactile guide paths. There are also six exits connecting to different parts of the Wan Chai district.

One last question — will there be any service disruptions during the transition period?

There may be occasional engineering works on Saturday nights and early Sunday mornings for the next three months. We'll publish the schedule on our website and app at least two weeks in advance. Replacement bus services will be available during any planned disruptions. Thank you all for your patience and support.

That is the end of Task three and of Part A. You now have three minutes to complete your answers to Task three and to tidy up all your other answers.

That is the end of Part A. Take off your earphones now.