Academic

Reading

Upskills

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Academic Reading
About the Academic Reading

Reading Passage 1: Reading Passage 3

700-1000-word text 700-1000-word text

Questions 1-13 [usually) Questions 27-40 (usually)

Reading Passage 2:

700-1000-word text

Questions 14-26 [usually)

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The Skills that you need
I. SCANNING

When you scan, you look for numbers, names and other specific information

II. SKIMMING

When you skim, you read quickly to get the main idea. You DON'T read every word.
You might read any headings or subheadings, the first sentence, the last sentence
and a few key words and phrases.

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The Skills that you need
III. Vocabulary in context

Example:

Affluent countries like Australia and Canada have a responsibility to help poorer
countries.

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TYPES OF TASKS
I. MULTIPLE CHOICE
What do they test?

These questions test your ability to recognise specific points in a passage or to

distinguish between what the passage says and what it does not say.

These questions may also test your ability to identify the main idea of a section
of a passage or an overall understanding of the entire reading passage.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (Multiple Choice)
What do you need to do?

● Note the instructions given with the multiple-choice question, quickly.

● Skim-read the passage to get a general idea of the passage.
● Then read one question at a time and underline the key word(s) in it.
● If you can, guess which part or paragraph in the passage would have the answer.
● Then read all the given answer options carefully and note in what respect they
are different.

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TYPES OF TASKS
II. TRUE/FALSE/GIVEN
What do they test?

In this kind of question you are asked to identify factual information in the
text.You are given a list of statements, and you must decide whether they match
the information in the text (TRUE), contradict the information in the text
(FALSE), or there is no information in the text (NOT GIVEN).

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TYPES OF TASKS. (True, False, Not given)
What do you need to do?

● Read each statement carefully, paying special attention to any qualifying words.
● Identify key words from the sentence and scan the text to find those words or
synonyms.
● If you can find information in the text, decide whether it matches or contradicts
the statement.
● If you cannot find the information in the text, choose the option of NOT GIVEN.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (True, False, Not given)
TIPS

● Qualifying words include adverbs such as 'always·, ·usually' and 'never·, and
quantifiers such as 'all', 'most' and 'none of'. They can change the meaning of a
statement significantly.
● You can only use information from the text to choose your answer, not yourown
outside knowledge.

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TYPES OF TASKS
III. YES/NO/Not given
What do they test?

This question type tests your ability to identify the writer's viewpoint, claim or bias.
There are numbered statements in the question that are based on opinions or
claims. You are expected to read the text and state whether each of the given
statements agrees with the text writer's opinion or claims (choose YES) or not
(choose NO).There may also be a situation when there is no information in the
passage to suggest or contradict that it was the writer's opinion (choose NOT
GIVEN).
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TYPES OF TASKS. (Yes/No/Not Given)
What do you need to do?

● Read each statement in the question and underline key words.

● Scan the text and locate the section where the relevant information is given.
● Remember, synonyms of key words or paraphrased sentences will help you
identify the appropriate section.
● Now read the section slowly and carefully to see if the statement in the
question agrees or disagrees with the stated opinion or claim in the text.
Accordingly, choose YES or NO. If the relevant information is not in the text,
choose the option NOT GIVEN.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (Yes/No/ Not given)
TIPS

● An opinion is not necessarily based on fact or knowledge and it cannot be

proved right or wrong. So, do not choose your answer on the basis of what you
know as factually right or wrong.
● Be sure of the difference between 'NO' and 'NOT GIVEN'. If the views of the
writer explicitly disagree with or are opposite to what the statement in the
question says, the answer needs to be 'NO'.
● On the other hand, if the given statement can be neither confirmed nor
contradicted on the basis of the reading passage, the answer should be 'NOT
GIVEN'.

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TYPES OF TASKS
IV. Short Answer Questions
What do they test?

These questions test your ability to identify and locate in the passage the
precise information being asked for. Therefore, they are used with passages
relating to factual information and specific details.

The questions are in the same order as the information is presented in the
passage.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (Short Answer Questions)
What do you need to do?

● You will need to skim-read the article to get a general idea and then scan the
text for specific information that the question asks for.
● Note the instructions given with the short answer question, quickly.
● Skim-read the text to get a general idea of the text.
● Read the questions and underline key words.
● Scan the text for words, phrases or numbers that answer the given questions.
(They may not be the same words as the key words you underlined in the
question.)
● Write your answers: copy the words from the original text with correct spelling
onto the Answer Sheet.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (Short Answer Questions)
TIPS

● You must not write more than the number of words asked for.
● Hyphenated words (e.g. ·medium-sized') are counted as single words.
● You can write numbers using figures (77) or words (seventy-seven).

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TYPES OF TASKS
IV. Sentence Completion Question
What do they test?

In this kind of question you are given a number of sentences with gaps (usually
at the end of the sentence), which you must complete with words from the text.

These questions are testing your ability to read for specific information.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (Sentence Completion)
What do you need to do?

● Read each sentence carefully and try to predict what could be missing.
● Identify key words from the sentence and scan the text to find those words or
synonyms.
● Choose words FROM THE TEXT to complete the sentence.
● Reread your sentences to make sure they are grammatically correct.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (Sentence Completion)
TIPS

● The missing section is usually, but not always, a noun phrase.

● Do not change the words from the text in any way: if they don't fit, ifs the wrong
answer.

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TYPES OF TASKS
V. Diagram/Flowchart Completion
What do they test?

In this kind of question, you are given a diagram or flow chart that you must
label using words from the reading.

You are being tested for your intensive reading skills and your ability to
understand visual information.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (Diagram/Flowchart)
What do you need to do?

● Find the section of the text that describes the diagram or flow chart.
● Read that section as many times as necessary to understand it well.
● Look at the information in the diagram or flow chart that you have already been
given.
● Label the diagram or flow chart using words FROM THE TEXT.

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TYPES OF TASKS. (Diagram Completion)
TIPS

● The description of the diagram or flow chart will almost always be concentrated
in one section of the text, sometimes even in just a few lines.
● You cannot change the form of the words from the text.

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