Reading Question Types

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Reading: 60 minutes – 3 Sections – 40 Questions (10/10-10/10-20)

-Read the instructions of the questions or a passage.

- Understand the meaning of the question and underline the keyword


(what is the
demand of the question.

-Skimming and Scanning (close reading)

This table shows all the different task types and where you’ll find more
information about them in this course. Not all of these task types appear
in every Reading test but any of them can be used at any point in the
test, so you need to be familiar with them all and how to approach each
one.

Task type Description In this course

choose which heading


matching Matching
best matches a
headings headings
paragraph

find which paragraph


matching Matching
contains some specific
information information
information

matching choose the best Matching


sentence endings ending to the first half sentence endings
Task type Description In this course

of a sentence

complete a text, notes


summary, note-
or table with Summary
taking, flow chart
information from the completion
completion
text

fill in the gaps in a


diagram labelling Diagram labelling
diagram

choose the best


multiple choice Multiple choice
answer

answer questions
short answers Short answers
about a text

use a limited number


sentence Sentence
of words to complete
completion completion
a text
Task type Description In this course

identifying the decide whether True/false/not


writer’s claims or information is true/ given Yes/no/not
views false or not given given

Matching headings
Matching headings focuses on your skimming skills.

In this type of task, you have to look at a paragraph and decide what the
main idea is, and then decide which of a list of headings best captures
that main idea. There will always be more headings than there are
paragraphs.

Read these two paragraphs and choose the correct heading for each one
from this list:

List of headings

i. Formal education unhelpful


ii. An education in two parts
iii. Early life
iv. Davis’ unique style of trumpet playing

Miles Davis: Icon and iconoclast

A. At the age of thirteen, Miles Davis was given his first trumpet, lessons
were arranged with a local trumpet player, and a musical odyssey
began. These early lessons, paid for and supported by his father, had a
profound effect on shaping Davis’ signature sound. Whereas most
trumpeters of the era favored the use of vibrato (a wobbly quiver in pitch
inflected in the instrument’s tone), Davis was taught to play with a long,
straight tone, a preference his instructor reportedly drilled into the
young trumpeter with a rap on the knuckles every time Davis began
using vibrato. This clear, distinctive style never left Davis. He continued
playing with it for the rest of his career, once remarking, ‘If I can’t get
that sound, I can’t play anything.’

B. Having graduated from high school in 1944, Davis moved to New


York City, where he continued his musical education both in the clubs
and in the classroom. His enrolment in the prestigious Julliard School of
Music was short-lived, however - he soon dropped out, criticizing what
he perceived as an over-emphasis on the classical European repertoire
and a neglect of jazz. Davis did later acknowledge, however, that this
time at the school was invaluable in terms of developing his trumpet-
playing technique and giving him a solid grounding in music theory.
Much of his early training took place in the form of jam sessions and
performances in the clubs of 52nd Street, where he played alongside
both up-and-coming and established members of the jazz pantheon such
as Coleman Hawkins, Eddie ‘Lockjaw’ Davis, and Thelonious Monk.

Answers with justification:


Answer: iv

Look at paragraph A. Here, the topic sentence, the sentence which gives
the main idea of a paragraph, is the second sentence. It mentions Davis’
signature sound. Later on, in the paragraph, you see this clear,
distinctive style. These two pieces of information lead us to heading four
(iv), Davis’ unique style of trumpet playing.

Answer: iii

Now, look at paragraph B. In this paragraph, the topic sentence is the


opening sentence of the paragraph. It describes how Davis continued his
musical education, both in the clubs and in the classroom. So, it’s
immediately clear that the correct heading must be either one (i) or
three (iii), as they’re the two headings that refer to education. The text
goes on to say that, although he didn’t complete his formal education, he
found learning musical theory invaluable. If you’re not familiar with the
word invaluable, this could be confusing, especially as it comes after
other negative comments about the school. You might think that it
means not valuable, whereas it actually means extremely useful, the
opposite meaning to heading one. The opening sentence, together with
this information, leads us to the correct answer, two (ii), an education in
two parts.

Matching information
Matching headings tests your ability to skim a text to get a general idea
of it. Matching information is a similar task but this time it tests
your scanning skills.

You’re asked to:

locate specific information within the lettered paragraphs/sections of a


text, and to write the letters of the correct paragraphs/sections in the
boxes on their answer sheet.

You might be asked to find:

 specific details
 an example
 a reason
 a description
 a comparison
 a summary
 an explanation.

Look at this text and the example answer below.

A bar at the Folies (Un bar aux Folies)

A. The painting is set late at night in a nineteenth-century Parisian


nightclub. A barmaid stands alone behind her bar, fitted out in a black
bodice that has a frilly white neckline, and with a spray of flowers sitting
across her décolletage. She rests her hands on the bar and gazes out
forlornly at a point just below the viewer, not quite making eye contact.
Also, on the bar are some bottles of liquor and a bowl of oranges, but
much of the activity in the room takes place in the reflection of a mirror
behind the barmaid. Through this mirror we see an auditorium, bustling
with blurred figures and faces: men in top hats, a woman examining the
scene below her through binoculars, another in long gloves, even the
feet of a trapeze artist demonstrating acrobatic feats above his adoring
crowd. In the foreground of the reflection, a man with a thick moustache
is talking with the barmaid.

B. One of the most critically renowned paintings of the 19th-century


modernist movement is the French painter Edouard Manet’s
masterwork, A Bar at the Folies. Originally belonging to the composer
Emmanuel Chabrier, it is now in the possession of The Court auld
Gallery in London, where it has also become a favorite with the crowds.

Which paragraph contains the following information?

1. A statement about the popularity of the painting …………….

The answer is Paragraph A because of the phrase ‘it has also become a
great favorite with the crowds. You’ll notice that Paragraph B contains
the phrase ‘his adoring crowd’ but this is referring to the trapeze artist,
not the painting.

Matching sentence endings


You are given the first half of a sentence based on the text and asked to
choose the best way to complete it from a list of possible options. There
will be more options to choose from than there are questions.

Look at this example:

Write the correct letter, A - F, in the space given for questions 1 -


3.
1. Manet misrepresents the images in the mirror because he
2. Manet felt modern workers were alienated because they
3. Academics have re-constructed the painting in real life because
they

A. wanted to find out if the painting’s perspective was realistic


B. felt they had to work very hard at boring and difficult jobs
C. wanted to understand the lives of ordinary people at the time
D felt like they had to become different people
E. wanted to manipulate our sense of reality
F. wanted to focus on the detail in the painting

Looking at these sentences without the reading passage, what


predictions can you make?

 For example, question 12 is a sentence about modern workers.


Which of the endings, A-E, could be about workers and why they
felt alienated? Are there any sentence endings you feel you can
eliminate because the meaning does not make sense? After thinking
about these questions, you may have narrowed down your choice
from six sentence endings to just a couple.
 The next step is to scan the text to find where the answers are
located. Remember the answers will be found in the same order in
the text as they are in the questions. So, once you find the section
that talks about how Manet painted the image in the mirror, the
information for the next two questions will be in the paragraphs
that follow.
 As with other matching exercises, the most important thing is to
identify and match the synonyms or paraphrasing used in the
question with the words used in the text. So, you need to identify
the key words in the sentences.

Summary paragraph, notes, table


and flow-chart
Four types of task require you to complete a summary paragraph, some
notes, a flow chart or a table, using information from a text. Although
they look different, these four tasks all have very similar characteristics.
Have a look at what some of them look like:

 Summary paragraph completion (note completion looks very


similar):

Table completion:

Flow chart completion:


For all of these, try to find the part of the text which has the relevant
information. Be aware that the information you need may not be in the
same order in the text as it is in the summary item.

The instructions will tell you how many words you should write in your
answer. If you write too many words, your answer is wrong. Here are
four other important points to remember about these tasks:

 Numbers can be written using figures or words.

 Contracted words (such as ‘don’t’) aren’t tested, so you won’t need


to write them.
 Hyphenated words (such as ‘well-being’) count as single words.

 Where a list of answers is provided, they most frequently consist of


a single word.

 The words you need to write as your answers are actually in the
text. You don’t need to paraphrase.

Now look at this example.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for each
answer.

When the shark gets close, it uses 11 …………………………….to guide


it toward an accurate attack.

Sharks, meanwhile, hunt with extraordinary precision. They initially lock


onto their prey through a keen sense of smell (two thirds of a shark’s
brain are devoted entirely to its olfactory organs). As the shark reaches
proximity to its prey, it tunes into electric signals that ensure a precise
strike on its target;

Summary completion

Read the following extract, then complete the summary below


using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS.

Perceived to be a British tradition, the legacy of knighthoods actually


dates back to ancient Rome, from where it spread throughout a number
of European countries in the Middle Ages and acquired certain features.
A would-be knight had to undergo strict military instruction from a
young age, which included spending time as an assistant (known as an
esquire) to an existing knight, and participating in battle. He had to
learn how to equip his knight for battle, and to help him with putting on
the heavy and cumbersome armor of the time. He was responsible for
keeping this armor in good condition, polishing and cleaning it. He also
had to demonstrate chivalrous behavior such as generosity, selflessness,
fearlessness and skill in battle. Finally, the potential knight also required
the financial means to purchase horses, weapons and armor for himself,
and then make himself available to serve the ruling monarch for a
minimum period each year.

In modern times, the process is very different. Instead of relying on


formalized military training or political patronage, a nominations system
is used. This way, a person’s name can be put forward for a knighthood
by any institution such as a school or business, or even just a fellow
member of society. After this, an advisory panel, acting on behalf of the
sovereign, deliberates and selects the future knights and dames from the
pool of applications. Those selected are contacted discreetly before
announcements are made to ensure that they wish to accept the honor.

The process of becoming a knight has changed over time. In the Middle
Ages, people began training to become a knight at . They had to
show they were brave and skilled fighters, and were required to work
for for part of the year. Today, potential recipients of a
knighthood are selected through . A final decision is made
by .
Diagram labelling
Diagram labelling is similar to the summary task types you looked
at in the previous steps.

 In this task type, you have to complete some gaps in a diagram


which describes information in a text. Find the part of the text
that’s related to the diagram. Don’t worry if the diagram looks
complicated – just try to get a general idea of what it’s showing,
and then focus more on the actual information you need to
complete your answers.
 Diagrams are often technical or of something from the natural
world, so they might be unfamiliar to you. Perhaps this is one of the
biggest risks with the diagram labelling tasks: that you see the
diagram and think ‘this looks difficult!’ and spend too much time
trying to understand it in detail.
 One other thing to remember is that after you find the part of the
text that relates to the diagram, the answers may not be in the text
in the same order they are in the diagram.

The general tips for this task type are almost exactly the same as for the
summary task type:

 Check carefully how many words you need to write. Sometimes


the instructions will say ‘No more than three words’ or ‘No more
than two words’, while in other cases you might see ‘One word
only’. Don’t write more than the specified number of words.
 Contracted words (such as it’s) are not answers in this kind of
task.
 If you write a number, you can use numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.) or
words (one, two, three, etc.).
 The diagram often relates to one part of a text, rather than all of
it.
 The words you need are in the text. You don’t need to
paraphrase.

Diagram labelling practice:

Look at the diagram below and then try the task.

Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from this text for each
answer.

Electro-reception can also play an important role in animal defenses.


Rays are one such example. Young ray embryos develop inside egg cases
that are attached to the sea bed. The embryos keep their tails in
constant motion so as to pump water and allow them to breathe through
the egg’s casing. If the embryo’s electro-receptors detect the presence
of a predatory fish in the vicinity, however, the embryo stops moving
(and in so doing ceases transmitting electric currents) until the fish has
moved on. Because marine life of various types is often travelling past,
the embryo has evolved only to react to signals that are characteristic of
the respiratory movements of potential predators such as sharks.
Write down your answers for questions 7, 8 and 9. (Normally, in
the test, you write your answers in the space given.)

7. Shark’s ………………….………… alert the young ray to its presence.

8. Embryos move their ………………….………… in order to breathe.

9. Embryo stops sending ………………….………… when a predator is close


by.

Multiple-choice questions
In multiple-choice questions, you have to choose the correct
answer or answers from a number of possible choices.

These questions come in different formats, including choosing one


answer from four alternatives labelled A, B, C or D or choosing two
answers from five alternatives labelled A-E.

The tasks you are asked to do also vary. Some multiple-choice


questions are just that – full questions, with four possible answers.
Others might ask you to choose the correct ending to a sentence
based on the text, to choose the best title for the reading passage,
or to identify the writer’s aims or conclusions from a list of possible
alternatives. What that means is that these questions can test a
range of reading skills. Some may test your ability to locate and
understand specific points in detail, while others may test your
overall understanding of the text. It also means that the way you
approach different types of question is slightly different. Look at
these examples:

Stephen Hawking has stated that


A. Human time travel is theoretically possible, but is unlikely to
ever actually occur.
B. Human time travel might be possible, but only moving backward
in time.
C. Human time travel might be possible, but only moving forward in
time.
D. All time travel is impossible.
What is the writer’s purpose in Reading Passage 2?
A. to examine scholars’ conflicting views surrounding Ada
Lovelace’s work
B. to introduce Ada Lovelace and her significant achievements
C. to provide a general overview of Ada Lovelace’s life
D. to explain how Ada Lovelace invented the first computer

The first question refers to one specific paragraph and requires you
to locate and understand one single statement. You’re looking for
two facts – whether he believes time travel is possible or not and if
yes, are there limitations? It would be possible to answer by
scanning the text to find the short section on Stephen Hawking,
reading only that section and looking for synonyms and
paraphrasing to compare his statement with the possible options.

In the second example, the text may mention some or all the options
in the question. However, only one answer correctly describes the
purpose of the text. In order to answer you need to read the whole
text. These questions typically come at the end of the section.

Let’s look at some of the techniques that can help you with
multiple-choice questions. First, read the question and identify the
key words:

1. When the fight or flight response is activated, it is difficult


to

A. increase breathing speed


B. focus on small problems
C. maintain body temperature
D. run for long periods of time

The key words in the question are ‘fight or


flight’, ‘activated’ and ‘difficult’. The first two will help you find the
part of the text with the answer, the final word tells you exactly
what you are looking for - a problem.

Now read this extract from the text:


This shift to survival mode is often popularly described as a sudden
unease, a sense that a situation is ‘off’ or ‘not right’. However, the
sense is actually the outcome of an incredibly complex mind-body
process which involves the brain’s ‘fear centre’, the hypothalamus,
advising the sympathetic nervous system and the adrenal-cortical
system to work, at first separately, and then together, to blend a
potent mix of hormones and chemicals and secrete them into the
bloodstream. Our heartbeat rises, along with our respiratory rate.
Skin feels cold (hence the ‘shiver’ down the spine) as blood supply
is redirected to the larger muscles required for a physical
confrontation or a hasty retreat. The ability to concentrate on issues
of minor importance also suffers, as the brain tends to prioritise
‘big picture’ thinking at this time.

Before we look at the answer, which one would you choose?

You should be able to see immediately that option D is wrong.


There is nothing at all in the text about running for long periods of
time. Temperature (skin feels cold) and breathing (respiratory rate)
from options A and C are both mentioned, but as physical
responses, not as things that are difficult to do. The answer is found
in the sentence, ‘The ability to concentrate on issues of minor
importance also suffers.’ If an ability suffers, it means it becomes
difficult, and issues of minor importance is another way of
saying small problems. So the correct answer is B. Did you get it
right?
Short answer questions
In short answer questions, you have to answer questions
about factual information in a reading passage by using a
limited number of words or numbers taken from the text.

As with other question types, such as summary completion, the


instructions will clearly state how many words you can use in your
answer, such as ‘NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the
passage’ or ‘NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER’.

This type of question tests your ability to use skimming and


scanning techniques to locate the necessary information in the text,
then to understand the information, synonyms or paraphrases used.
Take a look at this example:
Question: What is the barmaid wearing?

This is from a text describing a painting, Manet’s A Bar at the


Folies-Bergère. By using the skimming and scanning techniques
covered in Week One, you can quickly identify the section of the
text describing the barmaid’s appearance. It says:

A barmaid stands alone behind her bar, fitted out in a black bodice
that has a frilly white neckline, and with a spray of flowers sitting
across her décolletage.

This sentence has some vocabulary that may be unfamiliar to you,


for example bodice, frilly and décolletage. But the question simply
asks what she is wearing. This requires you to understand or work
out from the context that fitted out in is a synonym for wearing.
The instructions say ‘Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS
from the passage for each answer.’ So, what is she wearing? The
answer is a black bodice. Even if you don’t know what a ‘bodice’ is,
you can arrive at the correct answer.

The important thing to remember here is that you do not need to


read or reread the whole text to find the answers. You need to
quickly identify where the information is located, then focus on that
section. Don’t become distracted or discouraged by unfamiliar
vocabulary. Your answer will use words taken directly from the
text. Now look at these questions from the same text:

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the passage for


each answer.
1. Which room is seen at the back of the painting?
2. Who is performing for the audience?

Here is the section of text where the answers are located:

She rests her hands on the bar and gazes out forlornly at a point
just below the viewer, not quite making eye contact. Also on the bar
are some bottles of liquor and a bowl of oranges, but much of the
activity in the room takes place in the reflection of a mirror behind
the barmaid. Through this mirror we see an auditorium, bustling
with blurred figures and faces: men in top hats, a woman examining
the scene below her through binoculars, another in long gloves,
even the feet of a trapeze artist demonstrating acrobatic feats
above his adoring crowd. In the foreground of the reflection, a man
with a thick moustache is talking with the barmaid.

Sentence completion
As with short answer questions, sentence completion
questions require you to identify a limited number of words
and/or numbers from the text in order to find each answer.

You are given a number of sentences with gaps, and the


instructions clearly state the maximum number of words and/or
numbers you can use to complete them. The words must be taken
directly from the text and do not need to be changed in any way to
correctly complete the sentence. The techniques and challenges are
very similar to the ones we looked at in Step 3.4 for short answer
questions: skimming and scanning to locate the information, then
understanding synonyms and paraphrase to identify the correct
wording for the answer.

Look at this example from a text entitled Ada Lovelace: The first
computer programmer?

Fill in the gap in this sentence using NO MORE THAN THREE


WORDS from the passage.
Ada translated Menabrea’s work and created a ……………….. for
him.

By scanning the text, you can quickly find the section that talks
about Menabrea’s work:

Assistance eventually came from the Italian mathematician Luigi


Menabrea, who produced a memoir documenting the Analytical
Engine. The memoir was published in French, however, and
Babbage recruited Ada to help make it accessible to an English-
speaking audience. Over a nine-month period during 1842–1843,
Ada devoted herself to completing the work, eventually producing
not only an English version of Menabrea’s work, but a set of
appendices longer than the original document itself.

You can see that it says:

Ada … [produced] not only an English version of Menbrea’s work,


but…

‘Produced an English version’ is another way of saying translated,


so the information that follows this in the text must be the answer.
She not only produced an English version, but also a ‘set of
appendices’.

Now try these questions from the same text:


Fill in the gap in this sentence using NO MORE THAN THREE
WORDS from the passage.
1. Ada’s ……………….. suggests that the work she did for Menabrea
was not completely original.
2. Ada’s biographer felt that she had a ……………….. of the future of
computer science.

Some historians have suggested that Ada functioned more as an


editor or compiler rather than as a mathematician in her own right.
These critics note that, although published under her name, the
algorithms had been completed by Babbage several years earlier,
and that her correspondence with Babbage indicates that Ada
relied a great deal on his guidance and authority in composing her
appendices, while making only minor corrections herself. Other
historians defend her role. According to Benjamin Woolley, Ada’s
biographer, Ada’s great contribution lies in her discussion of the
implications of Babbage’s work and her conceptual vision of what
computing might become. In accomplishing this, Woolley suggests,
Ada ‘rose above the technical minutiae of Babbage’s extraordinary
invention’ and revealed its ‘true grandeur’.

Consider Three C’s


C- Confirmed – True/Yes

C- Contradiction/Opposite – False / No

C- Confusion – Not given

- Main idea of the ques is missing (30-70%)


- Nothing related to ques is there in the passage (no
information)
- General statement / specific statement
- No Comparison

True / False / Not given


Many test takers find True/False/Not given questions among
the most difficult in the Reading test. In this step we’ll look
at some of the reasons for that and ways to become more
confident in tackling these questions.

Look for 3 C’s

- C – Confirmed – True/ Yes


- C – Contradiction – False / No
- C – Confusion – Not given / Notgiven

In this type of question, you are given a list of statements and


asked: ‘Do the following statements agree with the information
given in the text?’ This tests your ability to clearly identify and
understand key facts and information contained in the text. You will
normally need to read and understand two or more connected
sentences in order to find the answer.

You then have to decide if each statement is True, False or Not


Given. For many students, the difficulty here is spotting the
difference between ‘False’ and ‘Not given’. It’s important to
understand what each of these terms actually means in the context
of this question type:
True – the text contains information that means the same thing as
the statement. It will not use the same words, but the meaning will
be exactly the same.
False – the text contains information that disagrees with or says
something opposite to the statement.
Not Given - the text neither confirms nor contradicts the
statement. It may not mention the topic at all, or it may partly
mention it but not give any information on whether it is true or
false.

It can be relatively straightforward to find text in the reading


passage that supports the statement, but the difficulty often comes
in choosing between False and Not Given. As with other reading
questions, the first step is to use scanning skills to identify where in
the text the answer is located, then read that section closely to find
the answer. Identifying that something is not there is often more
difficult than identifying something that is. This can make some
students nervous about choosing Not Given, and they spend time
reading and rereading the text looking for the answer. As we
discussed earlier in the course, you do not have any time to waste
in the IELTS Reading test, so this can be a real problem.

Look at these examples of True, False and Not Given answers from
the same text we looked at in Step 3.6:

1. Ada Lovelace was born after her father’s death.


2. Ada was never allowed to see any images of Lord Byron as a
child.
3. Ada wanted to read books and poems as a child.
Now look at the section of text where the answers are located:

Lord Byron, a restless man who had conceived other children out of
wedlock, left his wife in a bitter divorce just weeks after Ada’s birth.
Following the separation he headed immediately to Europe, where he
died in Greece several years later, never having seen his daughter again.
Anne Byron, forever averse to what she perceived as ‘dangerous’ poetic
tendencies after her troubling experiences with her wayward former
husband, began from an early age trying to prevent the young Ada from
following too closely in her father’s footsteps. Some of Anne’s strategies
were relatively draconian – Ada was not permitted, for example, to look
at any portraits of her father until she reached adulthood at twenty
years of age. But others proved fortuitous. Attempting to nudge Ada
away from poetry, literature and other pursuits that she feared would
encourage caprice and self-indulgence in her daughter’s young mind,
Anne instead focused Ada’s attention on areas of study that required
more discipline and sober calculation instead: music and mathematics. It
was through the latter that Ada found her calling, and eventually her
place in the history books.

Lord Byron left his wife ‘just weeks after Ada’s birth’ and ‘died
several years later’. It should be very clear that the first
statement, ‘Ada Lovelace was born after her father’s death’,
is False.

Now look at the second statement. In the text, the


synonym portraits is used for images and permitted for allowed.
Once you have located this, you can see that Ada was not permitted
to see any portraits until she was twenty. So clearly this statement
is True.

Finally, look at the third statement. The text mentions poetry and
literature in the sentence ‘Attempting to nudge Ada away from
poetry, literature and other pursuits …Anne instead focused Ada’s
attention on areas of study that …’.

However, it does not mention how Ann felt about this, or what she
wanted to do, only what her mother tried to do. Ada may have been
wanted to read novels and poems, but the text simply does not tell
us anything about it. So the answer is Not Given.

Yes/No/Not Given questions


112 comments

Yes/No/Not Given questions are very similar to


True/False/Not Given questions, but the difference is that
they look at views, opinions and ideas expressed by writers
rather than at purely factual information.

Whereas True/False/Not Given questions are used with very fact-


based texts, for example science, history and so on, Yes/No/Not
Given questions are used with texts that express opinions or take a
particular position on a topic. The approach to finding the correct
answer is similar – scan to find the relevant section of text, then
read closely to find the answer. However, many people find these
more difficult because identifying a writer’s views can be more
challenging than simply identifying a statement of fact, and you
may need to consider longer sections of text to find the answer.

Look at these examples from the text on the jazz musician Miles
Davis which we looked at last week, and the sections of the text
where the answers are located.

1. Davis felt that his contribution to cool jazz had not been
acknowledged.

Davis was also frustrated by his perception that he had been


overlooked by the music critics, who were hailing the success of his
collaborators and descendants in the ‘cool’ tradition, such as Gerry
Mulligan and Dave Brubeck, but who afforded him little credit for
introducing the cool sound in the first place.
2. Davis was a traditionalist who wanted to keep the jazz
sound pure.

Davis … firmly believed that remaining stylistically inert would have


hampered his ability to develop new ways of producing music. From
this perspective, Davis’ continual revamping of genre was not
merely a rebellion, but an evolution, a necessary path that allowed
him to release his full musical potential.

3. Davis’ personal troubles had a negative effect on his


trumpet playing.

Though Davis’ trumpet playing may have sounded effortless and


breezy, this ease rarely carried over into the rest of his life. The
early 1950s, in particular, were a time of great personal turmoil.
After returning from a stint in Paris, Davis suffered from prolonged
depression, which he attributed to the unravelling of a number of
relationships, including his romance with a French actress and
some musical partnerships that ruptured as a result of creative
disputes.

For each of the above questions, which answer would you choose,
Yes, No or Not Given? Think about it before reading the
explanations below …

In the first question, you can see that Davis was frustrated and felt
he had been overlooked by music critics. This means the same as
the statement that ‘his contribution … had not been acknowledged’,
so the answer here is Yes.

In the second question, finding the right answer depends on your


ability to understand or work out the meaning of some quite
challenging and less common vocabulary. The answer can be found
in the phrases ‘stylistically inert’, ‘hampered his ability to develop
new ways of producing music’ and ‘continual revamping of genre’.
Someone or something that is inert does not move or change and
the text suggests that he felt this was a bad thing. This clearly
indicates that he was the opposite of ‘a traditionalist’, and so the
correct answer is No.
Finally, the third statement, that his personal problems ’had a
negative effect on his trumpet playing.’ is not supported by the text.
It describes how these problems affected his personal life, but does
not discuss whether they affected his abilities as a musician. So the
answer is Not Given.

Time management
What can you do to manage your time effectively in the
Reading test?

In the video you watched on Step 2.15 one of the teachers said that
the Reading test is “not so much a passage reading test as
a question reading test”.

In this course we’ve already talked about the two most important
techniques to help you manage your time effectively:

Skimming - reading a text quickly to get a general idea of its


meaning.

Scanning - looking for specific information in a text.

There’s no one correct way to approach the test but you must be
familiar with skimming and scanning and you must know which way
works for you.

Here are some important points to remember that can help you
manage your time.

 Read the question. Before you look at the reading text, read
the questions! Have an idea of what kind of information you’re
looking for.
 Read the question CAREFULLY. Does the question say ‘no
more than three words’ or something similar? It’s easy to lose
marks by not reading the question properly.
 Predict answers where you can. For several task types you can
make a prediction about the answer. For example, for short
answers, what kind of word(s) are you looking for? A noun? A
verb? Use the information in the question to help you think
about the answer.
 After you’ve read the questions, start reading the passage.
Underline parts of the text where you think the answers might
be.
 Practise doing timed tests before your test day. The actual
IELTS Reading test should definitely not be the first time
you’ve done a full test in 60 minutes.
 Don’t waste time. If you don’t know an answer, move on to
another question. Come back to difficult questions later.
 If you really don’t know an answer or you run out of time,
guess! Don’t leave any questions unanswered.

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