Back to: Reading. Types of task part 4 (Clone)
In this final part of the reading task section we are going to practice
Summary completion
Matching features
Summary Completion.
In these kinds of questions you will be given a summary of information from a text and there will be some gaps in that summary. You will either be given a list of words to fill the gaps with or asked to find the answers in the text without the aid of a list. Both types are the same but the addition of a list is the more common. Our example is with a provided list.
Your job is to insert some of the words from the list into the gaps, or if asked, to fill the gaps with words from the text.
There will be more words in the list than required to fill the gaps.
All of the information contained in the summary will also be contained in the reading text, but they will use synonyms and paraphrasing, so don’t expect to see the same words.
Skills:
Skimming for main idea
Scanning for specific information
Being able to recognize synonyms and paraphrasing
Tips:
1. Do not read the complete text.
2. Follow grammar rules to insert words in their correct form (noun, verb, adjective, -ing)
3. Try to predict the answers by reading.
4. Do not spend too much time on one answer. Move on, and return later. This also reduces the number of options you will have towards the end, which makes it easier to work out the answer.
5. Words come in the same order as the questions.
6. Try to eliminate obviously incorrect answers.
Process:
1. READ THE INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY
2. Read the questions, and note how many words you can write to fit the gap.
3. Skim the text to get an overall understanding. This includes an understanding of the topic of each paragraph (note keywords of proper nouns, names, units/numbers, places, etc..,).
4. If you have a list of words, look at the words and look for patterns like collocations, phrases, types of words (nouns, adjectives, verbs, etc..,).
5. Decide which part of the text the summary refers to. Scan for synonyms.
6. Read the part again.
7. When you decide which word to use, look at the grammatical form it needs to take.
Let's do out 1st practice.
Read the summary below, then read the text.
Summary
There is some _____ to show that people who are bilingual exhibit a different _____ depending on which language they are speaking. Some bilinguals also have two _____ cultural identities, meaning that they are able to _____ their behaviour effortlessly according to their cultural _____. This may involve changes in _____ of speech or in the use of _____ language.
A check of the words in the box, and the gaps in the text, will tell you if there are extra words. This means that you must choose carefully.
The first thing you should do is look at words types. How many words are nouns (both countable and uncountable), verbs, adjectives. The sentences will tell you which type of word is needed, so you can eliminate any which do not fit. For example in the 1st gap, "there is some......" this word is noun because it is preceded by 'some'. The sentence also begin "There is.." which tells us the noun is singular. If it is 'singular' and uses 'some' it must be 'uncountable' It can only be 4 things (words which might fit). 'Evidence', 'facts', 'characteristics' and possibly 'surroundings'. Facts, characteristics, and surroundings are all 'countable nouns' therefore the choice should be 'evidence', which fits in with the text. "There is some evidence to show"
This is how you need to approach one part of the task. Word type is very significant in aiding you when trying to identify the correct words.
noise | evidence | volume | persona | characteristics |
body | distinct | surroundings | facts | adapt |
When doing this exercise please remember that you are practicing the techniques above. Doing this often will enable you to become more and more comfortable with the techniques, which should lead to quicker recognition of answers, and therefore reducing the time you need in the exam.
Do the following exercises in the PDF's.
Matching features.
(This has different titles depending on which book/site you look at. Matching names, matching information, categorization are some).
This section features the task of matching information to several choices of: person, place, subject, topic, etc...,
You will read a text which will feature usually 3 things (3 people for example). Each paragraph will have information attributed to one of the people (A,B,C) You have to place the correct information with the correct object (in this case people).
Skills:
Scanning for specific information.
Skimming for overall ideas.
Synonym and paraphrasing.
Separating information about specific topics and retaining that information.
Tips:
The choice are always the same. Typically from 4-6 options.
The options may be people, places, civilisations, subjects, and more.
The information about each topic will mostly be in the same place in the text. Occasionally there will be a reference in another paragraph, but this is rare.
Strategy:
1. Read the questions carefully.
2. Focus on the names. Scan the text for the names mentioned and underline them. This will help you to find them quickly.
3. Some of the names may feature more than once. Focus on the single references first.
4. Reading around the names helps you see if the the information you need comes before or after the name.
5. When reading the information you need be aware of possible synonyms.
6. Once you have found a statement which matches a name, mark this as done( use a mark that suits you eg: a 'x' or 'ok').
7. Repeat this process until all are finished.
You can either check once again, or you can check at the end of the test. It depends on how much time you have.
Always try to leave time for checking. You may spot earlier mistakes.
Let's do an exercise to practice. Read the statements and note any synonyms you can think of. (Click on 'Show Options' box).
Note the names of the people in the options list.
Study the text below (click on the 'show text' box).
This is a strategy I have used to locate the answers.
First, I have underlined all references to names including the expressions "xxxx says". This makes it even easier to locate what someone 'says' about something.
Then I read around the names to try to identify any references to the statements.
Now the 1st statement reads 'believes computers have not instructed humans in the game of chess'
Keywords = believes - instructed. (The topic is humans and computers, and there are numerous references to these, so we can ignore these as keywords but use them to locate information).
I then note down the references and look for meaning. this involves looking for synonyms and paraphrasing.
Instructed = teach, guide, educate. believes = thinks, opines, is of the opinion, admits, concludes.
We now read around the names looking for references.
But Soltis says they haven’t imparted much wisdom about the game. Soltis says. “We would teach them how to play chess. They would teach us more about chess. They haven’t lived up to their side of the bargain.”
Here we can see 2 references to "instructed" - 'impart wisdom' & 'teach'. Reading the 2 sentences which both begin with "Solis says", "they would teach us more about chess, but they have not lived up to their side of the bargain" which means 'they have not 'instructed us(humans) in how to play chess.
The answer for this is B.
Now try to do the exercise to locate and match the remaining statements to the names.
For more practice please complete the 2 exercises in the PDF's below.
This is the end of the tasks section. Please ensure that you practice repeatedly all the tasks to be sure that you follow the strategies, and arrive at the correct answers.
If you do not get an answer correct, DO NOT think "Oh well if I get at least most of them correct it will be enough". Ask yourself 'WHY IT IS NOT CORRECT' Do the question again using the techniques until you can find the correct answers. This will be invaluable when you are doing the real test.
The next section is a look at vocabulary, and how to approach it.
Salamat po ang mga estudyante.