IELTS Reading: False or not given?
Students are often confused by the difference between ‘false’ and ‘not given’.
You should choose false if the information in the passage directly contradicts the question statement; in other words, you need to be able to show that a different answer would be true. Choose not given only when there is no information, or not enough information.
One type of question asks you to “match the names with a statement”. You will see a list of people’s names (often researchers or experts) and you have to match each name with a statement about what he/she did or said.
Here’s some advice for this type of question:
1. Find all of the names in the passage first. Scan the whole passage quickly (don’t read it, just search for the names) and underline all the names that the question asks you about.
2. Remember that academic articles often only use surnames. For example, if one of the names is Robert Smith, you might not see the first name ‘Robert’ in the passage. Just look for the surname ‘Smith’.
3. Do difficult questions last. If one name is mentioned 3 times in 3 different paragraphs, it will be more difficult to match with a statement than a name that is only mentioned once. Start with the name that is only mentioned once.
4. When you find a match, put a cross next to the statement; you will only use each statement once.
5. As usual, look for “keywords” – words in the passage that are similar to words in the question statements.
IELTS Reading: easy questions first
A good technique for the IELTS reading test is to do easy questions first. If you get stuck on difficult questions, miss them. Do the easy questions, then return to the tricky questions later.
What’s the easiest type of question?
The easiest type of question is probably any question that contains a name, number or date. For these questions, it should be easy to scan the text to find where the answer is.
If you find it difficult to get started in the exam, look for a question with a name, number or date, and start there. An easy question will help you to start confidently.
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