The Reading Comprehension

READING TEST IN TOEFL 

I. INTRODUCTION

Section 3 in the TOEFL test is reading comprehension. This section is intended to determine the level of your ability to understand English text reading. At least you will see 5 readings followed by 10 questions for each text reading. That means there will be 50 questions that you must do. Within 50 minutes to 50 questions that you should be good to finish with a high TOEFL score in your favor. There are no images, diagrams, or other visual aids in reading TOEFL (PBT) you will encounter on the actual test.

Topics in TOEFL reading that you will encounter generally associated with subject at American Universities. Suppose History, Literature, Art, Architecture, Geology, Biology, Health, Astronomy, Geography, and other subjects.


II. STRATEGIES TO ANSWER READING TEST

1. Become familiar with reading in English. You should be reading in English every single day. Read the newspaper or news online, print out the daily lessons on English, and find academic papers at the library or online. Do not just stick to topics related to areas that you are interested in – become familiar with a variety of subjects!

2. Practice skimming passages rather than spending valuable time reading the passage in detail. (Skimming is when you quickly glance through text rather than reading every single word). Then go back and read the passage more slowly – you will find you understand more now that you know what the key points of the passage are.

3. Highlight the main ideas of the passage - often you will find this in the introduction. Also highlight key points and facts such as numbers and dates. You will not have time to read every paragraph in detail during your TOEFL reading exam and practicing this regularly will increase your reading speed and fluency.

4. Make quick notes after your first or second reading to save time when looking back for the answers to the questions.

5. Do not worry if you are unfamiliar with the topic of the passage. Everything you need to know to answer the questions will be in the passage in your TOEFL reading section and no prior knowledge is required.

6. Do not spend too much time on a question you are completely unsure of. If you do not know the answer to the question, try to eliminate any answers that you feel are not correct. You want to make sure you have enough time for the questions and answers you are sure of!

7. Increase your vocabulary and understanding of idioms – this will help your overall understanding of passages in your TOEFL reading exam.

8. Guess if you are running out of time – if you have very little time left, it is better to complete all questions than to leave an answer blank. Remember, you will not lose points for incorrect answers in your TOEFL reading exam!


III. EXAMPLE READING TEST

A. Reading Test 1

Whereas literature in the first half of the eighteenth century in America had been largely religious and moral in tone, by the latter half of the century the revolutionary fervor that was coming to life in the colonies began to be reflected in the literature of the time, which in turn served to further influence the population. Although not all writers of this period supported the Revolution, the two best-known and most influential writers, Ben Franklin and Thomas Paine, were both strongly supportive of that cause. 

Ben Franklin first attained popular success through his writings in his brother's newspaper, the New England Current. In these articles he used a simple style of language and common sense argumentation to defend the point of view of the farmer and the Leather Apron man. He continued with the same common sense practicality and appeal to the common man with his work on Poor Richard's Almanac from 1733 until 1758. Firmly established in his popular acceptance by the people, Franklin wrote a variety of extremely effective articles and pamphlets about the colonist's revolutionary cause against England. 

Thomas Paine was an Englishman working as a magazine editor in Philadelphia at the time of the Revolution. His pamphlet Common Sense, which appeared in 1776, was a force in encouraging the colonists to declare their independence from England. Then throughout the long and desperate war years he published a series of Crisis papers (from 1776 until 1783) to encourage the colonists to continue on with the struggle. The effectiveness of his writing was probably due to his emotional yet oversimplified depiction of the cause of the colonists against England as a classic struggle of good and evil. 

1. The paragraph preceding this passage most likely discusses
a. how literature influence the population
b. religious and moral literature
c. literature supporting the cause of the American Revolution
d. what made Thomas Paine's literature successful

2. The word "fervor" in line 2 is closest in meaning to
a. war
b. anxiety
c. spirit
d. action

3. It is implied in the passage that
a. some writers in the American colonies supported England during the Revolution
b. Franklin and Paine were the only writers to influence the Revolution
c. because Thomas Paine was an Englishman, he supported England against the colonies
d. authors who supported England did not remain in the colonies during the Revolution

4. Where in the passage does the author describe Thomas Paine's style of writing?
a. lines 4-6
b. lines 8-9
c. lines 14-15
d. lines 18-20

5. The purpose of the passage is to
a. discuss American literature in the first half of the eighteen century
b. give biographical data on two American writers
c. explain which authors supported the Revolution
d. describe the literary influence during revolutionary America


Answer Key : BCADD



B. Reading Test 2

The next artist in this survey of American artist is James Whistler; he is included in this survey of American artist because he was born in the United States, although the majority of his artwork was completed in Europe. Whistler was born in Massachusetts in 1834, but nine years later his father moved the family to St. Petersburg, Russia, to work on the construction of a railroad. The family returned to the United States in 1849. Two years later Whistler entered the U.S. military academy at West Point, but he was unable to graduate. At the age of twenty-one Whistler went to Europe to study art despite familial objections, and he remained in Europe until his death. 

Whistler worked in various art forms, including etchings and lithographs. However, he is most famous for his paintings, particularly Arrangement in Gray and Black No. 1: Portrait of the Artist’s Mother or Whistler’s Mother, as it is more commonly known. This painting shows a side view of Whistler’s mother, dressed I black and posing against a gray wall. The asymmetrical nature of the portrait, with his mother seated off-center, is highly characteristic of Whistler’s work. 

1. The paragraph preceding this passage most likely discusses
A. A survey of eighteenth-century art
B. a different American artist
C. Whistler’s other famous paintings
D. European artists

2. Which of the following best describes the information in the passage?
A. Several artists are presented
B. One artist’s life and works are described
C. Various paintings are contrasted
D. Whistler’s family life is outlined.

3. Whistler is considered an American artist because
A. he was born in America
B. he spent most of his life in Americat
C. he served in the U.S. military
D. he created most of his famous art in America

4. The world “majority” in line 2 is closest in meaning to
A. seniority
B. maturity
C. large pices
D. high percentage

5. It is implied in the passage that Whistler’s family was
A. unable to find any work at all in Rusia
B. highly supportive of his desire to pursue art
C. working class
D. military


Answer Key : BBADC

Reading Comprehension

The Reading Comprehension section of the TOEFL test consists of five reading passages, each followed by a number of reading comprehension and vocabulary questions. Topics of the reading passages are varied, but they are often informational subjects that might be studied in an American university: American history, literature, art, architecture, geology, geography, and astronomy, for example.

Time is definitely a factor in the Reading Comprehension section. Many students who take the TOEFL test note that they are unable to finish all the questions in this section. Therefore, you need to make the most efficient use of your time in this section to get the highest score. The following method is the best way of attacking a reading passage to get the most questions correct in a limited amount of time.

STRATEGIES FOR THE READING COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1. Skim the reading passage to determine the main idea and the overall organization of ideas in the passage.

You do not need to understand every detail in a passage to answer the questions correctly. It is therefore a waste of time to read the passage with the intent of understanding every single detail before you try to answer the questions.

2. Look ahead at the questions to determine what types of questions you must answer.

   Each type of question is answered in a different way.

3. Find the section of the passage that deals with each question.

    The question type tells you exactly where to look in the passage to find correct answers.

• For main idea questions, look at the first line of each paragraph.
• For directly and indirectly answered detail questions, choose a key word in the question, and skim for that key word (or a related idea) in order in the passage.
• For vocabulary questions, the question will tell you where the word is located in the passage.
• For where questions, the answers are found anywhere in the passage.

4. Read the part of the passage that contains the answer carefully.

   The answer will probably be in the same sentence (or one sentence before or after) the key word or idea.

5. Choose the best answer to each question from the four answer choices listed in your test book.

You can choose the best answer according to what is given in the appropriate section of the passage, eliminate definitely wrong answers, and mark your best guess on the answer sheet.