Questions 14-17
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
Write your answers in boxes 14-17
on your answer sheet.
14. What is the writer's main point in the first paragraph?
15. What main point does Sherry Turkle make about innovation?
16. What point is the writer making in the fourth paragraph?
17. According to Mark Edmundson, the attitude of college students
(A) is correct. Choice A matches the question because "Our use of technology is having an unseen effect on us." is the idea supported by the passage evidence: "Most people do not realise that one invisible change connects them all: the neural circuit that supports the brain's capacity to read is changing quickly and subtly, with consequences for everyone from the pre-reading toddler to the expert adult.". The wording may be paraphrased, but it points to the same meaning.
(B) is incorrect. Choice B says "Technology can be used to help children to read.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "Most people do not realise that one invisible change connects them all: the neural circuit that supports the brain's capacity to read is changing quickly and subtly, with consequences for everyone from the pre-reading toddler to the expert adult.". Because Choice B does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(C) is incorrect. Choice C says "Travellers should be encouraged to use technology during flights.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "Most people do not realise that one invisible change connects them all: the neural circuit that supports the brain's capacity to read is changing quickly and subtly, with consequences for everyone from the pre-reading toddler to the expert adult.". Because Choice C does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(D) is incorrect. Choice D says "Playing games is a more common use of technology than reading.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "Most people do not realise that one invisible change connects them all: the neural circuit that supports the brain's capacity to read is changing quickly and subtly, with consequences for everyone from the pre-reading toddler to the expert adult.". Because Choice D does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
Associated Text:
Most people do not realise that one invisible change connects them all: the neural circuit that supports the brain's capacity to read is changing quickly and subtly, with consequences for everyone from the pre-reading toddler to the expert adult.
(A) is incorrect. Choice A says "Technological innovation has caused a reduction in print reading.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "As MIT scholar Sherry Turkle has argued, societies do not go wrong by innovating; they go wrong when they fail to notice what innovation disrupts or diminishes.". Because Choice A does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(B) is correct. Choice B matches the question because "We should notice what might be lost when innovation occurs." is the idea supported by the passage evidence: "As MIT scholar Sherry Turkle has argued, societies do not go wrong by innovating; they go wrong when they fail to notice what innovation disrupts or diminishes.". The wording may be paraphrased, but it points to the same meaning.
(C) is incorrect. Choice C says "We should encourage more young people to get involved in innovation.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "As MIT scholar Sherry Turkle has argued, societies do not go wrong by innovating; they go wrong when they fail to notice what innovation disrupts or diminishes.". Because Choice C does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(D) is incorrect. Choice D says "There is a distinction between developing products and developing ideas.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "As MIT scholar Sherry Turkle has argued, societies do not go wrong by innovating; they go wrong when they fail to notice what innovation disrupts or diminishes.". Because Choice D does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
Associated Text:
As MIT scholar Sherry Turkle has argued, societies do not go wrong by innovating; they go wrong when they fail to notice what innovation disrupts or diminishes.
(A) is incorrect. Choice A says "Humans have an innate ability to read and write.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "It also adapts to the demands of that environment, whether those demands come from different writing systems or from the medium used for reading.". Because Choice A does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(B) is incorrect. Choice B says "Reading can be carried out using many different mediums.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "It also adapts to the demands of that environment, whether those demands come from different writing systems or from the medium used for reading.". Because Choice B does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(C) is incorrect. Choice C says "Writing systems place unexpected demands on the brain.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "It also adapts to the demands of that environment, whether those demands come from different writing systems or from the medium used for reading.". Because Choice C does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(D) is correct. Choice D matches the question because "Some brain circuits adapt to whatever is required of them." is the idea supported by the passage evidence: "It also adapts to the demands of that environment, whether those demands come from different writing systems or from the medium used for reading.". The wording may be paraphrased, but it points to the same meaning.
Associated Text:
It also adapts to the demands of that environment, whether those demands come from different writing systems or from the medium used for reading.
(A) is incorrect. Choice A says "has altered the way he teaches.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "English literature scholar and teacher Mark Edmundson says that many college students now avoid classic 19th- and 20th-century literature and choose simpler material because they no longer have the patience for longer, denser and more difficult texts.". Because Choice A does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(B) is correct. Choice B matches the question because "has affected what they select to read." is the idea supported by the passage evidence: "English literature scholar and teacher Mark Edmundson says that many college students now avoid classic 19th- and 20th-century literature and choose simpler material because they no longer have the patience for longer, denser and more difficult texts.". The wording may be paraphrased, but it points to the same meaning.
(C) is incorrect. Choice C says "does not concern him as much as it does others.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "English literature scholar and teacher Mark Edmundson says that many college students now avoid classic 19th- and 20th-century literature and choose simpler material because they no longer have the patience for longer, denser and more difficult texts.". Because Choice C does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
(D) is incorrect. Choice D says "does not correspond with the views of the general public.", but the passage evidence for the correct answer is "English literature scholar and teacher Mark Edmundson says that many college students now avoid classic 19th- and 20th-century literature and choose simpler material because they no longer have the patience for longer, denser and more difficult texts.". Because Choice D does not express that same idea, it should not be chosen.
Associated Text:
English literature scholar and teacher Mark Edmundson says that many college students now avoid classic 19th- and 20th-century literature and choose simpler material because they no longer have the patience for longer, denser and more difficult texts.
Questions 18-22
Complete the summary using the list of words, A-H, below.
- fast
- isolated
- emotional
- worrying
- many
- hard
- combined
- thorough
Use "D" because it is the exact word or phrase from the passage that completes the question. The supporting text says: "digital screen use may be producing worrying effects on reading comprehension among older high school and college students.".
Associated Text:
The main concern is not merely this cognitive impatience, but what may lie behind it: a possible inability among many students to read with enough critical analysis to understand complex thought and argument.
Use "H" because it is the exact word or phrase from the passage that completes the question. The supporting text says: "the researchers used questions to assess how thorough each group's grasp of the plot was.".
Associated Text:
Half read it on a tablet and half in paperback, and the researchers used questions to assess how thorough each group's grasp of the plot was.
Use "F" because it is the exact word or phrase from the passage that completes the question. The supporting text says: "screen readers found hard to recall.".
Associated Text:
The print readers showed stronger comprehension than the screen readers, especially when they had to sequence details and reconstruct the plot in chronological order, which screen readers found hard to recall.
Use "B" because it is the exact word or phrase from the passage that completes the question. The supporting text says: "pick out isolated words and phrases through the rest of the text.".
Associated Text:
Many readers sample the first line and then pick out isolated words and phrases through the rest of the text.
Use "C" because it is the exact word or phrase from the passage that completes the question. The supporting text says: "generate their own thoughts about the emotional content of a text.".
Associated Text:
As a result, readers may not have time to grasp complexity, understand another person's feelings, appreciate beauty or generate their own thoughts about the emotional content of a text.
Questions 23-26
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage? In boxes 23-26 on your answer sheet, write
YES if the statement reflects the claims of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
The answer is Yes because the statement agrees with the passage. The key evidence is: "It concerns how we read across different media and how that changes not only what we read but also the purposes for which we read.". This evidence says the same thing as the question statement, so the statement is supported.
Associated Text:
It concerns how we read across different media and how that changes not only what we read but also the purposes for which we read.
The answer is No because the statement contradicts the passage. The key evidence is: "The subtle weakening of critical analysis and empathy affects us all equally.". This evidence gives a different meaning from the question statement, so the statement is not correct.
Associated Text:
The subtle weakening of critical analysis and empathy affects us all equally.
The answer is Not given because the passage does not give enough information to confirm the statement. The closest relevant evidence is: "It influences how we deal with constant streams of information and encourages retreat into familiar stores of unchecked material that require little analysis, making us vulnerable to false information and irrational ideas.". This may discuss a related idea, but it does not prove the statement in the question.
Associated Text:
It influences how we deal with constant streams of information and encourages retreat into familiar stores of unchecked material that require little analysis, making us vulnerable to false information and irrational ideas.
The answer is Yes because the statement agrees with the passage. The key evidence is: "We possess both the science and technology to identify and redress the changes in how we read before they become fixed.". This evidence says the same thing as the question statement, so the statement is supported.
Associated Text:
We possess both the science and technology to identify and redress the changes in how we read before they become fixed.
