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IELTS Reading - Matching Features
This lesson will cover strategy and tips on how to approach the IELTS Reading - Match Features section. After reading this lesson, you will be able to recognize this question type and understand the best way to answer it, and be prepared to confront this section of the exam with confidence.
Lesson Introduction
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Video Lesson
- IELTS Reading - Matching Features
Część 1
In this question type, you are required to match a list of options to a set of statements.
The statements will not be ordered in the same way as the given text.
Most often, you will see your potential options presented in a box.
These options are usually someone's name, which will have been mentioned in the passage.
Going along with the theme of academic readings, these names will usually be of experts, researchers, and scientists.
This type of question is most common with texts that include theories or comments about people, specific dates, things, specific places, or even opinions.
Additionally, there will often be more options to choose from in comparison to the questions.
For example, in the sample below, you will see that there are five researchers for four questions.
30. experimented with things that the subjects might have been expected to encounter in everyday life, rather than with a machine.
31. appears to have proved that a change in the apparatus dramatically improves the performance of children of certain ages.
32. devised an experiment that investigated deductive reasoning without the use of any marbles.
33. used a machine to measure inductive reasoning that replaced button-pressing with drawer-opening.
It's also important to note that the names of researchers may appear as only last names, rather than full names. For instance, in the sample question above, "James" is listed as option E. Keep in mind that in the text, the name may be listed as "John James".
Questions 30-33
Look at the following Descriptions (Questions 30-33) and List of psychologists below.
Match each description with the correct psychologist.
Write the correct number A-D in boxes Questions 29-36 on your answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once. List of psychologists
Look at the following Descriptions (Questions 30-33) and List of psychologists below.
Match each description with the correct psychologist.
Write the correct number A-D in boxes Questions 29-36 on your answer sheet.
NB You may use any letter more than once. List of psychologists
- Clark Hull
- Howard and Tracy Kendler
- Michael Cole and colleagues
- Simon Hewson
- James
30. experimented with things that the subjects might have been expected to encounter in everyday life, rather than with a machine.
31. appears to have proved that a change in the apparatus dramatically improves the performance of children of certain ages.
32. devised an experiment that investigated deductive reasoning without the use of any marbles.
33. used a machine to measure inductive reasoning that replaced button-pressing with drawer-opening.
It's also important to note that the names of researchers may appear as only last names, rather than full names. For instance, in the sample question above, "James" is listed as option E. Keep in mind that in the text, the name may be listed as "John James".
Most often, you will see your potential options presented in a box. Going along with the theme of general or work-related readings,
these features can range from names mentioned in the passage (usually Section 3),
features of something included in an employee handbook (usually Section 2),
or features included in advertisements or listings (usually Section 1).
Here is an example:
Questions 24-28
Look at the following descriptions (Questions 24–28) and the list of terms in the box below. Match each description with the correct term A–E. Choose the appropriate letter A–E for questions 24–28.
QUESTIONS
24) An employee is asked to leave work straight away because he has done something really bad.
25) An employee is pressured to leave his job unless he accepts conditions that are very different from those agreed to in the beginning.
26) An employer gets rid of an employee without keeping to conditions in the contract.
27) The reason for an employee’s dismissal is not considered good enough.
28) The reasons for an employee’s dismissal are acceptable by law and the terms of the employment contract.
Look at the following descriptions (Questions 24–28) and the list of terms in the box below. Match each description with the correct term A–E. Choose the appropriate letter A–E for questions 24–28.
QUESTIONS
24) An employee is asked to leave work straight away because he has done something really bad.
25) An employee is pressured to leave his job unless he accepts conditions that are very different from those agreed to in the beginning.
26) An employer gets rid of an employee without keeping to conditions in the contract.
27) The reason for an employee’s dismissal is not considered good enough.
28) The reasons for an employee’s dismissal are acceptable by law and the terms of the employment contract.
A Fair dismissal
B Summary dismissal
C Unfair dismissal
D Wrongful dismissal
E Constructive dismissal
B Summary dismissal
C Unfair dismissal
D Wrongful dismissal
E Constructive dismissal
Since the information is not listed in order, this question type calls upon both the skimming and scanning techniques, because you'll have to understand the general idea of each paragraph as well as look for specific information. Our strategy will provide you with the best tips in order to make the most of your time and excel in this question type.
The amount of questions for this specific task can vary, but keep in mind that answer choices can be used more than once or not used at all. If answers can be used more than once, the directions will specify this detail. In any case, you will be instructed to write the letter of the correct feature on your answer sheet.
Now let's look at some tips of how to approach this section and what not to do when approaching this type of question on the exam.
Let's look at some tips of what to do and what not to do when approaching this type of question on the exam.
1. Read the Questions - As always, it is a good idea to look at the questions before reading the passage. This will give you an idea of what to look out for while skimming and scanning the reading. In this particular case, the questions will most likely be statements that describe the features, and you should read them before looking at your options.
An optional part of this step (and something that we will do for practice in this exercise) is to start thinking of potential synonyms and different ways to say what is listed in the questions. Why? Remember: the information presented in the questions may be re-stated in a different way in the passage.
2. Pull Out Key Words - This step can be done at the same time that you are focusing on reading the questions. If you briefly underline key words in the questions, you will be better able to know what you are looking for in the passage.
3. Focus on the Answer Options - Once you've read the questions, take a look at the options that you are able to choose from. If the options are names, remember that the names in the text may appear as first and last names. If the options are different details, be sure to watch out for these in the passage as well. Pay close attention to whether or not you will be able to use the options more than once.
4. Scan the Passage - As you scan the passage, you should circle or underline those names from answer options. This will help you locate where you want to read more later.
A great optional strategy is to focus on how often each name or detail appears in the passage. If one of your answer options appears more often than another, it will be more difficult for you to pinpoint the answer. It could be helpful to write a star or symbol next to the areas in which the information is presented so that you can reference it later. Look out for options that appear once or twice in the passage - these will generally be easier to answer, and you may want to focus on these questions first.
Quick Tip! Since you may have to go back and forth in order to find the correct answer, follow this helpful tip. When you find that the entire name is listed in the passage (i.e 'Francis Lloyd Wright' rather than just 'Wright') it is a good sign that it is the first time the person has been mentioned. Usually, the passage will list the only the last name of the person after he or she has been mentioned with his or her whole name
5. Skim the Paragraphs - As noted in the previous step, looking for information in the passage about the answer options is an important step. For those answer options that appear multiple times in the passage, you will need to skim the surrounding information in order to match them correctly with the options provided. Additionally, do not be surprised if you notice synonyms of the information provided in the options. For instance, the phrase "a decrease in available funds" could be included in the passage as "a drop in accessible investments".
After you've done this, start answering your questions. Some things may make immediate sense after having scanned the text, but some questions may take more time. Before we use these tips to look at an example, let's briefly discuss what not to do when answering the Matching Features question type.
1. Do not read the entire passage. As a general rule for the Reading section, it is not necessary and actually time-restrictive to read the entire passage, word for word. Be sure to use the scanning technique, first and foremost, for this section.
2. Do not get confused if the text includes synonyms of the information that is originally presented in the questions. This section is known for using synonyms and presenting information in different ways, which is why it's important to brush up on your vocabulary for this exam.
3. Do not write words or names on your answer sheet. The answers for this question type will be the letters that correspond to the various paragraphs.
4. Do not expect the answers to come in order. Since the questions do not follow the order of the text, you may have to go back and forth in order to find the correct answer. Obviously, this is why scanning is an important tool for this task.
Using these tips, let's look at an example of a passage with this specific question type.
Now practice the strategy step by step with the AI Tutor.
Matching Features
Learn how to answer these questions in a step-by-step interactive exercise
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