Strategies to improve your score in the Reading module

The following strategies will help you obtain higher scores in the Reading module.

Make notes

You can make notes on question booklets. The examiners won’t look at these notes. Therefore, feel free to make notes, underline parts of the text or draw symbols on the question booklet to help yourself understand the passage better. The notes will probably eliminate the need to read the same portions of the text again and again.

Make intelligent guesses

Read the titles and subheadings carefully and try to predict what you are going to read. The title and the subheadings reveal a lot of information. The introduction is also important. If you can guess what you are going to read, you will be able to understand the passage more easily.

While reading the passage for the first time, you may find it difficult to find your way around. A useful technique is to prepare a mental map. Make short notes about the topic of each paragraph. If you know what the paragraphs are about, you will be able to find answers faster.

Study the keywords in the questions

And then scan the text for those keywords or their synonyms. The parts of the text that contain these keywords are more likely to contain the answers.

Skim actively

While skimming the text, do not worry about words that you do not understand. You don’t have to understand the meaning of every word in the passage to answer the questions. Try to get an overall impression of the passage. It is important that you read the first sentence of each paragraph.

If unknown words sound important, try to make intelligent guesses about their meaning. It is possible to work out the meaning from the surrounding words and sentences.

Keep track of time

The Reading module takes about 60 minutes. During those 60 minutes, you have to transfer your answers to the answer sheet. You can write the answers directly on the answer sheet or you can transfer them later. If you are transferring them later, you should leave at least 10 minutes for this.

Do not waste time on any particular question. If you don’t know the answer, you should go to the next question immediately. Some questions may be easier than the others, so try to answer the easy questions first.

Try not to spend more than 20 minutes on any passage. If a passage is taking longer, you should move to the next. Candidates who complete all the three sections of the test are more likely to obtain a higher score.