How to Attempt Reading Comprehensions?

“Comprehensions judge your capability and ability of understanding the passage, your power of analyzing the problem in proper perspective and your ability of presenting your answer quickly, correctly and systematically”. Comprehension ensures your ability to read and understand the written passage. Through the comprehension exercise you are asked to answer questions about the passage.

In answering the questions based on reading the passage, it is important that your answer should be based upon the information given in the passage. Your own common sense, your own knowledge, your own presumption should not be taken into account while answering the questions. If you have information from your own experience and knowledge, you should not use it to answer any question. Even if you think that there is some mistake in any paragraph of the comprehension, you must still answer the question on the basis of the information given in the passage.

There are certain techniques that will help you in answering the questions based on the Comprehensions

Most Important Techniques

a) Use your pencil To begin with, use your pencil as a pointer. Using the pencil to guide your eye along a line of text helps you to focus on the details in the reading: it holds your attention to the precise words in the passage. In a long test, attention may weaken. Fatigue may blunt your attention to details. But using pencil as a pointer will help you to preserve your attention to details.

b) Increase in reading speed Another benefit of using the pencil as a pointer is that it will probably speed up your reading. The steady flow of the pencil across the page with each line of text draws the eye along at a steady pace. Do not go faster than you can grasp the text, but do try to keep your reading going at a steady pace set by the pencil.

c) Circle key words and phrases Remember, you are not reading for just a vague general understanding of the passage. You usually have to read for detailed understanding. There will be individual words which are important for grasping a point exactly. Circling key words or phrases which will enable you to zero in on precise points needs to answer a question..

d) Keep forging ahead Do not get bogged down if there is a word or sentence you do not understand. You may get the main idea without knowing the individual word or sentence. Sometimes you can sense the meaning of the word from the context. Sometimes the word or sentence may not be the basis of any question. If there is some idea you need to answer a question but do not understand, read it one more time. If you still do not understand it, move on. You can come back to this question later if you have more time at the end of the test.

e) Formation of an idea Another good reading comprehension strategy is to read the questions before starting the passage. This does not mean to read the answer choice at this time. By reading the questions, you will have an idea of what information you will need after reading the passage. This may alert you to certain details, ideas and specific area in the paragraph where the questions are drawn from.

Right Approach to Answer the Questions

1). Questions is to be answered on the basis of the information provided in the passage, and you are not expected to rely on outside knowledge of a particular topic. Your own views or opinions may sometimes conflict with the views expressed or the information provided in the passage. Be sure that you work within the context of the passage. You should not expect to agree with everything you encounter in reading passages.

2). You should analyze each passage carefully before answering the accompanying questions. As with any kind of close and thoughtful reading, look for clues that will help you understand less explicit aspect of the passage. Try to separate main ideas from supporting ideas or evidence.

3). Note transitions from one idea to the next, and examine the relationships among the different ideas or parts of the passage. For example, are they contrasting? Are they complementary? Consider the points the author made, the conclusions drawn, and how and why those points are made or conclusions are drawn.

4). Read each question carefully and be certain that you understand exactly what is being asked.

5). Always read all the answer choices before selecting the best answer.

6). The best answer is the one that most accurately and most completely answer the questions being posed. Be careful not to pick an answer choice simply because it is a true statement. Be careful also not to be misled by answer choices that are only partially true or only partially satisfy the problem posed in the question.

7). The methodology of eliminating wrong answers also works here. It simply means that if you are unable to judge the right choice or right answer, tick the answer that are incorrect, in this way if there remains one answer to be ticked, that will be the correct answer. But if there remains more than one answer to be ticked then it is you, whether you like to take risk or not. None can help you, as there may be negative marking also.