Higher English Close Reading

1. Higher English Close Reading Types of Questions Understanding Questions CMCM

2. Understanding Questions (U) • Understanding questions are identified for you as “U”. • The questions are expressed in many different ways. • You will be asked to identify the writer’s ideas and explain the points that are being made. CMCM

3. Understanding Questions (U) • The key skills for understanding question are: • Reading the appropriate lines (skim reading) • Thinking and understanding what they mean • Precisely identifying the information needed for the answer • Explaining the answer simply and accurately • Using your own words to explain the writer’s ideas (paraphrasing) CMCM

4. Understanding Questions (U) Understanding questions fall into 5 recognisable types: • Meaning • Identifying points • Following arguments and tracing developments • Summarising a number of points • Links CMCM

5. Understanding Questions (U) Look below at how the questions might be worded: • Identify – Question 5 2006 and 9 2006 • Summarise -6 b 2006 • What was - 6 a 2006 • What evidence – 3 b 2006 • Why according to the writer – 3 a 2006 CMCM

6. Understanding Questions (U) • Explain briefly - Question 1a 2006 • Explain in your own words -11 b 2006 • How does the writer go on to explain – Question 2 2006 • How does the writer demonstrate – 8 a 2006 • How does the context help you to understand the meaning of … Question 12 (2005) CMCM

7. Understanding Questions (U) How to Answer Understanding Questions? • You should try to answer the questions using your own words as far as possible. • Pay close attention to the line reference in the question. • Try to be precise in your answer. CMCM

8. Understanding Questions (U) How to Answer Understanding Questions? • If you are asked for 3 reasons for example – number them 1, 2, 3. This makes it easy to organise your answer and it makes your answer clear to the examiner. • If you write your answer in a paragraph the examiner has to search for the answer. Number the points you make in your answer to make it clearer!! CMCM

9. Understanding Questions (U) How to Answer Understanding Questions? • Look for prompts which may suggest where you will find the answer. • Words/phrases like but, therefore, as a result, are used by the writer to draw your attention to a point. • Look for key phrases “the most important reason…..” etc. • Pay attention to topic sentences – usually at the beginning of each paragraph. • Look to see if the topic sentences provide a link between paragraphs CMCM

10. 1. Meaning Questions This type of question usually starts with one of the following: • Explain what the writer means by … • Explain the significance of the word … • Show how you are helped towards the meaning of … • How does the context help you to understand the meaning of … • Explain this expression in your own words … CMCM

11. 1. Meaning Questions • Make sure you try to ‘translate’ the difficult words into plain, simple English. • If you are asked to consider a context give both the meaning and its relationship to the context. CMCM

12. 2. Identifying Points This type of understanding question is straightforward and you can gather marks here. It usually starts like: • What are the three reasons for … • What four things, in their view, do they expect … • What three main reasons does the writer give for … • What other ways of looking at education are laid out … CMCM

13. 2. Identifying Points • These questions may be quite straightforward but you will lose marks if you do not use your own words. So, you must take the answer and translate it into your own words to prove you understand the argument. • Make sure you take your answer from the correct section of the text. Use the line references given. CMCM

14. 3.Following arguments and tracing developments • You will be asked to look at a sentence (probably long and complex), or a paragraph, or a section of the passage involving two or three paragraphs, or even the whole passage. • This is to check that you can recognise and understand the line of thought through a particular section. • Questions such as this may have the word ‘explain’ or ‘explanation’ somewhere in them, or sometimes just ‘why’. CMCM

15. 3.Following arguments and tracing developments • Another way of asking this type of question is to ask you to show the development of a word or an idea. • Often the idea in question will be from the topic sentence of a paragraph, so one would expect the paragraph to go on to give more detail or expansion on the topic. • Again look closely at lines references you are given. • There will be a limit as to how far you trace the argument. CMCM

16. 4. Summarising a number of points • These question can come near the end of the question paper but if you work quickly and think before answering you can gain a number of marks. • You usually need to examine a fairly lengthy section of the passage (2 -3 paragraphs) for 3 or 5 marks! CMCM

17. 4. Summarising a number of points Can be posed in the following ways: • Identify five benefits … • Outline briefly the main effects … • Briefly summarise the main points … • Summarise the main reasons … • What do you think are the key reasons … There are other ways of asking this question… CMCM

18. 4. Summarising a number of points • Start by marking the appropriate sentences in the passage so that you can see clearly where the answers may be. • Mark or number the answers as you read • Don’t fall into the trap of repeating yourself or confuse ideas • Make sure you understand from the question exactly what you are looking for. • Are you being asked for a list or to give reasons. • Answer in your own words. CMCM

19. 5. Links • This question, although an understanding question, also requires some analysis. • Looking at words that link the paragraphs helps you to identify the relationship between them. • Sometimes it can simply be a word or phrase. • Now – this must be linking something from the past with the present. • Later – must be the next stage in the development • On the contrary – is going to offer an opposing view to what has gone before. • But even more so – another point is introduced to back up a previous idea. CMCM

20. 5. Links • However at other times the link is doing a lot more than this. • You must identify in the linking sentence two words or phrases, one pointing back and one pointing forward. • You then have to link the first word/phrase looking back with a relevant part of the previous paragraph, and the next word/phrase linking forward to the new topic in the following paragraph CMCM

21. LINK QUESTION BREAKDOWN • QUESTION: “And therein lies the rub’ Explain how this sentence acts as a link between the first paragraph and the two following paragraphs. 2 marks • Usually, but not invariably, the “link” sentence will stand at the beginning of a paragraph. • Part of the sentence — often, but not always, • A) the first part — will refer back to the previous topic , and • B)another part of the sentence will introduce the new topic which follows. • Such questions are usually worth 2 marks, which are awarded for correctly identifying the parts of the sentence that link back and forward and the two topics which they connect.

22. WHAT YOU SHOULD DO! • You should show the link by following the formula below: • A) first quoting the part of the link sentence which refersback to the earlier topic, • B)explaining what this topic is, • C) and then quoting the part of the link sentence which looks forward to the next topic, • D)explaining what this is. • E) The sentence may also begin with a linking word or phrase such as “but” or “however” which points to a change of direction and you should also comment on this.

23. You can develop your reading skills in this area through practice. Following the writer’s ideas and points can become easier if you read a variety of passages.Reading some articles in the quality Sunday newspapers and identifying the points above can be invaluable. CMCM