(单词翻译:单击)
雅思阅读考试中的多项选择题通常不大会像是非无判断题或Summary 题型那样夺人眼球,赚足口水,引发雅思考生的大肆讨论,因为在各种考试中,多项选择题都是会经常出现的题型之一,这对考生来说早已司空见惯。这也导致教师在授课过程中较难令学生充分关注这种题型,既然这种题型对学生来讲早已烂熟于心,没有挑战。此时教师可引导学生注意到一个事实:答题的正确率低。依笔者之见,如果考生能在题型特点上多些思考,根据具体多选题的不同特点调整解题步骤,同题异做,便可望在解题速度及正确率方面大有改观,本文中,雅思中国网海外考试研究中心将对怎样快速高效地应对多选题浅议一二。
雅思阅读中的多选题包括多选一(通常为4选1)和多选多(多为5或6项中选出2或3项符合原文内容的),题目均由2部分构成:题干和选项。在4选1的题型中,题干通常可分为2类:general / specific. 前者题干的内容所指一般较宽泛,笼统,典型的如:What is the writer’s main point … ? / In the first paragraph the writer makes the point that blind people…。如果考生按照传统做法依此意到原文中寻找,往往耗时耗力,结果却未免正确,明智的做法是先将下面的4个选项一一读过,并留意它们的核心意义,和彼此之间的区别,以利于接下来的甄别和判断,然后再到文章中对应;另外一种比较specific的题干恰恰相反,是指题干的内容所指相对较具体,这时则无需读下面的选项了,因为要到原文中去寻找的内容已然清楚了,多读选项内容就显得意义不大了,反而会耗去一些时间。两种答题步骤迥异完全因题干不同而来,目的则都是为了更快更准确地答题。
下面试举例说明:
在剑桥真题系列IV中,Question 27 / Test 1:
Choose the correct letter, A,B,C or D.
27. In the first paragraph the writer makes the point that blind people
A. may be interested in studying art.
B. can draw outlines of different objects and surfaces.
C. can recognize conventions such as perspective.
D. can draw accurately.
初看下来,题干中的blind people 似是详细信息,但考生应很快意识到,全文的题目即是Visual Symbols and the Blind ,既如此,blind people 就算不得能够帮助定位的详细信息,这样,题干就成为对第一段的主旨大意的考核 (makes the point),这时考生应该了解其难度,避开阅读首段,转而浏览A,B,C,D四选项,并短时记忆4个关键词或词组。按照常理,大体可排除A 和D,若最终的判断只是在B和D两项之见进行,就简单得多了。
来到原文首段,首句就揭示了答案:
From a number of recent studies, it has become clear that blind people can appreciate the use of outlines and perspectives to describe the arrangement of objects and other surfaces in space.
可知答案是C.
再看下例:剑桥真题系列V, Question 33 / Test 1.
Choose the correct letter, A,B,C or D.
33. What aspect of scientific research does the writer express concern about in paragraph 4?
A. the need to produce results
B. the lack of financial support
C. the selection of areas to research
D. the desire to solve every research problem
题干中能令考生感觉详细一点的也就只是 scientific research 了,不过,依照它找到paragraph 4,发现只读和scientific research 有关的句子还是无法作答,首句中的’One is the lopsidedness built into scientific research.’并不能令考生得知”偏颇”的具体内容,而第二句:Scientific funding goes mainly to areas with many problems. 又容易让考生误解为B 也可能成为正确答案,从而在B和C之间举棋不定,难以取舍,因为该题其实是在考核对全段的综合理解能力, 题干中的scientific research并不能认为是一个详细信息点,既然在句尾出现了in paragraph 4.
此时,题干应被判断为是general 类的,依照前文所述,先读A,B,C,D四个选项。从A与D的内容雷同来看,可以排除这2者的正确性,因为正确答案是唯一的;在B与C之间,它们的差异是非常明显的。这时只需谨记financial 和area,带着问题去读指定段落,任务就显得轻松多了,由段落中的第二句和末句可知答案是C.
对于多项选当中的选标题类的题目来说,运用此种方法能够极大程度地减低难度。下面谨举一例说明:
Question 14 / Test 1 / Cambridge IV:
Choose the correct letter A,B,C or D.
Which of the following is the most suitable title for Reading Passage 1?
A. The development of a programme in environmental studies within a science curriculum
B. Children’s ideas about the rainforests and the implications for course design
C. The extent to which children have been misled by the media concerning the rainforests
D. How to collect, collate and describe the ideas of secondary school children
E. The importance of the rainforests and the reasons for their destruction
这是一道极为有挑战的对全片文章的主旨大意的考核,难度可想而知,不过若从读选项入手,情况似乎出现了极为巧妙的转机。
A 选项是要被排除掉的,因为整个statement 竟然没有涉及全篇的核心话题rainforests, 错误显而易见。D 选项因为同样错误也被排除。E 选项中的importance 和 reasons 只是文中提及的5个问题之2, 而这5个问题应该是并列的关系,从逻辑上讲,错误是很明显的。这样就余下B和C作为最后抉择的选项,注意二者的不同之处,implications 和 misled. 这时回原文中寻找,在第三段出现了:The aim of the present study is to start to provide such information, to help teachers design their educational strategies to … 而C选项始终无从谈起,在文中没有有力的支持。正确答案是 B.