TKT Teaching Reading Skills 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which activity would best develop learners' scanning skills?
- Reading a graded reader novel over several weeks
- Finding a specific program time in a TV schedule (Correct answer)
- Writing a summary of a newspaper article
- Identifying the main theme of a short poem
Correct answer: Finding a specific program time in a TV schedule
Scanning is best practiced with tasks that require locating specific information quickly, such as finding a program time in a TV schedule.
Question 2: What is the main purpose of a while-reading task?
- To introduce the topic and generate interest before reading
- To guide learners' attention and interaction with the text as they read (Correct answer)
- To check overall comprehension after finishing the text
- To introduce and practise new grammar structures
Correct answer: To guide learners' attention and interaction with the text as they read
While-reading tasks are designed to direct learners' focus and engagement during the actual process of reading the text.
Question 3: What does 'reading for gist' mean?
- Searching a text for specific names or numbers
- Reading to understand the overall meaning or main idea (Correct answer)
- Carefully analysing grammar structures in a text
- Reading every word slowly and in great detail
Correct answer: Reading to understand the overall meaning or main idea
Reading for gist means reading quickly to gain a general understanding of the overall meaning without attending to details.
Question 4: In a jigsaw reading activity, what do learners typically do?
- Each learner reads the entire text and answers individual questions
- Different learners read different sections and share information with each other (Correct answer)
- Learners cut a text into strips and reassemble them in the correct order
- Learners read a text aloud while a partner listens and takes notes
Correct answer: Different learners read different sections and share information with each other
In jigsaw reading, different students read different parts of a text and then combine their information to build a complete understanding.
Question 5: Which comprehension question type tests the skill of inference?
- What is the title of the article?
- How many countries are mentioned in the text?
- Why do you think the character decided to leave? (Correct answer)
- On which date did the event take place?
Correct answer: Why do you think the character decided to leave?
Inference questions require readers to 'read between the lines' and deduce meaning that is not explicitly stated in the text.
Question 6: Why might a teacher choose an authentic text for a reading lesson?
- Because authentic texts always contain simple vocabulary
- To expose learners to real-world language as it is actually used (Correct answer)
- Because authentic texts contain no grammar challenges for learners
- Because authentic texts are always shorter than graded texts
Correct answer: To expose learners to real-world language as it is actually used
Authentic texts are written for real communicative purposes and expose learners to the kind of language they will encounter outside the classroom.
Question 7: What is the main advantage of pre-teaching key vocabulary before a reading task?
- It removes the need for learners to use context clues entirely
- It reduces comprehension barriers so learners can focus on meaning (Correct answer)
- It teaches learners to guess word meanings from surrounding context
- It replaces the need for any pre-reading discussion activity
Correct answer: It reduces comprehension barriers so learners can focus on meaning
Pre-teaching key vocabulary removes potential obstacles to understanding, freeing learners to focus their cognitive resources on comprehending the text's meaning.
TKT Teaching Reading Skills 2
Which activity would best develop learners' scanning skills?