NBT Academic Literacy Reading — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In the AQL Academic Literacy section, a passage states: 'Despite initial scepticism, the municipality eventually endorsed the recycling scheme.' What does this sentence tell you about the municipality's final position?
- It proposed an entirely different scheme
- It supported the recycling scheme in the end (Correct answer)
- It remained undecided about the scheme
- It rejected the recycling scheme outright
Correct answer: It supported the recycling scheme in the end
'Eventually endorsed' signals final approval. 'Despite initial scepticism' shows the municipality first had doubts but ultimately supported the scheme, so option B is correct.
Question 2: A reading passage uses the word 'consequently' to begin a sentence. What relationship does this signpost word indicate?
- Contrast
- Comparison
- Sequence in time only
- Cause and effect (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Cause and effect
'Consequently' introduces a result or effect that follows from a previously stated cause, making it a cause-and-effect connector.
Question 3: Read this sentence: 'The study's findings were tentative and should not be generalised.' What does 'tentative' most nearly mean here?
- Provisional and uncertain (Correct answer)
- Statistically perfect
- Final and certain
- Widely accepted
Correct answer: Provisional and uncertain
'Tentative' means not yet definite or provisional. The clause 'should not be generalised' reinforces that the findings are uncertain.
Question 4: An academic text refers to 'the latter' when discussing two methods. If the methods mentioned are 'observation and experimentation', what does 'the latter' refer to?
- Observation
- Both methods equally
- Experimentation (Correct answer)
- Neither method
Correct answer: Experimentation
'The latter' always refers to the second of two items mentioned. Here the second item is 'experimentation'.
Question 5: A passage concludes: 'The evidence, while compelling, is far from conclusive.' What is the author's overall stance toward the evidence?
- The evidence proves the case completely
- The evidence is strong but not yet decisive (Correct answer)
- The evidence is weak and irrelevant
- The evidence is fabricated
Correct answer: The evidence is strong but not yet decisive
'Compelling' shows the evidence is strong, but 'far from conclusive' shows it does not fully settle the matter, so it is strong but not decisive.
Question 6: In academic reading, a 'main idea' of a paragraph is best described as:
- The first word of the paragraph
- The central point the paragraph develops (Correct answer)
- A single supporting example
- An unrelated side comment
Correct answer: The central point the paragraph develops
The main idea is the central point a paragraph develops; supporting details and examples explain or back it up.
Question 7: A text states: 'Whereas urban schools reported improvements, rural schools saw little change.' The word 'whereas' signals:
- A cause of the change
- Agreement between the two groups
- A contrast between the two groups (Correct answer)
- A chronological order
Correct answer: A contrast between the two groups
'Whereas' is a contrast connector, here highlighting the difference between urban and rural school outcomes.
Question 8: If an academic passage describes an argument as 'unsubstantiated', the writer is suggesting the argument is:
- Too long to read
- Translated from another language
- Well supported by evidence
- Not backed by sufficient evidence (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Not backed by sufficient evidence
'Unsubstantiated' means not supported by evidence or proof, so the writer is questioning the argument's support.
NBT Academic Literacy Reading
In the AQL Academic Literacy section, a passage states: 'Despite initial scepticism, the municipality eventually endorsed the recycling scheme.' What does this sentence tell you about the municipality's final position?