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IELTS Academic Reading: Cambridge 2 Test 1 Reading passage 3; CHILDREN’S THINKING; with best solutions and best explanations

This Academic IELTS Reading post focuses on solutions to  IELTS Cambridge 2 Reading Test 1 Reading Passage 3 titled ‘CHILDREN’S THINKING’ . This is an aimed post for IELTS candidates who have great problems finding out and understanding Reading Answers in the AC module. This post can guide you the best to comprehend every Reading answer quite easily. Finding out IELTS Reading answers is a steady process, and this post will help you in this respect.

IELTS Cambridge 2 Test 1: AC Reading Module

Reading Passage 3: Questions 28-40

The title of the passage: CHILDREN’S THINKING

Questions 28-35: Classifying descriptions

[This type of question asks candidates to classify information from the given reading text. Candidates are given some statements from the text, and a list of options. They must match the correct statements with the correct options.

N.B.: This question doesn’t follow any sequence. So, they should be answered after all other questions in the passage.]

Question no. 28: _______ is cited as famous in the field of psychology.

Keywords for the question: famous, field of psychology,  

The first lines of the first paragraph say, “ One of the most eminent of psychologists , Clark Hull , claimed that .. ….”

Here, One of the most eminent of psychologists = famous in the field of psychology,

So, the answer is: CH (Clark Hull)

Question no. 29: ­­­________ demonstrated that the two-stage experiment involving button-pressing and inserting a marble into a hole poses problems for certain adults as well as children.

Keywords for the question: two-stage experiment, button-pressing, inserting a marble into a hole, problems, certain adults, children,    

The answer lies in paragraph no. 4. Here, the writer of the text explains ‘problems’ with the experiment. Take a look at these lines, “The mystery at first appears to deepen when we learn, from another psychologist, Michael Cole, and his colleagues , that adults in an African culture apparently cannot do the Kendlers’ task either . . . … .”

Here, adults in an African culture apparently cannot do the Kendlers’ task either = poses problems for certain adults,

The previous paragraph also shows that some children faced problems during the experiment.

So, the answer is: MC (Michael Cole and colleagues)

Question no. 30: _________ devised an experiment that investigated deductive reasoning without the use of any marbles.

Keywords for the question: devised an experiment, investigated, deductive reasoning, without, marbles,    

The first lines of paragraph no. 5 say, “ Instead of the button-pressing machine , Cole used a locked box and two differently coloured match-boxes, one of which contained a key that would open the box. .. ..”

Here, Instead of the button-pressing machine = without the use of any marbles,

Also this experiment is based on ‘deductive reasoning’ as it tests an existing theory .

Question no. 31: _________ appears to have proved that a change in the apparatus dramatically improves the performance of children of certain ages.

Keywords for the question: appears to, proved, change in, apparatus, dramatically improves, performance, children of certain ages,       

Paragraphs 7 and 8 talk about changing apparatus in an experiment led by Simon Hewson . For example, take a look at these lines from paragraph no. 7, “ Hewson made two crucial changes. First, he replaced the button-pressing mechanism in the side panels by drawers in these panels which the child could open and shut. .. .. .”

Then, in paragraph no. 9, the first lines say, “The two modifications together produced a jump in success rates from 30 per cent to 90 per cent for five-year-olds and from 35 per cent to 72.5 percent for four-year-olds . ..  .. .”

Here, produced a jump in success rates = dramatically improves the performance, five-year-olds & four-year-olds = children of certain age,

So, the answer is: SH (Simon Hewson)

Question no. 32: __________ used a machine to measure inductive reasoning that replaced button-pressing with drawer-opening.

Keywords for the question: used a machine, measure, inductive reasoning, replaced, button-pressing, drawer-opening,        

Again, take a look at lines 1-5 of paragraph no. 7, “ Hewson made two crucial changes. First, he replaced the button-pressing mechanism in the side panels by drawers in these panels which the child could open and shut . .. .. .”

Here, he replaced the button-pressing mechanism = replaced button-pressing with drawer-opening,

Question no. 33: ________ experimented with things that the subjects might have been expected to encounter in everyday life, rather than with a machine.

Keywords for the question: experimented, things, the subjects, might have been expected to encounter, everyday life, than, with a machine,  

Paragraph no. 5 explains the experiment done by Michael Cole and colleagues . Here, take a look at lines 11-14, “ . … .. Now the subject is dealing not with a strange machine but with familiar meaningful objects ; .. .. .”

Here, familiar meaningful objects = expected to encounter in everyday life, dealing not with a strange machine = rather than with a machine,

Question no. 34: _______ compared the performance of five-year-olds with college students, using the same apparatus with both sets of subjects.

Keywords for the question: compared, performance, five-years-olds, college students, using, same apparatus, both sets of subjects,  

The answers can be found at the end of paragraph no. 6. Take a look at these lines, “ . .. . . then five-year-old children solve the problem as well as college students did in the Kendlers’ own experiments .”

In the previous lines, the writer talks about using the same apparatus.

So, the answer is: HTK (Howard and Tracey Kendler)

Question no. 35: ________ is cited as having demonstrated that earlier experiments into children’s ability to reason deductively may have led to the wrong conclusions.

Keywords for the question: having demonstrated, earlier experiments, children’s ability, reason deductively, may have led to, wrong conclusions,   

At the beginning of paragraph no. 6, we find the answer to this question. Let’s have a look, “Recent work by Simon Hewson is of great interest here for it shows that, for young children, too, the difficulty lies not in the inferential processes which the task demands , but in certain perplexing features of the apparatus and the procedure. .. .. .”

Here, not in the inferential processes which the task demands = may have led to the wrong conclusion,

Questions 36-40: YES, NO, NOT GIVEN

In this type of question, candidates are asked to find out whether:

The statement in the question matches with the claim of the writer in the text- YES The statement in the question contradicts with the claim of the writer in the text- NO The statement in the question has no clear connection with the account in the text- NOT GIVEN

[TIPS: For this type of question, you can divide each statement into three independent pieces and make your way through with the answer.]

Question no. 36: Howard and Tracey Kendler studied under Clark Hull.

Keywords for the question: Howard, Tracey Kendler, studied under, Clark Hull,      

The first and second paragraphs talk about Clark Hull and Howard and Tracey Kendler. In the beginning of the second paragraph, the writer says, “Two followers of Clark Hull, Howard and Tracey Kendler, devised a test for children that was explicitly based on Clark Hull’s principles. …  …”

However, these lines DO NOT clarify whether Howard and Tracey Kendler studied under Clark Hull or not.

So, the answer is: NOT GIVEN  

Question no. 37: The Kendlers trained their subjects separately in the two stages of their experiment, but not in how to integrate the two actions.

Keywords for the question: The Kendlers, trained, subjects, separately, two stages, but not in, how to integrate, two actions,      

The answers can be found in paragraphs no. 2 and 3.

First, take a look at paragraph no. 2. Here, in lines 8-9, “ . . .. The children were trained on each stage separately . .. .. .”

Here, The children were trained = The Kendlers trained their subjects, on each stage separately = separately in the two stages,

Then, in the third paragraph, lines 8-11 say, “ . . . But they did not for the most part ‘integrate’ , to use the Kendlers’ terminology.”

So, the answer is: YES

Question no. 38: Michael Cole and his colleagues demonstrated that adult performance on inductive reasoning tasks depends on features of the apparatus and procedure.

Keywords for the question: Michael Cole, colleagues, demonstrated, adult performance, inductive reasoning tasks, depends on, features, apparatus and procedure,      

The answers can be found in the first and final lines of paragraph no. 5.

First, take a look at the first few lines of paragraph no. 5, where the writer says, “Instead of the button-pressing machine, Cole used a locked box and two differently coloured match-boxes , one of which contained a key that would open the box. .. ..”

These lines suggest that Michael Cole and his colleagues changed the apparatus and procedure in their experiments.  

Then, in the final lines of the same paragraph, the writer says, “ … .. . It then turns out that the difficulty of ‘integration’ is greatly reduced .”

This means adult performance on inductive reasoning tasks depends on features of the apparatus and procedure.

Question no. 39: All Hewson’s experiments used marbles of the same size.

Keywords for the question: all Hewson’s experiments, used, marbles of the same size,      

The answers can be found in lines 3-5 of paragraph no. 8, “ . .. .. How is he to know that any other marble of similar size will do just as well ? .. .. .”

Here, similar size = same size, 

Question no. 40: Hewson’s modifications resulted in a higher success rate for children of all ages.

Keywords for the question: Hewson’s modifications, resulted in, higher success rate, children of all ages,  

Paragraph no. 9 explains the results of Hewson’s modifications in his experiments. Here, take a look at the final lines of the paragraph, “ . . .. no improvement —rather a slight drop in performance – resulted from the change.”

Here, no improvement = there was no improvement in the success rate,

So, the answer is: NO

Click here for solutions to Cambridge 2 AC Test 1 Reading passage 1

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Children’s Thinking Reading Answers

Updated On Oct 10, 2023

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The Reading Module of the IELTS can be the top scoring category, with diligent practice. To achieve the best results in this section, you must understand how to approach and answer the different Question types in the Reading Module. By solving and reviewing Sample Reading Questions from past IELTS papers, you can ensure that your Reading skills are up to the mark.

The Academic passage ‘ Children’s Thinking’  is a reading passage that appeared in an IELTS Test.

Ideally, you should not spend more than 20 minutes on a passage. Let’s see how easy this passage is for you and if you’re able to make it in 20 minutes. If not, try more  IELTS reading practice tests  from IELTSMaterial.com

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Cambridge ielts reading with explanations

1. Creativity

Question: “building a ‘magical kingdom’ may help develop 1 …………………”

– building a ‘magical kingdom’ = this fantasy

– develop = take her first steps towards

– The phrase “magical kingdom” is put in the double quotes, implying it is emphasized as a phrase used in the text. As we can easily locate the phrase in the first sentence of the passage, we should pay attention to the first paragraph. What we need to focus on now is what the fantasy of building a magical kingdom can help develop, referring to its benefits in the future. The answer should be mentioned in the next sentences, after describing what building a magical kingdom is like. In those sentences, “take first steps towards her capacity” can be understood as “develop”, and it refers to “creativity”.

Question: board games involve 2 ………………. and turn-taking

Keywords: board games, turn-taking = takes turn

– We have to find information referring to board games. It is in the last sentence of paragraph 2 (we use scanning skills to find the word “board game” in the passage): “When they tire of this and settle down with a board game, she’s learning how to follow the rules and take turns with a partner”. So with board games, a child can learn to “follow the rules” and “take turns” (it means “turn-taking”, which is mentioned already as one of the two things involved). As the word needed should be a noun (after “involve”) and the task asks for one word only, it must be “rules”.

Question: Recent changes affecting children’s play: populations of 3 ………………. have grown.

– Recent changes = in changing times

– Populations = the people in the world

– have grown = over half

– Remember that question 3 belongs to the section “Recent changes affecting children‟s play”, so we should focus on the part of the passage where the author mentions “changes”, which is paragraph 5. Here, the author refers to “changing times”. “Population” means “the number of people or a species living in a certain area”. The word needed here should be a noun referring to a place or a species. In paragraph 5, the writer confirms that “over half of people in the world now live in cities”, implying the number of people living in cities has increased/ grown compared to the past.

Question: opportunities for free play are limited due to fear of 4 ………………..

– opportunities for free play = outdoor play

– limited = curtailed

– fear = perceptions of risk

Question : fear of 5 ………………

Keywords : fear = wish to protect their children from being the victims of crime

6. competition

Question : increased 6 ……………. in schools

– increased = greater

– in schools = in academic learning and schools

– The author mentions “Opportunities for free play” by saying that they “are becoming increasingly scarce” and “outdoor play is curtailed” in the second and third sentence in paragraph 5. “Curtail” means to reduce something with the result that we can no longer continue to do it. So we can assume it is replaced by the word “limited” here. Therefore, we should focus on those sentences to find the reasons for that. Reasons which are listed include “perception of risk to do with traffic”, “parents wish to protect their children from being victims of crime” and “greater competition in academic learning and schools”. “Perception of risk” and “wish to protect their children from something” should be considered as fears. Therefore, “traffic” and “crime” are the answers for Question 4 and 5 (One word only and it should be a noun – after preposition “of”). The third reason mentioned is “greater competition” in schools and “greater” can be understood as “increased”, so the answer for Question 6 is “competition”

7. evidence

Question : it is difficult to find 7 ……………… to support new policies

– difficult to find = lack

– support new policies = base policies on

– New policies are mentioned in paragraph 6, so we should pay attention here. As the word “difficult” is mentioned, we need to look for difficulties or disadvantages of supporting new policies. At first, the author mentions all the advantages, then he uses “but”, implying an added statement, usually something different from what he said before, so we can assume the next statement will be a disadvantage so we should focus here. “But what we often lack is the evidence to base policies on”. The phrase “to base policies on” can be considered as “to support new policies”, and “what they lack” means “it is difficult to find”, so the answer is “evidence”.

Question : research needs to study the impact of play on the rest of the child’s 8 …………….

– research need to study = very little data on

– the rest of = later

– As the word needed is put behind a possessive adjective (child’s), we need to look for a noun referring to the child. Paragraph 7 talks about the long – term impact of play. In the last sentence, the author explains that “long-term impact of play” means “the impact of play on the child’s later life” while “later” refers to “the rest”. Therefore, what is needed to fill in the blank here is “life”.

Question : Children with good self-control are known to be likely to do well at school later on.

– Children with good self-control = the ability to self-regulate.

– are know to be likely = has been shown to be.

– to do well = a key predictor.

– school = academic performance.

Explain : Find the paragraph beginning: “In a study carried out by Baker….” This was a study of very young pre-school children. The study found that “children with greater self-control solved problems more quickly..” According to the next paragraph, play is therefore very significant for education, “because the ability to self-regulate (= to control oneself) has been shown to be a key predictor of academic performance”. So, developing good self-control through play means that children are likely to do well academically in school later on

Question : The way a child plays may provide information about possible medical problems.

– The way a child play = playful behaviour

– provide information = give us important clues

– possible medical problems = their wellbeing; the diagnosis of…

– Find the paragraph beginning: “Gibson adds…” This is about the way that children play or, in other words, “playful behaviour”. We are told that this can indicate the healthy social and emotional development of children. Observing how children play “can give us important clues (= provide information) about their well-being and can even be useful in the diagnosis of neurodevelopmental disorders like autism”. Autism is an example of a medical problem. Therefore, a child’s behaviour during play may give information to help identify medical problems.

11. Not given

Question : Playing with dolls was found to benefit girls’ writing more than boys’ writing.

Keywords : dolls, benefit, writing

Explain : Find the paragraph beginning: “Whitebread’s recent research…” This is about using play to support children’s writing, because “Children wrote longer and better-structured stories when they first played with dolls representing characters in the story”. So, playing with dolls benefits the writing of children in general, but we are not told if this benefits girls more than boys.

Question: Children had problems thinking up ideas when they first created the story with Lego.

– had problems = didn’t know

– thinking up ideas/ created the story = know what to write about

Explain: In the same paragraph, we find the key words: “In the latest study, children first created their story with Lego with similar results. Many teachers commented that they had always previously had children saying they didn’t know what to write about. With the Lego building, however, not a single child said this….” So, using Lego to think up ideas (= create their story), children then had no problems with ideas for their stories.

Question : People nowadays regard children’s play as less significant than they did in the past.

– children’s play = play

– significant = importance

– less = has been lost

Explain :  We find the answer in the last paragraph: “Somehow the importance of play has been lost in recent decades. It’s regarded as something trivial, or even as something negative that contrasts with work.” In recent decades, attitudes to play have, therefore, changed. It is now considered to be something unimportant or even negative. In contrast, people in the past thought that it was more important.

THE IMPORTANCE OF CHILDREN’S PLAY

Brick by brick, six-year-old Alice is building a magical kingdom. Imagining fairy-tale turrets and fire-breathing dragons, wicked witches and gallant heroes, she’s creating an enchanting world. Although she isn’t aware of it, this fantasy is helping her take her first steps towards her capacity for creativity and so it will have important repercussions in her adult life (Q1).

Minutes later, Alice has abandoned the kingdom in favour of playing schools with her younger brother. When she bosses him around as his ‘teacher’, she’s practising how to regulate her emotions through pretence. Later on, when they tire of this and settle down with a board game, she’s learning about the need to follow rules and take turns with a partner (Q2) .

‘Play in all its rich variety is one of the highest achievements of the human species,’ says Dr David Whitebread from the Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge, UK. ‘It underpins how we develop as intellectual, problem-solving adults and is crucial to our success as a highly adaptable species.’

Recognizing the importance of play is not new: over two millennia ago, the Greek philosopher Plato extolled its virtues as a means of developing skills for adult life, and ideas about play-based learning have been developing since the 19th century.

But we live in changing times, and Whitebread is mindful of a worldwide decline in play, pointing out that over half the people in the world now live in cities (Q3). ‘The opportunities for free play, which I experienced almost every day of my childhood, are becoming increasingly scarce,’ he says. Outdoor play is curtailed by perceptions of risk to do with traffic (Q4), as well as parents’ increased wish to protect their children from being the victims of crime (Q5) , and by the emphasis on ‘earlier is better’ which is leading to greater competition in academic learning and schools (Q6).

International bodies like the United Nations and the European Union have begun to develop policies concerned with children’s right to play, and to consider implications for leisure facilities and educational programmes. But what they often lack is the evidence to base policies on (Q7) .

‘The type of play we are interested in is child-initiated, spontaneous and unpredictable – but, as soon as you ask a five-year-old “to play”, then you as the researcher have intervened,’ explains Dr Sara Baker. ‘And we want to know what the long-term impact of play is. It’s a real challenge.’

Dr Jenny Gibson agrees, pointing out that although some of the steps in the puzzle of how and why play is important have been looked at, there is very little data on the impact it has on the child’s later life (Q8) .

Now, thanks to the university’s new Centre for Research on Play in Education, Development and Learning (PEDAL), Whitebread, Baker, Gibson and a team of researchers hope to provide evidence on the role played by play in how a child develops.

‘A strong possibility is that play supports the early development of children’s self-control,’ explains Baker. ‘This is our ability to develop awareness of our own thinking progresses – it influences how effectively we go about undertaking challenging activities.’

In a study carried out by Baker with toddlers and young pre-schoolers, she found that children with greater self-control solved problems more quickly when exploring an unfamiliar set-up requiring scientific reasoning. ‘This sort of evidence makes up think that giving children the chance to play will make them more successful problem-solvers in the long run.’

If playful experiences do facilitate this aspect of development, say the researchers, it could be extremely significant for educational practices, because the ability to self-regulate has been shown to be a key predictor of academic performance (Q9) .

Gibson adds: ‘Playful behavior is also an important indicator of healthy social and emotional development. In my previous research, I investigated how observing children at play can give us important clues about their well-being and can even be useful in the diagnosis of neurodevelopmental disorders like autism.’ (Q10)

Whitebread’s recent research has involved developing a play-based approach to supporting children’s writing. ‘Many primary school children find writing difficult, but we showed in a previous study that a playful stimulus was far more effective than an instructional one.’ Children wrote longer and better-structured stories when they first played with dolls representing characters in the story (Q11) . In the latest study, children first created their story with Lego*, with similar results. ‘Many teachers commented that they had always previously had children saying they didn’t know what to write about. With the Lego building, however, not a single child said this through the whole year of the project.’ (Q12)

Whitebread, who directs PEDAL, trained as a primary school teacher in the early 1970s, when, as he describes, ‘the teaching of young children was largely a quiet backwater, untroubled by any serious intellectual debate or controversy.’ Now, the landscape is very different, with hotly debated topics such as school starting age.

‘Somehow the importance of play has been lost in recent decades (Q13). It’s regarded as something trivial, or even as something negative that contrasts with “work”. Let’s not lose sight of its benefits, and the fundamental contributions it makes to human achievements in the arts, sciences and technology. Let’s make sure children have a rich diet of play experiences.’

———————————- * Lego: coloured plastic building blocks and other pieces that can be joined together

Question : a description of how people misused a bike-sharing scheme.

Keywords : people, misused, bike-sharing, scheme

Explain : Paragraph E states that: “The system was prone to vandalism and theft”. This means that people damaged and stole bikes from the scheme, thus both can be called actions of misusing the scheme. Therefore, the answer is E.

Question : an explanation of why a proposed bike-sharing scheme was turned down.

Keywords : explanation, proposed, bike-sharing scheme, turned down

– Paragraph C states that: “the council unanimously rejected the plan”.

– Turn down = rejected, Scheme = plan

– The author further explains that the council turned down the plan because they believed bikes were a thing of the past. Thus, paragraph C gives an explanation of why a proposed bike-sharing scheme was turned down.

Question : a reference to a person being unable to profit from their work

Keywords : reference, person, unable, work, profit = benefit

Explain : We can find information relating to profit in both paragraphs E and F. In paragraph E, we know that the chip card wasn’t profitable, but it is irrelevant to, a person being unable to profit from their work. In paragraph F, however, we know that Schimmelpennink financially “didn’t really benefit from it” (it refers to his bike-sharing programme). Thus, Schimmelpennink didn’t profit from his work.

Question : an explanation of the potential savings a bike-sharing scheme would bring

Keywords : explanation, potential, savings, bike-sharing scheme

Explain : Schimmelpennink stated in paragraph C that his bike-sharing scheme “would cost the municipality only 10% of what it contributed to public transport per person per kilometre”. This suggests that the benefits of the scheme were much greater than the cost, hence it would save a lot of resources. This can be considered “the potential savings” of this scheme. Therefore, the answer is C.

Question : a reference to the problems a bike-sharing scheme was intended to solve.

Keywords : reference, bike-sharing scheme, intended, solve, problems = threats

Explain : The purposes of a bike-sharing scheme are mentioned in paragraph A: “the scheme…was an answer to the perceived threats of air pollution and consumerism”. Hence, air pollution and consumerism are two problems that the scheme was intended to solve.

Question : Which TWO of the following statements are made in the text about the Amsterdam bike-sharing scheme of 1999?

D    It was made possible by a change in people’s attitudes.

Keywords : two, statements, Amsterdam, bike-sharing, scheme, 1999

B    It failed when a partner in the scheme withdrew support.

– withdrew support = has lost interest

– partner = business partner

Explain 19, 20 :

– While there are a few mentions of the Amsterdam bike-sharing scheme in the text, we need to find information about the 1999 scheme, not the initial one. We can find this in paragraph D onwards.

– Schimmelpennink and his scheme “succeeded in arousing the interest of the Dutch Ministry of Transport”, so A is incorrect.

– Schimmelpennink said “times had changed”, referring to people’s change in attitudes towards the environment. This, combined with the success of the Danish bike-sharing scheme, led to the introduction of the new Amsterdam scheme in 1999. In other words, it was made possible by a change in people’s attitudes. Thus, D is one correct answer.

– Paragraph E mentions several problems faced by the scheme: vandalism, theft, and most importantly, Postbank’s withdrawal from the scheme. We know this because: “Postbank decided to abolish the chip card” and “the business partner had lost interest”. This was “the biggest blow” to the scheme, and the scheme could not continue. Therefore, B is correct.

Question : Which TWO of the following statements are made in the text about Amsterdam today?

E    The city has a reputation as a place that welcomes cyclists.

Keywords : two, statements, Amsterdam, today

D   A bike-sharing scheme would benefit residents who use public transport.

Keywords: residents who use public transport = people who travel on the underground.

Explain 21-22 :

– We can easily find the phrase, Amsterdam today at the beginning of paragraph G.

– “38% of all trips are made by bike”, but we cannot be sure that more trips in the city are made by bike than by any other form of transport, so C is incorrect.

– “it is regarded as one of the two most cycle-friendly capitals in the world”, which means Amsterdam is known as a place that welcomes cyclists. Thus, E is correct.

– Schimmelpennick also mentions the need for a bike-sharing scheme in Amsterdam today because “people who travel on the underground don’t carry their bike around. But often they need additional transport to reach their final destination”. People using the underground are, residents who use public transport, and they would benefit from the scheme. Thus, D is correct.

23. Activists

Question : The first bike-sharing scheme was the idea of the Dutch group Provo. The people who belonged to this group were 23……………

– was the idea of = came up with the idea

– the Dutch group = a group of Dutch

– “This group” refers to the Dutch group, Provo. We can find information about Provo in paragraph A. Here, it is stated that Provo “was a group of Dutch activists”, so “activists” is the answer.

24. Consumerism

Question: They were concerned about damage to the environment and about 24…………….

Keywords : damage to environment = perceived threats of air pollution

– Provo activists believed that the scheme would help to deal with air pollution and consumerism. This means that they are concerned about these two problems, and suggested a solution. Because air pollution can be understood as damage to the environment, the missing word in the blank is consumerism.

25. Leaflets

Question : As well as painting some bikes white, they handed out 25……………… that condemned the use of cars.

– handed out = distributed

– condemned = describing

– the use of cars = the dangers of cars

– The word “condemn” means “disapprove”. It is stated that Provo activists “distributed leaflets describing the dangers of cars”, meaning these leaflets disapproved (or condemned) the use of cars.

Question : However, the scheme was not a great success: almost as quickly as Provo left the bikes around the city, the 26…………….. took them away.

– as quickly as = as soon as

– took away = remove

– left the bikes around the city = the white bikes were distributed around the city

– Need N: the + N

– Paragraph B describes the scheme’s problems, one of which is that the police removed the bikes “as soon as the white bikes were distributed around the city”. Therefore, it is clear that the answer is “police”.

The growth of bike-sharing schemes around the world

How Dutch engineer Luud Schimmelpennink helped to devise urban bike-sharing schemes

The original idea for an urban bike-sharing scheme dates back to a summer’s day in Amsterdam in 1965. Provo, the organization that came up with the idea, was a group of Dutch activists who wanted to change society (Q23) . They believed the scheme, which was known as the Witte Fietsenplan, was an answer to the perceived threats of air pollution and consumerism (Q18, Q24) . In the centre of Amsterdam, they painted a small number of used bikes white. They also distributed leaflets describing the dangers of cars and inviting people to use the white bikes (Q25) . The bikes were then left unlocked at various locations around the city, to be used by anyone in need of transport.

Luud Schimmelpennink, a Dutch industrial engineer who still lives and cycles in Amsterdam, was heavily involved in the original scheme. He recalls how the scheme succeeded in attracting a great deal of attention – particularly when it came to publicising Provo’s aims – but struggled to get off the ground. The police were opposed to Provo’s initiatives and almost as soon as the white bikes were distributed around the city, they removed them (Q26) . However, for Schimmelpennink and for bike-sharing schemes in general, this was just the beginning. ‘The first Witte Fietsenplan was just a symbolic thing,’ he says. ‘We painted a few bikes white, that was all. Things got more serious when I became a member of the Amsterdam city council two years later.’

Schimmelpennink seized this opportunity to present a more elaborate Witte Fietsenplan to the city council. ‘My idea was that the municipality of Amsterdam would distribute 10,000 white bikes over the city, for everyone to use,’ he explains. ‘I made serious calculations. It turned out that a white bicycle – per person, per kilometer – would cost the municipality only 10% of what it contributed to public transport per person per kilometer.’ (Q17) Nevertheless, the council unanimously rejected the plan. ‘They said that the bicycle belongs to the past. They saw a glorious future for the car,’(Q15) says Schimmelpennink. But he was not in the least discouraged.

Schimmelpennink never stopped believing in bike-sharing, and in the mid-90s, two Danes asked for his help to set up a system in Copenhagen. The result was the world’s first large-scale bike-share programme. It worked on a deposit: ‘You dropped a coin in the bike and when you returned it, you got your money back.’ After setting up the Danish system, Schimmelpennink decided to try his luck again in the Netherlands – and this time he succeeded in arousing the interest of the Dutch Ministry of Transport. ‘Times had changed,’ he recalls. ‘People had become more environmentally conscious, and the Danish experiment had proved that bike-sharing was a real possibility.’ (Q19) A new Witte Fietsenplan was launched in 1999 in Amsterdam. However, riding a white bike was no longer free; it cost one guilder per trip and payment was made with a chip card developed by the Dutch bank Postbank. Schimmelpennink designed conspicuous, sturdy white bikes locked in special racks which could be opened with the chip card – the plan started with 250 bikes, distributed over five stations.

Theo Molenaar, who was a system designer for the project, worked alongside Schimmelpennink. ‘I remember when we were testing the bike racks, he announced that he had already designed better ones. But of course, we had to go through with the ones we had.’ The system, however, was prone to vandalism and theft. ‘After every weekend there would always be a couple of bikes missing,’ (Q14) Molenaar says. ‘I really have no idea what people did with them, because they could instantly be recognised as white bikes.’ But the biggest blow came when Postbank decided to abolish the chip card, because it wasn’t profitable. ‘That chip card was pivotal to the system,’ Molenaar says. ‘To continue the project we would have needed to set up another system, but the business partner had lost interest.’ (Q20)

Schimmelpennink was disappointed, but – characteristically – not for long. In 2002 he got a call from the French advertising corporation JC Decaux, who wanted to set up his bike-sharing scheme in Vienna. ‘That went really well. After Vienna, they set up a system in Lyon. Then in 2007, Paris followed. That was a decisive moment in the history of bike-sharing.’ The huge and unexpected success of the Parisian bike-sharing programme, which now boasts more than 20,000 bicycles, inspired cities all over the world to set up their own schemes, all modelled on Schimmelpennink’s. ‘It’s wonderful that this happened,’ he says. ‘But financially I didn’t really benefit from it, because I never filed for a patent.’(Q16)

In Amsterdam today, 38% of all trips are made by bike and, along with Copenhagen, it is regarded as one of the two most cycle-friendly capitals in the world – but the city never got another Witte Fietsenplan (Q21) . Molenaar believes this may be because everybody in Amsterdam already has a bike. Schimmelpennink, however, cannot see that this changes Amsterdam’s need for a bike-sharing scheme. ‘People who travel on the underground don’t carry their bikes around. But often they need additional transport to reach their final destination.’ (Q22) Although he thinks it is strange that a city like Amsterdam does not have a successful bike-sharing scheme, he is optimistic about the future. ‘In the ‘60s we didn’t stand a chance because people were prepared to give their lives to keep cars in the city. But that mentality has totally changed. Today everybody longs for cities that are not dominated by cars.’

Question : Hotel managers need to know what would encourage good staff to remain.

Keywords : hotel managers, encourage good staff to remain

– to know = to understand

– encourage good staff to remain = increase employee satisfaction and retention

Explain : Paragraph 8 refers to the practices that hotel management must develop “to inspire and retain competent employees”. The last sentence of paragraph 8 states that “it is beneficial for hotel managers to understand what practices are most favourable to increase employee satisfaction and retention”. To increase employee retention means to encourage employees to remain. This is the statement of Enz and Siguaw (2000), so the answer is E.

Question : The actions of managers may make staff feel they shouldn’t move to a different employer.

– the actions of managers = provide recognitions + motivate employees + remove obstacles

– they shouldn’t move = more obligated to stay with the company

Explain : According to Ng and Sorensen in paragraph 5: “employees feel more obligated to stay with the company” if the manager does certain things, such as: providing recognition, motivating group work, and removing obstacles. These are “actions of managers”, and these actions make employees feel that they should stay with the company and shouldn’t move to another employer. So D is the correct answer.

Question : Little is done in the hospitality industry to help workers improve their skills.

– help workers improve their skills = enables developing and drawing out the full potential of people

– little is done = does not appear to be designed to

Question : Staff are less likely to change jobs if cooperation is encouraged.

– are less likely to change jobs = more obligated to stay

– cooperation = employees to work together

– is encouraged = motivate

Explain : As we have learned in question 28, Ng and Sorensen suggest in paragraph 5 that motivating employees to work together, as well as other actions, is a way to keep staff from changing jobs.

Question : Dissatisfaction with pay is not the only reason why hospitality workers change jobs.

– Among the many cited reasons = not the only reason

– Low compensation = dissatisfaction with pay

– Change jobs = employee turnover

Explain : In the last sentence of paragraph 4, the author cited Madouras et al. to mention several reasons which result in high employee turnover in hospitality industry. These reasons include “low compensation”, or in other words, low pay. High employee turnover means that a high percentage of workers leave the company and are replaced by new employees. Thus, it can be understood that dissatisfaction with low pay is, along with other reasons, why hospitality workers change jobs frequently. The answer is C.

Question : One reason for high staff turnover in the hospitality industry is poor morale.

– One reason = Among many cited reason

– poor morale = compromised employee morale and attitudes

Explain : Paragraph 4 refers to “high employee turnover” in the hospitality industry. As we know from question 31, “compromised employee morale” is given in paragraph 4 as one reason for high employee turnover in the hospitality industry. The word “compromised” here suggests that employees are not very motivated to do their work, so we can also call it “poor morale”. The correct answer is YES.

Question : Research has shown that staff have a tendency to dislike their workplace.

– staff = employees

– their workplace = many aspects of their work

– Tendency = predisposition

– Dislike = view negatively

– Workplace = work environment

According to Spector et al in paragraph 6, “no evidence exists to support this hypothesis”. The said hypothesis is that employees have “a predisposition to view their work environment negatively”. In other words, employees have a tendency to dislike their workplace. Because there is no evidence, it cannot be said that this hypothesis is shown or proven by research. The answer is, therefore, NO.

Question : An improvement in working conditions and job security makes staff satisfied with their jobs.

– improvement in working conditions and job security

– just fulfilling these needs

Explain : We can find information relating to “working conditions and job security” in paragraph 9. According to Herzberg, when these are not good, employees may be dissatisfied. However, fulfilling factors like working conditions and job security alone “does not result in satisfaction” so the statement contradicts the writer’s claims.

35. Not given

Question : Staff should be allowed to choose when they take breaks during the working day.

Keywords : take breaks = allowing adequate breaks

Explain : In the last paragraph, it is stated that “allowing adequate breaks during the working day” is a way to retain good staff. However, this does not mean that staff should be allowed to choose when they take breaks. The statement is therefore NOT GIVEN.

36. Restaurants

Question : Tews, Michel and Stafford carried out research on staff in an American chain of 36……………

– carried out = conducted

– research = a study

– American = the United States

– Using the skim and scan skill, we can locate the information about Tews, Michael and Stafford’s study in paragraph 11. The study (research) focused on “staff from a chain of themed restaurants in the United States”. Thus, the answer is clearly “restaurants”

37. Performance

Question : They discovered that activities designed for staff to have fun improved their 37………………

– They discovered that = it was found that

– activities designed for staff = activities

– improved = has a favorable impact on

– Continue to read paragraph 11. According to these researchers, “It was found that fun activities had a favourable impact on performace”, meaning that fun activities improved staff performance. The answer for question 37 is “performance”. Next, “manager support for fun had a favourable impact in reducing turnover”. In this context, “manager support for fun” can be paraphrased into “manager involvement”. Thus, the answer for question 38 is “turnover”.

38. Turnover

Question : and that management involvement led to lower staff 38……………..

– management involvement = manager support for the fun

– led to = had as favorable impact in

– lower = reducing

39. Goals & 40. Characteristics

Question : They also found that the activities needed to fit with both the company’s 39…………… and the 40……………. of the staff.

– needed to fit with = must be carefully aligned with

– company’s = organizational

– on the staff = employee

Explain : Continuing to read paragraph 11, according to Tews, Michel and Stafford, the “framing of that fun” must be aligned with two things: organizational goals (paraphrased into company‟s goals) and employee characteristics. Thus, it is clear that the correct answers are “goals” and “characteristics”, respectively.

Motivational factors and the hospitality industry

A critical ingredient in the success of hotels is developing and maintaining superior performance from their employees. How is that accomplished? What Human Resource Management (HRM) practices should organizations invest in to acquire and retain great employees?

Some hotels aim to provide superior working conditions for their employees. The idea originated from workplaces – usually in the non-service sector – that emphasized fun and enjoyment as part of work-life balance. By contrast, the service sector, and more specifically hotels, has traditionally not extended these practices to address basic employee needs, such as good working conditions.

Pfeffer (1994) emphasizes that in order to succeed in a global business environment, organizations must make investment in Human Resource Management (HRM) to allow them to acquire employees who possess better skills and capabilities than their competitors. This investment will be to their competitive advantage. Despite this recognition of the importance of employee development, the hospitality industry has historically been dominated by underdeveloped HR practices (Lucas, 2002).

Lucas also points out that ‘the substance of HRM practices does not appear to be designed to foster constructive relations with employees or to represent a managerial approach that enables developing and drawing out the full potential of people, even though Q33 employees  may be broadly satisfied with many aspects of their work’ (Lucas, 2002) (Q29 Q33). In addition, or maybe as a result, high employee turnover has been a recurring problem throughout the hospitality industry. Among the many cited reasons are low compensation, inadequate benefits, poor working conditions and compromised employee morale and attitudes (Maroudas et al., 2008) (Q31 Q32).

Ng and Sorensen (2008) demonstrated that when managers provide recognition to employees, motivate employees to work together, and remove obstacles preventing effective performance, employees feel more obligated to stay with the company (Q28 Q30) . This was succinctly summarized by Michel et al. (2013): ‘[P]roviding support to employees gives them the confidence to perform their jobs better and the motivation to stay with the organization.’ Hospitality organizations can therefore enhance employee motivation and retention through the development and improvement of their working conditions. These conditions are inherently linked to the working environment.

While it seems likely that employees’ reactions to their job characteristics could be affected by a predisposition to view their work environment negatively, no evidence exists to support this hypothesis (Spector et al., 2000). However, given the opportunity, many people will find something to complain about in relation to their workplace (Poulston, 2009). There is a strong link between the perceptions of employees and particular factors of their work environment that are separate from the work itself, including company policies, salary and vacations.

Such conditions are particularly troubling for the luxury hotel market, where high-quality service, requiring a sophisticated approach to HRM, is recognized as a critical source of competitive advantage (Maroudas et al., 2008). In a real sense, the services of hotel employees represent their industry (Schneider and Bowen, 1993). This representation has commonly been limited to guest experiences. This suggests that there has been a dichotomy between the guest environment provided in luxury hotels and the working conditions of their employees.

It is therefore essential for hotel management to develop HRM practices that enable them to inspire and retain competent employees. This requires an understanding of what motivates employees at different levels of management and different stages of their careers (Enz and Siguaw, 2000). This implies that it is beneficial for hotel managers to understand what practices are most favorable to increase employee satisfaction and retention (Q27).

Herzberg (1966) proposes that people have two major types of needs, the first being extrinsic motivation factors relating to the context in which work is performed, rather than the work itself. These include working conditions and job security. When these factors are unfavorable, job dissatisfaction may result. Significantly, though, just fulfilling these needs does not result in satisfaction, but only in the reduction of dissatisfaction (Maroudas et al., 2008) (Q34).

Employees also have intrinsic motivation needs or motivators, which include such factors as achievement and recognition. Unlike extrinsic factors, motivator factors may ideally result in job satisfaction (Maroudas et al., 2008). Herzberg’s (1966) theory discusses the need for a ‘balance’ of these two types of needs.

The impact of fun as a motivating factor at work has also been explored. For example, Tews, Michel and Stafford (2013) conducted a study focusing on staff from a chain of themed restaurants in the United States (Q36). It was found that fun activities had a favorable impact on performance (Q37) and manager support for fun had a favorable impact in reducing turnover (Q38). Their findings support the view that fun may indeed have a beneficial effect, but the framing of that fun must be carefully aligned with both organizational goals and employee characteristics (Q39 Q40). ‘Managers must learn how to achieve the delicate balance of allowing employees the freedom to enjoy themselves at work while simultaneously high levels of performance’ (Tews et al., 2013).

Deery (2008) has recommended several actions that can be adopted at the organizational level to retain good staff as well as assist in balancing work and family life. Those particularly appropriate to the hospitality industry include allowing adequate breaks during the working day, staff functions that involve families, and providing health and well-being opportunities (Q35).

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Solution for: Children's thinking

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Exam Review

One of the most eminent of psychologists, Clark Hull , claimed that the essence of reasoning lies in the putting together of two 'behaviour segments' in some novel way, never actually performed before, so as to reach a goal.

Two followers of Clark Hull, Howard and Tracey Kendler, devised a test for children that was explicitly based on Clark Hull's principles. The children were given the task of learning to operate a machine so as to get a toy. In order to succeed they had to go through a two-stage sequence. The children were trained on each stage separately. The stages consisted merely of pressing the correct one of two buttons to get a marble; and of inserting the marble into a small hole to release the toy.

The Kendlers found that the children could learn the separate bits readily enough. Given the task of getting a marble by pressing the button they could get the marble; given the task of getting a toy when a marble was handed to them, they could use the marble. (All they had to do was put it in a hole.) But they did not for the most part 'integrate' , to use the Kendlers' terminology. They did not press the button to get the marble and then proceed without further help to use the marble to get the toy. So the Kendlers concluded that they were incapable of deductive reasoning.

The mystery at first appears to deepen when we learn, from another psychologist, Michael Cole, and his colleagues, that adults in an African culture apparently cannot do the ' task either . But it lessens, on the other hand, when we learn that a task was devised which was strictly analogous to the Kendlers' one but much easier for the African males to handle.

Instead of the button-pressing machine, Cole used a locked box and two differently coloured match-boxes, one of which contained a key that would open the box . Notice that there are still two behaviour segments — 'open the right match-box to get the key' and 'use the key to open the box' - so the task seems formally to be the same. But psychologically it is quite different.  Now the subject is dealing not with a strange machine but with familiar meaningful objects; and it is clear to him what he is meant to do. It then turns out that the difficulty of 'integration' is greatly reduced.

Recent work by Simon Hewson is of great interest here for it shows that, for young children, too, the difficulty lies not in the inferential processes which the task demands, but in certain perplexing features of the apparatus and the procedure. When these are changed in ways which do not at all affect the inferential nature of the problem, then five-year-old children solve the problem as well as college students did in the ' own experiments .

Hewson made two crucial changes. First, he replaced the button-pressing mechanism in the side panels by drawers in these panels which the child could open and shut. This took away the mystery from the first stage of training. Then he helped the child to understand that there was no 'magic' about the specific marble which, during the second stage of training, the experimenter handed to him so that he could pop it in the hole and get the reward.

A child understands nothing, after all, about how a marble put into a hole can open a little door. How is he to know that any other marble of similar size will do just as well? Yet he must assume that if he is to solve the problem. Hewson made the functional equivalence of different marbles clear by playing a 'swapping game' with the children. The two modifications together produced a jump in success rates from 30 per cent to 90 per cent for five-year-olds and from 35 per cent to 72.5 per cent for four-year-olds. For three-year- olds, for reasons that are still in need of clarification, no improvement—rather a slight drop in performance - resulted from the change.

We may conclude, then, that children experience very real difficulty when faced with the Kendler apparatus; but this difficulty cannot be taken as proof that they are incapable of deductive reasoning.

Questions 1-8

Classify the following descriptions as a referring 

Clark Hull                             CH

Howard and Tracy Kendler     HTK

Micheal Cole and colleagues   MC

Simon Hewson                      SH

  Write the appropriate letters in boxes 1-8 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any answer more than once .

1 CH HTK MC SH is cited as famous in the field of psychology. Answer: CH      Locate

2 CH HTK MC SH demonstrated that the two-stage experiment involving button-pressing and inserting a marble into a hole poses problems for certain adults as well as children. Answer: MC      Locate

3 CH HTK MC SH devised an experiment that investigated deductive reasoning without the use of any marbles. Answer: MC      Locate

4 CH HTK MC SH appears to have proved that a change in the apparatus dramatically improves the performance of children of certain ages. Answer: SH      Locate

5 CH HTK MC SH used a machine to measure inductive reasoning that replaced button-pressing with drawer-opening. Answer: SH      Locate

6 CH HTK MC SH experimented with things that the subjects might have been expected to encounter in everyday life, rather than with a machine. Answer: MC

7 CH HTK MC SH compared the performance of five-year-olds with college students, using the same apparatus with both sets of subjects. Answer: SH      Locate

8 CH HTK MC SH is cited as having demonstrated that earlier experiments into children's ability to reason deductively may have led to the wrong conclusions. Answer: SH      Locate

Questions 9-13

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage?

In boxes 9-13 on your answer sheet write

YES     if the statement agrees with the information

NO     if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this in the passage

9 YES NO NOT GIVEN      Howard and Tracey Kendler studied under Clark Hull. Answer: NOT GIVEN

10 YES NO NOT GIVEN    The Kendlers trained their subjects separately in the two stages of their experiment, but not in how to integrate the two actions. Answer: YES      Locate

11 YES NO NOT GIVEN    Michael Cole and his colleagues demonstrated that adult performance on inductive reasoning tasks depends on features of the apparatus and procedure. Answer: YES      Locate

12 YES NO NOT GIVEN    All Hewson's experiments used marbles of the same size. Answer: YES      Locate

13 YES NO NOT GIVEN    Hewson's modifications resulted in a higher success rate for children of all ages. Answer: NO      Locate

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‘The case for mixed-ability class’ – Reading Answer Explanation – CAM – 18

Here are explanations of the Questions of passage named ‘The case for mixed-ability class’, which is from the Cambridge 18 book. The Questions that have been asked are  MCQs’,‘ Summary Blanks’ and Yes/No/Not Given’. You will find the locations of the Reading Answers, Keywords( highlighted and underlined) and justifications.

READING PASSAGE 3: ‘The case for mixed-ability class’

Questions 27-30

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D

Write the correct letter in boxes 27-30 on your answer sheet.

27. The writer describes the Romeo and Juliet lesson in order to demonstrate

• how few students are interested in literature
• how a teacher handles a range of learning needs
• how unsuitable Shakespeare is for most teenagers.
• how weaker students can disrupt their classmates’ learning

Location: 1 st paragraph

Explanation: The  main keywords ‘Romeo and  Juliet’ helps to find an answer in the first paragraph. ‘For three students, even these literacy demands are beyond them. Another girl simply can’t focus and he gives her pens and paper to draw with…’ Here, ‘literacy demands’ and ‘ learning needs’ are synonyms.  The author talks about the demands of different students. Thus, the correct option is B.

28. What does the writer say about streaming in the third paragraph?

• It has a very broad appeal.
• It favors cleverer students.
• It is relatively simple to implement
• It works better in some schools than others.

Location: 3 rd paragraph

Explanation: The writer says in the initial lines, ‘The practice of ‘streaming”, or “tracking”. involves separating students into classes depending on their diagnosed levels of attainment. At a macro level, it requires the establishment of academically…’  In last line, ‘The practice is intuitively appealing to almost every stakeholder…’  This clarifies that it has broad appeal.

29. What idea is suggested by the reference to Mount Qomolangma in the fifth paragraph?

• students following unsuitable paths
• students attempting interesting tasks
• students not achieving their full potential
• students not being aware of their limitations

Location: 5 th paragraph

Explanation: The main keyword ‘Mount Qomolangma’ helps to find an answer is in the second line of the paragraph. ‘The brightest ones will never summit Mount Qomolangma, and the stragglers won’t enjoy the lovely stroll in the park they are perhaps more suited to. Individuals suffer at the demands of the collective, mediocrity prevails…’  Here, these lines  clarifies that students are not achieving their full potential.

30. What does the word ‘ scaffolding in the sixth paragraph refer to?

• the factors which prevent a student from learning effectively
• the environment where most of a student’s learning takes place
• the assistance given to a student in their initial stages of learning
• the setting of appropriate learning targets for a student’s aptitude

Location: 6 th paragraph

Explanation: The main keyword is ‘scaffolding’ and it is there in the last third line of the paragraph. ‘This is the gap between what they can achieve only with support -teachers, textbooks, worked examples, parents and so on-and what they can achieve independently The purpose of teaching is to provide and then gradually remove this ‘scaffolding’ until they are autonomous…’ Here, support of teachers, textbooks’ refers to ‘assistance’. And it was provided in the initial stage of learning until they become autonomous.

Questions 31-36

Complete the summary using the list of phrases, A-1, below Write the correct letter, A-l, in boxes 31-35 on your answer sheet

Is streaming effective?

According to Professor John Hattie of the Melbourne Education Research Institute, there is very little indication that streaming leads to 31 ……………….

Location: 8 th paragraph

Explanation: The main keyword ‘ John Hattie’ helps to locate an answer in the second line of the paragraph. ‘Streaming students by diagnosed achievement automatically limits what the teacher feels the student is capable of…’ Here, ‘diagnosed achievement automatically limits…’ that means ‘there is very little indication that it leads to higher achievements’. Thus, the answer is H.

He points out that, in schools which use streaming, the most significant impact is on those students placed in the 32 ………………, especially where a large proportion of them have 33 ……………….

Location: 7 th paragraph

Explanation:   The answer to this question is in the third line of the paragraph. ‘ outcomes What is more, streaming appears to significantly -and negatively-affect those students assigned to the lowest sets. These students tend to have much higher representation of low socioeconomic class…’ Here, ‘most significant impact’ and ‘significantly -and negatively-affect’ means the same. In addition, ‘assigned to’ and ‘placed to’ are synonyms. ‘Lower sets’ = ‘bottom sets’. Furthermore, ‘higher representation’ and ‘large proportion’ are synonyms. ‘low socioeconomic class’= ‘disadvantaged background’

Answer: (32) D

Meanwhile, for the 34 ……………., there appears to be only minimal advantage . A further issue is that teachers tend to 35 ………..of students in streamed groups .

Location: 7 th  paragraph

Explanation: The location of the answer is in the last two lines of the paragraph. ‘Less significant is the small benefit for those lucky clever students in the higher sets. The overall result is that the smart stay smart and the dumb get dumber. further entrenching the social divide…’ Here, ‘small benefit’ and ‘minimal advantage’ are synonyms. ‘lucky clever students in the higher sets…’ refers to ‘brightest students’. In addition, in 8 th paragraph, ‘Streaming students by diagnosed achievement automatically limits what the teacher feels the student is capable of…’ This line  means it lower the expectation of teachers. ‘Limits’ = ‘lower’

Answer: (34) E (35) B

A wrong classes

Blowerexpectations

C average learners

D bottom sets

E brightest pupils

F disadvantaged backgrounds

G weaker students

H higher achievement

I positive Impressions

Questions 36-40

Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer in Reading Passage 3? In boxes 38-40 on your answer sheet, write

YES if the statement agrees with the views of the writer

NO  if the statement contradicts the views of the writer

NOT GIVEN  if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

36. The Vygotsky model of education supports the concept of a mixed-ability class.

Explanation: The main keyword ‘Vygotsky’ helps to locate an answer in the second line of the paragraph. ‘ In the 1930s, Vygotsky emphasized the importance of targeting a student’s specific zone of proximal development (ZPD)…’ This model of education emphasize the importance of targeting  a specific zone that means it does not supports the concept of a mixed-ability class. Thus, the question statement is contradictory to passage statement.

37. Some teachers are uncertain about allowing students to take on MKO roles in the classroom.

Location: 10 th paragraph

Explanation: Though  the main keyword ‘MKO’  is there in the paragraph. ‘While teachers are traditionally the MKOs in classrooms, the value of knowledgeable student peers must not go unrecognised either….’ But there is no information related to teachers are uncertain about allowing students to take on MKO roles in the classroom. Thus, no information available.

Answer: Not Given

38. It can be rewarding to teach knowledge which you have only recently acquired.

Location: 11 th paragraph

Explanation:   The writer says in the second last line, ‘There is also something exciting about passing on skills and knowledge that you yourself have just mastered-a certain pride and zeal…’  Here, ‘exciting’ and ‘rewarding’ means the same. ‘Only recently acquired’ has been written as ‘just mastered’ in the passage. Thus, the answer is Yes.

Answer: Yes

39. The priority should be to ensure that the highest-achieving students attain their goals.

Location: Last paragraph

Explanation:   The location of the answer is in the second line of the paragraph. ‘And today, more than ever, we need the many to flourish-not suffer at the expense of a few bright stars…’ Here, this means writer states that  all other students should not be suffered due to  bright stars. Here, ‘bright stars’ and highest-achieving students’ means the same. Thus, the question statement is opposite to passage statement.

40. Taking part in collaborative outdoor activities with teachers and classmates can improve student outcomes in the classroom.

Explanation:   The writer talks about collaborative environment helps in improving learning or social skills in the beginning of the paragraph. But there is no information related to taking part in collaborative outdoor activities. Thus, no information available

‘The steam car’ – Reading Answer Explanation – CAM – 18

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CHILDREN’S THINKING: Reading Answers

IELTS Academic Test 1 – Passage 03: CHILDREN’S THINKING reading with answers location, explanation and pdf summary.

CHILDREN’S THINKING

One of the most eminent of psychologists, Clark Hull, claimed that the essence of reasoning lies in the putting together of two ‘behaviour segments’ in some novel way, never actually performed before, so as to reach a goal.

Two followers of Clark Hull, Howard and Tracey Kendler, devised a test for children that was explicitly based on Clark Hull’s principles. The children were given the task of learning to operate a machine so as to get a toy. In order to succeed they had to go through a two-stage sequence. The children were trained on each stage separately. The stages consisted merely of pressing the correct one of two buttons to get a marble; and of inserting the marble into a small hole to release the toy.

The Kendlers found that the children could learn the separate bits readily enough. Given the task of getting a marble by pressing the button they could get the marble; given the task of getting a toy when a marble was handed to them, they could use the marble. (All they had to do was put it in a hole.) But they did not for the most part ‘integrate’, to use the Kendlers’ terminology. They did not press the button to get the marble and then proceed without further help to use the marble to get the toy. So the Kendlers concluded that they were incapable of deductive reasoning.

The mystery at first appears to deepen when we learn, from another psychologist, Michael Cole, and his colleagues, that adults in an African culture apparently cannot do the Kendlers’ task either. But it lessens, on the other hand, when we learn that a task was devised which was strictly analogous to the Kendlers’ one but much easier for the African males to handle.

Instead of the button-pressing machine, Cole used a locked box and two differently coloured match-boxes, one of which contained a key that would open the box. Notice that there are still two behaviour segments — ‘open the right match-box to get the key’ and ‘use the key to open the box’ – so the task seems formally to be the same. But psychologically it is quite different. Now the subject is dealing not with a strange machine but with familiar meaningful objects; and it is clear to him what he is meant to do. It then turns out that the difficulty of ‘integration’ is greatly reduced.

Recent work by Simon Hewson is of great interest here for it shows that, for young children, too, the difficulty lies not in the inferential processes which the task demands, but in certain perplexing features of the apparatus and the procedure. When these are changed in ways which do not at all affect the inferential nature of the problem, then five-year-old children solve the problem as well as college students did in the Kendlers’ own experiments.

Hewson made two crucial changes. First, he replaced the button-pressing mechanism in the side panels by drawers in these panels which the child could open and shut. This took away the mystery from the first stage of training. Then he helped the child to understand that there was no ‘magic’ about the specific marble which, during the second stage of training, the experimenter handed to him so that he could pop it in the hole and get the reward.

A child understands nothing, after all, about how a marble put into a hole can open a little door. How is he to know that any other marble of similar size will do just as well? Yet he must assume that if he is to solve the problem. Hewson made the functional equivalence of different marbles clear by playing a ‘swapping game’ with the children. The two modifications together produced a jump in success rates from 30 per cent to 90 per cent for five-year-olds and from 35 per cent to 72.5 per cent for four-year-olds. For three-year- olds, for reasons that are still in need of clarification, no improvement—rather a slight drop in performance – resulted from the change.

We may conclude, then, that children experience very real difficulty when faced with the Kendler apparatus; but this difficulty cannot be taken as proof that they are incapable of deductive reasoning.

Questions 28-35

Classify the following descriptions as a referring :

Clark Hull CH

Howard and Tracy Kendler HTK

Micheal Cole and colleagues MC

Write the appropriate letters in boxes 28-35 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any answer more than once.

28. …………………….. is cited as famous in the field of psychology.

29. …………………….. demonstrated that the two-stage experiment involving button-pressing and inserting a marble into a hole poses problems for certain adults as well as children.

30. …………………….. devised an experiment that investigated deductive reasoning without the use of any marbles.

31. …………………….. appears to have proved that a change in the apparatus dramatically improves the performance of children of certain ages.

32. …………………….. used a machine to measure inductive reasoning that replaced button-pressing with drawer-opening.

33. …………………….. experimented with things that the subjects might have been expected to encounter in everyday life, rather than with a machine.

34. …………………….. compared the performance of five-year-olds with college students, using the same apparatus with both sets of subjects.

35. …………………….. is cited as having demonstrated that earlier experiments into children’s ability to reason deductively may have led to the wrong conclusions.

Questions 36-40

Do the following statements agree with the information in Reading Passage 2? In boxes 36-40 on your answer sheet write :

YES if the statement agrees with the information

NO if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this in the passage

36. Howard and Tracey Kendler studied under Clark Hull.

37. The Kendlers trained their subjects separately in the two stages of their experiment, but not in how to integrate the two actions.

38. Michael Cole and his colleagues demonstrated that adult performance on inductive reasoning tasks depends on features of the apparatus and procedure.

39. All Hewson’s experiments used marbles of the same size.

40. Hewson’s modifications resulted in a higher success rate for children of all ages.

Check out your CHILDREN’S THINKING reading answers below with locations and explanations given in the text.

28. CH 29. MC 30. MC 31. SH 32. SH 33. MC 34. HTK 35. SH 36. NOT GIVEN 37. YES 38. YES 39. YES 40. NO

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How To Promote Critical Thinking In Your Classroom

Promoting Thinking

November 25, 2006, by The Critical Thinking Co. Staff

Modeling of critical thinking skills by instructors is crucial for teaching critical thinking successfully. By making your own thought processes explicit in class - explaining your reasoning, evaluating evidence for a claim, probing the credibility of a source, or even describing what has puzzled or confused you - you provide a powerful example to students, particularly if you invite them to join in; e.g., "Can you see where we're headed with this?" "I can't think of other explanations; can you?" "This idea/principle struck me as difficult or confusing at first, but here's how I figured it out." You can encourage students to emulate this by using them in demonstrations, asking them to "think out loud" in order for classmates to observe how they reason through a problem.

Develop the habit of asking questions that require students to think critically, and tell students that you really expect them to give answers! In particular, Socratic questioning encourages students to develop and clarify their thinking: e.g., "Would your answer hold in all cases?" "How would you respond to a counter-example or counter-argument?" "Explain how you arrived at that answer?"

This is another skill that students can learn from your example, and can use in working with each other. Providing regular opportunities for pair or small group discussions after major points or demonstrations during lectures is also important: this allows students to process the new material, connect it to previously learned topics, and practice asking questions that promote further critical thinking. Obviously, conveying genuine respect for student input is essential. Communicating the message that you value and support student contributions and efforts to think critically increases confidence, and motivates students to continue building their thinking skills. An essential component of this process is the creation of a climate where students feel comfortable with exploring the process of reasoning through a problem without being "punished" for getting the wrong answer.

Researchers have found consistently that interaction among students, in the form of well-structured group discussions plays a central role in stimulating critical thinking. Discussing course material and its applications allows students to formulate and test hypotheses, practice asking thought-provoking questions, hear other perspectives, analyze claims, evaluate evidence, and explain and justify their reasoning. As they become more sophisticated and fluent in thinking critically, students can observe and critique each others' reasoning skills.

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IELTS Academic Reading Sample 42 - Children's Thinking

Ielts academic reading passage - children's thinking, children's thinking.

• Academic Reading
• Academic Reading Passage

Hello there. I would be happy if I find someone to practice my speaking.

Anyone could help me on explaining why the Q.34's answer is HKT and 35 is SH?

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100+ Critical Thinking Questions for Students To Ask About Anything

Critical thinkers question everything.

In an age of “fake news” claims and constant argument about pretty much any issue, critical thinking skills are key. Teach your students that it’s vital to ask questions about everything, but that it’s also important to ask the right sorts of questions. Students can use these critical thinking questions with fiction or nonfiction texts. They’re also useful when discussing important issues or trying to understand others’ motivations in general.

“Who” Critical Thinking Questions

Questions like these help students ponder who’s involved in a story and how the actions affect them. They’ll also consider who’s telling the tale and how reliable that narrator might be.

• Is the protagonist?
• Is the antagonist?
• Caused harm?
• Is harmed as a result?
• Was the most important character?

• Is responsible?
• Is most directly affected?
• Should have won?
• Will benefit?
• Would be affected by this?

• Makes the decisions?

“What” Critical Thinking Questions

Ask questions that explore issues more deeply, including those that might not be directly answered in the text.

• Background information do I know or need to know?
• Is the main message?
• Are the defining characteristics?

• Questions or concerns do I have?
• Don’t I understand?
• Evidence supports the author’s conclusion?
• Would it be like if … ?
• Could happen if … ?
• Other outcomes might have happened?
• Questions would you have asked?
• Would you ask the author about … ?
• Was the point of … ?
• Should have happened instead?
• Is that character’s motive?
• Else could have changed the whole story?

• Can you conclude?
• Would your position have been in that situation?
• Would happen if … ?
• Makes your position stronger?
• Was the turning point?
• Is the point of the question?
• Did it mean when … ?
• Is the other side of this argument?
• Was the purpose of … ?
• Does ______ mean?
• Is the problem you are trying to solve?
• Does the evidence say?
• Assumptions are you making?
• Is a better alternative?
• Are the strengths of the argument?

• Are the weaknesses of the argument?
• Is the difference between _______ and _______?

“Where” Critical Thinking Questions

Think about where the story is set and how it affects the actions. Plus, consider where and how you can learn more.

• Would this issue be a major problem?
• Are areas for improvement?
• Did the story change?
• Would you most often find this problem?

• Are there similar situations?
• Would you go to get answers to this problem?
• Can this be improved?
• Can you get more information?
• Will this idea take us?

“When” Critical Thinking Questions

Think about timing and the effect it has on the characters or people involved.

• Is this acceptable?
• Is this unacceptable?

• Does this become a problem?
• Is the best time to take action?
• Will we be able to tell if it worked?
• Is it time to reassess?
• Should we ask for help?
• Is the best time to start?
• Is it time to stop?
• Would this benefit society?

• Has this happened before?

“Why” Critical Thinking Questions

Asking “why” might be one of the most important parts of critical thinking. Exploring and understanding motivation helps develop empathy and make sense of difficult situations.

• Is _________ happening?
• Have we allowed this to happen?
• Should people care about this issue?

• Is this a problem?
• Did the character say … ?
• Did the character do … ?
• Is this relevant?
• Did the author write this?
• Did the author decide to … ?
• Is this important?

• Did that happen?
• Is it necessary?
• Do you think I (he, she, they) asked that question?
• Is that answer the best one?
• Do we need this today?

“How” Critical Thinking Questions

Use these questions to consider how things happen and whether change is possible.

• Do we know this is true?
• Does the language used affect the story?
• Would you solve … ?
• Is this different from other situations?

• Is this similar to … ?
• Would you use … ?
• Does the location affect the story?
• Could the story have ended differently?
• Does this work?
• Could this be harmful?
• Does this connect with what I already know?
• Else could this have been handled?
• Should they have responded?

• Would you feel about … ?
• Does this change the outcome?
• Did you make that decision?
• Does this benefit you/others?
• Does this hurt you/others?
• Could this problem be avoided?

More Critical Thinking Questions

Here are more questions to help probe further and deepen understanding.

• Can you give me an example?

• Do you agree with … ?
• Can you compare this with … ?
• Can you defend the actions of … ?
• Could this be interpreted differently?
• Is the narrator reliable?
• Does it seem too good to be true?

• Is ______ a fact or an opinion?

What are your favorite critical thinking questions? Come exchange ideas on the WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook .

Plus, check out 10 tips for teaching kids to be awesome critical thinkers ., you might also like.

5 Critical Thinking Skills Every Kid Needs To Learn (And How To Teach Them)

Teach them to thoughtfully question the world around them. Continue Reading

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CHILDREN’S THINKING IELTS READING.

Children’s thinking ielts reading answers..

• NOT GIVEN 

Need Assistance With IELTS

CHILDREN’S THINKING IELTS READING- passage

One of the most eminent of psychologists, Clark Hull, claimed that the essence of reasoning lies in the putting together of two ‘behaviour segments’ in some novel way, never actually performed before, so as to reach a goal.

Two followers of Clark Hull, Howard and Tracey Kendler, devised a test for children that was explicitly based on Clark Hull’s principles. The children were given the task of learning to operate a machine so as to get a toy. In order to succeed they had to go through a two-stage sequence. The children were trained on each stage separately. The stages consisted merely of pressing the correct one of two buttons to get a marble; and of inserting the marble into a small hole to release the toy.

 The Kendlers found that the children could learn the separate bits readily enough. Given the task of getting a marble by pressing the button they could get the marble; given the task of getting a toy when a marble was handed to them, they could use the marble. (All they had to do was put it in a hole.) But they did not for the most part ‘integrate’, to use the Kendlers’ terminology. They did not press the button to get the marble and then proceed without further help to use the marble to get the toy. So the Kendlers concluded that they were incapable of deductive reasoning.

The mystery at first appears to deepen when we learn, from another psychologist, Michael Cole, and his colleagues, that adults in an African culture apparently cannot do the Kendlers’ task either. But it lessens, on the other hand, when we learn that a task was devised which was strictly analogous to the Kendlers’ one but much easier for the African males to handle.

 Instead of the button-pressing machine, Cole used a locked box and two differently coloured match-boxes, one of which contained a key that would open the box. Notice that there are still two behaviour segments – ‘open the right match-box to get the key’ and ‘use the key to open the box’ – so the task seems formally to be the same. But psychologically it is quite different. Now the subject is dealing not with a strange machine but with familiar meaningful objects; and it is clear to him what he is meant to do. It then turns out that the difficulty of ‘integration’ is greatly reduced. 

Recent work by Simon Hewson is of great interest here for it shows that, for young children, too, the difficulty lies not in the inferential processes which the task demands, but in certain perplexing features of the apparatus and the procedure. When these are changed in ways which do not at all affect the inferential nature of the problem, then five-year-old children solve the problem as well as college students did in the Kendlers’ own experiments. 

Hewson made two crucial changes. First, he replaced the button-pressing mechanism in the side panels by drawers in these panels which the child could open and shut. This took away the mystery from the first stage of training. Then he helped the child to understand that there was no ‘magic’ about the specific marble which, during the second stage of training, the experimenter handed to him so that he could pop it in the hole and get the reward.

 A child understands nothing, after all, about how a marble put into a hole can open a little door. How is he to know that any other marble of similar size will do just as well? Yet he must assume that if he is to solve the problem. Hewson made the functional equivalence of different marbles clear by playing a ‘swapping game’ with the children.

 The two modifications together produced a jump in success rates from 30 percent to 90 percent for five-year-olds and from 35 percent to 72.5 percent for four-year-olds. For three-year-olds, for reasons that are still in need of clarification, no improvement – rather a slight drop in performance – resulted from the change. We may conclude, then, that children experience very real difficulty when faced with the Kendler apparatus; but this difficulty cannot be taken as proof that they are incapable of deductive reasoning.

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Questions 28–35 CHILDREN’S THINKING IELTS READING.

Classify the following descriptions as referring to:- Clark Hull CH Howard and Tracey Kendler HTK Michael Cole and colleagues MC Simon Hewson SH

Write the appropriate letters in boxes 28–35 on your answer sheet.

NB You may use any answer more than once.

28 …….. is cited as famous in the field of psychology. 29 ……. . demonstrated that the two-stage experiment involving button-pressing and inserting a marble into a hole poses problems for certain adults as well as children. 30 ……. . devised an experiment that investigated deductive reasoning without the use of any marbles. 31 …….. appears to have proved that a change in the apparatus dramatically improves the performance of children of certain ages. 32 …….. used a machine to measure inductive reasoning that replaced button-pressing with drawer-opening. 33 …….. experimented with things that the subjects might have been expected to encounter in everyday life, rather than with a machine. 34 …….. compared the performance of five-year-olds with college students, using the same apparatus with both sets of subjects. 35 …….. is cited as having demonstrated that earlier experiments into children’s ability to reason deductively may have led to the wrong conclusions.

Questions 36–40-CHILDREN’S THINKING IELTS READING

Do the following statements agree with the information given in Reading Passage 3? In boxes 36–40 on your answer sheet write:-

YES if the statement agrees with the information NO, if the statement contradicts the information NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this in the passage

36. Howard and Tracey Kendler studied under Clark Hull. 37 . The Kendlers trained their subjects separately in the two stages of their experiment, but not in how to integrate the two actions. 38. Michael Cole and his colleagues demonstrated that adult performance on inductive reasoning tasks depends on features of the apparatus and procedure. 39. All Hewson’s experiments used marbles of the same size. 40. Hewson’s modifications resulted in a higher success rate for children of all ages.

Answers of CHILDREN’S THINKING IELTS READIN G.

28 CH 

29 MC 

30 MC 

31 SH 

32 SH 

33 MC 

34 HTK 

35 SH 

36 NOT GIVEN 

37 YES 

38 YES 

39 YES 

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20 Critical Thinking Questions for IELTS Writing

20 questions to develop critical thinking skills.

In this lesson, we look at 20 questions that will help you to develop your critical thinking skills.

The more time you spend contemplating these questions in your preparation period, the faster you will be in your real IELTS writing test. 

The Environment

• What can individuals/ companies/ government do to protect the environment?
• Who has a greater responsibility to protect the environment: individuals, companies, or governments?
• What stops individuals/ companies/ governments from taking action to improve the environment?
• Which is more important: protecting the environment or economic growth?
• Is it a good thing that more people own their own private car?
• How can we reduce traffic congestion in cities?
• What are the positive and negative effects of tourism?
• How can the government protect areas of natural beauty?
• How do you think that parenting styles were different in the past?
• What makes someone a “good” parent?
• Who has a larger influence on children, parents, teachers, or friends?
• What differences are there in terms of the opportunities you have (schooling, jobs, etc.) if you are born into a rich family or a poor family?
• Should subjects such as art and music be taught in schools?
• What skills should schools equip young people with?
• What factors should young people consider when choosing a career?
• Many people get the news from social media. Is this a good or a bad thing?
• How does technology effect our productivity at work?
• How will advances in technology change the quantity and type of jobs in the future?
• Is salary the most important aspect when choosing a job?
• What makes a career or profession a “good” one to choose?

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