A&U LANGUAGE INSTITUTE

LESSON

03 READING

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTION

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LESSON 3: READING
MULTIPLE - CHOICE QUESTION

A. STRATEGIES & TIPS

I. The task
You will be asked to:
● Read the question stem (it can be a question or the first half of a sentence - sentence
beginning) about the text.
● Choose the most appropriate answer or sentence ending from a list of options.
II. Strategies
In the test, you will not have time to read the whole passage in detail. You need to quickly
find the part of the text that contains the answer.
● Read the instructions and questions: It is important to read the instructions very
carefully as the number of letters you need to choose can vary. Carefully read the
questions. Don’t worry if there are words you don’t understand. If they appear in the
text, you may be able to work them out in context. Alternatively, synonyms that you
do understand may have been used.
● Skim the text: quickly read through the text to know what it is about.
● Identify the key word: Next, look at the question stem (NOT the options A, B, C,
D) and decide which words will help you find the answer. These are the key words.
● Locate the answer in the text: Then, read the text again quickly. This time you are
only looking for the key words or words which mean the same (scanning). That is
the part of the text where the answer is.
● Choose the most appropriate option: Once you’ve located the section of text
containing the answer, read in detail to fully understand it. Now go back and read
the answer options again. Usually, one or two options will clearly be wrong. Cross
them out to eliminate them once you are sure they’re incorrect. Continue to study
the detail in the remaining answers until you've identified the right one.

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There is another way to do multiple-choice questions.

● Read the instructions and questions
● Skim the text for general understanding
● Identify the key words (the most important words) in the question.
● Find the part of the passage that gives the answer.
● Try to answer the question yourself.
● Look at the options and find the one that matches your answer.
III. Tips
- Watch out for distractors. Be aware that the test setters love to include "distractors"
in the answer options to try and catch you out. A prime example is qualifying words such
as every, all, most, a few. They are only small words, but they can completely change the
meaning of a sentence.
E.g.: Everyone who ate the prawn sandwiches at the party was ill.
Most people who ate the prawn sandwiches at the party were ill.
- It’s also useful to know the types of incorrect answers that might be included. Be alert
for answers that give:
● Almost the correct information. (Watch out for the distractors.)
● The opposite information. (It’s easy to be fooled by these.)
● Information that’s included in the same paragraph as the true answer but not relevant
to the question.
● Information related to the question but not included in the text.

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B. PRACTICE
Exercise 1: If you see these words (1-7) in a question, what words might you expect
to find in the text? Choose a word or phrase from the box below.

advantages attending distance learning overseas

globalisation enrich lifelong learning offices
disrupting valuable westernisation

1. abroad _________________
2. benefits _________________
3. disturbing _________________
4. going to _________________
5. make better _________________
6. useful _________________
7. workplaces _________________
The words you don't need are examples of the type of words which are likely to be the
same in both the question and the text (words that can’t be paraphrased).
Exercise 2: Spend another ONE minute quickly reading the text and answer this
question. Does the text express a positive or negative view of globalisation in
education?
Exercise 3: Quickly find which paragraph (A-F) you need to read to answer these
questions. Then choose the correct answer and justify your answer with evidence
from the text.
1. Blended learning means
A. continuing to learn throughout your life.
B. studying online or via email.
C. mixing traditional and modern methods.
D. learning in a classroom.

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Paragraph: ______
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________
2. All of these are advantages of globalized education except:
A. Students in developing countries can get better jobs.
B. Students can get a degree at a cheaper price.
C. Universities benefit from international students.
D. The elite get most of the opportunities.
Paragraph: ______
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________

GLOBALISATION OF EDUCATION AND THE WORKPLACE

A. Globalisation has affected most aspects of our lives. One area which has changed is
education. More and more people move to different countries for their studies. At the same
time, more people stay at home and study by distance learning. It is now easy to learn
without attending a college or university, or attending less often. "Blended learning" means
studying partly in a traditional way in the classroom and partly online or via email. These
changes also mean that there is now more interest in "lifelong learning", the idea that we
go on learning throughout our working lives and even into retirement. It is easy to attend
"webinars" or online seminars without being away from our offices. Many adults go back
to college later in life because it is so easy to get a qualification without giving up work or
disrupting family life.
B. Different countries have benefitted from the globalisation of education in different
ways. Many British, Australian and American universities run their degree programmes
in countries throughout Asia, and many students, parents and employers feel this is a
valuable opportunity. Students can get an internationally recognized degree at a much
cheaper price than going abroad and so can improve their chances of getting a good
job. At the same time, those in the countries providing world-class degrees also benefit.
They have greater access to ideas and knowledge from all over the world and having
international students enriches their universities.
C. However, it is not good news for everyone in some developing countries. It is usually the
elite - or the richest people in the large cities - who have access to international education.
Many people in rural areas have not even had a primary education. Also, those areas
usually do not have reliable internet connections and most people do not own a computer.

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It will take a bit more time for international opportunities to reach everyone in developing
countries.
D. One concern people have about globalisation is that it can start to mean "westernisation".
In other words, local knowledge can be lost and money seen as more important than
culture. Education should treat every culture with respect; it should not be just learning
about the West, but should include different ways of teaching and approaches from around
the world. The aim is to enrich and share; the flow of ideas and information should go from
East to West as well as from West to East.
E. Educational institutions have changed their focus due to globalisation. There are so
many benefits of having overseas students that universities are competing for them, using
strategies from the world of business. For example, they visit Education Fairs all over the
world and spend time and money creating publicity material and advertisements. There
is also more emphasis on the student experience. There is more focus on customer care,
especially helping international students to settle in, improve their English and understand
the academic culture of the host country.
F. There are many advantages to the globalisation of education and the workplace. More
people get benefits that were only available to those in the developed countries before.
There is more understanding between different nations as people learn about each other's
cultures. However, it is important to make sure the benefits reach everyone and don't leave
many citizens of the developing world behind.
Exercise 4: Write your own answers to these questions.
1. Who benefits from globalised education in developing countries?
______________________________________________________________
2. What is the meaning of 'westernisation'?
______________________________________________________________
3. How has the focus of educational institutions changed?
______________________________________________________________

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Exercise 5: Look at the options and find the one closest to your answer.
1. Who benefits from globalised education in developing countries?
A. almost everyone in those countries
B. mainly well-off people in big towns
C.only those in developed countries
D.only those who own a computer
2. What is the meaning of "westernisation"?
A. learning only about the West
B. learning local knowledge
C. not learning about culture
D. treating culture with respect
3. How has the focus of educational institutions changed?
A. They have become poor value for money.
B. Staff are not committed to their students.
C. They are focused on attracting students.
D. They only want foreign students.

C. EXAM PRACTICE
THE GULF STREAM AND GLOBAL WARMING
Labrador and London lie at about the same latitude, but Labrador is frigid and has only 30
miles of paved roads while London is one of the major centers of civilization. Why do two
places, equidistant from the Arctic Circle, have such disparate climates? The Gulf Stream
that flows by the British Isles makes all the difference: Its warm waters make northwestern
Europe so abundant with life that palm trees can actually grow on the southern shores of
England.
This life-giving Gulf Stream is warm, salty water, which travels along the surface of the
Atlantic Ocean from the Caribbean, along the east coast of the United States, and then
veers toward Europe. In the tropics, this water is warmed by the sun and becomes saltier
because of the higher rate of evaporation in the heat. The Gulf Stream divides as it travels,

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but the majority of the stream moves north and east. As it travels past Europe, the Gulf
Stream warms the atmosphere, and the prevailing westerly winds bring the warmed air
to all of northwestern Europe, making the area suitable for intense agriculture. The Gulf
Stream makes it possible for Europe to feed an increasingly large population.
After the Gulf Stream reaches southeast Greenland and western Iceland, much of the
heat of the stream is gone, and the colder, denser water then sinks. The bulk of the Gulf
Stream is carried down toward the ocean floor into as many as seven large vortices, called
chimneys. They suck the Gulf Stream waters down over a mile deep, where the water is
then drawn into another dynamic ocean current. Almost 2 miles below the surface, this cold
water current flows in reverse, from the north southward. When this cold water nears the
equator, it is again pulled up from the bottom of the ocean as the surface water is heated
and starts its journey north. This upwelling brings with it minerals and food from the detritus
at the bottom of the ocean to refresh food supplies for fish and other marine creatures.
This stream of water - the warm water traveling north along the surface and the cold water
traveling south along the floor - has become known as the Great Ocean Conveyor Belt.
This flow of ocean currents has been extremely important in regulating the temperature of
the globe and in making life possible. These currents in the North Atlantic are part of the
Great Conveyor Belt that flows through all the oceans of the world. The least stable section
of this global current is in the North Atlantic. The Gulf Stream is the most unstable of all.
Predictions of the effects of global warming on the Gulf Stream are based on computer
models, which differ to some extent. But several important facts are known. South of
Greenland, there used to be as many as seven chimneys that pulled water from the Gulf
Stream down toward the ocean floor. In the last several years, only one remained, and then,
in 2007, that one disappeared. The causes for the demise of the chimneys may include
the increase in fresh water from glacial melt. In recent winters, glacial melt has released
record amounts of fresh water into the oceans. As the North Atlantic waters, including
fresh water from rivers as well as the increased amount of glacial melt, mix with the Gulf
Stream, the salt water is diluted. Because fresh water is not as dense as salt water, it does
not sink, which impairs the natural mechanism for forming the chimneys. As the chimneys
have disappeared, the Gulf Stream has slowed. About 30 percent of the water from the
Gulf Stream that used to reach Europe travels elsewhere or is lost in the disintegration of
the current, a loss of over six million tons of water flow every second. Without a strong
Gulf Stream, the slow, cold water of the lower part of the conveyor belt fails to rise, which
reduces the circulation of nutrients for marine life. The problem of warming then worsens:
As less surface water, which is full of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, siphons into the

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depths of the ocean, less carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere, thus increasing
global warming.
Ocean sediments and glacial cores show that there have been global swings in temperature
in the past. The last Ice Age, when much of North America and northern Europe were
covered in glaciers 2 miles thick, occurred when the average temperature dropped about
5 degrees Celsius. That ice age ended about 20,000 years ago. The last "Little Ice Age",
when the average temperature dropped only 1 to 2 degrees Celsius, occurred in the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, hitting Europe hardest. At that time, the Gulf Stream
had slowed to about half its usual rate.
Core samples also show that the changes in temperature have been abrupt, not gradual.
There would be little time to prepare for the devastating changes resulting from the
weakening of the Gulf Stream. The good news is that in the winters of 2008 and 2009,
one of the chimneys off southeastern Greenland suddenly burst into action again, bringing
the Gulf Stream waters down deep enough to be caught in the conveyor and to keep the
ocean currents in the North Atlantic flowing.
Questions 1-7: Write the correct letter, A, B, or C. Justify your answer with evidence
from the text.
1. Labrador and London are similar in
A. climate.
B. distance from the North Pole.
C. abundance of wildlife.
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________
2. Europe can support a large population because
A. it has a lot of fresh water.
B. it is at the proper latitude.
C. it has a good climate for farming.
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________

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3. When the Gulf Stream reaches the North Atlantic, it sinks because
A. it has become colder.
B. it has become less salty.
C. it is blown by the winds.
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________
4. Ocean currents help make life on Earth possible because they
A. enable marine life to travel.
B. maintain suitable temperatures.
C. regulate glacial melt.
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________
5. In 2007, the number of vortices, or chimneys that pulled the waters of the Gulf Stream
down toward the ocean floor was
A. zero.
B. one.
C. seven.
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________
6. During the most recent Little Ice Age,
A. the Gulf Stream slowed down significantly.
B. Europe was affected only slightly.
C. glaciers covered much of North America.
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________
7. In the past, climate change has happened
A. at regular intervals.
B. gradually over time.
C. very quickly.
Evidence: ______________________________________________________________

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