Enhancing Reading Comprehension and Analysis Skills
Enhance your Reading for Understanding, Analysis, and Evaluation (RUAE) skills through targeted strategies such as practicing with past papers, reading opinion articles, and mastering techniques for answering different question types. Focus on understanding, analyzing, and evaluating text to improve your overall reading proficiency.
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Reading for Understanding, Analysis and Evaluation RUAE Jotter RUAE Jotter National 5
Reading for UAE Skills How we are going to achieve
RUAE questions focus on three aspects... 1) Understanding 2) Analysis 3) Evaluation Revising RUAE at home: Once you have the strategies you are able to practise them at home. You can complete past papers from the SQA website, although I would hold off until later. What the writer is saying (Understanding) How the writer is saying it (Analysis) How effectively he is saying it (Evaluation) Best revision is reading Opinion, Comment or Voice articles from news websites aim for one a week. Scotsman The Herald The Times The Guardian The Telegraph Basic news articles do not express much opinion or contain many rhetorical devices.
Section A Section A - - Understanding Questions Understanding Questions 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. In your own words questions Summary question Linking questions Context questions Contrast questions
In your own words questions. CONTENTS CONTENTS
In your own words Question - - Formula Formula There are two jobs to do for in your own words questions: 1) Find the correct answer in the passage LOCATE 2) Turn it into your own words TRANSLATE Remember: LOCATE and TRANSLATE
Own words Worked Example Passage NONOVELOFTHEPASTCENTURY has had more influence than George Orwell s 1984. The title, the adjectival form of the author s last name, the vocabulary of the all-powerful Party that rules the superstate Oceania with the ideology of Ingsoc doublethink, memoryhole, unperson, thoughtcrime, Newspeak, Thought Police, Room 101, Big Brother they ve all entered the English language as instantly recognizable signs of a nightmare future. It s almost impossible to talk about propaganda, surveillance, authoritarian politics, or perversions of truth without dropping a reference to 1984. Question Using your own words, identify the reasons the writer believes 1984 has had more influence than any other book in the past century. (3)
Worked Example Bad Answer The title the adjectival form of the author s last name, the vocabulary of the book THIS IS A BAD ANSWER AS THEY HAVE QUOTED FROM THE PASSAGE Good Answer The reason the writer thinks the book is influential is because.: The name of the book is very recognisable The word Orwellian is used as an adjective The language used in the book is part of daily speech
Practice Example 1 Practice Example 1 Many of the commentators I hear on television expressing their opinions about football games leave me cold. I cannot be bothered with their ill-informed, pompous and often irrelevant contributions. I usually watch the games with the sound turned down. Explain two reasons why the writer does not like football commentators. (2)
Practice Example 2 Practice Example 2 The most worrying thing about Big Brother is it has turned the boredom of others into entertainment. It worries me that there seems to be a demand for 24 hour coverage from The House and there is constant footage of incredibly dull activities like housemates sleeping, cooking or sitting on their own staring into space. What sort of nation have we become when we are prepared to give up our own time to watch others who are even more bored than we are? Using your own words, explain why the writer finds Big Brother worrying ? (2)
Practice Example 3 Practice Example 3 Scottish football went from a high Aberdeen winning a European trophy and the national team qualifying for five World Cup Finals in a row to a definite low. The reasons for the deterioration in the nation s standing in the footballing world? Chronic lack of investment in youth football was one factor. The other is more profound our unhealthy diet and obsession with alcohol started to catch up with us as a nation, particularly in terms of the athleticism (or lack of it) in our professional footballers. In your own words, describe the reasons for Scotland s decline as a footballing nation. (3)
Summary Question CONTENTS CONTENTS
Summary Question One key skill the examiners want you to have is the ability to follow, and summarise, a key idea or line of thought running throughout an article or passage. You can expect that the final question in the exam paper will test your ability to do this.
How to answer How to answer You must use your own words. You get no marks for quoting. You should use bullet points instead of writing in paragraphs. Think: each bullet point is worth one mark.
Worked Example Worked Example A crisis in the teaching profession means that the government is investing in a massive advertising campaign to attract young graduates in to the profession. Many staff are simply at retirement age with not enough trainees to take their place, said Kathy Field, a spokesperson for the EIS, Scotland s largest teaching union, however graduates are choosing other career paths with higher wages that are perceived as being of a higher status. Some teacher have also come to the conclusion that the hectic pace of modern education plus the challenge of unruly pupils, means they are leaving the profession for other, easier alternatives. Summarise why there are a shortage of teachers in Scotland (3 marks) Summarise why there are a shortage of teachers in Scotland (3 marks)
Linking questions CONTENTS CONTENTS
Linking questions A linking sentence is one which links two paragraphs together. Usually this sentence will appear at the start of the second of the two paragraphs which are being linked. Look carefully at the sentence which is the link. There will be two parts to this sentence: One part will link back to the content of the paragraph before. The other part of the sentence will link forward to the content of the new paragraph.
Link Question formula 1. Quote a word or phrase that links back to earlier in the passage. 2. Quote a word or phrase that link forward to what is to come in the passage. Remember!!! You will get no marks if you quote the full link sentence!
Worked Example. For example, a link question based on the news article about a teenage computer curfew might be worded like this: How does the sentence Needless to say, my efforts to explain this to my daughter were pretty hapless. form a link between paragraphs 8 and 9?
Especially for girls, with their intimate, gossipy, social the drive to remain as connected as possible with friends is overwhelming. Yet perversely, floating in an electronic sea has the deeper effect of depriving them of the habit of being alone, developing their own thoughts. Needless to say, my efforts to explain this to my daughter were pretty hapless. I dredged up the example of the hostage Terry Waite who got through years chained to a radiator in Beirut by the sheer strength of his interior life. My daughter listened politely, but her expression was incredulous. When was she ever going to be chained to a radiator in Beirut?
A good answer to this question would be: 1) The expression to explain this links back to the previous paragraph which discusses the harmful effects of always being connected to your phone 2) The expression my efforts were hapless links forward to the writer s attempt to explain the value of having an interior life and being an individual to her daughter.
Link Example Show how the underlined sentence acts as a link at this point in the passage (2) Her mother left her at the age of five. As a result, she was forced to fend for and pay for herself: ensuring she had enough to eat; clothes to wear and shelter from the elements. Despite her harsh childhood, Emma s ancestry linked her to wealth and social standing. Her grandmother was Lady of the local clan, with a grand manse and estate to her family name, which was renowned throughout the country.
Context Questions You might be asked to show HOW the context helps us to understand the meaning of a word. This will usually be a two mark question: 1 for the meaning, 1 for how the context helped you find the meaning.
Context Question Formula The word/ expression _____________ as used here means _______________. I can work this from the context because ___________________________________________________.
Context question practice At Guy s and St Thomas hospitals in London, an initiative was set up two years ago to help people aged 18-30 with autism gain work experience. Staynton Brown, associated director of equality and diversity at the hospital, dismissed any suggestion of the initiative being a philanthropic one. This is not a charitable gesture , he said. we want to make sure we have the most talented workforce possible. It s in our interests in multiple ways. We ve all benefited from the changes we ve incorporated to accommodate those with autism. By clarifying the way we give information to and help introduce the interns into the hospital, we ve made communication clearer for everyone, which leads to better patient care.
Context questions How does the context of the second paragraph help you to work out what is meant by philanthropic ? (2)
a) The word philanthropic as used here means done out of feelings of charity or solely for the good of others. I can work this out from the context because the expression is followed with the idea that employing people with autism is not charitable.
Contrast questions CONTENTS CONTENTS
Contrast Contrast is a technique often used by writers to differentiate between two aspects of an argument, or two views of an issue. It works by setting two things against each other and asking the reader to see what the differences are. Its effect is often to clarify a line of thought. Formula x suggests . . . This contrasts with . . . y as it suggests . . .
Example 1 The supreme athlete and unique showman once deemed by Time magazine to be the most instantly recognised human being in the world, struggled up from a settee, tottered across the carpet and embraced me in an enveloping bear-hug. Facially bloated he could speak only in brief, almost unintelligible gasps. By referring to these lines, show how the writer uses contrast to convey his shock at meeting Muhammed Ali years later. (2)
Steps to consider The easiest contrast to use here is probably between supreme athlete and any of the words which suggest that physically Ali was weak: struggled , tottered . Alternatively, you could take unique showman and contrast that with his inability now to communicate or perform well: brief almost unintelligible gasps . A third possibility would be to take the most instantly recognised and contrast that with facially bloated .
Answer The writer conveys his shock by contrasting Ali s past physical glory, the description supreme athlete suggesting that every muscle is honed and ready for combat, with the very weak condition he is in now. Struggled and tottered suggest that his muscles will hardly hold him, that he is a ruin of a man compared with what he once was.
Example Question In days of old Bond was expected to save the world and get the girl every time. When old smoothy, Sean Connery played 007, he seduced women as frequently as he knocked back a dry martini or shot a baddie-and with equally little thought. Bond girls of old were accessories, serving only to highlight Bond s macho aggressiveness and control. Now the new girls match our hero shot for shot. They lure Bond into the boudoir, they rescue him in the nick of time from a speeding bullet and, shock horror- sometimes they even do it better! Explain the difference between old Bond movies and more recent films (2)
Section B - Analysis Questions (WIST) Word Choice Imagery Structure Tone
Word Choice All words that a writer uses are chosen in some way, but when we talk about word choice as a technique, we mean that certain words are deliberately chosen to obtain particular effects or to suggest particular meanings. (Not every word is word choice) Most words have two levels of meaning, a denotation and a more complex connotation. Denotation basic, simple, straightforward meaning. Connotation the ideas that a word suggests to you.
Word Choice: Connotations Write down some synonyms for thin . Beside each one identify a couple of connotations. e.g. Slender connotations of healthy and graceful These words all essentially mean thin , but have massively different connotations. Scrawny connotations of underfed and sickly-looking Slender connotations of healthy and graceful lean - connotations of healthy and trim Slim neutral word, also positive like thin Skinny connotations of being unhealthy Underweight connotations of being insufficient
Word Choice: Connotations Some words are flat and neutral: they don t have connotations. Betsy walked into the room. What would the effect on this sentence be if walked was changed to slouched strode crept skipped Waddled The word slouched has connotations of laziness, carelessness, and untidiness.
Word Choice: Connotations Some words are flat and neutral: they don t have connotations. Betsy walked into the room. What would the effect on this sentence be if walked was changed to slouched Strode confident, arrogant Crept duplicitous, sneaky Skipped joyful, ecstatic Waddled timid, uncomfortable, clumsy The word slouched has connotations of laziness, carelessness, and untidiness.
Task One: Read the statements and identify the Task One: Read the statements and identify the denotation and connotation of the words underlined. denotation and connotation of the words underlined. The boy was interrogated about his actions by his parents. We have been bombarded with numerous images. Many claimants have had their welfare payments axed.
The boy was interrogated about his actions by his parents. D:ask questions of (someone) closely, aggressively, or formally. C: asked persistently and in hostile manner We have been bombarded with numerous images. D: attack (a place or person) continuously with bombs/subject (someone) to a continuous flow of questions, criticisms, or information. C: multiple things have been sent, continuously busy Many claimants have had their welfare payments axed. D: end, cancel, or dismiss suddenly and ruthlessly. C: Done unfairly, insensitive, without consideration
Word Choice Formula If you re talking about word choice, you need to be able to select a word (or short phrase) and then explain why it s important. word + has connotations of . + This suggests explanation of its connotations in your own words and link back to the question.
Example 1 Themissing part of the Cinderella story is what happens when she puts on the glass slipper and disappears into the palace. Rowling filled in the blanks, describing to Jeremy Paxman how she has to cope with begging letters, journalists rifling through her bins, photographers lurking on the beach, and strangers accosting her in the supermarket. Explain howthe writer s word choice in these lines helps to show the negative effects of fame. (4 marks) The writers word choice of ___________ has connotations of ________, _________. This suggests ____________________...
Answer Candidates should explain how the word choice shows the negative effects of fame. Any two of the following explanations with accurate analysis for two marks each. begging letters implies unpleasant/unwanted attention Journalists rifling through her bins suggests invasion of privacy/indiscriminate searching and/or unpleasant/unwanted attention Photographers lurking on the beach implies covert/hidden/suspicion/being observed from a distance and/or unpleasant/unwanted attention
Answer Strangers implies people she does not know giving her unwanted attention Accosted implies unwanted attention/a sense of danger In the supermarket implies she cannot perform everyday tasks
Example 2 Look at lines 25-29. Explain how the writer uses word choice to emphasise how special the event is for teenagers attending. 4
Extract By 6 pm, several 16-year-olds are standing in the magisterial surroundings of the Pavilion Suite at Orsett Hall. The unceasing rain hasn t dampened the excitement as the teenagers flood in to inspect the formally laid tables, helium balloons and glittery fairy lights. The prevailing smell is of hairspray and scent. Friends who normally wear shapeless uniforms and dirty trainers are transformed into exotic peacocks in huge- skirted ball gowns, teetering heels and heavy make up.
Back to the question Look at lines 25-29. Explain how the writer uses word choice to emphasise how special the event is for teenagers attending. 4
Answer Candidates should explain how the word choice conveys that the setting of the event and the appearance of the teenagers are different form usual. At least 2 examples with comments for full marks. magisterial connotations of something impressive, luxurious, dignified formally implies a special occasion where everything is done carefully/properly transformed suggests a complete change into something almost recognisable
Answer exotic peacocks - peacocks has connotations of trying to show off, an elaborate, colourful appearance etc. exotic suggests something rare, out of the ordinary shapeless uniforms suggest something dull, unattractive, unappealing contrasts with what they wear to the prom dirty trainers again, unglamorous, everyday, unappealing contrasts with teetering heels etc.
