Reading for Understanding Analysis and Evaluation Understanding Questions

Reading for Understanding, Analysis, and Evaluation Understanding Questions: • In your own words • Summary • Context • Link

• The question will always tell you exactly what to do; close reading questions are instructions. • There are no trick questions. Remember… • Provide a bullet point per mark. • You cannot be awarded a half mark. • A word of advice: when given the option, always answer on word choice.

Read for Something • Read the title! • Read any dateline, context summary, subheadings, and captions. • Read the by-line too (at the end of the passage). Consider: ØTopic and issues ØViewpoint (discursive/persuasive writing techniques). ØBias ØTarget audience

Understanding Questions Show your understanding of the writer’s language, points, and ideas. You must use your own words to do so. The 4 types of UNDERSTANDING questions are: 1. Own Words: Explain and translate language and ideas from the text into your own words. 2. Summary: Identify key points or ideas and describe in brief with own words. 3. Context questions: Give the definition of a key word and explain how the words and ideas around it help you work this out 4. Link questions: Explain how a sentence or paragraph acts as a link between different ideas the writer discusses.

Own Words • Explain and translate the writers ideas, points, or language into your own words.

The heavy rain had an immediate impact on life in the trenches. Simple tasks became a problem as soldiers were forced to trudge through sticky mud everywhere Example they went. How does the writer’s language convey the soldiers did not enjoy living in the trenches at this time? Use your own words. marks 2

• (“trudge”/ “sticky mud”) Their movements were heavy, slow and tired. The terrain was challenging and unpleasant. • (“heavy rain”) Answer The conditions were poor and the journey was laborious – additional weight from soaked kit. • (“forced”) • Soldiers were following orders and did not want to take the actions demanded of them – or there was no other way.

Practice 1 – ‘In your own words’ Questions Explain in your own words one of the reasons why there is a “void” which “Cowell’s creation seems to be filling” {2} Many of us will spend more time in the virtual company of the contestants than we do with our real-life friends and family. In a modern world in which local communities have become increasingly fractured, where relatives live further apart from each other than ever before and where one in five of us will never speak to our neighbours, Cowell’s creation seems to be filling the void. [2013/3 b]

Answer • neighbourhoods / districts (1) are (ever more) split / separated / disjointed (1) or • members of families (1) are (physically) distant / far away from one another (1) or • 20%/one fifth / a (significant) number of us (1) have no communication with people next door / in vicinity (1)

Practice 2 – in your own words The writer calls the Great Wall an “iconic symbol”. In your own words, explain fully what aspects of China it symbolises. {3} He is regarded as the grandfather of the Great Wall, that iconic symbol of China’s historical separateness and age-old industriousness. [2010/9 b]

Answer Long-standing (gloss of “historical” or “age-old”) (1) Isolation (gloss of “separateness”) (1) Capacity for hard work (gloss of “industriousness”) (1)

Practice 3 – In your own words Explain in your own words what the two “huge evolutionary benefits” of superstitions are. {4} Imagine a caveman going to pick some berries from some bushes near his rocky abode. He hears some rustling in the bushes and wrongly infers that there is a lion lurking in there and scarpers. He even gets a little superstitious about those bushes and gives them a wide berth in future. Is this superstition a problem to our caveman? Well, not if there are plenty of other berry-bearing bushes from which to get his five-a-day. But suppose that there really is a lion living in those bushes. The caveman’s behaviour now looks not only sensible but life-saving. So, a tendency to perceive connections that do not actually exist can confer huge evolutionary benefits, providing a cocoon of safety in a turbulent and dangerous world. The only proviso (according to some devilishly complicated mathematics known as game theory) is this: your superstitions must not impose too much of a burden on those occasions when they are without foundation. [2012/11]

Answer Being superstitious can make you cautious (1) and (therefore) more likely to survive (1) Superstitions can insulate/shield/shelter/protect (1) in unstable/risky/perilous/unsettled circumstances (1)

Practise 4 - In your own words Explain in your own words in what ways “The keypad isn’t linguistically sensible”. {2} Sending a message on a mobile phone is not the most natural of ways to communicate. The keypad isn’t linguistically sensible. No one took letterfrequency considerations into account when designing it. For example, key 7 on my mobile contains four symbols, pqrs. It takes four key-presses to access the letter s, and yet s is one of the most frequently occurring letters in English. It is twice as easy to input q, which is one of the least frequently occurring letters. It should be the other way round. So any strategy that reduces the time and awkwardness of inputting graphic symbols is bound to be attractive. [2011/11]

Answer The letters which are used most often (1) are not the most easily/most quickly written (1)

Summary Identify key points or ideas and describe in brief with own words.

• Formula: Summary questions 1. Locate relevant part of passage (Look for quotes or line references in question) 2. Consider how many marks are available. 3. Highlight in passage pieces of relevant text, then match these to marks available. 4. Translate information into your OWN WORDS; bullet point to make each separate point clear.

• Treating wounds quickly and effectively under fire takes skill and knowledge. Firstly there must be no delay in cleaning the wound to avoid infection. A steady hand is required to remove any grit or other tiny splinters. A trained professional is also needed to make sure that sutures are strong enough to close the wound, yet not so tight as to tear the skin. • In your own words explain what steps need to be taken to successfully treat wounds on the battlefield. 3 U Example

Answer • The injury must be washed straight away to prevent germs affecting it. • Any small pieces of dirt or other material should be taken out. • Stitches should close the injury that are not going to cause any further damage to the tissue.

Practice 1 – Summary Summarise in your own words the points the writer makes about superstition nowadays. {4} And this is almost precisely what superstitions look like in the modern world. Some believe in horoscopes, but few allow them to dictate their behaviour; some like to wear the same lucky shoes to every job interview, but it is not as if wearing a different pair would improve their chances of success; some like to bounce the ball precisely seven times before serving at tennis, but although they are wrong to suppose that this ball bouncing is implicated in their success, it does not harm their prospects (even if it irritates those of us watching). [2012/13]

Answer People (still) indulge in superstition (1) In various situations (1) It has little influence/(beneficial) effect (1) It is harmless (1)

Practice 2 – Summary Summarise in your own words the points the writer makes about abbreviations. {3 } English has had abbreviated words ever since it began to be written down. Words such as exam, vet, fridge and bus are so familiar that they have effectively become new words. When some of these abbreviated forms first came into use, they also attracted criticism. In 1711, for example, Joseph Addison complained about the way words were being “miserably curtailed”— he mentioned pos (itive) and incog (nito). [2011/9]

Answer This is not new/has a long history (1) Abbreviations have always had a hostile reception/met with disapproval (1) But abbreviations have been accepted into the language in their own right (1)

Practise 3 - Summary Summarise in your own words the reasons why it is “rather shocking” that most people in the West do not know about Qin. {4} That probably goes for the vast majority of people in the West. And given that he is one of the most colossal figures ever to have walked the earth, that is rather shocking. For Qin Shihuangdi, its First Emperor, created China more than two millennia ago, establishing the world’s longest-lasting empire. A visionary, a brutal tyrant and a megalomaniac, he is the greatest historical figure that most of us have never heard of. [2011/3]

Answer He is a very important person in history (gloss of “colossal” or “greatest”) (1) He set up/founded China (gloss of “created”) (1) He set up/founded an imperial dynasty (gloss of “First Emperor”) (1) His regime was the most permanent/durable/prolonged (gloss of “long-lasting”) (1)

Practise 4 - Summary Summarise in your own words the ways in which Qin managed to “tighten his grip on every aspect of life. {3} The first Emperor survived at least three assassination attempts in subsequent years, incidents that served to tighten his grip on every aspect of life. He created a surveillance culture in which neighbours were expected to spy on each other and lived in fear of terrible punishments for failing to do so or for breaking the many laws. One of the most miserable punishments, which very often proved to be a death sentence, was to be dispatched into the wilderness to toil on the construction of the wall Qin Shihuangdi had ordered to be built along the northern frontier of the empire. [2010/7]

Answer People watched/observed one another (gloss of surveillance culture/spy) (1) Severe reprisals/penalties (gloss of terrible punishments) (1) Multiplicity of regulations/edicts/ rulings/instructions (gloss of many laws) (1)

Context Questions • Give the definition of a key word and explain how the words and ideas around it help you work this out

• Formula: Context questions 1. Locate key word (Look for quotes or line references in question) 2. Define key word 3. Quote 2 linked words or phrases from the text that helped you work out the meaning of the key word 4. Explain how these linked words and phrases relate to the key word

Strategies for working out the meaning of key words: Context questions • Think of words that look or sound similar • Try the substitution test-swap the meaning you think is right for the key word and see if the passage still makes sense • Try to divide the word into smaller parts that give clues to the meaning: NON / NEGOTIABLE = not open to discussion If all else fails, GUESS!

Example: Intensive farming however can lead to the birds suffering from a number of ailments. Many birds grow so heavy they cannot support their own weight. Other common problems are deformed bones, slipped tendons, arthritis and foot ulcers. Explain what the word, “ailment” means and how the context of this word helps you understand this. 3 marks

Answer: • Ailment means an illness or medical condition. • “Problems” and “ deformed bones……foot ulcers” relate to the meaning of this word. • They both refer to the health problems the birds experience, and create a list of the medical problems or “ailments” the birds suffer.

Practise 1 Despite his claims that he had been wrongly accused the bank robbery was clearly a premeditated crime. The thief had prepared an alibi by clocking in at work that morning. Days earlier he obtained a firearm that was used in the robbery and he had bought a ticket to Brazil for that very afternoon. Explain what you understand by the word, ‘premeditated’ and explain how the context helped you work this out. 3 marks

Answer: • ‘Premeditated’ means something that is planned or thought about in advance. • “prepared an alibi” and “bought a ticket to Brazil” are evidence of this • Both show that the thief had prepared for the robbery before he carried it out and he had thought about how to get away with the crime in advance.

Practise 2 - Context • “… The audience became increasingly restless. His verbosity had reduced many of them to looking at their watches as he went on and on…” • Explain how the context could help you understand the meaning of the word “verbosity. ” (2)

Answer • The word “verbosity” means talking too much. The context helped me work this out because the words “on and on” suggest he talked for too long.

Linking question Formula: • Locate the linking sentence • Quote the section from the link sentence which links back to earlier in the passage. • Idea from earlier in the passage to explain link. • Quote the section from the link sentence that links forward in the passage. • Idea from later in the passage to explain link.

Link Question • Explain how a sentence - at the start or end of a paragraph – or a short paragraph acts as a link between different ideas the writer is expressing. A link is connects points – think of a bridge. So, you must show a sentence links from the first point and then to the next point.

Example Tigers in the swamps of eastern India have developed a taste for human flesh. At least 50 people have been killed over the last 5 years. The actual figure may be double as wildlife officials say that many attacks go unreported. Tigers attack fisherman at night and honey collectors in the forest. This deadly reign of terror may be coming to an end however as man bites back. Forest officials have developed new methods of defence such as electrified clay dummies that deliver a 300 volt to any tiger foolish enough to attack. Honey collectors are also being armed with firecrackers to scare away stalking animals. How does the last sentence of paragraph 1 act as an effective link? 2 marks

Answer • “deadly reign of terror” refers back • to information about tiger attacks on humans in paragraph 1. • “Man bites back” looks forward • to explore the methods used to reduce attacks as discussed in paragraph 2.

Practise 1 - Link So that’s the elitist argument against Rowling, if you like: that her work is part of a general dumbing down; that in a way the whole Potter phenomenon represents a missed opportunity to stretch children’s imaginations and teach millions the use of supple, challenging, original writing. Where I quarrel with Harry Potter is not the quality of the writing but in the marketing. This Harry – Harry the Brand – really is a monster of the first order. Somewhere along the line the author waved bye to her creation and saw it become a global money-making colossus, on which exploited the thrill of the chase and the tribal yearning to be part of something. It wasn’t a book; it was a badge of belonging; a cult, Warner Bros. And more than 70 million Google entries. “I’ve got mine. Have you got yours? ” Q: By referring to certain specific words or phrases show the first sentence in the second paragraph performs a link function. 2 U

Answer • The phrase “not in the quality of the writing” clearly link back • to the previous paragraph where the writer has been discussing the aspects of Rowling’s writing that she finds poor. • The phrase “but in the marketing” look forward • To the remainer of the passage where the writer presents ideas about marketing/ branding as greedy.

Practise 2 - Link Q 19. Explain why the paragraph “Could it be… other species on the planet? ” works well at this point as a link of the ideas in the passage. {4} But the superstitions and rituals so beloved by the world’s top players are not confined to the court. They take even more bizarre twists when the poor dears get home after their matches. Goran Ivanisevic got it into his head that if he won a match he had to repeat everything he did the previous day, such as eating the same food at the same restaurant, talking to the same people and watching the same TV programmes. One year this meant that he had to watch Teletubbies every morning during his Wimbledon campaign. “Sometimes it got very boring, ” he said. Could it be that these multifarious superstitions tell us something of deeper importance not only about humanity but about other species on the planet? The answer, I think, is to be found in the world of pigeons. Yes, really. These feathered fellows, you see, are the tennis players of the bird world. Don’t take my word for it: that was the opinion of B. F. Skinner, the man widely regarded as the father of modern psychology. [2012/3]

Answer • • • “(these multifarious) superstitions”/ “(not only about) humanity” looks back (1) to the ideas of the previous paragraph about superstition/ human behaviour (1) “of deeper importance”/ “other species” looks forward (1) to ideas bout psychology/ pigeons (1) Or “not only (about humanity)” (1) signals a diversion (1) Or the question the sentence asks (1) is then answered (1)

Practise 3 - Link Q 21. Explain how the sentence “But for the First Emperor, establishing complete control over his empire was not enough. ” works as a link between paragraphs at this point. {4} He is regarded as the grandfather of the Great Wall, that iconic symbol of China’s historical separateness and age-old industriousness. The First Emperor’s imprint on the lives of the inhabitants of his far-flung kingdoms was seen further. He unified the script, demanding that all states write the pictographs of ancient Chinese in the same way. So, although the words might be pronounced differently in different parts of the empire, once they were written down everyone who could read could understand each other, a particular advantage for traders. Some of the pictographs are recognisable in the language today, and the principle of a single written language that can be spoken in different ways remains. But for the First Emperor, establishing complete control over his empire was not enough. He wanted to rule forever. If he couldn’t have immortality in this world, the next best thing would be to rule in the nether world. We knew about his tomb mound because the ancient sources referred to it, and it has always been there. [2010/10]

Answer “establishing complete control over his empire” refers back (1) to preceding ideas about dominance (1) “was not enough” looks forward (1) to other things he wanted to do/have or deas about power/memory/impact beyond death (1) • Or • “But” (1) • introduces contrast (1) • • •

Practise 4 - Link Q 22. “But there were not enough books to go round. ” Explain how this sentence provides a link between paragraphs at this point. {4} One former pupil, now in his forties, says of Dickens: “Four or five of us would be together and discuss the stories. And to think he wasn’t banned! The authorities didn’t know what was in these books, how they helped us to be strong, to think that we were not forgotten. ” Not being forgotten was particularly crucial. The apartheid regime had tried to “vanish” black people. Feeling abandoned and isolated, people turned to Dickens as someone who understood their plight. But there were not enough books to go round. Few of the crateloads of Shakespeare, Hardy and Dickens shipped from Britain reached the townships. Instead, they came to Soweto in parcels from charities. They were read by candlelight, often out loud, shared in a circle, or passed from hand to hand. [2009/6]

Answer “books” refers back (1) to Dickens in previous paragraph (1) “not enough” looks forward (1) To the idea of paucity/scarcity developed in the rest of the paragraph (1) • Or • “But” (1) • introduces contrast (1) • • •

Some practise with articles

The Observer view on persisting pay inequality It’s too simple to blame market forces for the yawning discrepancies. Who’s worth more? The radio presenter who grills evasive politicians on behalf of the nation every morning? The carer who drops in on your elderly parent three times a day? The footballer whose skills you admire so much? The head of one of our most prestigious universities? Or the cleaner who freshens up your hotel room? The simplest way to answer this question lies in how much they get paid. Footballers top the league: Lionel Messi has just become the world’s first footballer to clear £ 1 m a week. The vice-chancellor of the University of Bath, the country’s top paid university chief, commands a salary of more than £ 450, 000. We will know on Wednesday how much John Humphrys gets paid when the BBC publishes the salaries of its stars on more than £ 150, 000 a year. At the other end of the scale, our story this week reveals the Spanish women cleaning the hotel rooms of British holidaymakers typically earn less than £ 13, 000 a year. The care sector is one of the worst culprits when it comes to non-compliance with national minimum wage legislation: the Resolution Foundation has estimated frontline care workers collectively miss out on over £ 100 m a year due to non-payment of the legal minimum. However, it seems obscene that a university vice-chancellor might be worth more than 30 times someone doing emotionally and physically difficult care work. As soon as we start to probe the philosophical basis of our grounds for assessing what we deserve, questions about the financial worth of someone’s work become much more complex. What are we looking to reward? Effort or natural talent or some mix of the two? Why is it fair that someone born with the raw talent to excel at sport could go on to make so much more than someone who doesn’t? Isn’t this just brute luck? CONTINUED ON NEXT SLIDE

This is perhaps why it’s rare in the popular debate to see high pay justified purely with reference to what we deserve. Instead, its defenders tend to hide behind the market: we need to pay people extortionately to attract the top talent. No doubt this is the argument the BBC will make this week when it defends the salaries of its top stars. However, the market defence deserves far more scrutiny. It is often made most strongly in relation to the private sector: the chief executives of Britain’s biggest companies are in a position to demand multimillion pound salaries; if they don’t get them, they will simply move elsewhere. While average wages have stagnated since the financial crisis, FTSE 100 chief executives have seen their average pay shoot up from just over £ 4 m in 2010 to almost £ 5. 5 m in 2015. The corporate sector’s dirty little secret is that far from this being a case of the market reigning supreme, it is a symptom of like-minded, wealthy people scratching each other’s backs. Jobs aren’t advertised. Board pay is negotiated behind closed doors by a group of people on six-figure salaries, who want to be seen to be paying their chief executive in the top quartile to send a message about the status of their company. Hence corporate pay continues to ratchet up. The situation is worse in the financial sector, where banks that had to be bailed out with tens of billions of pounds by the taxpayer continue to pay fat-cat bonuses to their staff. But it’s not just the private sector: in the public sector, the argument that great people might instead depart for the private sector is used to justify huge salaries at taxpayer expense, ignoring the non-financial cachet of these jobs. More than 10 university vice-chancellors now earn more than £ 400, 000 a year. The chief executive of the Harris chain of academy schools, who earned almost £ 400, 000 a year in 2015, has seen his salary increase by more than 80% since 2009. Meanwhile, several top universities regularly employ academics on zero hours contracts and average pay rises for teachers and nurses have been frozen then capped at 1% since 2010. The truth is that high pay is rarely driven by unique talent or market forces. Instead, it’s a reflection of the cultural value society puts on different kinds of work. We place little value on work, largely carried out by women, such as caring; bizarrely, we continue to reserve more respect for the financiers who crashed the global economy. Until we face up to this, astronomical pay will be here to stay.

The Observer view on persisting pay inequality 1. What are the main ideas in the text? 2. What structural devices does the writer use to develop the argument?

Answer: The observer view on persisting pay inequality 1: • There are huge difference in pay in different areas of our society. • These differences say something about the way we value people and their jobs. • This does not seem fair. 2: • A set of questions, asking about the worth of different jobs in our society. • Figures stating what people doing these jobs are paid. • Comments on wide differences of pay. • More questions, asking how it is that rewards are worked out/decided on. • Conclusions drawn as to what society really values.

“In Praise of…Paddington Bear” Guardian Fifty years ago a stowaway bear from darkest Peru arrived in London, clutching a battered suitcase. Welcomed into the home of Mr and Mrs Brown, and renamed after the station where he was found, Paddington stepped into the lives of generations of children. With his red bush hat and blue duffel coat - and, of course, with a marmalade sandwich in hand - he remains instantly recognisable. To mark the half century his creator, Michael Bond, has written Paddington Here and Now, which goes on sale today. In his first novel in 29 years, Paddington faces his most threatening adventure: he has a run-in with police and is interrogated over his residency status. It is easy for us to forget that Paddington is an immigrant - a refugee at that - so long has he been around; he seems as British as they come. In creating him Bond had in mind the child evacuees who fled wartime London with labels tied around their necks. But Paddington's journey is also representative of all those from abroad who have made for London during his long years in the city. And can there be a better model than Mr and Mrs Brown for the open and welcoming Britain to which we should aspire? Or than Paddington himself, with his polite manner and sunny optimism, for the kind of temper more citizens should have? Fewer are quite so fond of marmalade nowadays, and the endearing bear represents a postwar milieu that has passed. But Britain must always make room for those, like Paddington, who "try so hard to get things right". 1. How does the writer use the example of Paddington Bear to make a serious point about Britain today? (2) 2. Look at the last four lines of the passage (‘Few…right’). What tone is adopted by the writer in these lines and how does he achieve it? (2)

Questions: “In Praise of…Paddington Bear” Guardian 1. How does the writer use the example of Paddington Bear to make a serious point about Britain today? (2) 2. Look at the last four lines of the passage (‘Few…right’). What tone is adopted by the writer in these lines and how does he achieve it? (2)

Answers: “In Praise of…Paddington Bear” Guardian 1. Work of fiction, the writer shows that in the past British people have welcomed immigrants not only to country but in their affections. OR The social values represented in Paddington Bear (good manners, positive outlook) are ones that should be fostered in British society today. 2. Adopts a tone of nostalgia – ‘Few are quite so fond of marmalade nowadays’ – affection for things passed. Adopts affectionate tone – ‘endearing’ suggests fondness. Positive tone – ‘Britain must always make room for those…’ The ‘must always’ is encouraging.