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April 2006

IELTS Reading tips: True, False, Not Given

Every IELTS Reading test, no matter Academic or General has tasks of this kind. Lots of students tell me (and I agree) that this is a very confusing task.

For those who have no idea what I am talking about, I’ll explain – this task has a statement, and your job is to say whether or not it is True, False or Not Given according to the reading passage.

How do you “attack” this question type? First learn the rule:

  • If the statement clearly appears in the text – it is True
  • If the text clearly says the opposite of the statement – it is False
  • If you didn’t find the statement to be either True or False – it is Not Given

    • For example:
    “Smoking is dangerous and can lead to cancer” – T, F, NG

    1) If the text clearly says that “smoking is dangerous and leads to cancer” then the answer is T.

    2) If the text says that “No research showed evidence that smoking is dangerous and leads to cancer” then the answer is F.

    3) If the text says “The research included smokers of both genders of ages 30 to 45” and nothing else about smoking – your answer is NG.

    Don’t make these mistakes:

  • Don’t assume anything based on your knowledge and experience, read the text! It is the oldest trick in the book and they use it a lot in IELTS exams.
  • Don’t “overthink” your answer – you could start building long logical sequences that will lead you to the wrong answer.

    • IELTS Essay, topic: Computers in our life

    We are becoming increasingly dependent on computers. They are used in business, hospitals, crime detection and even to fly planes. What things will they be used for in the future? Is this dependence on computers a good thing or should we be more suspicious of their benefits?

    In the last two decades cybernetics have experienced a major breakthrough .This led to the utilization of computers in nearly all parts of our daily life, from personal computers to the ones performing complicated surgeries. Surely the uptake of this technology facilitates a lot of difficult tasks but is this excessive ripping the warmth out of our lives? .

    Most of the daily tasks individual experiences are time and effort consuming. These two qualities could be tremendously saved by the use of computers. The average period required to prepare a decent meal for a middle-class family is around an hour to hour and a half when using traditional methods. This time could be literally reduced to half if computerized are used instead. Moreover, a busy businessman is enabled to easily close a profitable deal with just a touch highly programmed laptop while enjoying his family vacation and not having to exert an extra effort of traveling long distances in order to a deal.

    On the other hand, new generations are growing remarkably dependent on these modern utilities, which makes them handicapped when it comes to a cup of tea. , psychologists suggest that one of the main reasons for rate increase is the recent electric inventions. This is due to the fact that humans by nature stay emotionally healthy through socializing, but due to the importance of modern technology to maintain a financially satisfying standard of life they gradually themselves. As time passes by each of these individuals gets stuck in a vicious circle of loneliness that eventually leads to suicidal attempts especially among youngsters.

    In conclusion, similarly to every other invention computers have their benefits and drawbacks, I personally think it all depends upon how we use the given tools . Moderation is the key here to keep the balance and allow us to live in harmony.

    This is a good essay, nice vocabulary, a little too long (340 words instead of 250), a few grammatical mistakes. The topic is not fully covered (what about the “things will they be used for in future” part?).

    dependency
    A better way to say this would be ‘There are many ways in which the availability of computers affects our lives’
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    an
    devices
    of
    close
    making
    In addition
    suicidal
    isolate