OET READING 1

SUB-TEST A & B
OBJECTIVES

At the end of the class, the students should be able

to:
1. Be well-informed of the format of the Reading
sub-test A & B
2. Gain knowledge of the different question types

3. Learn exam strategies and techniques

4. Complete a practice Reading sub-test A & B

ABOUT THE READING SUB-TEST

 The Reading sub-test consists of three parts and a

total of 42 question items.
 All three parts take a total of 60 minutes to
complete.
 The topics are of generic healthcare interest and
are therefore accessible to candidates across all
professions.
READING SECTIONS DURATION NO. OF TEXTS QUESTION TYPES
READING A 15 minutes Four short texts 20 question items
• single healthcare (matching, sentence
topic completion and short
answer questions.)

READING B 45 minutes (shared Six short workplace 6 three-option multiple-

with READING C) extracts (100-150 words choice question.
each)
• healthcare
workplace (policy
documents, hospital
guidelines, manuals
or internal
communications i.e.
emails, memos)

READING C TOTAL READING 2 long texts (800 words 16 four-option multiple

TEST: 60 MINUTES each) choice questions.
• topics of interest to
healthcare • TOTAL READING
professionals QUESTIONS= 42
OET 2. O READING (PART A, B, C)

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yKOSpm
weJI
HOW TO PASS OET READING 2.0

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2RrCVvrY
-0
OET 2.O READING STRATEGIES

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Xy6yBN4j
gg
READING SUB-TEST STRUCTURE PART A

 It assesses your ability to locate specific

information from four short texts in a quick and
efficient manner
 The four short texts relate to a single healthcare
topic
 You must answer 20 questions in the allocated
time period
 The 20 questions consist of matching, sentence
completion and short answer questions.
READING SUB-TEST STRUCTURE PART B

 It assesses your ability to identify the detail, gist or

main point of six short texts sourced from the
healthcare workplace (100-150 words each).
 The texts might consist of extracts from policy
documents, hospital guidelines, manuals or
internal communications, such as emails or
memos.
 For each text, there is one three-option multiple-
choice question.
READING ABILITY ASSESSMENT

 Reading Part A (the expeditious reading task) tests your

ability to skim and scan quickly across different texts on
a given topic in order to locate specific information.
 For that purpose, Part A is strictly timed and you must
complete all 20 question items within the allocated 15
minutes.
 To complete the task successfully, you will also need to
understand the conventions of different medical text
types and understand the presentation of numerical and
textual information.
READING ABILITY ASSESSMENT

 Reading Part B tests your ability to understand

the detail, gist or main point of complex texts
commonly found in the healthcare workplace.
 To complete the task successfully, you will need
to identify specific ideas at sentence level.
READING ABILITY ASSESSMENT

 Assessors who mark the Reading sub-test are

qualified and highly trained. Candidate
responses are assessed against an established
marking guide. During the marking session,
problematic or unforeseen answers are
referred to a sub-group of senior assessors for
guidance.
READING PART A SAMPLE TEXTS
READING PART A SAMPLE TEXTS
INSTRUCTION
FINDING INFORMATION IN PARAGRAPHS
(MATCHING)
SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS
SENTENCE COMPLETION
INSTRUCTION
READING PART B SAMPLE TEXTS
THREE-OPTION MULTIPLE-CHOICE


 STRATEGIES
FOR READING PART A
1. FINDING INFORMATION IN PARAGRAPHS
(MATCHING)
 You find the paragraph that contains the
information in the question. You may have to find a
detail, an idea, a comparison, an example, etc.
Some paragraphs may contain the information
required in more than one question, while other
paragraphs may not be tested.

 In this question type, you have to read the

paragraphs to see whether they provide the
information you need, so the paragraph letters are
the answers.
 You only need to write the correct paragraph letter A, B, C
etc. There is only ONE answer for each question.
 Underline or highlight the key words in the questions.
 Think about the ideas and language that you need to look
for.
 Read the first paragraph and then quickly read through the
questions.
 Mark any parts of the paragraph that match the key words in
the questions.
 Write the paragraph letter next to that question.
 Go on to the next paragraph and do the same.
 If you think a question can be matched to more than one
paragraph, make a note of this and come back to the
question later to make a decision.
 EXAMPLE
ANSWER
EXPLANATION
 KEYWORDS (QUESTION) KEYWORDS (TEXT)

Procedure to follow Technique for…

…splinting a fractured limb …plaster backslab for arm fractures…leg

fractures

Definitions:
• splinting- a method of keeping a body part from moving in order to allow it to
heal better. It generally involves a hard material, such as a cast, that hardens
in order to allow a broken bone to heal.
• fracture- is a break, usually in a bone.
• limb- an arm or leg of a person
• plaster backslab- the simplest and safest form of plaster splint. Instead of
using encircling bandages, the plaster slabs are applied longitudinally to the
limb and bandaged in place while still soft.
COMPLETE ANSWERS
2. SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS
 They often begin with wh-words because they are
designed to test whether you can find concrete
facts/information in the Reading passage. You should
read the questions carefully before you start so that you
know what you are looking for and whether you need to
scan or skim for the answer.
 The answers are in passage order.
 Start with the first question and read the passage
quickly to see if you can find words that are the same as
the key words or have a similar meaning.
 Read around these words to find the answer.
 Make a prediction about the type of word or
phrase which is missing to complete the gap. You
should be able to use your knowledge of English
to decide if the gap should be a noun, verb,
adjective etc.
 Look for clue words within the sentence which
direct you to the correct text where you will find
the answer. Clue words could be the text type,
names of people or places, numbers or words
which contain rare letters in English e.g. x, z, j, q.
 EXAMPLE
ANSWER
EXPLANATION
 KEYWORDS (QUESTION) KEYWORDS (TEXT)
…to elevate a patient‟s fractured leg Elevate the limb – a sling for arm injuries,
a pillow for leg injuries
COMPLETE ANSWERS
3. SENTENCE COMPLETION
• Read the instructions carefully to see how many
words you can use.
• The answers come in passage order.
• The gaps can come at the beginning, in the
middle or at the end of the sentence.
• Predict the kind of words that are missing
before you look for the answers.
• Pay attention to the grammar of the sentence
and make sure it is correct when your answer is
added.
• Underline or highlight the key words around each gap
and use these to find the right part of the passage.
• Find the part of the passage that contains the idea and
then work out what the missing words are. This makes it
easier to find other information.
• There may be two gaps in a sentence and this may be
worth one or two marks. The word „both‟ in the sentence
or summary signals that two answers may be required.
• Decide exactly which words or numbers you should write
as the answer.
• Read the completed sentence to make sure that it is
grammatically correct and makes sense.
• EXAMPLE
ANSWER
EXPLANATION
 KEYWORDS (QUESTION) KEYWORDS (TEXT)
Falling on an outstretched hand …falling on an outstretched hand
…is a typical cause of a It often results from…
…of the elbow …e.g. elbow dislocation
COMPLETE ANSWERS
 REMINDERS FOR READING PART A:

 When you start Reading Part A practice, read

the titles of each text. These provide important
information about the contents of each text and
clue words which will be used in the summary
paragraph.
 Read the first sentence containing a gap. Read
the whole sentence not just the words next to
the gap.
 Go to the text where you think the answer is
and scan for the clue words. DO NOT start at
the beginning of the text and read quickly until
you find a clue word. This is not scanning. Start
anywhere in the text and scan your eyes quickly
up and down, left and right until you spot a clue
word.
 Identify the word or phrase you need to
complete the gap. Does the word type match
your prediction in step 2? If no, you will need to
change the word form of the words in the text to
fit the gap.
 Read the sentence again including the words you
have selected. Does it make grammatical sense?
REMINDER:
DO NOT miss out step 6. This is a major reason why
students lose marks in Reading Part A. They forget to
check that the words they think fit the gap make
grammatical sense because they are rushing. It‟s
better to spend a few more seconds ensuring your
answer is correct than waste the time you spent
finding those works for zero reward.
 STRATEGIES
FOR READING PART B
THREE-OPTION MULTIPLE-CHOICE
 Underline or highlight the key words in the
question or unfinished statement.
 Match these key words to words in the passage so
that you are looking in the right place for the
answers.
 Underline or highlight the key words in the options
and re-phrase the ideas in your mind.
 Read around the section of text you have marked
and see if you can find words or expressions that
match the options.
 Some word matched will occur, but check whether
the passage is stating the same or something
different from what is stated in the options.
 EXAMPLE
ANSWER
EXPLANATION
 EXPLANATION
 Option A is not the answer because Blood
Pressure Monitor (the subject of the question)
is not the one that is likely to interfere with the
operation of other medical equipment. Option C
on the other hand, is not what the manual is
informing about the Blood Pressure Monitor. It
does not describe it as safe but rather
susceptible to danger. Option B is the answer
because the manual is indeed warning that the
Blood Pressure Monitor could result in an
incorrect operation due to increased use of
portable electronic devices.
ANSWER
EXPLANATION

 Option A is not the answer because while the

notice points out that its crucial to differentiate
the placement on the insertion of the tubes it
did not wholly presented the ways on how to do
it. Option B is also not the subject of the notice.
The answer then is Option C because the point
of the notice is that the procedure should only
be “carried out by a registered doctor or
nurse…”.
COMPLETE ANSWERS
REMINDERS FOR READING PART B
 Part B is about understanding the gist (main idea) of a
short workplace text.
 You need to choose the best option from 3 which
represents the content of the text.
 All the answer options may be mentioned so it‟s
important to check which one is covered completely.
 Each question has a context statement which can
include the type of text you have to read.
 This is useful information to help you recollect previous
experiences of reading similar text types, the way they
are organised and information is presented.
HOW CAN I IMPROVE MY LANGUAGE
PROFICIENCY?
1. Develop your skills outside test contexts
 Reading skills at the level required for OET Grade B are
developed by reading regularly and widely.
 You can broaden your reading while following up on your own
areas of professional interest. As well as the specialist texts
you read at work and when you study, consider texts which
are aimed at the intelligent general-interest reader.
 Current affairs websites and science and health magazines
are good sources of these. These will give you good practice
in identifying and following a writer‟s line of argument and
attitude, which is a different skill from picking out factual
content.
 Focusing on paragraphs or short sections is a
useful way to develop your reading skills.
 Pause at the end of each paragraph you read and
ask yourself two questions: What main point is the
writer making in this paragraph (i.e. can you
summarise it in a sentence)? What does the writer
want to achieve in this paragraph (e.g. persuade,
criticise, draw a conclusion)?
 Remember that you can understand a paragraph
clearly even if you don‟t get every single word and
even if you haven‟t read the whole text first.
2. Use the right skills for each part of the sub-test
 The Reading sub-test is designed so that you
need to use the right reading skills at the right
times.
3. Check your work
- Although it‟s important to answer each question quickly, it‟s
also important to take a few minutes to check your answers.
- In Part A, make sure you have copied the spelling of the
answer word(s) from the text exactly. This forms part of the
assessment and you don‟t want to lose marks unnecessarily
for poor spelling.
- In Parts B and C you should be able to locate evidence in the
texts which proves your answer is correct but also why the
other options are incorrect.
- Reasons why an answer may be incorrect include only part of
the answer is covered in the text, the text states something
different or opposite to the answer etc.
4. Complete the question booklet correctly
 In Part A, write your answers directly onto the line provided
for each question. The length of line should be sufficient to
write the correct answer.
 Parts B and C are computer marked so it‟s essential that you
follow the instructions provided on the front page of the
question booklet when entering your answers.
 You must fill in the circle containing your chosen answer A, B
or C using a 2B pencil.
 Working as quickly as you can, shade in the whole of the
circle including the letter with your pencil so it can be clearly
read by the computer.
 If you want to change your answer, erase it and fill in the
circle of the answer you now want to choose.
LAST AND MOST
IMPORTANT TIP...
DO NOT FORGET TO ASK
WISDOM FROM THE ONE
WHO CREATED IT. 