CONFRONTING THE COMPREHENSION:

A REVIEW OF THE GCE O LEVELS EL PAPER 2

There are EIGHT types of comprehension questions in Paper 2:

1. Direct Question

2. "Use your Own Words" Question

3. Rephrasing Question

4. Inferential Question

5. Language Use Question

6. Quoting From the Passage Question

7. Vocabulary Question

8. Summary Question

In order to answer a question correctly, it is important to assess the type of question that is being asked.
Only by understanding what kind of question it is can you better apply the necessary skills in answering
it.

This of course means that you have to read the questions carefully.

DIRECT QUESTION

This is the easiet type of question to answer as it requires you to simply extract information from the
passage. This means that the answer can be found in the passage itself.

How to tackle such questions

1. Read the question very carefully as it will tell you which part of the text to study. Make sure that
you go to that part of the text.

2. Look for key words or phrases in the question that will help you zero in on the facts that you
have to select.
3. Look at the number of marks allocated to the question so that you will know how many points
to look out for.

4. Use the same words as given in the passage for your answer, unless you are told to write it in
your own words.

5. Only use the relevant part of the text. Do not write excessively or copy blocks of text — if you
do, the excess denied rule will be enforced.

Note:

• If the question says 'Explain fully why...', this usually means that there are two points to be
made. This is usually reflected in the mark allocation of 2 marks.

• Do remember that if the question does not ask you to answer in your own words, there is no
need to do so.

"IN YOUR OWN WORDS" QUESTION

This type of question requires an additional step in presenting the relevant facts in your

own words. It tests your vocabulary and your ability to paraphrase. You will gain no marks for relevant
facts if you lift them straight from the text.

How to tackle such questions

1. Read the question very carefully as it will tell you which part of the text to study.

Make sure that you go to that part of the text.

2. Look for key words or phrases in the question that will help you zero in on the facts

that you have to select.

3. Look at the number of marks allocated to the question so that you will know how

many points to look out for.

4. Identify the key points in your answer and identify which words you have to paraphrase. Words
that need to be paraphrased are usually the adjectives, adverbs and verbs. You may also vary sentence
structure in the process of paraphrasing.
REPHRASING QUESTION

This type of question requires you to understand the meaning of a phrase or word as used in the context
of the passage. This is a test of one's vocabulary.

Such questions can be given in a number of ways:

- You may be asked to express a word or short phrase from the passage in your own words.

- You may have to explain the effect in the passage of this word or phrase

How to tackle such questions:

1. Identify key words that must be rephrased or explained.

2. Try to paraphrase each key word based on its context. Ask yourself these questions:

- What type of word is it?

- Look at the surrounding text. Does it give you a clue as to the possible meaning of the word?

- Can you replace it directly by another word? Or do you need to explain it in more than one
word?

3. Consider the connotations of the word / phrase. Does your explanation take into consideration
whether it is a positive or negative connotation?

Note:

- When explaining a particular word, try not to use another word / phrase from other parts of the
passage.

- Always look at the way the words or phrases set are actually used in the passage to work out
their meaning. Do not just write down a meaning you have seen in a dictionary as it may not be quite
the same meaning that the word has in the context of the passage.

INFERENTIAL QUESTION

This is the hardest type of question to answer. The process of making inferences is sometimes called
'reading between the lines'. Good readers make inferences by combining information in the passage,
with what they already know or general assumptions that they have made from the passage by 'reading
into' the text.

Information in the passage

+ Assumptions made on what you already know / or have made from the passage

= INFERENCE

You can recognise inferential questions by their wording:

- 'Why do you think that...'

- 'Suggest a reason why...'

- 'What is so surprising about...'

- 'Why might it be difficult to...'

- 'Why do you think the writer / author...'

If you see a question phrased along these lines, you can be sure that you are expected to read beyond
the surface meaning of the text and work out the answer.

Of course it is not possible to give whole lists of phrases that introduce inferential questions. You must
study questions carefully every time, and see how they relate to the text. Then you will be able to see
whether the facts required for the answer come directly from the text, or whether your have to get
'behind' it to work out the answer.

How to tackle such questions:

1. Read the question carefully and look for the lead it gives to the relevant text area.

2. Consider the information provided from the passage by reading the text around it.
3. Consider the assumptions that you already know or you have to make based on the passage,
and then make the necessary inference.

4. Check the mark weighting of the question. This will decide the amount of detail necessary for
the answer.

LANGUAGE USE QUESTION

This type of question focuses on how language is used by the author and the intention of the author in
using a certain word or phrase. Such questions can focus on one of the following:

- The purpose of the author

- The tone of the author

- The connotations / nuances of meaning of a given word or phrase

- The ironic use of a particular word, phrase of context

Such questions are actually inferential in nature, and requires students to read "between the lines". The
steps in approaching such a question is the same as the steps in approaching an inferential question.

QUOTING FROM THE PASSAGE QUESTION

This type of question focuses on the ability of students to select a word or phrase from the passage that
is similar in meaning to a given word, phrase or idea. This again is a test of one's vocabulary.

How to tackle such questions:

1. Look at the specified area of the passage, e.g. from Paragraph 2.

2. Read through carefully to ensure that you don't miss out any word or phrase.

3. Identify the word (or even possible words) based on its contextual meaning.

4. Do not simply write down words whose meaning you don't know. If you are not sure what a
particular word means, try to infer its meaning from the given context.
VOCABULARY QUESTION

These questions are to be tackled in a similar to Rephrasing Questions:

1. Identify key words that must be rephrased or explained.

2. Try to paraphrase each key word based on its context. Ask yourself these questions:

- What type of word is it?

- Look at the surrounding text. Does it give you a clue as to the possible meaning of the word?

- Can you replace it directly by another word? Or do you need to explain it in more than one
word?

3. Consider the connotations of the word / phrase. Does your explanation take into consideration
whether it is a positive or negative connotation?

Note: Remember that the questions are not looking for dictionary-based definitions, but the meaning of
the word as used in the given context.