Reading Comprehension Part A: Locating Evidence and Testing Options
Reading Comprehension Part A carries 40 of the 100 points: four passages of about 400 words, five four-option questions each. It rewards locating and paraphrasing evidence, not outside knowledge. Almost every correct option is a restatement of one or two sentences, while distractors are either unsupported, overstated or attributed to the wrong person.
Question types and where to look
- Fact and detail: the answer paraphrases a specific sentence; the option rarely repeats the passage's wording.
- Inference: one controlled step from stated evidence. If an option needs two or three unstated assumptions, reject it.
- Attitude and tone: scan evaluative adjectives and adverbs, hedges such as 'arguably' or 'to some extent', and concession clauses.
- Main idea or title: the thesis commonly appears in the first two paragraphs or right after a concession; the option must cover the whole passage, not one paragraph.
- Vocabulary in context: return to the sentence and look for definition, example, contrast or cause-effect markers around the word.
- Reference: a pronoun must agree in number with its antecedent; the nearest noun is not always the logical one.
Worked example
Passage: 'The scheme was praised for its ambition, though critics noted that its timetables rested on assumptions no one had tested.' Question: the author's attitude toward the scheme is best described as... A) unqualified enthusiasm B) qualified skepticism C) outright hostility D) complete indifference. The concessive 'though' makes the objection part of the author's own assessment, and 'no one had tested' states a factual weakness rather than quoting a distant critic. Support therefore exists but is limited: B. A ignores the concession, C overstates it, and D ignores 'praised'.
Traps that cost marks
- Extreme options (all, never, only, proves) against hedged academic prose.
- Options that are true in the world but unsupported by this passage.
- Confusing the author with a quoted researcher or with 'some critics'.
- Answering from background knowledge about a familiar topic.
- Missing EXCEPT or NOT in the stem; underline it before reading options.
- Questions normally follow passage order, so use the previous answer's location as your starting point.