Leesvaardigheid (Reading Comprehension)
What the domain tests
Leesvaardigheid is the central written component (CSE) of VWO Engels. You read authentic English texts - newspaper columns, opinion pieces, popular-science articles and literary extracts - and answer multiple-choice and open questions. The exam checks main idea, detail, inference, word meaning in context, and the writer's purpose or tone at B2/C1 level. The CSE is set within the CvTE syllabus for VWO Engels; Cito develops the tests.
Core rules
- Read the question stem and any line reference first, then scan the relevant paragraph. Do not default to reading the whole text twice.
- For multiple choice, eliminate options that are true in the text but do not answer the question, and options that exaggerate or reverse the text.
- For open questions, answer in Dutch unless the question says 'quote' or 'answer in English'. Keep to the word limit; a quote must be copied exactly.
- A dictionary is permitted in the CSE, but use it only for a word that blocks meaning; it costs time.
Worked example
Text: 'The council's new cycling plan was not met with outright hostility; rather, it drew a kind of muted enthusiasm.' Question: What does 'muted' mean here? A loud B restrained C hostile D fake. Reasoning: 'not outright hostility' rules out C; 'rather' signals a contrast with strong emotion; 'a kind of' softens the claim; so 'restrained' fits. 'Loud' and 'fake' have no support. Answer B.
Traps that cost marks
Options that repeat the text's words but distort the relation; ignoring negation ('not', 'except', 'least'); over-inferring beyond the evidence; paraphrasing when a quote is required; answering in English when Dutch is expected; exceeding word limits.