TOEFL Reading Introduction

The reading section is the first section of the TOEFL iBT test. It tests your ability to read
and answer questions at an academic level. It contain 3-4 passages with each passage
containing 12-14 questions for a total of 36-56 questions. Each passage is generally 600
to 700 words long. You'll have 60-80 minutes in which to finish this section.

When you are taking the reading test, you can skip answers and come back to them
later. You can come back and change your answers at any time during the reading
testing period.

Reading Difficulty Level

The TOEFL reading difficulty level is equivalent to an introductory undergraduate

university textbook. Most of the passages' context is North American, but you may also
see some international contexts from United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. The
passages cover a wide range of topics such as

 Social science including anthropology, economics, psychology, urban studies, and

sociology
 Science and technology including astronomy, geology, chemistry, biology, physics,
engineering
 History, government, biography, geography, and culture
 Art including literature, painting, sculpture, drama, and architecture

Even though the reading passages can be difficult to understand, you don't necessarily
have to understand it all. By learning the strategies to answer each reading question
type, you can get a high TOEFL score without fully understanding the reading passage.
The first thing you need to learn are the different types of TOEFL reading question types.
The 10 TOEFL Reading Question Types

The TOEFL reading questions can be broken down into 10 different reading question
types:

1. Vocabulary
2. Reference
3. Inference
4. Purpose
5. Negative Factual Information
6. Essential Information
7. Detail
8. Sentence Insertion
9. Complete the Summary
10. Complete the Table

READING STRATEGY
When facing the reading comprehension section of a standardized test, you need a
strategy to be successful. You want to keep several steps in mind:

FIRST, MAKE A NOTE OF THE TIME AND THE NUMBER OF SECTIONS.

Time your work accordingly. Typically, four to five minutes per section is sufficient.
Second, read the directions for each selection thoroughly before beginning (and listen
well to any additional verbal instructions, as they will often clarify obscure or confusing
written guidelines). You must know exactly how to do what you’re about to do!
NOW YOU’RE READY TO BEGIN READING THE SELECTION.

Read the passage carefully, noting significant characters or events on a scratch sheet of
paper or underlining on the test sheet. Many students find making a basic list in the
margins helpful. Quickly jot down or underline one-word summaries of characters,
notable happenings, numbers, or key ideas. This will help you better retain information
and focus wandering thoughts. Remember, however, that your main goal in doing this is
to find the information that answers the questions. Even if you find the passage
interesting, remember your goal and work fast but stay on track.

NOW READ THE QUESTION AND ALL THE CHOICES.

Now you have read the passage, have a general idea of the main ideas, and have
marked the important points. Read the question and all the choices. Never choose an
answer without reading them all! Questions are often designed to confuse – stay
focused and clear. Usually the answer choices will focus on one or two facts or
inferences from the passage. Keep these clear in your mind.

SEARCH FOR THE ANSWER.

With a very general idea of what the different choices are, go back to the passage and
scan for the relevant information. Watch for big words, unusual or unique words. These
make your job easier as you can scan the text for the particular word.

MARK THE ANSWER.

Now you have the key information the question is looking for. Go back to the question,
quickly scan the choices and mark the correct one. Understand and practice the
different types of standardized reading comprehension tests. See the list above for the
different types. Typically, there will be several questions dealing with facts from the
selection, a couple more inference questions dealing with logical consequences of those
facts, and periodically an application-oriented question surfaces to force you to make
connections with what you already know.

DO WHAT WORKS FOR YOU.

Some students prefer to answer the questions as listed, and feel classifying the question
and then ordering is wasting precious time. Other students prefer to answer the
different types of questions in order of how easy or difficult they are.

The choice is yours and do whatever works for you. If you want to try answering in order
of difficulty, here is a recommended order, answer fact questions first; they’re easily
found within the passage. Tackle inference problems next, after re-reading the
question(s) as many times as you need to. Application or ‘best guess’ questions usually
take the longest, so save them for last.

Example:

DIRECTIONS
In this section you will read several passages. Each one is followed by several questions
about it. For questions 1-50, you are to choose the one best answer, (A), (B), (C), or (D),
to each question. Then, on your answer sheet, find the number of the question and fill
in the space that corresponds to the letter of the answer you have chosen. Answer all
questions following a passage on the basis of what is stated or implied in that passage.

READ THE FOLLOWING PASSAGE:

A distinctively American architecture began with Frank Lloyd Wright, who had taken to
heart the admonition that form should follow function and who thought of buildings not
as separate architectural entities but as parts of an organic whole that included the land,
the community, and the society. In a very real way the houses of colonial New England
and some of the southern plantations had been functional, but Wright was the first
architect to make functionalism the authoritative principle for public as well as for
domestic buildings. As early as 1906 he built the Unity Temple in Oak Park, Illinois, the
first of those churches that did so much to revolutionize ecclesiastical architecture in the
United States. Thereafter he turned his genius to such miscellaneous structures as
houses, schools, office buildings, and factories, among them the famous Larkin Building
in Buffalo, New York, and the Johnson Wax Company building in Racine, Wisconsin.

1. The phrase “taken to heart” in line 1 is closest in meaning to which of the following?

(A) Taken seriously

(B) Criticized
(C) Memorized
(D) Taken offence

2. In what way did Wright’s public buildings differ from most of those built by earlier
architects?
(A) They were built on a larger scale.

(B) Their materials came from the southern United States.

(C) They looked more like private homes.

(D) Their designs were based on how they would be used.

3. The author mentions the Unity Temple because, it

(A) was Wright’s first building
(B) influenced the architecture of subsequent churches

(C) demonstrated traditional ecclesiastical architecture

(D) was the largest church Wright ever designed

4. The passage mentions that all of the following structures were built by Wright EXCEPT
(A) factories
(B) public buildings
(C) offices
(D) southern plantations

5. Which of the following statements best reflects one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s
architectural principles?
(A) Beautiful design is more important than utility.
(B) Ecclesiastical architecture should be derived from traditional designs.
(C) A building should fit into its surroundings.

(D) The architecture of public buildings does not need to be revolutionary

Answer and Discussion:

1. The phrase “taken to heart” in line 1 is closest in meaning to which of the following?

Answer: A → Taken seriously

Discuss: The phrase taken to heart is a form of idiomatic expression and means "do it
wholeheartedly / seriously".

2. In what way did Wright’s public buildings differ from most of those built by earlier
architects?

Answer: D → Their designs were based on how they would be used.

Discuss: In the sentence "... that form should follow function ..." indicates that the
design should be based on its function, for what purpose the building will be used and
such an answer is found in choice D.

3. The author mentions the Unity Temple because, it

Answer: B → influenced the architecture of subsequent churches

Discuss: : In the sentence "... the story of those churches that are so much to
revolutionize the ecological architecture in the United States" states that the building
greatly influenced the design of the subsequent buildings. Answers that contain similar
ideas are in option B.

4. The passage mentions that all of the following structures were built by Wright EXCEPT
Answer: D → southern plantations

Discuss: In the last sentence it is clear that offices, factories and public building,
including churches are his works. Whereas South Plantations is not the result of his work
because it has been designed by previous people as mentioned in the reading.

5. Which of the following statements best reflects one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s
architectural principles?

Answer: C → A building should fit into its surroundings.

Discuss: The sentence "... as parts of an organic whole that includes land, the
community, and the society" states that the building should be considered as part of the
whole environment and the surrounding community so that in other words the building
must be in accordance with its environment.

Source :

https://www.bestmytest.com/toefl/reading

https://www.test-preparation.ca/tips-for-reading-comprehension-questions/

http://www.geniustoefl.com/artikel-ilmu-kunci-toefl/artikel/reading-comprehension/contoh-soal-
pembahasan-reading-comprehension-tes-toefl