1.Education And Learning

Question 1

Using a dictionary (1)

Answer 1

Choose a recent edition of an English-English dictionary. Look at the information about how to use the dictionary, which is usually at the beginning. Make sure you understand the symbols and abbreviations. Remember that each entry for a word usually has:

■ the pronunciation and stress

the part of speech

■ definition(s)

■ example sentences

any irregular forms, e.g. plurals or past tense forms

Question 2

Using a dictionary (2)

Answer 2

A dictionary entry will also help you use a word by giving:

■any prepositions which collocate, e.g. by accident

■verb type, e.g. transitive [T] (I like music); intransitive [1] (He doesn’t work)

■verb pattern, e.g. let sb/sth do sth; allow sb to do sth

Always look at the example sentences. These will help you use the words accurately.

Question 3

Effective reading (1)

Answer 3

Choose what to read, and how to read it to become an effective reader.

Survey the material to decide whether it is useful:

■ Look at the title, headings, pictures, or graphs.

Look at the style of the text and where it has come from.

Skim the text to see how the information is organized and to get a general idea:

■ Read the title and any headings.

Read the first sentence of a few paragraphs.

Scan the text to find specific pieces of information:

■ Use what you learnt from surveying and skimming the text to locate the information you need.

Move quickly through the text. Do not read every word.

Stop when you come to the information you want.

Question 4

Effective reading (2)

Answer 4

You will often need to understand the details in a text. This is intensive reading. To do this effectively:

■ Think about why you are reading, and what you need from the text.

■ Skim the text to get an overview.

■ Underline words and phrases which occur frequently and are important to know.

■ If a particular part of the text is more difficult, read it again, asking yourself questions about it.

■ Look up any words you need to understand in a dictionary.

Question 5

Effective reading (3)

Answer 5

You will have a large amount to read for your studies, so you need to be able to read quickly.

The first time you read a text intensively:

■ Focus on content words (usually nouns, verbs, adjectives).

It is easy to read this by looking at the content words.

■ Think about which parts of the text are relevant.

For further readings of the same text:

■ Concentrate on parts of the text which are relevant.

■ Read in sense groups of two or more words. Sense groups can be:

subject + verb + object

At the age of 16/most students take exams/in about ten different subjects.

phrases with a preposition

At the age of 16/most students take exams/in about ten different subjects.

Question 6

Checking your writing (1)

Answer 6

Being accurate is very important in academic and professional writing. Check your first draft for:

■ sentence length. Are your sentences too long or short?

word order, linking words

words left out, e.g. articles, prepositions, and auxiliary verbs

Question 7

Checking your writing (2)

Answer 7

Good academic writing should be accurate. Always check for correct:

■ punctuation

■ spelling

■ grammar (verb tenses, agreement, etc.)