To locate evidence quickly, find the question’s keyword, predict the kind of answer, scan for a match and read the sentences around it. You then check that the sentence really answers the question.
This lesson is the first in extended reading. If paraphrase is new to you, recognising paraphrase instead of identical words is a useful warm-up.
What are the four steps?
- Underline the keyword or phrase in the question.
- Decide the answer type: a number, a reason, a person, a place, or an opinion.
- Scan the passage for the keyword or a paraphrase of it.
- Read the sentence before and after, then check the answer type matches.
Worked example: the recycling corner
This is an original passage.
The Taman Seri Rimba residents’ committee opened a recycling corner in March. At first only 12 families used it. After the committee gave every family a labelled bag, the number rose to 41 by June. The committee believes the bags mattered more than the posters, although posters went up at the same time.
Question 1. How many families used the corner by June?
Keyword: “June”. Answer type: a number. The sentence with “June” says the number rose to 41. The answer is 41.
Question 2. What evidence suggests the bags helped?
Keyword: “bags”. Answer type: a reason or evidence. The passage shows only 12 families at first, then 41 after the bags. The evidence is the rise from 12 to 41 after the labelled bags were given.
The mistake: matching the repeated word
The question asks why the committee thinks the bags mattered more. A student sees “the bags mattered more than the posters” in the last sentence, because it repeats the question’s words, and copies it as the answer.
| Step | Wrong | Right |
|---|---|---|
| Sentence chosen | the last sentence | the rise from 12 to 41 |
| Why | it repeats the question’s words | it shows the change after the bags |
The last sentence only repeats the committee’s belief. The reason is in the numbers. Ask whether a sentence answers the question, not whether it shares words with it.
Check yourself
The Bukit Jalil night market moves to the car park on Fridays. Stall holders say the new site is safer, because the old road had no lighting. Customers, however, complain that parking takes longer.
Why do stall holders prefer the new site? Quote the evidence.
Answer
Keyword: “stall holders” and “new site”. Answer type: a reason.
The second sentence gives it: the old road had no lighting, so the new site is safer. The customers’ complaint about parking is a different group’s view, so it is not the answer.
What to study next
Once you can find evidence, the next step is judging it. Continue with distinguishing fact, opinion and inference, then try the claim, evidence and explanation revision desk to practise writing the link.
For a teacher who reads passages with you, see online one-to-one English tuition.