Here is some important information about the CUNY Assessment Test in Reading:MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS
The CUNY Assessment Test in Reading is an untimed test that takes place on a computer. You will read several text passages either about science, social studies, literature or humanities and then be asked to answer questions about the content. Outside knowledge is not needed for the test; you can answer all the questions just by reading the passages carefully. Dictionaries and language translators are not allowed to be used during testing. You are allowed to ask for a blank sheet of paper from the proctor. Make sure to eat a full meal and to use the bathroom before the test begins. Since you can take as much time as you need to finish the test, do not schedule anything after the test.
Most questions on the CUNY Assessment Test in Reading fall within five categories:
Main idea questions ask you to find the overall point in the passage or in a specific paragraph.MAIN PURPOSE QUESTIONS
To answer main idea questions:
Main purpose questions ask you what the author is trying to accomplish. Instead of identifying what a paragraph says, you may be asked to notice how the information in a paragraph supports the authorís main point.VOCABULARY IN CONTEXT QUESTIONS
To answer main purpose questions:
Vocabulary questions will show you a word and ask you to select what the word means as it is used in the passage. The word is highlighted in the passage to make it easy to find. The word you are asked about may have many different meanings, but you are only looking for what the word means as it is used in the passage.FACT QUESTIONS
To answer vocabulary in context questions:
Fact questions ask the reader to go back to the passage and find specific information that is stated in the passage. Donít pick any answer that you cannot prove by using information from the passage.INFERENCE QUESTIONS
To answer fact questions:
When you infer, you draw your own conclusion based on a careful reading of the text, rather than locating an answer that is explicitly stated in the text.COMMON MISTAKES
A question may ask you to infer something based on the authorís tone. ďToneĒ means the emotion of the narratorís words.
For inference questions especially, slow down and give yourself enough time to think about each answer. Then:
The most common mistakes students make on the CUNY Assessment Test in Reading are
Be careful: donít just pick an answer because it uses words youíve seen in the passage. Make sure that the answer you pick means the right thing
If an answer choice contains a fact that you know is true, but that information is not in the passage, that cannot be the correct answer. All the information you use to answer the questions, whether the information is explicitly stated or implied, must come from the passage.
Take as much time as you need: this test is un-timed. You can recheck and change questions you have already answered as long as you are still on the same passage.
|© 2008 CUNY. All rights reserved|