Prime Time 8. Coursebook plus Semester Self-checks, Schulbuch

Reading In this section of the examination only your reading skills are tested. The test formats address whether you have fully understood the text. The following reading techniques are essential for these tasks. Skimming and scanning Apart from the close reading you have to do when you analyse and interpret a text there are quicker reading techniques for special purposes. Skimming This technique is useful either when you first look at a text before you analyse it in detail, or when there is no chance to look at the text in detail. J Skimming means going through a text quickly and getting the gist (the main points). Scanning This technique is useful either when only part of the text is interesting because you have to answer particular questions on it, or when you have to compare only some particular aspects in different texts. J Scanning means going through a text quickly and finding specific details. Sample reading tasks Four words: Undernutrition in teenage years can lead to heart disease Read the text about nutrition. Complete the sentences (1–5) using a maximum of four words. Write your answers in the spaces provided. The first one (0) has been done for you. Tip • • Spend only a limited amount of time on each task. • • If there is a question you cannot answer, move on to another task and return to this step later. T Tip • • Look out for headings, pictures and keywords. • • Don’t read every word, especially concentrate on beginnings and ends of paragraphs. T Tip • • What is the specific information you are looking for? Look out for relevant keywords. Stop when you find one and read that part of the text carefully. • • Underline or mark the text passage if possible. • • Take notes if necessary. T 1 Tip • • Make sure your answers only consist of a maximum of four words. • • If you have to complete sentences, your answers must fit into the sentences correctly. When finished go through the whole sentence again and check. T Severe undernutrition during adolescence, even for short periods, can have severe consequences later in life according to researchers from the University Medical Centre in Utrecht, The Netherlands. A study of almost 8,000 women found that those exposed to severe undernutrition and weight loss at some point during their childhood and adolescence had a 27 per cent higher risk of coronary heart disease in later life, rising to 38 per cent in those who had been aged 10 to 17. Yet the study also found that the risk of stroke was 5 10 145 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv