IELTS Reading - COMPREHENSION SKILL: Understanding the “theme” of the whole passage

You can improve your score by improving your comprehension skills. An important part of "comprehending" a given passage or part of the passage (a paragraph) is to understand the essence and theme of it.

 

What is the theme of a passage/paragraph?
A theme is the “main” idea or concept.

 

If a reader can locate and/or understand the theme or main idea then comprehending the rest of the passage becomes a lot easier.

 

How to locate and comprehend the “theme”?

The theme of the “whole passage” can usually be found in the heading and subheading. For example look at the following examples of headings:

 

 

1. APICULTURE.

 

Beekeeping has been practiced by humans for ages.

 

 

 

2. AT THE MERCY OF HUMANS

 

Ecosystem under threat because of the development done by humans

 

 

 

3. INSOMNIA

 

Inability to sleep

 

 

• What comes to your mind after reading each of the above headings?

 

• What do you think the passage which follows will be about?

 

• Do you find it helpful to have an initial idea of what the passage might be about?

 

Most candidates of IELTS test feel more comfortable in attempting the questions if they have an idea of what the passage is about. The easiest way to do so is to read the “heading”. Most headings clearly define the theme of the passage.

 

The above headings clearly give us an idea what the passage will be about:

• Heading #1 tells us that the passage will be about “beekeeping”.
• Heading#2 tells that the passage will be about how ecosystem is badly affected by the developments being made by humans. 
• Heading#3 tells us that passage will be about “sleeplessness” (the inability to sleep).

 

FURTHER PRACTICE:

 

Magazines, News Papers, Newsletters etc both paper based and electronic (available electronically on the Internet) are excellent resources for reading headings and sub-headings in order to understand the possible theme of the passage. As you practice more, you will feel a lot more comfortable in reading different texts of which you have no prior knowledge. You will specifically be focusing on the given text and that’s what the IELTS test expects you to do: read and understand the text and then answer the questions!

Self-Study Strategies: Know Your Learning Style

Preparing for IELTS can be a self-study venture or people can choose to take formal classes. However with the busy schedules most of us have today many of us are more comfortable with self-study strategies, like self-study books, online resources etc. However, before starting self-study try to find "your" very own learning style. How do you like to learn best?

• Reading (Visual)
• Listening (Auditory)
• Everyday practice (Kinesthetic: practically doing things)
• Making notes (learning by writing)
• Charts etc.(Visual)

There are various other ways people learn. Some have a specific learning style, others use mixed learning strategies to enhance the learning effect (like listening, watching, reading and making notes to incorporate the lesson in their mind).

You can find out your very own learning style on the following link: http://www.metamath.com/multiple/multiple_choice_questions.html

Simply put, your learning style is the way in which you feel most comfortable to study. When you are sure about your learning style, move on to read the next post about how to incorporate study in your daily routine.
Good Luck everyone!