Read the Instructions Carefully

Many strong candidates lose marks because they don’t read the instructions properly. Pay close attention to the instructions so you don't lose easy marks.

Read the examples but don't do them

Some parts of the Reading and Use of English paper have examples that demonstrate how to do the tasks. On the Reading and Use of English paper, every part features the same type of question, so you can know exactly what to expect in each part and learn how to do each task before the exam. Never waste time trying to find the example answers.

Read Titles

Some of the sections have titles, however students often ignore them. You should read the titles so you have an idea of what the passage will be about.

Stay Calm

Questions in the reading section can be extremely difficult even for native speakers. 

Don’t spend a huge amount of time on a hard question. Remember, you can write on your test paper so if you are struggling, make the question and possible answers and go back to it later.

Never panic. Just accept that you probably won't know all the answers and keep moving forward.

Build your Vocabulary and Learn how to Paraphrase

The reading test is more of a vocabulary test than a reading test. You'll have to know how to paraphrase and use synonyms to understand the texts and tasks given to you. While it’s difficult to build your vocabulary in a short amount of time, one thing you can do is read in English every day and read about a variety of subjects - not just ones you like to talk about in your free time.

Learn to identify Reference Words

Learn how to read for reference words such as “this”, “it” or “them” and understand what they are referring to. Check out reference words here. 

Learn to Skim and Scan

Skimming is when you look at a page quickly and identify the main points or ideas. An example of skimming is when you quickly read the back of a novel to see if it's something you'd like to read. You don't need to read every word to get the main idea of a text and you shouldn't spend a lot of time thinking about unknown words.

Scanning means reading a text quickly to find specific words or information, such as names, places, or dates. An example of scanning would be looking at the back of a novel to check the price. When scanning, however, it's important you know what you're looking for before you start, to be efficient.