The Harm That Picture Books Can Cause — IELTS Reading Answers

Readers are said to 'bark' at a text when

1. Athey read too loudly.
2. Bthere are too many repetitive words.
3. Cthey are discouraged from using their imagination.
4. Dthey have difficulty assessing its meaning.correct

“Even if a child is able to read aloud fluently, he or she may not be able to understand much of it: this is called 'barking at text'”

Barking at text is defined as reading aloud fluently but understanding little, so it means having difficulty assessing meaning, option D.

The text suggests that

1. Apictures in books should be less detailed.
2. Bpictures can slow down reading progress.correct
3. Cpicture books are best used with younger readers.
4. Dpictures make modern books too expensive.

“The research results of the Canadian educationalist Dale Willows were clear and consistent: pictures affected speed and accuracy and the closer the pictures were to the words, the slower and more inaccurate the child's reading became”

Willows' research showed pictures affected speed and accuracy, with pictures closer to words making reading slower and more inaccurate.

University academics are concerned because

1. Ayoung people are showing less interest in higher education.
2. Bstudents cannot understand modern academic texts.
3. Cacademic books are too childish for their undergraduates.
4. Dthere has been a significant change in student literacy.correct

“The Universities of Oxford and Cambridge recently held joint conferences to discuss the noticeably rapid decline in literacy among their undergraduates”

Oxford and Cambridge held joint conferences about the noticeably rapid decline in literacy among undergraduates, so academics are concerned about a significant change in student literacy.

The youngest readers will quickly develop good reading skills if they

1. Alearn to associate the words in a text with pictures.
2. Bare exposed to modern teaching techniques.
3. Care encouraged to ignore pictures in the text.correct
4. Dlearn the art of telling stories.

“When children were given words and pictures, those who seemed to ignore the pictures and pointed at the words learnt more words than the children who pointed at the pictures, but they still learnt fewer words than the children who had no illustrated stimuli at all”

Children who ignored pictures and pointed at words learnt more words than those pointing at pictures, so encouraging children to ignore pictures helps.

It is traditionally accepted that children's books should contain few pictures.

“When teachers use picture books, they are simply continuing a long-established tradition that is accepted without question”

The text says teachers using picture books continue a long-established tradition accepted without question, contradicting the claim that few pictures is traditionally accepted.

Teachers aim to teach both word recognition and word meaning.

“A teacher's main concern is to help young beginner readers to develop not only the ability to recognise words, but the skills necessary to understand what these words mean”

A teacher's main concern is helping beginners recognise words and also understand what those words mean, exactly what the statement says.

Older readers are having difficulty in adjusting to texts without pictures.

“As they grow older, many children turn aside from books without pictures, and it is a situation made more serious as our culture becomes more visual. It is hard to wean children off picture books when pictures have played a major part throughout their formative reading experiences,”

The text says many children turn aside from books without pictures and it is hard to wean them off picture books, so older readers struggle to adjust.

Literacy has improved as a result of recent academic conferences.

“The Universities of Oxford and Cambridge recently held joint conferences to discuss the noticeably rapid decline in literacy among their undergraduates”

The conferences merely discussed the decline in undergraduates' literacy; the passage never says literacy improved because of any academic conference.

The decline of literacy is seen in groups of differing ages and abilities.

“The least intelligent are most vulnerable, but tests show that even intelligent children are being affected. The response of educators has been to extend the use of pictures in books and to simplify the language, even at senior levels.”

Paragraph F covers declining literacy across ability levels, noting even intelligent children are affected and university undergraduates too, matching differing ages and abilities.

Reading methods currently in use go against research findings.

“Amazingly, there is virtually no empirical evidence to support the use of illustrations in teaching reading. On the contrary, a great deal of empirical evidence shows that pictures interfere in a damaging way with all aspects of learning to read.”

Paragraph C notes virtually no empirical evidence supports using illustrations, yet children still receive wordless picture books, so current practice contradicts research.

Readers able to ignore pictures are claimed to make greater progress.

“When children were given words and pictures, those who seemed to ignore the pictures and pointed at the words learnt more words than the children who pointed at the pictures, but they still learnt fewer words than the children who had no illustrated stimuli at all”

Paragraph J reports that children who ignored pictures learnt more words than those who pointed at them, supporting the claim of greater progress.

Illustrations in books can give misleading information about word meaning.

“If they do not know a word and look to the picture for a clue to its meaning, they may well be misled by aspects of the pictures which are not closely related to the meaning of the word they are trying to understand”

Paragraph I warns that children looking to a picture for a word's meaning may be misled by unrelated aspects of it.

Choose the most suitable title for the whole of Reading Passage 2.

1. AThe global decline in reading levels
2. BConcern about recent educational developments
3. CThe harm that picture books can causecorrect
4. DResearch carried out on children's literature
5. EAn examination of modern reading styles

“On the contrary, a great deal of empirical evidence shows that pictures interfere in a damaging way with all aspects of learning to read”

The whole passage argues pictures interfere in a damaging way with all aspects of learning to read, so the title about harm caused fits.