雅思剑桥真题系列VI的Test 4 分别包括了以药品经销代表,母亲的背景和教育子女的关系以及儿童成长中同伴间相处的问题为内容的三篇文章,本文将就其中考生们普遍感到困惑的难点进行解析,希望对‘烤鸭’们有所帮助,也借此和雅思教学研究者们讨论。

第一篇文章‘Doctoring sales’出现了难度系数极高的List of Headings 题型。在此向各位备考雅思的学生提醒,这种考察综合能力的题型应该建立在其他细节判断题已经完成的前提下再来应对,一方面可以更明智更有效地利用时间,另一方面也增强自信心,利于考场发挥。

在Questions 1-7中,List of Headings 里面列举了10个Statements, 对应于7道题目,属于段落标题配对题。其中Q3 可能会导致许多学生在选择的过程中误判或纠结,以下列举:

Q3. Paragraph C

C段的首句极具欺骗性,它的特殊位置会让考生极为相信该句就是全段的主题句Topic Sentense: Selling pharmaceuticals is a daily exercise in ethical judgement. 从而有可能选中答案iv. Fighting the drug companies.  或者由第二句:Salespeople like Schaefer walk the line between the common pratice of buying a prospect's time with a free meal, and bribing doctors to prescribe their drugs. 而误选答案vi. Gifts include financial incentives, 但事实上,直至读完全段才会意识到,也才会领略到作者的真正表达意图:

..., so are doctors to blame for the escalating extravagance of pharmaceutical marketing? Or is it the industry's  responsibility to decide the boundaries?

前面的文字都成为寻找‘谁来负责’的铺垫,而核心的表达意思在最后一句才得以出现,正确答案应该是iii. Who is responsible for the increase in promotions?

对考生而言,尤其是能力相对较弱的同学,更希望一些应考技巧相对固定,便于运用,但文无定法,并不是每一次每一位作者的写作风格和特点都完全一样,这时就需要我们审慎细致。

在笔者执教的阅读材料中有一篇文章的情形也是如此。同样是List of Headings 题型:

Headings:  III. Reading: the mark of civilization

           IV.  Reading in St. Augustine's Day

Question 1.  Paragraph A

A段中由于首句并且是首行就出现了异常醒目的St. Augustine..., 令许多学生在瞬间就充满自信地选中了 IV, 但事实上这只是个Guide, 因为在接下来的描述中方向就转掉了,讨论其他时期的阅读状况:

Reading has come to a long way since Augustine's day.There was a time when it was a menial job of scribes and priests, not the mark of civilization it became in Europe during the Renaissance when it was seen as one of the attributes of the civilized individual.

由此可知正确答案是:III

在剑VI的第二篇文章中,Questions14-18 是Summary 题型,其中Q16:

This question has been investigated by 16______________ in Nicaragua.

在备有答案选项的List 中,

C. an international research team

I. a National Literacy Crusade

由于Q16并不是该题目的第一题,在本段Summary 内容中,只需follow 前文即可轻松定位。在Paragraph 3 中,‘In 1979, the government of Nicaragua established a number of social programmes, including a National Literacy Crusade.’

但是只需稍加仔细就会发现该答案是有问题的,因为该空前文还提到:... there is a  connection between child health and ... , 答案I. a National Literacy Crusade虽然貌似恰当,但并未提及对这二者之间关系的研究,而涉及到这一内容的是下一段:

During this period, researchers from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, the Central American Institute of Health in Nicaragua, ...

可知答案应该是 C.

总之考题特点,应考技巧林林总总,不一而足,建议考生应充分练习,最好加强针对性练习,才能积累宝贵经验,服务于考场,赢取佳绩。