MAIN IDEA QUESTION

Each reading comprehension passage in the CAT verbal section is a unified whole – that is, the individual statements and paragraphs support and develop one main idea or central point. Sometimes the central idea is told in the passage explicitly and sometimes it will be necessary for you to determine the central point from the overall organization of the passage. You may be required to recognize a correct restatement, or paraphrase, of the main idea of a passage, or to assign a title that summarizes, in a clause or sentence, the central idea of the passage or a particular paragraph. The central idea question is phrased in one of the following ways.

Ø Which of the following best states the central idea of the passage? Ø The author’s primary purpose / objective is to...

Ø Which of the following is the principal topic of the passage? Ø The author’s main concern is...

Ø The central idea / theme / topic of the passage is...

Ø Which of the following best summarizes the passage as a whole? Ø In the passage, the author is primarily interested in...

Ø Which of the following titles best summarizes the passage as a whole? Ø The primary purpose of the second paragraph is which of the following? Ø The last paragraph of the passage performs which of the following functions? Ø A suitable title for the passage would be...

Ø Which of the following questions answers the central theme of the passage? ANSWERING STRATEGIES

Central idea questions are general questions; therefore, they will always have ‘general’ answers. This helps you to eliminate choices that are specific – choices that contain information pertaining to a specific paragraph alone. The wrong choices are partly true or are centered on any of the paragraphs.

The main idea may be presented immediately in the very first sentence. Or

it may be presented in the end of the first paragraph. Or

the main idea may be a sum of the opening sentences of each paragraph.

Just focus on the first and last sentence of each of the paragraphs and it is unlikely that you do not get the main idea. Now let’s answer a main idea question:

PASSAGE-1

The behavioral school of psychologists believes that all learning is responses to stimuli. And that all learning should be assessed through definable responses. For behaviorists the concept of ‘size’ among children for example, is assessed by cuing the child to respond to questions pertaining to size; if a child is unable to respond to the stimulus, the child is assessed as not having developed the concept of size.

However, for Piaget, this is a ‘mechanical’ view of the behaviorists. The concept of ‘size’, among children, Piaget says, is one dimension of an array of interrelated images (mental images): Covert responses can be expressed only with the image of all other concepts, say, length, height, weight etc. All these contribute toward a child’s response to say, the expression of size. Difficulties arise only if a child is unable to express a concept through a response to a single stimulus without the other images. In such a case, Piaget argues, that any dimension of concept formation can be assessed by providing clues on other related dimensions, in order to make the child respond covertly to achieve the fundamental requirement of assessment through response to stimulus, even if one has to present tangible examples of other conceptual dimensions.

1. The author of the passage is primarily concerned with presenting A. Criticism of Piaget’s views on the conceptualization of behaviorism.

B. Evidence to support Piaget’s claims about the problems inherent in behaviorism.

C. An account of Piaget’s counter proposal to one of the traditional assumptions of behaviorism. D. An overview of behaviorism and its contributions to Piaget’s alternate understanding of behaviorism. E. A history of behaviorism and Piaget’s reservations about it.

Analysis of the question:

A. Does the author criticize Piaget’s views? No. He doesn’t criticize either Piaget or Behaviorists. B. Is the author supporting Piaget’s claim? Not really. He doesn’t support Behaviorists either.

C. Is the author presenting Piaget’s counter proposal to Behaviourist’s assumptions? Yes! He is. In the second paragraph the author presents Piaget’s criticism of Behaviourist’s assumptions and offers alternate solutions (remember the author himself doesn’t criticize Behaviorists)

D. Is the passage about an overview of Behaviourism? No. Does Behaviourism contribute to Piaget’s understanding? Not really.

E. Is the author presenting a history of Behaviourism? No; you can easily eliminate this choice. Now look at the choices of this question:

The author of the passage is primarily concerned with presenting

A. Criticism of Piaget’s views on the conceptualization of behaviorism.

B. Evidence to support Piaget’s claims about the problems inherent in behaviorism.

C. An account of Piaget’s counter proposal to one of the traditional assumptions of behaviorism. D. An overview of behaviorism and its contributions to Piaget’s alternate understanding of behaviorism. E. A history of behaviorism and Piaget’s reservations about it.

Analysis of the question:

You’re asked to identify the primary purpose of the passage. Let’s look at the choices:

A] Resolve a dispute. Is the author stating any dispute and offering solutions? No.

B] Discuss controversial perspectives – similar to choice [A]. is there any controversy discussed in the passage? No.

C] Is the author comparing and contrasting three approaches? No. The author only discusses three historiographical considerations (opening line of the passage).

D] Set forth the author’s position on historiographical issues? Yes. This is the author’s purpose. E] Is the author questioning the validity of methods used by historians? No. Unrelated to the passage. You may find it interesting to know that it is possible to eliminate choices with the first word of each of the choices itself.

[In a central idea question, all that matters in the choices is the first word, which summarizes the purpose of the entire passage.]

Is the author presenting criticism? (Not his) Ø Evidence (the author gives no evidence) Ø Account of counterproposal? (Yes) Ø Overview of Behaviourism (No) Ø History (No)

PASSAGE-2

Three historiographical considerations played an important role in my decision to write a history of Black women in the United States. First, I was persuaded that Black people and White people in the United States clearly represent two different cultures, with different traditions and often times diametrically opposed past experiences. The same may hold true for the two sexes, whose roles, history and contributions seem on close examination to be almost different enough to constitute different cultures. Of course, all groups share in the common history. I do not believe that recognizing the existence of large cultural subdivisions means succumbing to separatism, cultural nationalism, and a narrow particularistic vision. There is a place for universalistic interpretations of that, which is common to all humanity, and there is a place for that which is particular to one special entity. We accept that there are both a world history and a history of France or of India, histories that are not the same, but that fit into similar categories. Our historical perceptions can only be enriched by accepting the fact that, since sex and race are frequently used (however unfairly) to assign certain roles and statuses to people, these people have had different historical experiences from those of the dominant group.

Second, I became convinced that standard histories of the United States have tended to overlook the contributions and viewpoints of Black Americans and women. I hope and expect that the present generation of United States historians will rectify this mistake, recognizing that women and Blacks were there and that their special contributions to the building and shaping of American society were different from those of White men. In the meantime, a separate history of Black women is needed.

Finally, I had to consider the role that a White historian can legitimately play in the writing of Black history. Certainly, historians who are members of the culture about which they write will bring a special quality to their material. Their understandings are apt to be different from those of an outsider. But scholars from outside a culture have frequently had a view that contrasts with the view of those closely involved in and bound by their own culture. These angles of vision are complementary in arriving at an accurate picture of the past. The interpretation of the Black past made by Blacks will probably be somewhat different from that made by Whites. This does not mean that Black history can or should be interpreted only by Blacks. It should be interpreted by both groups, so that, in the juxtaposition of different interpretations, in debate, and in the clash of opinions, a richer and fuller and more solidly based history will emerge.

1. The primary purpose of the passage is to A. resolve a historiographical dispute.

B. discuss a controversial historiographical perspective.

C. compare and contrast three alternative historiographical approaches D. set forth the author’s positions on three historiographical issues.

E. question the validity of three historiographical methods used by the other historians.

It will also help you to know, when and for what kind of passages these ‘key words’ are used. Take a look at some of them.

A. Describe

What do we generally describe? - A scientific phenomenon

- An event / incident - A piece of history B. Explain / discuss / elucidate

A concept, an idea – with definitions, illustrations, features, cause-effect relationships.

C. Analyze

An issue, argument, problem, hypothesis D. Question

E. Compare and contrast

two books, two authors, two hypotheses, two schools of thought. (pointing out similarities and differences) F. Propose

Suggest a new hypothesis, a new theory, a solution for a problem alternative methods. G. Argue

Against a policy, for an idea, to establish one’s own idea, to disprove/ refute a claim. H. Criticize

a book, an author, a policy, hypothesis, or a point of view. I. Evaluate

an argument, validity of a hypothesis, a new theory, suggested solutions, proposed solutions / ideas. II. SPECIFIC IDEA QUESTION

These questions measure your ability to comprehend the supporting ideas and illustrative matter in a given passage. These assess your ability to differentiate ideas that are explicitly stated in the passage from ideas that are implied by the author. You may be asked about the facts cited in the passage, specific data presented by the author, cause-effect relationship between factual data, or about descriptions used to elaborate the main theme. While questions on the main idea ask you to determine the meaning of a passage as a whole, questions about specific ideas ask you to determine the meaning of individual sentences and paragraphs.

The best way to find the answer to specific question is by using ‘lead words’ together with chronological order. The lead word is the most specific word or phrase in the question. It tells you what the question is about, which in turn tells you where to look in the passage. Lead words are often nouns or noun phrases. Once you locate the lead word in the given question stem, simply scan the passage in order to locate it. The answer to the question is near the location of the lead word.

Use these hints to identify lead words:

i. capital letters, illustrative words, quantified data, abbreviations, names are easy to spot.

ii. a question stem may have more than one lead word; trace the lead word that is less repeated in the passage.

iii. if the question doesn’t have a lead word, check out clue words in the choices; verify with the passage of their relevance.

Most of such questions have references to line numbers or paragraph references. The question stems are as follows.

Ø The author uses the term ………. (line 20) to mean

Ø The ‘common ground of understanding’, line 5-6 most probably refers to…. Ø The author quotes sprat (in Para 2) primarily in order to….

Ø According to the author caffeine differs from adenosine in which of the following ways? Ø The author mentions the excavation in Cyprus to emphasize which of the following points? Ø The author cites all of the following as reasons for …… EXCEPT

Ø According to the passage, researchers use surrogates for all of the following experiments EXCEPT Ø According to the passage, which of the following is true/not true of stellar evolution?

Most specific questions have what are called lead words or phrases in their stems. These are words or phrases that are easy to locate in the passage by skimming through it.

Scroll long passages to bring the part of the passage that possibly has the answer to the center of the screen. This will enable you to compare each of the choices that are placed on the right side of the screen with the content on the left side (in the passage). With the answer choices right next to the matter in which the answer lies, matching the choices become convenient. Questions with line references are all the more easy to spot and analyze. For line referred questions, always read the preceding line(s) and/or the following line(s) as required by the question. Every passage is followed by specific questions; use them to your advantage.

In some cases, certain lead words are scattered all over the passage. Then make use of the related idea in the question stem to narrow down to which attribute of the lead word is required by the question.

Let’s answer a specific question:

PASSAGE-1

The behavioral school of psychologists believes that all learning is responses to stimuli; and that all learning should be assessed through definable responses. For behaviorists the concept of ‘size’ among children for example, is assessed by cuing the child to respond to questions pertaining to size; if a child is unable to respond to the stimulus, the child is assessed as not having developed the concept of size.

However, for Piaget, this is a ‘mechanical’ view of the behaviorists. The concept of ‘size’, among children, Piaget says, is one dimension of an array of interrelated images (mental images): Covert responses can be expressed only with the image of all other concepts, say, length, height, weight etc. All these contribute toward a child’s response to say, the expression of size. Difficulties arise only if a child is unable to express a concept through a response to a single stimulus without the other changes. In such a case, Piaget argues, that providing clues on other related dimensions, in order to make the child respond covertly to achieve the fundamental requirement of assessment through response to stimulus, even if one has to present tangible examples of other conceptual dimensions, can assess any dimension of concept formation.

1. According to Piaget’s conception of concept formation, if a child is unable to respond to the stimulus to assess concept formation in him, which of the following would be true?

A. The child is assessed as not developed the intended concept.

B. Both the child’s response and the stimulus are considered incomplete to arrive at any conclusive judgment.

C. New concepts would be taught to the child in order to make him form mental images.

D. Clues on other related concepts would be provided, in order to make the child respond through association recall.

E. The child forms an entirely new set of concepts.

Analysis of the question:

A. If a child is unable to respond to the stimulus to assess concept formation in him, does Piaget argue that the child is assessed as not developed the concept? No. This is, in fact, the claim of Behaviorists.

B. Does Piaget claim that the child’s response as well as the stimulus is considered incomplete? No.

C. Does Piaget propose to teach new concepts for formation of mental images? No. Beyond the scope of the passage.

D. Does Piaget suggest that clues on other related concepts could be provided? Yes. In Para 2 he suggests exactly this. D is the best answer.

E. Does Piaget claim that an entirely new set of concepts would be formed? Again, beyond the scope of the passage.

PASSAGE-2

Three historiographical considerations played an important role in my decision to write a history of Black women in the United States. First, I was persuaded that Black people and White people in the United States clearly represent two different cultures, with different traditions and often times diametrically opposed past experiences. The same may hold true for the two sexes, whose roles, history and contributions seem on close examination to be almost different enough to constitute different cultures. Of course, all groups share in the common history. I do not believe that recognizing the existence of large cultural subdivisions means succumbing to separatism, cultural nationalism, and a narrow particularistic vision. There is a place for universalistic interpretations of that, which is common to all humanity, and there is a place for that which is particular to one special entity. We accept that there are both a world history and a history of France or of India, histories that are not the same, but that fit into similar categories. Our historical perceptions can only be enriched by accepting the fact that, since sex and race are frequently used (however unfairly) to assign certain roles and statuses to people, these people have had different historical experiences from those of the dominant group.

Second, I became convinced that standard histories of the United States have tended to overlook the contributions and viewpoints of Black Americans and women. I hope and expect that the present generation of United States historians will rectify this mistake, recognizing that women and Blacks were there and that their special contributions to the building and shaping of American society were different from those of White men. In the meantime, a separate history of Black women is needed.

Finally, I had to consider the role that a White historian can legitimately play in the writing of Black history. Certainly, historians who are members of the culture about which they write will bring a special quality to their material. Their understandings are apt to be different from those of an outsider. But scholars from outside a culture have frequently had a view that contrasts with the view of those closely involved in and bound by their own culture. These angles of vision are complementary in arriving at an accurate picture of the past. The interpretation of the Black past made by Blacks will probably be somewhat different from that made by Whites. This does not mean that Black history can or should be interpreted only by Blacks. It should be interpreted by both groups, so that, in the juxtaposition of different interpretations, in debate, and in the clash of opinions, a richer and fuller and more solidly based history will emerge.

1. The author suggests in lines 20-23 that she does not consider the historiographical perspective described in lines 5-8 to be overly

A. traditional B. particularistic C. universalistic

D. individualistic E. patriotic

Analysis of the question:

The question is, what she doesn’t consider…. You may directly refer to lines 20-23; the author says that there is room for universalistic interpretations, and that she doesn’t believe in succumbing to separatism. Therefore the answer is B.