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Occupational English Test
Reading sub-test
General Information
Time Allocation
The Reading sub-test takes 60 minutes. Part A = 15 minutes
Part B = 45 minutes
Test format and procedure
The Reading sub-test has two parts and is the same for all OET candidates: Reading Part A
Part A is a new task type. Part A is a Summary reading task.
This requires test-takers to skim and scan 3-4 short texts (a total of about 650 words) related to a single topic and to complete a summary paragraph by filling in the missing words.
Test-takers are required to read the texts and write responses for 25-35 gaps in total, within a strictly monitored time limit of 15 minutes.
Part A is designed to test the reader’s ability to source information from multiple texts, to
synthesise information in a meaningful way and to assess skimming and scanning ability under a time limit.
Reading Part B
Part B is similar to the pre-March 2010 reading task type. Test-takers are required to read two passages (600- 800 words each) on general medical topics and answer 8-10 multiple choice questions for each text (a total of 16-20 questions) - within a time limit of 45 minutes.
Part B contains fewer questions than the pre-March 2010 Reading sub-test. The two texts in Part B are also shorter than those used in the pre-March 2010 Reading sub-test.
Part B is designed to test the reader’s ability to read longer texts in detail for comprehension.
Has the Reading sub-test changed?
Candidates who have sat the Reading sub-test before March 2010 will notice the test format has changed. A recent study undertaken at the Language Testing Research Centre at the University of Melbourne established, via the use of surveys and interviews conducted among a range of health professionals, that there was a wider range of publications and reading genres likely to be read in the workplace than the type of texts that had previously informed the OET Reading sub-test. The specific reading skill of skimming and scanning a text was identified as a key component of surveyed health professionals’ work related reading; an ability that was not directly tested under the old reading format. An important reason for the changes to the OET Reading sub-test therefore was to enhance the quality of the test through a more accurate reflection of real-world reading tasks and the underlying skills required to complete them.
A second reason for changes to the Reading sub-test concerns the desire to further increase the reliability of test scores; more particularly by increasing the number of assessable items (a generally accepted reliability-enhancement measure); in real terms, to increase the number of items to above the previous 20-24 multiple choice items.
What will you do on test day?
On the day of the test you will complete the Reading test in two parts. First you will be given Part A- Text Booklet and Part A- Answer Booklet. You will have exactly 15 minutes to read the texts and write your answers to the summary. At the end of 15 minutes, both booklets will be collected from you.
The supervisor will then give you Part B- Text Booklet and Part B- Answer sheet. He/she will explain to you how to fill in the Answer sheet. You then have 45 minutes to read the 2 texts and answer the questions by filling in your Answer sheet.
Remember you cannot go back to Part A if you finish Part B early. 15 minutes is a strict time limit.
Test topics
The topics of the Reading sub-tests are chosen carefully to be accessible to all candidates of the OET. They are of general medical interest and cover a wide variety of issues. The OET is a test of English, not of medical knowledge, and the test developers are careful in the test design to minimise areas where candidates may use prior knowledge rather than language skills to respond.
Topics will vary from administration to administration and while some topics may include content that is familiar to one particular health practitioner’s area of experience and expertise, the language tasks and questions associated with the texts are designed to test language knowledge and ability, over and above, the candidate’s knowledge of that field. In other words, correct responses cannot be simply ‘predicted’ because a candidate has experience in that area. Reading texts are selected for their concentration of content of a general health literacy nature; elements that can be considered common across multiple professions. The topics of all texts are designed to be comprehensible to any educated lay native speaker, or highly proficient non-native speaker, and this is regularly demonstrated through the trialling process (both internal and external).
The reading texts are developed according to strict specifications (in terms of word length, difficulty of vocabulary etc.) by test development specialists at the University of Melbourne. In response to feedback on initial topic ideas and drafts of materials, texts are refined and then question and response formats are developed by the university team. These are subjected to trialling, analysis and further refinement. Through this process a marking key is developed for use by assessors. A sample key is included in the sample reading materials.
Test task types
Part A
Remember, Part A of the Reading sub-test requires you to complete a summary by writing the missing word or several words (but only up to three words) within a strict time limit of 15 minutes. It is therefore important that you do not simply begin Part A by immediately reading all of the passages in great detail before
attempting the summary task. This will take up valuable time and may result in an incomplete summary at the end of the 15 minute period.
Instead, it is highly recommended that you begin by reading the summary passage which contains the numbered ‘gaps’ (in the ‘summary’ column of the ‘Part A - Answer Booklet’). This will direct your attention to the topic and focus of the first paragraph so that you can quickly select which text matches the first part of the summary passage. In other words, reading the summary passage first will help you to know which one of the texts in the ‘Text Booklet’ contains the relevant information to choose the missing words for the first part of the summary passage.
Part A of the Reading sub-test is a test of your ability to skim read and scan quickly across different texts to choose selected information in order to summarise. It is not a test of detailed reading for comprehension purposes - that particular skill is tested in Part B of the reading sub-test.
Remember also that the first paragraph of the summary passage may not necessarily always directly relate to the first text (A1) of the Text booklet. Information for the first two or three ‘gaps’ in the summary passage might only be located by reading another text. That is why it is very important to quickly establish a sense of the topic and focus of the first paragraph; to direct your reading straight away to the appropriate text therefore making efficient use of the time available.
Do
• Write at least 1 word, or up to 3 words for each answer.
• Consider words that are spelt with a hyphen (i.e., ‘-’) as ONE word. For example, ‘a low-cholesterol
diet’ (counts as three words) whereas ‘a low cholesterol diet’ (counts as four words and will NOT receive any marks)
• Make sure you write your response in the same numbered box as the ‘gap’ in the summary passage
(see diagram below). Sometimes the numbered boxes in the Answers column may not line up across the page with the same numbered gaps as they appear in the Summary column.
Summary Answers
Vasectomy
One method of contraception is male sterilisation or vasectomy. Statistics for 2008 showed that
(1) .... of adult men aged under (2) .... in Britain had
undergone a vasectomy and that this proportion had been (3) .... during the previous five years.
Patients are informed that vasectomy is a procedure (4) .... serious risks or complications.
After the operation, which is (5) ....carried out under
local anaesthetic, the man will often experience pain from bruising and swelling of his (6)...
General advice is to wear (7) .... to provide support.
Physical exertion should (8) .... for seven days as a
minimum. If the site of the operation becomes (9)....
or greatly swollen, or if there is bleeding, the patient should seek immediate medical attention. After the operation and for several months subsequently, (10)
.... may form if there is any leakage of sperm into the (11) ....; these can be painful but are (12) ...
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 2 TURN OVER
Reading: Part A - Answer Booklet
Instructions
TIME LIMIT: 15 MINUTES
• Complete the following summary using the information in the four texts, A1-A4, provided on pages 2 and 3 of the Text Booklet.
• You do not need to read each text from beginning to end to complete the task. You should scan the texts to find the information you need.
• Gaps may require 1, 2 or 3 words. You will not receive any marks if you write more than 3 words. • You should write your answers next to the appropriate number in the right-hand column.
• Please use correct spelling in your responses. Do not write abbreviations.
18% constant
• If you miss an answer make sure you move on to the correctly corresponding numbered item before
writing anything further. Don’t write, for example, your answer for the gap for item 15 in the box for item 14 in the Answers column.
• Use correct spelling. Responses that are not spelt correctly will not receive any marks. American and
British English spelling variations are accepted, e.g., color or colour.
• Use words with similar meaning to words in the texts if you can’t find a word (s) directly from the
texts. These words are known as synonyms.
• If you are required to write down numbers or figures you can write either the full form (e.g., three,
one hundred or one million) or the number form (e.g., 3, 100, or 1,000,000).
• Use the headings of the four texts in the text booklet to help you understand which text to use to
complete different parts of the summary passage.
• Use words surrounding the gap for the missing word (s) in the summary passage to help you predict
what kind of information is missing and to anticipate the type of missing word (s) you need to write.
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Assessors are trained to only consider responses given within the ‘Answers’ column (on the right). If a response is written in the Answer column or in the wrong box AND the candidate has NOT indicated clearly (e.g., with an arrow) where the response should be, it CANNOT be marked.
• Read the instructions carefully. Have the Text booklet open in front of you so that all texts are visible at the same time. Have the Answer Booklet slightly to the side so that you can write your responses as you read the texts.
• You may write your answers in either pen or pencil for Part A.
Don’t
• Write more than 3 words for each answer.
• Write your responses in the wrong gap. You will NOT receive any marks for answers written in the
incorrect gap number.
• Write in the Summary passage itself. Responses must be written in the ‘Answers’ column on the
right hand side.
• Write two options (separated by ‘/’ or ‘,’ or ‘( )’), even if they appear in the texts and mean the same
thing (e.g., if you write ‘greater/larger’, you will NOT receive any marks).
• Spend time thinking about whether a word should be capitalised or not. Capitalised and
non-capitalised forms are accepted (e.g., ‘CANADA’, or ‘canada’, or ‘Canada’ are ALL acceptable).
Test task types
Part B
Remember, Part B is similar to the pre-March 2010 reading task but test-takers now read two shorter texts and answer fewer questions.
In Part B, test-takers are required to read two passages (600-800 words each) on general medical topics and answer 8-10 multiple choice questions for each text (a total of 16-20 questions) within a time limit of 45 minutes.
The two texts are on health-related topics and are similar to texts found in academic or professional journals. After each of the texts you will find 8-10 questions or unfinished statements about the text, each with four suggested answers or ways of finishing (multiple-choice questions). You must choose the one response which you think fits best.
The texts appear in the Text Booklet and there is a separate answer sheet to complete. You must indicate your chosen response (A, B, C or D) to each question by shading the appropriate oval on the answer sheet. You must do this with a soft (2B) pencil.
Before you attempt Part B of the Practice test, consider some important tips below. Do
• Answer every question. If you get to the end of Part B and are still not sure about a particular
question, make an educated estimation. Record your answers accurately on the Answer sheet before the 45 minutes is over.
• Take the sample test under test conditions beforehand so you know what it feels like. Set your timer
for 45 minutes and aim to spend approximately 22-23 minutes on each text in Part B.
• Bring and use a soft (2B) pencil. Remember you cannot use a pen to fill in the Answer sheet for
Don’t
• Get stuck on one question – keep going and come back to it at the end when you have answered all
other questions. Marks are not deducted for incorrect answers.
• Cross out mistakes when you are filling out the Answer sheet for Part B. Unlike for Part A, in Part B
you need to erase wrong answers completely then fill in the correct answer fully. There are clear instructions on the Answer sheet about how to fill in your answers.
• Fill in more than one box on the Answer sheet as the scanner will not be able to recognise your
answer and you will not receive any marks for that question.
Test Assessment
The OET assesses all four language skills – listening, reading, writing and speaking – with an emphasis on contextualised communication for professional purposes. The Listening and Reading sub-tests are common to all candidates while the Speaking and Writing sub-tests are specific to each profession.
The Reading sub-test consists of a short answer response (summary completion) test (Part A) and a multiple-choice questions (MCQ) test (Part B). Candidate answer sheets for Part A are marked by trained assessors and score sheets for Part B are computer scanned. The item-level data are analysed using a RASCH analysis approach, for overall internal consistency and item quality. Any items found to be performing unacceptably (i.e., with fit of above 1.3 or with discrimination levels of less than .25) are removed from the subsequent analysis.
Test Scores
Each section of the new format Reading sub-test is weighted equally. That is, Part A is worth 33.3% and each text in Part B is also worth 33% of the total score.
Why is the Reading sub-test weighted equally when there are more questions (items) in Part A? When you sit the reading test, you will get a raw score on Part A (between 25 and 35 depending on the number of items on that particular test) and a raw score on Part B (between 16 and 20 depending on the number of items on that particular test). Your scores will then be converted to a total score for the reading test in which your score for Part A counts for 33.33% (one-third) of the total score, and your score for Part B counts for 66.66% (two-thirds) of the total score. Your total score for the reading test will then be transformed into a grade (A – E).
This type of weighted score conversion is very common. For example, in the listening sub-test, although one Part A might have more available marks than Part B, your score on each part is converted so that it counts for exactly 50% of your total score for the whole listening sub-test.
The reason why there are different weightings for each part of the reading test is to reflect the relative importance of the skills we are measuring in each part in the overall estimation of your reading ability. Part A tests a relatively narrow set of reading skills – skimming and scanning – whereas Part B tests a range of different reading skills through different types of multiple choice questions.
Do I need to get the same score for each Reading section individually?
Part A and Part B scores are converted to a percentage (reflecting relative weighting) that is then converted to a total score. Data from your total score across both sections are used to calculate band-scores for each administration. The score is a combination of your total weighted scores for Parts A and B. Conceivably, you may score slightly lower for one section but still maintain an overall higher level if your scores for the other section are higher.
