Cambridge IELTS 8 Test 4 Reading Passage 1 Solution with Answer Key – Land of the Rising Sum

IELTS Reading Passage Solution with Answer Keys. Cambridge IELTS 8 Test 4 Passage 1 Land of the Rising Sum step by step Explanation of all the questions with Tips and Strategies. This post is for educational purpose only. If you find difficulties in reading passage to find the right answer in the exam, just read the post carefully. Tips and strategies will help you find the right answer.

Cambridge IELTS 8 Test 4 Reading Passage 1 Land of the Rising Sum – Explanation

 

Detail Explanation of IELTS Cambridge 8 Test 4  Academic Reading Module, Reading Passage 1

 

PASSAGE 1: Land of the Rising Sum (View Full Passage Here)

Questions 1-5: (List of headings)

** Tips (Link Details): How To Solve List of Heading in IELTS Reading Passage

Important Tips: Skimming is the best reading technique. You need not understand every word here. Just try to gather the gist of the sentences. That’s all. Read quickly and don’t stop until you finish each sentence.

Question 1: Section B
Now, Section B is clearly an overview of lower secondary schools or middle-years education in Japan. Thew riter gives a description of the number of years, the different facilities, timing of lessons, break-time and description of the class-size, etc.

Answer is: vii (Background to middle-years education in Japan)
Special tips: Most of the time in ‘List of headings/Matching headings’ questions, the answers are found from the first few lines as they give an idea about the main topic. However, this is not applicable to all questions, so sometimes you need to skim the whole section/paragraph.

 

Question 2: Section C
Now, in paragraph C, look at lines 3-4, “Everyone has their own copy of the textbook supplied by the central education authority, Monbusho, as a part of the concept of free compulsory education up to the age of 15.” Therefore, Monbusho, which is Japan’s central education authority, supplies textbooks to the students for free.

Again, the last sentence in paragraph C says, “Besides approving textbooks, Monbusho also decides the highly centralized national curriculum and how it is to be delivered”.

These lines suggest that Monbusho has such a great effect/influence on Japan’s education that it not only designs textbooks but also the national curriculum.

Answer: i (The influence of Monbusho)

Question 3: Section D
This section describes the format of every lesson in Monbusho system. However, it seems that none of the ‘headings’ from the list matches with this section.

Again, if you look at lines 11-12, the author writes, “. .. Only rarely are supplementary worksheets distributed
in a maths class.” This means supplementary worksheets are rarely distributed in maths class only, and this
makes maths class format typical.

Answer: v (The typical format of a maths lesson)

Question 4: Section E
Now, in the first part of section E, the writer says lines 3-4, “. .. In observed lessons, any strugglers would be assisted by the teacher or quietly seek help from their neighbour.” Here, strugglers mean less successful
students.
Then, in the next part of section E, the author says, “This scarcely seems adequate help to enable slow learners to keep up. However, the Japanese attitude towards education runs along the lines of ‘if you work hard enough, you can do almost anything’.” This means slow learners get help which may seem inadequate but Japanese people believe hard work essential to get success.

Answer: ii (Helping less successful students)

Question 5: Section F
Now, the first lines of parts 1 and 2 of section F give us the answer to this question. At the beginning of part 1,
“So what are the major contributing factors in the success of maths teaching? Clearly, attitudes are important.”

And then, at the beginning of part 2, “Other relevant points relate to the supportive attitude of a class towards slower pupils, the lack of competition within a class and a positive emphasis on learning for oneself and improving one’s own standard.”

Answer: viii (The key to Japanese successes in maths education)

 

Questions 6-9: YES, NO, NOT GIVEN

Tips: (Link Details): How To Solve Yes, No, Not Given Question in IELTS Reading Module?

Question 6: There is a wider range of achievement amongst English pupils studying maths than amongst their Japanese counterparts.
Keywords: wider range of achievement, English pupils, studying maths, Japanese counterparts,

Now, in paragraph A, take a look at lines 4-6, where the writer says, “… .. . but there was also a larger proportion
of ‘low’ attainers in England, where, incidentally, the variation in attainment scores was much greater.” The lines suggest that even though Japan has a much better record in average mathematical achievement than England and Wales, England has a much wider range of achievement scores than Japan.

Here, wider means greater, achievement means attainment,
Answer: YES

Question 7: The percentage of Gross National Product spent on education generally reflects the level of attainment in mathematics.
Keywords: percentage, Gross National Product, spent, reflects, level of attainment,

Now, the last sentence of Section A,”. ….. The percentage of Gross National Product spent on education is reasonably similar in the two countries, so how is this higher and more consistent attainment in maths achieved?”

Now have a look at the sentence of section A, “Japan has significantly better record in terms of average mathematical attainment than England and Wales.”
Therefore, the writer is asking the question about the role of GNP in relation to higher scores in maths by
Japan. This suggests that the percentage of GNP spent on education doesn’t necessarily reflect the level of
scoring in maths. Had it been like that, England would have the same result in maths like Japan.

Answer: NO

Question 8: Private schools in Japan are more modern and spacious than state-run lower secondary
schools.
Keywords: private schools in Japan, modern, spacious, state-run lower secondary schools,

Now, in section B, in lines 2-3, “. .. . all pupils at this stage attend state schools; only 3 percent are in the private sector. Schools are usually modern in design, set well back from the road and spacious inside”.
However, we don’t find any comparison between the facilities of private schools and state-run schools here.

Answer: NOT GIVEN

Question 9: Teachers mark homework in Japanese schools.
Keywords: teachers, mark, homework, Japanese schools,

Now, in section D, take a look at lines 3-5, “Pupils mark their own homework: this is an important principle in Japanese schooling as it enables pupils to see where and why they made a mistake so that these can be avoided in future”.
So, the homework is marked by the pupils, not by their teachers.

Answer: NO

Questions 10-13: Multiple choice questions
Tips (Link Details:  How To Solve Multiple Choice Questions in IELTS Reading Module?

Question 10: Maths textbooks in Japanese schools are –
Keywords: Maths textbooks, Japanese schools,

Now, in section C, find this line, “These textbooks are, on the whole, small, presumably inexpensive to produce, but well set out and logically developed.”

Here, well set out and logically developed = well organised and adapted to the needs of the pupils

Answer: B (Well organised and adapted to the needs of the pupils)

Question 11: When a new maths topic is introduced,
Keywords: new maths topic, introduced,

Now, in section D, in lines 7-10, “…. the teacher explains the topic of the lesson, slowly and with a lot of repetition and elaboration. Examples are demonstrated on the board; questions from the textbook are worked through first with the class….”. This means that the teacher patiently explains any new maths topic with repetition and elaborates on the topic to the students so that they can understand it easily.

Answer: C (It is carefully and patiently explained to the students)

Question 12: How do schools deal with students who experience difficulties?
Keywords: schools, deal with, students, experience difficulties,

Now, in section E, in lines 2-5, “. .. . . Teachers say that they give individual help at the end of a lesson or after school, setting extra work if necessary. In observed lessons, any strugglers would be assisted by the teacher or quietly seek help from their neighbour”.

Furthermore, the schools also inspire the parents and guardians to help as the writer explains in lines 10-13,
“. .. . .. Parents are kept closely informed of their children’s progress and will play a part in helping their children to keep up with class, sending them to ‘Juku’ (private evening tuition) if extra help is needed and encouraging them to work harder”.

This means the students are encouraged to take extra lessons in ‘Juku’ (supplementary tuition)

Answer: A (They are given appropriate supplementary tuition)

Question 13: Why do Japanese students tend to achieve relatively high rates of success in maths?
Keywords: Japanese students, tend to achieve, relatively high rates of success, maths,

Now, in section F, lines 3-4, “.. . .. . maths is recognised as an important compulsory subject throughout schooling, and the emphasis is on hard work coupled with a focus on accuracy.”
This means Japanese students and teachers give more importance to hard work and accuracy in maths and as a result, the students get relatively high scores in maths.

Here, hard work = effort, accuracy = correct answers,
Answer: C (Much effort is made and correct answers are emphasised)

 

View Full Passage Here

 

 

 

Cambridge IELTS 8 Test 4 Reading Passage 1 Answer Keys

 

Land of the Rising Sum Answers Keys

Passage 1

 

 

 

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