Critical Reading Section

II. Critical Reading

What is critical reading?

Critical reading is not only reading the words that are shown in a text, but it is understanding or comprehending what the words mean.

Below are some tools that can help improve your reading comprehension:

  • extrapolation - to make a prediction using past experiences or     
                                  

         Example:











What information is given?

  • Truffles Comforters is a manufacturing company that produces quilted


  • They experience a higher volume of sales during the fall and winter.

What information is extrapolated? 

Based on the information given, we can extrapolate the continued rate of
productivity for Truffles Comforters in the future by taking into consideration:

(a) the type of product being manufactured or produced
(b) the cost of doing business with retailers only in the mid-western
                
(c) the demand for their product in the previous years based on
              

  • interpolation - to make a prediction or draw a conclusion about missing
         information using available information.

Let's use the same example of Truffles Comforters to demonstrate
interpolation.

Based on the information given in our example, we can interpolate that
business will continue for Truffles Comforters as it has in the past five
years, if:

(a)  there are no unseasonably warm temperatures during the fall 
                     and  winter
                                 
(b)  another quilted comforter manufacturing company doesn't open,
                     creating competition for Truffles Comforters
                  
(c)  a new invention doesn't replace the need for quilted comforters

So, we can say that extrapolation provides a trend for making a prediction
based on what information is given as long as an unforeseeable factor or risk
doesn't interfere, resulting in a different outcome. This is called interpolation.

  • paraphrase - to restate or put into your own words what the text means

By knowing the definition of certain words, we can replace those words with
more familar words.

Example:

Applying yourself with steadfast diligence at the university in which you
matriculate will determine your future success. (17 words)

Paraphrase:

Your hard work and commitment at the college you are enrolled will determine
how successful you are in the future. (20 words)

We can make this sentence more concise and less wordy by saying:

Your future success is based on your unwavering hard work during your
enrollment at college. (15 words)

  • Inferences - to read between the lines

When reading any sentence, paragraph, or essay, remember to ask the
following five questions:

1. Who is involved?
2. What action is being taken?
3. When is the action taking place?
4. Where is the action taking place?
5. Why is this action considered important?

Let's look at the following example:

           The girl is shivering in the rain.

1. Who?  The girl is the subject of this sentence.

2. What? The girl is shivering.

3. When? The action is possibly occurring in the early spring or late autumn.

We might draw this conclusion due to the fact that it rains more often
during these seasons and the temperatures are usually chiller than
they are in the summer.
         
4. Where? The action is occurring outside.

5. Why?

The girl is shivering because she is probably standing for a lengthy
period of time in a place where there is no shelter, and she is not
wearing her coat or some other type of protective rainwear.

Strengthen vocabulary skills

Questions that contain vocabulary in context and are logic based require a
strong understanding of what words mean.

Example:

In order to _________ a grade point average of 3.5 or higher, one must _______
oneself.

(A) comprehend, relinquish
(B) obtain, conceal
(C) achieve, apply
(D) reduce, behave
(E) contrive, delegate

The answer is (C)
Truffles Comforters is a manufacturing company in Des Moines, Iowa that produces quilted comforters. These comforters are shipped to retail stores in the mid-western states where they are sold to retail customers.

Truffles Comforters has been in business for the past five years. Their sales have a negative correlation to seasonal temperatures. For this reason, Truffles Comforters has seen lower sales when the temperatures are higher and higher sales when the temperatures are lower. 
Tips and Suggestions
Below are some tips and suggestions for improving your critical reading skills.
Mathematics Section: click here

Writing Section: click here

Critical Reading Section: click here

Extra Tools: click here

Some Helpful Tools
known data.
comforters.
states
seasonal temperatures