IELTS Reading Practice | Band 8.5 Strategy

Hi there! It's Asiya. Today I want to take a full section of the IELTS Reading Academic test and solve it together with you. You'll be able to see my strategy that got me 8.5 and hopefully will bring a 9 soon and you'll be able to practice too. The material is coming from the official practice test published on the British Council website. The link to the full test is going to be in the description box below. If you want links to more practice materials, download my IELTS study plan too. And now let's get started! okay we have our passage on the left and questions on the right the very first thing to do is to read the title the truine brain I don't know the word trillion but I know the word brain that's what inside our head and we know that the whole text is going to be about it okay now before I start reading the passage I look at the first set of questions classify the following is typical of reptilian limbic or neocortex okay I know that cortex is part of our brain and we have three options ABC now we look at the questions so for each of them we need to say whether it's A B or C and we have a number of questions most likely these questions are not going to be in the same order as information is in the text that means that we need to read all the options before we start reading the text and I actually want to read them quite carefully and try to memorize what we're going to look for given up short-term happiness for future gains and I underline key words maintaining our the bodily functions necessary for life okay bodily functions experiencing the pain of losing another okay the pain of losing forming communities and social groups making a decision and carrying it out okay decisions guarding areas of land guarding developing explanations for things explanations looking after ones young young Oh babies children responding quickly to sudden movement on noise or responding quickly now I'm ready to start reading the passage I'm gonna read it quite quickly just trying to find any places where they talk about one of our questions so I'm not looking for the answer straight away and just looking for places where the answer is going to be I suggest reading the first sentence of each passage more carefully because that's a topic sentence and should give you the idea of what you can find in this passage the first of our three brains to both is what scientists call the reptilian cortex our three brains so they say we have three brains and we see the first option reptilian cortex so that's what this passage is going to be about and we see reptilian cortex is the option a let's continue reading quickly these brain sustains the elementary activities of animal survival such as respiration adequate rest and a beating heart look here respiration adequate rest and the beating heart does it remind you anything it reminds me this one maintaining the bodily functions necessary for life let me just highlight so we're talking about this sentence we're not required to consciously think about these activities respiration is when we breathe rest and beating heart so these are bodily functions necessary for life right and the passage was about a reptilian cortex it means we can put a and now let's continue reading so I remove the highlight let's continue their reptilian cortex all the house is the Stata Center a mechanism that facilitates Swift reactions to unexpected occurrences in our surroundings the panic lurchy experience when a door slams shut somewhere in the house or the heightened awareness you feel when a twig cracks in a nearby bush were out on an evening stroll are both examples of the reptilian cortex at work does this bit remind you any question please look through questions and try to find it yourself I can see this one responding quickly to sudden movement and noise and we can read Swift reactions to unexpected occurrences Swift reactions or responding quickly these are the same things right and sudden movement is an unexpected occurrence so we can see that all words are paraphrased it's very typical for a correct answer it means this option is also about reptilian cortex option a when it comes to interaction with others the reptilian brain offers up only the most basic impulses aggression meeting and territorial defense there is no great difference in this sense between a crocodile defending its spot along the river and a turf war between two urban gangs okay that's a nice bit can you recognize any words any options I'll give you a few seconds I spotted this word territorial defense and if you look at our options we have this one guarding areas of land so areas of land and territorial are synonyms right and defense guarding so again every word is paraphrased and so this is also about reptilian cortex option a although the lizard may stake a claim to its habitat it exerts total indifference towards the well-being of its young any words you can recognize I've spotted the word young and look here looking after one's young is it the correct answer let's compare the rest of the sentence so here we're looking for looking after or taking care of one's young let's have a look at the sentence again you may not know some of the words it doesn't matter just try to concentrate on what you're looking for so lizards reptilian cock yes and then we can see exerts total indifference towards the well-being of its young so the crucial word is indifference so lizards are indifferent towards their young and we are looking for someone who is looking after its young so that is not answer a that would be an incorrect answer and that is a typical IELTS trap if you see the exact word match most likely it's not the correct answer listen to the anguish squeal of a dolphin separated from its spot or witness the sight of elephants more in instead however it is clear that a new development is at play scientists have identified this as a limbic cortex okay let's option B right let's highlight it now we're going to talk about limbic cortex let's read a bit further unique to mammals the limbic cortex impels creatures to nurture their offspring by delivering feeling of tenderness and warmth to the parent when children and nearby do you think we can find any answer here okay we just talked about looking after one's young and here we can read unique to mammals the limbic cortex impulse creatures to nurture their offspring nurture their offspring means looking after ones young and that's what mammals do limbic cortex option B you might have noticed that were at several sentences before and didn't find any answer there sometimes it happens in IELTS but most likely we just missed something so let's look through the remaining options quickly we're still looking for happiness for future gains pain of losing communities decisions explanations for things the first sentence about lizards not caring about their young was a trap now we know why it's here and here we read about elephants mourning their dead right mourning their dead and here we're looking for experiencing the pain of losing another and the pain of losing means mourning their dead right that means that is also about limbic cortex here we can also answer be let's continue these same sensations also cause mammals to develop various types of social relations and kinship networks do you think any answers here I'm going to give you a few seconds I would say the keywords are social relations and we were looking for forming communities and social groups and here we can read that mammals develop various types of social relations and kinship networks so kinship networks so networks or social groups yeah this one looks much like this one I would say this is B limbic cortex when we are with others of our kind beat at soccer practice church school and nightclub we experience positive sensations of togetherness solidarity and comfort if we spend too long away from these networks than loneliness sets in encourages us to seek companionship I think it's just an example from the previous sentence and we are not looking for anything else here let's continue so now we need to find just three answers happiness for future gains making a decision and developing explanations for things only human capabilities extend far beyond the scope of those two Cortex's okay probably we're going to read about the last one the neocortex we haven't heard about it before yet humans eat sleep and play but we also speak plot rationalize and debate finer points of morality our unique abilities as a result of an expensive third brain the neocortex okay that's a key word in a cortex which engages with logic reasons and ideas like a neocortex that's what we are reading about the power of the neocortex comes from its ability to think be young the present concrete moment while other animals are mainly restricted to impulsive actions although some such as Apes can learn and remember simple lessons humans can think about the big picture we can string together simple lessons for example an apple drops down wood from a tree hurting others causes and happiness to develop like theories of physical and social phenomena such as the laws of gravity and a concern for human rights do you see anything here any of the answers we're looking for I'm going to give you a few seconds again I can see it here we can then we don't really need all that develop complex theories of physical and social phenomena and here let me underline it we can see developing explanations for things so developing complex theories or developing explanations for things so theories explain things right and actually the word developing and develop are repeated but I still think that the correct answer so we're gonna go with C and we just need to find two more things happiness for future gains and making decisions the nail cortex is also responsible for the process by which we decide on and commit to particular causes of action the process by which we decide on and commit to particular causes of action that is the same as making a decision and carrying it out making a decision is the same as we decide on and can meet two particular causes of action means carry it out so that is see so now we only need to find the last one given up short-term happiness for future gains strung together over time these choices can accumulate into feeds of progress and known to other animals anticipating a better grade on the following morning's exam a student can ignore the limbic edge to socialize and go to sleep early over three years this going sacrifice translates into a first-class degree in a scholarship to graduate school over a lifetime it can mean groundbreaking contributions and so on so here we read about a student not going to a party to study and I think it's quite close to the option we are looking for giving up short-term happiness of future gains but it should be even more concrete let's read the next one the ability to sacrifice our drive for immediate satisfaction in order to benefit later is a product of the neocortex that's it to sacrifice our drive for immediate satisfaction in order to benefit later sacrifice drive for immediate satisfaction is the same as giving up short-term happiness so happiness and satisfaction are quite similar right for future gains or in order to benefit later you see each part of the question is paraphrased in this sentence and this is neocortex okay so that's unser see now that we've completed all the set of questions I would immediately transfer these answers into my answer sheet if you take a paper-based exam don't leave all your answers until the last moment in case you'll be running out of time let me move the passage down to the paragraphs we haven't read yet these three and we have the last set of questions first of all we read the task complete the sentences below use no more than two words from the passage okay the keys are two words that's very important everything is a word an article is a word a preposition is a word and you must not write more than two okay another important tip here is when you write your words in the sentence should become grammatically correct so when you think that something is a correct answer just read the whole sentence again with those words and check if it makes sense and if it's correct if it's not correct then it means you need to find other words I know that in this type of question most likely we're going to find our answers in the same order as information is presented in the text I have a whole video where I analyzed which questions come and order and which don't I will link it in the description box below because they come in order all we need is to read the first question and then look for the answer then the next question and so on okay the first question is a person with only function in reptilian cortex is known as is known as tells us that there should be a specific term here and we are looking for a word or words that would define a person with only functioning reptilian cortex so these are our key words functioning reptilian cortex and remember we read that there is a reptilian cortex so reptilian limbic and neocortex so we are looking for a person where these two will not work only their reptilian cortex yes and let's read the paragraph my guess is that this answer number 23 is gonna be in this paragraph please pause the video now and try to find it to yourself and then resume it and we'll do it together okay already let's start reading understanding the tree and brain can help us appreciate the different nature's of brain damage and physiological disorders think can we use any two words for a person with only reptilian cortex no it doesn't look like that next the most devastating form of brain damage for example is a condition in which someone is understood to be brain dead we're getting closer in this state a person appears merely unconscious sleeping perhaps but this is illusory here the reptilian brain is functioning on autopilot despite the permanent loss of other Cortex's permanent loss of other Cortex's that tells us that a person functions only on reptilians cortex yes and we need to find how this person is code in this sentence there is nothing so probably it's some way before again in this sentence is just the description of the person let's go back the most devastating form of brain damage so now we know that they're talking about what we need is a condition in which someone is understood to be brain-dead okay visa two crucial words brain dead and now let's try to write them here as brain-dead let me make it bold so we see that Sansa and before we move to the next question I usually quickly reread the sentence just to make sure it's correct pay attention to grammar and to sense of course a person with only F function in reptilian cortex is known as brain dead sounds good let's move on question number 24 something in humans is associated with limbic disruption the key word the limbic disruption limbic remember we read about the limbic cortex so that was the one about animals and disruption means that something is wrong limbic disruption and now because the word that at the beginning of the sentence just imagine what kind of words are we looking for so that they would fit in here I would say we're looking for a noun most likely something that will go with em in humans okay so our answer should be somewhere in the next paragraph please again pause the video find the answer and then resume it disturbances to limbic cortex are registered in a different manner disturbances to limbic cortex and we are looking for limbic disruption so limbic is the same disruption and disturbances as synonyms right so we're just looking for our words pups with limbic damage can move around and feel themselves well but do not register the presence of their litter mates okay that's just about pups that's not our term scientists have observed how after limbic lobotomy one impaired monkey stepped on its outraged peers blah blah blah I see sometimes here after a limbic lobotomy is it the correct answer I can tell you why it's not well first of all because we would need to write three words right there is an article here and limbic lobotomy three words but here we can only write two words and usually Niles you would not just a throw away a word in the middle and take a lobotomy so no let's continue that's an example about the monkeys in IELTS it's very important to ignore the information you don't need and to concentrate on what you're looking for because otherwise you're just gonna see too many words you don't know and sentences are long and complex so don't forget we are looking for those words in our own species limbic damage is closely related to psychopathic behavior do you see the answer again limbic damage is also synonymous to limbic disruption that's what we're looking for right and then they say it's related to sociopathic behavior in these are two I think that the answer in a computer-based IELTS you can just copy paste and that's what I've done but in a paper-based IELTS always make sure you copy words correctly you don't make a spelling mistake because that would make your answer wrong okay so check the spelling and again let's read the whole sentence sociopathic behavior in humans is associated with limbic disruption I think it sounds good next an industrial accident caused Phineas Gage to lose part of his here it's easy we have the name we were looking for the name so we need to find out what he lost right actually because we're looking for the name we can just scan the text until we'll find it okay I can see it here I can see his surname several times let's start from the beginning one of the neurological wonders of history occurred it doesn't matter when a railway worker named mmm-hmm our person survived an accident during a metal rod scoot his cow okay taking a considerable here taking a considerable amount of his nail cortex with it so we can see that there was an accident yes and in our question we read an industrial accident yeah so caused him to lose part of his accident then the that's a description of the accident and we can see that something happened to his skull but he didn't lose his skull right taking a considerable amount of his neocortex with it and taking something with it means he lost it neocortex let's read the whole sentence an industrial accident caused Phineas Gage to lose part of his neocortex as you remember the task was to write not more than two words which means we can totally write one word that's our answer let's move on to the last question after his accident coworkers noticed an imbalance between gages and higher-order thinking so we are looking for imbalance between two things between his something and higher-order thinking please pause the video now and try to find the answer yourself and then we continue let's continue reading though gage continued to work and leave us before his fellow employees observed his shift in the equilibrium of his personality okay we read about co-workers noticing something gages animal propensities were now shut Lee pronounced while his intellectual abilities suffered and then we can read the some kind of jokes or placed his ones quit quit I don't think the answer is here we just disregard this bit so we're looking for imbalance and here I can see a shift in the equilibrium that is an imbalance right and here is the description gauges animal propensities who were now sharply pronounced while his intellectual abilities suffered intellectual ability suffered so that's about his higher-order thinking and before that we were read about animal propensities that means that he behaved a little bit like an animal he was prone to do things that animals are prone to do in aisles you can find out the correct answer even if you don't know the keyword for example the word propensity z' as long as you know words imbalance you know words thinking intellectual abilities and then you can just figure out where the correct answer is let's read the sentence and fall after his accident co-workers noticed an imbalance between gages animal propensities and higher-order thinking the sentence is grammatically correct right so that's our correct answer okay we're done here and that is that the end of the section how many questions could you answer correctly please leave me a comment because I want to know what your level is that was the second section of the test so you should spend not more than 20 minutes on it and then you spent only 15 minutes on the first one which is the easiest and leave about 25 minutes for the third one which is the most difficult then you give yourself the best chance to answer as many questions as it can currently another big time-saver during IELTS reading is knowing which questions come in order and which don't and I talked about it in detail in this video here thank you for watching me today and good luck with your preparation and your exam but you

Channel: Fastrack IELTS

Views: 154,700

Rating: 4.9541187 out of 5

Keywords: ielts, ielts exam, ielts test, ielts exam preparation, ielts preparation, how to prepare for ielts, ielts tips, Fastrack education, fastrack ielts, fastrack asiya, fast track ielts

Id: UKLXELOqJog

Length: 36min 6sec (2166 seconds)

Published: Tue Jun 09 2020