6.2. Matching
Read the box in the pause, follow the items in order, match the paraphrase to the box, then choose the letter, one step at a time.
What does the tutor say should be done about each of the following sections of the students' report? Choose your answers from the box and write the correct letter, A-F, next to Questions 26-28. NB You may use any letter more than once.
- AIt can be left more or less as it is.
- BIt will have to be written again from the beginning.
- CIt cannot be finished until the second field visit.
- DIt needs a figure adding.
- EIt is too long.
- FIt should be moved to an appendix.
- 26the review of the earlier studies26
- 27the description of the site27
- 28the method28
The short version
A numbered list of items and a lettered box of options. You choose a letter for each item.
The items come in recording order. The letters in the box do not.
There are more options than items, and a letter can sometimes be used twice.
The speaker names an option, then rules it out. The one that stands is the answer.
What you have to do
The test shows a numbered list of items, such as rooms or people, and a box of lettered options, A to F. You hear the recording once and choose the letter of the option that belongs to each item. There is no word limit, because you choose a letter. There are more options than items, and the instruction says whether a letter may be used twice. The items follow the order of the recording, so item 27 is discussed after item 26.
Step by step
- 1In the preview pause, read the box and the items
Read every option in the box before the recording starts. Say to yourself what each one is about: a verdict, a place, a reason. Check the instruction: you may use any letter more than once changes how you rule options out. Then read the numbered items, because their words will be spoken, and they tell you where you are.
- 2Listen for each numbered item, in order
The items come in recording order, so item 27 follows item 26. Keep your cursor on the item you are waiting for. When the speaker names it, or says it in other words, the answer is seconds away. When the next item is named, the last one is over.
- 3Match the speaker's paraphrase to the box wording
The speaker does not read the box aloud. I wouldn't touch it, it does its job means it can be left as it is. Hold the meaning of each option, not its words. Speakers also correct themselves: by the main doors, no, next to the lifts. Wait for the correction before you choose.
- 4Rule out the option the speaker rejects, for that item only
The speaker may name an option and reject it: not the green, the car park. Rule it out for the item you are on. Do not rule a letter out for good unless the instruction says each letter is used once. A letter that fitted item 26 can fit item 28 as well.
- 5If an item goes by unanswered, guess and move on
If you hear the next item named and you have nothing, choose the letter that seemed closest. Move your cursor to the next item at once. Never let one lost item cost the next two. A guessed letter can score; an empty box cannot.
Item 27: the description of the site. Box: A It can be left as it is B It needs a figure adding C It is too long
Heard: *The site description is fine as a description, but there's no number in it. How big is the site? Put the area in, in hectares.* The words that place me: *the site description*. *Fine as a description* sounds like A, but the sentence carries on with *but*. *There's no number in it, put the area in* means it needs a figure adding. Nothing is said about length. Choose B.
Work every item the same way: know the box, hear the item, wait for the sentence to end, choose the letter.
Quiz time5 questions
Each drill is a ten-second clip and one item with a three-option box. Read the box before you press play, and choose the letter that fits the item.
Read the box in the pause
Read the three options before you play the clip, and say to yourself what each one means. None of their words is spoken.
Clip: tutorial, the introduction
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Item: the introduction. Which option from the box?
Listen for the item, in order
Two items go by: the main hall, then the small meeting room. Your item is the second one. Let the first go.
Clip: talk, the rooms
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Item: the small meeting room. Which option from the box?
Match the paraphrase to the box
The speaker will not say any box word. Hold the meaning of each option and wait for the sentence to end.
Clip: tutorial, the method slide
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Item: the method slide. Which option from the box?
A letter used twice
NB You may use any letter more than once. You chose B for the craft tent, the item before this one. Now listen for the food stalls, and rule out the place the speaker rejects.
Clip: talk, the food stalls
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Item: the food stalls. Which option from the box?
If an item goes by unanswered
Three items go past quickly: fire drills, lockers, parking. Suppose you lost the lockers item. Choose your best guess for it and catch the next one, parking.
Clip: induction talk
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Item: parking. Which option from the box?
Try a full set
Below are two full recordings with matching items set as the test sets them. Work the five steps in order.
The full set2 questions
Where things are now
Play the market-hall talk once. Where is each of these now? Each one is mentioned with a place that is ruled out, so choose the place that stands.
Part 2: market hall talk
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Match the people
Play the tutorial once, listening for who speaks first. Three ideas come up, in this order. Pair each idea with the person who first puts it forward, not the person whose name is spoken nearest to it.
Part 3: tutorial discussion
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In the exam you hear this once. Here you may play it again after you have tried.
Tips
- Learn the box before the talk
There are more options than items, and you will not have time to read them while someone is speaking. Say what each one means in the pause.
- Rule out for one item at a time
Unless the instruction says each letter is used once, a letter may come round again. Rule out an option for the item you are on, and keep it in the box.
- Keep your cursor on the next item
The items come in order. When you hear the next one named, the last one is over, whether you chose a letter or not.
Recap
Read the box in the preview pause and say what each option means; the items come in recording order.
Match the speaker's paraphrase to the box wording, and wait for the correction before you choose.
Rule out a rejected option for that item only, since a letter can be used twice. If an item goes by, guess and move on.
Next: the habits that keep marks, then the step up to the band you are aiming for.