Teach How to Make Inferences on Reading Tests
Answer Multiple Choice Questions by Reading in Between the Lines
Sep 29, 2009
Of all the multiple choice question types designed to assess reading comprehension, those that require students to make inferences are often the most challenging. This is primarily because students cannot find the exact answers to their questions by simply revisiting the text. Instead, they must make judgments based on the information presented in the passage.
Help Students Understand Inferences
Before students can successfully and methodically answer multiple choice questions that require them to make inferences, or read in between the lines, they must understand what thinking is involved. An inference is a conclusion drawn based on information presented in the passage. Students must make a judgment using facts, details, statistics, or descriptions they discovered while reading.
Some students confuse making inferences with taking a guess. After all, they argue, the answer is not in the passage! However, they need to learn that making inferences requires them to act like a detective, one who scours the evidence and sniffs out the clues in order to make a logical deduction. When it comes to making inferences, students should be encouraged to identify and use the clues to select the best answer choice. It is the student's job, therefore, to identify the hints in the passage and determine what conclusions can be drawn when they are carefully pieced together.
For example, if students are reading an excerpt from an article on organic gardening, they may learn about using green manure and compost to enrich the soil. As they continue to read about organic methods of gardening, they are likely to draw the conclusion that no pesticides are used in the process. While this fact may not be explicitly stated in the article, it can be inferred based on the material presented in the passage.
Identify Questions That Require Inferences
Inference questions that require students to read in between the lines test students' higher level reading comprehension and well as critical thinking skills. These challenging questions often begin with how or why, but this is not always the case. Sample inference questions include the following:
- Why did Lucy decide to travel to India?
- How do you think she felt once she arrived in a foreign land?
- What might be an appropriate title for this passage?
- Make a prediction describing what is likely to happen once Lucy arrives at her hotel.
In order for the student to make appropriate inferences, the passage would likely contain details explaining that Lucy was offered an exciting job opportunity in India, felt trepidation about traveling, and appeared exhausted upon arrival. Again, while the correct multiple choice answer was not stated directly in the passage, hints were dropped in the text that students are expected to identify and analyze.
Teach Reading Strategies to Answer Inference Questions
When teaching students how to develop strategies to correctly answer inference questions, teachers should explain how to actively use the passage. However, they will use it differently for inferences than they do for answering specific details questions. Teachers should model the behavior of returning to the passage and looking for clues in order to draw an appropriate conclusion. Students can follow the process below to find the answers to inference questions:
- Read the question carefully and reword it so that it is easy to understand. Students should consider whether they are being asked to make a prediction, a judgment, or a summary statement related to the entire passage.
- Scan the first and last sentence of each paragraph to identify the paragraph in which the answer is most likely to be found.
- Skim the paragraph for hints related to the question and circle these hints. Often, at least three hints will be present in the passage.
- Consider whether the language is positive or negative. That is, is the subject being treated favorably or in a negative light? Often, certain answer choices can be eliminated because they illustrate a tone or perspective that directly contradicts the one presented in the passage.
- Select the best answer using all available specific information as well as an overall impression of the passage.
When teaching reading comprehension skills, teachers should first model this five step process to answering inference questions and then encourage students to work in small groups. Once students have had supportive practice, they will be ready to tackle these question types independently. When making an inference, students should always strive to support their answers with hints and details from the passage.
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