CELPIP Reading Viewpoints: Follow the People, Their Reasons, and Their Qualifications

Separate the issue from the people discussing it

Viewpoint passages combine factual background with opinions from stakeholders—the people or groups affected by an issue. A newspaper-style article about a policy might quote an expert, an employer, and a member of the public. Their positions may differ even when they agree about the general goal.

Allow thirteen minutes for five article questions and five blanks in a reader's comment. The article is similar in length to a Part Three passage, but the later comment introduces another person whose opinion must also be understood. That person may agree with one speaker and disagree with another, or accept only one part of a position.

An attributed opinion is not automatically the author's opinion. The writer may favour a side or present several views. Nor is every contribution simply agreement or disagreement: a speaker can clarify a concept, suggest an alternative, or explain how a policy could work better.

Make a viewpoint map before answering

Spend about three minutes on an initial read to identify the main topic, organizations, people, and opinions. Topic sentences help locate the focus of a paragraph. Short notes then provide a route back to a named person's position when a question asks about it.

After the initial read, divide the remaining time roughly evenly between the article questions and the comment blanks. Do not spend so long on the first five that the comment receives only a rushed guess.

Write full names so that a later surname-only reference is recognizable. Record whether the person supports, opposes, or qualifies the proposal, together with the reason or condition that makes the position meaningful. Keep each person's notes separate. A paragraph often concentrates on one viewpoint, but the same speaker's advice can continue into a later paragraph.

Opinion words help identify direction. Applauds indicates strong approval; skeptical signals doubt. Adjectives, should, and shouldn't can reveal a judgement. They must still be interpreted in context. Distinguish clear support, clear opposition, and a response with reservations or conditions. In the training-agreement example below, Gilchrist objects to most agreements but accepts one whose balance declines with service. Rasmussen, in the crafts example, rejects one use of public money while supporting another. Keep those qualifications with the stated position rather than forcing every response into an unqualified “yes” or “no.”

The topic label should cover the whole issue. A fact about one group may be background rather than the article's central purpose. Once the map is established, answer the article questions before moving through the comment. By then, the main positions have already been examined, and individual details can be checked again as needed.

To judge the author’s own position, look for evaluative wording in the narration as well as the views the article includes. Calling a change unfortunate, for example, signals disapproval of that change. The balance of views can support that reading, but confirm the answer with the writer’s wording and the issue actually discussed.

Follow the commenter's argument on its own terms

Agreement can be partial. If the comment says it agrees with a person, identify exactly which statement is shared. The commenter may reject the rest of that person's position. Reasons, conditions, and alternatives therefore matter as much as a support/opposition label.

Names and wording guide the search; question three does not necessarily mean paragraph three. A negative such as not can reverse the task. Was or initially can point to an earlier stage rather than the current position. Expressions such as dubious and the opposite signal doubt or disagreement, but a commenter is not automatically opposed to the article. Follow the actual argument through every blank.

Longer sentences and paraphrases do not change the central task: identify who supports or opposes the specific idea, return to that person's words, and match the meaning of the whole answer. A repeated keyword cannot repair an answer that assigns the wrong opinion to a speaker.

Meaning comes from the links between details, not one familiar word.

Worked example: Who Pays for Training?

Reference article

Canadian employers spend billions of dollars a year training their staff, and a growing number want some assurance that the investment won't simply walk out the door. Their tool of choice is the training repayment agreement: the company pays for an employee's courses or certification, and an employee who leaves before an agreed period has elapsed must repay some or all of it.

Toronto employment lawyer Wendy Gilchrist sees these agreements every week and can't stand most of them. "In most of the ones I review, the obligations only go one way," she says. "The employer can let you go any time without paying a cent, but if you resign, you owe the whole amount, and now and then even somebody who's been laid off gets a bill. And hardly anyone knows what they've signed, because it's handed to them on the first day with a big stack of other paperwork." Gilchrist does allow that an agreement can be fair when the amount owed goes down with each month of service.

Rick Loewen, who runs a small trucking company in Winnipeg, has no such reservations. "Without these agreements, outfits like mine couldn't afford to train anybody. For years I paid $9,850 per recruit for commercial licence training, and the new drivers left for bigger competitors the minute they were licensed. I was running a free driving school for the whole industry." He introduced a two-year agreement, together with a raise for drivers who finish their first year, and says departures have since dropped by half. The balance goes down in equal monthly amounts and is cancelled for any driver the company lets go.

Doug Ellsworth, a partner at the Calgary consulting firm Pinsent Ellsworth, advises employees to check a few things before signing. "Find out whether the amount owed goes down over time, and whether you still owe it if you're dismissed. The most important question, though, is whether other employers will recognize the credential. If they won't, you're tied to that company whether you owe it money or not."

He adds that the terms can often be negotiated, particularly by experienced candidates a company is eager to hire.

A viewpoint map

The issue. Employers pay for training; employees may owe repayment if they leave early. The dispute concerns the fairness and effects of that arrangement.

Wendy Gilchrist. The employment lawyer objects to most agreements because obligations run one way and employees often do not understand what they sign. Her qualification matters: a balance that declines each month can make an agreement fair. She does not reject every possible agreement.

Rick Loewen. The trucking-company owner supports agreements because competitors hired drivers after he paid for their training. His balance declines monthly and is cancelled on dismissal. He also introduced a raise, a separate change that matters when judging the reduction in departures.

Doug Ellsworth. The consultant offers practical checks: the declining balance, dismissal terms, and recognition of the credential by other employers. A credential with no outside value can tie an employee to a company even without a debt. His later point about negotiable terms, especially for experienced candidates, remains part of the same advice.

Questions about the article

1. What is the main topic of this article?

• A. The merits of tying paid training to continued service.
• B. Ways of reducing the cost of professional courses.
• C. The legal challenges facing repayment agreements.
• D. The reasons newly trained workers change employers.

Answer: A — The merits of tying paid training to continued service.

The article explains why employers use repayment agreements and then presents a lawyer who objects to most of them, an employer who defends his and a consultant who explains what to check before signing.

Textual evidence:

a growing number want some assurance that the investment won't simply walk out the door can't stand most of them has no such reservations

B: The cost of training is mentioned, but no one discusses how to reduce it. C: Gilchrist is a lawyer, but she questions whether the agreements are fair; no court case or law is discussed. D: Loewen's drivers leaving for bigger competitors is one example, not the subject of the whole article.

2. Gilchrist suggests that many new employees

• A. are laid off soon after being trained.
• B. agree to terms they do not fully grasp.
• C. prefer agreements whose balance declines.
• D. resign as soon as they are certified.

Answer: B — agree to terms they do not fully grasp.

She says hardly anyone knows what they've signed, because the agreement is handed over on the first day with a stack of other paperwork.

Textual evidence:

hardly anyone knows what they've signed, because it's handed to them on the first day with a big stack of other paperwork

A: Gilchrist says a laid-off employee occasionally receives a bill; she does not say that many trained workers are laid off. C: Gilchrist herself considers a declining balance fair, but she says nothing about what employees prefer. D: Leaving once licensed describes Loewen's drivers, not a claim Gilchrist makes.

3. According to Ellsworth's reasoning, which employee would be most firmly bound to an employer?

• A. One whose balance falls every month.
• B. One recruited as an experienced candidate.
• C. One who would owe nothing if dismissed.
• D. One trained on a system no other firm uses.

Answer: D — One trained on a system no other firm uses.

Ellsworth warns that when other employers will not recognize a credential, the employee is bound to the company whether or not any money is owed.

Textual evidence:

The most important question, though, is whether other employers will recognize the credential. If they won't, you're tied to that company whether you owe it money or not.

A: A falling balance loosens the tie as time passes; Ellsworth treats it as a point in the employee's favour. B: Ellsworth says experienced candidates are in a stronger position to negotiate, not that they are more tightly bound. C: Owing nothing after dismissal protects the employee and does not stop him or her from resigning.

4. Gilchrist would most likely consider Loewen's agreement

• A. acceptable.
• B. exploitative.
• C. unenforceable.
• D. unnecessary.

Answer: A — acceptable.

Gilchrist accepts an agreement whose balance goes down with each month of service, and Loewen's balance falls monthly and is cancelled for drivers who are let go, which also answers her complaint about laid-off employees.

Textual evidence:

an agreement can be fair when the amount owed goes down with each month of service The balance goes down in equal monthly amounts and is cancelled for any driver the company lets go.

B: Her objection is to agreements that bind only the employee; Loewen's has both features she treats as fair. C: Gilchrist never questions whether an agreement could be enforced. D: Nothing suggests she thinks a firm that pays for costly training has no need to protect that investment.

5. What does Ellsworth seem to suggest?

• A. Employees should decline any repayment agreement.
• B. Employers seldom agree to alter the terms.
• C. Sought-after candidates can secure better terms.
• D. The size of the debt is the chief concern.

Answer: C — Sought-after candidates can secure better terms.

He says terms can often be negotiated, particularly by experienced candidates a company is eager to hire.

Textual evidence:

the terms can often be negotiated, particularly by experienced candidates a company is eager to hire

A: Ellsworth tells employees what to check before signing; he does not tell them to refuse. B: He says the terms are frequently open to negotiation. D: He calls recognition by other employers the most important question, not the amount owed.

The reader’s comment

The following is one continuous argument. Each blank must agree with the surrounding meaning and the viewpoint attributed to the named person.

I've been on both sides of these agreements, first as an apprentice and now as a manager at a small electrical contractor. When we introduced ours, I [6] the worry Loewen describes, because our competitors seemed to hire away every apprentice we trained. We dropped the agreement after a laid-off apprentice was sent a bill, a practice Gilchrist would surely call [7] . Our turnover hardly changed, which [8] Loewen's view that small firms can't train anyone without such protection. I also suspect his agreement gets more credit than it deserves, since at the same time he [9] . Anyone offered one should at least follow Ellsworth's advice and check whether [10] . I wish someone had told me that before I signed my first one! Tom Fenwick

Blank 6

• A. scoffed at
• B. was unaware of
• C. was offended by
• D. fully shared

Answer: D — fully shared

Loewen's complaint that he was training drivers for the whole industry is the problem the writer's company faced when competitors hired away its apprentices.

Textual evidence:

the new drivers left for bigger competitors the minute they were licensed I was running a free driving school for the whole industry.

A: The writer's company introduced an agreement because competitors kept hiring its apprentices, which shows the writer took the worry seriously. B: The writer faced the same problem, trained workers being hired away, so the worry was familiar. C: Nothing suggests offence; the writer's own firm acted on the same concern.

Blank 7

• A. equitable
• B. negotiable
• C. lopsided
• D. unavoidable

Answer: C — lopsided

Gilchrist complains that the obligations only go one way, and she cites the laid-off employee who receives a bill.

Textual evidence:

the obligations only go one way now and then even somebody who's been laid off gets a bill

A: Gilchrist mentions the billing of laid-off employees as an example of agreements whose obligations run one way. B: Negotiation is Ellsworth's point, and it does not describe billing a laid-off worker. D: Loewen cancels the balance for drivers who are let go, so the practice is clearly avoidable.

Blank 8

• A. supports
• B. explains
• C. was foreseen in
• D. casts doubt on

Answer: D — casts doubt on

Loewen says outfits like his couldn't afford to train anybody without such agreements, yet the writer's small firm dropped its agreement and its turnover hardly changed.

Textual evidence:

Without these agreements, outfits like mine couldn't afford to train anybody.

A: A small firm that kept training without an agreement and lost no more staff contradicts Loewen's view rather than supporting it. B: Unchanged turnover does not explain why Loewen believes agreements are necessary. C: Loewen says the opposite: that without agreements, firms like his couldn't afford to train anybody.

Blank 9

• A. began paying for licences
• B. rewarded drivers who stayed
• C. cancelled debts for dismissals
• D. stopped hiring from rivals

Answer: B — rewarded drivers who stayed

Together with the agreement, he introduced a raise for drivers who finish their first year, which could also explain why fewer drivers left.

Textual evidence:

together with a raise for drivers who finish their first year For years I paid $9,850 per recruit for commercial licence training, and the new drivers left for bigger competitors the minute they were licensed.

A: Loewen had paid for licence training for years before the agreement, while drivers were still leaving, so this cannot account for the drop. C: Cancelling the balance for dismissed drivers is part of the agreement itself, so it cannot be a separate reason the agreement gets too much credit. D: It was the larger competitors who took Loewen's drivers; nothing says he ever hired from them.

Blank 10

• A. they would owe money if let go
• B. the paperwork arrives on day one
• C. their wage rises after a year
• D. the course is recognized in-house

Answer: A — they would owe money if let go

One of Ellsworth's checks is whether the obligation still applies if the employee is dismissed.

Textual evidence:

whether you still owe it if you're dismissed

B: First-day paperwork is Gilchrist's observation, not one of Ellsworth's checks. C: The wage increase is part of Loewen's arrangement, not Ellsworth's advice. D: Ellsworth says to ask whether other employers will recognize the credential; recognition inside the company is what he warns about.

Completed comment

I've been on both sides of these agreements, first as an apprentice and now as a manager at a small electrical contractor. When we introduced ours, I fully shared the worry Loewen describes, because our competitors seemed to hire away every apprentice we trained. We dropped the agreement after a laid-off apprentice was sent a bill, a practice Gilchrist would surely call lopsided. Our turnover hardly changed, which casts doubt on Loewen's view that small firms can't train anyone without such protection. I also suspect his agreement gets more credit than it deserves, since at the same time he rewarded drivers who stayed. Anyone offered one should at least follow Ellsworth's advice and check whether they would owe money if let go. I wish someone had told me that before I signed my first one! Tom Fenwick

Worked example: Pedals or Boots

Reference article

Ecotourism, generally understood as travel to natural areas that does minimal harm to the environment, has become one of the fastest-growing segments of the Canadian travel industry. Alberta's Department of Tourism intends to spend more than $2 million over three years promoting the province's mountain parks to such travellers. The funds are for advertising alone; building and maintaining trails remains the responsibility of municipalities and park authorities. Marketing coordinator Yvette Lavallee says the campaign will likely feature cycling or hiking, not both. "Our budget is modest. If it is divided between two activities, neither campaign will be large enough to be noticed by the travellers we hope to reach," she explains.

Stellan Kozak, president of the Mountain Bike Operators Alliance of Alberta, argues that cycling deserves the investment because of what riders spend. "A typical cyclist rents a bike, pays for a shuttle to the trailhead and eats in local restaurants," he says. "A hiker brings a sandwich and leaves with a sunburn." Kozak acknowledges that bicycles are hard on trails, particularly in spring when the ground is soft, but maintains that electric mountain bikes have opened the sport to a far wider public, including customers in their sixties and seventies.

Calgary hiking guide Fergus Enns disputes this characterization of hikers. Most of his clients are retirees who book guided treks of five days or more. "Cyclists often ride a trail in the morning and drive back to Calgary or Edmonton the same evening," Enns says. "My clients remain in the mountains for the whole week." He believes the province should promote what distinguishes it rather than compete for the visitors Whistler already attracts.

Xavier Hadfield, an ecologist with the Council for Trail Conservation, fears the campaign could kill the goose that lays the golden egg. He notes that several popular routes near Banff now carry roughly three times the traffic they were built for, and erosion has forced repeated closures. "The money would be far better spent repairing the trails we already have than on advertisements," he says. Meanwhile, the department's own survey shows that nearly half of summer visitors already take part in both activities.

A viewpoint map

Yvette Lavallee. The budget is for advertising cycling or hiking in Alberta’s mountain parks, not construction or trail maintenance. Lavallee argues that dividing it would leave both campaigns too small.

Stellan Kozak. The mountain-bike representative supports cycling because riders spend money locally. He dismisses hikers but acknowledges spring damage to soft trails. Electric bikes have also attracted older customers; these qualifications belong with his position.

Fergus Enns. The hiking guide disputes the claim that hikers contribute little: his clients stay for days, while cyclists may leave that evening. He favours a distinctive attraction instead of competing with Whistler for the same visitors.

Xavier Hadfield. The conservationist would repair trails already affected by heavy traffic and erosion. His alternative challenges the priority given to more advertising; he is not merely choosing hiking over cycling. A survey showing that many visitors do both further complicates the either-or choice.

Questions about the article

1. The article mainly discusses

• A. the threat trail damage poses to tourism.
• B. whether cyclists or hikers spend more.
• C. where promotional funds should be directed.
• D. which new trails the province ought to build.

Answer: C — where promotional funds should be directed.

Every speaker responds to the question of whether the advertising campaign should feature cycling or hiking, or whether the money belongs elsewhere.

Textual evidence:

promoting the province's mountain parks to such travellers the campaign will likely feature cycling or hiking, not both

A: Trail damage is Hadfield's concern in one paragraph, not the subject of the whole article. B: Spending is one argument in the disagreement between Kozak and Enns, not the article's main subject. D: The money is for advertising only; building trails is left to municipalities and park authorities.

2. Kozak's attitude toward hikers as customers is

• A. sympathetic.
• B. dismissive.
• C. resentful.
• D. curious.

Answer: B — dismissive.

His remark that a hiker brings a sandwich and leaves with a sunburn waves hikers away as customers who spend almost nothing.

Textual evidence:

A hiker brings a sandwich and leaves with a sunburn.

A: He makes a joke at hikers' expense rather than showing any understanding of their needs. C: He mocks hikers' spending but expresses no grievance or bitterness toward them. D: He shows no interest in learning more about hikers; he has already written them off as customers.

3. Enns would most likely say that Kozak's argument overlooks

• A. how long each type of visitor stays.
• B. what it costs to rent a bike.
• C. the damage bikes do to trails.
• D. the needs of older travellers.

Answer: A — how long each type of visitor stays.

Kozak compares what a visitor spends on one outing, but Enns points out that cyclists often go home the same evening while his clients stay the whole week.

Textual evidence:

A typical cyclist rents a bike, pays for a shuttle to the trailhead and eats in local restaurants Cyclists often ride a trail in the morning and drive back to Calgary or Edmonton the same evening My clients remain in the mountains for the whole week.

B: Kozak himself mentions bike rental as part of what riders spend. C: Kozak openly acknowledges that bicycles are hard on trails, and Enns does not raise the issue. D: Kozak does consider older people, saying e-bikes have brought in customers in their sixties and seventies.

4. What is probably true about Hadfield's preferred use of the money?

• A. It would help cyclists more than hikers.
• B. It is backed by the visitor survey.
• C. It falls outside what the funds may cover.
• D. It has already been tried near Banff.

Answer: C — It falls outside what the funds may cover.

Hadfield wants the money spent repairing trails, but the funds are for advertising alone and trail maintenance is left to municipalities and park authorities.

Textual evidence:

The funds are for advertising alone; building and maintaining trails remains the responsibility of municipalities and park authorities. The money would be far better spent repairing the trails we already have than on advertisements

A: Repairing the existing trails would serve everyone who uses them, and nothing suggests one group would gain more. B: The survey concerns which activities visitors take part in, not how the money should be spent. D: The article mentions closures near Banff caused by erosion, not any repairs paid for with this money.

5. The survey mentioned at the end of the article suggests that

• A. most visitors return home the same day.
• B. the two groups overlap a great deal.
• C. trail traffic has roughly tripled.
• D. hikers outnumber cyclists in summer.

Answer: B — the two groups overlap a great deal.

If nearly half of summer visitors both cycle and hike, cyclists and hikers are to a large extent the same people.

Textual evidence:

the department's own survey shows that nearly half of summer visitors already take part in both activities

A: Same-day trips are Enns's description of cyclists, not a survey finding. C: The tripled traffic is Hadfield's observation about certain routes, not a result of the survey. D: The survey reports how many visitors do both activities, not which group is larger.

The reader’s comment

The following is one continuous argument. Each blank must agree with the surrounding meaning and the viewpoint attributed to the named person.

I have ridden an electric mountain bike in the Rockies ever since I retired, so I [6] Kozak's remark about who the sport now attracts. [7] Hadfield, the most popular routes already carry far more traffic than they were designed for. Finding parking at a trailhead on a summer weekend is nearly impossible. Kozak, to his credit, is honest about when bikes do the most damage, and my riding club now stays off the trails each year until [8] . I also think Enns is right that the province should [9] ; visitors ought to find something here they cannot find elsewhere. Where I disagree is with Lavallee's argument that [10] . A single campaign showing riders and hikers on the same trails would serve everyone better.

Blank 6

• A. was offended by
• B. am doubtful of
• C. was puzzled by
• D. can vouch for

Answer: D — can vouch for

Kozak says electric mountain bikes have brought in customers in their sixties and seventies, and the retired e-bike rider confirms this from experience.

Textual evidence:

electric mountain bikes have opened the sport to a far wider public, including customers in their sixties and seventies

A: The commenter, a retiree on an electric bike, fits Kozak's description of the new riders and has no reason to take offence. B: The commenter's own experience supports the remark rather than casting doubt on it. C: The remark describes the commenter's own situation, so nothing about it is puzzling.

Blank 7

• A. Unlike
• B. Unbeknownst to
• C. According to
• D. Much to the delight of

Answer: C — According to

Hadfield notes that several popular routes carry roughly three times the traffic they were built for.

Textual evidence:

several popular routes near Banff now carry roughly three times the traffic they were built for

A: The statement repeats Hadfield's own observation rather than contrasting with it. B: Hadfield is the one who reports the overcrowding, so he is clearly aware of it. D: Hadfield sees the overcrowding as a threat to the trails, not as welcome news.

Blank 8

• A. the spring mud has dried
• B. the closures are lifted
• C. the summer crowds thin out
• D. the new ads start running

Answer: A — the spring mud has dried

Kozak acknowledges that bicycles are hardest on trails in spring when the ground is soft, so the club waits for the ground to firm up.

Textual evidence:

Kozak acknowledges that bicycles are hard on trails, particularly in spring when the ground is soft

B: Closures are Hadfield's point about erosion near Banff and say nothing about when bikes do the most damage. C: Crowding is Hadfield's concern, and the sentence ties the club's rule to what Kozak says about when bikes cause damage. D: The advertising campaign has no connection to when bikes damage trails.

Blank 9

• A. avoid courting a rival's visitors
• B. market itself only to retirees
• C. keep mountain bikes off its trails
• D. welcome more electric bikes

Answer: A — avoid courting a rival's visitors

Enns believes the province should promote what distinguishes it rather than compete for the visitors Whistler already attracts.

Textual evidence:

He believes the province should promote what distinguishes it rather than compete for the visitors Whistler already attracts.

B: Most of Enns's clients are retirees, but he never proposes targeting them alone. C: Enns disputes Kozak's view of hikers but does not call for banning bikes. D: The point about electric bikes is Kozak's, not Enns's.

Blank 10

• A. visitors mostly stay a single day
• B. trail repairs should come first
• C. cyclists spend more than hikers
• D. a split campaign would go unnoticed

Answer: D — a split campaign would go unnoticed

Lavallee argues that if the modest budget is divided, neither campaign will be large enough to be noticed; the commenter replies that one combined campaign would work better.

Textual evidence:

If it is divided between two activities, neither campaign will be large enough to be noticed by the travellers we hope to reach

A: Same-day trips are Enns's description of cyclists, not an argument Lavallee makes. B: Putting repairs first is Hadfield's position, not Lavallee's. C: The spending comparison is Kozak's argument, not Lavallee's.

Completed comment

I have ridden an electric mountain bike in the Rockies ever since I retired, so I can vouch for Kozak's remark about who the sport now attracts. According to Hadfield, the most popular routes already carry far more traffic than they were designed for. Finding parking at a trailhead on a summer weekend is nearly impossible. Kozak, to his credit, is honest about when bikes do the most damage, and my riding club now stays off the trails each year until the spring mud has dried. I also think Enns is right that the province should avoid courting a rival's visitors; visitors ought to find something here they cannot find elsewhere. Where I disagree is with Lavallee's argument that a split campaign would go unnoticed. A single campaign showing riders and hikers on the same trails would serve everyone better.

Worked example: Saving the Old Trades

Reference article

Barrel-making, hand-tying fishing nets and wooden boatbuilding are among dozens of traditional crafts slowly disappearing across Canada. A recent national survey found that about one in five heritage trades has fewer than ten practitioners left. Ottawa's response is a Living Crafts Fund, which will pay master artisans up to $20,000 a year to train apprentices.

Heritage Skills Canada, a charity that will administer the fund in exchange for a portion of its budget, maintains that every endangered craft deserves support. "These trades carry knowledge that's been built up over generations," says spokesperson Denise Lanigan. "That kind of knowledge is passed from hand to hand. Once the last practitioner is gone, you can't get it back out of a textbook. It'd be a disgrace to let them die out." Lanigan argues that because many of these crafts no longer provide a living wage, public funding is necessary; the market alone won't preserve them.

University of Saskatchewan economics professor Walter Rasmussen contends that most of these crafts declined because people found cheaper and more durable ways of meeting the same needs. "Paying artisans to produce goods that nobody orders doesn't keep a trade alive," he says. "It simply turns it into an expensive museum exhibit." Rasmussen also suspects that tourism boards and the organizations that collect a fee for distributing the money gain more than the artisans. He would, however, support public spending on filming master artisans so that their techniques are preserved.

Nova Scotia boatbuilder Heidi Kilbride is more concerned with the eligibility rules, which require applicants to use "methods in place before 1950." Kilbride builds wooden dories by hand, as her grandfather did, but seals the hulls with marine epoxy because fishers won't buy a boat that leaks. "My grandfather was always trying new materials," she explains. "If a rule like this had existed in his day, he'd have been told to work the way his own grandfather did." Kilbride plans to take on Tyler Wakefield, 19, as her first apprentice this winter.

Wakefield is blunt about his reasons. "Without the stipend, I'm not doing it. Nobody my age can afford three years of training for free."

A viewpoint map

The Living Crafts Fund. The proposal pays experienced artisans to train apprentices as some trades approach the loss of their last practitioners.

Denise Lanigan. Heritage Skills Canada supports all endangered crafts because practical knowledge can disappear when its last holder dies. The organization will administer the fund and receive part of its budget, a relevant fact when another speaker questions who benefits.

Walter Rasmussen. He objects to funding goods with no customers and argues that some trades lost demand because better alternatives appeared. He supports filming techniques, so his position is not opposition to every kind of public spending. He also questions the benefits received by tourism boards and administrators.

Heidi Kilbride. The boatmaker objects to restricting eligibility to methods used before 1950. Modern epoxy makes her handmade boats usable, and her grandfather also experimented. Her objection concerns freezing a living craft in the past, not rejecting apprenticeships or all traditional work.

Tyler Wakefield. The prospective apprentice says he will not participate without the stipend and cannot afford three years of training for free. Financial support is a condition of participation, not a judgement that the craft is worthless.

Questions about the article

1. Heidi Kilbride most likely objects to

• A. paying artisans to train apprentices.
• B. modern materials in traditional crafts.
• C. treating a craft as fixed in time.
• D. recording master artisans on film.

Answer: C — treating a craft as fixed in time.

She points out that the pre-1950 rule would have forced even her grandfather to work like his own grandfather, implying that a craft should not be frozen at one date.

Textual evidence:

which require applicants to use "methods in place before 1950." If a rule like this had existed in his day, he'd have been told to work the way his own grandfather did.

A: Kilbride plans to take on an apprentice through the fund herself, so she does not object to this. B: This reverses her position: she seals her hulls with epoxy and speaks approvingly of her grandfather trying new materials. D: Filming artisans is Rasmussen's suggestion, and Kilbride does not comment on it.

2. Walter Rasmussen thinks public spending on traditional crafts should be

• A. scrapped entirely.
• B. greatly expanded.
• C. apprentice-focused.
• D. narrowly targeted.

Answer: D — narrowly targeted.

He opposes paying artisans to keep producing but would fund one specific thing, filming masters so their techniques are preserved.

Textual evidence:

Paying artisans to produce goods that nobody orders doesn't keep a trade alive He would, however, support public spending on filming master artisans so that their techniques are preserved.

A: This overstates his skepticism: he would support spending on filming master artisans. B: He argues that paying for goods nobody orders produces expensive museum exhibits, so he would not want more of such spending. C: Paying masters to train apprentices is how the fund already works, and this is the spending he criticizes.

3. Who holds directly opposing viewpoints?

• A. Lanigan and Rasmussen
• B. Rasmussen and Kilbride
• C. Lanigan and Wakefield
• D. Kilbride and Wakefield

Answer: A — Lanigan and Rasmussen

Lanigan says public money is needed precisely because the market won't preserve these crafts, while Rasmussen says paying for goods the market doesn't want only creates museum exhibits.

Textual evidence:

the market alone won't preserve them It simply turns it into an expensive museum exhibit.

B: Their views are compatible: Kilbride says her trade has always taken up new materials, and Rasmussen says crafts decline when better methods replace them. C: Both favour the funding, Lanigan as the fund's defender and Wakefield because he needs the stipend. D: Wakefield hopes to train under Kilbride; nothing he says contradicts her.

4. Denise Lanigan would most likely agree that

• A. only profitable crafts deserve support.
• B. a craft's worth isn't measured in sales.
• C. tourism boards gain most from the fund.
• D. the eligibility rules are too strict.

Answer: B — a craft's worth isn't measured in sales.

She wants every endangered craft supported for the knowledge it carries, even when it no longer pays, because the market won't preserve it.

Textual evidence:

maintains that every endangered craft deserves support Lanigan argues that because many of these crafts no longer provide a living wage, public funding is necessary

A: This reverses her view; she says the lack of a living wage is exactly why funding is needed. C: This is Rasmussen's suspicion, not Lanigan's view. D: The eligibility rules are Kilbride's complaint; Lanigan says nothing against them, and her charity will administer the fund.

5. The article implies that Tyler Wakefield's apprenticeship is

• A. guaranteed.
• B. uncertain.
• C. unpaid.
• D. unnecessary.

Answer: B — uncertain.

Wakefield won't train without the fund's stipend, yet his teacher uses epoxy, which may break the rule requiring methods in place before 1950, so the apprenticeship may not go ahead.

Textual evidence:

seals the hulls with marine epoxy because fishers won't buy a boat that leaks Without the stipend, I'm not doing it.

A: Kilbride plans to take him on, but he will only train if the stipend comes through, and she may not qualify for it. C: The apprenticeship is meant to be paid through the fund, and Wakefield says he won't do it for free. D: Only Rasmussen doubts the value of such training in general; nothing suggests Wakefield's apprenticeship in particular is pointless.

The reader’s comment

The following is one continuous argument. Each blank must agree with the surrounding meaning and the viewpoint attributed to the named person.

I've woven willow baskets for most of my life, and Rasmussen's assumption that artisans would be paid to make things for which there is [6] doesn't match my experience; my market stall usually sells out. [7] Kilbride, I've replaced a few old materials with modern ones, and no customer has ever objected. Rasmussen's remark about organizations collecting fees is presumably aimed at [8] , which seems unfair. I also [9] Lanigan's view of how these skills are passed on, since I learned the basics from a library book long before I ever found a teacher. Still, some crafts, such as hand-tied nets, faded simply because [10] ; factory nets catch more fish, and no fisher I know would ever go back.

Blank 6

• A. no heritage label
• B. no written record
• C. no living wage
• D. no willing buyer

Answer: D — no willing buyer

Rasmussen says artisans would be paid to produce goods nobody orders; the commenter's stall selling out shows that people do buy.

Textual evidence:

Paying artisans to produce goods that nobody orders doesn't keep a trade alive

A: The eligibility rules are Kilbride's concern, not Rasmussen's, and a sold-out stall says nothing about labels. B: Rasmussen actually wants techniques filmed; his complaint is not about missing records. C: The living wage point comes from Lanigan, and the commenter's evidence concerns customers, not income.

Blank 7

• A. Like
• B. Unlike
• C. Despite
• D. At the urging of

Answer: A — Like

Kilbride also uses a modern material, marine epoxy, in a traditional craft, so the commenter is doing what she does.

Textual evidence:

seals the hulls with marine epoxy because fishers won't buy a boat that leaks My grandfather was always trying new materials

B: This would require Kilbride to keep strictly to old materials, but she seals her hulls with epoxy. C: This implies Kilbride opposes modern materials, which contradicts what she says about her grandfather trying new ones. D: Kilbride describes her own practice; she never advises other artisans to change their materials.

Blank 8

• A. the survey's authors
• B. the tourism boards
• C. Lanigan's charity
• D. the master artisans

Answer: C — Lanigan's charity

Heritage Skills Canada will administer the fund in exchange for a portion of its budget, so it is the organization collecting a fee for distributing the money.

Textual evidence:

a charity that will administer the fund in exchange for a portion of its budget the organizations that collect a fee for distributing the money

A: The survey only counted practitioners; its authors do not distribute money or collect a fee. B: Rasmussen names tourism boards separately from the organizations that collect a fee. D: The artisans receive the money; Rasmussen contrasts them with those who collect a fee.

Blank 9

• A. was moved by
• B. am curious about
• C. take issue with
• D. can confirm

Answer: C — take issue with

Lanigan says such knowledge passes from hand to hand and can't be got back out of a textbook, but the commenter learned the basics from a book.

Textual evidence:

That kind of knowledge is passed from hand to hand. Once the last practitioner is gone, you can't get it back out of a textbook.

A: The commenter goes on to give evidence against Lanigan's view, not to describe being touched by it. B: The commenter is not asking about Lanigan's view but answering it with personal experience. D: Learning from a library book contradicts Lanigan's claim, so the commenter's experience cannot confirm it.

Blank 10

• A. something better came along
• B. the survey overlooked them
• C. the fund came too late
• D. tourists stopped buying them

Answer: A — something better came along

The commenter agrees here with Rasmussen that crafts declined because people found cheaper, more durable ways of meeting the same needs, as factory nets show.

Textual evidence:

most of these crafts declined because people found cheaper and more durable ways of meeting the same needs

B: Hand-tied fishing nets are named in the article as one of the disappearing crafts, so they were not overlooked. C: The commenter's reason is that factory nets work better, not the timing of the fund. D: The rest of the sentence is about catching fish, not about tourists.

Completed comment

I've woven willow baskets for most of my life, and Rasmussen's assumption that artisans would be paid to make things for which there is no willing buyer doesn't match my experience; my market stall usually sells out. Like Kilbride, I've replaced a few old materials with modern ones, and no customer has ever objected. Rasmussen's remark about organizations collecting fees is presumably aimed at Lanigan's charity, which seems unfair. I also take issue with Lanigan's view of how these skills are passed on, since I learned the basics from a library book long before I ever found a teacher. Still, some crafts, such as hand-tied nets, faded simply because something better came along; factory nets catch more fish, and no fisher I know would ever go back.

Read a cloze sentence through meaning, form, and connection

A blank can depend on a familiar expression, a word form, or the logical relationship between clauses. Read beyond the blank: the reason, contrast, or reference that determines the answer may occur later in the sentence.

The dinosaur passage uses shorter contexts; the research passage contains longer sentences and more demanding vocabulary. Select the word that fits the meaning and structure of the passage, rather than relying on outside knowledge.

The Fastest Dinosaurs

1. According to

According [1] computer models that were used to estimate the running speeds of dinosaurs, the Tyrannosaurus rex would have been able to outrun a footballer.

To completes according to, which identifies the computer models as the information source. The title also establishes speed as the topic.

2. A top speed

The study shows that the dinosaur could reach a top [2] of eight metres a second.

Choices: fast · speed · swift · rate

Speed supplies the intended noun in a top speed of eight metres a second: the sentence describes how fast the dinosaur could move.

3. Fractionally faster

Which is [3] faster than the average professional footballer.

Choices: fraction · fractional · fractionally · fractionals

Fractionally is an adverb modifying faster. Fraction is a noun and fractional an adjective; neither performs the required role.

4. Controversy about

There has been a lot of controversy [4] whether the Tyrannosaurus rex was a predator or a scavenger.

Choices: about · as · at · to

About completes controversy about whether it was a predator or a scavenger. The choice depends on the expression as a whole.

5. A contrast between views

Some believe that its highly developed sense of smell indicates that it was a scavenger [5] others say that its keen eyesight shows that it was a hunter.

Choices: since · while · however · as

While contrasts the scavenger view with the hunter view. Both clauses must be read together to identify that relationship.

6. The latter group

The [6] group will appreciate the recent study, as a hunter is more likely to require such speed.

Choices: former · later · latter · first

Latter refers to the second group—the people who think it was a hunter. The need for speed connects the sentence to that group. Latter and later are different words.

7. More likely

A hunter is more [7] to require such speed.

Choices: likely · probable · probably · possible

Likely fits more likely to require such speed. The comparison concerns the hunter’s greater need for speed.

8. Taken directly

The University of Manchester study used a powerful supercomputer to calculate the running speeds of five meat-eating dinosaurs and used data taken [8] from dinosaur fossils.

Choices: directs · direction · directed · directly

Directly fits data taken directly from dinosaur fossils. The adverb describes how the data were obtained.

9. Rather than

Data taken directly from dinosaur fossils [9] than referring to previous work on modern animals.

Choices: instead · rather · other · better

Rather completes rather than, contrasting the method used with consulting earlier work. Instead alone does not fit before than.

10. However

The Tyrannosaurus rex [10] was not the fastest dinosaur.

Choices: therefore · hence · since · however

However introduces the change from the first dinosaur’s speed to a smaller dinosaur being even faster. The preceding and following sentences establish the contrast.

11. A dinosaur called

A small dinosaur [11] Compsognathus.

Choices: called · named as · known · name

Called fits a small dinosaur called Compsognathus. The phrase identifies its name in the sentence as written.

12. The size of a chicken

Which was about the [12] of a chicken, could run at eighteen metres a second.

Choices: shape · size · form · same

Size expresses how big the dinosaur was: about the size of a chicken. The comparison does not claim that it had a chicken’s shape.

13. Which is faster

Could run at eighteen metres a second [13] is faster than the ostrich, the fastest two-legged animal today.

Choices: who · that · when · which

Which continues the comparison in eighteen metres a second, which is faster than the ostrich. When would refer to time rather than this comparison.

14. Leave behind

It could run a hundred metres in a little over six seconds, which would [14] modern Olympic athletes more than a third of the track behind.

Choices: leave · chase · run · beat

Leave combines with the later word behind: leave someone behind. The required expression becomes apparent only when the words after the blank are included.

15. Olympic athletes

Which would leave modern Olympic [15] more than a third of the track behind.

Choices: athlete · athletic · athletics · athletes

Athletes identifies the competing people in the plural. The completed expression is modern Olympic athletes, rather than one individual athlete.

A research passage about HIV

1. A major breakthrough

Scientists believe that they have made a [1] breakthrough in fighting HIV. They have shown what happens when an infection-fighting antibody attacks a gap in HIV's defences.

Choices: majority · major · solution · final

Major is an adjective meaning important or significant and describes breakthrough. Majority and solution are nouns, while final does not express the intended meaning of this development.

2. A gap in the defences

An infection-fighting antibody attacks a [2] in HIV's defences.

Choices: gap · space · line · shape

Gap represents a weak point in the defences that an antibody can attack. The following sentences develop that weak-spot interpretation.

3. Considerable defences

An antibody attacks a gap in HIV's [3] defences.

Choices: consider · considerate · considerably · considerable

Considerable is the adjective describing substantial defences. Considerate means caring about others’ feelings, consider is a verb, and considerably is an adverb. Similar spelling does not establish the same meaning or function.

4. Stable

Finding a vaccine against HIV has been very difficult because the proteins on the surface of the virus are continually mutating, but they have shown an antibody, called b twelve, attacking a weak spot of the virus where the protein is [4].

Choices: stable · instability · unstable · stability

Stable fits the contrast introduced by but: although proteins change, the weak spot described is a stable region. Instability and stability are noun forms; the intended contrast also rules out unstable.

5. Able to mutate

The virus is able to [5] rapidly to avoid detection by the immune system.

Choices: mutation · mutant · mutate · mutating

Mutate supplies the verb in able to mutate rapidly. The position after to in this expression requires the base verb.

6. Avoid detection

The virus is able to mutate rapidly to avoid [6] by the immune system, and is also covered in sugary molecules which block access by antibodies.

Choices: detective · detect · detecting · detection

Detection fits avoid detection by the immune system. Detective refers to an investigator. Avoid being detected could convey the intended idea, but it is not an available choice; the supplied sentence requires detection.

7. However

[7], certain parts of the virus must remain relatively unchanged so that it can catch hold of and enter human cells.

Choices: though · however · also · even though

However connects changing parts of the virus with the contrasting point that certain parts must remain unchanged.

8. Relatively unchanged

Certain parts of the virus must remain [8] unchanged so that it can catch hold of and enter human cells.

Choices: relatively · relative · relatives · relation

Relatively modifies unchanged, meaning unchanged to a degree or comparatively unchanged. Both the word form and the intended meaning support it.

Read the connecting sentence

One protein that sticks out from the surface of the virus and binds to receptors on host cells is one such region, which makes it a target for vaccine development.

The connecting sentence explains the protein’s relationship to receptors on host cells. Sticks out means projects from the surface; receptors are the structures to which it binds. This relationship explains why the region matters in the passage.

9. Analyses of the blood

Previous analyses of the [9] of people that have been able to keep HIV from developing into AIDS for long periods of time.

Choices: bleed · bleeding · blood · bloody

Blood is the noun identifying what was analysed. Bleed is a verb, bleeding an -ing form, and bloody an adjective.

10. Analyses have revealed

Previous analyses of the blood of people that have been able to keep HIV from developing into AIDS for long periods of time [10] revealed a group of antibodies.

Choices: was · has · have · were

Have agrees with the plural subject previous analyses. The intervening phrase about blood does not change that subject. The analyses have revealed something; the intended construction is active rather than was revealed or were revealed.

11. A rare group

Previous analyses have revealed a [11] group of antibodies, including b twelve, that seem to fight HIV with some degree of success.

Choices: seldom · rare · rarely · occasional

Rare is the adjective describing an uncommon group: a rare group of antibodies.

12. A degree of success

That seem to fight HIV with some degree of [12].

Choices: succeed · successful · successfully · success

Success is the noun needed after some degree of. Succeed is a verb, successful an adjective, and successfully an adverb.

13. The protein

The latest study showed how the antibody and [13] protein interact.

Choices: a · the · these · no article

The completes the antibody and the protein, referring to the protein under discussion. These does not fit the singular noun protein.

14. The structure of the bond

Scientists hope that revealing the [14] of this bond in such precise detail will provide clues about how best to attack HIV.

Choices: stricture · structure · blueprint · plan

Structure describes how the bond is arranged. Its spelling and meaning differ from stricture.

15. Precise detail

Scientists hope that revealing the structure of this bond in such [15] detail will provide clues about how best to attack HIV.

Choices: precise · precision · exacting · quite

Precise means exact in the phrase in such precise detail. It must fit the meaning of the complete sentence.

Check the meaning after filling the blanks

An infection-fighting antibody attacks a gap in HIV's considerable defences.

The completed context confirms gap as a weak point in the defence mechanism. Space may initially seem possible, but gap expresses the intended weakness that the antibody can attack. Longer sentences and specialist vocabulary make it particularly important to check both meaning and word form.