Current Affairs 7th Class

 COMPREHENSION (PROSE & POETRY)   READING COMPREHENSION Being an area that tests a candidate's understanding of the language, comprehension consists of questions based on given text (a passage, one or more paragraphs). Questions may even be based on certain real-life situations to test how good a candidate is at fact-finding, sifting through information, interpreting text, concluding from given information and discerning between stated and implied meanings of the given information. Understanding of vocabulary, rhetorical tools, hunting for the required information while keeping the holistic picture in mind, etc., are essential comprehension skills at play in this area. Poetry comprehension requires deeper understanding of the poetic devices and literary expressions. You have to be acquainted with these areas practising small passages first.   TIPS FOR POETRY COMPREHENSION

Realize complete understanding, as with any poem, will not come after one reading.

Use clues from the poem's title to identify the topic. Often the topic will not be stated explicitly in the poem.

Read through the poem once to get a general idea of what the poem's about. Don't try to figure it out the first time through.

Pay attention to punctuation and the physical structure of the poem.

Consider, first, the literal meaning of the poem; that is, what is the concrete object or idea being discussed. Once that is identified, concern yourself with analysis and symbolic meaning.

Analyze imagery and figurative language. What is the author's purpose?

Identify parts of the poem that confuse you. Can you use the poem's context to interpret confusing parts?

Consider multiple ways of interpreting the poem. There may be more than one correct interpretation.

Read the poem aloud. Sound devices are often clues to the poem's meaning.

The role of vocabulary development and instruction play an important role in helping students to understand the complex cognitive process of reading.

The reader must be actively involved with the text by intentionally thinking about what he or she is reading.

To comprehend means 'to understand and grasp'. A comprehension exercise is, therefore, meant to test a candidate's ability to understand and retain the contents of a given passage.   Trend of Questions: In this type of questions, generally a long passage consisting of certain paragraphs is given, followed by 10-15 questions based on it. The questions may be based on: (i) Theme of the passage (ii) Choosing the correct or wrong statement on the basis of the given passage (iii) View of the author regarding the main point discussed in the passage (iv) Synonyms or Antonyms of some selected words in the passage   The technique of Solving:

Read the passage carefully once and detect its theme.

Note what the questions are about.

Answer the questions.

"In Questions on Synonyms & Antonyms, what is to be remembered is that the answer is to be given according to the sense in which the word has been used in the passage, not just on the basis of its literal meaning.   Example: Read the following passage and answer the more...

 ADVERTISEMENTS GRAPHS/IMAGES   DEFINITION Advertising brings a product (or service) to the attention of potential and current customers. Advertising is focused on one particular product or service. Thus, an advertising plan for one product might be very different from that for another product. Advertising is typically done with signs, brochures, commercials, direct mailings or e-mail messages, personal contact, etc. Advertising is the activity of drawing public attention to a product or service in order to encourage people to buy it.   CREATING AN ADVERTISEMENT It seems very difficult to craft a perfect advertisement to entice potential consumers or influence public opinion. But the right way to make a good advertisement is to keep simple. An ad sums up everything that is smart, innovative, and distinguished about your brand, and is almost indispensable in today's economic marketplace.   WRITING THE ADVERTISEMENT Advertisers create ads for an intended audience. They have a purpose behind designing an advertisement and publishing it in a particular way. Advertising affects people in different ways. People today are exposed to a large amount of advertising. A catchy, snappy tagline is the sole of an advertisement. Keeping short and sweet within six or seven words might serve the purpose. Loud sounding advertisements appeal less to our senses. The immediate purpose of advertisement is to garb the consumer's attention and convince him or her that your product is different from others.   AVOID THE SAME OLD CLICHES Being memorable is the key to good advertisement. Avoid terms like-new and improved, guaranteed, or free gift-is there any other kind?

• Startle the reader to pay attention because it is especially useful if you have a lot to say. For example long announcement wouldn't turn many heads if it weren't for the unusual, confrontational tagline; if the reader wants to get the joke, she or he has to read more.
• Know how to walk the line between controversial and entertaining. Pushing the limits of good taste to help your ad grab attention is common practice, but don't go too far — you want your product to be recognised on its own merits, not because it was tied to a tasteless advertisement.
• Use a persuasive technique. There are tried and true methods that advertisers rely on to make their ads stick.

These include:

• Common sense: Challenging the consumer to think of a good reason why not to purchase a your product or service.
• Humour: Making the consumer laugh, make you more likeable and memorable. Your advertised lines should be short.
• Repetition: Repeating key elements will bring good results.
• Exigency: Convincing the consumer that time is of the essence. Limited-time only offers, fire sales, and the likes are the commonest ways to do this, but again, avoid meaningless phrases that will slip under your customers' radar.
• Know the customer. Even the cleverest ad won't work if it doesn't appeal to the target audience. Are you looking for a certain age group? Do you want people with a more...

 DRAWING CONCLUSIONS AND INFERENCES   DEFINITION When we read a text, the author does not always tell us everything. The author may leave out details on purpose. He may also depend on the reader’s general knowledge to fill in the blanks. Inference: an idea that is suggested by the facts or details in a passage. Conclusion: a decision about what may happen or about the result an event may have Making an inference and drawing a conclusion are very similar skills. Ach requires the reader to fill in the blanks left out by the author. An author may not include information for several reasons: they may think you already know it, it may not seem important to them, or they may want you to find the result.   How to make an inference or draw a conclusion

• Observe all the facts, arguments, and information given by the author
• Consider what you already know from you own experience
• When faced with multiple choice answers, determine whether each is true or false based on the information in the passage

Example The woman waited nervously in the line. When the counter was empty, she carefully unloaded her items from her cart. Lines creased her forehead as if to show the calculations ringing up in her head. Finally, the cashier began ringing up the items as the woman clutched her purse. Inference/ conclusion: The woman may not have enough money to cover the cost of her groceries

• Think about the fact of the passage and what may result from them
• Think about causes and effects

The writer may only provide a list of effects, so you have to figure out the cause. The child stood on the sidewalk clenching her ice cream cone. Beads of sweat collected on her little nose as she furiously licked at the ice cream dripping down her hand. Inference/ conclusion: IT must be hot day because her ice cream is melting, and she is sweating.

• Try saying “If…. then"

If the girl is sweating, then it may be warm outside.   Remember

• Most writing suggests more than it says
• By making inference, you get more from the story.
• Conclusions may be missing from the things you read, so you have to draw your own

  PRACTICE ACTIVITIES Sujata almost wished that she hadn't listened to the radio. She went to the closet and grabbed her umbrella. She would feel silly carrying it to the bus stop on such a sunny morning. 1. What probably happened? (a) Sujata realised that she had an unnatural fear of falling radio parts. (b) Sujata had promised herself to do something silly that morning. (c) Sujata had heard a weather forecast that predicted rain. (d) Sujata planned to trade her umbrella for a bus ride. "Larry, as your boss, I must say that it's been very interesting working with you," Miss Sharma said. "However, it seems that our more...

 PARA JUMBLES   DEFINITION The section deals with the problems of Jumbled paragraph and sentences and sentence and phrase arrangement of the given phrases or sentences. The student has to choose a logical sequence to make a meaningful sentence or paragraph. This form of exercise tests the student's ability to (a) Figure out the logic of the events (b) Sequence of different parts of a combination according to correct grammatical usage. In either sentence or paragraph structuring, the student has to check which part follows the other according to the logical theme of the sentence/paragraph. (a) Phrase arrangement or Jumbled Sentence. (b) Sentence arrangement or Jumbled Paragraph. In a jumbled sentence, a sentence is broken into four parts and the student has to figure out, the right sequence to form a logical, sensible sentence. Consider the following example.   Example I. P: by her indulgent parents Q: the child was so spoiled R: when she did not receive all of their attention S: that she pouted and became sullen (a) RQPS                                 (b) QRPS (c) QPSR                                 (d) QSPR In this question, a single sentence has been broken into four different parts and the student has to find out the logical sequence of the sentence. In order to do that, consider the following. Strategy I: Decide on the opening phrase, first. The opening part of the sentence will usually contain the subject of the sentence. So locate the subject and select that part as the first in sequence. Now, select all options in the answer that begin with the part you have chosen as the first. In example 1, the subject is the child and the opening part will be Q, thus, we can eliminate option (a). Now, since the subject is passive, the verb form will be followed by 'by' and the doer. So, find the second part beginning with by and containing the doer of the action which in this case is P. Thus, we can reach the right answer, option (c). Strategy II: If the Subject is passive, mostly, the following part will begin with 'by and contain the doer of the action in the sentence.   Example II. Unsurpassed power (P)/modern society (Q)/in (R)/ women enjoy (S) (a) RQPS                                  (b) SRPQ (c) SPRQ                                (d) PSRQ The subject of the sentence is women so the opening part would be S. Thus, we have to choose between options (b) and (c). The subject in this sentence is active. So, we must find the object which will be the next Part. In the given question, the object is unsurpassed power. Thus, the answer is (c). Strategy III: When the subject is active, follow the sequence- SUBJECT - VERB - OBJECT Strategy IV: Preposition is never the last part. If a preposition is given as one of the parts match it with other parts to find out what will follow the preposition. In Example III 'in' could only be followed by Modem society, so more...