This Academic IELTS Reading post focuses on solutions to IELTS Cambridge 5 Reading Test 3 Reading Passage 1 which is titled ‘Early Childhood Education’. This is a targeted post for IELTS candidates who have big problems finding out and understanding Reading Answers in the AC module. This post can guide you the best to understand every Reading answer without much trouble. Finding out IELTS Reading answers is a steady process, and this post will assist you in this respect.

IELTS Cambridge 5 Test 3: AC Reading Module

Reading Passage 1: Questions 1-13

Title of the passage: Early Childhood Education

Questions 1-4: Identifying information

[This question asks you to find information from the passage and write the number of the paragraph (A, B, C or D … .. ) in the answer sheet. Now, if the question is given in the very first part of the question set, I’d request you not to answer them. It’s mainly because this question will not follow any sequence, and so it will surely kill your time. Rather, you should answer all the other questions first. And just like List of Headings, only read the first two lines or last two lines of the expected paragraph initially. If you find the answers, you need not read the middle part. If you don’t find answers yet, you can skim the middle part of the paragraph. Keywords will be a useful matter here.]

Question no. 1: details of the range of family types involved in an education programme

Keywords for the question: range of family types, involved in, education programme,  

In section D, we find two paragraphs. At the end of the first paragraph, in lines 11-17, the author says, “ .. . . The four-year pilot study included 380 families who were about to have their first child and who represented a cross-section of socio-economic status, age and family configurations. They included single-parent and two-parent families, families in which both parents worked, and families with either the mother or father at home.”

Here, single-parent and two-parent families, families in which both parents worked, and families with either the mother or father at home = details of the range of family types, 

So, the answer is: D

Question no. 2: reasons why a child’s early years are so important

Keywords for the question: reason, why, child’s early years, so important,   

Both the paragraphs in section B provide details about the importance of the early years of a child. In the first paragraph, the writer says, “ …  .. by the age of three, most children have the potential to understand about 1000 words .. .. .”

Then, in the second paragraph, the writer says again, “. .. . research has shown that while every child is born with a natural curiosity, it can be suppressed dramatically during the second and third years of life. Researchers claim that the human personality is formed during the first two years of life, and during the first three years children learn the basic skills they will use in all their later learning both at home and at school.”

So, the answer is: B

Question no. 3: reasons why an education programme failed

Keywords for the question: reasons, why, education programme, failed,    

Section C contains two paragraphs. In the first paragraph, the writer talks about the ‘Headstart’ education programme.

Then, in the second paragraph, the writer says at the beginning, “Despite substantial funding, results have been disappointing.”

Here, results have been disappointing = the education programme failed,

So, the answer is: C

Question no. 4: a description of the positive outcomes of an education programme

Keywords for the question: description, positive outcomes, education programme,    

In section E, the author of the passage says in the beginning, in lines 1-7, “At the age of three, the children who had been involved in the ‘Missouri’ programme were evaluated alongside a cross-section of children selected from the same range of socio-economic backgrounds and family situations, and also a random sample of children that age. The results were phenomenal.”

Here, the results were phenomenal = positive outcomes,

Then, in the following lines, the writer provides a detailed description of the positive outcomes.  

So, the answer is: E

Question 6-9: Classifying groups

[This type of question asks candidates to classify information from the given reading text. Candidates are given some groups from the text, and a list of options, which are listed as A, B, C etc. They must match the correct groups with the correct options.

N.B.: This question doesn’t follow any sequence. So, they should be answered after all other questions in the passage.]

Question no. 5: was administered to a variety of poor and wealthy families

Keywords for the question: administered to, variety of, poor and wealthy families,   

In section E, the author says about the ‘Missouri’ programme in lines 4-5 of the first paragraph, “ .. .. a cross-section of children selected from the same range of socio-economic backgrounds and family situations .. .”

Then, in the second paragraph, the writer says in the last lines, “ .. . . That interaction was not necessarily bad in poorer families.”

Moreover, in section D, take a look at these lines in the first paragraph, “ . .. . The ‘Missouri’ programme was predicated on research showing that .. … . The four-year pilot study included 380 families who were about to have their first child and who represented a cross-section of socio-economic status, age and family configurations. . .. . ”

Here, a cross-section of socio-economic status = both poor and wealthy families,

This means the ‘Missouri’ programme was administered to a variety of poor and wealthy families.

So, the answer is: B (the ‘Missouri’ programme)

Question no. 6: continued with follow-up assistance in elementary schools

Keywords for the question: continued with, follow-up assistance, elementary schools,  

We can learn from the passage that both the ‘Headstart’ and ‘Missouri’ programmes aimed at children’s early education before the age of three. So, logically, neither the ‘Headstart’ nor the ‘Missouri’ programme continued with further assistance in elementary schools.

So, the answer is: D (neither the ‘Missouri’ nor the ‘Headstart’ programme)

Question no. 7: did not succeed in its aim

Keywords for the question: did not succeed, its aim,  

Section C contains two paragraphs. In the first paragraph, the writer talks about the ‘Headstart’ programme.

Then, in the second paragraph, the writer says at the beginning, “Despite substantial funding, results have been disappointing.”

Here, results have been disappointing = the education programme failed or did not succeed in its aim,

So, the answer is: A (the ‘Headstart’ programme)

Question no. 8: supplied many forms of support and training to parents

Keywords for the question: supplied, many forms of, support and training, parents,    

The writer gives details about the ‘Missouri’ programme in section D, “ . . . a pilot programme was launched in Missouri in the US that focused on parents as the child’s first teachers… .. The programme involved trained parent-educators visiting the parent’s home and working with the parent, or parents, and the child. Information on child development, and guidance on things to look for and expect as the child grows were provided, plus guidance in fostering the child’s intellectual, language, social and motor-skill development.”

Here, Information on child development, and guidance on things to look for and expect as the child grows were provided, plus guidance in fostering the child’s intellectual, language, social and motor-skill development = the many forms of support and training supplied to parents,

So, the answer is: B (the ‘Missouri’ programme)

Question no. 9: received insufficient funding

Keywords for the question: received, insufficient funding,    

In section C, we find about the sufficient funding for the ‘Headstart’ programme, “Despite substantial funding, results have been disappointing. . ..” So, the ‘Headstart’ programme received substantial or sufficient funding.

Then, in section D, in the second paragraph, the writer provides a detailed description of guidance and support provided to parents and children by the ‘Missouri’ programme. This means the programme received more than sufficient funding.

So, the answer is: D (neither the ‘Missouri’ nor the ‘Headstart’ programme)

Question no. 10: was designed to improve pre-schoolers’ educational development

Keywords for the question: was designed, improve, pre-schoolers’ educational development,  

In section D, the author of the passage says that the ‘Missouri’ programme  “ .. . . included 380 families who were about to have their first child . .. .”. Moreover, this programme lasted 

in 4 years. In these 4 years, the programme provided training and support to the parents and  medical check-ups for the children. So, this is understood that this programme was designed to improve the pre-schooler’s (first child) educational development.

Moreover, in section C, the writer says that ‘Headstart’ programme “ . .. . took children into pre-school institutions at the age of three and was supposed to help the children of poorer families succeed in school.”

Therefore, we can realize that both the programmes were designed to improve pre-scholers’ educational development.

So, the answer is: C (both the ‘Missouri’ and the ‘Headstart’ programme)

Questions 11-13: TRUE, FALSE, NOT GIVEN

[In this type of question, candidates are asked to find out whether:

The statement in the question agrees with the information in the passage – TRUE
The statement in the question contradicts with the information in the passage – FALSE
If there is no information on this – NOT GIVEN

For this type of question, you can divide each statement into three independent pieces and make your way through with the answer.]

Question no. 11: Most ‘Missouri’ programme three-year-olds scored highly in areas such as listening, speaking, reasoning and interacting with others.

Keywords for the question: most ‘Missouri’ programme, three-year-old, scored, highly, areas, such as, listening, speaking, reasoning, interacting with others,  

The first paragraph in section E provides us with the answer to this question. The writer presents the phenomenal results of the ‘Missouri’ programme here, “ . . . The results were phenomenal. By the age of three, the children in the programme were significantly more advanced in language development than their peers, had made greater strides in problem solving and other intellectual skills, and were further along in social development, in fact, the average child on the programme was performing at the level of the top 15 to 20 per cent of their peers in such things as auditory comprehension, verbal ability and language ability.”

Here, auditory comprehension = listening, verbal ability = speaking, problem solving = reasoning, social development = interacting with others,

So, the answer is: TRUE

Question no. 12: ‘Missouri’ programme children of young, uneducated, single parents scored less highly on the tests.    

Keywords for the question: ‘Missouri’ programme children, young, uneducated, single parents, scored, less highly, tests,

In the second paragraph of section E, the writer says, “ . . ..  Most important of all, the traditional measures of ‘risk’, such as parents’ age and education, or whether they were a single parent, bore little or no relationship to the measures of achievement and language development. Children in the programme performed equally well regardless of socio-economic disadvantages. . ..”

Here, performed equally well regardless of socio-economic disadvantages = scored equal, not less highly,

So, the answer is: FALSE

Question no. 13: The richer families in the ‘Missouri’ programme had higher stress levels.

Keywords for the question: richer families, ‘Missouri’ programme, had, higher stress levels,

The explanation regarding the ‘Missouri’ programme was given in section D and E. However, there was no mention of stress levels in the richer families here.

So, the answer is: NOT GIVEN

Click here for solutions to Cambridge 5 AC Test 3 Reading Passage 2

Click here for solutions to Cambridge 5 AC Test 3 Reading Passage 3