This General Training IELTS Reading post focuses on solutions to IELTS Cambridge 13 Reading Test 4 Section 2 that has two texts titled ‘A Case Study of a risk assessment for general office cleaning’ & ‘Preparing for a virtual job interview’. This is a targeted post for GT IELTS candidates who have big problems finding out and understanding Reading Answers in the GT 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 13 Test 4: GT Reading Module

Section 2:

The headline of the text: A Case Study of a risk assessment for general office cleaning

Questions 15-21: Completing FLOW-CHART with ONE WORD ONLY: 

In this type of question, candidates are asked to write ONE WORD ONLY to complete some notes on the given flow-chart. For this type of question, first, skim the passage to find the keywords in the paragraph concerned with the answer, and then scan to find the exact word. 

[TIPS: Here, scanning technique will come in handy. Target the keywords of the questions to find the answers. Remember to focus on Proper nouns, random Capital letters, numbers, special characters of text etc.]

Title of the flow chart: Stages followed by manager in carrying out risk assessment

Question 15: He talked to health and safety ____________ about the risks.

Keywords for this question: talked to, health and safety, about the risks,    

In the second paragraph, the author of the text says, “To identify the hazards, the cleaning service manager visited the office complex and walked through the areas where cleaning staff would be working, noting things that might pose potential risks. Following this, he consulted the health and safety representatives of the cleaning service about these risks, taking into account the needs of any particular staff members, such as whether they were pregnant or aged under 18.”

Here, consulted = talked to, 

So, the answer is: representatives

Question 16: At a meeting, he talked to the client company about

• the policy of the company regarding ____________  (e.g. clear walkways)   

Keywords for this question: a meeting, talked to, client company, about, policy, e.g. clear walkways, 

In paragraph no. 3, take a look at lines 1-4, “In order to gather further information, he then had a meeting with the client company during which a number of issues were discussed. These included the client company’s own standard of housekeeping, such as the immediate clearing up of spills and keeping walkways clear, . .. . .. . ” 

Here, had a meeting with the client company = talked to the client company, client company’s own standard = the policy of the company, keeping walkways clear = e.g. clear walkways, 

So, the answer is: housekeeping 

Question 17:

• procedures to be followed in case of a ____________

Keywords for this question: procedures, to be followed, in case of, a, 

Take a look at lines 2-4 in paragraph no. 3, “ . . .. . .. .  These included the client company’s own standard of housekeeping, such as the immediate clearing up of spills and keeping walkways clear, as well as the action to be taken if a fire broke out. .. . .. . ”. . .” 

Here, action to be taken if = procedures to be followed in case of,   

So, the answer is: fire 

Question 18: 

• facilities available to cleaners (e.g. space available for ____________ )

Keywords for this question: facilities available, to cleaners, e.g. space available,  

Lines 5-7 of the third paragraph say, “ . . . .. He also established what facilities and equipment would be available to the cleaners, including the amount of storage space available, as well as the availability of sinks and taps, etc.. .. .” 

So, the answer is: storage 

Question 19: 

• a way of ____________  risks and hazards.

Keywords for this question: a way of, risk and hazards,   

The final few lines of paragraph no. 3 say, “.. . .. and agreed on a method of reporting near-miss accidents and risks discovered by cleaners (e.g. damaged floor tiles).” 

Here, a method of = a way of, near-miss accidents and risks = risks and hazards, 

So, the answer is: reporting 

Question 20: 

He compared these to information that the HSE provided on its ____________ .

Keywords for this question: compared, these, to information, HSE provided, on its,      

The answer can be found in paragraph no. 4. Here, in the final lines, the author of the text writes, “ .. . . .. The manager then compared these to the good practice guidance set out on the HSE’s website and identified any areas where improvement was needed.” 

Here, The manager then compared these = He compared these, to the good practice guidance =  to information, set out on = provided on, 

So, the answer is: website  

Question 21: 

He displayed a copy of the risk assessment inside a ___________  available to all cleaning staff.

Keywords for this question: displayed, a copy of, risk management, inside, a, available, all cleaning staff, 

In the final paragraph, the writer of the text says in the final lines, “ . .. .. Finally, to ensure that all the cleaning staff had access to a copy of the risk assessment, the manager pinned a copy in the cupboard where cleaning equipment was kept.”  

Here, the manager pinned a copy = He displayed a copy, all the cleaning staff had access = available to all cleaning staff, 

So, the answer is: cupboard 

The headline of the text: Preparing for a virtual job interview  

Questions 22-27: Completing sentences with ONE WORD ONLY: 

In this type of question, candidates are asked to write ONE WORD ONLY to complete sentences on the given topic. For this type of question, first, skim the passage to find the keywords in the paragraph concerned with the answer, and then scan to find the exact word. 

[TIPS: Here scanning technique will come in handy. Target the keywords of the questions to find the answers. Remember to focus on Proper nouns, random Capital letters, numbers, special characters of text etc.] 

Question 22: Some companies prefer to interview job applicants digitally because of lower ________ .

Keywords for this question: Some companies, prefer, interview job applicants, digitally, because, lower,   

In paragraph no. 1, the writer says in the first lines, “Businesses are always looking for new ways to increase efficiency and profits. For example, organisations often reduce costs by conducting virtual job interviews. .. ..” 

Here, organisations = some companies, reduce = lower, conducting virtual job interviews = prefer to interview job applicants digitally, 

 So, the answer is: costs 

Question 23: As with the standard recruitment process, virtual recruitment opens with __________ . 

Keywords for this question: As with, standard recruitment process, virtual recruitment, opens with, 

In the ‘How a virtual interview is the same’ section, the first lines of the first paragraph say, “The typical interview process usually entails multiple steps. First, there is screening, lasting about thirty minutes. .. … .”

Here, The typical interview process = the standard recruitment process, First = opens with, 

So, the answer is: screening 

Question 24: Applicants should read any details about the advertised post carefully and pick out important _____________ which they can discuss if necessary.

Keywords for this question: Applicants, should read, any details, advertised post, carefully, pick out, important, which, can discuss, if necessary, 

Again, in the ‘How a virtual interview is the same’ section, the first lines of the second paragraph say, “Virtual interviews follow the same steps so you’ll need to focus on the same core topics. Identify what the critical topics are based on the job description and prepare to talk about them. If you can, gather inside information so you can impress interviewers with your knowledge.”

Here, Identify = pick out, critical = important, prepare to talk about them = they can discuss if necessary, 

So, the answer is: topics  

Question 25: It is a good idea for applicants to check if they can be clearly understood when they use a ______________ . 

Keywords for this question: a good idea, for applicants, check, if they can be clearly understood, when, use a, 

In the ‘How a virtual interview is different’ section, the first lines in the second paragraph say, “Modern technology is great when it works, but a pain when it doesn’t. So, it’s wise to check you can operate your webcam, especially if you don’t use it often. Test the headset too and find out how intelligible your voice sounds.”

Here, Test = check, find out how intelligible your voice sounds = to check if they can be clearly understood, 

So, the answer is: headset   

Question 26: Applicants may not be familiar with the ___________ that the person conducting the interview will use, so they should try it out.

Keywords for this question: Applicants, may not be familiar with, the person, conducting, interview, will use, so, should try it out, 

Again in the ‘How a virtual interview is different’ section, the final lines in the second paragraph say, “ .. .. .. . It’s also wise to establish what software the interviewer is going to work with and give it a trial run.”

Here, interviewer = the person conducting the interview, is going to work with = will use, give it a trial run = should try it out, 

So, the answer is: software 

Question 27: It is very useful to go through a _____________ of the interview, with someone playing the part of the interviewer.

Keywords for this question: very useful, go through, a, of the interview, with someone playing, part of the interviewer, 

In the ‘How a virtual interview is different’ section, the fourth paragraph says, “The most important part of your preparation is to run through everything first as best you can. Have a friend conduct a rehearsal with you before the big day. This will help you know how to behave in front of the camera.”

Here, a friend = someone playing the part of the interviewer, run through = go through, This will help you know how to behave in front of the camera = it is very useful, 

So, the answer is: rehearsal  

© All the texts with inverted commas used in this post are taken from Cambridge IELTS Series 13 GT Test book

Click here for solutions to Cambridge 13 GT Test 4 Section 1 

Click here for solutions to Cambridge 13 GT Test 4 Section 3