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IELTS online course Reading

Reading – Unit 1 – Exercise 3

The reading passage below has 5 sections A – E. Choose the correct headings for sections A-E from the list of numbered headings below.

List of Headings

i           The science of marriage
ii          The importance of honest communication
iii         The power of thought
iv         The likelihood of marrying again
v          Technological advances
vi         The benefits of avoiding arguments
vii        The real predictor for a lasting marriage
viii       The consequences of early dissatisfaction

Section A        ____________
Section B        ____________
Section C        ____________
Section D        ____________
Section E        ____________

See answer in the comment section.

Section A 

Marriage is a much-researched topic, and the way married couples communicate in particular as been the subject of many studies. These days, research into marriage often involves hours of recordings, followed by a thorough analysis of data with the help of modern software applications.

Section B 

One such study analysed give years’ worth of data, obtained from 750 participating couples. At the start of the study, participants who felt they were in a harmonious relationship reported having happy marriages. In other words, low levels of conflict corresponded to a perceived higher degree of happiness. At the end of the five-year period, however, many couples had separated or had started divorce proceedings. The outcome of this study suggests that keeping the peace rather than talking about problems and working through them can have harmful effects on a relationship.

Section C 

In a more recent, larger scale study, people were observed over a fifteen-year period. The researchers recorded the timings of marriages, divorces and remarriages and discovered patterns that helped them estimate how likely divorce was. If participants admitted the possibility of divorce to themselves during the five years of the study, the probability of it actually happening was ten times greater than for those couples who had not thought about it at all. Clearly, once the idea of divorce is in somebody’s mind, they are more likely to act on it.

Section D 

Yet another piece of research confirms that the way men and women feel at the beginning of their marriage makes a difference to its eventual outcome. Those who feel disappointed, perhaps because marriage itself is different from their expectations, or because their lifestyle is not what they had envisaged, are more likely to divorce.

Section E 

Having said that, relationships are complex and their development is the result of many different influences. The end of a marriage is unlikely to be brought about by one particular factor, and is more probably the result of a combination of small incidents that add up over time. It is also worth bearing in mind that in most countries it is the minority of marriages that fail. No one can truthfully claim that their marriage is happy or perfect all the time, but the fact remains that most married people stay together for life. The secret of a happy marriage, it seems, lies where most people have always thought it does: in the effort made on a daily basis by both partners to treat each other with consideration and courtesy, and to cheerfully accept each other’s faults as well as their good qualities.

 

 

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IELTS online course Reading

Reading – Unit 1 – Exercise 2

Read the following paragraphs and identify the topic sentence of each paragraph. Reply your answer in the comment section below.

Paragraph 1

The value of grandparents to children should not be underestimated. The report shows the need for the government to address the importance of grandparents in future policy and legislation. It also demonstrates the need to amend the Children Act 1989 to remove the obstacle that requires the biological family to ask permission prior to making an application to the court for contact. Especially when a family is going through difficulties, it is important that the children can turn to someone who is not directly involved and is calm and relaxed, and that person is often a grandparent.

 

Paragraph 2

To have a society that is family-friendly, anti-discrimination laws will need to be introduced. Parenting would become a school-subject, staircases would be rebuilt so that buggies and prams could access any building and advertising for sweets and non-educational toys would be forbidden. Companies would be forced to only employ people who can travel to work in less than forty minutes and there would also be a thirty-five-hour working week and more holidays. In a world like this, there would be less divorce and crime, but we would be earning and producing less.

 

Paragraph 3

Almost half of grandparents lose all contact with their grandchildren after a separation or divorce, according to a new report. It found that forty-two percent never see their grandchildren again after the break-up. Even more – sixty-seven percent – are prevented from providing any sort of childcare or taking their grandchildren on outings, even when they had done so regularly in the past.

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IELTS online course Listening

Listening – Unit 1 – Review Quiz

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