The Fertility Bust IELTS Reading Answers

The IELTS Reading Test assesses your ability to understand and interpret information from a variety of texts, such as articles, journals, and reports. It measures essential skills like identifying main ideas, recognizing the writer’s opinion, and understanding logical arguments within a strict time limit.

The Academic Reading passage “The Fertility Bust” features 13 questions designed to test your comprehension and vocabulary recognition skills. You should aim to complete this passage within 20 minutes by carefully reading the text, identifying key terms, and spotting synonyms and paraphrased expressions to find the correct one-word or short answers. The question types found in this IELTS Reading passage are:

• Matching Heading (Q. 14-17)
• Multiple Choice Question (Q. 18-22) & (Q. 23-26)

The Fertility Bust IELTS Reading Passage 

A Falling populations – the despair of state pension systems – are often regarded with calmness, even a secret satisfaction, by ordinary people. Europeans no longer need large families to gather the harvest or to look after parents. They have used their good fortune to have fewer children, thinking this will make their lives better. Much of Europe is too crowded as it is. Is this all that is going on? Germans have been agonising about recent European Union estimates suggesting that 30% of German women are, and will remain, childless. The number is a guess: Germany does not collect figures like this. Even if the share is 25%, as other surveys suggest, it is by far the highest in Europe.

B Germany is something of an oddity in this. In most countries with low fertility, young women have their first child late, and stop at one. In Germany, women with children often have two or three, but many have none at all. Germany is also odd in experiencing low fertility for such a long time. Europe is demographically polarised. Countries in the north and west saw fertility fall early, in the 1960s. Recently, they have seen it stabilise or rise back towards replacement level (i.e. 2.1 births per woman). Countries in the south and east, on the other hand, saw fertility rates fall much faster, more recently (often to below 1.3, a rate at which the population falls by half every 45 years). Germany combines both. Its fertility rate fell below 2 in 1971. However, it has stayed low and is still only just above 1.3. This challenges the notion that European fertility is likely to stabilise at tolerable levels. It raises questions about whether the low birth rates of Italy and Poland, say, really are, as some have argued, merely temporary.

C The list of explanations for why German fertility has not rebounded is long. Michael Teitelbaum, a demographer at the Sloan Foundation in New York ticks them off: poor childcare; unusually extended higher education; inflexible labour laws; high youth unemployment; and non-economic or cultural factors. One German writer, Gunter Grass, wrote a novel, “Headbirths”, in 1982, about Harm and Dorte Peters, “a model couple” who disport themselves on the beaches of Asia rather than invest time and trouble in bringing up a baby. “They keep a cat,” writes Mr. Grass, “and still have no child.” The novel is subtitled “The Germans Are Dying Out”. With the exception of this cultural factor, none of these features is peculiar to Germany. If social and economic explanations account for persistent low fertility there, then they may well produce the same persistence elsewhere.

D The reason for hoping otherwise is that the initial decline in southern and eastern Europe was drastic, and may be reversible. In the Mediterranean, demographic decline was associated with freeing young women from the constraints of traditional Catholicism, which encouraged large families. In eastern Europe, it was associated with the collapse in living standards and the ending of pro-birth policies. In both regions, as such temporary factors fade, fertility rates might, in principle, be expected to rise. Indeed, they may already be stabilising in Italy and Spain. Germany tells you that reversing these trends can be hard. There, and elsewhere, fertility rates did not merely fall; they went below what people said they wanted. In 1979, Eurobarometer asked Europeans how many children they would like. Almost everywhere, the answer was two: the traditional two-child ideal persisted even when people were not delivering it. This may have reflected old habits of mind. Or people may really be having fewer children than they claim to want.

E A recent paper suggests how this might come about. If women postpone their first child past their mid-30s, it may be too late to have a second even if they want one (the average age of first births in most of Europe is now 30). If everyone does the same, one child becomes the norm: a one-child policy by example rather than coercion, as it were. If women wait to start a family until they are established at work, they may end up postponing children longer than they might otherwise have chosen. When birth rates began to fall in Europe, this was said to be a simple matter of choice. That was true, but it is possible that fertility may overshoot below what people might naturally have chosen. For many years, politicians have argued that southern Europe will catch up from its fertility decline because women, having postponed their first child, will quickly have a second and third. The overshoot theory suggests there may be only partial recuperation. Postponement could permanently lower fertility, not just redistribute it across time.

F There is a twist. If people have fewer children than they claim to want, how they see the family may change, too. Research by Tomas Sobotka of the Vienna Institute of Demography suggests that, after decades of low fertility, a quarter of young German men and a fifth of young women say they have no intention of having children and think that this is fine. When Eurobarometer repeated its poll about ideal family size in 2001, support for the two-child model had fallen everywhere. Parts of Europe, then, may be entering a new demographic trap. People restrict family size from choice. Social, economic, and cultural factors then cause this natural fertility decline to overshoot. This changes expectations, to which people respond by having even fewer children. That does not necessarily mean that birth rates will fall even more: there may yet be some natural floor, but it could mean that recovery from very low fertility rates proves to be slow or even non-existent.

The Fertility Bust IELTS Reading Questions

14 Even further falls?

15 One-child policy

16 Germany differs

17 Possible reasons

A Germany has the highest percentage of childless women.

B Italy and Poland have high birth rates.

C Most of the reasons given by Michael Teitelbaum are not unique to Germany.

D Governments in eastern Europe encouraged people to have children.

E In 1979, most families had one or two children.

F European women who have a child later usually have more soon after.

G In 2001, people wanted fewer children than in 1979, according to Eurobarometer research.

H Here may be a natural level at which birth rates stop declining.

23 Reasons that ordinary Europeans do not think it is necessary to have as many children include

A less labour needed to farm land.

B the feeling that Europe is too crowded.

C a general dislike of children

24 Michael Teitelbaum adds the following reasons:

A poor child care facilities.

B longer working hours.

C high unemployment amongst young adults.

25 Initial declines in southern and eastern Europe were because (of)

A the reduced influence of the Catholic church.

B lower standards of living.

C governments encouraged smaller families.

26 People may have fewer children than they want because

A women are having children at a later age.

B they are following the example of other people.

C politicians want them to.

The Fertility Bust IELTS Reading Answers with Explanation

Let’s now review the answers to the questions from the passage in the reading section, The Fertility Bust IELTS Reading Answers, and assess your improvement for a high IELTS Reading band score!

14 Answer: F

Question type: Matching Heading

Answer location: Paragraph F, line 3 – line 5

Answer explanation: In the specified lines, it is said that “When Eurobarometer repeated its poll about ideal family size in 2001, support for the two-child model had fallen everywhere. …This changes expectations, to which people respond by having even fewer children.” This points to the fact that this paragraph explains that after the Eurobarometer supported the two-child model, there was a further fall in the number as people decided to have fewer kids. Hence, the answer is F.

15 Answer: E

Question type: Matching Heading

Answer location: Paragraph E, line 3

Answer explanation: In the mentioned line , it is said that “If everyone does the same, one child becomes the norm: a one-child policy by example rather than coercion, as it were.” This points to the fact that this paragraph discusses that the one-child policy became a trend as women postponed the birth of their first child. Hence, the answer is E.

16 Answer: B

Question type: Matching Heading

Answer location: Paragraph B, line 1 – line 4

Answer explanation: In the second paragraph, the author discusses why Germany is different from the rest of European countries as it is evident in the following lines – “Germany is something of an oddity in this. In most countries with low fertility, young women have their first child late, and stop at one. In Germany, women with children often have two or three, but many have none at all. Germany is also odd in experiencing low fertility for such a long time.”. Hence, the answer is B.

17 Answer: C

Question type: Matching Heading

Answer location: Paragraph C, line 1- line 2

Answer explanation: In the introductory lines of Paragraph C, it is stated “The list of explanations for why German fertility has not rebounded is long. Michael Teitelbaum, a demographer at the Sloan Foundation in New York ticks them off: poor childcare; unusually extended higher education; inflexible labour laws; high youth unemployment; and non-economic or cultural factors.”. It can be concluded that in this paragraph, the writer explains the various reasons why Germany’s fertility has not rebounded. Hence, the answer is C.

18 Answer: A

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph A, line 6

Answer explanation: In the given lines, it is said that “Germans have been agonising about recent European Union estimates suggesting that 30% of German women are, and will remain, childless.”. It refers to the fact that Germany has the highest percentage of childless women which is 30% of the German women. Hence, the answer is A (Germany has the highest percentage of childless women).

19 Answer: C

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph C, line 1 & line 5

Answer explanation: The first mentioned line informs that “The list of explanations for why German fertility has not rebounded is long. Michael Teitelbaum, a demographer at the Sloan Foundation in New York ticks them off: poor childcare; unusually extended higher education; inflexible labour laws; high youth unemployment; and non-economic or cultural factors…. With the exception of this cultural factor, none of these features is peculiar to Germany.”. As it is clear that among all the factors mentioned by Michael Teitelbaum, only the cultural factor is unique to Germany, the answer is C (Most of the reasons given by Michael Teitelbaum are not unique to Germany.).

20 Answer: D

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph D, line 3 – line 4

Answer explanation: The specified lines state that “In eastern Europe, it was associated with the collapse in living standards and the ending of pro-birth policies. In both regions, as such temporary factors fade, fertility rates might, in principle, be expected to rise.”. From this reference, it can be said that the governments in eastern Europe encouraged people to have children by putting an end to the pro-birth policies encouraged by the Church. Hence, the answer is D (Governments in eastern Europe encouraged people to have children.).

21 Answer: G

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph D, line 8-line 9 & Paragraph F, line 3 & line 7

Answer explanation: The quoted lines of Paragraph D states that “In 1979, Eurobarometer asked Europeans how many children they would like.  Almost everywhere, the answer was two: the traditional two-child ideal persisted…”. Again, in Paragraph F, it is indicated that “When Eurobarometer repeated its poll about ideal family size in 2001, support for the two-child model had fallen everywhere…people respond by having even fewer children.”. It is clear that from the first statement that the Eurobarometer poll in 1979 states that people wanted at least two children. But in 2001, people decided to have fewer children due to various social, economic, and cultural factors. Hence, the answer is G ( In 2001, people wanted fewer children than in 1979, according to Eurobarometer research.).

22 Answer: H

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph F, line 8

Answer explanation: The mentioned line of Paragraph F says that “That does not necessarily mean that birth rates will fall even more: there may yet be some natural floor, but it could mean that recovery from very low fertility rates proves to be slow or even non-existent.”. It is clear that there may be a decline in the birth rate and the reasons might be natural. Hence, the answer is H (Here may be a natural level at which birth rates stop declining.).

23 Answer: A,B

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph A, line 2 & line 4

Answer explanation: The first mentioned line of Paragraph A says that “Europeans no longer need large families to gather the harvest or to look after parents.”. Moreover, in the fourth line of the same paragraph it is given that “Much of Europe is too crowded as it is”. From these two sets of statements, the probable reasons that ordinary Europeans do not think it is necessary to have as many children are less labour needed to farmland and the feeling that Europe is too crowded. Since the third factor is not menitoned, the answer is A and B.

24 Answer: A.C

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph C, line 2

Answer explanation: The given line in Paragraph C says that “Michael Teitelbaum, a demographer at the Sloan Foundation in New York ticks them off: poor childcare; .. high youth unemployment; and non-economic or cultural factors.” In light of the fact that Michael Teitelbaum mentions poor child care facilities and high unemployment amongst young adults as the reasons for German fertility have not rebounded and excluded the second option, the answer is A & C.

25 Answer: A,B

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph D, line 1 – line 3

Answer explanation: The suggested lines of Paragraph D say that “The reason for hoping otherwise is that the initial decline in southern and eastern Europe was drastic, and may be reversible. In the Mediterranean, demographic decline was associated with freeing young women from the constraints of traditional Catholicism, which encouraged large families. In eastern Europe, it was associated with the collapse in living standards and the ending of pro-birth policies.”. From this reference, we can conclude that initial declines in southern and eastern Europe were because of the reduced influence of the Catholic church (freeing young women from the constraints of traditional Catholicism) and governments encouraging smaller families (collapse in living standards). As the third option
(governments encouraged smaller families) contradicts the information given in the passage, the answer is A & B.

26 Answer: A

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph E, line 1

Answer explanation: In Paragraph E, it is noted that “If women postpone their first child past their mid-30s, it may be too late to have a second even if they want one (the average age of first births in most of Europe is now 30).”. Based on this reference, we can conclude that people may have fewer children than they want because women are postponing the age of having the first child. Hence, the answer is A (women are having children at a later age).

Tips to Ace Different Types of Questions in the Fertility Bust IELTS Reading Passage

Let us check out some quick IELTS Exam Preparation Tips for Band Score of 8+ to answer the types of questions in the Reading Answers.

Matching Headings

Reading Matching Headings requires you to match each paragraph or section of the passage with the most suitable heading. Here are some tips: 

• Read the Headings First – Familiarize yourself with all options before scanning the passage.
• Skim Paragraphs for Main Ideas – Focus on the topic sentence or first few lines to capture the paragraph’s theme.
• Look for Keywords and Synonyms – The passage often uses different wording than the headings.
• Eliminate Irrelevant Headings – Cross off headings that clearly don’t match to narrow choices.
• Don’t Overthink Small Details – Headings summarize the overall idea, not minor details.

Multiple Choice Questions 

Reading Multiple Choice Questions requires you to select the correct answer out of the three options. Here are some tips to ace MCQs in the IELTS Reading: 

• Read the question carefully – Highlight keywords that indicate what the question is asking.
• Scan the passage strategically – Don’t read everything; locate the section related to the question.
• Look for synonyms and paraphrases – The answer may not be word-for-word in the text.
• Pay attention to qualifiers – Words like always, sometimes, never can change the meaning.
• Use process of elimination – Rule out clearly wrong options to increase your chances if you need to guess.

Practising passages like “The Fertility Bust” helps you build essential reading strategies such as skimming, scanning, and identifying key ideas, all crucial for achieving a high band score in the IELTS Reading test. Keep practising with more IELTS Reading Recent Actual Tests  and answers on IELTSMaterial.com to improve your speed, accuracy, and overall performance.

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