The Growth of Intelligence - IELTS Reading Answers

‘The Growth of Intelligence’ is an IELTS Academic Reading passage is a good resource for anyone who is preparing for the IELTS Reading test. This passage will help you understand what kind of reading passages you will encounter and the questions you will be asked to solve. The key to achieving the desired band score in this section is to learn how to scan the given text, use keyword techniques, and locate the answer within the limited time provided.

In ‘The Growth of Intelligence’, there are various question types, each of these question types is asked in the reading exam. So, the passage given in this practice test will help you enhance your reading and understanding capabilities. If you want to familiarize yourself with all the question types, don’t hesitate to take an IELTS reading practice test. Here are the types of questions asked in the passage :

• IELTS Reading Multiple-Choice Question (Q. 1-4)
• IELTS Reading Summary Completion (Q. 5-10)
• IELTS Reading Yes/No/Not Given (Q. 11-14)

Reading Passage

The Growth of Intelligence

No one doubts that intelligence develops as children grow older. Yet the concept of intelligence has proved both quite difficult to define in unambiguous terms and unexpectedly controversial in some respects. Although at one level, there seem to be almost as many definitions of intelligence as people who have tried to define it, there is broad agreement on two key features. That is, intelligence involves the capacity not only to learn from experience but also to adapt to one’s environment. However, we cannot leave the concept there. Before turning to what is known about the development of intelligence, it is necessary to consider whether we are considering the growth of one or many skills. That question has been tackled in rather different ways by psychometricians and by developmentalists.

The former group has examined the issue by determining how children’s abilities on a wide range of tasks intercorrelate, or go together. Statistical techniques have been used to find out whether the patterns are best explained by one broad underlying capacity, general intelligence, or by a set of multiple, relatively separate, special skills in domains such as verbal and visuospatial ability. While it cannot be claimed that everyone agrees on what the results mean, most people now accept that for practical purposes it is reasonable to suppose that both are involved. In brief, the evidence in favour of some kind of general intellectual capacity is that people who are superior (or inferior) on one type of task tend also to be superior (or inferior) on others. Moreover, general measures of intelligence tend to have considerable powers to predict a person’s performance on a wide range of tasks requiring special skills. Nevertheless, it is plain that it is not at all uncommon for individuals to be very good at some sorts of task and yet quite poor at some others.

Furthermore the influences that affect verbal skills are not quite the same as those that affect other skills. This approach to investigating intelligence is based on the nature of the task involved, but studies of age-related changes show that this is not the only, or necessarily the most important, approach. For instance, some decades ago, Horn and Cattell argued for a differentiation between what they termed ‘fluid’ and ‘crystallised’ intelligence. Fluid abilities are best assessed by tests that require mental manipulation of abstract symbols. Crystallised abilities, by contrast, reflect knowledge of the environment in which we live and past experience of similar tasks; they may be assessed by tests of comprehension and information.

It seems that fluid abilities peak in early adult life, whereas crystallised abilities increase up to advanced old age. Developmental studies also show that the interconnections between different skills vary with age. Thus in the first year of life an interest in perceptual patterns is a major contributor to cognitive abilities, whereas verbal abilities are more important later on. These findings seemed to suggest a substantial lack of continuity between infancy and middle childhood. However, it is important to realise that the apparent discontinuity will vary according to which of the cognitive skills were assessed in infancy. It has been found that tests of coping with novelty do predict later intelligence. These findings reinforce the view that young children’s intellectual performance needs to be assessed from their interest in and curiosity about the environment, and the extent to which this is applied to new situations, as well as by standardised intelligence testing.

These psychometric approaches have focused on children’s increase in cognitive skills as they grow older. Piaget brought about a revolution in the approach to cognitive development through his arguments (backed up by observations) that the focus should be on the thinking processes involved rather than on levels of cognitive achievement. These ideas of Piaget gave rise to an immense body of research and it would be true to say that subsequent thinking has been heavily dependent on his genius in opening up new ways of thinking about cognitive development. Nevertheless, most of his concepts have had to be so radically revised, or rejected, that his theory no longer provides an appropriate basis for thinking about cognitive development. To appreciate why that is so, we need to focus on some rather different elements of Piaget’s theorising.

The first element, which has stood the test of time, is his view that the child is an active agent of learning and of the importance of this activity in cognitive development. Numerous studies have shown how infants actively scan their environment; how they prefer patterned to non-pattemed objects, how they choose novel over familiar stimuli, and how they explore their environment as if to see how it works. Children’s questions and comments vividly illustrate the ways in which they are constantly constructing schemes of what they know and trying out their ideas of how to fit new knowledge into those schemes or deciding that the schemes need modification. Moreover, a variety of studies have shown that active experiences have a greater effect on learning than comparable passive experiences. However, a second element concerns the notion that development proceeds through a series of separate stages that have to be gone through step-by-step, in a set order, each of which is characterised by a particular cognitive structure. That has turned out to be a rather misleading way of thinking about cognitive development, although it is not wholly wrong.

Questions 1-4

1 Most researchers accept that one feature of intelligence is the ability to

A change our behaviour according to our situation.

B reacts to others’ behaviour patterns.

C experiment with environmental features.

D cope with unexpected setbacks.

2 What have psychometricians used statistics for?

A to find out if cooperative tasks are a useful tool in measuring certain skills.

B to explore whether several abilities are involved in the development of intelligence.

C to demonstrate that mathematical models can predict test results for different skills.

D to discover whether common sense is fundamental to developing children’s abilities.

3 Why are Horn and Cattell mentioned?

A They disagreed about the interpretation of different intelligence tests.

B Their research concerned both linguistic and mathematical abilities.

C They were the first to prove that intelligence can be measured by testing a range of special skills.

D Their work was an example of research into how people’s cognitive skills vary with age.

4 What was innovative about Piaget’s research?

A He refused to accept that children developed according to a set pattern.

B He emphasised the way children thought more than how well they did in tests.

C He used visually appealing materials instead of traditional intelligence tests.

D He studied children of all ages and levels of intelligence.

Questions 5-10

5 A surprising number of academics have come to the same conclusion about what the term intelligence means.

6 A general test of intelligence is unlikely to indicate the level of performance in every type of task.

7 The elderly perform less well on comprehension tests than young adults.

8 We must take into account which skills are tested when comparing intelligence at different ages.

9 Piaget’s work influenced theoretical studies more than practical research.

10 Piaget’s emphasis on active learning has been discredited by later researchers.

Questions 11-14

A adult

B practical

C verbal

D spatial

E inquisitive

F uncertain

G academic

H plentiful

I unfamiliar

Researchers investigating the development of intelligence have shown that 11…………… skills become more significant with age. One good predictor of 12……………………. intelligence is the degree to which small children are 13………………………… about their surroundings and how much interest they show in finding themselves in a 14…………………………………..setting.

Answer For The Growth of Intelligence IELTS Reading Answers with Location and Explanations

Take a look at the detailed answers with location and explanation above to enhance your reading skills for a high IELTS Reading band score.

1 Answer: A

Question type: Multiple choice question

Answer location: Paragraph 1, line 2 & 3

Answer explanations: The answer for this question can be located in the second line of the first paragraph, where it is mentioned that there are many definitions of intelligence, however, two primary features explain intelligence in a broad manner. That is, intelligence involves the capacity not only to learn from experience but also to adapt to one’s environment. Thus, these lines depict that intelligence will lead an individual to learn from experience and adapt to the environment. As the option A refers to what is mentioned in the passage, the answer is A.

2 Answer: B

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer Location: Paragraph 2, Line 2

Answer Explanations: The answer can be located in paragraph 2, where it is mentioned, “The former group examined the issue by determining how children’s abilities on a wide range of tasks intercorrelated or go together. Statistical techniques which have been used to find whether patterns are best explained by one broad underlying capacity’, general intelligence, or by a set of multiple, relatively separate, special skills in domains such as verbal and visuospatial ability’”. From the quoted lines, we understand that the former group (psychometricians) used statistical methods to find if patterns were best explained by general intelligence [one ability] or separate skills in domains like verbal and visuospatial ability. Hence the right answer is B, because option B traces the information mentioned in the 2nd paragraph.

3 Answer: D

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph 3

Answer explanation: The third paragraph of the passage talks about Horn and Cattel, who argued for a differentiation between what they termed ‘fluid’ and ‘crystallized’ intelligence. In the passage, it is mentioned that fluid abilities peak in early adult life whereas crystallized abilities rise up during advanced old age. These lines demonstrate that Horn and Cattel’s work was an instance of research into how people’s cognitive abilities differ with age. Here, Cognitive abilities refer to fluid and crystallized abilities. Therefore, the answer is D. Because all the other options, A, B, and C are irrelevant to what is mentioned about Horn and Cattel in the passage.

4 Answer: B

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph 5, line 2

Answer explanation: If you go through the fifth paragraph, you can get an insight about the revolution brought by Piaget in the approach to cognitive development through his arguments (backed up by observations) that the focus should be on the thinking processes involved rather than on levels of cognitive achievement. From these lines we understand that Piaget’s revolution focused mainly on what children thought than their performances and achievements. Here, cognitive achievement refers to tests and as the B option reflects Piaget’s research which matches with the information in the passage, the right answer is B.

5 Answer: No

Question type: Yes/No/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph 1, line 2 & 3

Answer explanation: As mentioned in the first paragraph, “Although, at one level, there seem to be almost as many definitions of intelligence as people who have tried to define it, there is broad agreement on two key features. That is, intelligence involves the capacity not only to learn from experience but also to adapt to one’s environment”.
We can understand from these lines that many people have tried to provide definitions of intelligence at one level. However, there are two features, i.e, intelligence has the capability to learn from experience and to adapt to one’s environment. Here, “people” refers to “academics”, and “a surprising number” refers to “many”. So, even after many definitions for intelligence, there’s only agreement in broader terms which means tha a big group of academicians did not hold the same opinion. Thus, the statement doesn’t agree with the information in the passage. So, the answer is No.

6 Answer: No

Question type: Yes/No/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph 2, line 5

Answer explanation: In the fifth line of the second paragraph, it is mentioned that in brief, the evidence in favour of some kind of general intellectual capacity is that people who are superior (or inferior) on one type of task tend also to be superior (or inferior) on others. Moreover, general measures of intelligence tend to have considerable powers to predict a person’s performance on a wide range of tasks requiring special skills. From these lines, we understand that people who are good at one type of task may be good in other types of tasks also. Also, the general measures of intelligence have the ability to show how an individual will perform in different types of tasks considering their special skills. Thus, the given statement contradicts the author’s view in the passage. So, the answer is No.

7 Answer: No

Question type: Yes/No/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph 3, line 2

Answer explanation: The third paragraph differentiates fluid and crystallized abilities, i.e, the fluid abilities are best assessed by tests that require mental manipulation of abstract symbols, while the crystallized abilities, reflect knowledge of the environment in which we live and past experience of similar tasks; they may be assessed by tests of comprehension and information. It scents that fluid abilities peak in early adult life, whereas crystallized abilities increase up to advanced old age. We understand from these lines that fluid abilities arise in early age and are assessed by tests requiring mental manipulation of abstract symbols, while the crystallized intelligence increases during advanced old age and they’re assessed with comprehension tests. Thus, the statement illustrates the opposite of what is mentioned in the passage. So, the answer is No.

8 Answer: Yes

Question type: Yes/No/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph 4, line 1-2

Answer explanation: In the fourth paragraph, “Developmental studies also show that the interconnections between different skills vary with age. Thus, in the first year of life an interest in perceptual patterns is a major contributor to cognitive abilities, whereas verbal abilities are more important later on. These findings seemed to suggest a substantial lack of continuity between infancy and middle childhood”. These above-mentioned quoted lines support what is mentioned by the author, i.e, the author has mentioned how skills will vary with age. A lack of continuity during childhood will reflect the difference in intelligence levels for similar tasks at different ages. The statement agrees with the passage, so, the answer is Yes.

9 Answer: Not Given

Question type: Yes/No/Not Given

Answer location: NA

Answer explanation: In the fifth paragraph, it is mentioned that Piaget’s idea gave rise to an immense body of research and it would be true to say that subsequent thinking has been heavily dependent on his genius in opening up new ways of thinking about cognitive development.
These lines suggest that Piaget’s idea illustrated an immense body of research and subsequent thinking, however it is not mentioned that either one of these things had a greater impact than the other. Thus, it is not given anywhere in the passage that Piaget’s contributions influenced theoretical studies more than practical research. So, the answer is Not Given.

10 Answer: No

Question type: Yes/No/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph 5, line 6

Answer explanation: In the fifth paragraph, it is mentioned that nevertheless, most of his concepts have had to be so radically revised, or rejected, that his theory’ no longer provides an appropriate basis for thinking about cognitive development. These quoted lines from the fifth paragraph clearly illustrate that many of Piaget’s findings were either revised or rejected because the theory didn’t provide an appropriate basis. Not all his work on active learning was discredited. Thus, the answer is No. Here, “work” means theories. Hence the answer is No.

11 Answer: C – verbal

Question type: Summary completion

Answer location: Paragraph 4

Answer explanation: We can find references in the fourth paragraph, which illustrates that developmental studies show that interconnection between different skills vary with age. Titus in the first year of life an interest in perceptual patterns is a major contributor to cognitive abilities whereas ‘verbal abilities are more important later on’. Thus, the sentence depicts that verbal skills become more significant with age. So, the answer is Verbal.

12 Answer: A – adult

Question type: Summary completion

Answer location: Paragraph 4, line 5

Answer explanation: In the fifth line of paragraph 4, ‘It has been found that tests of coping with novelty do predict later intelligence’. These quoted sentences show that tests of coping with the new things predict later intelligence. Here “later intelligence” refers to adult intelligence and “novelty” means new things.

13 Answer: E – inquisitive

Question type: Summary completion

Answer location: Paragraph 4, line 5-6

Answer explanation: In the fifth line of the fourth paragraph, it is quoted that voting children’s intellectual performance needs to be assessed from their interest in and curiosity about the environment and the extent to which this is applied to new situations.
We understand from these lines that the intellectual performance of children are assessed only from their interest in and curiosity about the environment. That is, the children are always curious about their environment. Here, inquisitive refers to curiosity.

14 Answer: I – unfamiliar

Question type: Summary completion

Answer location: Paragraph 4

Answer explanation: the fourth paragraph in the passage states that children’s intellectual performance needs to be assessed from their interest in and curiosity about the environment and the extent to which this is applied to new situations. We understand from these lines that children are curious about their environment and they show interest when in a different/new environment. Here, different means unfamiliar and environment refers to situations.

Tips for Answering the Question Types in The Growth of Intelligence Reading Answers

Now let’s get started with the IELTS exam preparation tips for each question type. It’ll help you understand how to approach the problem of each question type.

Multiple-Choice Questions

When we’re given a handful of options and each looks similar to each other then it might get tricky for one to answer it correctly. And, for that reason, we’ve outlined tips that’ll help you out for the same.

• Read the question first: Before you start reading the passage, quickly read the multiple-choice question. This will give you a specific focus as you read and help you identify relevant information more efficiently.

• Skim the passage: Begin by skimming the passage to get a general idea of the content. Pay attention to headings, subheadings, and any formatting features that might signal the location of the answer.

• Eliminate wrong answers: Use the process of elimination to eliminate answer choices that are clearly incorrect. This can often be done by matching keywords from the question to the passage.

• Pay attention to synonyms and paraphrasing: The answer choices may not use the exact same words as the passage but rather synonyms or paraphrases. Be on the lookout for these and be prepared to recognize them.

• Don’t spend too much time on one question: If you’re struggling with a multiple-choice question, move on and come back to it later. It’s important to manage your time effectively to answer all questions within the allotted time.

Summary Completion

Fill in the sentences with keywords hidden in the reading passages with the following tips as they’ll come in handy for your preparation for IELTS Reading.

• Read the sentence carefully: Begin by reading the sentence with the gap or blank. Try to understand the context and the type of word that should fit the gap (e.g., noun, verb, adjective).

• Look for clues: Scan the surrounding sentences for clues that can help you determine the missing word. Sometimes, the sentence structure or the words nearby can provide hints.

• Identify grammatical clues: Pay attention to the grammar of the sentence. If the sentence requires a verb, make sure you choose a verb form that fits the context. The same goes for nouns, adjectives, and other parts of speech.

• Use your vocabulary: Draw on your vocabulary to come up with a suitable word for the gap. Ensure that the word you choose makes sense in the context of the sentence.

• Check for coherence: After you’ve filled in the gap, read the entire sentence to ensure that it flows naturally and makes sense. The completed sentence should be grammatically correct and logically coherent.

Yes/No/Not Given

Check whether the given sentences are real or not in nature. Do a thorough reading to find out the necessary information. Below mentioned are some important pointers that’ll help you:

• Read the instructions carefully: Understand the difference between “Yes,” “No,” and “Not Given.” “Yes” means the information is directly stated in the passage, “No” means it contradicts the information in the passage, and “Not Given” means the information isn’t mentioned in the passage.

• Refer to the passage: For each statement, go back to the passage and carefully locate the relevant information. Pay close attention to the wording of the statement and compare it to the information in the passage.

• Beware of paraphrasing: Sometimes, the statement is paraphrased in the passage, so be vigilant about synonyms and rephrase sentences.

• Focus on keywords: Identify the keywords in the statement using IELTS Reading keyword techniques and look for those exact words or synonyms in the passage.

• Watch out for distractors: The passage may contain information that seems related to the statement but isn’t directly addressing it. Don’t be tricked by these distractors; the answer should directly match the statement.

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