Detailed Reading Questions and Tables of Contents for CBEST Exam Study Guide

Most people find both detail questions and questions on tables of contents fairly easy to answer, because the answers are right there in the passage or table of contents. You have probably answered detail questions often in your education. In every subject, most of the questions at the end of the chapters in your textbook have been detail questions—and you used the table of contents to find the chapter you wanted quickly and easily. These questions mean (relatively) easy points for you. All you need are some strategies that can help enhance your speed and accuracy.

Detail questions ask about one specific fact in the passage. They are signaled by question words such as what, when, or where. You'll often find the phrase "according to the passage" in a detail question

How to Find Detail Answers in the Passage

Detail answers are usually in the body of the paragraphs. They are usually not in the main idea sentences.

Sample Passage and Questions

Factors that can be used to calculate breast cancer risk include information about a woman's age, ethnicity, family history, number of pregnancies, age at the time of the first live birth, and others, which have been recognized more recently, such as the use hormonal replacement therapy. Some of the tools used for risk evaluation do not guarantee a 100% accurate analysis of a female's specific situation, because they exclude, for instance, clues that could clearly lead the diagnostician to suspect a genetic predisposition to breast cancer.

In general, women can be expected to have a cumulative lifetime risk of developing breast cancer of 1 in 7 or 8, which is modified by one or several of the specific risk factors previously mentioned. Because the risk is measured in terms of a "cumulative lifetime," the possibility of developing breast cancer for a 30-year-old is significantly lower than the same patient's risk when she reaches age 90. The term cumulative lifetime risk, which represents the possible occurrence, or development of the problem over a lifetime, must not be misinterpreted to express the prevalence of the disease. Prevalence simply refers to the existing cases of the problem in a group of women at a given moment in life.

It is important to understand that risk evaluation is but one piece of the puzzle, and breast cancer prevention should involve more than merely evaluating a woman's risk profile. Appropriate examinations, correctly utilized tests and consistent follow-ups are necessary components of a well-planned prevention initiative.

1. Which of the following risk factors is NOT mentioned in the paragraph?
   1. age
   2. age at the time of the first live birth
   3. age of a first-degree relative at the time of breast cancer diagnosis
   4. ethnicity
   5. family history

2. According to the passage, what does cumulative lifetime risk refer to?
   1. existing cases of the problem
   2. prevalence
   3. the possibility of developing the problem over a lifetime
   4. a genetic predisposition
   5. risk factor

3. With which of the following statements would the author of the passage most likely agree?
   1. The use of hormonal replacement therapy cannot be used as a breast cancer risk factor.
   2. Women of from ages 30 through 90 have the same chance of developing breast cancer.
   3. Prevalence and cumulative lifetime risk can be used interchangeably.
   4. Evaluating a woman's risk profile is not enough to prevent breast cancer.
   5. Risk evaluation is 100% accurate.

Four Success Steps for Table of Contents Questions

1. Read the questions and answers first. Then skim the passage marking all possible sections that might contain the information you are seeking.
2. Look at the answer choices and eliminate any that clearly don't make sense.
3. If you are left with two choices, choose the one that best fits the subject.
4. If you are asked for the organization of an outline, look through the answers. One has to describe the table. Choose the one that offers the best description.