IELTS Reading · Ch 03

Yes / No / Not Given

Opinion language · "the writer believes" framing

Topic & Why It Matters

Yes / No / Not Given questions ask whether statements agree with the writer's views or claims. They often appear in argumentative or discussion passages where the author evaluates research, policies, assumptions, or competing explanations.

Learners lose marks when they search only for factual keywords and ignore stance. The correct answer may depend on a small judgment word such as misleading, limited, or more convincing. Your task is not to decide whether the statement is reasonable; your task is to decide whether the writer would agree with it.

Knowledge Points

What the question type tests
Yes / No / Not Given (YNNG) tests whether a statement agrees with the writer's views, claims, or argument. YES means the writer would agree with the statement. NO means the writer would disagree. NOT GIVEN means the passage does not reveal the writer's position on that exact point.
YNNG is about opinion, not raw fact
True / False / Not Given checks factual information. Yes / No / Not Given checks the writer's viewpoint. The evidence may appear in evaluative verbs, modal language, adjectives, or the overall argumentative direction of a paragraph.
NO requires a clear clash with the writer
Choose NO only when the writer's view is incompatible with the statement. If the statement discusses the same topic but adds an opinion the writer never expresses, the answer is NOT GIVEN.
Opinion can be indirect
The writer may not say 'I believe'. IELTS passages often signal opinion through phrases such as 'it is misleading to', 'there is little evidence that', 'a more convincing explanation is', or 'this assumption is questionable'.
Scope and degree still matter
A statement can be wrong because it exaggerates the writer's view. If the writer says a policy is 'useful in limited cases', a statement claiming it is 'the best solution' is too strong and should be marked NO.
Questions usually follow passage order
YNNG items normally follow the order of ideas in the passage. After finding the evidence for one item, continue scanning from there unless the next statement contains a clear reference to an earlier idea.

Step-by-Step Strategy

1
Identify the opinion claim in the statement
Do not underline only nouns. Mark the judgment: effective, harmful, unnecessary, mainly responsible, more important, should, unlikely, or misleading. That is the part you must test against the writer's view.
2
Scan for the topic window
Use names, technical terms, dates, or repeated nouns to locate the relevant paragraph. Expect the writer to use paraphrase rather than the same wording.
3
Read for stance language
In the answer window, look for evaluation: cautious verbs, contrast markers, approving or disapproving adjectives, and sentences that qualify an earlier claim.
4
Apply the viewpoint test
Would the writer agree with the statement? Choose YES. Would the writer reject it? Choose NO. Is the writer's opinion on one required part missing? Choose NOT GIVEN.
5
Check strength and scope
Compare cautious wording with strong wording. 'May help in some cases' does not equal 'will solve the problem', and 'one factor' does not equal 'the main factor'.
6
Avoid importing your own opinion
YNNG is not asking whether you agree with the statement. Your answer must be based on the writer's argument, even if you personally think the statement is reasonable.

Common Pitfalls

MistakeCorrective Rule
Treating YNNG exactly like TFNGAsk what the writer thinks, not merely what happened. Factual details help only if they reveal the writer's view.
Choosing NO when the writer is silentNO needs disagreement. If the writer never takes a position on the exact judgment in the statement, choose NOT GIVEN.
Missing cautious opinion languageWords such as may, partly, limited, questionable, and overstate control the writer's stance. Do not flatten them into certainty.
Ignoring contrast markersHowever, although, yet, and instead often introduce the writer's real view after presenting another person's view.
Confusing another source's view with the writer's viewIf a paragraph reports what critics, supporters, or companies claim, check whether the writer endorses, questions, or merely reports that view.

Vocabulary & Signpost Bank

Expression / Stance LanguageWhat It Means for Your Strategy
argues / claims / maintainsMay report a person's view. Check whether it is the writer's view or someone else's.
it is misleading to / it would be wrong toStrong writer disagreement; often supports a NO answer.
little evidence / insufficient evidenceThe writer rejects or doubts a claim, especially if the statement presents it as proven.
may / might / can / in some casesLimited support. Be careful with statements that turn possibility into certainty.
overstate / exaggerate / too simplisticThe writer thinks a claim is stronger than the evidence allows.
more convincing / more reliable / preferableComparative opinion. Check exactly what is being compared.
not necessarily / does not automaticallyThe writer resists a direct cause-effect or guarantee claim.
however / yet / neverthelessThe writer may shift from reporting a common view to giving a correction.

Practice Passage & Questions

Read the passage, then answer the eight Yes / No / Not Given questions. Choose YES if the statement agrees with the writer's views, NO if it contradicts the writer's views, or NOT GIVEN if the writer's view is not stated.

Recorded Lectures and the Value of Attendance~407 words
A

Many universities now record lectures and make them available online within hours of delivery. Supporters describe recorded lectures as a simple way to widen access: students can review difficult explanations, pause complex diagrams, or catch up after illness. For students who commute long distances or balance study with employment, this flexibility is not a minor convenience but a practical condition for staying enrolled.

B

It would be misleading, however, to treat lecture recording as a complete substitute for attendance. A live lecture is not only a stream of information. It also offers a rhythm of attention, opportunities for immediate clarification, and a shared intellectual atmosphere that can encourage students to persist with challenging material. Recordings preserve the lecturer's words, but they cannot reproduce every feature of the learning event.

C

Some lecturers worry that recordings inevitably reduce attendance. This fear is understandable, but the available evidence is less decisive than the anxiety suggests. In several institutions, attendance fell only in courses where lectures already depended heavily on passive delivery. Where teachers used discussion, problem solving, or brief in-class tasks, recordings tended to complement rather than replace attendance. The real issue, then, is not the existence of recordings but the quality of the face-to-face session.

D

Universities should therefore avoid blanket policies. Making every session compulsory without considering student circumstances ignores the realities of modern higher education. Yet giving recordings priority over classroom design would be equally short-sighted. A better approach is to publish recordings as a support tool while designing live sessions that give students a reason to be present. Technology is most valuable when it strengthens teaching choices, not when it excuses weak ones.

E

The debate over recorded lectures is often framed as a choice between tradition and innovation, but that framing is too narrow. The strongest argument for recording is not that it makes attendance unnecessary; it is that it gives students a second route into demanding material. Used thoughtfully, recordings can make university study more resilient without reducing the importance of the classroom.

Questions 1–8. Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer?

1.The writer believes recorded lectures can be especially important for students with work or travel constraints.
2.The writer thinks recorded lectures can fully replace the experience of attending a live lecture.
3.The writer believes all students learn more effectively from recorded lectures than from printed notes.
4.The writer considers lecturers' concerns about attendance completely irrational.
5.The writer believes attendance problems are connected more to teaching design than to recordings themselves.
6.The writer supports a single university rule that makes recorded lectures compulsory in every course.
7.The writer thinks universities should stop investing in classroom teaching once recordings are available.
8.The writer believes the main advantage of recordings is that they provide another way for students to understand difficult content.

Self-Check

Answer these from memory. If you cannot answer all three, re-read the relevant section.

  1. What is the key difference between True / False / Not Given and Yes / No / Not Given?
  2. When should you choose NO rather than NOT GIVEN in YNNG questions?
  3. Which kinds of words usually reveal the writer's opinion in an academic passage?
Answers:
  1. (1) TFNG checks whether statements match factual information. YNNG checks whether statements match the writer's views, claims, or argument.
  2. (2) Choose NO only when the writer's view clearly contradicts the statement. If the writer does not express a position on one required part of the statement, choose NOT GIVEN.
  3. (3) Look for evaluative verbs and adjectives, modal verbs, hedging, contrast markers, and phrases such as misleading, little evidence, more convincing, questionable, and too simplistic.