Paragraph Comprehension Test

You should keep in mind that the Reading Comprehension questions on the ASVAB are always of four types: Main Idea Questions, Fact Questions, Inference Questions, Word Knowledge, or Vocabulary Questions. ASVAB questions asking you to identify facts are a regular part of the battery of tests, and they make up a good part of your AFQT score. It can't be emphasized enough that a good AFQT score gives you the highest level of choice when it comes to choosing the military service you will enter and the type of job you can get when you're enlisted.

While the concept of "fact" seems easy enough to grasp at first, it is often difficult to tell the difference between an opinion statement and a factual statement. Consider the following short paragraph:

Many economists are saying that the housing market is in a slump. One of the factors affecting the buying and selling of houses is the interest rate a buyer must pay to the banks that loan them money to purchase a house. The Wall Street Journal obtained data from all the nation's banks and found that the average interest rate on a 30 year mortgage is 5.5 percent. That's just too high, say many economists.

An example of a "fact question" might be something like the following:

"Is it a fact that interest rates are too high?"

No, it is not a fact. It is the opinion of economists, according to the last sentence in the passage. Opinions are not facts because the truth of facts is agreed upon by everyone. Bankers would certainly never argue that interest rates were not too high. Bankers would tend to argue that 5.5 percent interest rates were necessary.

Another question may ask you to decide whether or not the second to last sentence is a fact. Read the sentence. It states that a major newspaper got information from banks and found them to average 5.5 percent on a 30-year mortgage.

Yes, that is a fact, and the very same information is reported in responsible financial newspapers and by many financial publications. No one disputes or argues against that statement as a fact because a survey of posted interest rates at all the nation's banks is the source of that statement. When you're reading the paragraphs, look for supporting statements and for sourcing statements.

Paragraph Comprehension Skills

Important Facts