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CLOZE READING TEST
This is a test of how well you can read. The test is completed by supplying missing words in
sentences and then coding those words on your answer sheet. Every place you see a dashed
blank line, you have to supply the correct word. Notice that there are different numbers of
dashes in each blank space. The dashes tell you how many letters make up the word that has
been deleted. For a word to be scored as being correct it must make sense in the passage and it
must have the same number of letters as there are dashes. All words that meet these two
conditions will be scored as being correct. For example, a sentence in the test might read…
"The driver was injured when his 1) _ _ _ crashed into the tree." You would complete the
sentence by printing "CAR" in the blank space provided: "The driver was injured when his
1) C A R crashed into the tree." The word B U S could have been used, as it both makes sense in
the blank space, and has the proper number of letters. The words truck, auto and vehicle are
incorrect, because, even though they make sense in the blank, they have the wrong number of
letters. There were three dashes in the blank space. Therefore, only words with three letters
can be used. Also, only one word has been deleted in each blank space, so make sure that you
put only one word in each blank space with a dashed line.
Once you have completed the passage, you then code your answers onto Page 2, side 2 of the
answer sheet. On Page 2, you will find the alphabet printed many times. Each numbered
column represents one item. To code a word on the answer sheet, write the FIRST LETTER of
the word that you wrote in the blank, in the box directly under the appropriate item number.
Then, blacken the circle in the column of letters that is the same as the letter you wrote in the
box. ONLY THE RESPONSES CODED ON YOUR ANSWER SHEET WILL BE SCORED, SO MAKE
SURE YOU CODE YOUR ANSWERS CORRECTLY. As you are coding your answer sheet, check to
ensure that:
• the item number on the answer sheet, where you are coding your responses,
corresponds with the item number in the passage.
• you have written the correct letter in the box.
• you have blackened the correct circle below the box.
The following paragraph is an example of a CLOZE test.
The juvenile justice system encounters many types of people. Here is one example. Mary was 15
when 1) _ _ _ was first arrested. Mary was a popular girl. 2) _ _ the time of her first arrest, 3) _ _ _
was doing well in school. According to 4) _ _ _ teacher, she was a hard working 5) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and
made excellent grades. Mary also had 6) _ good attitude toward school. Mary lived with her
parents 7) _ _ a middle class neighborhood.