CRITICAL READING

TEST PREPARATION KNOW

WHAT DOES ICFES EVALUATE IN CRITICAL READING?

FIRST MODULE: DISCONTINUOUS TEXTS.

WHAT IS A DISCONTINUOUS TEXT
CLASSES OF DISCONTINUOUS TEXTS.
-VIDEO
DISCONTINUOUS TEXT SIMULATIONS TYPE ICFES

DISCONTINUOUS TEXTS
Characteristics of discontinuous texts
Discontinuous texts have a series of characteristics that differentiate them from texts.
continuous

Brevity
Unlike continuous texts, which are extensive and whose information is structured in a way
uninterrupted, the discontinuous texts are rather brief, and aimed at explaining some aspect in
concrete of what is presented.

They are profoundly synthetic

This means that discontinuous texts provide a lot of information in a very small space, which is why
they use other elements like images, tabs, etc.

Non-sequential structure
This type of text does not follow a sequence in the content. When tables, maps, or
diagrams, the information is about specific points and strictly related to the content of
said graphics.

This information is organized, but not in a sequenced or progressive manner.

They require reading proficiency

Reading competence for discontinuous texts involves identification, interpretation, and reflection.
of the information. To understand a discontinuous text, it is first necessary to identify that it is about a
different format (a table, an infographic, a map, a timeline, etc.).
Then, according to its content (numbers, statistics, various data, etc.), we will be able to interpret and
analyze the information it offers us.

DISCONTINUOUS TEXTS CLASSIFICATIONS:

Informative materials: (infographics, diagrams, tables, advertising posters, among others) is characterized by
present a compendium of events that occur in a time and space. Its most prominent example
It is evident that the comic strip or comic narrates a story through illustrations complemented.
with texts displayed randomly.
According to David Kunzle -British art historian- these are the four conditions to define the
comic without considering the historical moment or country in which it is located:

You must present a separate sequence of images.

The image must be prominent and correspond to the accompanying text.
3. The place or context where the comic arises must be a means of active masses, namely, space in
that the reading of printed resources is pleasing.

It must contain a moral story or develop some topic of interest.

TEXT 1
Answer questions 1 to 5 based on the following discontinuous text.

According to the infographic, "middle-income countries only have half of the existing vehicles.
in the world and, despite that, they suffer 80% of traffic accident deaths." In this
statement, the conjunction 'despite' fulfills the function of
It is noteworthy that the traffic accident death rate in middle-income countries is
quite high given its particular conditions.
B. oppose the high number of vehicles in middle-income countries against the low percentage of
traffic accident deaths.
It clarifies that the high rate of deaths from traffic accidents in middle-income countries is
closely related to the number of cars.
It should be noted that the traffic accident death rate in middle-income countries can
be even higher than what the official figures say.
2. Consider the following description of the content of the infographic: 'The infographic displays data
about the frequency of traffic accidents in the world, and related examples. Also,
information about mortality by gender, by income, by number of vehicles, by type of vehicle and
by regional location." This description is unsatisfactory because
A. overlooks essential information contained in the infographic.
B. the order of its content does not correspond to that of the infographic.

C. mentions information that is not present in the infographic.

D. omits evidence that supports the information in the infographic.
3. According to the information presented about the percentage of deaths by type of vehicle, there
it can be stated that it is more likely that someone who has died in a traffic accident would have
state moving
A pie. B. en moto. C. en bicicleta. D. en otro tipo de vehículo.
4. From the information in the lower left box, where statistics about the amount are presented
relative to deaths from traffic accidents based on the region, one can infer
A. Which are the countries where motorized vehicles are used the least?
B. that in the Pacific and in Asia there are the same number of deaths from traffic accidents.
C. what is the risk of dying in a traffic accident according to the geographic area.
D. what are the geographical areas where an improvement of the roads is needed.
5. Based on the graphs about the relationship between the number of vehicles and the number of deaths in
traffic accidents can be inferred that, compared to the population of income countries
means, that of high-income countries
A. has more vehicles per person.
B. use the private vehicle less.
C. is more educated in road matters.
D. is more exposed to traffic fines.
6. Regarding the table that presents the information according to which 3 out of 4 of the deceased in
traffic accidents are male, it can be affirmed that the figures that accompany the
text
A. illustrate the information presented.
B. they deepen the information given.
C. provide additional information.
D. exemplify the described information.
7. Based on the information presented, it can be stated that the author of the infographic aims to
purpose
A. raising the viewer's awareness of the risks of dying in a traffic accident.
B. encourage the viewer to use alternative forms of mobility to the car.
C. to move the viewer by presenting data on the number of traffic accidents.
D. to raise the viewer's awareness about the need to drive sober and slowly.
8. According to the content of the information presented, which of the following contexts does it refer to?
Would the infographic be better suited?

A protest against the use of motorized vehicles.

B. An exhibition on public transport as an alternative for mobility.
C. A campaign designed to promote the acquisition of life insurance.
D. A study on murders by gender and socioeconomic status.

TEXT 2.
Answer questions 15 to 20 based on the following discontinuous text.
15. The creative process of the character in Quino's cartoon is similar to that of the writer.
what
A. escapes reality and idealizes a distant and remote past.
B. reflects the social contradictions of its own time.
C. uses his experiences as a source of inspiration.
D. experiment with new expressive forms through language.
16. When the cartoon character writes their text on the computer, they use a narrator.
A. protagonist, because it is the main character who tells the story from their point of view.
B. witness, because it is a character that plays a marginal role in the action being told.
C. omniscient, because it has the power to know everything and to penetrate into the consciousness of the
characters.
D. quasi-omniscient, because it is a narrator who does not enter the minds of the characters or provide
explanations.
It is possible to affirm that the intention of Quino, the author of the previous cartoon, was to present

A philosophical reflection on artistic creation.

B. An argumentative essay about the craft of writing.
C. a parody of the profession of criticism.
D. a questioning of the media.
18. Among the following definitions of literature, the one that comes closest to the conception of
the protagonist of the cartoon is:
A. Literature is the poetic recreation of reality through language.
B. Literature is the revelation of the collective unconscious through the individual man.
C. Literature is the expression of the heart through an emotional language.
D. Literature is a way to alert consciences through a committed language.
19. Of the following aesthetic trends, the one that most closely aligns with the position expressed by the
A journalist is one who raises
A. the ivory tower of the romantics: one must isolate oneself to create.
B. the commitment between art and revolution, characteristic of socialist realism.

C. the playful sense of surrealism: art is a form of fun.

D. the freedom of 'art for art's sake' that is beyond good and evil.
20. Of the following statements by famous writers, the one that comes closest to the possible
the writer of the comic's thought is:
I write because it is one of the rare things I know how to do.
Writing is a way of indirect approach to life.
I write so that my friends love me more.
D. "Writing, for me, is like breathing. I could not live without writing" (Pablo Neruda).

SECOND MODULE: CONTINUOUS TEXTS

WHAT ARE CONTINUOUS TEXTS

-VIDEO
SIMULACRA OF CONTINUOUS TEXTS.
 What is a continuous text? Main characteristics

According to its definition, it is the content that offers relevant information, which is transmitted through
of sentences and phrases. When the latter are combined, they form paragraphs or stanzas. The
The particularity of this writing is that the content is uninterrupted.

These same paragraphs can be part of larger structures, such as sections,

chapters and books. Within their classification we find descriptive, narrative, and expository.
hypertexts and others, as it is done for rhetorical purposes.

The main difference between continuous and discontinuous is the characteristics that represent them.
Therefore, we will mention them, later on their types, parts, and short examples.

Its main means of communication is textual language. However, it may be

accompanied by discontinuous material.
It has a general structure from which the writings originate, although it changes to some extent.
to the form of expression.
It is characterized by a main paragraph and the others being secondary.
Continuous literary writings or fiction have an aesthetic function, where they must take care of
language and the form of expression as well as the content.
Non-literary continuums serve an informative function. The language and style adapt to the type.
of transmitted information.
Verses and stanzas form larger structures of various lengths, such as lyric poems,
epics, sonnets, epigrams, among others.
Prose and poems can be narrative, descriptive, argumentative, and explanatory. But, they
Take great care with the rhythm and style of expression.

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS ACCORDING TO THE FOLLOWING TEXT THE BUS WINDOW Begins to
to darken, the display cases of Carrera Trece are already lit, the crowd is gathered on the platforms; I am on a bus that
struggling to make my way through the traffic congestion. Between the city and me is the glass of the window that reflects my
image, lost in the mass of passengers moving to the spasmodic rhythm of traffic. Now we go for a block
Without commerce, the twilight of the facades allows the small world inside to reflect in all its weariness.
splendor: there is no longer an urban landscape superimposed on the reflection. It is just us, the indifferent community that
share the journey. The bus accelerates its pace and the city disappears. Baudrillard says that a simulacrum is the substitution
of the real through the signs of the real. There is no real, just the window that reflects us. We, the passengers,
we supplant reality, we are the landscape. Are we the signs of the real? A traffic light stops us at a corner. Another
the bus slowly approaches until it is parallel to ours; before me, other windows pass with other passengers from another
community equally apathetic. Two ladies pass by in the front seat. They must be friends -I think-, perhaps colleagues of
work. But they don't talk to each other. People keep passing behind the other windows, mixing their real image with
our reflection. I think I see myself sitting in the fourth window of the bus waiting for the green light next to us. It's my
reflection, I sense; but it is not a reflection: it is me sitting on the other bus. With fear and wonder, he and I cross a
knowing glance, I think we smiled at each other beyond the fatigue of the workday. The two vehicles start up in the middle
from a cloud of black smoke.
Reflections, ghosts, uprootings. Bogotá traversed. Bogotá: Arango Editores, District Institute of Culture and Tourism,
1999.) 14. In the previous text, A. the description of the material environment of a city predominates starting from a bus trip.
through the center of it. B. the narration of the journey that someone makes on a bus through the center of a city and the presentation
from their reflections. C. the characterization of a city based on the relationship between public transport and the
individual. D. the presentation of a theory on how to discover falsehood within a city. 15. Another
Possible title for the previous text would be: A. The city and transportation. B. Chaos and transportation. C. The city can be read. D.
Public transport. 16. The text primarily features a narration that combines A. the first person singular and the
second person plural. B. the third person plural and the third person singular. C. the first person of
singular and the first person plural. D. the second person plural and the third person singular. 17. The
"A simulation is the substitution of the real by the signs of the real" is introduced in the text with the intention
to argue the idea that reading the city is reading ourselves.
starting from a bus trip through the city. C. propose a method to read the city based on the approaches of
Baudrillard. D. discusses Baudrillard's conception regarding the possibility of finding the city. 18. From the statement
"We, the passengers, substitute reality, we are the landscape" it can be concluded that A. the individuals who
the components of the mass are just objects to be observed. B. whenever one becomes part of something collective, it is inevitable
supplant reality. C. the concept of landscape is based on the non-existence of individuality. D. the object that
The reality constitutes the same subject that observes it. 19. The expressions will be friends and perhaps companions of
work, located in the third paragraph, have been printed in italics with the intention of A. introducing comments that
the author of the text does for himself. B. formulate questions from the author of the text to his readers. C. indicate dialogues
between the author and the narrator of the text. D. to highlight the involvement of one of the characters in the text. 20. When the
The text speaks of apathetic and indifferent communities, referring to A. the people who walk through the city center.
some individuals who critically observe the city.
public transport users in the city.