FTCE Professional Education Practice Exam

Identifying the main idea in a reading passage primarily assesses which comprehension skill?

1. Analysis

2. Summarization

3. Interpretation

4. Synthesis

The correct answer is: Summarization

Identifying the main idea in a reading passage is primarily about recognizing the core message that the author is conveying. This skill involves distilling the essential information and concepts presented in a text into a concise statement that captures its essence. Summarization requires readers to sift through the details and subordinate ideas to arrive at the overall point, helping them to understand the text in a more meaningful and coherent way. In this context, summarization also plays a critical role in effective reading comprehension because it enables learners to engage with the material at a deeper level, facilitating retention and understanding of key themes and ideas. By summarizing, readers are actively processing the information, allowing them to make connections and enhance their overall comprehension skills. Although analysis, interpretation, and synthesis are essential comprehension skills, each focuses on different aspects of understanding text. Analysis deals with breaking down and examining the components of a text, interpretation involves making sense of the information, and synthesis requires combining ideas from multiple sources or texts. Identifying the main idea, however, specifically aligns with the act of summarizing to capture the text's key point.