Reorder Paragraph is a sub-task of the Reading module. In this task, you will get a few paragraphs that are randomly ordered. You will have to rearrange them to form a logical order. This task tests your reading and understand skills. Your score is evaluated on how correctly you arrange the sentences of the paragraph. If you manage to arrange all of them in the correct order then you will get full points but if you arrange them in the wrong order then you will lose points. You do get partial points for arranging some of them correctly. PTE mock test will help you get acquainted with this sub-task.
We have put tips that will help you to score more on the Reorder Paragraph task.
Understand the main idea
Before you dive into arranging the paragraphs in the right order, you should first read all the sentences. Try to understand the context and overall idea of the paragraph. To arrange them in the right and meaningful order, you will need to understand the purpose of each of the paragraphs. So read them thoroughly before starting to arrange them.
Find the topic sentence or the first paragraph
The first sentence is the topic sentence. So start looking for the topic sentence from the given paragraphs. Read all the sentences to find out which one gives an overall idea of the passage. There are a few points that you should consider while looking for the topic sentence. It is a stand-alone sentence and does not depend on any other sentence. The first paragraph has some distinctive characteristics and gives the overall idea of the whole text. It does not begin with a pronoun or give a reference to a person or something. If you come across sentences that begin with connectives then they are not topic sentences. You can eliminate them. Use these tips for finding the topic sentence while solving this task on the PTE mock test.
Find the logical order
You need to figure out the right order of the sentences. Look for some link between sentences that will help you to understand the order. Try to find the time sequences in the sentences. They give an indication of the past, present or future. This will help you to quickly find the right order. Another trick is to look for acronyms. They are short forms of names and terms. If they are present in the paragraphs then both the full form and short form will be there. The sentence that contains the full form will come before the sentence that contains the short form. The second paragraph will describe more about the things mentioned in the first paragraph. Make sure it is connected to the first paragraph in some way.
Use Grammar to find the right order
Grammar will also help you to arrange them in a meaningful order. Look for articles like 'a' and 'an' because they are mostly used to introduce a topic. Whereas, 'The' is used for a person or something that has already been introduced before in the paragraph. You should then look for adverbs, pronouns and words like 'but', 'forever', etc.
Search if there are any demonstrative pronouns. They are used to refer to nouns or noun phrases. When they are used in a sentence then it means that the previous sentence contains the relating noun or noun phrase. If you find a sentence containing a personal pronoun without any mention of a person, place or object then it means that it has already been mentioned in the sentence that comes before it. Use this tip on the PTE mock test to link sentences in the right order.
There are other tricks like looking for transitional words amongst the sentences. They help to give a smooth shift from one idea to another so you can logically link two sentences. Try to use these tips on the practice tests or PTE mock test and see how your score improves.
Use the trial and error technique
The trial and error method helps you to eliminate the wrong choices. Begin with a topic sentence and move ahead to look for sentences that link with it. After arranging them you should read the whole paragraph together to check if it sounds perfect. In case, something sounds off then change the order. Follow this tip during PTE mock test. Sometimes when we arrange them, we do not realize that two sentences are not linked properly. But when we speak them then we find that they do not sound like they are going with each other. If you are confused between two paragraphs then you should keep each of them in that position and read it out. Try to analyze how it affects the sequence of the other paragraphs and what meaning is conveyed.
Do enough practice
You should put all the above tips and strategies in use while attempting the Reorder Paragraphs task on the PTE mock test and evaluate your performance. See if your score has improved after making use of all the above tricks. You should also try to practice this task on practice tests. Once you have practiced this task thoroughly then it will be easy to tackle it in the PTE exam. You can also solve exercises and sample questions that are available on the internet in order to improve your score. Make sure you work on your grammar skills as they help in finding the right order.
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